Training Sims

[alsohawkeye]

[ The recording is short, the quality decent, not wobbly and handheld, at least. Kate appears from the shoulders up and lifts a hand into the frame in a brief wave. There's a quick glimpse of a dark tattoo on the inside of her wrist. ]

Hi. I'm Kate Bishop, and after all that weird crap at Olympus I assume I'm not the only one looking to get in a little more simulation time to get back on the horse or brush up some skills. I've helped people train in the past in a few different areas, and I'd like to offer that again if anyone is interested. I've got fairly wide experience as an operative, and a pretty broad aptitude set. Except for technical stuff. I'm no good at that, but that just means if you are, I'd take some training in that as trade.

Anyway, I'm attaching a list of some stuff I've offered in the past, but I'm also open to ideas if there's something in particular you're looking to work on. Let me know the skills you're interested in, or the type of matrix you'd like to experience, whatever your parameters are, and we can work something out. We can mash a few of the usual options together, or make up something totally different.

Any skill level is welcome, I'm just as happy to work with people who were unplugged yesterday as people who're vets and just want to stretch out or knock some rust off. If you're training to try to get onto a crew, or just want to poke around and try out some new things, that's cool too, seriousness levels are also flexible. Oh, and payment, that's flexible too. My favorites are coffee and trading skills for skills, but we can always work something out as long as you're honest. Respond here or message me privately if you're interested or have questions.

[ The video cuts here, and a text file is attached. ]

BASIC MATRIX SKILLS:

Jump Test Prep

So You Just Passed Your Jump Test, Now What?

Agent Identification

MATRIX COMBAT:

Old Timey

Modern Timey

Future Timey

VEHICLES:

Flying Things

Boats

Other

ANOMALOUS SKILLS/OTHER:

Intro to Magic

Non-Human Forms

( ooc: related log post is here, feel free to tag both or just one, anything's fine with me. IC questions about what the options mean/what sort of matrixes they're in more than welcome! )

Comments

voice;

[rrrrangerrick]

"Non-Human Forms".

voice;

[alsohawkeye]

Yes. Like, forms that aren't human. I know you're familiar with the concept.

voice;

[rrrrangerrick]

Ha ha ha. Ha ha. Oh, you think you're so funny.

I'm just sayin', other forms, or whatever. That's a real fine friggin' skill.

[alsohawkeye]

It's just a fact that some matrixes aren't populated by humans, or at least have enough non-humans that it may be necessary to have operatives take on different shapes when they plug in. It's worth it to spend some time getting accustomed to being in a totally different sort of body before you need to do it for a mission.

[rrrrangerrick]

Yeah, yeah, you don't gotta tell me about it. Have a frickin' blast. Hey, if anyone goes for it, and you can get like a recording? Lemme know. 'Cause that's gonna be hilarious.

voice;

[jomi]

How is he familiar with the concept?

[ important. ]

private; voice

[alsohawkeye]

[ Kate debates for a minute, but she is not actually an asshole most of the time, so. Private messaging it is. ]

He's a raccoon in the matrix. How did you miss that??

private; voice

[jomi]

[ You are NO FUN KATE BISHOP. ]

I wasn't there.

[ Wait for it. ]

What the fuck is a raccoon?

voice

[rathercommon]

[ Kitty's voice peeps through. She sounds a little subdued, perhaps: she'd only made a recovery a few days before, and this is her first time speaking up on the network since All That Weird Crap At Olympus. But subdued only means a little quieter than usual: she doesn't sound sick or weak. ]

What counts as modern? Modern as in what we've got here, in Zion?

voice

[alsohawkeye]

[ Kate thinks she might recognize that voice, but the fate of the girl who brought the warning has seemed to be the subject of rumor, mostly, and anyway, she could be wrong. Which seems like it'd be unfortunate. So after a brief pause she just answers the question. ]

Sort of? It's similar to what we've got here, but in a matrix. Generally we-- or at least I-- use modern to mean like the most common baseline default matrix, which is basically the one that Neo and the others are said to've been unplugged from, back when there was just one.

voice

[rathercommon]

[ She gives a little noise of acknowledgment. But: ]

I'm afraid I don't actually know what their Matrix was like. It was...set in the past, right? In Zion's past.

[alsohawkeye]

Yeah, that's right. It's based on the year 2000.

[ Kate pauses, concedes. ]

So "modern" is maybe a little misleading since it's technically the past, but that era is the most common and very similar to the one I come from so that's just how I think of it, I guess.

[rathercommon]

It makes sense. When I hear modern, I still tend to think...writing everything longhand and waistcoats and more carriages than cars.

[ Not exactly true, but it's actually fairly close to the truth. Kitty's throwing up a smokescreen, but at least it's a thin, wispy one. ]

But really, everything modern is this, isn't it? Great fleets of warships and technology integrated into the brain. Everything we think of as modern is just an illusion.

voice;

[anthophobia]

[She swore she'd never go back in, that'd she stay out of everything, but there may come a time when she can't stick her head in the sand anymore, and she has skills now that might be useful for a crew, so she might as well dip her toes in.

Maybe.]

I've been unplugged for years now. How hard do you think it'll be for me to go back? Does it feel different?

[She might have some anxiety about going back in. Her life wasn't exactly pleasant by any stretch.]

voice;

[alsohawkeye]

[ Kate considers the question for a few minutes before answering. Partly because she's eating dinner and it's rude to talk with your mouth full but mostly because it deserves some chewing over. ]

If you mean physically, no. It won't be hard and it won't feel different than if you'd done it right away, that's what I've been told. But it will be weird. It's always going to be weird at first, I don't think there's much getting around that.

voice;

[anthophobia]

I think I can handle weird.

[That's not what she's entirely worried about. She just doesn't want it to feel too real, though that's also probably inevitable.]

If you have anything that needs fixing, we can trade services. Otherwise, I can also just owe you a favor.

[alsohawkeye]

That's good, because weird is pretty much a given across the board, here. One way or another.

[ Not always bad weird, though, and it's something you get used to. Or so she could probably guess from the lightness of Kate's tone. ]

I'll think about it. I've got a mechanic on the ship, but extra hands can come in handy-- useful. Anyway, what was it you were hoping to do? Any particular interests or requests?

[anthophobia]

I have other skills. We can figure something out.

[Even if it means heading down to agriculture to get something specific. She knows enough about gathering to do that, too.]

I figured I should start with the basics. The Jump Test. Vehicles.

voice;

[imitant]

[ With background chatter and groaning machinery: ]

What flying things and non-human forms?

voice;

[alsohawkeye]

[ With neither, except the faint sound of air through the ventilation system. ]

There are a lot of options. The ones I had in mind just now were dinosaurs or forest animals for non-human, for flying there's also a dino-esque option, or a couple types of space fighter craft, or I've been learning more conventional small planes of various sorts from the default 20th century, though I'm not great at those yet so I can't promise any sort of high-level lesson there. What sorts of things are you interested in?

voice;

[imitant]

I haven't flown anything since the 1930s—if my 1930s are your 1930s. I should probably try more advanced technology someday.

[ Even though closed cockpits are gross and flying in space is barely flying. ]

Do your dinosaurs have airplanes?

[alsohawkeye]

Not planes exactly but there are flying dinosaurs-- I think technically pterosaurs?-- and also small aircraft that are more like hang-gliders than planes.

Maybe we could trade? I'd love to give planes from the '30s a try, assuming your '30s are my '30s. Biplanes, open cockpits, Amelia Earhart stuff?

[imitant]

Yes. [ A pause. ] Hopefully without any mysterious disappearances.

[ That's a little subdued, not quite a real joke. He didn't know Earhart, but he did know someone who went down over the ocean and was never found. But he brightens as he goes on. ]

I would like to be a pterosaur. If we can do that, I'll take you wing walking.

voice.

[berserkergang]

Kate Bishop.

[ Thor's baritone is warm with casual greeting, and so turns the intonation of her name into that exactly. ]

I had hoped to speak with you about your crew, but perhaps your offer here would provide a more suitable meeting ground.

voice

[alsohawkeye]

[ It's a nice voice, and it's hard not to smile when greeted thusly, simple as it is. If Kate's a little surprised it's a pleasant surprise, and that comes through in her tone. ]

Sure, we can talk now or in person if you'd rather? Or in-person in-sim, I guess that's not strictly-- anyway. Either. Did you have a sim venue in mind?