| Douglock Meets the Milano |
| Summary: | Shadowcat and Star-Lord shows Douglock the Starship Milano. |
| Date: | 2016-10-22 |
| Related: | None |
| NPCs: | None |
| Scene Runner: | N/A |
| Social/Plot: | Social |
| Players: |
 .. .. .. |
Location: The lounge in the Xavier Mansion outside of North Salem, NY. (Scene later transitions to the Starship Milano in the school's subbasement hanger.)
Peter and Kitty are standing close together, chatting. You hear Stark's name
Sometime after Kitty sent a text to Douglock, the human-alien hybrid walks into the lounge having tracked the location of one of Peter's guns there. Seeing the pair together - as he expected - he smiles and says, ":Hey there guys,:" and then asks, ":You wanted to talk?:" in his strangely semi-synthetic voice.
Peter nods to Doug, "Yes, Kitty reached you on my behalf. Thanks for coming." he moves towards a semicircle of chairs, saying back over his shoulder. "It's a question of my DNA."
Kitty looks to Douglock and blinks a few times, that seem look she always gives seems to give him recognition yet sadness. Gone in an instant she smiles wide "Heya Douglock" She walks along to the chairs and drops into one.
Doug blinks back at Kitty and then shakes his head mimicking a human dismissing a disturbing thought (in reality the reaction and getting over it yet again happened faster than a human blink). He turns his attention to Peter and nods. ":Quite unusual. You are not strictly human, you're a hybrid,:" he says. He walks further into the room to stand near the chair Kitty is in so that he is in front and 'between' it and its unoccupied companion. He then asks Peter, ":What specifically is the question that you have?:"
Peter sits down as well and leans back slightly. "I want to ask about my father. While it's been a relief to escape any vendettas hanging over me where I came from, it looks like I inherited some. Seems like there's a lot of fuss and fury surrounding some royals from … Spartax?" he looks at Kitty.
Kitty nods her head. "So, Is his DNA showing Spataxian or something else? I thought you had said It was similar to .. the other DNA you found, so i assumed his Dad was from Spartax" She asks and shifts in her seat
":Oh, that,:" Doug says nodding. ":There are some similarities, and if you want I can show you,:" he points at the plasma screen on the wall as he offers to produce visuals. ":But that's the human part of his genetics. When I took samples from your bed that night there were three distinct samples. Two men and one woman had been in it recently.:" He pauses for a moment to wait and see if the visuals are desired or some other hint of how much detail is required.
In Doug's mind space, the somewhat juvenile urRamsey asks, ("What if he cracks a ménage à trois joke?") and Douglock replies, ("She'll hit him… or she's nothing like the Kitty from our world. Now shush or we'll get hit instead!") Naturally this is not heard, but the responding joke does elicit a chuckle from the fork of pre-transformation Doug.
Peter doesn't actually say it, but a small grin forms at that, he can't help it. He presses on, though. "That says, if I am hearing you right, that I have a different father. Can you tell if my father is from Spartax at all?"
Kitty flicks her eyes closed and blushes. "Screen is awesome, data and all, please don't put my DNA up there. The TV adds 25 pounds" She flicks her eyes back open and leans back into her chair.
Doug nods and, even though he could extend an arm to reach it, steps over to stand next to the TV. He tries to be nonchalant as he puts his hand next to the plasma screen so as to extend a finger into a USB port but fails miserably at the attempt to be casual in a way that Kitty would recognize as being /totally/ like the Doug Ramsey she remembers. He activates the screen and projects a split screen image of two DNA strands. To the uneducated the strands are just DNA and could be a newt and a sponge as much as two human-alien hybrids.
":The one on the left is a male human-spartoi hybrid while the one on the left is… well, not,:" Douglock says, brightening the background on the respective sides as he mentions them. ":Now, if we mask away the alien parts of the strands,:" he says as he does just that, ":You can see that when they overlap they are close enough to be identical to say that they are. Brothers at the very least. Same mother.:" The demonstration does just that.
From the screen, urRamsey speaks, with a voice that is a closer approximation of Doug's original voice as a seventeen year old: ''Also note that the mitochondrial dna from both subjects…'' A screen-in-screen appears on both sides showing another strand of DNA on each side which, when one is moved to the other to overlap, appear identical. ''… is absolutely identical. So they have the same mother. Which is also interesting since we have to conclude that the two women are the same despite being from different dimensions and so -''
Douglock mutes the screen, as shown by the [MUTE] appearing in the bottom right corner of the screen, and says ":Sorry for that, urRamsey sometimes gets excited when we're discussing research.:"
Peter :mainly just stares, impressed by the techno-wizardry. "That looks pretty convincing to me. The question is, will those assholes buy it?" he shifts his tone to something formally diplomatic sounding, "Esteemed adversaries, please find enclosed incontrovertible proof that the being currently having Star-Lord's appearance is actually a transplant from another universe, with not an ounce of Spartaxian royal blood in him, so pretty please fuck off?"
Kitty hops up and walks closer. She looks at the DNA "Yeah, wow. like identical twins." She looks to Douglock's finger "I have total USB finger envy" She looks to Douglock. "I miss Doug's excitement talking about this stuff" She flicks her eyes over Douglock's, peering at that blue glow. "I miss having someone to be science nerdy with"
Kitty looks to Peter "Maybe, or they'll say you got someone to tinker your DNA. Genetic modification is buyable" She looks back to the screen and swallows hard. "A different Dad." She looks to Douglock "Can you tell what alien species it is?" She haulsout her itouch. "I might have some extra codes from my travels the school database doesn't"
Doug looks at Kitty almost as if he was slapped. Sure he has consciously chosen to show the expression but its sincere anyway… although it might take a telepath to be certain of that. In his headspace urRamsey says, ("Wow.") He just stands there for a bit, finger in the USB port still. He is glad he cannot cry because he'd be fighting the urge to if he did, but he chooses to /not/ allow that to show in his expression. And then he chooses to move on anyway…
":I'm sorry, Kitty,:" is all he says on the hurtful comment before returning to the business at hand. ":I haven't been able to find a match so that would help,:" as he suppresses the mitochondrial dna sub-screens and reverses the masking on the original strands so only the non-human sequences show. Turning his face away from Kitty, rotating his neck further than a human can, Doug looks at Peter and asks, ":Perhaps the fact that your quantum signature doesn't match that of the universe would be better proof to provide them?:"
Peter responds quickly, "Maybe it would," but he's noticed the reaction Doug made, and sits up a little bit, looking back and forth between him and Kitty. He's not sure just what happened there.
Kitty's eyes flutter a few times and she shifts, walking back to her chair to flopdwon, eyes looking at her boots. She lifts a hand, brushing the back of her arm across her face. "Yeah, quantum… that's the way to go" She sighs and seems to find the toes of her boots fascinating.
":That was the first thing I tested because I've been trying to work up a portable Displaced Person detector…,:" Douglock says and then, at internal prompting from urRamsey, ":And if you can come up with a better name that would help because PD-squared is the best abbreviation so far and… well, that's more awkward than I'd like really.:"
Peter's eyes narrow and he holds up his hands, "Wait, stop, stop. This is nuts. Is there really a problem going on here that can't be worked out? I've been HOPING you two would get together and get all sciency. Any reason you can't start over? I mean, if we can…" he trails off a little, not having meant to open that can of worms, but there it is and he's not running from it.
Kitty looks up at Douglock then over at Peter, then back at her boots. "I'm sorry Doug, i just, that came out wrong. You are you, you are Doug and Warlock, but.. " She sighs softly. "Logan's not the same, Doug's not the same, Peter isn't the same." She brushes her hands over her eyes. "Oh, but my two exs, fucking perfectly perserved. How is that fair" She sighs and looks at Doug, a off smile "I'm sorry, sometimes it's hard to see you, in the new you"
("Okay boss, /that/ deserves acknowledgement,") urRamsey says in the headspace he shares with Douglock who acknowledges this with the mental equivalent of a nod.
":Never thought of it from that perspective,:" Doug says as he rotates his head into a human-like position again. ":And …. um… I'm not Warlock. In my world Warlock is dead. Course… so is Doug Ramsey really. In many ways I'm their offspring…. but… well, since I have all of Doug's memories its easier to say I'm him resurrected as the thought of being the child of two males… well, weird imagery and all that we shouldn't get into.:"
A bar appears at the bottom of the plasma screen and urRamsey projects marque text scrolling to the left in that bar that reads "Doug and Warlock sitting in the tree… K I S S I N G…" and a that point Douglock becomes aware of it and turns off the screen and unplugs from it. ":(Don't do that, urRamsey,):" he says both out loud and internally while internally the fork is laughing at his primary since he was just trying to break the tension.
":I could make myself look more like you'd expect but I'd still sound like this… so its better to just be relaxed like this I suspect,:" he further explains.
Peter seems satisfied, "At least now you're talking about it." he has no more to add at the moment, and sits back, perfectly happy to let the major business at hand wait for this. He waits to see Kitty's response.
Kitty shakes her head gently. "Two male DNA specimens, could, well, easily be cloned together, you'd have to have a donor mitochondrial DNA, but.. well, I mean, if we are splicing, there is no reason we can't buck nature, use male mitochondrial, the first child more related to the father then the mother. Only reason .." She flicks her eyes and sees that scrolling. She giggles and wipes at tears again. "Sorry Douglock, but, keep doing that Dougie" She grins wide and hops up, walking over to hug Douglock whether he wants it or not. She kisses his cheek "Be you, please, just be you, and forgive me if, well, if I'm a spaz."
She steps back. "Okay, back to Peter's DNA"
Doug chuckles. ":The problem is that I'm more than just myself… I'm me and I have a fork running as a helper so I can multitask even more than my mentality lets me do all on its own, Kitty, so… yeah, I know I'm weird.:" He's not apologizing for this but its an olive branch from him as well.
":So yeah, Quill's DNA. If people are after him because they think he's the native version we can try to prove to them otherwise… but… well, if they are attacking him are they going to listen?:"
Peter grins a little, and says "Most of them might not, but the ones that are hung up about royalty might be satisfied if we provide them proof they can use if I were to try and claim the… throne?" he asks Kitty, "Is there an actual throne?"
Peter adds right after, "Then again, they're still assholes that tried to kill my mom."
Kitty looks at Douglock. "Be all the parts of you. I just meant don't try and be something else for me. And, we can be geeky together. I need a friend to be nerdy with working on the Milano's AI"
She looks to Peter and her eyes roll slightly "Yes, a throne, a crown. Mobs of people who adore you from freeing them from your whack job Dad's tyrannical reign" She shakes her head slightly yet grins "Even heir aside, your Dad is so far off the deep end now, and well, we wrecked all his evil plans .. I see him blowing up stuff and peeing on the ashes before asking questions.
("Wait, did she just say she wants us to help her build an AI?") urRamsey asks in their shared mindspace. Doug does the mental equivalent of a nod again as thoughts course though his mind on the subject. ("That's /awesome/!") the fork says as he starts collaborating on the ideas.
":Sure, we can do that, Kitty. Heck, if push comes to shove…:" he interrupts himself and, hyper ADHD-like, he responds to the other conversation, ":So wait… the other DNA is interplanetary royalty?:" and he looks at the present Peter and asks, ":So you… not royalty where you are from, right?:"
Peter says, "Hmm… not necessarily. In fact our origins are suspiciously similar. Here's a corker—my middle name is Jason. But at least not THIS royalty." he comes to his feet, "Probably won't keep enemies at bay, but it'll help me keep reality straight. Since you mentioned it Kitty, do you think there's someone Doug would enjoy meeting?"
Kitty grins as she almost derails the conversations. She looks at Peter and nods a bit, eyes clearly whirling in thought. She then flicks her eyes and shudders her head as she clears her thoughts "Yes, i think Doug will have a field day meeting her, and buff all my hack job code" She grins and links her arm with Douglock's "Want to meet Milano?"
":He named his ship the Milano?:" Doug asks with incredulity clear in his voice.
Star-Lord responds defensively, "It's the name of my old ship." without really explaining more.
Kitty giggles "Oh right, He's got a school boy crush on Alyssa Milano. Get used to being teased Peter, this is like the 5th person i've told how the ship got her name" She winks an eye at Peter "Do you have time Doug?"
A grin spreads across Douglock's face and he nods. He says, ":Sure,:" to Kitty and then, to Peter, he adds, ":And I promise not to make too much fun of you Peter, I've had school boy crushes also.:" He winks at Kitty, who (in /his/ world at least) knew he had a crush on her at one point.
Scene Shift to the Starship Milano
Peter uses a fingerprint scan to open the hatchway, and leads everyone in and onto the bridge.
Kitty is walking and tapping on her modified itouch. "So, please, remember, i've only been working on this a few days. The code is rough, only have basics ships commands down. But the basics is, Peter flies alone alot, and the different command seats and function checks makes that cumbersome. So, while AIish, it;s more a voice command recognition protocol with learning capabilities.
Alyssa Milano appears on a projection disc. "Star-lord and Miss Kitty, welcome back on board." She looks to Doug and smiles "Welcome to the Milano" She looks to Peter "Are we flying today? Can i prepare anything?"
Doug is quiet from the moment the trio enter the hanger all the way into the bridge. He gingerly walks around the bridge, passing hands over the consoles without actually them. When the hologram appears he grins and nods, ":Naturally that's the interface,:" he says without any judgementalness in his voice. He then turns to look at Peter and points to the chair with the side control panels and says, ":Please tell me that's the captain's chair!:"
Yes, the T-O being is geeking out over the starship.
Star-Lord smiles, "Of course. When I'm not doing the piloting myself." a little smugly on that. "It is arranged in a familiar manner, isn't it?" he looks around, and then finally his gaze alights on his ship's holo. "Grade A for manners," he praises, "I don't think we're traveling today, but I think Doug here is quite interested in your functions."
Kitty can't help the smile as she sees Doug's reaction. She turns and curls an arm around Peter's waist "Awesome idea, and.. thank you" She kisses his cheek. She looks over to Doug "Go ahead, grab a seat in the Captain's chair" She walks and taps a few console bringing up screens. "Take a look, it's alien origin tech, so, some stuff is bizarre, but elegant in it's simplicity to complex processing. And what till you see the hyder drive and engines"
Doug moves towards the chair and, after a moment of hesitation he sits down in in and puts his hands on the control consoles on either side of it. ":Do you mind if I try to interface with the ship directly, Peter?:" he asks as he looks around the bridge from the chair.
Peter beams at Kitty, nudging her hip a little with his as he watches. "I don't mind," he answers to Doug, "But do ask Milano. It may seem a formality, but I'm enjoying teaching her to emulate having her own identity as a crew member."
Kitty smiles wide "Milano, this is Doug, Doug, Milano. The holographic image turn to face Doug. "I'm Milano, i'm happy to interface, all interaction help me to learn. I have a variety of access systems. Kitty uses both USB ports and direct touch consoles"
Kitty smiles "I often forget the wonder that this is a space ship" She chuckles "How fast the odd becomes the normal"
":I was thinking something a little more direct,:" Doug says as his fingers extend and wrap around the arm-rest consoles searching for microscopic gaps that even the best alien tech still has. Filiments of his techno-orgainc flesh seep in and touch the computer access directly and his mind interfaces with the computer system directly. After a couple of minutes of silence, Doug retracts his tendrils and says, ":Amazing hardware first off,:" to the ship perhaps? And then he says, ":I see what you mean by rough. More of a personality emulation than an AI… course… true AI is dangerous but I know a few short cuts around that if we wanted to consider those…:" he trails off as those can be dangerous also.
Peter watches Douglock work. Occasionally he glances over at Milano, as she's currently programmed to hint at her status with facial expressions even without words. As Doug finishes explaining, he says, "I will definitely let the two of you decide what is best in that regard. I don't know enough to understand the risks."
Milano shivers in her image. The shivers again as the tendrils retract. "Thank you, I enjoy that form of interfeace Doug" She winks at Doug.
Peter feels Kitty jolt as she see those tendrils come out of Doug. She stares then her hand slips free, walking closer to Doug, eyes intent, curiosity overwhelming. "And then I get gobsmacked" She stares at Doug "That's fabulous" Then she blinks "Right, Like I said, more just voice recognition and protocols voice control at the moment" She nods her head "With your help, i can get all the basic flight control coded so much faster than we could start to explore true.. AI possibility" She smirks "I was at Stark's last week, and he let me phase through his phone. I got a glimpse at some of his protocols. And.. talked with Jarvis" She lets her geek light shine bright
":I liked looking under your hood also, Milano,:" Douglock says in all seriousness as he stands up from the chair. He waggles a finger for a moment as he says, ":I have an idea I'll pitch to you, Kitty, but I need to collect some things first.:" He starts to head towards the door out and then stops to say, ":Oh, it was great seeing you again, Peter. And meeting you Milano…" and then to Kitty he says, ":I miss you also, so we should work on getting to know the us who are here,:" in a way that is obviously meant to show that he understands and that there are no hard feelings.
Peter says to Doug, "Thanks for coming. I'm glad you two could meet." he grins at Milano, walking over to where Doug sat. There's no obvious signs of trouble, but he seems to want to peek around anyway, and then stands right in Milano's personal space looking her in the face as if a doctor inspecting her eyes. He doesn't seem to see anything that worries him, and tickles his fingers through the holo before stepping back, "You're doing fine, babe?" he asks the image.
Milano grins at Doug and her cheeks actually color slightly. "Have a good day Doug" Kitty looks to Doug and smiles "I'd like that. Alot, and sorry i was, focused on my emotions and not you" She stops "Thanks, more geek time to come. I'm enjoying getting to know the us who are here" She flicks a glance to Peter and like the Holo blushes. Milano blinks at Peter "I'm doing fine, handsome" The holo ripples and Milano's eyes go void a second or two before she comes back and smiles and giggles. "Tickling"
Doug smiles and waves as he says, ":Good night, I can see myself out,:" and then he departs the bridge.