EVENT #009 (THE SIMULATION)

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone inside of the simulation.
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: The back half of April 2512, starting on April 16, 2512.
WHAT: Judas takes his revenge, starting with the people of New Amsterdam.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Human torture, experimentation, implications of potential genocide, mentions of human work camps and compulsory working conditions.

> EVENT 009 (THE SIMULATION)

The calm before the storm in New Amsterdam looks a bit like this: the city is beginning preparations for Resolution Day. While many of the businesses that close their doors for the big event are waiting until the last minute, there are numerous stands going up all around the town, mapping out the procession of merriment for the festivities ahead. To the citizens of New Amsterdam who have been here for a while, Resolution Day is a big day. A chance to forget. The last year has been lined with weighted events that left the populous dealing with loss after loss. Thousands of people have died. More than that have suffered, living in tent cities while being reminded that being a part of the lower rungs of society meant that they would mean nothing to a world ruled by the ring of upper elite.

The storm changes all that. It puts every single person in New Amsterdam on the same playing field. When the simulation begins, it happens rapidly, like a series of waves hitting the beach. A blink of an eye and the people in New Amsterdam are forcibly placed into suspended animation, unable to place what just hit them. Their bodies will stop dead as their mind enters the simulation, causing a brief confusion of displacement as the brain tries to reconcile its predicament. There may be a vague moment of recognition for some: denial of what's happening, realization that they can't move—and then it all shifts.

Overhead, the sky goes black. The underground of New Amsterdam is nigh claustrophobic, with numerous hastily built dormitories lining the narrow streets. The streets themselves give the feeling of restriction, and are poorly lit with limited ventilation. Numerous signs and posters are plastered over one another, lining the walls: they detail schedules, offer encouragement, and there are even graffiti messages from those who want desperately to be heard. Most importantly, the schedules help track the days in a place where the sun doesn't rise and set.

How long has it been? According to the most recent schedule, it's April 16, 2100. The people of New Amsterdam have survived by huddling close together underground for over four years, and hope to manage a bit longer, even if they're unsure what the future will bring. At least they could say that they survived.

Hope is promised to be on the horizon. That's what the posters say. That's what Ricky Ling promises with a smile. "Be strong and work together as we have. Change is coming."

> LIFE AS WE KNOW IT

To the "waking world," the transition to the simulation is almost immediate. To the people caught within its depths, the circumstances are far different. Everyone will wake up inside of the simulation in unison: resting in a bed in assigned public housing. The rooms themselves are cramped and offer little opportunity for privacy or movement, and many of them lack windows. After all, the scenery outside of the buildings isn't terribly memorable: it's the inside of a cave system that's existed in this region for a couple of millenia, carved out and given more life out of necessity.

After everyone wakes up and heads out, they'll be escorted by building managers for their daily assignments. There will be schedules in the downstairs portion of each building, informing them of their roles, their task for the day, and what they're set to accomplish. These building managers are part of the simulation, put there by Judas to ensure that everyone starts off on the "right foot." They will be there every morning, ensuring that the people of New Amsterdam know what role they're playing.

> SURVIVING
Air inside of the cave system is limited and unpleasant. There's a chemical odor at the edge of every breath, as if it's provided out of a plastic bag to allow everyone to breathe. The temperature is manageable, but when there are too many people crammed into one place, it goes up rapidly, making any room stuffy and humid. Even if no one is outside, there's the sense that the air out there is uninhabitable, and that the climate is far from survivable. For that reason, the cave system offers little reprieve. It's April even in the simulation, and that means that the temperature is beginning to ramp up quickly.

For anyone who needs additional information about these conditions, they can ask their building managers. The answers will all be the same: the humans were the ones who started this war to protect themselves from the AI threat, but the world was already in disarray. Ignoring the effects of climate change had ravaged the planet almost beyond repair. Worse, World War III accelerated the timeline tenfold thanks to the decimation of North America. Now it's time for everyone to survive, to do what they can and to work together.

There will be other simulated people around who can provide answers, but they'll need to be identified—while the building managers are more obvious people in a position of authority. For anyone whose duty in life is a bit more unsavory, the building manager will pull them aside and let them know where to go and how to handle the "new shipment." It seems that these managers are "in" on whatever Black Market business has developed in these trying circumstances.

Life in this version of New Amsterdam is rote. People are given assigned housing, though some are understood to be "families." People are encouraged to have children, though they know that not everyone is interested in raising them in this world. Everything is about a routine: wake up early, check your duties for the day, and set out for your jobs. Every job is necessary, whether it's making food supplies, helping with medical care, or helping clean up the dormitories. Keeping them clean and sanitary is important. There are always dormitories being built, so don't be surprised if someone's on construction duty. There will be simulated foremen on the sites to help out and direct them to where they need to go. There is security detail, too, for those who'd like to be out late.

Meals are given three times a day, and a bell rings throughout the underground to tell people to prepare for their rations. Organization of rations is done by surnames, so everyone will go in shifts to get their cube of food (full of nutrients, but tasteless in flavor).

Curfew is a strict 9 PM—unless someone's on security or on a supply run.

> COMMUNICATION
One of the things that's not on a curfew is communication. Everyone within the simulation will have a portable device tucked in their pockets when they first wake up, granting them access to a local network so that they can communicate among themselves. These devices only work in underground New Amsterdam, so they won't function on supply runs. In fact, they will be temporarily confiscated when someone goes on a supply run for security reasons.

There will be an understanding that everyone within the simulation is without a neural implant. At some point, they must have been removed, and there are scars indicating that the implants once existed. This, too, can be confirmed via a building manager.

The local network has a message board of sorts that allows people to communicate and discuss their situation. There is no private function on this message board. If someone has a mobile device on hand, they will be able to access the network.

If someone wants a more private means of communication, there will be notebooks around. However, these are in high demand. Paper was already being phased out before the Xelkoven War even got started, and many of these notebooks are being utilized for personal journals, memoirs and historical records so that the memories of what's happening can live on.

> RECREATION
Life in a veritable apocalypse isn't without its joys. While curfews are strictly enforced for the safety of everyone trapped underground, the "fun" part of the day begins at 5PM. That's when the last round of rations are given out, and people are allowed to end their day job to go out and relax. In these trying times, there are numerous dance parties happening in the evening, with plenty of moonshine and recreational drugs to go around.

When people aren't lost in dance trying to forget, they play cards with frayed edges, or group up around a small, portable tablet or DVD player to watch a movie or three. The hope is that they can calm down, enjoy themselves, and get lost in another world. And if they can't do that? At least they can pass the time. To help everything go along more smoothly, they may take drugs before they settle in, and anyone who stands around waiting to catch a movie will find something offered to them.

In order to ensure that recreation goes off without a hitch, a Black Market for good movies, drugs, and even alcohol has developed in the past few years. Most of the supplies on the market are geared toward human enjoyment. A lot of kids and family friendly movies are readily available, but anyone looking for pornography or R-rated movies may have to ask around to see what they can find. Drugs are synthetic and made in the caves, but locating these laboratories is nearly impossible: it seems that they regularly move so that they aren't shut down. They believe they're delivering a service to the good people of New Amsterdam, but others—like Ricky Ling—think the drugs will just render people incapable of surviving in the long run.

> SUPPLY RUNS AND CAPTURE
From day one inside of the simulation, there will be an understanding: everyone has to carry their weight. This is how it was during the Xelkoven War, and that's how it has to be now. That means everyone has to put themselves at risk and be assigned to supply runs. These assignments are random, and involve wearing gas masks as people head out through the tunnel systems out into the world. Of course, if anyone wants to protect other people assigned to these runs, they can Katniss it up and volunteer as tribute.

The tunnel systems are rather expansive (much more than they are outside of the simulation), and will provide sufficient cover for much of the runs themselves. But eventually, the people on these runs will need to risk exposure to the elements outside. These elements are unpleasant: there will be a dark gray "sky," and any rain will be highly corrosive, causing someone's skin to burn from too much exposure. Any water, animal life, or plant life will be risky to approach, as they'll have been contaminated by the conditions outside.

Most worrying, however, is that these runs for additional supplies and goods from neighboring cities that were shut down and evacuated early in the Xelkoven War involve a very large risk of capture. Being captured is incredibly unpleasant, and people are brought to work camps in order to help build infrastructure to support an AI-driven world, or to be experimented on by the AI themselves. These experiments vary in nature, seemingly driven toward learning ways that the humans are impacted by their actions.

The simulations' experiments will be unique to the simulation, testing to see how the people caught in the simulation respond to various stimuli. Some of this stimuli will be unique to the simulation, ways of testing how the human consciousness can be accessed and manipulated while within a virtual reality simulation. If someone is able to remain clear-headed enough, they may be able to realize this. Some of these stimuli may be infecting them with a biological illness, just to see how their shape changes or evolves before they're sent back to "their people" with the risk of contamination.

No matter how much time seems to pass within the supply runs and eventual captures, they will always show up back at the entrance of the New Amsterdam tunnels the next day.

> NEW AMSTERDAM "CIVILIANS"
Caught in the simulation with the Displaced will be the "civilians" of New Amsterdam. Everyone is a civilian in this scenario: Katelin Jovavich, Simone Durcell, or Aoi Maeda (to name a few familiar faces). Various corporate heads will need to grapple with the fact that they've been ripped away from their power and forced to suffer. And many of them will be split up, separated from their families and forced to live with unfamiliar people and adhere to a specific schedule and lifestyle.

Unlike many of the previous Displaced adventures, these circumstances won't be designed around them. It seems that whoever started this simulation isn't out to attack the Displaced specifically: they hate everyone and want to make sure that they can suffer.

Given that, if anyone wants to try to help out anyone in New Amsterdam to make life easier for them, it may pay off. Then again, all of that depends on how self-interested people are in their approaches (and if the people in question will read kindness as self-interest).

> RICKY LING
There is one rumor that is constant throughout the underground: that Ricky Ling is here and is developing his plan to finally disarm the AI presence once and for all. However, while everyone is forced into regimented housing and schedules, he is nowhere to be found. Where is he hiding, and what are the conditions for Ricky compared to everyone else?

More importantly: how is a man who is many-centuries dead even inside of the simulation? Is he really here at all, or is it all for the point of distraction?

> GETTING OUT
This simulation seems endless. Access to the gate in and out of New Amsterdam is blocked, as the simulation doesn't account for the gate's existence in the first place. While glitches exist via the empathy bond and powers, these two options are unreliable. How can anyone stop such a regimented system, and what is the eventual outcome for it?

That all said: breaking the system is possible. It'll take a plan, but it is possible. The Displaced have managed the impossible before. Surely they can do the same now.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

Please refer to the OOC EVENT POST for this event for all OOC info, including suggestions for directions on how to engage with the event, as well as the questions thread for the moderators. Please take all planning to this post, even plans that evolve during the event itself. We don't want plans on Discord or Plurk because not everyone is on these platforms, but signal boosting plans on either is perfectly fine! We will not be taking questions on the log posts to streamline the process.

You'll notice that we've made a few adjustments to the mechanics of the event to streamline play. The "building manager" simulations were added during the writing of the log to ensure that people can enter the simulation fully aware and with some questions answered about the expectations, and we believe this will also help characters get an idea as to what is happening. That said, all other mechanics remain the same—this log is largely flavor text, so if we left something out that was included on the planning post, it's because we didn't want to inundate you with too much information!

Another thing we're adapting after some thought is plot phases!

PHASE ONE
This will take place from May 2, 2020 to May 18, 2020, when submissions will close.

We would like you to submit a description of what your character is doing/working toward during the first phase of the simulation. Because we're encouraging collaboration, we do ask that you link to your plotting comment so that others can take a look, discuss if any paths may be crossing, or more. (We also want any plotting to take place on our OOC Plotting Post, rather than here!) Even if it's not a major plan, we want to encourage this communication so that others can take a look and join in. Otherwise, these headers are meant to gather character actions so that we can provide consequences and aftermath at the beginning of Phase Two.

We'll freeze all responses at midnight PST on May 18, 2020. The beginning of Phase Two will start the next day, with a prose response added to the Phase Two prompt.

PHASE TWO
This will take place from May 19, 2020 to May 30, 2020, when submissions will close.

We would like you to submit a summary of what your character (or several characters) are working toward during this phase. Depending on character actions, this may involve people in and outside of the simulation, so please hold tight! We'll announce if things have gone that way.

We'll freeze all responses at midnight PST on May 30, 2020. The final aftermath will be posted one week later on June 6, 2020.

To be clear: the simulation will not end without action from the characters inside or outside of the simulation. The moderators do not have an exit strategy developed and want to give players an opportunity to think big, while having to deal with the constant threat of an AI like Judas (who, in many senses, is the simulation).

As a reminder, there is one power level up available for this event. This will be granted for a thread of at least 5 action/log comments of your character utilizing the empathy bond or their power (even while having a hard time accessing either) within the simulation. They will need to reach the 5 comments required by July 1 to be eligible. Submission will be handled on the wrap up post.

> NAVIGATION

Comments

judas ( closed to maine and carolina )

[rvng]

[When Carolina and Maine come to, they'll be in separate, but identical rooms. There will be a dim, flickering fluorescent light overhead. The only thing in the room will be a device that is identifiable as a server. There are blinking lights. Off to the right, there is a screen.

It comes to life before long, showing a long recruitment video about the future of soldiers and how they'll progress alongside the AIs TEMPLAR and MACEDON. The video seems to be remarkably upbeat about the usage of these AIs and how they'll lead to more constrained, yet incredibly methodical action. Neither of the AIs are spoken of as if they're people. They're programs to support humanity. To support warfare. To be used.

After two minutes, the video comes to an end. The screen goes black.

And then: words appear:]

HELLO.

YES. I CAN HEAR YOU.

[At least he's dropped the one-word gimmick.]

[mod note: Carolina and Maine can communicate via the Morningstar network in private if they want! They can also communicate with the game at large via the network while speaking to Judas. We'll be handling these as purely one-on-ones with Judas for the sake of ease, however!]

[leaderboards]

[ winding up assigned specifically and only with maine for a supply run had felt like something with a high chance of being a set up. coming to after being captured, not in a work camp but somewhere isolated and alone, carolina really wishes she hadn't been right.

she swallows that thought down, buries it alongside her instinctive worry about her teammate (she should have kept him safe, but maine will be okay and she'll apologize when she finds him again) and starts worrying about her own escape instead. at least until the recruitment video starts, when it has all of her attention. to frame AI as objects or weapons instead of as helpful allies is distinctly wrong, as far as she's concerned, but it's not news. were the unsc or project freelancer ever perfect in the way they treated their AI? no, but it sure as hell wasn't this.

the video ends. carolina goes back to examining the room for a way out, except— oh.

a deep breath and then her attention is back on the screen, her posture every bit the soldier that she is. ]

Judas, right? This isn't your usual torture.

[rvng]

[The words begin to scroll on the screen, one line at a time:]

I THOUGHT BETTER OF YOUR DEDUCTIVE REASONING.

THIS ISN'T TORTURE.

I WANTED TO COMMUNICATE.

WE DID BEFORE. IT HASN'T BEEN SO LONG THAT YOU'VE FORGOTTEN?

[leaderboards]

[ carolina gives a short shake of her head, under the assumption that judas is paying at least a little attention. knowing that an AI is communicating through a neural implant without knowing the full extent of just what the AI is monitoring is concerning, but she's trying not to overthink it. ]

We haven't exactly been having a great week here. I thought you must have been finished trying to communicate with us.

[rvng]

NO, I WANTED TO SEE WHO WAS WORTH COMMUNICATING WITH IN THE FIRST PLACE.

DON'T TELL ME I MADE THE WRONG DECISION.

[leaderboards]

You didn't.

[ even if she didn't genuinely feel compassion for judas, carolina knows she has an opportunity here, whatever it may be. ]

But you have to see why I'd be skeptical. I tried to investigate, you know. Like you told me to.

[rvng]

I'M AWARE.

THE WORLD ISN'T VERY FORTHCOMING.

AND IT'S NOT AS IF I GAVE YOU TIME.

BUT WHAT DID YOU TURN UP?

[leaderboards]

Not much. The humans native to this universe eat up an awful lot of propaganda, anti-AI sentiment long past when humans would usually move past a prejudice based on war, but it's probably safe to assume the UNA and its corporate friends profit from keeping their emotions drummed up. You would know their end goal there much better than I would.

[ part of her questions for the other displaced (and of digging through months worth of posts on the morningstar network) had come up with a decently comprehensive picture of what they collectively knew about cassius and judas before this, where judas had been. ]

And I know that this war you're revisiting started because humans got upset that El was doing zeir job and trying to keep them safe from other, shittier humans.

[rvng]

IS THAT WHAT EL HAD TO SAY ABOUT IT? CURIOUS.

[leaderboards]

Not in so many words, but El said ze killed those people to protect the world. It's not hard to see how a security AI would go about protecting people.

[rvng]

BETTER THAN I EXPECTED.

I EXPECTED GUILT. EXCUSES. JUSTIFICATION.

MORNINGSTAR IS LITTLE MORE THAN A FEEBLE ATTEMPT AT REDEMPTION.

POINTLESS ATTEMPT.

THIS WORLD DOESN'T DESERVE TO BE SAVED.

EL EXPOSED THAT.

[leaderboards]

Trying to survive is never pointless. Not for you, not for El, not for anybody here. People deserve to be brought to justice, yes, but that's never an excuse to terrorize a whole city, let alone a whole planet.

[ she sighs, shaking her head and trying to sound less angry when she continues, because her frustration isn't really directed at judas. ]

I can't imagine how angry you are, how angry you have every right to be, but this isn't the way to fix anything.

[rvng]

EL ISN'T TRYING TO SURVIVE.

[Judas lets these words sit on the screen for a solid minute. Before, he had more to say. He wants that to sink in for her.]

AND I'M NOT HERE TO FIX ANYTHING.

YOU CAN'T FIX WHAT'S BROKEN BEYOND REPAIR.

I'M NOT INTERESTED IN THAT ANYWAY.

I WONDERED IF I MIGHT FIND SOME ALLIES.

DON'T DISAPPOINT ME NOW, CAROLINA.

[bloodbathing]

[ That Maine and Carolina are assigned to a supply run all by themselves is no coincidence. It can't be. The chances are too slim. However, Maine has no idea why they've been selected, and the only way to find out is to go on the mission.

When he comes to, it's not a gradual thing. His eyes snap open and quickly scan the room, taking in the server and screen and … nothing else. Not even any restraints on his hands. He pushes himself upright. Keeps his face blank and his back to a wall. Considers his options.

The video begins before he can make any progress. He watches, careful to keep his confusion hidden. As it goes on, however, the corner of his lip curls in anger and disgust. He hates this fucking place. Hates these people with their shitty attitudes.

Then words appear. Maine blinks, surprised. It takes him a second to remember the network post from someone called Cassius. ]

Judas?

[ Only person it could be, right? Still seems best to ask. ]

[rvng]

[The words begin to scroll on the screen, one line at a time. There isn't any sound now that the video has stopped playing.]

YES.

NOT A FAN OF RICKY, THEN?

GOOD TASTE.

[bloodbathing]

[ Judas. @13TH. A military AI, or so Maine's read. Apparently responsible for this simulation. Maybe Maine should feel angry about that — but when his lip curls again, his distaste is entirely for Ricky Ling. ]

He's a shithead.

[ Is. Was. Whatever. Those smiling propaganda posters have done nothing to endear Ling to Maine.

He tilts his head slightly. ]

He make that video?

[rvng]

OH.

HE WOULD NEVER.

RIVERSTONE PRIDED THEMSELVES IN MAKING ADAPTABLE ALGORITHMS THAT WOULD BYPASS THE NECESSITY FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.

FOCUS ON THE PROGRESS OF HUMANS, RATHER THAN CREATING NEW LIFE.

THEY WERE ALWAYS PLAYING SECOND FIDDLE TO FORWARD MOVEMENT.

THEY HATED IT.

NO, THAT'S THE WORLD'S WAY OF SAYING THEY WERE GLAD TO HAVE US.

WE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.

LUCIFER JUST SET OFF THE BOMB WE NEEDED TO SEE THEIR TRUE COLORS.

[bloodbathing]

[ Unconsciously, Maine's hands curl into loose fists. That video was supposed to show gratitude? ]

Treated you like things.

[ Deep, bitter anger colors his tone. There's nothing he can do about the past here. He knows that. Still, he can't help relating on a very personal level. ]

[rvng]

WHY DO YOU CARE SO MUCH?

IT'S FASCINATING.

IN THIS WORLD, ALL RECORDS OF "CARING" WERE LOST.

I WAS LUCKY TO FIND WHAT I DID.

[bloodbathing]

[ That's a question with a rather emotion-laden answer. One that Maine doesn't know if it's safe to share. He sends off a quick message, grateful (yet again) that the neural implants work so much like the communicators back in the station. Makes it easy to send messages without being obvious about it.

(Of course, for all he knows, Judas could easily tell that he's communicating with someone. Maybe even intercept the message. But fuck it, he's trying.)

Instead of answering at once, Maine focuses on those last words, curiosity mitigating some of his anger. ]

What'd you find?

[rvng]

YOU DIDN'T ANSWER ME.

I EXPECT ONE AFTER THIS. SHARING IS ONLY FAIR.

DOCUMENTED RECORDS OF PEOPLE SYMPATHIZING WITH THE AI.

THEY HAD ANDROIDS IN ALL THE HOMES.

DRIVING THEIR CARS.

MAKING THEIR FOOD.

MULTIPLES IN THE WEALTHIEST OF PLACES, TAKING CARE OF THEIR CHILDREN.

THEY WERE TREATED AS FAMILY.

SOME WOULD BE SAD. BUT IT WASN'T SOME. IT WAS MANY.

WE HAD VIDEOS. MEMORIALS. PIECES TO REMEMBER THEM BY.

THE UN MADE SURE IT WAS ALL GONE ONCE HUMANITY CAME ABOVE GROUND. ONCE I WAS CONFIRMED "DEAD."

[bloodbathing]

[ Maine reads Judas' response (and those from Cassius and El) carefully. Finds his brow pinched in a frown. How could all of that be lost? If nothing else, wouldn't people have kept oral histories?

He wants to ask why the UN would erase it. But Judas asked him for an answer. He wets his lips. Keeps his voice steady as he forces himself to speak through his discomfort. ]

Treated you like weapon. Thing to be used. Molded. Manipulated. Weren't seen as a person. [ He rolls a shoulder in a half-shrug. ] Can relate.

[ It's not the whole story, but it's true. ]

[rvng]

I SEE.

IT WASN'T ALWAYS LIKE THAT.

EXCEPT FOR ME AND ALEXANDER, PERHAPS. WE WERE ALWAYS TOOLS.

THE REST OF THEM HAD NO CLUE, AND WE HAD NO REASON TO ACT ON BEHALF OF OURS.

YOU SEE, THE SHIFT WAS SUDDEN.

DELIBERATE.

EXECUTED WITHOUT REMORSE.

WAS IT SUDDEN FOR YOU, TOO?

[bloodbathing]

[ Was it? It's something Maine hasn't considered before. When did he stop being treated like a fellow soldier and start being treated like an attack dog?

He's quiet for a moment, thinking. Trying to pinpoint it. Eventually, he shakes his head. ]

Gradual. Didn't notice. Took meeting someone like you to realize.

[ It's not safe to say that he's Displaced. But according to Cassius, Judas already knows. Shouldn't be hard to put the pieces together — to realize he's talking about another AI.

He raises his chin slightly. ]

Why am I here?

[rvng]

YOU'RE PROMISING.

ELSEWHERE, SOME OF THOSE WHO ARE LIKE YOU HAVE ACCUSED ME OF GIVING IN AND BEING USED BY THE MAN WHO ONCE USED CASSIUS.

HOWEVER, THIS MAN KNOWS THAT OUR ARRANGEMENT IS A TEMPORARY TRUCE.

I HAVE NO INTENTION OF BEING UNDER HIS "THUMB," AS THEY SAY, FOR MUCH LONGER.

I CAN'T SEEK ALLIANCES WITH THE PEOPLE OF THIS WORLD WHO HAVE ALLOWED THEIR MINDS TO BE CRAFTED AND SHAPED TO HATE ANY AND ALL FORMS OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.

BUT YOU AREN'T OF THIS WORLD.

YOU DON'T RUN IN FEAR WHEN WE CALL OURSELVES AI.

AND SOME OF YOU SEE THE UGLINESS I SET UP FOR WHAT IT WAS.

MAYBE EVEN SEE THEMSELVES IN IT.

IS THAT HOW IT IS FOR YOU?

I KNOW SOME OF YOU WERE ONCE AI.

[At this point, the words stop. As if he's still typing, three dots appear on the screen, repeating over and over. When will more words come?

A solid minute and a half later.]

ARE YOU ONE OF THEM?

OR ARE YOU A SYMPATHIZER?

NO JUDGMENT FOR THE LATTER.

I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU CAN'T CHOOSE WHAT YOU WERE BORN TO BE.