monolith revisited | mingle

[mythbuster]

One fine morning, a boyish voice broadcasts to everyone around base:

There's a lot left to explore inside the Monolith, so I'll be visiting it today. If anyone else wants to come along, feel free.

Once all interested parties are assembled and traveling arrangements sorted out, they're off to the Monolith! Given the length of the journey, this will be a real time investment. A one-way trip takes nearly two hours by flight. Traveling in silence? Boring. How should they occupy their time? Travel games? Joy rides in the Seamoth? Maybe even some old-fashioned chit chat??

Once they arrive, there's plenty to explore. With some sniffing around, they'll find a map revealing that the Monolith contains a cafe and common area, crew quarters, lab, med bay, and "special alien containment" room. However, it'll take some ingenuity to actually reach each area. And by ingenuity I mean bombs.

Which is why the group will need a demolition crew! Get to blasting those walls in logical places. Or illogical places. No one ever said it had to be a good demolition crew. With enough willful destruction, surely all of the the Monolith's secrets will be laid bare in no time.

(( Here are the full details on what can be found in the Monolith! Create your own topics and go nuts. ))

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[splinten]

[Yeah, come on, Hinata. Things are weird. Dirk adds in a helpful point.]

The young man in the presence of actual divinity.

[Two Gods, in fact. But Dirk will not clarify on that point.]

[hopefragment]

That's a joke, right?

[His voice is dry because he really doesn't want to entertain the idea that this bratty kid is an actual god. Er-- the bratty kid named Loki, that is.]

Besides, no matter how you look at it, there's no way I could fit on top of Loki's head.

[mythbuster]

[ Loki smiles, limited though it is in its beakiness. He can think of a few ways to fit Hinata on his head. ]

Which of us would you guess is the divine one? The answer might surprise you.

[ But only because the question itself is misleading... And like Dirk, Loki will neglect to elaborate. ]

But I suppose it doesn't matter much in the end, does it?

[splinten]

Unless you really want to switch places with Loki.

[Dirk sounds like he's totally willing to do that. And also... hasn't answered the bit about Gods being a joke because he and Loki are actually a bad pair of people, frankly.]

[hopefragment]

N-no, that's okay!

[If he weren't holding on, he'd be holding both hands up. No, please, whatever they might be planning, he definitely doesn't want any part of that!

...And, honestly, he isn't sure if he wants to know.]

Can you turn into anything other than a bird?

[Since. Apparently he doesn't have a choice but to try to accept that Loki is literally a bird right now. Even though it doesn't make any sense at all.]

[mythbuster]

Oh, I can turn into all kinds of gruesome things. I can demonstrate, if you really want to see...

[ The ellipses hang in the air ominously. How did Hinata end up sandwiched by such bad people with too much power. ]

[splinten]

[Nice attempt at ominous. Allow Dirk to present his counterpoint.]

Wasn't it a minnow?

[He knows it wasn't.]

[hopefragment]

...You know, I don't know what to believe with you guys anymore.

[Flying teens. Gods who turn into birds and who knows what else.]

How about you just stay a bird, okay? [Maybe forever.]

[mythbuster]

[ He gives Dirk a blunt peck on the head. ]

Quiet, you.

[ Don't crash his drama!! He chooses not to sit on your head and this is how you repay him? ]

Being a bird suits me just fine. Anyway, I'm bored. One of you, tell me something interesting.

[ Entertain him!! No pressure or anything. ]

[splinten]

[Rude?]

How about some bird facts?

All birds should be cooked to 165 Fahrenheit to be consumed safely.

[Birdfacts! Dirk is here to keep the flight interesting and fun.]

[hopefragment]

Dirk...

[That's mean! Sure, Loki is a little shit and Hajime isn't terribly fond of him, but joking about cooking him is Rude.]

What kind of things do you find interesting, Loki?

[mythbuster]

[ Thank you Hinata, you see Dirk's rudeness for what it is!! But Loki is used to it, so he just makes a face at the back of Dirk's head. Except birds can't really make faces, so it just ends up as... a dead-eyed bird stare... ]

Animals. Tea. History. Homicide. It seems Dirk finds the last one interesting too.

[splinten]

That's unfair. I've only participated in three homicides in my life, and one of them was my own.

[And in one of them also succeeded first? Anyway. Dirk is so monotone about this that it could be another one of his ironic jokes. It has to be! After all, he mentioned his own homicide.]

[hopefragment]

Guys...

[Oh my god guys stop joking about murder. Since that's clearly what you both are doing? No way you've both actually been involved in homicides that'd be silly.]

But sure, animals. Uh... did you know I had a friend who raised hamsters inside his scarf?

[That's... interesting, right?]

[mythbuster]

[ What kind of irresponsible people does Hinata think they are, that they'd joke about murder! Loki would be so wounded if he knew. ]

Inside his scarf, really? [ Loki does find it interesting somehow?? He turns his head to fix an eye on Hinata. ] How'd he do it? I would expect hamsters to try to escape often.

[splinten]

Dude. That sounds adorable as as Hell. What were their names? [He totally wants to touch a scarf hamster. Let him hug one.]

[hopefragment]

Hah, yeah. There were four of them, he called them, the, uh... "Four Dark Devas of Destruction." They were really just normal hamsters, though...

[His tone implies that yes, "Dark Devas of Destruction" is an incredibly silly term, and everyone should treat it as such. And while he might sound exasperated just saying it, it's a kind of fond, wistful exasperation.]

He had an incredible talent for breeding animals... he could talk to them, and they could listen to him and understand orders and commands really well. Like... jumping across a room to push an elevator button, stuff like that. Their names were like manga titles, hang on...

[Give him a second to try to remember, they're so dumb-sounding.]

San-D, Jum-P, Maga-Z, and Cham-P, I think.

[mythbuster]

[ Uwah... That sounds really cute EXCEPT ]

What's with those names? Is your friend a first grader?

[splinten]

Dude. That's brilliant. [CUTE LITTLE HAMSTERS NAMED THE FOUR DARK DEVAS OF DESTRUCTION. Hilarious. This is exactly the kind of comedy gold that Dirk is fully in favour of. Bring it on.]

[hopefragment]

[I don't want to hear someone your age accusing us of being first graders...

Hajime just laughs, though, loud, genuine laughter as his grip tightens on Dirk's shoulders.]

N-no, he was a high schooler like me, but... do you guys know the term "chuunibyou?"

[mythbuster]

[ "Eighth grade syndrome"? Loki can't say he is hip with the kids and their newfangled slang. ]

Nope.

[splinten]

[He is noticing a lot of past tense here. He decides not to comment on it.]

Sounds familiar, but I don't know it.

[hopefragment]

It's what you call someone who likes to pretend they have magic powers and are standoffish because they have a great destiny or whatever... you know, like a middle schooler playing pretend.

[Which you don't seem too far away from, Loki. Except for the whole can-actually-become-a-bird bit]

But in spite of how weird he could be... he was a really great guy. You'd probably like him, if you could meet him. He'd fit in here.

[He's saying you're all weirdos.]

[mythbuster]

Yeah... he probably would.

[ They are self-aware weirdos. ]

You know, I've been wondering. Everyone here is unusual in some way. [ Even Elize and Hotaru come from unique backgrounds, he is pretty sure. ] But you seem as normal as they come, Junior. Are you secretly hiding some extraordinary ability?

[splinten]

[Oh my God, Loki. You can't just ask someone why they're normal.]

He's been extraordinarily tolerant as the crew straightman.

[Seriously.]