hugtopia | Video // 1

They're lacking in quality, likely due to the lack of samples to clone food from.

Though, if the flora and fauna are all mutated by toxins and we're the only biological life forms here, it does make one wonder exactly what they are using to engineer food from.

Ugh...I wish that was enough to make me lose my appetite, but that explains the taste.

[ He looked down at his food in dismay, picking up the bun to inspect the party and condiments, as if the fact that it was all poisonous clones would suddenly jump out at him. ]

Good question, though. Any theories on how that's supposed to work yet? Or the long term effects of eatin' rapidly mutating food sources?

[He did pause to think more.]

On second thought, it is unlikely to be mutated humans. At least, the earliest food wouldn't have been. It takes some time to grow meat in a lab, and they would not have had enough on the first day of our arrival.

Which, perhaps puts me back at an earlier theory - that it is being essentially 'teleported' from another location somehow. A stockpile of sorts, maybe.

Though in more recent times more life has cropped up, so it may be that there is a way to generate life from... seemingly nothing. There must be 'something', obviously, it just isn't apparent to us yet.

[Feel better now? Maybe it's just suuuuper old rations.]

I have been eating it since my arrival and have not suffered any noticeable ill effects thus far.

You know, I wasn't thinking mutated humans at first, but now I can't not. Oh, I don't think I got your name.

[ He snorted with a laugh, but let his burger alone to turn back to the camera. He seemed to be in the middle of his way out of there, but was still amicable while poking at the situation laid before him here and there. ]

I mean, like I said, I wasn't keen on the gadgets they have here that just suddenly apparatus food from nothin', supposedly. If that's the case, then what's the point in me paying for this burger? It's make more sense if it was somehow teleported from a stockpile, but that's a whole other mess.

Besides, with the way that storms ragin' outside the walls, but fine here--and I didn't see any farming districts? Little suspect, if you ask me.

Research Chief Verstael Besithia of the Imperial Army. I was among the first to arrive on this planet, so I am most capable of answering that which we have discovered thus far.

It is very suspect. I'm currently building a magitek engine in order to explore the outside further, but it will be some time yet. We do know, from the archives, that there were other cities at one point. Whether those still exist or not remains to be seen, but my first suspicions had been that the replicators transport food from another area. I've yet to see where this food comes from for certain, though.

I would recommend Affurgato if you are interested in fine cuisine. The owners are 'magic users' who are able to conjure food, which tastes excellent.

And should you seek information, you are welcome to browse my Information Center. Though, it is undergoing some renovations at the moment... [The last part sounded a little odd. He wasn't opposed to it, but it almost sounded like he had to remember that renovations were happening. This all sounded like he was speaking of something foreign to him now.] I believe there is meant to be a fee now and some sort of counter of 'impulse buys', but we are still ironing out the details.

Nice meetin' ya, Chief. Reno; I work for Rufus ShinRa.

That's for the heads up, I think I'll be visiting those places permanently henceforth.

Interesting, though. It wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with hidden cities and ancient grounds. How did attempts at reverse engineering those machines go?

I'll be stoppin' by there soon though. I've been doing some light backreading of posts on here, but with all the effort you've been putting into cataloging everything, you're gonna have more info than some conversations. What's the fee, though?

[ He tilted his head a bit at the odd change of tone, but it was more like a lazy lull of his head than the attentive quirk one might expect. ]

[So this was one of Rufus Shinra's employees?

Lucky bastard. Verstael had been here since the beginning and he'd yet to even meet someone else from his own country, just a whole lot of the enemy country. Enemy kings seemed to crop up like an infestation of cockroaches.]

If by 'reverse engineering' you refer to my magitek engine, or 'assault craft', there was no reverse engineering necessary. My specialty is creating new weaponry for the Empire. I'm well-acquainted with magitek weapons and armors, and have been researching how to create magitek troopers.

In other words, I already knew how to build it. Though I have had to make some adjustments in order to adapt it for alien technology.

If you speak of the replicators, the technology inside of them appears rather standard save for one piece, which I have ultimately determined is a conduit for energy that reacts to various types of magic.

[How does he know that? Well, maybe he broke into one of the townhouses and did a little de-constructing. One day someone was going to be stuck in a home with a broken replicator.]

As for the fee... You may wish to ask your president about that.

[ He listened diligently while sipping his drink from a straw. The fact that he did so quietly meant he was interested. ]

I wasn't, but that's impressive. Wait, did you patent the initial designs of the engine yourself and everything? [ An impressed whistle. ] You and me'll have plenty to go over, then. Weapons, armor, soldiers..that wasn't my department, but I do like tinkering around here and there. Mostly with birds.

Ah--yeah, replicators. You find out what kind of magic yet? If not and you need a little help, feel free to ask.

[ He wouldn't be surprised, and were he more knowledgeable, he'd give the good scientist a knowing smirk of approval. He still would anyway, however, and couple it with a huff of a laugh at the mention of Rufus. ]

Will do, thanks for the heads up. I'll be catchin' up with him after I get through this back-reading.

It has reacted to magic from various worlds, including my own. I have not, as of yet, tested it with magic from your world, so if you happen to have a materia we can do some experiments.

[Please have materia. He was definitely interested in the little glowy balls.]

If you enjoy tinkering I always have plenty to do in my lab. I may have the knowledge, but it still takes time to build a dropship by hand. As for the initial designs, magitek engines were recreated based on the technology of the ancient nation of Solheim before it ultimately fell due to the Astral War. I cannot take credit for coming up with the original vision, though I have been behind many upgrades and plenty of weaponry.

What do you mean by 'birds'? Do you refer to a creature or a device?

[ You're in luck! ]

Yeah, I've got the lightning materia in my mag rod still--she's missing the other two though, odd enough. I'll drop by this week and we can give it a go, just name a time and place. [ A simple smile and wave of his hand about the subject, inviting his new friend to indulge his curiosity all he likes. ]

The device..you know, helicopters, planes, rockets--I had a chopper at HQ no one else was allowed to touch. We had specialized mechanics on hand, but I had a lot of the basics down for fieldwork purposes, so we'll compare notes when I come up. Sounds like you might have different designs from ours, but it can't hurt.

That, and me and Rude are real good at makin' things explode. [ He'd chuckle at himself for saying such, and waited to see if he'd get a look of disdain from the good professor here for that. ]

[Oh has he ever made Verstael a happy boy. ~~Let him play with your balls please.~~

And besides that, comparing notes about alien technology? He'd love to learn everything he could about it.]

Our worlds likely adapted different methods for handling similar problems, but we shall see. I've the engine and main hull of a dropship built for you to compare your technology to, and I'll make an educated guess that you will have to make do with pictures or drawings of your technology.

How about this evening at six?

[Extreme thirst? Maybe. But 'helicopter' and 'plane' were new for him, and he wanted to learn.]

Refrain from causing any explosions in my information center. I don't like making new copies of items.

[ Get in line lover boy. But the idea of having to draw out the designs of machine parts he was familiar with made him pause. Oh fuck. ]

Yeah, I'll do my best, but no promises. My artistic skills are stick figure level at best. I'll be there though, and make a note to exempt your place from explosions.

Gotta date with the boss right now, though.

Very well. I spend much of my time there, so you can arrive at a time more suitable for you.

[Verstael was no grand master artists himself, though he did well enough to get the idea across. Perhaps there was a better way, though.]

Perhaps we could build a model rather than draw?

Will do, and yeah, I think we can get that managed, but they won't be the best. I keep 'em repaired, I didn't engineer 'em. Better than nothing though.

[ And with that, he was at his boss' house. ]

Alright, signin' off. I'll catch up with you after this and make sure you're still up for company.

[ A small wave, and after a response, he'd turn the video off and get to business. It would be some hours later--only fifteen minutes after the agreed-upon 6pm mark--before a call from Reno came along the tablets, as promised. The chatter was brief and to the point. Just confirming an appointment, before the redhead promptly showed up as directed.

If invited to the good doctor's research building, he'd observe polite etiquette and wait outside to be invited in, hands in his pockets. He was trying to pretend he wasn't shivering, but as it were, he didn't really have clothing to combat the season right now. ]

Yo, Verstael. [ Professional. ]

I got the materia on me. [ His coo was playful as he held out his hand. Reno was still unused to the means of getting currency in this world, so the gesture was habitual politesse for him. ]

[To be honest, he was impressed by that. Perhaps it wasn't the best word to describe it, but rarely did someone bother to make and keep an appointment of their own accord.

The center had always been open for people to come and go - though that was probably going to be changing thanks to Rufus - but he could hardly expect Reno to know everything on his first day. And again the man seemed to be stressing good etiquette. He wouldn't complain about that.

The much more important thing was...]

Excellent! [He waved Reno in vigorously. The center itself was undergoing a bit of construction, but the front was still loaded with shelves and documents. He took Reno straight to the back where he had his lab, with engineering type tools neatly arranged on one side and more laboratory type equipment on the other. Obviously it still had a long way to go - one man could only rebuild so fast.

But, impressively, he did have a motherfucking magitek engine sitting in the room. It was a small type and incomplete, but it would be completely recognizable to anyone familiar with them. He had the engine part and he had the hull - now it required building up the systems and insides.

There was also monitoring equipment which didn't seem to be fully operating, being mostly white fuzz with the occasional picture of some sort of cave-like area. A chemical storage cabinet, microscope, chemical resistant oven, and other things were around the room.

But for their purposes? He pulled out a rather small object. A crystalline core.]

This is the conduit. The material is similar the what is sealing the barrier. It was the only thing inside of the replicator that I didn't recognize.

[ Turks are a dirty lot, but they're always good on their word.

He wasn't quite familiar with the expected etiquette of this place, so he erred on the side of caution, assuming those of more learned statures were more or less used to the politesse and formalities. Hojo was annoyingly particular, so call it one of those learned habits.

When the doors opened, his brows raised and a grin slipped on his face and he let himself inside with the invitation. ]
Hey, you wouldn't mind me getting a hold of those books, would ya? I got a lot of catchin' up to do.

[ But he continued on past them. Verstael's excitement was palpable. It'd be cute as long as he didn't turn into another Hojo--THAT IS A WHOLE ASS MACHINE?? Reno took a second to pause and just. Let himself gawk at it, neverminding the mess. But Verstael kept on moving along, so he skipped a step or two to hurry after the doctor, and let his attention linger a little too long on the surveillance equipment.

He had so many goodies to make a mess with. But that, too, was filed away for later, and he paused to lean over the little core on display, tilting his head one side to the other to give it a good once-over. ]

Huh. How many of these you got?

[ As he looked it over, he reached inside his coat and pulled out his retracted mag-rod. With some applied pressure on two places of the handle, a cover popped off, and he tipped her over to dump the petite, sparkling materia into the palm of his hand. ]

And what all experiments have you run on those yet? I mean..crazy that these just casually create matter from nothin'.

[ It was a small thing that fit comfortably in the palm of a hand. It was hard, but not at all brittle. It was subtly warm, and glowed a bright yellow, and the texture of its surface gave the impression that there should be some give to it, like the taut skin on the back of one's hand, but it was, indeed, quite solid. To Reno, the warmth was natural. He was used to the way it drew energy up through the ground, how it climbed up his legs, torso, flowed along his arm, both towards and away from the marble in a calming circuit.

Moving and influencing that energy was second nature to Reno. Exciting it, and letting it pour through him like torrents was natural--this one in particular had been with him for the entirety of his career thus far, and this marble felt as much like a part of him as his own fingers.

He rolled it quite easily--bounced it up, swung his arm to catch it in the air to show it was a durable little thing, and safe to touch.

After such, he'd offer it up to Verstael as his other hand held to the handle of his mag rod, and let its shaft rest casually over a shoulder. ]

Should be fine holdin' it. Castin' spells with it might take a little practice though. If you want any test runs after you look at it, just let me know.

[ This marble was very much alive. The way it seemed to create a comfortable circuit through the body almost felt like a warm creek. With some focus, Verstael may be able to excite sparks around his hand--perhaps more with effort, but to use its energy meant to give ones own energy to it. ]

You're free to peruse as you wish. Sharing information will be integral to successfully escaping this place.

[He brought the crystalline core closer to himself in a more relaxed position while Reno retrieved his materia.]

I have one. On that note, don't mention it to the natives.

[He might have gotten it through illegitimate means and all.

Those little balls of magic absolutely fascinated him, and it could be seen in his expression when Reno pulled it out. But, that wasn't all that caught his eye. The rod itself was of unusual design, and he would absolutely have to look at it later. He specialized in weaponry, after all. Showing him weapons crafted on foreign worlds was like throwing piles of candy at a child.]

The president had the same type. These materia... They're absolutely astounding.

[One could practically see the hearts in his eyes when he held and examined the materia. But, perhaps that warranted more explanation.]

On Eos, my world, only the kings were gifted with the ability to use magic, and they determined who they would allow to borrow that divine power. Given that they are the enemy nation, we had to find alternative methods. Our magiteknology. But it goes through our machines, not through us directly.

When I used the president's materia... That was the first time I had ever physically wielded magic. And it sounds so commonplace on your world.

[It was hard to imagine a world where wielding magic was just a thing people did like that, no need to be special. He'd heard of other magic based worlds, but this one in particular caught his attention in the way they used it and how transferrable it was.

On the other hand, Verstael had no practical experience with it. The man probably had 4MP. Much as he would love to throw some more lightning around, he couldn't be stupid about this.]

I only have one, so the magic used on it should be controlled. [He offered the materia back, going to set up a place for the core away from anything else and carefully protected around it. He already had an idea what to expect - the shimmering bit of light it would show when someone used magic on it. How much magic it could take though... He'd been careful with it since it would be risky to get another one. He wasn't sure how much energy it could take.]

When I examined the interior of the machines I didn't see anything that would explain how they 'warp' food, so to speak. This was the only unidentifiable piece, and it is but a conduit. I may need to get into the software to better understand how they work. I believe the divine may be involved, so it will be complex to work out. Fortunately, unraveling the mysteries of the divine is my specialty.

[ He'd share the materia more easily than he would his mag rod--she was his baby, and he'd be far more fussy and particular about just handing that over.

It was easier to patiently wait for the materia to be handed back, and he had no qualms with letting the mag rod tap at his shoulder as an idle tick while looking around the room, taking stock again of all the research he had to pick through, and all the machinery and experiments laying about. Verstael being versed in weaponry would make Reno more apt to let him investigate the mag rod, but he'd still need a little more trust built up with the good doctor. ]

Only the kings, huh? Sounds like bullshit to me. [ A snort and an easy laugh. ]

If we can find out a way to make more here, I'm sure bossman's got you on the gift list. Did he explain how materia works back home for you?

[ When the materia was handed back, he slotted it back into the handle of the mag rod, eyebrows raising with lazy curiosity. He watched the crystal in Verstael's hands, and while they conversed, Reno waited with a slack posture while he set everything up, his expression was quite alert and intrigued. ]

Yep, I got you, doc. I think it's best not to test our limits 'til you get a second one [ There wasn't a visible change in the mag rod to alert that it was live, but rest assured, it held a weak current in it. Just equivalent to casting Thunder. ] Good thing it is. I mean, we had deities, but they were more just guardians, and even they drew energy from the planet itself. The idea of the gods powering everything, but they're gettin' energy from us? Sounds a little fishy, so I'll be glad to nose around with you on the matter.

[ He lowered the tip of his rod near the crystal, and electricity jumped from it to the crystal, lighting it up. He held the mag rod steady near the crystal for about fifteen more seconds after it lit up, but stopped to look back at Verstael for further instruction or permission. Or satisfaction. ]

I might be able to see about getting a second crystal for you, you know. If you needed the help.

[He watched, and raised a hand to let Reno know to stop. The way the crystal lit up was quite familiar.]

It reacted much the same every other time. ...I'll need to build a machine around it to truly understand it, I believe. Sometimes there is no better way to learn than to build from scratch and see what works. Fortunately, that's what researchers specialize in.

[He had patience.

But then, Reno did yet another thing that left a good impression, and Verstael couldn't help but grin.]

Should you so happen to find a replicator that has been opened, and so happen to discover a conduit nearby that looks quite similar to this one, I will not be opposed to experimenting with it.

[Pesky morals got in the way of progress more often than not. What was wrong with a little treasure hunting inside of someone else's house? He had his standards, but research was far more important than little things like that.]

The president has explained some to me, but it doesn't seem that there has been a scientist yet from your world who can fully explain. [He let out an amused snort.] It's amazing what can be so commonplace on another world that it's hardly questioned. I don't intend to thank our captors for violating my freedom, but I am truly grateful that I've had this opportunity to expand my horizons far beyond what I had ever thought possible. It's a humbling experience to see what other worlds have to offer.

[He stepped beside him to pick the crystal back up. For the moment there was nothing else to do with it, so he placed it back into storage.] Speaking of... I would love to hear more about this 'helicopter'.

[ At the signal, the current was cut, and with one hand, it retracted back into itself for easy storage inside of his jacket pocket. ]

So a computer. Cool. Do we know if the natives have this crystal in them, too? I don't plan on looking for any discarded natives, but I'll keep my eyes peeled.

[ As luck would have it, something as petty as social expectations never got in Reno's way. Whether that was good or bad depended entirely on circumstances, and it seemed like the good professor here was in agreement. ]

Yeah, no problem. I won't part of the research department either, so I'll leave it at what he was able to tell you. Hopefully you'll be able to take somethin' back to really shove it to this king of yours, yo. Whoever that is.

But yeah, 'course. Uh.. [ He patted his chest and hips to check his pockets for a pen. No luck. ] You got somethin' to draw with? I can show you while I explain it.

Of course.

[The guy was obsessed with writing everything down, so count on him to have writing equipment on hand. While he pulled faux-paper and pen out of a drawer for him in front of a seat, he continued talking.]

It is possible. I have not seen inside a native. If I were to guess, I would say it may be "Nicean ore". The natives need a component called 'Sildar ore' to live, while Nicean ore is used as a conduit.

The mine at the factory, by the way, had traces of Nicean ore in it, so it could be worth comparing. I had been preoccupied with the fact that the mine left another potential opening to invade the city, and concentrated more on efforts to monitor it.

[He pointed lightly towards the monitor with the fuzz. The signal came in once in a while, so it was obviously connected, but it was also suffering from massive interference.

And, since it seemed a waste not to, he would place his hand on Reno's shoulder if he chose to sit while drawing. It was different than what he was used to - usually he had people hold his shoulder while he worked. But no big deal. Despite not being a fighter he did have a pretty sturdy grip, though.]

[ He waited patiently, and did indeed sit to draw. It would also take a bit of concentration from him, since he was certainly not an artist by any stretch of the imagination. ]

Mines--so was there Sildar ore in the mines too, or just the Nicean? And what factory? [ Ugh, there was gonna be so much catching up. But he did glance briefly to the monitor. ]

Yeah. I'll start with harvesting from the replicators, first. Then we can worry about investigating the mines further, 'long as there's an eye out on the mines, it can wait.

[ Anyway so this drawing. The smaller models were built for speed and mobility. Just an eye in the sky. He drew a circle, and inside of it, mapped out the shape of the dashboard, seats, and controls as if looking at it from a cross section, so the shapes, while already being wildly imperfect, looked awkward without giving the brain the context of space or depth. From it, a box on top with four propellers, a long skinny tail with four more propellers on the side--in all, it looked like a dragonfly on water skis.

The controls, though, he could make a perfect copy of. The shapes were still imperfect and odd, but it was by far the most detailed part since he dealt with that the most.

He did not mind the hand on his shoulder while explaining the parts, and in fact appreciated making the extra dora. ]

This model's just recon work and mobility. We got heavier ones built for transport and holding artillery. [ He tried drawing a military grade helicopter, but again. It was. Hmm. A sight to look at. The cockpit was again spot on, but the rest was.

He did his best. ]

It was a Nicean mine. The factory is located in the outer area, along with a bathhouse and arena of sorts. Another has concentrated on restoring the bathhouse. I focused more on the factory.

[No surprises there.]

Artillery is a specialty of mine, so I should have no problem figuring that out. ...You know the controls quite well.

[Which might be the most important part. On the outside if he knew the general shape he could work with it. The detailed controls, though, were much harder to make up off the top of ones head. It gave him a much better idea of how to have it work.

Reno might be doubtful of Verstael still, but Verstael was finding him quite useful.]

So you this is a main method of traveling the world? The scale of it... [He tilted his head a bit. While the picture didn't exactly show the size, when Reno put in little details like controls and seats it became more and more apparent that the space within must be quite limited.] How many can it hold?

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Video // you're making my Vexen muse wake up.

I seem to make everyone's Vexen muse wake up

That's a good thing. But also odd that my reply didn't save the icon

Oh no

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It will explode if too much magic is used on it. Up to you.

He's a smart boy and will only push it if given permission.

Very good boy

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