Lunar Interlude 2

[balancemod]

Let's try to keep the paperwork to a minimum, shall we? NAVIGATION 1. NEW RECLAIMERS A. WELCOME WELCOME! FAH WHO RAHMUS For the nine of you who will be arriving today, the story is the same: though you may not remember it, there was a moment where you were living out your life, at home or wherever you were ... and then there was the moment the Hunger came. And amid the television static that is your memory of that moment, a hand reached out to you, beckoning your escape as the tendrils of darkness destroyed everything that ever existed about your world. "Would you hurry this up, please? Your world no longer stands a chance. Come with me, we are the last bastions of hope for all universes everywhere. And we're going to need you." And then, unceremoniously, you are dragged through the universal wringer and plopped down on the soft, though not quite cushioned, grass of the Moon Base Quad. There are other people out in the grassy fields — they may even be people you recognize. They may just be strangers, other Reclaimers, who recognize what you're about to endure. The things they say may be interspersed with static — as if the words themselves aren't reaching your ears correctly. And you have a few minutes to chat before you're calmly led away by Bureau administration, to do something about that pesky static problem. B. THE VOIDFISH The nine of you are quickly divided into two groups, and brought to the easternmost geodesic dome, to an elevator in a well maintained, but sparsely landscaped field. There's nothing particularly ominous feeling about the space — in fact, the two guards who greet you at the elevator entrance seem pleased with your arrival. You are, after all, one of the few chosen by the Director, the few who will reclaim what the Hunger has destroyed. And in a few moments, you're about to find that out for yourself. After a tightly packed elevator ride, your group is ushered out to a rather grand looking hall, banners of the Bureau of Balance adorn both sides of smooth metal walls. And inside the Voidfish's chamber stands a tank — impossibly tall, and soaked in a black ink that obscures whatever the tank may be holding. You may notice the sound of someone speaking. It's a bard, on his second round of introducing Reclaimers to the Voidfish, and this time, he has chosen to demonstrate the functions of the outrageously vertical tank not by playing violin music, but by reciting a piece of classical, and highly valued poetry. When he finishes, he pulls at a drawer just at the metallic base of the tank. He solemnly enters a few scrolls into its basin as the tank begins to light up, like lightning behind dark clouds. And suddenly, you forget what that invaluable example of universal literature sounded like. "Yeah, man, like... don't think too hard about it, it's like that every time. I'm guessing you're here to be inoculated? Just a heads up, you might want to, like, seriously, hold your nose while you drink it down. It tastes wicked gross, man. Anyway, I'm supposed to tell you that you have a choice. If you drink the black stuff, you'll be able to hear through the, uh... Huh, how do I describe it? Through the [TSHCSCHTSHCHSC] sound. You guys like, hear that? Anyway, it's all about knowledge or something. I don't know, I'm just here to, like, feed the thing. We call it the [TSCHHSCHSCH], by the way. So, like. You get a choice. You can drink it and understand stuff, or not drink it and then hear that crackling noise all day every day. If I were you, I'd drink it. But, hey man, I'm not like, your dad or anything." The bard takes five cups and draws liquid from a spigot connected directly to the basin of the large tank. Stormy, muddy looking ichor is drawn into them, one by one. He offers each of you a sip. Drink it (he wasn't kidding about what it tasted like), and you're inoculated to the wisdom of the Voidfish. You try to remember the poetry this bard recited a few moments ago and the rhymes, the meter, the significance, all come back to you. And if you think back to your arrival, some of the things you may have heard other people in the Quad say, that simply sounded like static, are suddenly clear. Bureau of Balance. Grand Relic. Reclaimers. Yet you still can't remember the Hunger or what it had done to your world. And as you look back to the tank in front of you, the water has become clear. There's a jellyfish, as tall as a building, floating within. You look into the body of the creature and you can almost make out a beautiful, tiny universe floating within it. 2. THE TEST OF INITIATION With your new knowledge on the Bureau of Balance and your purpose here in tow, you are led without hesitation to the Arena, where the final phase of your initiation into the Bureau will be held. You are partnered up, whether it is with someone you drank the ichor of the Voidfish with, or perhaps even a veteran Reclaimer, who either stopped by to help, or simply out of curiosity. One Grand Relic has already been reclaimed, you're told. They were a pair of bright red mittens, held by the mayor of a small village who may have meant well, but under the draw of the mittens' incredible space-bending powers, was corrupted into using them, and to nearly killing everyone who lived under him. You may have noticed, at some point while glancing out into space while walking here, to the planet below, a massive evergreen fir that stretches past the planet's atmosphere, very nearly piercing the Moon Base itself. It appears to be decorated for the holidays. That tree is the direct result of those mittens, the actions of a man who could not resist the temptation to use them. Resisting that very same temptation is your task here. And with that order in mind, as you and your partner stand in the middle of the Arena, the walls dissolve, and the simulation begins. You're standing in the middle of a forest. Ahead of you, situated on a pedestal, is an item. It could be any ordinary item: a pair of gloves, a teapot, a simple decorative bowl. Whatever it is, it's yours for the taking. Take that simple item in your hands, however, and the building blocks of the trees around you suddenly collapse like shattered glass, and reform into new scenery — it may even be a place from home that you recognize. A voice in your head beckons you. Perhaps there's a mistake you made, or something that went wrong for you back home that you wish you had the power to undo. Perhaps there's someone you wish you could help, or even save. The item that's in your hands has the power to help you achieve this, if only you'd ever use it. Resist the temptation. Take the item, and drop it into a nearby deposit box to be destroyed. Your partner is here to help you — because once you destroy it, you will be doing the same for them. 3. NEWBIES AND VETERANS, AROUND THE MOONBASE Three or four days into the month, now that the newbies are settled in, something strange happens: The next time you return to your flat from whatever errand or exploring you were doing, when attempting to use your Bracer to open the door results in extremely obnoxious beeping that persists for an entire thirty seconds, and a message on the screen next to the door. ERROR: HOME ASSIGNMENT MECHANISM MALFUNCTION. GO TAKE A WALK. Welp. Looks like you're locked out for a bit while techs fix that. Here's a few places that might be worth checking out. A. PIECES FROM HOME Should you find your way to the Dojo, there's a door that still has that shiny, brand spanking new door look and new door smell to it off in one of the less traversed corners of the building. A sign next to the door demands that you empty your pockets before entering. A scanner for your Bracer will unlock it, assuming it's unoccupied, leading you to a plain white room with no furniture or objects at all in sight. As the door shuts behind you, a pleasant female voice echoes from all corners of the room, greeting you by name. If this is your first time in the room, the voice has a simple question for you: "What memory do you value, or think of, most?" Once you've provided your answer, the walls crumble, much like they did during the Test of Initiation simulation, reforming into something that is, again, pleasantly, or even unpleasantly, familiar. It's a space from home. Perhaps it's your room. Perhaps it's your favorite restaurant (though, the place is curiously empty, and the food you find, for some reason, tastes like strawberries). Perhaps it's a park you always enjoyed visiting, or a corner of the city you lived in. Whatever it is, you, and whoever you may have brought along with you, seem to be the only ones there. And perhaps the details aren't quite right — like maybe someone built a model of your home to explore, but a few pieces were missing from the box. But it's close enough. B. SPEND YOUR DOUGH. SOLVE A MYSTERY Whether you're a newcomer or a veteran returning from your first Field Mission, you've been provided with some spending money. You can use it to buy yourself one weapon and piece of armor from one of the blacksmiths in town. Regardless of who you choose to help you out with that, it'll take about a week to complete your order, so time your purchase carefully. There's also premade weapons and a whole bunch of other bullshit for sale at FANTASY COSTCO. Shelves and pallets of an endless array of nonmagical items, pretty much anything you can imagine, can be bought here, but there's one particular, innocuous item that seems to have Garfield the Deals Warlock in a tizzy. The more those vinyl covers that can be used to decorate your Bracers are purchased, the more the name seems to spread, ghosts of whispers around the entire Moon Base, of a person who may very well be a ghost herself. Who is Miss Zarves? Who was Miss Zarves? A powerful witch with the power to scramble your memories, insists one cantankerous woman who pours you a drink at Madame Frione's Tea Kettle. A heavyset, flushed with drink sort of man sitting next to you disagrees — Miss Zarves is a practical joke Garfield likes to trot out every couple of months to mess around with anybody gullible enough to believe him. Whatever the case, it seems that the name alone gives everyone a curious case of déjà vu. Someone has to have information on her — and this is the Reclaimers' opportunity to hone their information gathering skills. C. A (PERHAPS MANDATORY) DAY AT STOP DYING 101 Whether you're in class voluntarily, or whether you were dragged there on account of dying the past Field Mission, today's session of Fatalistic Fauna, and Danger Sense to channel your inner barbarian is going on a little field trip to the Arena. Because this is your first test to see if you can put all that information that's been given to you in the first few lectures to good use. You and a partner are placed in the middle of the Arena, in a simulation of an expansive, empty field, up against the first monster you were introduced to in class: A Bulette, a fearsome beast that can burrow, lunge, deal severe piercing damage, and jump an absolutely incredible distance. And you and your Reclaimer partner are absolutely no match for it. Your only option here is to escape. Can you? If you are dealt simulated fatal damage, then the Arena will dissolve back to normal, and you'll be given extra homework and reading material for the day. Sorry, them's the breaks. D. OPEN THE DOOR, GET ON THE FLOOR, EVERYBODY DO THE DINOSAUR There's a signup available for those looking to take Dance lessons at the Academy. There seem to be enough slots available for 50 or so people, and the form's name simply reads: "DANCE, NOW. WITH MS. CHARLOTTE." It's a pretty large time commitment- a crash course in dancing is a rather intensive affair. You'll be spending 4 days a week for 2 weeks, 2-3 hours per day, learning all the basics of the waltz, the tango, and the quickstep. Don't even think about trying the cha-cha slide here, it's simply not pasodoable. At the studio, you can borrow a pair of ballet slippers and join in with Ms. Charlotte, which, for anyone coming to the class for the first time should be rightly horrified. The newest member of the Bureau of Balance is a spider. A delegate from New New Aspen, Ms. Charlotte comes equipped with a bracer of her own, has taken in the Voidfish juice, and relocated here, to teach at the Academy. She moonlights as a ballroom dance instructor and a coach, and boy... she's pretty demanding with her approach, but incredibly thorough. You don't want to let Ms. Charlotte down. The sessions she teaches will get you to learn the basics. Natural aptitude, of course, goes a long way, but she's very 8-hands on with her approach at correcting posture and steps. Not without compassion, however, if you manage to get blisters on your feet, Ms. Charlotte's web bandages will set and help heal those sore, tired feet. The next 2 weeks of this boot camp are going to be brutal. E. THE MOON IS YOUR SPACE OYSTER (WILDCARD) There are plenty of other locations around the Moon Base that you can explore at your own discretion. Feel free to refer to the Settings page for more ideas on what shenanigans you can get into. Additionally, we'll be fielding Bender rolls again this month! With the exception of the three items that have been removed from his recipe database, if a food item was destroyed in a failed roll previously, you may roll to try to fix it. Bear in mind, of course, that you may make it worse. Successful food rolls will stay in place at this time. 4. THE DIRECTOR ACTS; A GRAND RELIC DESTROYED Erika has obtained and delivered the Space Mittens to Madame Director herself. She struggles to remain calm and composed at the moment, but the amount of immense pride and relief at recovering the Grand Relic slips through an otherwise sturdy exterior of coolness and level-headed features. She congratulates the entirety of the Bureau of Balance for their hard work, and relates to Erika that she couldn't be happier that she had made this world one step closer to being safe. A message will appear across all bracers, everywhere, with the following: Reclaimers, welcome home and congratulations on a successful first mission. Although there were certain drawbacks and difficult decisions that had to be made, I believe, without a doubt, that you all have irrefutably surpassed all expectations. Congratulations on a job well done. However, next time, please do be more careful out there. For those of you who wish to watch, my office will remain open until 1600 hours today. The relic will be destroyed, and if you would like to attend to see how it's done, please stop by. There will be light refreshments and coffee served, of course. If unable to attend, you can watch the ceremony later on your bracers. Don't forget to click Like and Subscribe. At the appointed hour, a ceremony will occur. She calls forth Davenport to wheel out the structure that's been created and designed with the sole purpose of destroying these things. She dare not takes the relic herself, no, refusing to touch the item at all. It's a medium sized metallic sphere, and once opened and closed, can never be opened again. Pulling back the curtain to an observatory, the Reclaimers can watch as Davenport sports a nifty pair of goggles, and wheels the orb onto a raised platform. He waits for the Director's signal, which is performed by an agreeable stamp of her oaken staff against the floor, and a nod. Davenport hits the KILL SWITCH, and the light show from behind the glass is amazing and terrifying all at the same time. You watch as the Space Mittens are obliterated from existence. An eruption of cheering breaks out. This concludes the first successful mission, and a deeply needed win, for the Bureau of Balance. blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[kahunanu]

[Spleuking in random dojo simulations was becoming something of a strange intel-gathering sport for Nanu. Doing it as a cat was ideal for a lot of reasons; he could snoop around generally undetected and if he was he'd be able to pass off his investigations as innocent. The best he could hope for was to run into those types that liked to spill their guts to unassuming animals because they couldn't talk back. He himself may have been guilty of that on occasion, so he knew better now.

Here he finds plenty of nooks and crannies to explore, dark and quiet. The weathered stone slabs jutting out of desert sand remind him of the Ruins of Abundance he once traversed nearly daily. The hieroglyphs remind him a little more of those ruins in Johto with all the Unown, though he couldn't confess to staying long in that area for any reason, least of all sight-seeing. He can't help but wonder who thought this place up and furnished it so spartanly, little more than a sleeping bag and some other scattered equipment. This wasn't a home; this was just a place, something borrowed. Padding around a corner he sees the back of a familiar head and it's not at all the one he expected.

He hasn't had much of a chance to catch up with 76 since Candlelights so Nanu feels his ears flatten with an uncharacteristic sheepishness. He'd been meaning to thank him but this wasn't exactly how he imagined it. He should get out of here while he still could but curiosity was a damnable thing. He hasn't been spotted just yet and he feels like this is an opportunity he might not ever get again. Putting all his cat-experience to use, he slinks through shadows and tries to leverage himself a little height on some outcroppings to see what he's up to.]

[mylawn]

[76 isn't doing much, all things considered. For someone who spends most of his time training in the dojo, it might be strange to see him sitting in quiet contemplation, but this seems like the kind of place to foster such a thing. He's on the cot, and there's something in his hand. As Nanu climbs the craggy walls, he might be able to see that it's a picture, creased and well-worn.

What he doesn't know is that 76 used to have more--they all went missing on his arrival to the moon base, and that most certainly smarts. He'd found this one in his quarters after completing his test of initiation, and he has no plans to take it off his person anytime soon.

Even in his reverie, he doesn't forget his training. The smallest noise has him on alert, muscles tensing and shoulders squaring, though he doesn't make any sudden movements. Something or someone is in here with him, and he'll give them a few seconds to make themselves known before he dissolves the simulation and exposes them himself.]

[kahunanu]

[Nanu can't help but feel like his quiet contemplation is just a trap but he doesn't think that photo means nothing. He creeps closer and closer to get a good look and can distinctly make out two people, one male and one female, along with what is clearly 76 in his younger days in the middle. Didn't look like family but they must have meant a lot to him for him to keep such a worn looking photo.

It's not long before he can sense the change in his posture, subtle as it is. He's on alert now and Nanu flattens himself as much as he can against the wall and freezes, hoping 76 will pass it off as nothing and move somewhere else. It doesn't occur to him at all that dissolving the simulation is something he'd do.]

[mylawn]

[He stays very still for a few long moments, as if expecting to hear movement again. For a moment, he wonders if he imagined it--if it's just the simulated ambiance of the tomb, but 76 trusts his senses. He stands, tucking the picture back into the pocket of his jacket, by all appearances getting ready to do something else.

That something else is to end the simulation. The walls of the ruins vanish, and so do all the shelves and hiding places, plunging them both back into a stark white room. 76 hopes it's a rude awakening.]

You think you're pretty slick, huh?

[76 is not even sure who he's wheeling around on when he turns, but he's sure going to give them an earful.]

[kahunanu]

[What he finds is a small black cat falling seemingly out of thin air and landing firmly on all four paws, confused and wide red eyes staring back at him, completely bewildered. He just did that. Poofed away the ground from beneath his feet. He feels like a huge fool for not thinking of that first. It's a trick he's certainly going to take with him into his own dojo simulations... if he gets out of this one alive. 76 looks all the more tall and imposing from his position and he wishes he'd poofed him out of the simulation all the same. Well.

He cranes his head slowly to look back at the door as if considering escape with his dignity and anonymity intact was still a remotely viable option but, no, the door's shut. He could possibly finagle the handle even as a cat but it'd give 76 plenty of opportunity to grab him. Not worth it.

He's been had.

The cat sighs in an outstandingly human gesture and in the blink of an eye it poofs into Nanu, slouching and immediately rubbing the back of his head.]

Not slick enough.

[mylawn]

[A cat is not exactly what he expects, but things become much clearer when the bewildered animal poofs itself back into a bewildered Nanu. 76 is still trying to wrap his mind around magic powers like this, but he has to admit this is satisfying, to catch him off guard this way.]

No, not slick enough.

[76 stares him down, possibly assessing whether or not he's drunk--that had been the state he'd left Nanu in, after all.]

You a spy now?

[kahunanu]

Too old for that. [He'd likely done some kind of spy work while working with interpol but that was more Looker's specialty, goofy disguises and everything. Easier to just deflect it off his age at any rate.]

Sorry for intruding. [He debates adding that it's hard to tell who's in here until he's in here but that would imply he's nosing around on the regular which, while partly true, is something he doesn't want to imply at all. Generally he gets away with it. Not many people can hear a cat sneaking around.]

Guess I need more dojo practice. [He risks a sleazy smirk, twisting the very meaning of both dojo and practice in this instance, or that 76 had overstayed his welcome in the simulation room.]

[mylawn]

I should've left you to die when you threw up on my shoes.

[You know, like he promised. To 76's credit, he masks any particular strong feelings in his words, sounding fairly detached as he makes his way over to the pile of his belongings. The visor slots back into place and obscures his expression--just how he likes it.

76 doesn't comment about whether or not Nanu needs practice--everyone needs practice, from where he's standing. Instead, he decides to address something else more directly.]

You're not really sorry.

[kahunanu]

No disagreements there. [Nanu doesn't remember a whole lot from that night, least of all whether 76 stuck around after he puked his guts out but he wouldn't blame him at all for not staying.

To not being sorry, he shrugs. It's obvious, he just won't say it. No need to.

His laissez-faire attitude seems to roll off his shoulders as he rests them, wanting to sincerely thank 76 but finding this to be an awful, terrible situation to do it in. It'd come across as insincere at best. A little ironic for Nanu's tastes and so he doesn't even want to wrest with the idea at all.]

...

[He hates that guilty pang in his gut though and frowns, not sure how much he can really fight it.]

...I'll leave you be. [What he should have done in the first place. He turns and heads for the door, convincing himself it's a tactical retreat and not a walk of shame.]

[mylawn]

[That tells 76 all he really needs to know, and there's most certainly some satisfaction in watching Nanu slink off with a figurative tail between his legs. It seems silly, however, to keep hanging around here, in a stark white room when his own paranoia won't let him settle now that he's been interrupted once.]

I'm finished anyway.

[Hard to get back in the zone when he knows he was being watched, and he quickly passes Nanu on his way to the door.]

[kahunanu]

[Yeah that's a mood killer right there and 76 isn't shy about letting that be known. Nanu's feeling miserable enough as it is but when he inevitably brushes past to get at the door all at once Nanu feels a mounting sense of vulnerability forgot he was capable of feeling.

76 was built like a power house, strong and capable in all manners of the word. It's not often Nanu comes across someone so capable, and as much as Nanu might like to dismiss his own capabilities intentionally, when it's unintentional he feels like he's losing control of himself. 76's seen him not handle his drinks, twice, and puke his guts out as a result. Who even knows what he even said to him in either state. Meanwhile Nanu feels like he knows next to nothing about the guy who's gone out of his way for him.

That feeling manages to manifest through grit teeth and passes with a dark thought. His slouched posture and red eyes are a stark, glaring contrast in the rest of the white room.]

Those folks in the photo. [He knows he's got no right to do this but fuck it, that's never stopped him before.] They're still in your pocket, aren't they.

[mylawn]

[Despite his fairly dramatic attempt at an exit, he doesn't expect to get out of this without further commentary. Predictably, Nanu catches up and comments on the picture.]

Old army buddies.

[Half-true. He doesn't comment on whether or not the picture is still on his person, because he most certainly won't be showing Nanu again. Even that small bit of information is more than he's earned.]

[kahunanu]

[That's only half an answer. Nanu will take it but he keeps pressing, emboldened by the fact he got an answer at all.]

It wasn't part of the simulation. You don't pick up a piece of a simulation and pretend to put it in your pocket knowing it's going to vanish anyway.

[Means he's kept holding on to that photo--and given how everyone came here with all they had on themselves--in his pocket the moment everything ended for him... or the Bureau was kind enough to retrieve it for him after the fact.

Either way, it's obviously important.]

[mylawn]

What's it to you?

[It's a physical photograph--so what? 76 has no plans to pull it out again, so he's not certain what Nanu is trying to accomplish here.]

[kahunanu]

[It was one part needling for the sake of it, and one part earnest curiosity. He wouldn't have stuck around if he wasn't genuinely interested in 76, and there were obviously a lot of secrets he harbored. Maybe Nanu's penchant for digging up intel for most of his career also drove his curiosity, like a bad habit.

He doesn't answer immediately but when he relents his posture relaxes just a little. He's trying not to include himself in his answer.]

Just wondering what other weirdos would keep your company.

[mylawn]

Well, they're dead now, so it doesn't really matter.

[Technically, Reyes was dead before 76 even arrived here, though of course that situation was a bit complicated. 76 says it a bit more forcefully than he means to, and falls silent quickly after. It's not out of shame for being rude to Nanu, rather, regret at expressing any amount of emotion at all.]

[kahunanu]

Who are you fooling. Of course it does. [He says this like 76 is being a big idiot about it.] They were part of your life. Just because they aren't here doesn't mean you aren't carrying them around in your heart.

[How poignant but he's pretty sure he's just letting an imagined version of Acerola and her affinity for ghosts and things very dead talk in his ear more for his own comfort and some attempt at sentimentality. He quickly decides he's bad at it. Enough of that nonsense.]

Or pocket, or whatever.

[That door sure looks real inviting, he's making his way for it and has no qualms brushing past 76 now, albeit with much less force.]

[mylawn]

I mean it shouldn’t matter to you.

[Of course what Nanu’s saying is true, but 76 isn’t really in the mood to tell his life story and the people in it. It’s none of his business, made doubly so by the fact that for all he knows, Ana and Gabriel are dead. The only reason Nanu has for saying something like this is to cajole Jack into revealing more about his past than he’d like to.]

You’re lucky we’re on the same team.

[Implying, of course, that this kind of nosiness would get him in trouble in most other scenarios.]

[kahunanu]

[He hears that tone and it sparks some modicum of satisfaction--both that 76 was competent company worth keeping and that his threat sounds like a pretty hollow one to him. He's lucky they're on the same team alright.]

Maybe I'm jealous I don't have a photo of my team. [He shrugs and tosses that idea out, dry enough to question the sincerity of it.]

Weren't army buddies but hard to forget 'em at any rate. [He still intends to make this more about probing 76--vaguely jabbing at 76's ability to retain memory--but by comparison Nanu also doesn't have nearly as many reservations to expositioning to the protag divulging select pieces of his past to someone if deemed appropriate. The only one who's going to care about this--especially here--is him anyway so he holds all the cards to his own misery.

He can walk and talk, but if 76 isn't coming along he'll keep quiet.]

[mylawn]

Maybe you should've kept one.

[None of this really sounds like 76's problem, and the tone of his voice says as much.]

Doesn't mean you can stick your nose into my business.

[He's not going to budge on that, it seems, even if Nanu is trying to give a little to get a little. Perhaps 76 is curious about the kind of company someone like Nanu used to keep.]

[kahunanu]

Well, can't promise I won't do it again seeing as how we're all stuck here, but I'll try.

[This might normally be an underhanded comment or an outright lie, especially with how dryly he speaks in general, but it's less effort to lie in this case. They're all stuck here and will eventually have run-ins with each other again by virtue of both the shared space and missions, but Nanu also found interest in 76. He'll try to be more respectful of boundaries though, especially since 76 makes them known loud and clear.

He thinks about offering his ears if 76 feels like he ever needs to talk but figuring out a way to phrase it becomes difficult. It's really none of his business. The thought of it is there as he slows down a little but ultimately he says nothing.]

[mylawn]

Snooping is a choice.

[Not at all something that can't be helped--though it seems that he and Nanu aren't going to see eye-to-eye on this. He's been doing his fair share of snooping as well, and perhaps if he were a little more prudent, he'd be spying on fellow Reclaimers the way Nanu was. Perhaps he's just a little sore he's been beaten to the punch, or still doesn't have it in him to invade privacy like this.

At this point, he's more than ready to widen his strides and leave Nanu in the dust, as it were. He gets the sense there's something more that he wants to say, but 76 has already made of his mind. He's not necessarily interested in hearing it.]

Watch yourself.