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[eternalcutie]

[Czes is standing in a public terminal, looking a little put-out. And no wonder--the shoulders of his nice coat are covered in dark spots and his hair is wilting under the water dripping down his face. He's been caught in a rain shower. Naturally, having found an outlet to complain on, he immediately states the obvious.]

It's raining.

[he sighs in true dramatic fashion.]

Just standing here is boring. Are there any games on this thing? Chess or Mario or something?

[Somebody throw him a bone here, eh?]

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[dragoncrest]

[Ah, the rain has returned. It's a little nostalgic for Freya, but this boy doesn't seem to appreciate it as much.

She looks puzzled as she speaks into her own terminal, her red hat shiny from the rain. She's been patrolling as usual.]

Games on the network? [Certainly she knows what chess is, but she doesn't quite understand how it could be played with a terminal.] I'm certain there's something you might be able to play over it, but...

[Those would be more like... word games. Things you play by talking with others. She's blanking at the moment.]

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[eternalcutie]

[czes blinks at her appearance, startled by how clearly non-human she seems to be. but he's already met a real robot so maybe that kind of thing is normal here. with effort, he keeps himself on topic.]

Oh, I guess you can only access games in certain places? It would make sense not to have them on the computers on the street...

[which is kind of disappointing actually. he assumes that's where she's going with that 'but'.]

[dragoncrest]

[And at this point she's been lost. She's figured out how to use a lot of the technology here but hasn't ever heard anything about games.

She scratches her chin with a long nail, looking puzzled.]

I hadn't heard of someone playing games on the terminals. What is this Mario you mentioned?

[eternalcutie]

Oh, that one might not be on a computer anyway. It's a game where you run around and jump on things.

[although actually since she's probably not from earth, considering her appearance, maybe they've been talking about different things the whole time?]

You know what computer games are, right, Miss?

[he's taking an educated guess on her gender, considering her voice and hair length. hopefully he won't end up embarrassing himself on that front.]

[dragoncrest]

[She gives Czes a small, apologetic smile.]

I'm afraid computers are still a bit new to me, though I've been here some time. I've only used the network to communicate with others.

They do sound interesting, however, and I'd like to learn if you're willing to explain.

[eternalcutie]

I'm not exactly sure how to check if these terminals do, but where I'm from most computers have games on them. They're sort of like...

[he trails off for a couple of seconds as he tries to think of a proper analogue from the perspective of someone who doesn't know a lot of technology. how would he describe games to himself 30 years ago?]

Like a movie, only you control parts of it yourself instead of just watching.

[dragoncrest]

[Given that she's learned how to input things on computers and watched a few films, it isn't a huge stretch from Czes's metaphor to getting a basic grasp of what he means.]

I believe I understand. So you would use something like touching the terminals to tell the game what to do? [It would be fairly easy to play a game of chess that way, she supposes, as long as it was set up properly. These touch screens are so convenient.]

[eternalcutie]

Yeah, or you use a keyboard and mouse. You play Mario with a controller, er, a sort of special input tool with buttons. It's really very interesting if you think about it. And it's fun.

explaining a mouse to a rat lady i hope you appreciate this opportunity

[dragoncrest]

A mouse?

[All the rest makes sense, but the name is particularly misleading, and she looks bemused by the thought with the frown on her face. She's encountered quite a few things that don't make much sense at first glance, but she can't even start to make heads or tails of that idea.]

it is an honor and a privilege

[eternalcutie]

Right, you know...

[he mimics clicking on a mouse with one hand. it actually mostly just looks like he's wiggling his finger at random.]

good

[dragoncrest]

[It's not a terrible helpful gesture for someone who hasn't seen a computer mouse before.]

I... cannot say that I do.

[eternalcutie]

Oh!

[oops now he looks a little embarrassed.]

Sorry, I guess you really don't know much about computer technology...a mouse is another way to control a computer. It's shaped a little bit like a real mouse, and the cord that connects it to the computer looks like a tail. This touch screen stuff is actually very new, at least where I'm from.

[dragoncrest]

Oh.

[So it's a device of some sort. She looks a little less confused and a little more thoughtful.]

There is nothing like these terminals in my world. We can only communicate with distant friends by writing letters, so it was quite surprising to learn of such technology when I arrived.

[eternalcutie]

I think it always starts out like that, with letters.

[czes can remember a time like that, in fact, but it's not like he's gonna say that.]

Technology can be really fun, though! I wish there was a game on the terminals so I could show you, Miss.

[dragoncrest]

Gaia may see this kind of thing eventually, but I do not think I will witness it in my lifetime...

[Being here has been a great opportunity in some ways, she has to admit.]

Please, call me Freya. [She gives Czeslaw a small smile.] Why don't I bring you an umbrella, and we can go find something with a game? I imagine it would be more interesting than remaining in that booth until the rain stops.

[eternalcutie]

If it's no trouble...

[oh, he looks so bashful.]

I think that would be fun, Miss Freya. [and oh right...] I'm Czeslaw.

[dragoncrest]

Not at all--I would be glad to help.

[She bows her head somewhat formally, the shiny red leather of her hat obscuring the rest of her head for a moment.] It's a pleasure to meet you, Czeslaw. If you can tell me where you are, I will be there as soon as I'm able.

[eternalcutie]

[he gives her the name of the nearest street which i am too lazy too make up.]

I'll be waiting!

[dragoncrest]

[After nodding and turning off the feed, Freya does as promised--she acquires an umbrella and makes her way towards Czeslaw.

When she finally arrives, she pulls the dry umbrella out of her jacket, seeing no real reason to use it for herself--she's used to the rain.

Hopefully meeting a six-foot-tall rat woman isn't too strange.]

Hello, Czeslaw. [Here, have this thing so you don't get wet anymore.]

[Video]

[butwonderful]

Unfortunately the games I know are not human ones.

[eternalcutie]

[another robot...czes doesn't bother trying to hide how interested he is. because robots are cool.]

Are they all...bot games?

[bot was the right word wasn't it? the other one czes talked to kept correcting him from robot so he's aiming for politeness here.]

[butwonderful]

Well, yeah. Cybertronian games. Some of them are comparable.

[eternalcutie]

Can humans play them too?

[weapabilities]

Well sure, if we had a set of cards here!

[eternalcutie]

Oh, not on the computer then. That's a shame.

[weapabilities]

Hmm.

Well. There is one human game I know.