video; @Qubit

[superposition]

[ Yeah, so, Qubit looks a little put out for some reason! Almost as if he took something personally that definitely wasn't meant that way. ]

Qubit here. In light of recent events, I'd like to remind everyone that circumventing security measures makes the station less safe for all of us.

[ Holds up his index finger- ] Now before anyone starts, I'm by no means disputing your fundamental right to privacy. No, there should not be cameras in your private rooms. But the cameras in public spaces are there for a reason - to detect things like, say, an intruder planting surveillance where it shouldn't be.

[ He pauses for a moment, debating whether he should go for this next part. But... yes. Yes, he absolutely is this petty. ]

... On a side note. For anyone unfamiliar with Earth mythologies, "Loki" is the name of a Norse trickster god, best known for repeatedly deceiving his family and friends for his own amusement. More fool them for trusting him, I suppose.

[ Then he shrugs, with a wry expression that isn't quite a smile. ] Although if memory serves, his little pranks generally come back to bite him, sooner or later. Food for thought.

Comments

[superposition]

But if he was quite nearby? Say, within Anchor itself?

[killedwithlove]

Maybe. It was easier before, he was by himself and there were less people, less hurts.

[ If he's in the Anchor, Cole might be able to find him, but he really isn't sure. ]

The Red Shift makes it hard. And he craves his hurts.

[superposition]

... I see. Hm.

[ At least he's finally beginning to parse some useful information about Cole out of all this. Having too many sources of emotion nearby "muddies the waters," and the Redshift phenomenon interferes as well, that's straightforward enough. But "he likes/craves his hurts"? Ah - of course, Joe doesn't want to be helped. And Cole says he "is Compassion", that he exists to help people... That may be his driving motivation, but perhaps it has some bearing on his abilities, as well?

Interesting. He'll have to ponder how he'd go about testing that, but right now isn't the time. ]

Well. Going forward, if you do happen to sense him close by, please let me know as soon as possible, all right? You'd be helping me to prevent him hurting anyone else.

[killedwithlove]

Why should I tell you before anyone else?

[ Because Cole's first instinct is to go and tell Ben. Ben's his friend, and he has abilities, and he cares about people. Cole doesn't know who this guy even is. ]

[superposition]

... I don't need to be the first one you alert, necessarily. I'm merely asking to be on the list.

[ There was once a time when everyone Qubit met didn't immediately distrust him, wasn't there? He wasn't imagining that? It's just one more of the many things he misses about the Before Times. ]

[killedwithlove]

Um, I will if I remember. Until I meet people I find them hard to remember.

[superposition]

Huh. [ Is that an empath thing? It sounds like an empath thing. ]

Well, if meeting up would help you, I'm not doing much at the moment.

[killedwithlove]

[ It's a Cole thing. ]

If you want to. I can come and find you.

[superposition]

[ Hm! Actually, this could be interesting. It's usually easy to guess where Qubit will be, if you know anything about him at all - he literally lives in R&D, so there's like a 60-70% chance you'd find him there at any given time. But he's not there now - he was in the midst of some air filtration maintenance when he posted this, so he's actually down on the mezzanine among the shops, an area that doesn't see a lot of foot traffic. And he's also had his back to a blank wall this whole time, so you wouldn't know where he was from the video alone.

Can Cole find him? And if so, how quickly? He's curious. ]

All right. I'll be waiting.

[ He starts a timer. ]

[killedwithlove]

[ Despite Qubit's impressive technological psychic blocking, it won't actually stop some aspects of Cole's abilities.

So, it doesn't take that long for Cole to turn up. He follows the traces and the vague desire of someone to see him that calls like a siren song, regardless of anything else.

He looks at Qubit, shifting uncomfortably and trying to pick up anything other than a faint sense of emotions, the quiet pop and crack of curiosity. ]

Are... you a person?

[superposition]

[ As so often happens, Qubit doesn't catch the exact moment Cole arrives. One second he hasn't, and the next he has, without quite seeming to pass through the instant when one would become the other.

But Qubit merely chalks this up to a lapse in his attention, and stops the timer as soon as he spots him. Under ten minutes - not bad. And that's despite his shielding, which suggests it's not wholly a psionic effect.

Cole's question puzzles him, but from the obvious discomfort, it seems like he's genuinely unsure about it. ]

Last I checked, yes. Why do you ask?

[killedwithlove]

You don't have thoughts. Or emotions. Your clothes have emotions, flickering firelights of fancy, but you're... not.

[ Cole looks intensely uncomfortable, clinging to the edge of the door, preventing it shutting again. ]

Like Solas. But more. Much more.

[superposition]

[ Interesting. So he can pick up impressions just from his belongings? And who's Solas?

... Well. He should probably do some explaining first, before he goes peppering the man with questions. ]

I assure you, I've more than enough of both. I simply choose to share them at my discretion.

[ Which he will, to a degree, to meet Cole halfway. It's a bit fiddly, since he's not telepathic himself, and Cole doesn't seem to be either broadcasting or probing for a connection. Still, Qubit opens a channel on his end - a focused, purposeful stream of thought, like the light of a dark lantern with the shutter barely opened. And as in that analogy, the "brightness" of it hints that there's a good deal more where it came from. ]

Is this any better?

[killedwithlove]

[ It's not better.

It's unnatural, a filtered, Outside set of words that say something and have no meaning. It feels dishonest and dominating and frightening, words without context, like the device but worse, since there should be more. ]

No! You're not there! You're not there. You're Tranquil.

[ He knows he isn't, but that's what it most feels like. A Tranquil, stating things and yet never quite being. ]

You hurt. It hurts. Raw and rough and-

[ Cole vanishes in a cloud of dark green smoke, fleeing away from the horror of something with nothing Inside and to something that makes sense. He runs off to go find Ben and stalk him for a while. ]

[superposition]

What?

[ He draws back, startled. That completely backfired! He shuts it down immediately, but the damage is done. No, he didn't realize something that simple would hurt him - he didn't intend for - damn!

But before he can say a thing, Cole's just gone. Qubit rushes to the spot where he was, glancing around in search of him, any sign of where he went - ]

No no no, Cole, wait! I didn't- Let me explain!

[ ... Nothing. He is well and truly out of here. Qubit sighs heavily and runs a hand through his hair in frustration.

Psychics...! ]