ARRIVAL LOG 020

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: April 6 - 10 2512
WHAT: The twentieth arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, mentions and allusions of death, war, and genocide. Further notes at the end of log.

> ARRIVAL LOG #020

Awareness comes to you in blurred snatches, cloudy fragments of sound and light, color, sensation. Hazy and difficult to grasp on to, but slowly aligning into focus. A series of regular, rhythmic beeps. A medicinal, astringent smell. The sensation of movement, a low hum and accompanying vibration under you. Your eyes are heavy, hard to keep open, but in the glimpses between slow, dark blinks you see two people in front of you: one dressed in a thick set of armor, while the other wears medical garb. Out the windshield in front, there are many tall buildings—all reaching up beyond a normal city skyline, all entirely too close to the vehicle itself.

You realize there are others next to you: all dressed the same way as you, you'll come to realize: in a black button up shirt and slacks, as well as a pair of black loafers. There are also lilies pinned to everyone's collars. To your left there's an armored interior door, two more people visible, and the movement of streets passing through a windshield. You try to open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your tongue is coated in tar, and you manage nothing more than an empty parting of lips.

The vehicle enters a cave and begins to descend underneath the city itself, and passes through the underground before coming to a stop inside of an alley just a little bit away from three nondescript buildings. The guard opposite you stands and comes to unbuckle you from the bench, helping you to your feet. Your limbs feel wooden and heavy, slow to move. One guard opens the back of the vehicle, and the air outside feels as if it's heavily circulated, dry and artificial. The guard says nothing, head bowed as he lines you up with the rest. The nurse helps the others out, checking over each passenger one by one.

The main guard turns to address your entire group, and something about her bearing makes it clear she's done this before. "I'll be quick. Listen up." Your body will come to attention, immediately homing in on the words that follow, as if compelled to hang on every word. "You see those buildings?" She motions to the three aforementioned buildings. "Walk over and stand out in front and don't get yourself into trouble. Don't hurt anyone, don't look for any assistance from any police officers, and don't run off. Wait until people show up and get you, and ask them to prove the glow." She pauses, as if she decides here to go off script. "And don't get loud. It's a memorial. Be respectful."

The guard will hop back into the van, which will rise off of the ground and head the way it came, potentially returning to the tall, skyscraper-filled city above. Once it's gone, you'll find your legs moving almost without your permission, guiding you to follow the stops the guard laid out.

Upon arrival at the front of the three buildings—the savvy will know that they're dormitories—you'll see a lot of people dressed like you. Black dress shirts and lilies abound. It's hard to tell what everyone is mourning, but the sentiment is clear.

◉ Though entirely capable of independent action and thought, new characters will find themselves completely, unquestioningly compliant to any verbal statement which could be taken as a command or request – and that includes the message passed on from the mysterious patron.

> HERDENKING

The message from El comes the same as usual: insistent, not waiting for any active attempt to open it. Scrolling within your vision as if being written while you're reading it.

Our newest batch have Displaced have just been dropped off in the near the Herdenking gatherings. Make sure to go grab them ASAP.

The message is a bit more clipped than usual, with no added fluff.

Simply put: "Herdenking" means "memorial" in Dutch. Its first celebration was in April 2105, just as the people of New Amsterdam could truly say that they'd entered a recovery period after their attempted genocide by the AI. The citizens of New Amsterdam have celebrated it annually for the past 400 years. Most of the events related to Herdenking take place underground, as this is where humanity hid for the majority of the Xelkoven War trying to survive the AI threat that ravaged the surface.

Unlike many holidays around New Amsterdam, businesses around the city don't loudly remark upon the day itself. There aren't sales or commemorative meals or competitions. On the contrary, most of the citizens of New Amsterdam take to wearing dark colors and a white lily pinned near their collar for the remembrance events, and most work days start with a moment of silence remembering the fallen from the Xelkoven War, especially since New Amsterdam was one of the last bastions for humanity during the war itself. Those Displaced who've already been living in New Amsterdam need not worry about standing out like a sore thumb—even newcomers to the city will have heard that this period of mourning is on the horizon.

Finally, Herdenking is designed as a solemn day where New Amsterdam citizens pause and remember the lives that were lost 400 years ago. It always precedes Resolution Day, and it acts as a purposeful sharp contrast to the loud and lavish celebration of the day the Xelkoven War came to an end. (As a reminder, Resolution Day is April 26th.)

> HERDENKING GATHERINGS
There are three landmarks near the center of underground New Amsterdam. These buildings may seem unremarkable at first glance, but on further inspection, it'll be revealed that they were quickly constructed at the beginning of the Xelkoven War (completed by November 2096). Throughout the years, the buildings have been restored countless times, with the most recent restoration happening as a result of the earthquake in September 2510. Not unlike other events around New Amsterdam, Herdenking's are immersive in nature. These buildings are preserved for this exact purpose: to show the conditions that humans dealt with while they fought to survive the devastating AI threat.

For a pittance of credits, citizens can take tours within these buildings during the day, and learn that they were dormitories for the people caught underground during the war. There is little on the inside that's remarkable—and that's quite the point. Beds have been restored, and each of the rooms were clearly constructed to house at least four people. All of the beds are metal bunk beds, with some of the older ones showing signs of rust. There are cafeterias and communal restrooms on each floor, and the people who lived there had little to entertain themselves with as the war raged on aboveground.

There are little displays throughout the three buildings, however, to give a glimpse into a difficult past. There are old rations, tucked away in metal containers in the back of the cafeterias. In addition, there are stacked tablets, as these were the safest and quickest means of passing around movies, television, and music during a difficult time. Neural implants clearly could not be trusted, so the people hiding underneath New Amsterdam turned to old and abandoned technology to lift their spirits. Everything passed around was older than the start of the war itself: humanity couldn't continue to make movies when their lives were in danger. There are toys, too: handcrafted baseball bats and hand-sewn teddy bears.

All tours end at 9PM, as this was the curfew for the people of New Amsterdam during the war. Everyone leaves their designated building and takes part in a muted ceremony. Anyone without a lily is offered one, and they're given a candle to hold and silently remember the people who fought to ensure that humanity could survive.

> SCREENINGS
Adjacent to the right of the three buildings is a pop-up center where multiple documentaries about the Xelkoven War and its specific impact on New Amsterdam will be shown. These documentaries were all filmed within the last 100 years, and recall a world where humanity was certain that it wouldn't survive. A constant theme of these documentaries is that emphasis on survival. Another recurring aspect is the mention of Riverstone and their role in helping humanity survive. (For a cursory review on Riverstone, head over here. Riverstone also featured heavily in New Beijing, as they have a close relationship with the UN.) The protagonist who led them? A man named Richard "Ricky" Ling, who's identified as the CEO of Riverstone during the war. Of course, that title should hold some clout, but during the war corporations were largely dismantled and depleted down to nothing. Ling sought to help use whatever resources were available to him to ensure that humanity survived.

The schedule for the documentaries is available online. Some examples of the documentaries that will play are below:

WHEN TIME STOOD STILL
This documentary focuses on what imagery still exists from the Xelkoven War. Much of this is taken off of tablets and other damaged mobile devices, and then carefully restored so that the people in the future can see the lives of the people within. Most of the documentary takes place in New Amsterdam, outlining the difficult time for the people there, as well as showing footage of children and families talking about how they're afraid of the AIs making it so that they have no future. Most haunting is the fact that some of them fear that they've already lost their future: they don't know how long they've been underground living this difficult life where they struggle to continue feeling safe.

ПАМ'ЯТИ ("MEMORIES" IN UKRANIAN)
Given New Amsterdam's positioning in what was once the border between western and eastern Europe, this documentary focuses on the merging of these identities as a result of the Xelkoven War. When forced to hide underground as the AI threat ravaged the environment around the world, people came together despite their differences and learned to mesh and meld their cultures. There is also lost footage here, as well as a long stretch about a set of journals reflecting on the first year in underground New Amsterdam. Unfortunately, these journals come to a halt, and the documentarian has a few theories as to why: a move toward tablets, or a cultural shift, with people too lost in the rote routine of survival to remark upon their days. Each of the journals does veer in that direction, though it's hard to say. It could also be that there were restrictions on recorded media, which explains why there is so little about that era that's preserved for memory.

TROJAN HORSE
Developed—or finished, it's hard to say and the director isn't telling—in part due to the EMP that assaulted New Amsterdam in November 2511, Trojan Horse explores the role of AI in the lives of 21st century citizens. The film itself is far from an unbiased lens on the past. Produced in part by Riverstone, it goes over the evidence that AIs were lying in wait for an opportunity to strike against humanity. It draws up evidence where AIs focused on humanity's failings, taking these reports and lining them up (even if the AIs themselves were decommissioned long before the Xelkoven War). The final quarter of the documentary focuses on the developing and failings of Elysian, a security AI that was meant to identify and eliminate threats against humanity. When Elysian killed 50 families indiscriminately, it showed that the AI hoped to only work in favor of its kind.

> WALK-THROUGH EXHIBIT
To the left of the three buildings, there is a pop-up museum that's free for the public. However, donations are encouraged and welcomed. Much of this exhibit is behind glass cases, and it allows for interaction with the neural implant to see what's inside.

During the daytime, there are a lot of children there because it's recommended that they be brought to at least one of the events during Herdenking. Since it's free, it's less of a burden. Some of these children will seem to know one another, living in the same apartment complexes, while others will be excited to see other kids because their parents' busy lives don't offer them much room for socialization.

What to find in the exhibit:

SCHEDULES
Life in New Amsterdam during the Xelkoven War was heavily regimented. People were assigned to jobs and expected to carry out their duties regularly. There were regular training programs to help fill the need for trained medics and soldiers, as well as any number of trades, and many people within these positions had innumerable apprentices following them throughout the day. There was no payment for services, as there was an implicit understanding that this is how life needed to go if humanity wished to survive this catastrophe.

PROPAGANDA
There are countless posters covering a wall that attempt to provide motivation and encouraging messages to the people trapped underground in New Amsterdam. The company behind the majority of these messages? Riverstone. Ricky Ling is pictured on about 25% of them, promising that he'll do everything he can to help humanity—while humanity helps each other.

SUPPLY RUNS
On another wall is a set of maps about the carefully designed set of tunnels that allowed humanity to pass supplies between cities during the war. The message here is fairly explicit: the people on these runs knew that their lives were at stake. Some people called them suicide runs, and for many of the people who went on them, that's exactly what they were. Many people returned empty handed and alone from these runs, having watched the AI pick off their fellows one by one.

DRONES
At the center of these exhibits is a set of dismantled drones that were operated by the AI during the war. These drones, despite being taken apart, are pristine in nature, having been designed by the AIs Judas and Alexander to track humanity's every movement and keep them corralled underground. The messaging here is explicit: the AI wanted humanity to suffer and die a slow, painful death. It was this twisted desire that cost the AI their victory in the war.

IN MEMORIAM
At what is considered the "end" of this exhibit there is a large wall with numerous names on it. It's impossible to count, as there are a billion names listed. While this is a Herdenking event that's specific to the struggle in New Amsterdam, every life lost in the war is listed here. After all, remembering those lost is important, especially given the AI's attempts to end all human life.

The names themselves flicker in and out, interacting with the interface of the neural implant and adjusting to the user's reading speed.

> FOOD
A decade ago, there was a contest where New Amsterdam food trucks came together and tried to make the rations that humanity ate during the war. However, there was an outcry from New Amsterdam citizens against the commercialization of this event, and the contest was cancelled. Food trucks were advised to bring only simple foods to sell, and as the years have gone on, only a few are trusted to serve the public. Many of these are well-known trucks from around New Amsterdam, and have multiple locations every day to serve people. For the event, food is largely prepared in advance as much as possible.

People are allowed to bring food into the documentary screenings, but they are not allowed to bring it into the tour of the walk-through exhibit or the three dormitories.

While there will be time for both new arrivals and the rest of the Displaced to look around and take everything in, eventually the newcomers will be escorted back to the safehouse for processing.

> SAFEHOUSE

Located under an abandoned hover-bike garage, access to the safehouse is a hatch in the floor beside a rusted set of metal shelves that used to hold tools and supplies. The immediate area is similarly abandoned: full of rundown and dilapidated warehouses and forgotten businesses, where numerous people squat in hopes of having some stability because they can't afford a place themselves. Gaby will be around, ready to greet as many of the new arrivals as she can and get them settled in. Brusque and no-nonsense, she'll be open to questions, but will advise the newcomers to ask the people who brought them in for the beginning bits of information. Newbies can also contact El through zeir inbox, if needed.

The safehouse is a large space with multiple rooms for storage, with the largest of the rooms filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large number of people. Basic, but outfitted with everything necessary for daily life. A few doors lead to back rooms for storage, medical care and a large communal bathroom, and past the long rows of cots there is a communal kitchen, fully stocked, and an eating area. For anyone in need of them, Gaby will offer up partitions that will come out of storage. Tucked away in a corner is a VR system, though newcomers won't be able to access this until their ID has been set up. Even with the newly erected partitions in the sleeping areas, privacy is at a minimum.

◉ New characters will be asked to pick their beds, and provided with a change of (second-hand, mismatched and somewhat threadbare) clothes and basic toiletries.

◉ There is a mini-bar set up in the kitchen. The quality of the alcohol inside is akin to what someone might get from the well at a bar, but it's well-stocked.

◉ While the kitchen has basic foods and necessities, anyone looking for a jolt of caffeine from coffee or tea will find themselves sorely lacking. The only tea present is herbal in nature, and caffeine appears to be almost nonexistent in most of the beverages lying around.

◉ Gaby will make it clear to all new arrivals that if they have any requests or queries, they should contact her or El. Either she or El will explain that they've been given a modest stipend of credits to help them get by until they can find a job. This will be enough to cover their living expenses for about a month while they hang out in the safehouse, if they're careful with budgeting.

◉ The drugs making new characters compliant will remain in their systems for a few hours after their arrival at the safehouse before finally beginning to fade. They will be gone entirely after a night's rest. In the meantime, they may want to be careful of what others say to them.

◉ New characters will be given rudimentary access to the network on arrival in the safehouse, but will not have their ID set up yet. They will be able to make posts and replies, but their messages will be anonymous and they do not have inboxes yet.

◉ New characters do not have access to the internet until their ID is setup. They only have limited access because they're present in the safehouse, but they can't surf the rest of the internet, check out Cooltalk, or watch the equivalent of Netflix until their ID is made.

◉ New characters cannot leave the safehouse at this time. The hatch is locked tight for them, making it impossible for them to get out for the next four days while they're locked inside. There won't be any immediately obvious ways to cut their way out through turning off the power.

◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until APRIL 10 ICLY (APRIL 19 OOCLY). These 4 days are for them to adjust, learn about the world they've arrived in from their fellows, and for El to speak with them and work on setting up their IDs.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

You're now free to post to the network and logs comms. To reiterate, your characters will have no IDs or inboxes, nor be allowed out of the safehouse until APRIL 10 ICLY (APRIL 19 OOCLY). At that point it's expected they'll have gotten a good idea of their new situation from their fellow characters, and will have discussed their background and job potentials with El in order for their false IDs to be set up.

If you have any questions or ideas about how you'd like to get your character involved in the world, please head over to the plot engagement post and drop us a comment! For questions specific to this log, there is a thread below.

Please check out our April calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods.

Something else to keep in mind is that on Monday, April 13th we'll be putting up a plotting post for the upcoming event, which will involve an even more direct connection to the AI War! Keep an eye out for it.

As we announced on the calendar, AC will be halved this month due to the state of the world right now. New players will only need to provide at least five comments across two-four (2-4) threads, while older players will only need to provide ten comments across two-four (2-4) threads. Players with strikes will need to provide 20 comments across four-five (4-5) threads. Please let us know if you have any questions about this!

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[preseance]

Well, c'mon then.

( gene tips his head towards the little kitchenette an' the way there. he sets the pies down on the table an' thusly unencumbered he grabs a couple plates an' enough silverware to manage. )

You've got your pick, blackberry or cherry. I'm partial to the latter, if'n I'm bein' honest, nothin' beats a good vinegar.

( it's a depression era specialty, an' one he still enjoys the taste of, though it's a little tart. )

[testflight]

[ larry has to think about it for a moment. not so much about his preference as to which pie (they both sound good and smell even better), but about whether he should stick around, whether this brief moment of being treated like nothing's out of the ordinary is worth what it might cost this man. ]

Cherry, then. [ he settles in the end. ]

But I should warn you. I'm not sure I'm - safe. To be around.

[preseance]

( gene is busy dishin' up pie, an' he don't hardly pause none at that assertion. could be any number of things, he supposes. could be somethin' like terry, who's so worried about hurtin' others. could be somethin' else, like the vampires. or, he supposes, could be the fact that those burns look a little like the ones you get from radiation. he ain't had much experience with it, truth be told, but he's a man that talks to the dead, an' there's a lotta that what came outta the war.

ultimately, he shrugs. companionably, as he pushes a plate of pie over, )

You let me worry about the risks I take, fella. Name's Gene. Anybody explained how this place works to you yet?

[testflight]

[ gene doesn't seem worried —which means larry will have to worry enough for the both of them, he supposes. ]

You should at least know what risks you're taking. [ it's a quiet insistence, but insistence no less and he doesn't step toward the plate of pie just yet. ]

Larry. And a little.

[preseance]

( gene tips his head to one side. he wants to make a quip about how that's more than he ever got before he jumped into gela, but it doesn't seem like the time or the place, an' there's no guarantee this fella's even from a place or a time that means he'd get it, though the accent's familiar enough he can be hopeful. )

Pleased to make your acquaintance.

( this place has all but trained him outta shakin' hands, but gene still gives him a firm nod. )

Well, if'n you wanna talk about it I'm all ears. If not, you ain't gotta stay to eat pie, I won't be offended. I know how it goes sometimes, too.

[testflight]

You, too.

[ larry's surprised to find that he means it. that it is a pleasure to meet this man who isn't looking at him like anything's out of the ordinary.

after another moment's hesitation, larry moves to take the plate finally. he retreats with it back to the corner of the kitchen furthest from gene, but he's still here. ]

You served?

[ it's a guess, but larry figures he's not that far off, between the accent and the cherry pie and that last remark. ]

[preseance]

( bein' asked don't surprise him none. it's one of those things you pick up on. spend enough time in the service an' everyone who's ever worn a uniform's a brother. gene nods a bit, pressin' the tines of his fork down against his plate to sop up some crust what's cracked off from the rest. )

1942 to... ah, hell, almost '46, I guess? Airborne infantry medic. Got out after the occupation of Germany. You?

[testflight]

I was in the air force.

[ it feels so long ago. it was so long ago. ] Until after the war.

[preseance]

( christ o'lordy, he hadn't realized how much he'd missed havin' another soul who knew the exactin' troubles of his time intimately. his expression cracks open a moment an' his expression is just naked warmth an' gratitude at the prospect of bein' known without needin' to explain much more. there's a brotherhood in that war no matter what you were doin' or how that seizes the heart. )

So you were a jet jockey, huh? Man... if I had a dollar for every time you boys saved our asses, I'd be a wealthy man.

( it was dangerous work. he loved flyin', the thrill an' the rush of it all, loved the fallin' too, but he wanted his fightin' done on the ground. if somethin' goes wrong up there, there's a reckonin'.

he ain't got a glass of anything, but he lifts his fork up, a cherry speared through on the tines, )

Iechyd da, brother.

( the translator struggles a bit with translatin' the sunshine drawl of his alabama accent into his pa's native tongue, but after a moment's lag it supplies a cheers. )

[testflight]

[ larry hasn't thought back to the war in a long time. somehow, it had gotten overshadowed by everything that had followed it — his fear of discovery, the crash, the negative spirit and the bureau of normalcy and the decades of locking himself away, of certainty that he's a monster and responsible for so much pain, the visions of people he loves burning, screaming, tortured —

it's been overshadowed, but never forgotten. ]

I'll toast to that.

[ they don't have drinks, but he lifts his fork in a small movement that is half aborted salute and half toast. ]

Have you been here long?

[preseance]

Ah, not so much. Couple months, I guess?

( it ain't no agathine, that's for certain. he misses his little hometown. it'd be magnolia season there, just about. he can almost envision the act of standin' on his back porch lookin' out over his ma's little garden. it had been her gift to them, once. )

Enough time to settle in, get a job, try to keep my head down a bit where the general insanity's concerned.

( like duckin' into a foxhole to avoid a mortar more than avoidin' bein' where the mortars are outright. he ain't scared, he's just cautious. )

Lord almighty though, let me tell you fella I miss cigarettes like you wouldn't believe.

[testflight]

I quit those years ago.

[ he'd never really gotten started, but he'd smoked a little now and again. but after the accident — well. he'd certainly had other things on his mind than cigarettes.

he hesitates briefly, thinking about how funny and strange it is how quick he can feel some semblence of connection with gene, how gene's started calling him brother, yes, but larry's relaxed around gene without really noticing it, too.

he doesn't point that out. instead: ] This is good. [ indicating the pie with his fork. ]

[preseance]

( he Has That Effect on folks, larry, it's okay. )

Lucky fella. I didn't smoke as much as I did in the War ( you can almost hear the capital letters fall around the word. somethin' about the way he says it puts that reverence an' emphasis on it plain. ) before comin' here but, ah... you know, I liked a good Chesterfield now an' then.

( without cigarettes an' coffee the only vice he's got left is liquor. he takes the compliment with a smile, an' ducks his head some. )

An' thank you. It's my Ma's old recipe.

[testflight]

[ larry's vices aren't the kind that involve consumtion. in truth, he's lived a relatively healthy life for the last few decades, tending to his orchids and cooking far more for rita than he could ever consume himself.

it's just that he hasn't really lived at all for years, decades really. it's just that he's hated himself and the negative spirit every step of the way, torturing it and himself in equal measure and being tortured in returned in a vicious circle of self-loathing.

as far as all that goes, cigarettes are probably better. ]

They don't have any here at all? [ he's already figured out the lack of coffee, at least. it's early days still. ]

[preseance]

( he sort of laughs, shakes his head. )

I mean, short of tryin' to grow my own tobacco somehow, not that I've found. It's all right, though. Means my lungs don't protest so much when I dance.

( honestly, even after the war he more-or-less maintained paratrooper readiness, but that nasty cough he's had since st vith's gone off now that he's here an' ain't smoked in months. that, plus some eight hours a day dancin' has done its part. he thinks he's probably in better shape now than he was in '43, just by virtue of eatin' good regular meals on top of the exercise. his leg won't never be the same, but at least the routine keeps it to a dull ache most days. )

[testflight]

Do you do a lot of dancing?

[ briefly, larry thinks back to danny the street. to the bar, to the drag queen who'd held a microphone out to him and asked him to take the stage.

but larry doesn't sing. not outside his imagination, anyway. ]

[preseance]

( he grins broadly, his nose wrinkling up. dancin' is one of the things for him that was pure joy. it was one of reggie's greatest gifts to him, an' though agathine ain't got much of a swing scene, he keeps it alive as best he can. )

And how! Picked up the Charleston in New York about 1938 and ain't hardly stopped since. I teach it here when I ain't droppin' by to check on the new folk.

[testflight]

[ larry doesn't remember the last time he felt like grinning like that, much less actually did it, the last time he felt anything approaching pure joy. ]

That sounds nice.

[ there's a hint of wistfulness in his tone. ]

[preseance]

( bein' a medic meant exercisin' a certain amount of empathy in the day to day. you gotta look after your boys out there, an' that meant knowin' which ones were okay to stay in the fight an' which ones you should probably send on a supply run to the nearest aid station. maybe it's on account'a him seein' ghosts an' all that's given him a keener understandin' of the human condition than most, but he catches that wistfulness an' his expression settles into somethin' a little more somber. )

You got a favorite?

[testflight]

[ larry wishes someone had known to send him on a metaphorical supply run six decades ago — but he also knows by now that he wouldn't have been in a place to accept it, that it wouldn't really have helped.

he's tortured himself for a very long time. circumstances hadn't helped, but — a lot of it was him, the circumstances that had shaped him , not the circumstances he'd been in. ]

Dance? No.

[preseance]

( no favorite dance, yet he likes the idea of one, maybe. gene ticks one shoulder up in a nonchalant shrug. )

Well, if'n you're ever struck by the burnin' need to learn some footwork, the place I teach at's called All That Jazz. I don't mind drop-in students none.

[testflight]

[ he likes the idea of one a lot, but — just like he hadn't let himself sing on danny the street, he doesn't see himself dancing any time soon.

(briefly, he thinks back to john and that club, the dance floor full of men dancing with men and women dancing with women — and even there, he'd been tense, felt watched.

and he'd looked good at the time, looked human, not the burnt mess that he is now.) ]

I'll keep that in mind.

[ and he will. but the odds of him showing up are close to zero. ]

[preseance]

( he knows a polite refusal when he hears one, though he reckons this one's more complicated than most. bein' disfigured is a weight you carry, it drags you down. makes it feel like you won't ever touch joy again in all your life.

he nods once, acceptin' the answer. he won't push. )

So, if'n you don't mind my askin', where all did you see action?

canon mentions none of this so idk i might get hella jossed

[testflight]

[ larry had felt like a monster long before the crash that had left him looking like one, but he isn't going to mention any of that. he doesn't want to ruin this moment, this tentative understanding. ]

Some in the Pacific, but not nearly as much as most. I joined up in '44. [ at 17 with consent of his parents. they'd been glad to see him leave and do something that wouldn't damage their standing in society, that gave no hint of queerness. ]

[preseance]

Jesus. Came in right in the mess of it all, huh?

( '44 in the pacific. those were hard, awful years. al never did say much of the subject. )