acatalepsy_rpg | [Video]

Entry tags:

[Video]

[Keith spent a long time debating whether to bother with video for this or just go with text. But the truth is, for what he's aiming for, it's better to do this virtual-face to virtual-face. Or something. He's even done bothering with the frankly ridiculous mask. For now.

The video opens to a fairly normal looking teenager (aside from the fact that what's visible of him is definitely dressed in a skin-tight vaguely glowy futuristic space suit), hesitating a moment like he's still debating on how to begin.]

So. Uh.

[Good start, Keith. Solid.]

I guess all of us are stuck in the same boat whether we want to be or not. And apparently that boat is headed for some other world before we know it.

I'll be honest. I don't know if we can trust this Astoria as far as we can throw her. [And he knows she can hear this, but he's said as much to her face, so there's that.] But for now I guess I plan on going along to see how things play out. [Which after discussing with Shiro, he feels pretty okay about, as plans go.]

But... just waltzing into other worlds, and potentially meddling in them... that could go bad really quickly if someone makes an enemy of the wrong person. If that happens, it might not be a terrible idea to know what we've got on our side.

Not just magic either. Because... that's really new to me at least. But we all bring some experience or skills or knowledge or something to the table, right? If we're gonna be any sort of team, we may as well know our strengths. And what we might be lacking.

[Maybe? Keith is now wondering if it was a bad idea to give him a way to talk to so many people at once. But he's committed now, no help for it. So he'll even go first.]

I'm Keith. Uh... I guess I'm pretty good with a sword. Pretty good in anything that flies. And I'm mostly used to being in space, lately. But it does't sound like that'll be helpful in this El Minha place. Also apparently I can fly now. So... there's that.

Anyone else feel like sharing?

(( hit him up, hit each other up, threadjack as you like! ))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ roy is a Network Stalker (tm) and has been following all of this since arrival, but what he notices most is that shiro and keith know each other. and he considers that for a moment before he turns on his own video feed, and while he doesn't offer up any information right off the bat, he does say: ]

You know Shiro.

[ followed up with: ]

You have a wealth of experience for someone who can't be any older than eighteen. How old are you?

Yeah, I know him. From back home.

[Keith answers, like Shiro isn't essentially the most important person in his life.]

You know Shiro? From the, uh, Coven he talked about, the witch before this witch?

[...and then he's straight up called out.]

...Eighteen. [SHH.] Maybe nineteen, actually. It's been hard to keep track of the date away from Earth. Anyway, age never really seemed to come up in the war. [Pidge is like eleven. Or something. Or maybe just eleven-year-old-sized. ~~Sorry Pidge.~~]

I do; we're familiar.

[ eighteen, good lord. at least this one is considered an adult. ]

War never seems to care.

[ pause.

pause.

p a u se. ]

So which giant cat thing do you fly around in?

[ RIGHT TO THE POINT. ]

[ R O Y ]

Good familiar?

[Chances are if this guy is on Shiro's bad list, he's gonna wind up on Keith's, but the converse is also true. So.

Anyway.

That question is way more loaded than Roy may realize.]

Right now? None. I'm not a Paladin anymore. I'm with the Blade of Marmora... allies of Voltron. But before... Red. [And then his expression just plain falters because Keith has no poker face whatsoever.] And Black, for a while.

[He shakes it off as best he can and adds,] And they're lions.

[ -- interesting. he absorbs that, digests it, files it away, before -- ]

We get along. [ he likes shiro quite a bit. ] And I'm more of a dog person. [ THAT BEING SAID: ] But you can switch between lions?

[ roy has literally no idea how any of this works but he's a good liar so he'll fake it until he makes it. ]

["We get along" is at least good enough for the benefit of the doubt. So congratulations, Roy.]

...lions. Not cats.

[Mr. Dog Person. Has he been clear on that yet??

As for that next question, it earns a shrug, noncommittal. For all that Keith can be mature and focused, he's also very much a teenager with many of his mannerisms sometimes, even after all his time with the Blade. But he will answer, anyway, after a moment.]

Each Lion chooses their Paladin. Sometimes circumstances change.

Edited 2018-05-09 18:21 (UTC)

Lions, lions. [ he'll acquiesce; the rest of it is more important, and roy considers that for a long moment. he had assumed shiro had always been the leader, but "circumstances" change . . . so keith took over the black lion, when shiro . . . went to do what, exactly?

interesting.

all of that being said, keith has offered a lot, so: ] I'm afraid I have little experience in terms of flying feline artillery, but I am military, which comes with the typical rank and file skills. [ read: he can fight. ] As for here, most of what makes me unique in my world seems to be missing, though I've been given an ability that I find useful, if I choose to use it.

...is it being infuriatingly vague? Because yeah, that seems downright magical.

[How much do you love teenagers, Roy? A lot or a LOT?

Keith will at least tuck away the bit about him being military. That is good to know because that definitely comes with certain skill sets.]

Yes.

[ HE KNOWS YOUR BRAND, KEITH, HE IS NOT DISSUADED BY YOUR SASS. ]

That's exactly what it is.

[ you asked for it. ]

Wow. You've really taken to it. Congratulations on the mastery.

[You're on his list now, Roy. ON HIS LIST.

Also now he needs to ask Shiro about this guy because. What to even make of him?]

I take your praise with pride.

[ amused. but fine, he will give, and roy continues . . . with some privacy, because if shiro knows keith, then keith is surely trustworthy: ]

I am an alchemist, at home, but that gift seems to be woefully absent, here. I've been given another power in its stead, which allows me to be particularly convincing. But I'd rather not use it unless absolutely necessary.

Well good. It came right from the heart.

[Keith deadpans back to him, but well, oh hey. Look at that. Actual answers. Keith notices the change in the message too. Okay, fair enough.]

Alchemy, huh? You're definitely not part Altean, right?[Interesting. So that's sort of a thing where he's from? But he's only heard of it in relation to Allura's father and creating Voltron. He's as of yet unaware that Allura has just unlocked her own alchemy ability.] So she shut that off but made you persuasive?

[Magically persuasive?]

I like to think that she gave me a magical boost to an already present skill.

[ amused in tone, but -- generally, yes. ]

And I've never heard the word Altean before. Something from your world, I assume?

Huh. I wonder how she picks what magic people get stuck with.

[Magic in general is a mystery to Keith. But he'll save that train of thought for another time.]

Yeah. A race of aliens. The lions were built with Altean alchemy. At least in part? It's been a while since I heard the story.

I have the great fortune of knowing that I am completely human.

[ it's said in something of a teasing tone, but -- you know, the homunculi and the battle to save humanity and whatnot in amestris had taught him a lot of valuable lessons on what being "human" really means. flaws and all, roy knows what he is. both literally and figuratively. ]

We also don't have giant robot lions in Amestris, and alchemy isn't used to create giant robot lions, so I'm afraid my specific brand of science might not be entirely useful to your own pursuits.

There's nothing wrong with not being completely human!

[...wait. Sorry. That got defensive really quick and Keith breaks eye contact and moves to change subject quite happily.]

Maybe not. Different universes have all sorts of different... everything. I guess it's not surprising. Maybe. The science of it is sort of beyond me.

[ if roy is startled by the outburst, he doesn't show it. instead, he simply shrugs a little, to continue: ]

I'm a man of action, not words or titles. What you are is unimportant, in the grand scheme of things. It's what you choose to do with yourself that matters.

[ some of the homunculi understood that, maybe. most of them didn't. ]

I hadn't met many non-humans before being dragged along on these travels. Most of them seem to be perfectly upstanding people. My home could use some of them.

[ the humans, really, are the ones that truly messed up amestris. ]

[Keith settles down at that answer, nodding. Okay. Good answer.]

Good. People -- whatever sort of people -- should get to choose who they are by what they do. Not by how they're born.

[He's calmer now before he adds, by way of sheepish not-exactly-apology,] I'm only half human. And the other half... not all Galra are monsters.

[ . . . aha. ]

We have people in our world, born in a country named Ishval. They have dark skin, red eyes, practice a different religion than most of the people in my country . . . human, but if you asked people in Amestris, they were little better than animals. Their civilization was nearly eradicated in a brutal war.

[ he pauses. ]

You should take pride in your heritage, regardless of what ills they've committed, or what wrongs have been committed against them. Racism, discrimination, hatred, ignorance . . . they're the true monsters in the world. I don't have much taste or patience for men who believe otherwise. You shouldn't either.

That sounds awful. But... you're right I think.

[Keith is rethinking his kneejerk reaction about this guy in general. Hmm. He nods in agreement with the last bit. He can agree with that.

Though, he will add,]

With the Galra, it's hard to blame people for their reactions. Zarkon's empire spent the last ten thousand years conquering the universe planet by planet, destroying worlds, enslaving entire populations. That's what people know about Galra. But they're starting to learn... the Blade of Marmora have been fighting against Zarkon from within the Empire the whole time. And now they're a big part of the coalition that's beaten it back. So people are changing their minds. A little.

The oppressor freeing the oppressed.

[ thoughtful, not accusatory. it strikes close to home, though keith's problem is on a much larger scale, in comparison. traveling the universe was a foreign concept, before he landed here, and was dragged along on this magical adventure. but he can sort of relate to the general sentiment. ]

You have an uphill battle ahead of you. They'll likely hate you for a long time to come.

How are you going to handle it?

Whether people hate me or not isn't the point. I know Kolivan and the others agree. We're going to fight alongside Voltron until the war is over, however long that takes. Do what's right. Only things we get to control are the choices we make and the actions we take. If that's not enough for everyone to trust, that's fine. It's gotta be. None of us are in this fight for our own sake.

[Admittedly though, Keith adds.] In my case, I look entirely human. It's harder to escape that knee jerk reaction for the others in the Blade.

[But Keith remembers Allura's reaction toward him when she found out what he was, when he found out what he was. It was painful, to have a friend look at him with distrust and disgust and rage. But they'd worked past it. And Allura has come to trust Kolivan and the others too.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Video]

( video )

( video )

( video )

[ NOT HERE ]

[ NOT HERE ]

( video )

( video )

( video )

( video )

( video )

( video )

Re: ( video )

( video | locked )

Re: ( video | locked )

( video | locked )

( video | locked )

( video | locked )

( video | locked )

( video | locked )

Re: ( video | locked )

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

( video | locked ) cw: for racism, etc.

[Not here]