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Dec. 26th, 2017 12:58 am
You've reached Ota--er, Hal Emmerich. Leave a message if you want and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.
☮ 072; [text]
Mar. 15th, 2013 10:56 amI need to find something to do with myself around here.
Maybe I could start traveling and collecting badges again, but...I don't know. It doesn't really seem worth it if I'm on my own.I could probably ask Heather, but I'd just end up getting in their way or somethi I don't really imagine anyone would want a mechanical engineer following them around, either.
...Does anyone else ever feel like they've just flat-out been here too long?
Maybe I could start traveling and collecting badges again, but...I don't know. It doesn't really seem worth it if I'm on my own.
...Does anyone else ever feel like they've just flat-out been here too long?
☮ 071; [video/audio]
Feb. 11th, 2013 03:57 pm[Tap tap. Tap tap tap taptaptaptap--]
[It was a Chatot that turned on the Pokegear by relentlessly pecking at it--why? Attention, probably. When she realized it was finally recording, the bird ruffled her multicolored feathers and whistled a sudden noise of alarm as she fluttered both wings.]
[Most of the video was dominated by the small bird's face uncomfortably close to the screen as she continued making odd chirping sounds, but if one looked carefully enough it wouldn't be difficult to see the local turtleneck-wearing mechanical engineer packing the usual supplies along with various mechanical god-only-knew-what with a downcast expression. Oblivious, the Chatot in front of the camera kept right on strutting around and showing off for the network. Hey, if her trainer wasn't going to pay attention, someone probably would.]
[Shortly after, the screen shifted and went black; most likely put into a pocket or something similar.]
C'mon, Emma. Let's get out of here, okay?
[The fluttering of wings could be heard again; most likely the Chatot hopping up to her somewhat despondent Trainer's shoulder. She started to whistle again, that song heard until the video cut out a minute later.]
[It was a Chatot that turned on the Pokegear by relentlessly pecking at it--why? Attention, probably. When she realized it was finally recording, the bird ruffled her multicolored feathers and whistled a sudden noise of alarm as she fluttered both wings.]
[Most of the video was dominated by the small bird's face uncomfortably close to the screen as she continued making odd chirping sounds, but if one looked carefully enough it wouldn't be difficult to see the local turtleneck-wearing mechanical engineer packing the usual supplies along with various mechanical god-only-knew-what with a downcast expression. Oblivious, the Chatot in front of the camera kept right on strutting around and showing off for the network. Hey, if her trainer wasn't going to pay attention, someone probably would.]
[Shortly after, the screen shifted and went black; most likely put into a pocket or something similar.]
C'mon, Emma. Let's get out of here, okay?
[The fluttering of wings could be heard again; most likely the Chatot hopping up to her somewhat despondent Trainer's shoulder. She started to whistle again, that song heard until the video cut out a minute later.]
☮ 070; [video]
Dec. 31st, 2012 05:20 am[The video focuses on Otacon, who has a look of utter disbelief on his face. It's the kind of look one is usually fixed with after telling a joke in poor taste or an unbelievably terrible pun.]
[He starts to say something, then stops. It's like he can't even find words to articulate this; finally, he shifts the camera slightly and waves his free hand at the Pokemon floating around behind him.]
[Finally, he manages to put together a sentence in a tone of 'can't believe this is actually happening'.]
...It's a metal gear.
Is Johto's sense of humor really this terrible?
[Pot, kettle, black.]
[ooc: Mostly on hiatus, but I wanted to get this done. Responses're probably going to be slow for a while.]
[He starts to say something, then stops. It's like he can't even find words to articulate this; finally, he shifts the camera slightly and waves his free hand at the Pokemon floating around behind him.]
[Finally, he manages to put together a sentence in a tone of 'can't believe this is actually happening'.]
...It's a metal gear.
Is Johto's sense of humor really this terrible?
[Pot, kettle, black.]
[ooc: Mostly on hiatus, but I wanted to get this done. Responses're probably going to be slow for a while.]
☮ 069; [codec; fourth wall]
Nov. 26th, 2012 10:20 amPRESS SELECT
Okay, I'm definitely sure we've gone through this before. But sure, I'll go along with it... [A sigh.]
Well, it's pretty obvious by now we're in a Pokemon game, in every sense of the phrase. But obviously not everyone's going to have a clear understanding of game mechanics, type advantages, effort values, encounter rates, metagame aspects, and so on. Really, this is a whole different game than...well, the one I'm from. It's not as easy as 'press the Action Button to open a door, climb a ladder, and pretty much every other basic action you'd need to take'.
So, I guess if you ever had questions about that aspect of things, I'll try to answer them. And if you want to talk in person, I'm in Vermillion City.
...I won't be hard to find; you'll want to look for the plane.
☮ 068; [text]
Nov. 23rd, 2012 01:27 amHas anyone ever been able to determine a pattern in who arrives/leaves this world and when?
I keep hearing about people leaving that've been here for ages. I'm a little worried.
I keep hearing about people leaving that've been here for ages. I'm a little worried.
☮ 068; [text/action]
Nov. 5th, 2012 04:13 pmThey say 'the apple never falls far from the tree.' That one's got something to do with family and where you come from influencing you.
But what if the tree's on a hill? Maybe it will fall nearby, but it doesn't have to stay there. If it's something like that, the apple could roll as far as it wanted to. You can't really help what family you're born into and how, but it's up to you whether or not it makes a difference. An apple can only fall off a tree once, but it can travel anywhere after that.
What do you think? Does the kind of family someone's born into really determine anything about them?
[Otacon sighed as he sent the message--there was no way Liquid could ignore something like that. Fine with him, that was the whole point. Just like it had been the first time around, someone had to stop him from doing stupid things around here. Otacon couldn't control him--really, who could control Liquid Snake--but he could keep an eye on the soldier and make sure he didn't start more trouble than was necessary.]
[He stood outside the Goldenrod hotel, Pokegear in hand, and simply waited, the Chatot perched on his shoulder whistling softly and ruffling her feathers.]
But what if the tree's on a hill? Maybe it will fall nearby, but it doesn't have to stay there. If it's something like that, the apple could roll as far as it wanted to. You can't really help what family you're born into and how, but it's up to you whether or not it makes a difference. An apple can only fall off a tree once, but it can travel anywhere after that.
What do you think? Does the kind of family someone's born into really determine anything about them?
[Otacon sighed as he sent the message--there was no way Liquid could ignore something like that. Fine with him, that was the whole point. Just like it had been the first time around, someone had to stop him from doing stupid things around here. Otacon couldn't control him--really, who could control Liquid Snake--but he could keep an eye on the soldier and make sure he didn't start more trouble than was necessary.]
[He stood outside the Goldenrod hotel, Pokegear in hand, and simply waited, the Chatot perched on his shoulder whistling softly and ruffling her feathers.]
☮ 067; [action/video]
Oct. 3rd, 2012 03:56 am[Things had come down to a lot of waiting recently. Liquid was in Violet, so it wouldn't be too long until they finally ran into each other again. Otacon wasn't exactly thrilled about the mess that would probably turn into, but all the same it was nice to have him back.]
[Even if he was kind of a jerk.]
[Today he was considering flying to Azalea and waiting there instead, but it seemed a little unfair to have his Pidgeot do all the work. Standing just outside the Pokemon Center, Otacon idly decided to check and see if he had anything else that knew Fly. But he wasn't expecting much. Most of what he had was too small or obviously ground-based or a giant robot-...]
[Pausing, he must have checked and double checked two or three times to make sure he was reading things correctly. Was that a glitch or misinformation? Well, only one way to find out...]
[video]
[After a moment or two of unsteady shaking, the video was clearly filming an aerial view of Goldenrod City. Once it was turned around, the person filming was revealed to be a grinning idiot in a turtleneck and trenchcoat.]
[But not just any grinning idiot with a weird fashion sense.]
[This was one who was sitting on the shoulder of this.]
This might be the single best thing I've ever seen.
[Liquid? Liquid who? FLYING STONE ROBOT TIME.]
[Even if he was kind of a jerk.]
[Today he was considering flying to Azalea and waiting there instead, but it seemed a little unfair to have his Pidgeot do all the work. Standing just outside the Pokemon Center, Otacon idly decided to check and see if he had anything else that knew Fly. But he wasn't expecting much. Most of what he had was too small or obviously ground-based or a giant robot-...]
[Pausing, he must have checked and double checked two or three times to make sure he was reading things correctly. Was that a glitch or misinformation? Well, only one way to find out...]
[video]
[After a moment or two of unsteady shaking, the video was clearly filming an aerial view of Goldenrod City. Once it was turned around, the person filming was revealed to be a grinning idiot in a turtleneck and trenchcoat.]
[But not just any grinning idiot with a weird fashion sense.]
[This was one who was sitting on the shoulder of this.]
This might be the single best thing I've ever seen.
[Liquid? Liquid who? FLYING STONE ROBOT TIME.]
☮ 066; [video; backdated to 9/9]
Sep. 12th, 2012 02:04 pm[Otacon looked exhausted. How could you tell, you may ask? Well, the fact that he seemed to have fallen asleep at a desk in his hotel room--in Goldenrod, judging by the music. Awfully cheerful for someone who looked like he hadn't slept properly in days. The mutated streaks of white in his hair were starting to show through regardless of the fact that he'd dyed it, and if one looked closely enough they could probably see the beginning of dark circles under his eyes.]
[Behind him, one could see several Pokemon talking amongst themselves in their own particular languages--none of them sounding happy by any means.]
['I'm just going to eat him. Should have done that a long time ago.' hissed an Arbok. If a snake could scowl, that was exactly what she was doing.]
['Wouldn't like that, though.' answered an Ampharos in worried bleating sounds, gesturing in Otacon's direction. 'He doesn't want anyone hurt, y'know. 'Specially not that one.']
['Just put him in the hospital for a few weeks as a warning.']
[The two of them turned to the third that had spoken; the Pidgeot sitting on the bed preening her feathers without a care in the world.]
['You call that a warning?']
['I call that "happy birthday, Otacon, we took care of your problem".']
[It was about that point when Otacon blinked a few times--still crimson eyes, the other result of the mutation--and sat up, putting a hand to his head dazedly.]
Huh...must've fallen asleep. Not really how I'd planned to spend today... [He reached over and put his glasses on, looking over his shoulder at two Pokemon trying to act casual and one bird who couldn't care less. Ever seen a snake trying to whistle? Now you have.]
...you know, I'm not even going to ask this time. Stay out of trouble, will you?
[Behind him, one could see several Pokemon talking amongst themselves in their own particular languages--none of them sounding happy by any means.]
['I'm just going to eat him. Should have done that a long time ago.' hissed an Arbok. If a snake could scowl, that was exactly what she was doing.]
['Wouldn't like that, though.' answered an Ampharos in worried bleating sounds, gesturing in Otacon's direction. 'He doesn't want anyone hurt, y'know. 'Specially not that one.']
['Just put him in the hospital for a few weeks as a warning.']
[The two of them turned to the third that had spoken; the Pidgeot sitting on the bed preening her feathers without a care in the world.]
['You call that a warning?']
['I call that "happy birthday, Otacon, we took care of your problem".']
[It was about that point when Otacon blinked a few times--still crimson eyes, the other result of the mutation--and sat up, putting a hand to his head dazedly.]
Huh...must've fallen asleep. Not really how I'd planned to spend today... [He reached over and put his glasses on, looking over his shoulder at two Pokemon trying to act casual and one bird who couldn't care less. Ever seen a snake trying to whistle? Now you have.]
...you know, I'm not even going to ask this time. Stay out of trouble, will you?
☮ 065; [text; locked from liquid]
Aug. 24th, 2012 04:03 pmPeople come and go all the time around here. I think most if not all of us are more than used to that by now--it's just a fact of life as we know it here and there's nothing that can be done about it.
So what happens when someone comes back...different? They're the same individual, but their memories aren't entirely there--more than that, they're not really like they were the last time they were here. They might even be...kind of dangerous to be around.
I guess what I'm trying to ask is 'what do you do when someone you called a friend looks at you like you're almost a complete stranger?'
[Private text to Heather]
I need to talk to you. Preferably in person, if you can.
So what happens when someone comes back...different? They're the same individual, but their memories aren't entirely there--more than that, they're not really like they were the last time they were here. They might even be...kind of dangerous to be around.
I guess what I'm trying to ask is 'what do you do when someone you called a friend looks at you like you're almost a complete stranger?'
[Private text to Heather]
I need to talk to you. Preferably in person, if you can.
☮ 064; [text]
Aug. 3rd, 2012 02:32 pmMaybe it's better Liquid isn't here. he'd probably laugh himself sick if he saw me right now. At least I'm not blowing up lightbulbs just by walking past them anymore.
Does anyone else still look a little...uh, unusual?
[What kind of post were you expecting? 'My adopted sister lost her shit'? Oh no, he's not saying a word about that.]
Does anyone else still look a little...uh, unusual?
[What kind of post were you expecting? 'My adopted sister lost her shit'? Oh no, he's not saying a word about that.]
☮ 063; [video]
Jul. 1st, 2012 10:39 pm[Where was Otacon this time? Somewhere between Ecruteak and Goldenrod, but hell if he actually knew that. As a matter of fact, he was basically lost. But wherever he was, he didn't seem to mind too much.]
[The first thing the video showed was an Ampharos up close and sticking his nose into the camera. Hiiii, network, how are you doing?]
Asimov, what are you doing? Come here for a minute.
[The bright yellow giraffesheep set the Pokegear down and plopped down under a tree next to his Trainer--who seemed to be wearing a familiar old shirt and labcoat. Hey, it's summer. He was hardly going to be stuck in the same coat all year. Also notable was the fact that he was surrounded by scrap metal from various sources (including countless dismantled Pokeballs) as well as a bouncing Solosis. In the tree itself, there was a smug as ever Snivy in a tiny custom-made trenchcoat.]
[Needless to say, he's been keeping himself busy.]
I think it's done--the problem is I don't know if it'll work. [Speaking to the Ampharos, he holds up a strange amalgamation of metal and wires--clearly it's meant to be something, but just what is anyone's guess.] Or how to keep it running. I guess if I had the materials to make a solar panel...but as it is, it'll probably only run for a few hours. And that's only assuming it gets jumpstarted beforehand.
[Otacon set the whatever-it-was on the ground, replacing his screwdriver in his coat pocket.] Think you want to give it a try?
[The Ampharos bleated cheerfully, nodding--then gave the machine a light Thundershock. It sounded like it was functioning, making a mechanical whirring sound. After a minute of waiting to see if it would explode, the engineer gave a relieved sigh. Progress was progress, and even a minor success was a step in the right direction.]
[As a very unimpressed Snivy dropped from the tree to his Trainer's head, the video cut out.]
[The first thing the video showed was an Ampharos up close and sticking his nose into the camera. Hiiii, network, how are you doing?]
Asimov, what are you doing? Come here for a minute.
[The bright yellow giraffesheep set the Pokegear down and plopped down under a tree next to his Trainer--who seemed to be wearing a familiar old shirt and labcoat. Hey, it's summer. He was hardly going to be stuck in the same coat all year. Also notable was the fact that he was surrounded by scrap metal from various sources (including countless dismantled Pokeballs) as well as a bouncing Solosis. In the tree itself, there was a smug as ever Snivy in a tiny custom-made trenchcoat.]
[Needless to say, he's been keeping himself busy.]
I think it's done--the problem is I don't know if it'll work. [Speaking to the Ampharos, he holds up a strange amalgamation of metal and wires--clearly it's meant to be something, but just what is anyone's guess.] Or how to keep it running. I guess if I had the materials to make a solar panel...but as it is, it'll probably only run for a few hours. And that's only assuming it gets jumpstarted beforehand.
[Otacon set the whatever-it-was on the ground, replacing his screwdriver in his coat pocket.] Think you want to give it a try?
[The Ampharos bleated cheerfully, nodding--then gave the machine a light Thundershock. It sounded like it was functioning, making a mechanical whirring sound. After a minute of waiting to see if it would explode, the engineer gave a relieved sigh. Progress was progress, and even a minor success was a step in the right direction.]
[As a very unimpressed Snivy dropped from the tree to his Trainer's head, the video cut out.]
☮ 062; [text/action]
Jun. 11th, 2012 08:37 pm[Olivine was nice, Otacon couldn't argue that point. It was peaceful and calm as far as he could tell, and the breeze coming off the ocean was nostalgic in several ways--not all of them good. He'd been raised in a city not entirely unlike this, close to the sound of waves and the smell of saltwater.]
[It was familiar, and that made it painful. Maybe it wouldn't bother him quite so much if--]
[If Liquid was here? He shook his head at that, sighing. It didn't matter, thinking things like that. Liquid, Sunny, Snake, Raiden...he was separated from them by god only knew how many parallel worlds. And years on top of that, in Liquid's case. No matter how much he thought about 'what if' and 'if only', nothing would change. The situation was what it was, and as always Hal Emmerich was left alone.]
[He stood on the shoreline for a while, long enough to lose track of time, quietly staring at the ocean and thinking things over. Olivine was peaceful, quiet...and Otacon was left feeling like he was a lost and lonely teenager all over again.]
[After who knew how long he'd spent staring out at nothing, Otacon took out his Pokegear and started typing. What else could he really do? His options came down to 'talk to someone' or 'go insane'.]
Nobody has to read this, and I really don't care if you ignore it or not. All I want is to talk for a while, and I don't have many people left here that I know would listen.
My name is Doctor Hal Emmerich, and there's only ever been two things I'm good at--computer programming and engineering. That's all I have and really all I can do. I left home when I was seventeen, and from then until I was twenty-five I was on my own doing nothing but studying and working with machinery.
Outside of this world I've only ever had one close friend. I don't have any family, and anyone else I've ever cared about...they're gone too. But in the year or two I've spent in Johto, I've actually had friends. That's not something I'm really used to, even now.
What I'm used to is losing people, and that's all that's happened lately. I've always thought I was cursed to have terrible things happen to anyone and everyone I care about, and I don't think that's changed. My closest friend from home and the person I loved are both gone, and I don't know what's left. All I know is that I don't want to be alone. Not again. But I don't want anyone else to disappear or get hurt just because they're associated with me. I don't know what to do, where to go, or who to talk to.
That's why I'm sending this message to the network in general. Maybe someone will know what to do or be able to point me in the right direction so I don't feel like I'm seventeen and just ran away from home all over again. Or give me an idea of what to do so I don't just lock myself in a hotel room and disassemble everything mechanical.
[It was familiar, and that made it painful. Maybe it wouldn't bother him quite so much if--]
[If Liquid was here? He shook his head at that, sighing. It didn't matter, thinking things like that. Liquid, Sunny, Snake, Raiden...he was separated from them by god only knew how many parallel worlds. And years on top of that, in Liquid's case. No matter how much he thought about 'what if' and 'if only', nothing would change. The situation was what it was, and as always Hal Emmerich was left alone.]
[He stood on the shoreline for a while, long enough to lose track of time, quietly staring at the ocean and thinking things over. Olivine was peaceful, quiet...and Otacon was left feeling like he was a lost and lonely teenager all over again.]
[After who knew how long he'd spent staring out at nothing, Otacon took out his Pokegear and started typing. What else could he really do? His options came down to 'talk to someone' or 'go insane'.]
Nobody has to read this, and I really don't care if you ignore it or not. All I want is to talk for a while, and I don't have many people left here that I know would listen.
My name is Doctor Hal Emmerich, and there's only ever been two things I'm good at--computer programming and engineering. That's all I have and really all I can do. I left home when I was seventeen, and from then until I was twenty-five I was on my own doing nothing but studying and working with machinery.
Outside of this world I've only ever had one close friend. I don't have any family, and anyone else I've ever cared about...they're gone too. But in the year or two I've spent in Johto, I've actually had friends. That's not something I'm really used to, even now.
What I'm used to is losing people, and that's all that's happened lately. I've always thought I was cursed to have terrible things happen to anyone and everyone I care about, and I don't think that's changed. My closest friend from home and the person I loved are both gone, and I don't know what's left. All I know is that I don't want to be alone. Not again. But I don't want anyone else to disappear or get hurt just because they're associated with me. I don't know what to do, where to go, or who to talk to.
That's why I'm sending this message to the network in general. Maybe someone will know what to do or be able to point me in the right direction so I don't feel like I'm seventeen and just ran away from home all over again. Or give me an idea of what to do so I don't just lock myself in a hotel room and disassemble everything mechanical.
☮ 061; [text]
May. 31st, 2012 08:30 amShouldn't we be a little more worried about these occasional periods of missing time? It's happened on...what, four separate occasions? For all we know it's aliens or something.
Then again, alien abduction is probably too normal for somewhere like this.
...And if anyone can tell me how I got to Olivine, I'd appreciate it.
Then again, alien abduction is probably too normal for somewhere like this.
...And if anyone can tell me how I got to Olivine, I'd appreciate it.
☮ 060; [video/action]
May. 25th, 2012 12:03 am[Somewhere in between Violet and Ecruteak, a tremendous monster is looming over the landscape. A huge, bipedal, metallic...piece of junk.]
[Holding the Pokegear today is a slightly distressed Ampharos, seemingly not sure what to make of this mess. Closer to the scrap metal monstrosity is one trenchcoated Otacon, balancing on the tail of the Arbok currently acting as a stepladder.]
Just a little higher--I really should have installed a ladder here... [The cobra gives him a little more of a boost and Otacon reaches the machine's lower jaw of sorts, pulling himself into the cockpit.]
...okay. Now what?
[Holding the Pokegear today is a slightly distressed Ampharos, seemingly not sure what to make of this mess. Closer to the scrap metal monstrosity is one trenchcoated Otacon, balancing on the tail of the Arbok currently acting as a stepladder.]
Just a little higher--I really should have installed a ladder here... [The cobra gives him a little more of a boost and Otacon reaches the machine's lower jaw of sorts, pulling himself into the cockpit.]
...okay. Now what?
☮ 059; [text]
May. 7th, 2012 06:17 pmI'm kind of curious. How many people have Pokemon now that don't seem to be native to Kanto or Johto?
And if you feel like telling me about them, I'd love to hear it.
[He might even be preparing to take notes.]
As for myself, I have a Snivy--it's a Grass-type that looks a little like a snake.
And if you feel like telling me about them, I'd love to hear it.
[He might even be preparing to take notes.]
As for myself, I have a Snivy--it's a Grass-type that looks a little like a snake.
☮ 058; [text]
Apr. 13th, 2012 07:56 pm[Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He should have known better, after all that had happened. Otacon should have known this would never last, and that it was a miracle things had stayed as they were for the year or so that they did. Two years? No, it was probably a little short of that. However long it had been, it didn't matter anymore. Did anything matter at this point?]
This message is for those of you who knew Liquid Snake.
[Of course not. Nothing mattered, not for Otacon. Whatever happened from here on out, he was alone. Liquid used to talk about changing fate, going back home and rewriting what was supposedly fated. Maybe it would work. Scientifically speaking, the probability of one timeline of one universe branching off was pretty good in the grand scheme of things. But where did that leave Otacon? The same place he'd ever been. Just like with Wolf, with Emma, with Naomi...he lost everything, and it only hurt worse each and every time.]
He's not in Johto anymore.
['I don't have any more tears to shed.' Otacon remembered when Snake had told him that, nine or ten years ago. He'd thought that must have been a terrible existence, to be so broken and jaded that one simply couldn't cry anymore. Given the kind of track record he had, just typing that last sentence should have had Otacon breaking down to an inconsolable wreck. But...there was nothing. It hurt, ached in a way he was very familiar with...and yet he was just empty.]
[He'd been right. It was a terrible way to live.]
[Why wasn't he breaking down? Why hadn't he burst into an inconsolable mess of tears? This wasn't like him at all. Was he just that broken by now, or did he still have some tiny measure of hope that things would be alright?]
[If anyone could rewrite history through stubborn singleminded determination, it would be Liquid Snake. Otacon believed that with all his heart--if Liquid wanted something done, no laws of time, physics, or reason would stop him. It almost made him wonder what kind of world that would result in. Shadow Moses would surely end differently, if it happened at all. And knowing Liquid...he'd trample time and space until he crossed paths with that world's Hal Emmerich. And then...no, it didn't matter what happened then. Because the Hal Emmerich of 2014 was the only one he could concern himself with. Whatever happened, he would never know and couldn't waste his life thinking about it.]
[Otacon leaned back in his chair, taking off his glasses and waiting for a response. He'd done what he needed to, now he just had to handle the fallout. He'd have a lot of explaining to do to Snake, at least. Taking a deep breath and sighing, the engineer stared blankly out the window.]
[...I believe you can change fate. I know that you can, James. So don't--you're not allowed to die like that, understand?]
This message is for those of you who knew Liquid Snake.
[Of course not. Nothing mattered, not for Otacon. Whatever happened from here on out, he was alone. Liquid used to talk about changing fate, going back home and rewriting what was supposedly fated. Maybe it would work. Scientifically speaking, the probability of one timeline of one universe branching off was pretty good in the grand scheme of things. But where did that leave Otacon? The same place he'd ever been. Just like with Wolf, with Emma, with Naomi...he lost everything, and it only hurt worse each and every time.]
He's not in Johto anymore.
['I don't have any more tears to shed.' Otacon remembered when Snake had told him that, nine or ten years ago. He'd thought that must have been a terrible existence, to be so broken and jaded that one simply couldn't cry anymore. Given the kind of track record he had, just typing that last sentence should have had Otacon breaking down to an inconsolable wreck. But...there was nothing. It hurt, ached in a way he was very familiar with...and yet he was just empty.]
[He'd been right. It was a terrible way to live.]
[Why wasn't he breaking down? Why hadn't he burst into an inconsolable mess of tears? This wasn't like him at all. Was he just that broken by now, or did he still have some tiny measure of hope that things would be alright?]
[If anyone could rewrite history through stubborn singleminded determination, it would be Liquid Snake. Otacon believed that with all his heart--if Liquid wanted something done, no laws of time, physics, or reason would stop him. It almost made him wonder what kind of world that would result in. Shadow Moses would surely end differently, if it happened at all. And knowing Liquid...he'd trample time and space until he crossed paths with that world's Hal Emmerich. And then...no, it didn't matter what happened then. Because the Hal Emmerich of 2014 was the only one he could concern himself with. Whatever happened, he would never know and couldn't waste his life thinking about it.]
[Otacon leaned back in his chair, taking off his glasses and waiting for a response. He'd done what he needed to, now he just had to handle the fallout. He'd have a lot of explaining to do to Snake, at least. Taking a deep breath and sighing, the engineer stared blankly out the window.]
[...I believe you can change fate. I know that you can, James. So don't--you're not allowed to die like that, understand?]
☮ 057; [video]
Mar. 9th, 2012 09:20 pmGuys, have you ever gotten a Pokemon that reminded you of someone you knew?
[In the background, there is the world's single most smug Pokemon...standing atop a cabinet near the ceiling.]
He keeps climbing up on whatever he can reach and looking like he owns the place. [A pause; Otacon really seems more amused about this than anything else. Something remarkably like a mischievous smirk crossed his face as he spoke in a slightly quieter, almost conspiratorial tone:]
...I think I might just name him Liquid.
[In the background, there is the world's single most smug Pokemon...standing atop a cabinet near the ceiling.]
He keeps climbing up on whatever he can reach and looking like he owns the place. [A pause; Otacon really seems more amused about this than anything else. Something remarkably like a mischievous smirk crossed his face as he spoke in a slightly quieter, almost conspiratorial tone:]
...I think I might just name him Liquid.
☮ 056; [video; dated to 2/14]
Feb. 15th, 2012 11:15 pmI've been worried about a lot of things for a while, but...y'know, I can't help but think they don't matter quite as much now.
[Did someone order an extra dose of LET'S POSITIVE THINKING, Johto? Because even as Otacon talks about a depressing topic, there's still a smile on his face.]
Never considered it before, but I've never had anyone really special to celebrate Valentine's Day with. I mean, I've had friends, of course. But there's still part of me that's kind of always felt alone, really. Everyone I've loved...they're gone now, and it's just me. It's always just been me since I was seventeen.
[Otacon shifted a little uncomfortably, holding a mint-green egg a little closer to him.]
...But it's okay, because I'm not alone anymore. Even if my father isn't here anymore...I have more of a family here than I ever had back home. And I love someone that's far too persistent to ever let me end up alone again.
[Another, brighter smile--for a moment he looked like the constantly upbeat Otacon he had been five years before. Back when he had an Ekans and Flaaffy following him around and greeted everyone with a welcoming smile and cheerful tone.]
[Everything had changed since then. But that wasn't altogether a bad thing.]
[Did someone order an extra dose of LET'S POSITIVE THINKING, Johto? Because even as Otacon talks about a depressing topic, there's still a smile on his face.]
Never considered it before, but I've never had anyone really special to celebrate Valentine's Day with. I mean, I've had friends, of course. But there's still part of me that's kind of always felt alone, really. Everyone I've loved...they're gone now, and it's just me. It's always just been me since I was seventeen.
[Otacon shifted a little uncomfortably, holding a mint-green egg a little closer to him.]
...But it's okay, because I'm not alone anymore. Even if my father isn't here anymore...I have more of a family here than I ever had back home. And I love someone that's far too persistent to ever let me end up alone again.
[Another, brighter smile--for a moment he looked like the constantly upbeat Otacon he had been five years before. Back when he had an Ekans and Flaaffy following him around and greeted everyone with a welcoming smile and cheerful tone.]
[Everything had changed since then. But that wasn't altogether a bad thing.]
