Alex in Milliways

[between_worlds]

Alex is wandering through the Organization's annex of storerooms, looking for a sample of unique amphibian that someone had mis-categorized and that no one else seemed remotely interested in trying to find.

Alex opens the door to 4090R and finds, not a poorly lit storage room, but a bright, cheerful looking bar.

He walks inside and begins to look around, "Was this here before?"

Comments

[between_worlds]

"We have a database for this, but I'm not sure exactly what you'd need and it'll need to be on paper. I have a friend who could help. Let me send her a message."
Alex checks his phone, "Nope, not working."
He walks over to the door and sticks his arm out, "Okay, it works here. One sec."

[if_at_first]

Sylvi waits, for a value of waiting that involves speaking softly to Bar.

[between_worlds]

"She wants to know what your most advanced technology is."

[if_at_first]

"Uh... the servants are magic, so I'm not sure whether to count them. Are we counting social technology or just nonmagical objects we know how to build?"

[between_worlds]

"Uh, both?"

[if_at_first]

"But not the servants themselves?"

[between_worlds]

"Since no one else has them, we won't be able to add anything to what you can already do."

[if_at_first]

"Okay... um, we're very good at quarantining and the publicly organized upbringing of children, in the social technology section. Objects - plumbing's gotten pretty good in the last few decades, I think?"

[between_worlds]

"Why are you quarantining people?"

[if_at_first]

"So that they don't give whatever they have to other people. We haven't had big outbreaks of anything in the major city states in, oh, decades. What, have most worlds completely eliminated diseases?"

[between_worlds]

"No, but for most worlds disease isn't a large scale threat anymore. How often do you need to quarantine people?"

[if_at_first]

"Not frequently, but we've made it really convenient - golems can bring them whatever they need in their own homes, most places have public support set up so they aren't tempted to go into work, etcetera - so it's common to go quarantined for a few days even if it turns out all you have is a cold."

[between_worlds]

"That's a lot better than what I was imagining. Have you found cures for any diseases? I can give you some books on medicine. The diseases probably aren't the same, but they might help you understand how to stop them."

[if_at_first]

"Yeah, uh, a number of major diseases have been cured or wiped out with widespread vaccination. ...Will the books be readable when I go home?"

[between_worlds]

Alex closes his eyes and his head thumps back against the door, "Probably not. This really isn't working is it?"

[if_at_first]

"Looks like the interdimensional bar isn't designed for your brand of organizing. I mean, drawings should still work, if you wanted to give me blueprints? And I could take notes myself, those should still be in the common tongue when I take them out."

[between_worlds]

"I'm not sure how useful the blueprints will be without labels. You could label them yourself, but that really limits how much I can give you."

[if_at_first]

"Yeah. You don't have, I don't know, fancy translator magic from another dimension?"

[between_worlds]

"We have translators, but they would need to actually hear the language you're speaking."

[if_at_first]

"Does the ambient translation effect work on translators?" Sylvi asks Bar.

This depends on the device. Not necessarily.

[between_worlds]

"Ok, that might work. I'll ask my friend to bring some translators and other stuff down."

[if_at_first]

"Cool."

[intricate_engineer]

A few minutes later, Glen walks in pulling a cart piled high with two translators, computers, papers, books, and a printer.

[if_at_first]

Sylvi peers with interest at all the stuff. "Hi!"

[intricate_engineer]

"Hey, I'm Glen. It's nice to meet you. I'm here to make up for Alex's incompetence with technology and general lack of problem solving skills."