onepassingnight | 1st Transmission

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1st Transmission

[This appears to be a giant room, ceilings as high as the walls are far apart. It's well-lit, although there are no windows. There's bits of machinery and half-built robots everywhere, either semi-neatly stacked on tall shelves or scattered on the floor. The cement floor is spotted with oil. There are green monkeys running everywhere. You know, normal stuff.

In the center of the room there's a little work area in a cleared space. There are a couple worktables haphazardly covered in tools, both recognizable and obviously homemade contraptions. At one worktable a very red-haired young man is tinkering with what looks to be a mini-fridge with legs. He's cheerfully explaining to himself what he's doing. A small ball hovering next to him suddenly shouts something about it being lunchtime, making the man jump.]

I'm busy! Be quiet!

[Suddenly he notices you and freezes for a moment. Then he begins sputtering.]

But--what--how did you get in? And why didn't my bots tell me someone was approaching the house?!

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[The man blinks at you.] But... [Then he sighs. This is just like when he was a teenager, and everyone in creation kept traipsing in and out of his lair with impunity. At least you don't seem destructive. He runs a hand through his hair.] If you've already gotten in, I don't suppose there's anything I can do about it.

[He returns to fiddling with the fridge-thing.] I don't suppose you'd care to tell me who you are? When I do get visitors, they tend to be people I know.

[A quick look takes in Jack's decidedly Western features.]

Ami Mizuno. Call me by that.

And no. There's nothing to do about it. But if I'm your guest for the time being, shouldn't you be offering refreshments?

Ami Mizuno... [He files that away. He wipes the grease off his hands onto a nearby rag. The rag is promptly stolen by one of the monkeys as soon as it's set down again.] First things first: do you know who I am, or do you always break into random strangers' homes?

[Really, she's hardly a guest--just an intruder he can't be rid of. He does not invite guests down into his lair. Or his home. Or... actually, not even his parents visit him at his house. But for some reason he decides he's going to accept your presence without further comment.] Yeah, I guess according to the alarm it's time to eat anyway. Hey! Could somebody get us some food? I'm not coming up there!

[The monkeys are as convenient as youma, in their way. Very nicely done.]

I wanted to see if you were working on something worthwhile. Go ahead and introduce yourself.

[She notes with a tiny, petty sense of triumph that he's going along with it enough to prove the food.]

[The monkeys up in the rafters are tossing the rag back and forth to each other, screeching.]

I'm Jack Spicer. Not doing anything too important, just building a fridge-bot. It's too heavy to fly, that's why it's got to have legs. [None of this seems too strange to him anymore. There's some stranger who broke into his house and wants to know about the work he's normally very secretive about. Nothing weird there.] Should it have a gun or a knife?

[A robot (http://th06.deviantart.net/fs12/PRE/i/2006/317/6/d/JackBot_Evolution_1_by_The_Flying_Penguin.jpg) brings down a plate of sandwiches and juice... in juiceboxes. Very high-class.]

You knew my favorite!

[Despite something a bit off about the too-wide smile as Ami says it to needle Jack even further, it's also the truth: sandwiches are tidy and convenient, and thus her favorite.

Ami accepts a sandwich from the robot with a pert 'thank you' - manners die hard, apparently - and turns back to Jack.]

Why did you choose these projects?

[He sips on his juicebox defiantly. You're lucky you're getting anything at all, you--you... burglar. Besides, he never has guests over, why would he have any of that "party food" his parents always serve guests.

Or maybe you're telling the truth. If that's the case, you're weird.]

The robots? Well, Mother said I needed a hobby, so... Anyway, they're useful. I can talk to them, they can do chores around the house, and if anyone attacks they're able to defend me. Also I can sell them to other people.

[The lunch-bot, seeing that the two of you seem taken care of, goes back upstairs.]

The fridge-bot is because I forget to eat. I figured if I had a fridge following me around the house, that would happen less.

They do seem useful. [This from the girl who's developed some more viable solar power options in her world thanks to technology from another world.]

Are they what's so interesting that you forget to eat?

Yeah. Sort of. I just get distracted by things--if the food isn't convenient there's a good chance I'll get interested in something else before I make it up to the kitchen. There's always something to do down here.

[The rag suddenly drops onto his head. Before he can do anything about it, a monkey snatches it back, screeches at him, and runs off. He stares after it for a moment.] Did you seriously bring a pet with you to break into my lair?

Nothing like that. Isn't that yours? [He'd been acting like the monkeys were normal.]

Maybe someone else is interested.

Then why--? I... I guess I did notice them before, now that you mention it... [Watches the monkeys in the rafters.] They just didn't seem important? Out of place? Sort of like how I accepted your pre--oh.

[Laughs and visibly relaxes.] This is a dream, isn't it? That's why all this weird stuff is happening. I must have fallen asleep at my workbench again.

Maybe it's a dream. As long as you get the next part of those plans done and remember the way when you wake up, does it matter to you?

[Funny; lately, her dreams have been of herself as a little girl, so today is a bit different.]

If you don't like the monkeys, shall I get rid of them?

[Smiles.] Heh. Yeah, I guess if I'm dreaming I may as well try to make use of it, huh?

No, don't bother. I like monkeys, I just... I mean, my lair doesn't normally have them running around. Particularly not green ones.

[Turns back to you.] So, I guess you're my subconscious telling me I need to go talk to people more often?

[She should probably warn him: There is nothing so frustrating as having the perfect answer within her grasp - only to forget it upon awakening.]

Maybe that. Maybe just the opposite.

[After all, to her, this is her dream.]

Maybe it's just time to focus on my research.

[Laughs again.] Well, you're right, there is a reason I don't get out much.

Your research? [Perks up.] What do you do?

I'm a doctor. [This, from the eighteen-year-old girl currently still perched insolently on the table and nibbling her monkey-served sandwich?]

A cardiac surgeon. My research has been to develop various medicines for use in that field.

[As well as a foray into more viable solar energy sources.]

[He raises his eyebrows. Well. This could just be his dream being weird, but...] You're awfully young to have gone through medical school. Did you do some time-traveling too?

[Well, sort of, but the year trapped in the world of Econtra is irrelevant to her doctorship.]

Nothing like that. [This implies she's simply that bright, that she managed medical school during what should have been high school.]

Shouldn't I go as far as I can?

[Stares at you open-mouthed.]

Wow. Just... wow. If you weren't a dream, that would be impressive.

I wish my parents invited people like you to their parties. It would be nice to meet someone with ambition, for once. Er... I assume you're not planning on stopping there? [The question is just a little too casual.]

[She smiles as though this is amusing for some private reason.]

Oh, I don't plan to stop.

[The truth is, she'd been told by her cram school teachers back when she was fourteen, that she could have handled the workload of college and medical school. She'd blown it off, back then, because she was too young to be taken seriously applying to a hospital anyway, and to stay with her 'friends'.

Ha. Now, there was no more reason to think of people who'd never given a thought to her. And she's quite ready to prove herself to the skeptical.]

After all. Why should I hold myself back?

[Grins toothily.] Oh, it is nice to meet someone like you. Every time I meet someone nowadays I think has ambition, it always turns out they have something petty as their end goal. Never fails. It's annoying.

[Maybe he'd even have some competition for ruling the world again! That would be great. He could relate to people like that.

Of course, even the petty-ambitious types often don't relate to him very well. Took an extra year to graduate high school? Never even wanted to go to college? It's more trouble than it's worth, usually, to convince people that he actually is smart. That his scores actually went up when he stopped cheating.]

[Ami had coupled her natural genius with a drive towards work and effort. She wouldn't understand what would seem to be laziness.]

My goal is to test myself and become my best.

[This includes: always becoming more powerful, defeating her enemies, defeating whatever people have the bad luck to be declared her enemies, and rising to the top of her profession entirely in her own right by her own abilities.

Her more private desires involve the revival of planet Mercury, but that's for a far-off future.]

[Jack just wanted to focus solely on his bots. He wants to conquer the world, and his bots are the key. College just seemed like it would be wasting time.]

So no set end goal, huh? Just an endless cycle of self-improvement. I used to know a guy like that. Of course, he wasn't focused on being the best in everything, though he'd tell you different.

[He nods approvingly. It isn't his thing, but it's something he cand respect. Not any of this "I made partner, aren't you proud of me?"]

[Oh, she's proud of those things: finishing medical school, joining the staff at Meiwa University Hospital. But they aren't the end.

First, everyone there has to be ready to acknowledge her abilities instead of laughing behind their sleeves at the girl they claim only got the position through her famous mother's name. First, she has to go even further, climb through the ranks of the hospital.

First, she has to keep going - whether it be the war in her allies' world, an enemy to be defeated in her own, or her world itself, now in their hands. She has to push herself to greater and greater control of her element, greater and greater powers.]

I don't plan to just be content when I could be better. [Better than herself, better than them.]

[This is great. It's like hanging out with Chase! Only without the insults, being hit, or the constant insistence that Jack stoptouchinghimandleaveimmediately.] What will you do when you're the best?

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