Who: Legion and you (+closed toplevel for Bowser and Kaiba) What: Overgrowth event toplevels Where: Various Places When: Mid-Late February Content Warnings: Body horror, impromptu surgery, probably heavy emotional discussions
(They are combing through garbage on the beach when it happens: they slip, puncture the muscles on their right foot, and collapse with a mechanical shriek.
Immediately, they move to examine the injury: it is small, but deep. The sort of wound that would carry a high risk of infection for an organic, but as far as Legion knows, this is not a concern for them. Repairs are also unnecessary, as here even machines heal over time.
Still, the pain is significant. They wait for it to subside before getting back to their feet and continuing what they were doing, with only the slightest limp.)
The limp has become more noticeable now. They've taken to spending much of their time either at their apartment or the Heavenly Blanc, using their spaceship as transport between the two, so as to make minimal use of their foot. Eventually, they try wrapping it in living lantern leaves to help it heal.
(The hurt does not go away after application of living lantern leaves, despite them having witnessed the Fluffy Mimics rubbing against, rolling in, and eating them to help themselves heal injuries.
They are beginning to overheat. They fly their spaceship to Mt Silver, and sit in the snow.
It is around this time they notice the distinct tints of green coming from the wound in their foot, the appearance of leaves and stems. This is not merely a wound. They know this affliction.
Overgrowth.
Soon they can be found seeking others in places such as the Merlaut apartments, the Heavenly Blanc, the Marketzone, the subway stations. When not sitting or using some form of transportation, they hobble awkwardly, clearly damaged. At some point, they also make an announcement over the leylines. It goes something like this.)
Alert: the disease known as Overgrowth has manifested in this location. It is characterized by the growth of plants within the body, and can be cured by acknowledging and discussing repressed emotions and secrets.
[Since Viridi lives at the shrines anyway, she gets to hear pretty much all ley line announcements. There's no such thing as telepathic coughing, but Legion will note that Viridi takes frequent breaks in between her communications.]
Why did you all bring your weird afflictions to this place? Let's just stick with the pneumonia and the dysentery, people. Classics don't need to be changed. And I can't get diseases, anyway. I'm a god.
[...]
OK, fine, not here, but I literally have zero repressed emotions. I am the opposite of repressed. I could do with a lot more repressing.
The disease shows no sign of deviation from the original. We are aware of only one similar concept: Hanahaki, which occurs exclusively in response to romantic feelings.
(Their programs take a moment to talk amongst themselves.)
Perhaps it is not that you are not aware, but that you do not wish to be.
(Lots of people they know and have known prefer to be in denial about their feelings.)
(They won't force her to talk. Neither of them is precisely fond of the other, so it's kind of expected that she wouldn't share with them.)
A warning: though there is no death here, unchecked Overgrowth has also been known to cause transformation into a "zombie". Having witnessed this, we consider it ... worse.
[Cole isn't always around other people, but he's noticed the way some residents of the void are starting to cough and act sick. The most he can do is offer the flowery elfroot where he can. Maybe this just means the world figured out what sickness is. It would be nice if it could learn something that doesn't hurt people.]
[Except then it does seem to learn more about what he can do, but all at once, too much, like when hunger happened. It's easier if he's only around animals, they're simpler to listen to. Maybe he just needs to readjust, and then he can go back to helping. It should be easier to do that now that he can hear again.]
[It's along the paths near the base of Mt. Silver that he crosses paths with Legion. He can see the way they're hobbling, even from a distance. He's holding a chickpeewoo in his arms as he approaches, bracing himself for potential sensory overload.]
[He's never heard a being like Legion before. He thinks they're similar to Turing, a machine, though he still doesn't fully understand what that means. The pain is the most obvious thing, but...]
[He winces as he comes closer, shoulders hunched slightly. He'd be tempted to cover his ears if his arms weren't occupied, not that it would actually do anything. Everything sounding too loud or strong is one thing, but this-]
There's so many of you.
[That's probably a rude thing to just suddenly say to someone, not that Cole has any concept of that.]
(Legion is 1,183 minds operating a mechanical body, constantly processing, calculating, controlling all the inputs and movements and processes that make them a physical living entity. A fellow AI once referred to the Geth consensus as a mind the size of a galactic arm and Legion is similar but in microcosm: a swirling constellation of stars schooling together like fish.
He might also catch, briefly, the sensation of being disconnected or deprived, like if one were unable to breathe and yet functioned perfectly without oxygen, still feeling the absence niggling constantly in the background-
The sudden shift to excitement is noticeable, so fast as to appear instantaneous. Where before they were massive and overwhelming, now they are incomprehensible roaring noise.)
(The red anemone flowers have begun to spread up their leg, spearing through armor and muscle alike, wrapping them in a carpet of green and red, flecked with the occasional spot of white.
Why is treatment not working?
It works for others: they have seen petals fall, stems sag, and leaves wither as hidden feelings are revealed. But when they do so in turn, their own affliction remains.
What have they done wrong?
They are too ill to do much, but too restless to do nothing. They can be found sitting outside, resting or petting one of their fluffy mimics. It may take them a bit to notice anyone else is there.)
(They, well ... they don't quite know where they are when it happens.
They were taking the subway ... somewhere, but they were having trouble focusing ... remembering where they were trying to go. The train had stopped working ... they'd wandered into the tunnels when they'd collapsed completely, flowers having overtaken their leg and moved into their torso.
They had an internal clock, and yet, they still had trouble remembering how long they'd lain there when someone finally found them.)
[Because the trains aren't working, Bowser is walking through the subway tunnels to get where he needs to go when he finds Legion. Upon seeing them, he stands for a moment in shock, in part because of how badly infected a machine of all people can get.]
Legion! What did- How did this happen?
[After he says it, he notices a nearby ley line, and taps into it. As he telepathically transmits a message, there is urgency in his voice.]
I need someone who REALLY gets how robot anatomy works over here, FAST.
[As luck would have it Kaiba just happened to be near a leyline at the time and he possessed the required prerequisite for the request. He was a little leery of it since there were a number of robotic like creatures in the area, less if you stipulated bipedal but it was still vague.
Could this be referring to Legion or Turing specifically...?
Only one way to know.]
Where is here?
[Since the initial message neglected to indicate which leyline they were near. At least Kaiba could tell this was serious and didn't complicate matters with snark. ]
[Hearing such a simple plea for help causes Bowser to step back for a second. He prides himself on being a villain and doing evil, but this isn't something he can refuse. Leaving someone to die is too close to a line he won't cross, especially when it's an ally. So he steps forward and looks more closely at the infected area. At the same time, he sends a message over the ley line.]
Subway tunnel. [He mentally transmits some more specific information about his location while he turns his focus back to Legion.]
I sent a ley line message. More help'll be here soon. [Bowser kneels down next to Legion's leg.] You said you tried the whole emotional confession routine? [It doesn't look quite like what everyone else had. Bowser wonders if it could simply be enough to remove the plants, considering they seem to originate from a clear point.]
[Still lacking in details but fortunately not in curiosity, Kaiba noted the details that were projected. No one else seems to have picked up on the message which wasn't surprising given the inconvenience attached to the ley line system. Fortunately, he had tools with him since he was tinkering with some of the arcade machines again in the MarketZONE. The only issue was the subway system in question was a far piece from where he currently was.]
On my way.
[Fortunately, he still had a contingency for needing to get somewhere in a hurry thanks in no small part to Ahsoka's assurances on this particular beast's ability to handle the task. Tossing a Pokéball resulted in the appearance of the Blurrgcobo he'd captured a while back. Mounting it, he guided it in the correct direction and let it run as fast as it liked]
(Their leg is near destroyed by the sheer amount of flowers growing through it, and the buds peeking out of their chesthole make it clear that the plants have begun to spread beyond that area: merely hacking off the limb would not work in this instance, if removing the flowers is to be done it will require complex surgery.
The trail of white blood--even if it is not recognizeable as such--tracing Legion's path from the stopped subway train should help Kaiba find the right location, provided he is paying attention.)
[The understanding of medicine Bowser does have makes it clear to him that he alone cannot treat this. He decides his best bet is simply to wait for Kaiba.]
Kaiba's on his way. Once he gets here we'll figure out a way to fix this.
[The creature raced through the tunnels and over land to get to the next set of tunnels in an amazing show of speed. Kaiba prided himself on the fact that even if this method looked idiotic, it was still faster than the available public transportation. Once they traveled a few more paces, he hopped off his bird-like monster and it came to a halt. In that order, because why would he ever want to dismount in a normal fashion?
He didn't stick the landing as well as he would normally, having slid in some unusual looking fluid. At least he remained upright but he shot the material an accusatory glance, then he did notice there seem to be a trail of it. It was unusual to the landscape. He recalled the Blurrgcobo and began following it.
Not long after two forms started to come into view one more unmistakable than the other currently since who else had spikes? He hurried the rest of the way over and got his first look at what had become of Legion. Eyes widening and lip twitching he was not prepared for this level of damage. Biting back a gasp, he closed his eyes briefly to swallow back those pesky sensations that felt like emotions.]
How long did it take to progress this far? [His tone resumed all business as he tried to get a handle on the situation]
Kaiba. [He says the human's name by way of greeting. Bowser remains where he is, but turns his head to face Kaiba. He then explain what he understands of the situation:] I'm pretty sure whatever Legion has isn't the same thing as what most people had. It's mostly based in their leg, and fessing up to their emotions up didn't work. So I'm thinking maybe the solution's as simple as taking any kind of plant stuff out of Legion's leg.
Over a week! [He repeated sounding sufficiently displeased with the duration. The longer the vines lingered the more intertwined they became with the victim. By extension that would make them more difficult to remove and Legion was already leaking some kind of fluid Kaiba wasn't familiar with so the vines were starting to puncture vital elements of the robot. Well- vital if Legion's components were functioning similarly to how they would normally]
[He nodded towards Bowser at his greeting and proceeded to listen to the assessment] That would mean there are at least two different strains to this affliction.. [Which wasn't impossible especially not with the Void's flare for redundancy] .. and between the two of us I get the distinct impression that I'm both steadier with my hands and have more dexterity. [Look- he knew he was always the one meant to operate. Bowser had been the one calling for help over the leyline afterall.. still he had to say all that...]
You don't have any kind of manual shut off in order to enact repairs, do you? [Not wanting to flood Legion with a lot of questions but this one was important. Being conscious as someone worked on you wouldn't be pleasant, not even for a machine. Kneeling down beside the body he did a visual examination first looking for any easier entry points]
(They can't just shut themselves down here. Just go to sleep, which ... well surgery would wake them up for sure. And Geth have never really had any sort of externally accessible off switch.)
Kaiba-Seto. Bowser-King. Death is not possible here. However, those afflicted with overgrowth have also been witnessed losing capacity for conscious thought and attacking allies. If treatment is ineffective, we do not wish to enter this state.
(In other words, if this fails, kill them, or at least render them sufficiently inoperable that they can't do shit, because death doesn't really seem to be a thing here.)
[Considering the situation, Bowser doesn't argue with Kaiba's assessment of his dexterity.] Royal Koopa hands aren't exactly built for this. Human hands are better.
[Bowser is surprised by Legion's request, but nods. If he were in certain similar circumstances, he might expect the same.] Alright. I get it.
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Seeds Sown
Immediately, they move to examine the injury: it is small, but deep. The sort of wound that would carry a high risk of infection for an organic, but as far as Legion knows, this is not a concern for them. Repairs are also unnecessary, as here even machines heal over time.
Still, the pain is significant. They wait for it to subside before getting back to their feet and continuing what they were doing, with only the slightest limp.)
First Sprouts
The limp has become more noticeable now. They've taken to spending much of their time either at their apartment or the Heavenly Blanc, using their spaceship as transport between the two, so as to make minimal use of their foot. Eventually, they try wrapping it in living lantern leaves to help it heal.
Are foot injuries supposed to hurt like this?)
Steady Growth (action or leyline)
They are beginning to overheat. They fly their spaceship to Mt Silver, and sit in the snow.
It is around this time they notice the distinct tints of green coming from the wound in their foot, the appearance of leaves and stems. This is not merely a wound. They know this affliction.
Overgrowth.
Soon they can be found seeking others in places such as the Merlaut apartments, the Heavenly Blanc, the Marketzone, the subway stations. When not sitting or using some form of transportation, they hobble awkwardly, clearly damaged. At some point, they also make an announcement over the leylines. It goes something like this.)
Alert: the disease known as Overgrowth has manifested in this location. It is characterized by the growth of plants within the body, and can be cured by acknowledging and discussing repressed emotions and secrets.
no subject
[Since Viridi lives at the shrines anyway, she gets to hear pretty much all ley line announcements. There's no such thing as telepathic coughing, but Legion will note that Viridi takes frequent breaks in between her communications.]
Why did you all bring your weird afflictions to this place? Let's just stick with the pneumonia and the dysentery, people. Classics don't need to be changed. And I can't get diseases, anyway. I'm a god.
[...]
OK, fine, not here, but I literally have zero repressed emotions. I am the opposite of repressed. I could do with a lot more repressing.
[it's true]
no subject
(Really. You think they want to suffer and possibly die from flowers growing through their body?
This scenario is familiar to them, at least: they watched it play out on Enso, multiple times.)
Others have stated this: it is often the case that one is not fully aware of what they are hiding.
no subject
How could I possibly not know? I'm so in tune with myself that I take self-love to another level.
[also true]
I hate humans, I love nature, and I think everyone needs to do exactly what I want at all times. My emotions are pretty straightforward.
no subject
(If so, it suggests that she is less aware and more repressed than she believes.)
no subject
[...]
Yes.
[she sounds extremely annoyed about this]
All the rest of you are secretly in love or something which is, as the children say, kind of basic. I don't know what's wrong with me.
no subject
(So actually, Legion at least, is not secretly in love.)
It is likely that you are not as "in tune" with yourself as you think.
no subject
Are you sure this is definitely the disease you're thinking of and it hasn't fused with something else?
no subject
(Their programs take a moment to talk amongst themselves.)
Perhaps it is not that you are not aware, but that you do not wish to be.
(Lots of people they know and have known prefer to be in denial about their feelings.)
1/2
this is a rare feat.]
2/2
I...
I don't know what you're talking about.
[Her tone is very soft.]
...Uh. I need to go.
no subject
(They won't force her to talk. Neither of them is precisely fond of the other, so it's kind of expected that she wouldn't share with them.)
A warning: though there is no death here, unchecked Overgrowth has also been known to cause transformation into a "zombie". Having witnessed this, we consider it ... worse.
Goodbye.
Going with action
[Except then it does seem to learn more about what he can do, but all at once, too much, like when hunger happened. It's easier if he's only around animals, they're simpler to listen to. Maybe he just needs to readjust, and then he can go back to helping. It should be easier to do that now that he can hear again.]
[It's along the paths near the base of Mt. Silver that he crosses paths with Legion. He can see the way they're hobbling, even from a distance. He's holding a chickpeewoo in his arms as he approaches, bracing himself for potential sensory overload.]
[He's never heard a being like Legion before. He thinks they're similar to Turing, a machine, though he still doesn't fully understand what that means. The pain is the most obvious thing, but...]
[He winces as he comes closer, shoulders hunched slightly. He'd be tempted to cover his ears if his arms weren't occupied, not that it would actually do anything. Everything sounding too loud or strong is one thing, but this-]
There's so many of you.
[That's probably a rude thing to just suddenly say to someone, not that Cole has any concept of that.]
no subject
He might also catch, briefly, the sensation of being disconnected or deprived, like if one were unable to breathe and yet functioned perfectly without oxygen, still feeling the absence niggling constantly in the background-
The sudden shift to excitement is noticeable, so fast as to appear instantaneous. Where before they were massive and overwhelming, now they are incomprehensible roaring noise.)
You percieve us as a collective?
(How?)
Blossoming
Why is treatment not working?
It works for others: they have seen petals fall, stems sag, and leaves wither as hidden feelings are revealed. But when they do so in turn, their own affliction remains.
What have they done wrong?
They are too ill to do much, but too restless to do nothing. They can be found sitting outside, resting or petting one of their fluffy mimics. It may take them a bit to notice anyone else is there.)
Full Bloom (closed to Bowser and Kaiba)
They were taking the subway ... somewhere, but they were having trouble focusing ... remembering where they were trying to go. The train had stopped working ... they'd wandered into the tunnels when they'd collapsed completely, flowers having overtaken their leg and moved into their torso.
They had an internal clock, and yet, they still had trouble remembering how long they'd lain there when someone finally found them.)
no subject
Legion! What did- How did this happen?
[After he says it, he notices a nearby ley line, and taps into it. As he telepathically transmits a message, there is urgency in his voice.]
I need someone who REALLY gets how robot anatomy works over here, FAST.
no subject
Could this be referring to Legion or Turing specifically...?
Only one way to know.]
Where is here?
[Since the initial message neglected to indicate which leyline they were near. At least Kaiba could tell this was serious and didn't complicate matters with snark. ]
no subject
(They lift their head a little, eye flicking upwards to look at him.
Movement is limited. They are overgrown.)
Standard cure for disease: Overgrowth ineffective. Systems compromised. (They chatter. It's frantic, disjointed, slightly staticky.
They are sick. They are not getting better.
They cannot overcome this.
Consensus: a plea.)
Help us.
no subject
Subway tunnel. [He mentally transmits some more specific information about his location while he turns his focus back to Legion.]
I sent a ley line message. More help'll be here soon. [Bowser kneels down next to Legion's leg.] You said you tried the whole emotional confession routine? [It doesn't look quite like what everyone else had. Bowser wonders if it could simply be enough to remove the plants, considering they seem to originate from a clear point.]
no subject
On my way.
[Fortunately, he still had a contingency for needing to get somewhere in a hurry thanks in no small part to Ahsoka's assurances on this particular beast's ability to handle the task. Tossing a Pokéball resulted in the appearance of the Blurrgcobo he'd captured a while back. Mounting it, he guided it in the correct direction and let it run as fast as it liked]
no subject
(Their leg is near destroyed by the sheer amount of flowers growing through it, and the buds peeking out of their chesthole make it clear that the plants have begun to spread beyond that area: merely hacking off the limb would not work in this instance, if removing the flowers is to be done it will require complex surgery.
The trail of white blood--even if it is not recognizeable as such--tracing Legion's path from the stopped subway train should help Kaiba find the right location, provided he is paying attention.)
no subject
Kaiba's on his way. Once he gets here we'll figure out a way to fix this.
no subject
He didn't stick the landing as well as he would normally, having slid in some unusual looking fluid. At least he remained upright but he shot the material an accusatory glance, then he did notice there seem to be a trail of it. It was unusual to the landscape. He recalled the Blurrgcobo and began following it.
Not long after two forms started to come into view one more unmistakable than the other currently since who else had spikes? He hurried the rest of the way over and got his first look at what had become of Legion. Eyes widening and lip twitching he was not prepared for this level of damage. Biting back a gasp, he closed his eyes briefly to swallow back those pesky sensations that felt like emotions.]
How long did it take to progress this far? [His tone resumed all business as he tried to get a handle on the situation]
no subject
(The lights inside their chest alternately flare and sputter as they lie there, waiting for assistance.
They remember the Drifter, scrabbling pathetically at their armor in a mindless attempt to kill them.
They have failed to treat themselves. What if they harm their allies?)
Kaiba-Seto. We have been afflicted for over a week. Treatment failed.
no subject
That'd take surgery, though.
no subject
[He nodded towards Bowser at his greeting and proceeded to listen to the assessment] That would mean there are at least two different strains to this affliction.. [Which wasn't impossible especially not with the Void's flare for redundancy] .. and between the two of us I get the distinct impression that I'm both steadier with my hands and have more dexterity. [Look- he knew he was always the one meant to operate. Bowser had been the one calling for help over the leyline afterall.. still he had to say all that...]
You don't have any kind of manual shut off in order to enact repairs, do you? [Not wanting to flood Legion with a lot of questions but this one was important. Being conscious as someone worked on you wouldn't be pleasant, not even for a machine. Kneeling down beside the body he did a visual examination first looking for any easier entry points]
no subject
(They can't just shut themselves down here. Just go to sleep, which ... well surgery would wake them up for sure. And Geth have never really had any sort of externally accessible off switch.)
Kaiba-Seto. Bowser-King. Death is not possible here. However, those afflicted with overgrowth have also been witnessed losing capacity for conscious thought and attacking allies. If treatment is ineffective, we do not wish to enter this state.
(In other words, if this fails, kill them, or at least render them sufficiently inoperable that they can't do shit, because death doesn't really seem to be a thing here.)
no subject
[Bowser is surprised by Legion's request, but nods. If he were in certain similar circumstances, he might expect the same.] Alright. I get it.
[He turns back to Kaiba.] Don't screw up.