[ Jack isn't surprised that Elizabeth passes it on quickly, since it seems to be exactly what he's expecting. He nods as Jason points out that he's seen it before, and he smiles as he nods. ]
Sure am. Left it there for all of you, since I was hoping someone would really pick up the info and run with it, but, eh, guess not. So, here we are today, and I'm trying a different approach.
[ He looks to Luke with an expression that's borderline apologetic. ]
So, yeah, found it a few weeks ago. Sorry about lying, buddy, but didn't want to out myself as the mysterious information giver in public. Also, to be honest? It's business. You never give more than what someone is asking until you know where they stand. What they can bring to the table. So, yeah, found it in the archives. Removed it too, since there are a couple things that stand out in that explanation for me that made me worried.
[ Jack spreads his hands out as an idle gesture here, and it's admittedly a bit showy, but it's the kind of animated Jack gets when he's excited about something. He's definitely the kind of person that speaks through gestures just as much as words. ]
All of that- There's a lot to catch your eye. But I'm going to guess you three aren't quite as intimately familiar with the kind of issues we're talking here as I might be. Y'see- Y'see, because Helios, it's a space station, but it's a metropolis. Tens of thousands of people, all floating in a glorified tin can orbiting the moon. So Helios's CEO is also its captain, and so issues like these? They're ones I take note of. Ethical, psychological, and epidemiological issues-- Those are the kinds of important things that you have to take into consideration when you're making a place for that many people to live.
[ This is all just a lead in, it seems like, and Jack stands to move to at least make himself a drink. There's a bottle of scotch on his desk, and he starts to pour it into a glass. ]
But, Hyperion, we aren't going to use our own people for that. Why would we? You're the one trying to house them, so you don't want to kill off your own people! So, whaddya do? Experiments? Take some poor saps from the nearby shithole of a planet and throw 'em in an under construction part of the station, see how disease spreads? Sure, you could. But that's messy. Costly.
[ Jack finishes pouring his drink and recorks the bottle, but he doesn't drink from it immediately. He looks to each of them in turn. ]
So. Assuming that we're something like that, which it seems pretty likely to be... That's pretty strange. In fact, we've seen a lot of really strange things happen. Things that shouldn't be possible. People getting executed through visions of their pasts. The AI being able to paralyze you with a thought. A game full of the dead. Letters from the dead. And, of course, there's one part here that interests me in particular, but that part- [ He wags a finger lightly ] That part gets complicated to explain.
[ He lifts his glass up, almost as if offering them a casual toast, but he brings the drink to his lips as he gets to his question. ]
What's the truth, then? What do you think is going on here?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
momijizukamori
no subject
Date: 2016-08-08 04:37 am (UTC)Sure am. Left it there for all of you, since I was hoping someone would really pick up the info and run with it, but, eh, guess not. So, here we are today, and I'm trying a different approach.
[ He looks to Luke with an expression that's borderline apologetic. ]
So, yeah, found it a few weeks ago. Sorry about lying, buddy, but didn't want to out myself as the mysterious information giver in public. Also, to be honest? It's business. You never give more than what someone is asking until you know where they stand. What they can bring to the table. So, yeah, found it in the archives. Removed it too, since there are a couple things that stand out in that explanation for me that made me worried.
[ Jack spreads his hands out as an idle gesture here, and it's admittedly a bit showy, but it's the kind of animated Jack gets when he's excited about something. He's definitely the kind of person that speaks through gestures just as much as words. ]
All of that- There's a lot to catch your eye. But I'm going to guess you three aren't quite as intimately familiar with the kind of issues we're talking here as I might be. Y'see- Y'see, because Helios, it's a space station, but it's a metropolis. Tens of thousands of people, all floating in a glorified tin can orbiting the moon. So Helios's CEO is also its captain, and so issues like these? They're ones I take note of. Ethical, psychological, and epidemiological issues-- Those are the kinds of important things that you have to take into consideration when you're making a place for that many people to live.
[ This is all just a lead in, it seems like, and Jack stands to move to at least make himself a drink. There's a bottle of scotch on his desk, and he starts to pour it into a glass. ]
But, Hyperion, we aren't going to use our own people for that. Why would we? You're the one trying to house them, so you don't want to kill off your own people! So, whaddya do? Experiments? Take some poor saps from the nearby shithole of a planet and throw 'em in an under construction part of the station, see how disease spreads? Sure, you could. But that's messy. Costly.
[ Jack finishes pouring his drink and recorks the bottle, but he doesn't drink from it immediately. He looks to each of them in turn. ]
So. Assuming that we're something like that, which it seems pretty likely to be... That's pretty strange. In fact, we've seen a lot of really strange things happen. Things that shouldn't be possible. People getting executed through visions of their pasts. The AI being able to paralyze you with a thought. A game full of the dead. Letters from the dead. And, of course, there's one part here that interests me in particular, but that part- [ He wags a finger lightly ] That part gets complicated to explain.
[ He lifts his glass up, almost as if offering them a casual toast, but he brings the drink to his lips as he gets to his question. ]
What's the truth, then? What do you think is going on here?