milliways_bar | (no subject)

(no subject)

Izana is pleasantly surprised to find Milliways rather than the conference room they'd been expecting. It has been sometime since they've found the bar, but less than you might expect. Things have been much the same since the last time they'd entered. Sidonia was still under siege by the guana, though the advantage had shifted towards the human's side with the advance of the artificial kabi and core piecing rounds, which allow pilots to kill guana from a distance, but things are still dire. Death rates for pilots are still high, the exact number of guana is unclear, and resources are always a challenge.

Which is why Izana had set up a secondary program to run on her garde unit while they were on patrol. Nothing too complex. A simple subroutine that ran a spectral scan of the surrounding area and saving the data for Izana to review later for signs of water or other needed elements.

Now all that needs to happen is to go through that data, and since Izana is off duty and in a location in which time effectively does not progress, they can think of nothing better to do. So, data pad out, spectral data streaming, and a pot of tea steeping, they sit and process.

This is proving to be more boring than they'd expected. Please interrupt them.

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Not fair off sits what could be either a tree in the shape of a man, or a man in the shape of a tree, nearly seven feet tall. It's reading quietly, but does notice every so often what others are up to.

To be fair to Izana, a large part of why their focus is drifting is exhaustion. They do love astronomy and science. Still, their attention is drifting and enjoying the variety of people that frequent Milliways.

Then they spot the man-shaped tree or tree-shaped man and their exhaustion is forgotten. Pausing only for a moment before deciding to head over, they pause before the patron and bow slightly but respectfully, their data pad clutched to their chest.

"Good day to you. I am Shinatose Izana and please ignore me if my question is rude. Are you a kami by any chance?" They smile then, to show they are pleased and friendly, before adopting a more neutral expression.

[ooc: Sorry for not replying sooner. Minor crisis pulled me away from work, so I will be slow until tomorrow.]

Edited 2018-01-05 01:26 (UTC)

Alec marks his place in his book, and looks at the person (while trying to figure out gender, even if he would admit that such things should not define a person). "I am afraid I don't know that word. Care to explain?"

[ooc: Is okay. Will be slow till Saturday night myself.]

"I would be happy to, although I should mention my knowledge is based on second or third hand knowledge, from books. A kami is a spirit or god. They vary in power and importance, and can range from natural spirits to those that embody abstract concepts. They can even be the spirits of those who have died."

"I don't think anyone has ever asked me about that. I mean, some assume I am a god, but they don't tend to explain why." He smiles, and then thinks.

"I am the Avatar of the Green. And for all intents and purposes I died and was reborn as the Avatar. So I guess I might be a kani. But I don't think I count as a god."

Alec is getting a strange feeling as he talks to the person. A sense of plant activity where there is none. Interesting, if disconcerting.

"I am honestly not to clear on what the difference between a god and a spirit is myself. The idea is an ancient one to my culture that I rediscovered after meeting one who is a kami here before."

"Can I ask who that might be? And what culture?"

He is sure of it. There is chlorophyll here. In this person.

Izana nods before answering.

"Abe no Seimei. And I live aboard the seed ship Sidonia, which launched from the country once known as Japan thousands of years ago. From what Abe-sama has told me, and my own researches into Sidonia's history, we have shifted from Japanese culture a great deal but there are still many things we have in common."

"Yes, I know Abe. I think he counts as an actual god, if that matters.

"And that does sound very Japanese, insofar as I understand Japanese culture." Which, he would admit, he doesn't really understand.

"Seed ship? You mean a colony ship?"

"Yes," Izana replies, lowering their eyes in apology for what they are about to say. "I am afraid the Earth, if you know it, has been destroyed, at least in my reality. A number of other seed ships left but Sidonia has not had contact with any for over a thousand years."

[ooc: sorry for the long wait.]

There is a long silence. And it's hard to read those red eyes, to know what Alec is thinking.

"So we failed. The Parliament failed. At least in one reality."

Izana waits patiently, though wondering if they’ve made some sort of social blunder.

Then at his words, they begin to speak before pausing to consider. Finally, they say, “I am sorry, I do not understand your meaning. What Parliament?”

They are certain an error in communication has happened but would prefer to have a clearer idea of what that error might be.

"The Parliament of Trees. The former avatars of the Green. The protectors of plant life on Earth. If Earth is dead, and the trees with it, the avatars have failed." And while a part of him - literally the part that is more the voice of the Green than his own mind - always figured that mankind would fall, he couldn't imagine the avatars failing THAT badly.

This Parliament sounds fascinating to Izana and now they are certain this entity is a kami of some sort.

"I am sorry for that failure." Though for them it is ancient history and they've no emotional connection to Earth. "If it helps any, the planet was destroyed by an alien life form and not anything on Earth itself."

"That only helps a little." He is afraid to ask any other questions. So for now he will stop. "Does your ship have plant life on it?"

And does that possibly include the humans? Alec is really starting to wonder.

"Yes we do, and not just those useful as one might expect. We do have rice and soy, of course, but there are trees, shrubs, and flowers as well. Not a great many, mind you. Our resources are finite, but we do carry a vast array of seeds for the day we find a new planet to settle."

"Speaking of our resources, all aboard Sidonia also photosynthesis, so that we only need to eat once a week or so. Well, there is one who doesn't photosynthesis, but he is unique."

Nagate is unique in other ways, but that's likely not important to the plant man.

"I thought so. I actually thought so. Will wonders never cease." And Alec starts to laugh for a moment.

Izana half smiles while their eyes widen, unsure of if they are being laughed at or what the joke might be.

"It has proved invaluable for maintaining a healthy population."

"I am sorry for laughing. A...an acquaintance of mine once said that mankind was wasting its time eating, and should make the jump to photosynthesis. He would be pleased to hear this." Though he was also an evil sunnovabitch, so Alec is not unhappy the Wolf is dead and not around to hear this.

"Oh, I took no offense. I just wasn't sure of what was amusing. I do know the jump was through artificial means and didn't evolve naturally, unless you consider humans using their own science to change themselves evolution."

"I can see both sides of that argument."

"No, of course it didn't happen naturally. The difference between humans and plants is vast enough that barring either scientific advance or supernatural interference, it would take millions of years." He's an expert in the latter, and knowledgeable about the former.

Izana nods in agreement.

"It has been a thousand, and so not nearly enough time." They pause in silence for a moment or so, not quite certain what to say next. "Are the plants well in your world?"

"The plants face the same threat they always have. But in a way, that threat is helping. Some plants love the change in climate. Others don't." He has little doubt that unless man goes full out nuclear, or unless some supernatural force drags everything to Hell, the plants will outlive Man.

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