oo1 ( dictation / action )

[littlebityeah]

Shit -- sh -- hey -- Hermann? Hermann!

[ There's the sound of panic and stumbling as Newt nearly trips over a chair and runs into the desk, knocking over a -- what is that, a journal? ]

Wh--heh--hahahaha--

[ Excuse him while he just laughs semi-deliriously; the sudden change in scenery is so crazy that he's considering that maybe he's just gone crazy. The journal drops to the desk and Newt turns away. ]

Did--did -- oh, no, nonono -- Hermann! Hermann, I-I-I'm--I'm stuck in--in what I'm guessing must be your -- alarmingly swanky memory, what -- what do the Rangers do? [ That could be the sound of him smacking himself in the head. ] Focus!

Comments

[littlebityeah]

'A great many'? How many is a great many? How long has this even been happening?

[sworn]

Among those still residing within the castle, there is one who has been here for nearly eight years. There are others who have isolated themselves beyond the castle's reach who have been here for decades, possibly longer.

[littlebityeah]

[ Oh no, oh no, this is terrible news. ] Oh my god. They know I know. That's -- that's gotta be it, they had to stop me from interfering! Oh my god then --

Have--have you heard any angry German mathematicians shouting in confusion in the last--say--hour?

[sworn]

[The only shouting has been this excitable human right here.]

I cannot say that I have. To whom are you referring to when you say "they know"?

[littlebityeah]

Dammit. They, the--the--the Precursors, the aliens that opened a passage to Earth and are currently trying to get rid of us so they can move in, I -- I figured out how to stop them, which is probably why I'm here and not -- freaking -- there.

[sworn]

[There's a very light chuckle. It's not condescending, but it might come off that way.]

I don't know what relief it may bring you to know this, but the aliens did not bring you here. In fact, they likely know nothing of this world or how to reach it.

[littlebityeah]

... Not a lot of relief. Not -- how do you even know that for sure?

[sworn]

Because the castle you are standing in is responsible for bringing you here.

[littlebityeah]

The... literally the castle. Not, I dunno, people responsible for running it?

[sworn]

There aren't any people running it; it runs itself. It heals itself. Whenever anyone has sought to destroy it, it rebuilds itself in no time, as if no harm has come to it.

[She's hesitant to use the word magic just yet. He isn't the first skeptical scientist to arrive and he certainly won't be the last.]

[littlebityeah]

What, like -- like a living thing. A living thing pulling people from--from outside itself like a-a transdimensional magnet? Like -- like those collapsing horse toys, you know, they totally fall apart but pull straight back to their original configuration when the pressure is released! [ Newt, this metaphor is getting OUTTA HAND. ]

[sworn]

[Newt... what...]

I'm not familiar with your world's toys, but it does sound as if you have the right idea.

[littlebityeah]

[ OH MAN -- oh right. Conversation. ] What -- world are you from, exactly?

[sworn]

It is called Azeroth. Depending on where you are from, it is either similar or drastically different than your own.

[Because magic.]

[littlebityeah]

My guess is drastically different, if you've never seen the collapsing horse, I--I mean come on. [ It's a joke, but it kinda falls flat. ] So -- tell me about Azeroth, then.

[sworn]

[This is good! So far she's proving a good enough distraction that he isn't frantically babbling so much anymore.]

That is quite a request. Where do I begin? We do not have many of the technological advances that I have seen present in the castle, such as microwaves and computers, though I am certain given enough time we should see such advancements from the tinkering gnomes. There is magic in the land, however. It courses through ley lines beneath the earth like blood through veins.

[littlebityeah]

[ Gnomes, magic, things out of fantasy. But given the current situation, both here and at home, he's willing to believe in alternate universes. And that sounds totally awesome. ]

And--and people use this magic like a resource?

[sworn]

Some do, yes. Some also abuse it or become addicted to it. While it has proven greatly useful, it is also dangerous in the wrong hands.