Daemon Rising, part 4b

[a1enzo]

[Due to the wonders of Millitime, this takes place the morning after this thread, yet at the same time is happening right now. Whoa.]


Contrary to his own expectations, Enzo slept pretty well last night. No nightmares, although he did have a weird dream in which Hex turned into a pile of nulls with Mike the TV's voice. At any rate, he's well rested and ready for some world-saving.

But first, breakfast. He's at the Bar, eating a large waffle with far too much Maple syrup. Frisket has a bowl of something you're probably happier not knowing about.


[Leading to a supply run, mass digitization and mission briefing, and divers excitement and alarums.]

[First two subthreads are plotlocked. Enzo, at least, would welcome greetings in the third.]

Comments

[mandercommander.livejournal.com]

Bruck also trudges in and plops down by Enzo. He's...well, he's glad that Daemon's been beaten, but what happened to Bob...and, more important in some ways its effect on Enzo...is really not doing wonders for his mood. Some food appears, and he munches, but only absently.

[first-sixth.livejournal.com]

Tommy, like the others, seems far removed from his usual self as he silently follows his teammates back into Milliways. Daemon's gone, but that really doesn't count for much in the face of his worry for Bob - and related concern for Enzo, Dot and the others. So much gained, but even more that could still be lost...

The gold Sprite sits down and orders an energy shake, but he drinks it mechanically, neither enjoying it nor even paying much attention to it.

[l33t-mouse.livejournal.com]

Mouse has as much reason to be glum as any of the other folks who were involved in the fight against Daemon, but she doesn't do glum. She either works or, if that isn't an option, she practices with her swords a lot.

Fortunately, she has work to do, which is why she's carrying a bag with two portable workstations and a high-capacity memory module. And why she's looking for Oracle.

[feminine-menace.livejournal.com]

For about half a second after YT walks through the Door, she is carrying a surfboard under one arm and has the too-smooth look of a computer sprite. Then she goes sort of blurry, and once more she's a human teenager in a Kourier uniform with her plank at her side.

The transition makes her feel kind of tingly, but it's not painful or disorienting. Although she does feel like someone took out a big scoop of her memory - that would be the Web Surfer protocols. She hopes the sensation of having a phantom limb inside her head will fade soon.

YT considers seeing whether her own Door will open now - she has a feeling that it will - but she decides not to try it yet. She's got people to catch up with and, more importantly, it would not be cool of her to leave before Bob's fate is resolved. Because who knows when, or if, she'll be able to get back in?

[trustntheharper.livejournal.com]

As promised, he'd monitored Kitt's temp, and as promised, he was ready and waiting for Oracle, with the injection held at her carotid, cortical processor synced with his prosthetic arm, so he'd have inhumanly accurate hand-eye coordination.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

"Harper?" Things look a bit odd through the interface the door provides between Mainframe and Milliways, but she can still recognize him. "I'll be stepping through on 'zero'."

She takes a deep breath and methodically counts down, each number spaced out perfectly because nanoseconds count here. "Three... two... one... zero."

[trustntheharper.livejournal.com]

The spaces between numbers were counted. Everything was counted.

On zero.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

The digital form steps through the doorway, flickers, and disappears. An enormous, almost startled gasp comes from Barbara where she sits. She blinks a couple of times and looks up at Harper with a shaky grin.

"Apparently you are as good as you think."

[trustntheharper.livejournal.com]

Harper would have helped her take off the mask, especially if it meant he got a glimpse of that pretty face underneath, but there was an unwritten rule about touching other people's interface equipment.

...Mechanical or biological. Haha!

Anyway, he hated when people poked at his dataport, so he didn't touch her mask, but he stayed there, leaning over her, making sure she was okay.

"You should hear the other stuff I brag about, pretty lady. I'm just as good at all that, too." He waggled his eyebrows.

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

Coming down from a stimulant like this one always gives Barbara the shakes. This time it's pretty bad. It takes a decent amount of concentration to still the trembling in her arms enough to reach up and remove the mask.

With a snort of amusement she sets the mask in her lap, "I can tell you're an engineer, Mr. Harper. It's the ego."

[trustntheharper.livejournal.com]

"The completely justifiable ego."

"And hey, I know you've got your own stuff worth bragging about. I was watching on the kid's screen. You're obviously quick with the mental footwork. There would be nothing wrong with you saying out loud, 'I, Oracle, am really freakin' smart. Oh, and a babe.'"

[twiceahero.livejournal.com]

One eyebrow arches as she grins up at him. "You don't ever shut it off, do you? I bet you drive your friends crazy." Her tone is slightly at odds with her words, teasing and suggesting she's not averse to a little flattery.