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Daycycle 116 [ November 13 - November 26 ]

daycycle 116

[Nov 13 - Nov 26]

[OOC Plotting for this Daycycle can be found here.]
[The Charity Ball Entertainment post is here.]
[This DC has been extended through 11/26.]

Early Morning [0800 - 0900] — All Troubleshooters Report for Duty

No Special Troubleshooters have been selected for a mission this morning.

Morning & Afternoon [0900 - 1600] — Service Firm Positions
All Troubleshooters not assigned a mission should report to their Service Firm for their daily duties, unless specifically assigned a different shift.

Matt Murdock's office will be assigned to defend the most recent Specials accused of treason. He will not be allowed to contact the traitors directly, but he will be given the task of preparing his cases. He has 48 hours to prepare.

Jack Harkness has been selected to plan the entertainment for tonight's Charity Ball, thanks to the popularity of his performances during the Alpha Talent Show a few days ago. When he asks The Computer for help, several specials are assigned to him. Izzy Lightwood will be his event planning assistant and "Stiles" Stilinski will assist in MCing the night's event. Due to their popularity, all Specials will be approached about being auctioned off for dances in order to help raise money by Jack, Izzy and Stiles. They will also be asked if they're willing to take part in specially planned choreographed dances. Dance lessons will be provided for those that require them during the afternoon hours.

Evening [1600 - 2200] — Citizen Improvement
All Alpha citizens are encouraged to better themselves through Alpha’s wide variety of educational, entertainment and cultural opportunities offered each evening. Attending these sanctioned events are not mandatory, but is highly encouraged by The Computer. Citizens choosing not to take advantage of these opportunities, have a growing number of other options available to them in how to spend their hard earned credits and free time.

Tonight’s event will begin at 1800 at the Alpha Museum of Fine Art and will be hosted by The ~~Humanists~~ Alpha Society for the Arts. Tickets to the event are 1000cr and can be bought up until an hour before the event begins. Attendees have been given special permission to wear Old Reckoning clothing for this event only, as long as it is the same color as their clearance level. Specials may notice that many of the Alpha Citizen's outfits have gotten key parts of Old Reckoning clothing wrong, with buttons instead of sequins, for example, or men wearing ties that are much too long and go to their knees. Alpha's Very Special Forces will be present to ensure the safety of those attending.

An entire wing of the museum has been cleared as a makeshift dance floor. In an attached room there are several tables covered in white tablecloths and set with the crystal and china that usually only graces Violet citizen tables. Along the wall is a massive buffet made with real food and including an elaborate ice sculpture. There is a bar in the corner where Alpha's finest spirits are being disbursed freely. For the first hour, the focus is on the food and mingling. The music playing is calming and instrumental. There are some that steal the dancefloor for a slow spin, but the majority of the attendees seem reluctant to move away from the buffet.

And then at approximately 1900, Jack Harkness will take the stage and begin the evening's real entertainment.

Alpha Curfew Restrictions
All Alpha citizens should be in their quarters within the Wagon Wheel by 2200, unless they’ve been given permission from a GREEN or higher clearance level citizen. Sleeping Aid gas is dispelled each night in the Wagon Wheel at 2200 to assist citizens in getting a productive sleeping period.

Confession Booths
There are hundreds of confession booths available around Alpha Complex if a citizen would like to communicate directly with the computer. Please use these confession booths to report mission statuses, report treason or terrorist acts, unregistered mutants, confess your trespasses against Alpha Complex, request propaganda or speak with Your Friend, The Computer, at any time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

At her certainty, Derek lifts a dubious eyebrow. Has she just not been paying attention, he wonders, because all he's seen up to this point is destruction. It seems pretty reasonable to him to be waiting for something to go wrong here. And Derek thinks Natasha sounds naive until she continues...at which point, he thinks she's clinging to the hope that logic still exists. Derek doesn't think it does.

Her explanation makes perfect sense in the real world, but this isn't the real world. This is a world where mayhem erupts out of goddamn nothing on a nearly daily basis. While he understands where she's coming from, because again, it makes sense if logic exists, Derek isn't comforted in the least. Of course the Computer wants to gain trust, but it always wants to gain trust. There's nothing different there. And there are plenty of people who want to shatter it at every turn. In Derek's mind, this is the perfect place for an attack. There are high clearance people half-mingling with lower clearance ones; damn near every Special is in attendance. Terrorism is meant to ignite terror and the sorts that commit those acts aren't always looking for supporters nor are they always looking to overthrow a leader as their end game.

But Derek doesn't argue. Instead, he nods a little and gives a facial shrug. "Makes sense," he says and that isn't a lie, because he's certain that back home, her logic would fall right in line. It does make him a little curious to know exactly what it was that Natasha did back home, but he doesn't ask.

"You think the Computer is behind the attacks?" Derek asks, confused, as she finishes. His brow creases slightly. He got the impression that the attacks were against the Computer, not organized by it, but now that he thinks about it, that'd be one way to keep everyone complacent; scare the stupid ones into thinking they need the Computer by staging attacks only to turn around and help assuage worries caused by it...

Natasha scoffs a little at Derek's last question, not because she thinks that he's funny or naive for asking but because, how she wishes it was that simple. "No. At least, not directly. Not all of them." She looks back at him to read his expression just to see how close they are to being on the same page, and after she spins out only to spin back into him Natasha falls into place and continues.

"This thing is a computer, everything that it does and everything that it plans on doing is systematic. There's obviously something wrong with the system that it runs on, something that makes it go irate and off balance, but in the end, it's a system." Natasha looks around the room, nodding at the doors. "Do you see how much security is in this place? Multiply that by ten and you might be able to get a figure of how many hidden security officers, hidden surveillance cameras and hidden counter-terrorism measures were put into place tonight. If anybody breathes wrong in this room they'll be dead on the floor before they can reach for a weapon." Her hands moves away from his shoulder for a moment to hold up her finger in a sign for him to wait.

"Now you'd think that that was a good thing, keeping the people safe and all that, but it begs the question, why not have it like this all the time? The computer can assign anyone to anywhere they want, it has the capability to train people but instead, it doesn't. It puts computer hackers in the armed forces and able-bodied young men who can't even microwave a Hot Pocket on kitchen duty. It's easy to believe that these are just problems in that software system that it runs on, but then you have to remember that someone, someone, is 'fixing' that software." Natasha's voice gets a little lower. "Someone has their fingers deep into the mechanics and processes of The Computer but they're obviously not making it better. Why, though?"

The song ends and Natasha parts from Derek to clap politely with the rest of the crowd, smiling kindly at anyone who glances their way before she continues a moment later while looking back at him. "Because if everything ran like a well oiled machine then there would be an even distribution of power an wealth, and a lot of people don't want that. Particularly the people with power and wealth."

She starts to lead him off of the dance floor, weaving through people before finding a somewhat private area near the far wall. "Tonight is proof that the Complex has the capability of being equal, the only thing that differentiates anybody tonight is the color of their wardrobe as long as they're in this room. But someone, whether it be a group or a solitary person, is keeping that disparity there. That's what's birthing these rebel groups and these attacks. If they didn't exist then The Computer would be capable of running everything perfectly. As long as that's not the case, someone is still able to get their hands in there and pull strings that are, ultimately, in their favor."

Natasha sighs, and she looks out at the crowd as she folds her arms across her chest. "Or maybe I'm wrong and the elites who get to 'debug' a tyrannical overlord really do nothing more than brush a little dust off of it's motherboard." She gives a doubtful look. "I don't think the Computer is behind the attacks, I think that people are. But I think that the Computer is the most efficient, powerful, horrifying weapon this place can ever provide and someone has it in their pocket." Which is why she's trying to dismantle it, one corrupt sonofabitch at a time.

Everything Natasha says makes sense to Derek, but in that case, it sounds like this place is little different than the world back home. The only difference is that the world back home has several leaders in place, most of them probably corrupt, whereas Alpha Complex has simply The Computer. And while she's pointing out that The Computer could make this a better place, in the same breath, she's pointing out that someone has to run it and so they're right back to where Derek started: The Computer isn't the problem; the people are.

It's frustrating when he thinks about it, so Derek typically doesn't like to think about it. He's making baby steps in his own way toward making things a little more equal. For example, currently, he's working on a program that he's been given a green light for which will, if he rigs it and runs it just right, prove that the lower level citizens require actual food in their diet to be up to par with The Computer's standards for fitness. He knows that Alcide is working on a way to get their abilities back. The Specials seem to be the only ones that Derek knows about who are making steps in a positive direction rather than simply acting out like exceptionally violent toddlers throwing a fit in the store because they're not allowed Cocoa Puffs instead of Kix.

He's quiet, but he doesn't mirror the put upon smile that Natasha gives when people start to clap at the end of the song. Derek can't be bothered with pretending that he wants to be here or likes being here. If they want to shove HappiTime pills down his throat for it, fine.

"Then it's still the people that need to change, not the Computer," he says softly out of the corner of his mouth, lifting his eyebrows. "That's going to be a bigger hurdle to jump." It isn't his way of saying that they can't or shouldn't do it, just acknowledging that they've got an uphill battle ahead of them. "So I guess we go on chipping away the way that we already are: quietly and secretly, until we've got a decent leg up. No?"

"The people need to change. The Computer needs to be removed." Natasha says it so bluntly, without hesitation, that it's almost painfully obvious that this isn't the first time that she's thought all of this out. She speaks a bit more firm on her next line, though, with an underlying passion that doesn't come from just studying the system they're in from afar. "Power needs to be a system of checks an balances, if you put all of it in the hands of one entity, human or otherwise, corruption will occur. Always and without fail. So yes, we need to replace the people that the Computer holds close and is influenced by, and we need to get rid of it."

Natasha knows that it sounds impossible but she's seen regimes fall. She's watched killer robots and aliens, best friends tear each other limb from limb over something as stupid as a piece of paper with a signature or two missing... nothing is impossible if there's enough conviction behind it. So she nods when he asks the last part, but the look on her face says that there's more she's not saying. She likes Derek, she's decided, and not because she relates to him more than she relates to most of the people in the complex. She likes Derek because he sees the problems around him and he actually wants to do something about it, not bitch and fall in line to hope for the best.

So, she's honest. "It's going to take a long time and it's not going to be fast. We need to do smaller things in the meantime to try and get everything moving, significant things. Things that can help the people who are suffering the most because no one else is helping them." She eyes the man carefully, as if trying to read his expression, but instead of testing him Natasha just continues on. He's already proven to be a good person - truly good - and she needs good people. Natasha needs help. "I've been working on something. If everything goes to plan I'll be able to provide a lot of people here with what they need to live comfortably. Dietary needs, medications... all of it. And I'll be moving up that ladder of corruption all at the same time, but I have to play my cards right. And with the right people."

Derek thinks that Natasha both makes a good point and has a flawed opinion. A machine doesn't make mistakes, it processes the data a human gives it and creates an applicable output. If the Computer is fucked up it's because someone broke it. Just like when Derek's goddamn smart phone won't do something he wants it to, that's not because the phone is stupid, it's because Derek is. It's the same, right?

But getting rid of the people who are pulling the strings or running the show, that is something Derek can get behind. "Agreed," he says quietly. The tone suggests he both understands the weight of the challenge and the necessity of rising to the occasion, in equal measure.

That look isn't lost on him, but as per usual when conversing with Natasha, Derek doesn't ask questions. She'll tell him if and when she wants him to know. Most of the reason their friendship works is that they silently respect one another's boundaries as such.

Derek's eyes move away from hers and toward the stage, his expression carefully neutral as he feigns interest in the emcee making his way to the center of it. "Us," he says quietly through the corner of his mouth, "and INFRARED. We're no better than America right now with the total lack of economic balance. There's literally no middle class here, it's two or three percent ORANGE and up and then us. I mean, right? Or am I exaggerating?"

When she mentions food, though, Derek lifts his eyebrows. "I'm working on food, too," he admits. "I have a green light to run a test and if it goes well...we'll have food for lower clearance. Hopefully. Not much, but something to supplement that God awful slop they feed us now. It's gonna take a couple of weeks, but I'm feeling pretty good about it."

He finally looks over at her and gives her a solemn nod; a silent acknowledgement and acceptance of what he's pretty sure she's silently asking. A partnership of sorts. "Some of us need our abilities back, too. This human schtick is getting fucking old over here. I'm only half as useful as I could be, being like this."

"You're not exaggerating at all, and I think that the sickest part about it is the fact that the financial disparity isn't even the worst thing about this place." There's a touch of bitterness that seeps into Natasha's tone when she says it, her lips pursing for a moment in annoyance as she also looks away to watch the emcee.

"My first mission here, I was put in a room with a girl who had absolutely no skills in self defense and we were forced to fight a bunch of buggy, killer robots for 'testing' purposes. If she was in there with someone who didn't now how to defend themselves, she would have died. Or, at least, have gotten seriously injured, and that's just something that happens here. It feels like Russia." The last part comes out before Natasha can think about it, spurred on by her frustration more than anything else. "It feels like Russia all over again."

An eyebrow arches when he mentions his plan with the food, an acknowledgement for him despite the fact that she's still looking elsewhere. "Good, because you're right. I can feel how that shit is effecting me, it has to change. And that's a struggle I can't relate to." It isn't a tease, but a genuine admission. Natasha is surrounded by men who seem to feel less useful here than they did back home, and she can see how it effects them; her friends.

"But I can see a lot of people going through it. I don't even know where we would be able to start with that, though, the most I've been able to do is gain the Computer's trust and use it properly. When it comes to powers and abilities, I don't know if I could be of much use."

"I'm not even talking about the financial disparity," Derek replies quietly, because he isn't. It's not like it matters how many credits they have. He could have a million of them but his clearance level wouldn't allow him to spend those credits on anything he'd actually fucking want. "It's the housing. The food. The fact that we're completely dispensable."

He knows who she's talking about and Derek has to remind himself for the first time in a while that there's nothing there. He met Felicity, and then she was gone from his life for reasons unknown to him and it's probably better that way. Not that he's made things any better for himself, what with the interest in Katniss he hasn't been able to kick since the coffee bullshit.

He gives a nod. So she's human, normally. "I feel like I'm only half of myself. The part of me that I identify with is gone. It's just gone. All I have left is the mask I used to wear to pretend to be normal and it feels empty and shitty and useless and I can't stand it. But baby steps. The food is an issue. A big one." One that Derek intends to tackle first because it's more important to the large populous than the fact that he can't grow fangs and claws anymore.

"Ah." Natasha nods a little when he clarifies and she looks around a little, studying the different colored clothing for the first time that night. "I see what you're saying now. I haven't really thought about that, dispensable has always been my default." The worst part about this place is that it doesn't feel so different to Natasha than anywhere else; even S.H.I.E.L.D treated her as disposable when it was convenient for them. She isn't really upset about how she's treated here, she's upset that everybody of a lower level is treated that way. Not everyone can handle it.

"Everything that I did back home, I can do now. But I've been training since I was eight years old, not everybody has the discipline that's needed to be truly dangerous without a particular advantage." She says it factually with a small nod. "It's why I don't understand why I was dragged here, it seems like they tried to target powerful people but take away that edge that they have. Mine wasn't taken away.

"But it doesn't matter, all you can do is wear your mask and use whatever useful pieces of yourself that you have left. And if there aren't any left, you need to make them useful." It's not as simple as Natasha makes it sound and she knows that, but she's lost pieces of herself that she'll never get back no matter how hard she bashes the Computer into bits. It's terrible and it makes her feel like less of a person, but sucking it up and moving forward is the only option. So she does.

"There are food suppliers that run through Free Enterprise." Her voice is lower than usual when she says it, and she wets her lips before continues. "I'm trying to gain access. I might be able to get you information while I am, if you need it."

Frowning slightly, Derek gives a slight jerk of his chin. "Yeah, you and me both," he says bitterly. "But not everyone has that as a default setting." He imagines that the INFRAREDs, like he and Natasha, are used to being dispensable, but the other Specials, maybe not so much. Derek's used to being treated as though he's important when he's needed and being ignored — at best — when he isn't, so this isn't much of a change for him, but he can see that it weighs on some Alphas, Special and otherwise.

"I can't, but it's less about the abilities and more an existential crisis for me. I'm not even the right goddamn species anymore," he complains. Yeah, he misses his abilities but not because they make his life easier. He misses them because they're a part of him and always have been save the week or so when Kate had managed to rob him of them before he'd evolved and gotten everything back and then some. It's harder for him to function this way because while some people might see his werewolf senses as a special ability, he doesn't. He sees them as his senses the way they should be and almost always have been. He feels disabled now, his senses being all simultaneously dulled; his body weaker and more frail. He didn't get his abilities through a bite. He's always had them. It feels like a huge piece of himself has been taken away and he's not really sure how to put that into words to anyone other than Alcide who, like Derek, is a wolf and knows exactly the feeling. So he doesn't. He leaves it at the prior statement and sighs.

It actually takes effort for him not to roll his eyes. Human senses are fucking worthless, in his opinion. He can barely hear a goddamn thing, he can't smell anything unless it's right on top of him. Worthless. "I guess. I haven't had a choice for quite a while so it's what I've been doing," he says with a heavy frown.

Though when she continues, Derek shakes his head. "No...that's okay, I'm trying to do this through the Computer so it'll be sanctioned. I don't want to sneak around getting food for myself and the people I care about, I want everyone to have food, because everyone should have food. The only way it'll ever happen is if someone can prove to the Computer that it's a necessity and that's exactly what I'm going to do," he says, his voice firm but neutral. If he has to do this bullshit testing for the next several years then that's what he'll do, but he's determined to make it happen. "They can have their stupid caste system for housing and wealth, but food isn't a luxury and shouldn't be treated as such. So I'm going to change it and I don't care how long it takes me."

Natasha gives a single nod when Derek explains what it means to him for his abilities to be taken away to convey that she understands, but she says no more. When it comes to losing a part of oneself all someone else can do is relate, and in this particular situation Natasha can relate a little more than she wants to. The Black Widow project that she was thrust into at a young age was never something that she had chosen, but what they did to her in the end, her 'graduation ceremony', is the only scar that they left behind that Natasha knows she can never cover up no matter how much good she does.

It's not the fact that she can't have children; she wants them but she's accepted that it's not something that's going to be possible for her because of the life she's chosen. It's the fact that the choice was taken away from her, and not for her health but for the specific purpose to dehumanize her. People can see what HYDRA did to Barnes plainly, his arm a visual mark of what they had forced him to be and how they demoralized him into nothing more than a glorified assault rifle.

The same was done to Natasha, a physical modification to her body that was done to make her an efficient tool; something less than human. She'll never get that part of her humanity back because it was purposefully stolen from her, but only one other person knows about that and he got on a plane to put as much distance between them as he possibly could. She's not going to make the mistake of giving someone a part of herself by sharing that secret again. All Derek needs to know is that she can relate; he doesn't need to know how.

"That's probably the smarter move," she supports, although Natasha doesn't think that relying on the Computer to come through when it comes to food for the lower ranks is too promising. "Throw yourself into it, and if you need help I'll do whatever I can." It's good that he doesn't care how long it takes him, because Natasha has a feeling that it might be a very steep uphill battle. "Maybe you can speed up the process if you also add in the possibility of it being a morale booster. You could even use this event as an example, since there's actual food here. You know how much the Computer cares about morale." The last part is practically dripping in sarcasm when she says it.

"Thanks," Derek says quietly. He's not sure how much anyone at all can help. If showing the results of his study — Jesus, he's doing an actual experiment, like a damn scientist, just so they can eat; that's happening. — to the Computer doesn't yield results, nothing legal will.

Natasha does make a good point though, one that Derek hadn't actually considered. "...you know, that's not bad. If I get the thing really rolling tomorrow, then I should be able to see a peak of energy before it drops off again day after tomorrow, which will only support my theory. Gently nudging the word 'morale' in on top of the health stuff to give the Computer something it might actually give a shit about..." His voice trails off and he nods again, looking impressed. "Yeah, thanks, I'll find a way to work that in there, because you're right."

Not that he thinks that the Computer actually cares, because he doesn't, but It likes to shout about happy citizens from the rooftops, so Natasha's right. Padding his results with a mention of morale; explaining that food makes for happy, healthy Citizens might actually give him a much needed leg up. Derek already knows he's fighting an uphill battle, but maybe throwing around that word will get him to a plateau that'll be easier from which to battle.

"I'm not above using our newfound celebrity, either," Derek says out of the corner of his mouth, low and quiet. "These people think we're gods or something. Maybe our opinions will carry some weight if we decide to subtly share them. Get the rest of the Alphas behind them without them realizing that it was even our idea to begin with..." He gives her a sideways glance and lifts his eyebrows, interested in her thoughts on that.

"Exactly," Natasha supports with a nod. "You have everyone at their default all the time, so you can use that as your baseline activity for all of the information you gather but you need to have proof that eating decent food actually makes a difference. Use this pathetic attempt at normalcy to your advantage. Productivity will probably go up in the next couple of days before dropping dramatically, that's pretty strong proof and you'll need that if you're trying to convince a machine that food is important." She finishes by giving him a little smile and a slight nudge on the arm with her shoulder. "I'm always right. Obviously."

The suggestion that he use his status among the INFRARED makes Natasha grin in a way that seems more mischievous than what the conversation calls for. "Is that what you're going to do? Rally your fans? You should." Her tone has taken a lighter air to it and Natasha stares off with a thoughtful look before she reaches out, spreading her hand across the air as if envisioning a sign in neon lights. "Food for Fabio. I think that could really work." She grins, then, looking at Derek and biting the tip of her tongue at him to let him know that she's only teasing before biting her bottom lip to keep herself from laughing on top of it.

"It's a good idea." She says it with an apologetic tone. "If you can get support from the actual citizens before approaching the Computer with your data then you've got another benefit to the morale angle if you're going to integrate it. The more support you can get the better, you should try anything you can."

Derek nods. That's what he's thinking, too, exactly. Their morale is up from tonight and their bodies are being more thoroughly nourished through actual food rather than coked up soylent, so the performance will be up from today's and yesterday's logs. "Yeah, 'Friend' Computer offered to put more shit in the soylent when I suggested it wasn't nutritious enough and I had to change tack because that's the fucking last thing we need is more shit in the soylent. Because it's not bad enough. So yeah, good call."

Though when she continues, sounding amused, Derek's eyes narrow with frustration. "I was thinking more Steve's fans, or all of us collectively, but when you're finished being cute about it, maybe you can look at it the way I am: people are talking about us — all of us. They want to know us, they want to be like us, they want us around and they like us. They can't all be lower level citizens if Steve is Mr. #27 or whatever those stupid posters all over the place boast. So we cater to them. You never know if someone way up the chain might think they're in love with you," he says, frowning and looking rather annoyed at her teasing. "So we exploit their interest. Make them useful."

His eyes shift away from her again and he's still put out that he's not entirely sure she's taking him seriously, but as far as Derek is concerned, the fact of the matter is that those stupid chat logs are anonymous, or at least they have been up to this point. For all they know, someone at the very tip top has been squealing like a school girl in them and once they feel they've been noticed and appreciated, they might be inclined to bend some rules just for their favorite Special, whoever he or she might be. Quite frankly, Derek is hoping that the favorite is not, in fact, him.

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Daycycle 116 [ November 13 - November 26 ]

daycycle 116

[Nov 13 - Nov 26]

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