theclipper_tlv | 004. video/spam

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zhao yunlan

004. video/spam

[He settles himself on a sofa in a corner of the common area, along the very base of the tree, and lifts his wrist to a comfortable level to smile at the camera. He's done this before. It's performative as fuck, and he doesn't enjoy it, but it's past time that he got over his sulk and started getting people motivated here.]

Good morning, Clipper! Some of you I know and some of you are strangers, but we can welcome one more lovely day on this new boat together regardless. To the strangers: Zhao Yunlan! Formerly of the Barge, and even more formerly of Dragon City's Special Investigations Department.

I thought I'd take this opportunity to talk to all of you about happiness. Peace. Indeed, justice itself -- because I'm sorry to say I think our dear Nurse's head is not in the right place on those topics, and we could all get some better results with just a little change of perspective.

Anger, you see, is the natural response to injustice! Think back to the last time in your life you got real peeved -- what caused that emotion? I bet you were thinking, That's just wrong, or You can't treat me like that, or How could you do that?

It's a powerful feeling, and don't get me wrong, it sure as heck can be misdirected and cause some real harm in the world.

But the true cure for anger is to gather the strength to go after injustice. Not listening to happy music and putting on a smile. You know it as well as I do! Don't you feel that anger lingering in your heart as long as the wrong goes unfixed?

[He grins at the camera, sharp.]

Who ever repaired a wrong just by saying they were fine?

[And with a grand gesture of his free hand:]

I open the discussion! How do we make a better world? How can we improve this good ship?

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[Zhao Yunlan spends most of his first week either moping in his room or moping generally around the ship. He'll participate in his assigned shifts, but he's hopeless in the kitchen and hopeless at custodial work, outside of the truly unskilled tasks like emptying garbage cans and hauling buckets of soapy water.

Once he's gotten his week of uselessness out of his system, he's choosing to become aggressively involved. Expect him to plop down next to you on the couch and strike up a conversation, Barge transfers and Clipper natives alike. He'll volunteer to tell stories at storytime, and launch into tales of war or murder investigations past if he's able to take the mic. He'll... be stuck washing dishes on every kitchen shift, because he doesn't seem to have the least idea of which flavors can safely go together and which ones will create a heart-rending abomination of a dish.

Sometimes, after the evening storytime but before it's late enough to sleep, he can be found leaning on the railing and staring up at the treehouse and the useless, opaque ceiling above it, lollipop stem jutting aggressively from his lips, expression very far away.]

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[ That's a slower nod. ]

So if, hypothetically, she was my current Assistant, how worried should I be about it?

[ That's a hand wobble.]

...stay in public areas. And make sure someone has an eye on you at all times.

I'll keep an eye out.

That's not encouraging at all! Give a man a hint, Garion, what exactly should I be looking out for?

Just don't give her any reason to think that you're not cooperating.

Trust me on that. Telling you anything else will just make you jumpy and she'll practically smell it.

I'm a good liar.

[Flatly.]

And let me tell you what makes me jumpy, Garion - getting vague warnings but no concrete details about what I should look out for.

And I'm giving you what I've got. The warning I got was... vague. But I trust the source more than anyone or anything I've ever known.

[A long sigh.]

Well, if you don't have any more info than that, I guess I can't exactly push! But let me tell you, I really wish you did.

I'll stay out of her way.

If I get any more, you'll be the first to know. But I'm a little cut off by this place, unfortunately.

... Oh, yeah? Are we talking a power that gets you extra information, or a decent whisper network?

[He sounds mildly interested.]

[ Ah, this old chestnut: how to explain to someone in an easy and believable way that the very Necessity of the Multiverse itself has been speaking to you in your head since you were a child without sounding like a lunatic. ]

A power. Sorcerer stuff.

[ The answer is: you don't.]

[To be honest, after everything he's heard on the Barge, Yunlan wouldn't have even blinked at the explanation delivered in those terms.]

Fair enough! Explains why it doesn't work quite as well here. If this place is anything like the Barge, those of us who aren't free to leave also don't get much in the way of powers.

I'm restricted to only the most 'harmless' uses of my abilities. You want to see me turn into a bunny?

I can do that. But most of the other forms I know are out.

Transformation, clairvoyance -- sounds like you have quite a few abilities!

I'm a sorcerer.

[ Among a whole host of other things. ]

It's all just the Will and the Word. But you use it different ways to do different things.

I'm probably the last person you want explaining it since I didn't spend thousands of years coming to understand it. Most of my experience is in doing.

Yeah, personally I'm more used to people with individual powers -- one person, one ability, with different levels of usefulness and so on.

But I've heard a lot of different things about powers from my old ship!

[He shrugs easily.]

It probably doesn't matter for me to know exactly how you do what you do, but I do always like to know what kinds of things the people around me might be able to accomplish.

Comes in handy sometimes.

[ That has him scratching his ear just the once awkwardly. ]

I... tend to do things that are supposed to be impossible. [ He doesn't sound particularly proud of that, more like he's an inconvenience for people trying to make sense of things... which isn't entirely off from the truth. ] It's part of what I am. I promise I'm not trying to be difficult.

Ah, Garion! Relax! I may be used to powers working a certain way, but I've also been on board one of these ships for long enough to know that they work differently in every part of the universe. What kinds of impossible things do you do?

[ There's a few options there but- ]

One of my titles is 'Godslayer'.

Edited 2022-08-27 01:26 (UTC)

I take it that's not a figurative title? So, plenty of raw power to sling around-- normally, anyway?

Not at all figurative. And I like to think I didn't sling it around. That's usually more trouble than its worth.

I speak only of the capacity for slinging, not the actuality. [He's making his tone a little bit over-dramatic, and tossing Garion a sidelong smile.]

So - mind if I ask what kinds of things you can do here? I assume the ship limits you more than a little.

Just a little.

[ And he steps back a little before breathing out slowly. Then he looks at his hand for a moment, closes his eyes, and there might be a soft bell-like sound as a small flower appears between his fingers, one that has a smell like the beginning of summer and whatever lovely, floral scent would give someone the most comfort.

He'll hold it out for Yunlan. ]

[Yunlan blinks, wipes the remnants of suds off his hands onto his pants, and reaches out with a cupped hand to take the flower from Garion.]

You... manifest flowers?

[Hell of a comedown from slaying gods. But the flower - he takes a sniff of it - is lovely.]

[ That's a soft chuckle and he'll nod, sure, but- ]

That flower didn't exist before I made it for my cousin Adara. But apparently, the smell of the flower is actually a cure for any poison you care to name.

It's as harmless as something comes. So I can still make it here.

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