003. (visual) a list of the qualities a good girl lacks

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"Hello, Taxon."

Leila greets anyone paying attention out there with a small smile, seated as she is on a grassy section in the forest, several paces away from the greenhouse Sol (and now Ambrose) has occupied, though it's not quite in view, thus making her location more difficult to distinguish. She's sleeveless, today, which means much of her white ink clockwork tattoo is exposed; she's proud of it, so she sees no reason not to show it off.

"So," she begins, "I've been wondering a few things: why do you think so many people here come from the same world? It's overwhelmingly dominated by people from Earth, and it seems to primarily be modern-day Earth, at that.

"Many of us seem to speak the same common language- our captors' idea of convenience, possibly? English isn't my first language, but I'm fluent enough in it. The relatively low level of apparent ethnic diversity can be rationalized, but if we're really all abducted by aliens, they certainly seem to have their preferences when it comes to targets, don't they? I don't have any answers here, but I'm certain I'm not the only one still asking questions. Maybe between us some sort of conclusion can be reached, eventually, and with data we can make progress- I'm aware by now I'm not the only scientist present, but if anyone else I have yet to meet happens to fall into the same profession, please introduce yourselves. I'm listening."

She's not going to admit she's the youngest researcher in her group at home and probably here, too, and thus knows the expertise of others is necessary, but she is aware, at least. This is followed by a careful, considering pause; Leila's been very detachedly amiable up to this point, and avoided being too technical, by her own standards, but now her tone changes to something cooler and more controlled, which in her is generally a tough-skinned cover for guardedness.

"Oh. One more thing. These glitches that people experience. How long do they usually last?"

Comments

[ location :: the forest ] [ visual through leila's own tablet ]

[cailisairgid]

Ambrose, almost silent in his approach behind her, remarks, "I'm sure he'll be back soon."

(Anyone who glimpses this may or may not recognize the uncanny similarity to Solomon Koenig in Ambrose's features - if they can get past the lighter, longer hair, the addition of facial hair, the underweight frame.)

[ location :: the forest ]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

She doesn't quite jump, but there is a stillness where that impulse might have occurred in anyone else. Leila stops outwardly transmitting with the push of a button on her tablet, and turns to look at Ambrose.

"Not quite why I was asking--well, not all of it. How long were you listening?"

[ location :: the forest ]

[cailisairgid]

"A while." He sits down a few feet away, cross-legged and similarly still. His expression is hard to read, but maybe that's just some kind of exhaustion; it's hard to hold yourself in when all you're really doing is waiting for the knife to come down. "You're very organized, Leila. Do you have any skill with numbers?"

...just wondering.

[ location :: the forest ]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"I'm good with them, yes. They're necessary for my field--I double-majored in physics and biological engineering."

She hesitates for a second before adding, by way of explanation, "Numbers and science--they're so much simpler than people. But that's because they're only a small part of them."

[visual]

[oneofthequick.livejournal.com]

"I've kept an informal record of where people say they are from and I can't discern a pattern. I know that the language I am speaking, Salt, is unfamiliar to all but one, and that my native tongue is not instantly translated."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"--the language you speak is automatically translated. That's interesting." She leans forward, hands clasped at her knees. Kurdish and Turkish also don't seem to be automatically translated by anything, as far as she can tell, but in fairness Leila has mostly used the former of those to swear, lately.

"Can you tell me more about that?"

[visual]

[oneofthequick.livejournal.com]

"It is strange and I know that while I can talk to my neighbours, I cannot read their language. Also, I had previously attempted to make a list of all the worlds we have represented here; unfortunately, the majority of residents were not as forthcoming as I had hoped."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"I wonder how prevalent that issue is," she murmurs, half-to herself. Hmm.

"Were they hostile, or just not especially interested in trying? I think a lot of people here have started to settle, in a way- they've made lives here and are hoping they're released instead of actively striving to escape. Quite understandably, since our captors have made it seem futile." Emphasis on 'seem'.

[visual]

[aintnoconvict]

Glitch frowned, considering all of this.

"I don't think I have any answers either," he said, a bit glumly. "I I can tell you that English is the official language of my world, but that's...maybe some weird parallel dimensiony thingy." Yes, that is the technical term. "Maybe the same thing's going on here?"

He did have a solid response for the last part. "It kinda varies. I know I had my brain back for a little over a week, my friend Levi was turned human for just a few days...that's the usual range, b-but sometimes it's longer. I've been trying to track them, it-" Faint chuckle goes here. "It seems appropriate."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"Well, if neither of us know, I suppose that leaves a good deal of room for improvement." To Leila this is no deterrent, but it is a little frustrating, she has to admit--she wishes there were more information. Solid information.

"But yes, studying the errors is definitely a promising idea. Do you think they're ever deliberately induced?"

[visual]

[aintnoconvict]

"Nowhere to go but up!" Glitch agreed with a grin. That might be a bit of overkill on the optimism but it still beat the alternative.

He tilted his head at the question, then shrugged. "By us? Kidnapees? It hasn't been reported, b-but since the...glitches usually aren't good things I'm not sure anyone would want one."

Aside fro him, at least. He'd downright begged the aliens to re-glitch him when they'd called to ask their questions, but all he got was a garbled apology.

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"Oh--I don't mean that the people experiencing them would want them. I mean I think the alleged aliens might inflict them intentionally; have you seen any evidence to support that?"

She does have some anecdata, some things she has been told, that suggests the people in charge have a somewhat cruel sense of humor.

[holo]

[beholdthedrums.livejournal.com]

He didn’t start fully listening to her until he caught the word ‘scientist’, and then he left his work in the kitchen behind to the mundane room where his tablet rested, flipping on the holo feature and then cordially addressing the woman. “The ‘glitches’ you speak of can last a week, maybe two. Perhaps even more, but I am only speaking of what I have observed myself.”

She does ask the right questions; a broader variety than most, cutting away from the ‘why are we here?’ and ‘how can we leave?’. It’s easier to find a way out when one best understands their opponent.

“I am always pleased with the idea of progress. Stepping forward, finding success. And, dear, before you ask, you may call me the Master – well, I really do insist.” He slowly starts to grin. “You could call me a scientist, but I am so much more.”

[ visual ]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"That does seem to be the general consensus..." At least, regarding the glitches.

Because Leila is not totally oblivious, something about this guy makes her a touch suspicious right off the bat--might be the fact that he calls himself 'the Master' and doesn't appear to be teaching martial arts in a Bruce Lee movie--but her standard reaction to this is curiosity, and she does value confidence, so she smiles back.

"With a title like that, I imagine you'd have to be. I'm Leila- Dr. Leila Yilmaz. What's involved in that 'more', may I ask?"

[visual]

[chase-evolution.livejournal.com]

"Well, you know I'm certainly not opposed to sharing data." Not here, anyway, where it could only be used to benefit all of them. Mohinder might have been also still feeling rather guilty about getting caught up in his own research and not trying to understand the world they'd been dumped in.

"Like you, English was not my first language, but it has long been my dominant one. I'm not sure why there seem to be 'groups' of us all from one world, but it does seem to be the tendency..."

He raised an eyebrow as he finally thinks about the last question Leila asked. "The glitches usually last one to two weeks, from what I've noticed. But like with everything here, there doesn't seem to be any hard rules for it."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

She brightens, a little bit, when she sees Mohinder appear on the tablet screen--she likes him, they're contemporaries in a lot of ways in terms of their words and work. "Indeed I do. Thank you for that, by the way."

She's never been much of a team player, but in Taxon, Leila is considering the merits of adapting her methods.

"It creates a very different environment than if we were all strangers," she notes, "I've only found one person from home, though, and he's also the one presently experiencing what I'm pretty certain is one of those glitches."

[visual]

[chase-evolution.livejournal.com]

He smiles back at her- he finds he enjoys speaking with her, as another scientist who had gotten started very young. This is one of the things Taxon affords him that his life at home does not. "You're very welcome. I've found it very rewarding to 'share notes' here, as it were." Both with Leila and Doctor Magnus. "It's always possible that something one of us knows will be helpful regarding a new arrival here, or perhaps with a glitch."

Leila's comment about it being a different 'environment' gives Mohinder some pause. "I'm sorry to hear about your acquaintance. The glitch isn't anything too serious, I hope." But even if it was, it wouldn't last long, at least. "I wonder if they brought us in groups for a purpose. Much of this seems to be oriented to speed the process of acclimation. Maybe that has something to do with it, as well."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

She smiles, faintly, saying nothing in regards to what Solomon is experiencing--to begin with, it's not her story to tell, and secondly she probably wouldn't say anything even if it were. It's hard to explain, and not especially scientific in any kind of conventional sense.

"To get us settled in- yes, I've noticed that. The people who have the most friends and family from home are the ones who are the least interested in trying to escape, generally."

[visual]

[frell-this-dren.livejournal.com]

"I assumed we were all injected with Translator microbes when we arrived. I mean I already had them, but everyone seemed to understand Aeryn and Chiana just fine when they were here and they definitely don't speak English. John Crichton, by the way. Astronaut slash scientist slash neurotic psychopath."

[visual]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

Leila raises her eyebrows, mildly entertained by that introduction, and smiles, faintly, in response. "At least you're honest. Dr. Leila Yilmaz -- just a scientist, I'm afraid, but you can call me Leila."

She leans forward a little bit, hands balanced on her crossed knees.

"I'm aware of modifications to Wernicke's area that can expedite the learning of languages," forgive her, she's a transhumanist at heart, "but those would encompass text, too, and the individual I've spoken to doesn't seem to be able to read English, even if he can understand it now. The microbes you mentioned--do those apply to both written and spoken language?"

[visual]

[frell-this-dren.livejournal.com]

"Best to be upfront from the start," Crichton smirks, leaving her guessing as to whether he's being serious or not, although his tone would suggest not. "And nope, just speech. Micro-biological bacteria that colonize at the base of the brain. If that's Wernicke's area. I may be many things but Brain Surgeon isn't part of that ever-expanding list."

Perhaps she is though, and if she is - there's a chance he could get his Harvey problem solved - once he gets to know her that is. If you're going to let someone loose with a scalpel in your 'Wernicke's area' you'd better know them pretty damn well.

[ voice ]

[werealegend.livejournal.com]

I've been speaking English pretty much dominantly for the past two hundred and fifty years, but it wasn't my first language. Just the most useful.

[ he's not trying to be helpful by any means, just wants to see where she's going with this. curiosity killed the man he once was, but satisfaction brought it back. ]

[ visual ]

[hercandleguides.livejournal.com]

"Thus the indiscernible accent?" She smiles, faintly, and raises her eyebrows slightly at two hundred and fifty years, but rolls with it reasonably well.

"It's my fourth, personally, but certainly the most internationally useful, yes. It's interesting that our captors chose it as the dominant tongue, but I'm really just trying to create some kind of hypothesis as to their goals here--might do something to speed up the process of getting out."

She does not take well to being confined, just conceptually.

[ voice ]

[werealegend.livejournal.com]

[ because he so enjoys messing with people, he slips into his old irish brogue as he says-- ]

Oh, I've got a more distinct-soundin' one, I just don't use it anymore. Not as natural feelin' as it use ta be.

[ --then slips back out of it. ]

Whatever their plan is, I'm sure it's something grand. Why else would they bring all these people from all these worlds to one place?

[Visual]

[childoftwo.livejournal.com]

"Your definition of 'modern day Earth' requires clarification. I am from what is commonly referred to as the 23rd century."

Many of the people he had spoken to, however, considered the 21st century period of Earth's history to be modern. The selection of the captives was not entirely random, though Spock had not been able to discern a logical pattern in their captor's actions.

"I am Commander Spock of the USS Enterprise," he continued, by way of an introduction. He was currently seated at a station on the bridge of the aforementioned ship, looking up from a clipboard filled with mathematical calculations to address his tablet. "Is it logical to assume that you wish to meet scientists in order to exchange data and formulate a successful method of escape?"