Field Mission 6: A Day in Thay, Part 1

[balancemod]

oh man best of luck out there dudes NAVIGATION Click here for the RNG thread! Ready or not, rested or not, it's time to get moving, Reclaimers. You've got a very, very long day ahead of you. And another one. And another one. And, you get the joke. Early Friday morning, with the Director there to see them off, the Reclaimers load up into the Bureau's transportation orbs for the sixth time since this whole ordeal began, and make their way to about a mile or two outside of Thay. It's important to try to stick to the story, at least — that you're all visitors from a faraway school, here to spend some time with the students and faculty of Boarbumps. As much as Lucretia would have liked to join you, she can't. None of the other leading members of the Bureau of Balance can. Whoever enters Thay, after all, is entering a bubble, after all. A time trap. Nobody will be able to leave until the Relic, the Lamp of Undoing, is either retrieved or destroyed. Someone needs to be able to continue if you all can't. 1. SEVEN O'CLOCK ALREADY As we noted in the OOC post, prompts on this log will be a quick few sentences of specific things happening during each hour. It's expected that Reclaimers will be seeing all of these events multiple times! So feel free to play with them as you see fit. If you're not sure if something you want to do would warrant a roll, please ask us in the RNG thread. ○ The Reclaimers have arrived in Thay, much to the curiosity of the highly intelligent, occasionally highly ... suspicious ... residents. Nevertheless, they recognize you as visiting, esteemed students, and, though perhaps still suspicious, welcome you into their fold. Also, as a note: Every time the relic is used, time is reset to this moment. ○ Boarbumps Academy for the Magically Inclined opens its doors to the Reclaimers. This is your first opening to explore the school — afternoon classes begin in an hour. ○ Rainer Arunsun, The Regent of Thay and Highest of the Hermetic Order of Red Wizards, can be seen watching the new arrivals by the entrance to the Red Keep. It's difficult to discern any emotion on her face. Shortly before 1 p.m., she retreats back inside. ○ Afternoon classes at Boarbumps begin, starting with a lecture on the magical circuits of the common toad. If you happen to sit in on this one, as a visitor from another school, you may be asked to assist in the dissection. You will be heckled by the rest of the class as deemed fit. ○ Erinne and Adriel can be seen within the hallways of Boarbumps arguing in a very heated manner. Some... less than choice words are exchanged between the two before one, or both of them take their wands out and begin throwing magic missiles at each other. No one knows why the fight starts, but the two have had bad blood before, and this isn't the first quarrel to happen at Boarbumps between them. A staff member arrives on the scene and is accidentally paralyzed by a misfire. ○ The town proper, surrounding the Red Keep, is open for a farmer's market. A bountiful harvest of goods are on display, but in particular, Thay is known for its amazing quality of medicinal herbs and magical reagants, many of which are rare without travel to the area. The merchants typically shoo students off, unless they have a hall pass provided to them by the faculty to retrieve something of import for class. ○ The second afternoon class at Boarbumps begins. Are you three or four time loops in and in desperate need of a nap? This class, The History of Boarbumps, is for you. You will be treated to a long and droning lecture about how the students attending during Boarbumps' very first semester banded together to stop a particularly plucky troll. Which you'd think would be an interesting tale. It is not. ○ Someone's enchanted several books at the library to begin rattling and shaking from the shelves themselves. All over the racks, spines pop out from their homes and fall to the ground, magically lift up and return to some other, non-Dewey decimal approved locale. Other books begin dancing — yes, you've read this correctly — dancing on the tables. Leon would be going into cardiac arrest at the moment, but it looks like someone's playing a prank in here. Again. This librarian looks far less tilted by this. It must be a somewhat normal afternoon for her. ○ Over in the center of town, music, a single violin playing a mournful tune, begins to play. It's unclear where exactly it's coming from. ○ The third and final afternoon class at Boarbumps — Fighting with Fire — begins. The professor, known to be slightly more unorthodox in her teaching methods, will recruit any Reclaimer who happens to be there to defend themselves from the students' incoming fireball spells. The potency of the fireballs themselves range from the tickle of a candle, to that one time you ate a ghost pepper, to one particularly fiery spell that might actually hurt you. ○ There's a scream in the girls' bathroom on the 3rd floor of Boarbumps. Anyone who enters realizes, very quickly, that no one is actually in there. Apparently, this particular lavatory is haunted. ○ Szass Astrosz dips class to go visit the local shrines within the town of Thay. He's been known to skip class before, so his departure from the halls of Boarbumps is rather nondescript. He spends time there praying quietly to his god. ○ There's a slight catastrophe over in the Town Square. That is to say, a giant spider seems to have escaped from Boarbumps and is terrorizing the vendors, to everyone's surprise. Subdue or dispatch it, it's up to you. ○ There's a scheduled council meeting to take place within the Red Keep, a usual weekly affair where Rainer, Casariel, Onerion, Gromph, and the rest meet to discuss matters of the town. Today's is canceled, as Gromph is called out to take care of the arachnid chaos currently convening around the Town Square. ○ Someone places a standing mirror around the corner of Boarbumps. If you happen to stand in front of it, it doesn't show your reflection — rather, it shows the person that you desire most. The mirror is gone by 5 p.m. ○ Cleanup of whatever damage the spider did is underway. In the meantime, the faculty of Boarbumps and the Hermetic Order of Red Wizards invite the Reclaimers to a small dinner in one of the public meeting rooms at the Red Keep. Every member of the Red Wizards are present, aside from Onerion Wyvernspur and Brian Darling. ○ The shops around the town of Thay begin to close for the evening. People are somewhere between annoyed and blase — the spider escaping was new enough, but weird Magic Things are, as you can imagine, pretty commonplace. ○ Over at The Sleepy Willow, cozy, fluffy pillows are arranged on the floor around a large fireplace. The owners will also serve you dinner, if you decide to skip the meal at The Red Keep. This may be one of the only peaceful moments you have to study everything that you've learned thus far. ○ No matter where you are in Thay, you'll feel the ground rumble underneath your feet. The residents largely pass it off as an earthquake, but will note that they have become much more frequent lately. ○ Towards the latter half of the hour, the rumbling within the school grounds causes several of the animal cages used in Onerion's Wondrous Beasts class to come unfastened as they begin to escape. Shortly thereafter, various beasts of all shapes and sizes are set free and begin running for freedom. None of them seem intent on hurting students, but they look to make an exit out of town in the quickest way possible. ○ Droves of the skeletal undead that are used around town seem to freeze in place, no longer retaining their animation. Whatever they're holding currently falls to the floor. Whatever task they're working on comes to a halt. No one understands why that is, but even the best necromancers around town can't seem to wake them back up. ○ With a sudden loud roar, the ground of the town square suddenly begins to split. People, shops, and everything else begin to drop into the chasm, despite the Red Wizards, and everyone else's, attempts to save them. ○ In the last split second you remember, if you happen to look down in the chasm, you'll notice a pair of bright, glowing eyes. Whatever exactly is down there begins to claw its way to the surface. ○ And then, just as suddenly, your vision turns white, and you're briefly overtaken by dizziness. When the haze clears, you are standing at the entrance to Thay. The sun hangs directly overhead in the sky. You have returned to 12 p.m. 2. OOC: A SPECIAL SHOUTOUT You are welcome to keep track of how your character experiences these time loops as much or as little as you're comfortable with — we'll also be tracking what you all are doing! Our Minato player Kel came up with some extremely snazzy coding if you would like to track how each loop plays out for your character more closely. Thank you, Kel! Of course, this is completely optional. Keep up with as much as you'd like, have fun as you see fit, and we hope you enjoy this mission! blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[conciliant]

1:00:00 | f[A]rmer's market – loops 1-4

[Having no interest in attending the classes, as well as being told she'd be more suited for a Bodyguard than a student, 2B takes up the offer to explore the town proper instead. She's already been brushed off by some of the merchants, some thinking she's a student while others are iffy about the black visor over her eyes or the sword on her back, but there are those that give her the time of day, and those are the stalls she spends the most time at.]

I. [Pod 042 hovers behind her, silent, as she browses, and attracts the attention of curious students and merchants alike, but she pays them no mind. Her interest is piqued elsewhere, at a medicinal stall. She remembers the brief run-in she had with the Demon named Michael and how he had been reading books on human medicine, and she peers around the table in search of something.]

I'm looking for a toothbrush.

II. [Her search for a toothbrush didn't lead her astray, although it wasn't in the farmer's market where she found them, but a shop. By the time the second loop comes around, 2B has accumulated a collection of toothbrushes in a wide array of colours. She allows Pod to carry them so that she's able to peruse the markets more freely... until she runs into a fellow Reclaimer.]

Excuse me.

[From Pod's claw-like hands, she plucks a random toothbrush and offers it.]

Take this, to prevent the caves in your teeth.

[She means cavities. 2B is helping... in her own way.]

4:00:00 | that's one [B]igass spider – loop 2

[It's no surprise to find 2B on the frontlines when the spider is loose in the marketplace. At any moment in time, she's on high alert and prepared for battle, but this creature is unlike anything she's ever seen before.

She watches as it crawls onto the roof of a merchant's stall, threatening to crush it under its weight. Some people are screaming and running away while others appear to be unaffected, with some even going in to either shoo it away or hit it. 2B has a different idea and reaches for the sword at her back.]

What is that?

[From behind, Pod's robotic voice answers her question.]

Affirmative. Spiders, or Araneae, are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs and chelicerae with fangs able to inject venom. They were the largest order of arachnids and ranked seventh in total species diversity among all orders of organisms.

Got it.

[Whether someone needs help or would like to assist in dispatching the spider, 2B is on it!]

5:00:00 | getting [C]ozy - various loops

I. (Loops 1-3) [2B has thankfully learned her lesson from the last time she slumped into a bed of fluffy pillows. She's more careful this time, making sure to reorganize them in a way that suits her, where she won't make them pop in an explosion of feathers or sink so far into them that she can't get out. Really, it's just a single pillow for her to sit on... it's nothing special.

Regardless, she takes a seat and turns down any offer for food that the owners of the Sleepy Willow give her. Pod hovers next to her, the little light on its head obnoxiously blinking an orange light every other beat, while she scans the room. Should she recognize anyone, she'll strike up a conversation.]

Have you had any luck finding anything?

II. (Loop 4) [2B doesn't seem as inclined to talk to anyone, and rather than take a seat near the fire, she's found the one furthest away, closing herself off to the rest. During loop 4, she'll have her visor on, but streaks of tears stain her cheeks, even if she does her best to hide them. However, later loops will have her visor removed completely and crumpled up on the floor in front of her, revealing her puffy, reddening eyes. Someone's been crying...

No matter the loop, Pod's suggestion is always the same.]

Proposal: Unit 2B should communicate with fellow Reclaimers and exchange information.

[ ... ]

4:00:00 | mirrors [D]on't lie - loop 4 onward (potential spoilers for nier: automata in these threads)

[Exploring the school has led her to a lot of interesting things, but none as interesting as this. She doesn't recall finding this decorative mirror earlier, but it being in the middle of nowhere special stirs her interest. 2B remains as cautious as ever during her approach, fingers twitching and prepared to seize her sword at a moment's notice, but nothing about it seems out of the ordinary. At first. She observes her own reflection following her motions as she closes the gap, but as she comes into clearer view, the image shifts, rippling into something so familiar that it makes her stomach drop.

On the other side stands another android, his white hair draping over his pale blue eyes that stare right through her, and he's smiling as brightly as she remembers. The same smile he always wore when they met. Again, and again, and again.]

9...S?

[There's no way this is real, and she knows this, but seeing him violently sparks a small ounce of hope that maybe he really is here, and that makes her hand reach out to him. To touch him, even if it's just for a moment. It's dashed just as quickly when her fingers hit the glass, and her thumb draws a line across his cheek. He looks so, so real.

She feels the familiar weight in her chest return. Her forehead presses against the mirror and she half expects her partner to flinch like he might if this were real, but he remains perfectly still.

Emotions are prohibited. Emotions are prohibited. Emotions are prohibited. Emotions are prohibited. Emotions are prohibited. Emotions are—]

Nines.

[Everything comes crashing down on her at once. Whatever 2B was trying to strangle out of herself for so long – since she arrived here – bursts from her in a loud sob. Her legs give out from beneath her and she falls to her knees, her weak body pressing to the glass. Maybe, if she wills it, she'll fall through and to him again.

Until this dreadful cycle ends, she will always be there, in the same position until the mirror disappears or someone else comes by, and even then, she'll have a hard time pulling herself away. Each time the hour begins and comes to a close, 2B only misses him more.

It always ends like this...]

h[E]re's your standard wildcard

[I got a teenie bit carried away with this, but feel free to hit me up with something else! If anyone would like to meet Pod 042, it'll be following her all over the school as she explores, so bumping into her anywhere isn't out of the question. Either slam dunk something here, or if you'd like to plot something out, let me know!]

[wrightingwrongs]

[There's a quiet sigh as someone enters the room, running a hand through his hair - Phoenix is looking a bit more disheveled than usual, today, as he must have been running around continuing to gather information. He feels tired - and there's a possibility he just passes out in the Sleepy Willow's common room until the day resets once again.

Until he sees a semi-familiar face near the edge of the fire.

He moves over there cautiously, unsure if she sees him - but she's distressed and, well, he's certainly more than a little worried. He hears the strange device's commentary as it hovers around her, but his eyes are focused on her as he speaks up.]

...2B? You're crying. [That's not something he's seen before, from her.]

[conciliant]

[2B flinches at the sound of a familiar voice, fingers tightening as they grip her knees, and she wants to reach for the visor wrinkled on the floor to tie around her eyes, but that would make it too obvious, wouldn't it? If she could just will away the redness in her eyes, then it will be fine.]

Pod, cease all communication until I state otherwise.

Affirmative.

[With that out of the way, her head shakes at Phoenix, although she can't quite bring herself to look his way. Instead, as she wipes the back of her hand against a cheek, her gaze falls back to her hands on her knees, and a sniffle somehow slips through.]

No, I'm not.

[wrightingwrongs]

...Yes you are. I can see the tear streaks.

[It's a counterarguement, but it's tender, as he gets closer and tries to pull up one of the common room chairs closer.]

What happened? Is there something I can do to help?

(She won't like me asking, but...)

4:00pm B

[quiescis]

[With classes nearly done for the day Yuri decides to slip back out towards the town again just to see if she can find anything out about why this day is looping. It felt strange to relive the same morning and the same classes. But this time it seems Yuri is in for a big eight-legged surprise rather than finding some information or a friendly npc to speak with...]

It's really ... a giant spider! It's going to hurt someone if it's allowed to stay here...

[Her attention snaps towards the little robot that seems to float there spouting off information like a portable wikipedia-page and she blinks before turning to 2B.]

Is that... The pod you were talking about before?

[conciliant]

[Wikipedia and Google are exactly where Pod gets its information from.]

Yes, but is now really the time?

[2B would very much like to do something about this spider, whether it's destroying it or trapping it. She isn't going to sit idly by and chit-chat about her Pod... not until this thing is dealt with one way or another!

With her sword in hand, she steps in front of Yuri as the spider leaps from the roof of the merchant's stall, effectively knocking it over and sending all of its goods clattering to the ground, and back onto the street where its legs land on people trying to box it in.]

Let's deal with this first.

[quiescis]

Oh-!

[She's right. Yuri's distraction is ended the moment the stand goes crashing and she just barely misses getting a head of fresh cabbage thrown right at her head.]

It would be better to capture the poor thing instead of killing it...

[But 2B is the one with the sword so she might make a better decision on that. Instead, Yuri concentrates and then starts casting Fog Cloud which makes a shroud around them and the creature.]

This should hinder its sight. Follow the purple butterfly to keep an eye on it.

[Yuri's familiar, a brightly coloured purple butterfly, will act as a guide for 2B on exactly where the spider is. She flutters just above the terrorizing creature, easy to spot through the fog.]

A-1

[myliteratureclub]

[ On the second loop, Monika can be found in the market. She's pretty determined to make use of her skills here since she's the only merchant. Plus otherwise she might feel kind of useless...

She glances over when she hears 2B and smiles. ]

Oh hey 2B. Why... are you looking for a toothbrush?

[conciliant]

Oh. Hello.

[2B hadn't realized that she had said something out loud, being too immersed in scanning the merchant's table to find what she was looking for, so when Monika's voice comes at her from behind, she can't help being a little surprised.

She closes the distance between them after deeming this stall inadequate, intending to explain.]

I'm not programmed to seek out information.

[That was 9S's talent, not hers.]

But I would like to be helpful to the operation by finding something useful for fellow Reclaimers.

[Toothbrushes seemed sufficient, and from the sounds of it, they're very important.]

1PM II

[royalresearch]

[Caves in teeth? Zelda looks startled at that as she is handed this odd looking brush.]

Excuse me? Whatever do you mean by that?

[How could someone wind up with caves in their teeth and why does this brush prevent it.]

[conciliant]

[Oh. Well, that's not a question she was expecting to hear from someone when she handed them one... 2B turns to her Pod behind her.]

Pod?

[It seems to know exactly what she's thinking with this, because it gives an answer straight away.]

Tooth decay, also known as dental caries or cavities, is a breakdown of teeth due to acids made by bacteria. Symptoms may include pain and difficulty with eating.

I've been told that toothbrushes will help prevent them.

[C]ozy / loop 4

[parfaitgirl]

[ Natsuki's curled up on a cushion of her own, and she's sort of dozing -- it's hard to sleep, really, when you have so much running through your head trying to figure the whole thing out -- but she heard the Pod's suggestion and opens her eyes to see where that robotic voice is coming from.

... She also sees that 2B's cheeks are shiny with tears, and although she hesitates for a moment ... eventually, she rolls over a little and sits up to properly address the other girl. ]

Um ... are you okay?

[conciliant]

[She hadn't noticed the girl roll over and sit upright, so Natsuki's voice startles 2B right out of the singular thought running through her head – the image of 9S in the mirror. That smile that's burned itself into her memory fades, replacing itself with the pink-haired girl next to her.]

Yes, I'm alright.

[If she ignores the stains her tears have left behind on her cheeks, no one else will notice them, right? Pod 042 doesn't seem to think so.]

Proposal: Unit 2B should state the truth.

[oh my god]

Pod...!

D

[feytality]

[ yeah, maya's seen the mirror, herself --- two of the three people she loves the most are here, but it's still startling to see pearl looking back at her, smiling and bouncing. such a trick might have worked on maya a couple of months ago, but thanks to wonderland she'll never be swayed by something like that again, no matter how much the thought of pearl being dead makes her heart ache. ]

[ ... too bad some of the newer recruits can't say the same. she sees super cool android lady crumpled on the floor, and immediately takes action. ]

[ the first thing she does is physically put herself between the mirror and 2b's vision, wedging herself in if she has to. she's very small but determined!! ]

[ then she reaches her hand out. ]

Hey... c'mon, this isn't a great place to hang out. Let's go look at something else, okay?

[ she hopes 2b's super visor doesn't just let her stare through maya and whoever she sees in the mirror. ]

[conciliant]

[Eyes shut tight, 2B feels something come between her and 9S, and her first instinct is to destroy whatever it is that's put itself there. To seize her sword on the ground beside her and drive its blade through until it breaks the glass on the other side. It's there, it's within her reach.

But the feeling of a warm hand reaching out, and an even warmer voice stops her just as her arm extends. It's like static at first, and unfamiliar. It takes a moment for her memory banks to come back online, and she catches the tail end of what's being said to her, but it's enough for her to recognize the voice... and to encourage her to look up from the ground.

Her tears cling to her eyes, stuck behind her visor, and it distorts Maya's face in her vision, but it's better than not having anything there at all.]

No.

[2B shakes her head stubbornly, and her voice is firm.]

I can't leave.

[Her body won't let her.]

Loop Four

[scatteredpetals]

[ Ruby is exploring, searching for answers on her own because time keeps looping and whatever is under the marketplace keeps crashing everything and she doesn't know if that's tied to the Relic or just an unusual coincidence. But either way, she's certain there has to be clues in this castle somewhere - if only she looks in the right places.

Whether or not this is the right place, she might not find any clues, but she does come across 2B crumpled to the ground in front of a mirror. Stopping short in surprise for a moment, she then dashes forward to drop down beside her, uncertain about what's happening. She hadn't encountered the mirror before this and has no idea what the other girl sees, but that doesn't matter because something is obviously wrong with the other girl and she wants to help! ]

2B! What happened?! Are you hurt? [ She cries out in dismay as she drops to her knees beside the android and carefully grips her shoulders. ]

[conciliant]

[Physically, it takes a lot to damage an android of her build. She can take hit after hit and still get up and fight and has plenty of times before. Damage is nothing to a YoRHa unit, and even then, fixing them up is easy. But this? This isn't something that can be fixed with staunching gel or new circuitry, or even regular maintenance.

Memories are the most precious thing to an android, and this one feels like it's invading every crevice in her mind and body and pushing away all the other ones she held so dear.

Nines is there, and he's smiling, but it's not the same. It's not the same.

It's—] not the same!

[2B sobs it quietly just as she feels Ruby's hands grab onto her shaking shoulders, and she bows her head against the mirror, pressing it further against the glass. Any harder, and she might crack it.]

B

[gambolshroud]

[Blake, too, is quick to respond when the spider descends upon the marketplace, civilians scattering to run towards safety as she hurtles towards the danger itself. Her blade is already drawn when she arrives on the scene, skidding to a quick halt beside her roommate. Dangerous as the situation may be, maybe she's about to get the opportunity to see 2B in action.]

Get the civilians to safety!

[The order is shouted over her shoulder to whatever nearby Reclaimer might be available to do exactly that, and she sets her mouth into a thin line as she looks to 2B, giving a single nod. They're both here for the same thing, after all.]

Let's take this thing down, 2B.

[conciliant]

Roger that.

[It's a good thing she and Blake are on the same page.

2B doesn't hesitate to throw herself at the spider as it begins to scale a building's wall, shooting its webs at anything that tries to come near it, including the android. Her heels kick off the ground so she can try grabbing it before it gets too far, but the webbing that's shot at her impedes her vision.

She swipes it away with her sword, but by the time she orients herself again, it's out of their reach.]

Damn it!

D .... but in say, loop 7

[petsthedog]

[The first time he spots her pressed up against the mirror, sobbing, he quickly turns away and leaves, staunchly looking at the ground and pretending he heard nothing, saw nothing. Even if he was better at comforting people, a moment like that is too raw and painful for a near stranger's eyes.

He's exploring around town the next loop when he sees her there again. His gaze lingers a moment, this time, but he walks away again. It's not his place.

When he sees her the third time is when he really struggles with himself on what to do. On his first day in the Bureau, he'd spent hours just staring at the green sky of the Dark Hour in that simulation room, trapped reliving a nightmare that had haunted him for years, and when Qrow had walked in, because he'd forgotten to close the door -- he'd dropped his original plans to drag Shinjiro out, to distract him with video games. He still ... has trouble seeing himself as someone with value to others in that way, but ... he promised more than one person to try, didn't he? The more it becomes clear that she intends to come here over and over and over and cling to that image until it's gone, the more he feels a clench in his gut like he should do something. Say something. He just...doesn't know what. He's not...Maya, or Kaede, or hell, Mista. Comfort and reassurance and smiles that say everything's going to be okay just don't come to him like that. He doesn't walk away, the third time, but he spends too long paralyzed with the indecision of what to do.

The fourth time....the fourth time, he waits for her. Just a few hundred feet away from where the mirror usually appears. And when she walks by, as expected, he puts a hand on her shoulder, to stop her.]

Don't.

[conciliant]

[The hand on her shoulder makes her come to a halt mid-step, her shoulders hunching with tension for a moment before they slump, defeated.

It's said that machines don't learn from their mistakes. That they're doomed to follow the same path over, and over until they rust away into nothing. No one ever said that about androids. They were much more sophisticated, and their programming unlike no other. So, why did she continue to come back to the mirror on the hour through every single loop when the results were exactly the same as the last?

2B has no answer for that. It's not like it makes it hurt any less...

She stands perfectly still, silent, until she gently swats Shinjiro's hand away.]

How did you know I was going to be here?

A-2 why is 2b so cute

[doubledsofjustice]

[Mia actually is used to things being weird by now, but being offered a toothbrush by another reclaimer is not something she's expected. She can't help but stare for a moment, trying to process if what truly has happened is that she's been offered a toothbrush-- but there really are worse things she could be offered.

Mia smiles, holding her hand out to accept it, and not-very-subtly leaning to the side to get a look at Pod 042 as well. That's certainly not something she's seen before.]

Well, thank you. That's sweet of you.

(Odd, but sweet.)

So you have an interest in Dentistry, or...?

question of the day

[conciliant]

[Mia gets a blue toothbrush decorated with pink flowers slid into the palm of her hand, and 2B tilts her head in question to the unknown word.]

Dentistry? What's that?

[She only learned about what a toothbrush is recently, back on Earth when they had been searching for medicine, and cavities are still very much a mystery. How anyone can get caves in their teeth is beyond her... So, dentistry is a whole new world for her.]

A-II

[katopissed]

The...?

[ Piper blinks a couple times. Caves, caves........ ]

Oh! Cavities!

[conciliant]

[2B blinks right back and offers the yellow toothbrush with green butterflies to Piper.]

I guess so.

[Her tone is pretty nonchalant for someone who's never heard of cavities before.]

You can use this to prevent them.