[audio/video/text: open]

[too_high]

[The feed switches on and cycles through mediums, from audio of something softly growling, to black and white armored hands, flash of a gold visor, and blue sky above as the device is fiddled with, and then settles on text. A couple moments pass before any words are entered.]

AGENT MAINE TO COMMAND. REQUESTING STATUS. UNKNOWN DEPLOYMENT. CLARIFY.

Comments

[Text]

[too_high]

WOKE UP.

[Seriously, he was in the infirmary like, two minutes ago.] STIREP?

[Audio]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

Okay, let me say it's gonna sound crazy. We're trapped in some kind of dream world and trying to figure out a way out of it. The Moogles - the flying bear things - have a pretty good explanation.

[And there are SPARTANs, but that isn't important right now.]

[text]

[too_high]

MOOGLES = FRIELNDIES?

[AKA Can he shoot them or no?]

[audio]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

Moogles are friendlies. You should also have gotten a companion that'll watch your six, or the parts to make one anyway.

[text]

[too_high]

GOT A PORCUPINE.

[Or well, something close to it.]

[audio]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

Yeah, it'll back you up.

[text]

[too_high]

[Okay, that's good to know.]

LOCATION?

[Where is everyone and where is he supposed to go next?]

[audio]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

I can come over to where you are; you still where you woke up?

[He can probably file this under things that everyone else will yell at him for later. Delta's certainly making his disapproval known in the back of York's head right now.]

[text]

[too_high]

YEAH

[More or less. He's been wandering but it hasn't been far.]

[text]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

OMW

[action?]

[too_high]

[Maine will be in roughly the same spot, just looking around and taking in his surroundings as his Pricklemaine leaps around and plays at his feet.]

[action]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

[York waves as he walks up. He's got Max and Sparky with him; Max runs ahead, barking a cheerful hello at Maine's pricklemane. It's probably better to just act friendly and find out what's going on, as long as Maine doesn't try to kill him right away.]

Hey, how are you holding up?

[action forever!]

[too_high]

[Maine tips his head back in greeting. His own dream eater bounces from side to side in excitement, then tries to settle into a defensive position and look intimidating, then loses it a moment later to excitement again and rushes awkwardly to meet with Max.]

[Maine hefts a growl, this isn't exactly the sort of engagement he'd signed up for.]

[allfunandgamesuntil]

[York wasn't sure what that meant; this was part of why Maine had gotten Sigma. If Maine didn't have Sigma...well, that put him even more out of the loop than North. Well, if that was the case, York wasn't going to be the one to bring up all of that with him. Someone else could clue Maine in later. Who wasn't York.]

I know this is weird, but what's the last thing you remember before going under?

[too_high]

[Maine grumbles lowly and points sharply at his neck, then realizing that York probably wasn't going to understand the full implications of it, pulls the comminicator back out and sends a quick text.]

INFIRMARY

[He'd lost a lot of time in between, he figures.]

[unrecovered]

[It's about then that Wash shows up, Melody and Puddles in tow. He's actually chosen those two deliberately; after everything that's happened, he can't help but be paranoid, and he could use Puddles' size and speed if anything goes wrong. He can hear what Maine is saying, though, and part of him is relieved to know he can still understand the growls, especially after that Nightmare had been so...empty.]

How's the throat?

[allfunandgamesuntil]

[York waves to Wash. He's just as glad not to have to give Maine the talk on his own. Hopefully Maine won't sit there and think they've both gone insane by the time they're done.]

Last thing he remembers is ending up in the infirmary after the skyscraper thing.

[too_high]

[Maine rolls his shoulders and shrugs at Washington's question. It hurts like a bitch and is still healing, but then pain was never much of an issue with him. He nods at York - that's pretty much it.]

[unrecovered]

Good to know.

[Which means Maine is either lying through his teeth as a result of Sigma playing a long game, or he's got less of a clue than North. Wash isn't ruling either of them out just yet and won't until he sees how Maine reacts to things - Delta, Theta, Carolina's presence, anything that could tip the scales one way or another.]

[For now, however, it's time to break the ridiculous and bizarre news.]

You're probably not going to believe this, but...we're all from different points on the timeline. Most of us have been through things that haven't happened for you yet.

[allfunandgamesuntil]

[Oh good, Wash was taking point. Normally he'd be worried, but if any lying needed to be done, Wash could handle that without flinching.]

Yeah, it's gotten pretty weird to try to explain things to people.

[too_high]

[Maine looks from one to the other, a low rumble in the back of his throat, and then shifts his weight and grumbles unintelligibly. That might have some explanation for whoever 'Theta' was.]

[He's still reserving a reaction until he finds out just what's happened. No use freaking out now if it's just 'oh hey we won the war']

[unrecovered]

Yeah, it explains a lot. There's...a lot you don't know.

[And a lot that Wash doesn't want to talk about for a myriad of reasons. After a few moments, he hits on something he can actually say.]

But hey, we won the war.

[allfunandgamesuntil]

[Worst copout ever. Of all time.]

Or will win the war. There's the whole time travel tenses thing going on.

[too_high]

[Oh, well that didn't sound too bad. He grunts and nods acknowledgement. Everyone else was making it sound like he went on a rampage or something.]

[He looks between the two of them with a little huff, where was everyone else?]

[unrecovered]

[And then Maine had to go and say that. Well, fuck. How was he going to explain the instant hostility?]

Yeah, about that.

[Uh.]

The way this place works is it keeps opening up...for lack of a better word, different worlds. One of the last ones it opened up was the Mother of Invention, and...in that world, there was a Nightmare that looked like you, attacking people. That's the reason people aren't happy to see you. [He's been monitoring this post. Not good.]