Translation Fail Plot

[imthepilot]

Bodhi sits down by the fire to read some of the cookbooks he bought from Black Books, his datapad balanced on his knee.

But the writing on the pages makes no sense. It's all gibberish all of a sudden. Bodhi lets out an exasperated sigh and picks up another, trying to read the words.


[Tiny tag: Bodhi Rook]

Comments

[galen_erso]

Galen walks in from the lake area, carrying a rather large fish. He stubs his toe on the door frame as the fish is still twitching a little, and curses in Grangeian, something that Bodhi will probably not understand.

[imthepilot]

Bodhi looks up sharply, frowning. He hasn't hear Galen speak Grangeian since Eadu. For some reason it stirs a surge of worry in his chest. "Galen?"

He speaks Galactic Basic. It's what he usually speaks. Even on Jedha, Basic is the lingua franca of the pilgrims.

[galen_erso]

"Bodhi!" Galen says, turning his head. "There were fish in the water."

He approaches with his bounty. "What's the matter?"

He's soeaking Basic, of course, but there may be more of an accent than he usually has in Milliways.

[imthepilot]

"And that one isn't quite dead." Bodhi abandons his books to try to take the fish from Galen. "Are you trying to save it or want me to cook it?" Bodhi doesn't notice, or just assumes Galen is excited. They spoke Basic to each other most of their... courtship? If that's even the word for it.

[galen_erso]

"Cook it, please," Galen says. "Someone in a boat was fishing; there are more than enough fish to go around. I caught this by hand, the way Lyra taucht me."

[imthepilot]

Bodhi takes it to the kitchen and makes swift work of dispatching and gutting it. "Must be an Earth fish. Whatever it is, it has good white meat." He comments, filleting it neatly. "I'd look up the best way to cook it but-" He shrugs.

[galen_erso]

"Yes?" Galen says. "What's wrong with that?"

[imthepilot]

"I can't read them. It's like all of a sudden they're gibberish."

[galen_erso]

"Let me have a look," Galen says, incredulous, holding out his hand.

Translation in title text

[fairy_fixit]

Fairy Fixit, who looks like some kind of hybrid between a human and a toydarian, recognizes that look. Her book isn't making much sense either.

She buzzes over and asks, "ആ പുസ്തകം വായിക്കുന്നതിൽ നിങ്ങൾക്ക് പ്രശ്നമുണ്ടോ?"

[imthepilot]

Bodhi frowns and shakes his head, answering in the smattering of Toydarian he knows. "[I don't understand. Do you speak Basic?]'

[fairy_fixit]

"ഓ പ്രിയപ്പെട്ടവനേ! ഓറൽ കമ്മ്യൂണിക്കേഷനും ബാധിച്ചിരിക്കുന്നു," she says with a look of concern on her face.

She switches from speaking Zanarian to Gielnorian Common, disappointed. "Είχα συνηθίσει να μιλάω Zanarian εδώ."

She buzzes in closer to take a look at the text of the books, then throws up her hands in frustration.

[imthepilot]

He tilt the book towards her, giving a shrug of his own. "[Nothing it making sense today.]"

[fairy_fixit]

She stares at the text, thinking. Then, she mimes as best she can a stay there gesture. "Εχω μια ιδέα! Μείνε εκεί, απλά πρέπει να φέρω κάτι από το δωμάτιό μου."

She flies in a couple directions a short distance and back, testing the air, until she seems to find a direction that carries her right out of reality.

She reappears holding a small toolbox, which she sets down on the table and starts rummaging through. "Υπάρχει ένας φορητός μεταφραστής κάπου εδώ," she mutters, still attempting to speak understandable Common.

[imthepilot]

Bodhi nods and stays where he's told, watching her with interest.

[fairy_fixit]

She brings a rounded cube out of the toolbox and sets it on the table. She makes some adjustments to the cube and

"It may exist. I do not understand now If you answer the entire order, it will be useful," she says. But she has second thoughts. "If this does not work, you will not understand my request. Well, it's not monosylated."

The cube, apparently, is a translator in need of some calibration.

[imthepilot]

"Your translator? It's still not working right." But he trusts that she knows what she's doing.

[stilljustandrew]

"Bodhi! Hi. Is it weirdly noisy in here today or is it just me?"

(Every part of that except Bodhi's name is incomprehensible to anyone who doesn't speak anything resembling early-21st-century American English.)

[imthepilot]

Bodhi frowns. Galactic Basic is close to English, but not close enough to make it easy. "[Noisy? I don't understand. There something going on.]"

[stilljustandrew]

"-- Wait, what?"

Andrew blinks, presses a fingertip into one ear, and jiggles it rapidly as though to get rid of a clog.

"Sorry, I didn't get what you just said."

[imthepilot]

"[The universal translator is broken.]" Bodhi gestures, trying to explain.

[stilljustandrew]

He gives an uncertain look. "Uh ... either you're talking gibberish or I'm having late-onset auditory processing problems. Can -- can you understand me? Am I talking gibberish?"

[imthepilot]

He gestures towards the book, the English writing all gibberish to him, shaking his head and throwing up his hands.

[stilljustandrew]

Andrew glances at the book -- it looks fine to him -- and then back at Bodhi. And back and forth again, slower.

"Wait, you can't read it?"

[imthepilot]

Bodhi shakes his head. "[It's all sand-spider scratch. I could read it last night but now-]"