Yeah? We don't really have computers like these back where I'm from. We have terminals, but people use those to either keep a diary or to keep something locked. Can't carry them around, either.
We don't have too many like this either... 'cause this shit's like super ancient. We've gone way past this crap. It's made it really hard to get used to, but I'm working on cracking 'em.
[He shrugs at the question, miming hitting something with a sledgehammer and narrowly missing knocking the beer over after he sets it down.]
Gets old and shitty sometimes, gotta have a mercy killing. Sometimes if it's used for evil you gotta put it out of its misery too.
Yeah, man, like we all carry around tiny supercomputers about this big. [He makes a rectangle with his fingers about the size of a smartphone.] And my laptop's way thinner than these guys, and can do a whole lot more.
I'm working on it, though. Got a freelance position with the computer guys here. Gonna force it to work for me.
Well, technically, they're phones, so they do phone stuff. Then they take pictures, go online, tell you where you are, get co-opted by shitty corporate types... all that fun stuff.
[He looks like he's having a good time talking about it.]
You mean like call people? I've seen pre-war phones. They're way bigger than the ones you have. Don't work, either.
[He's not entirely sure what Wrench is talking about, but the guy seems to be enjoying himself.]
Friend of mine has a pip-boy that tells you where you are. It's like a mini terminal, but she wears it on her wrist. Doesn't do any of that other stuff, though.
[Oh right, nobody here knows about the war. He keeps mentioning it as if it's common knowledge.]
Yeah, there was a nuclear war that pretty much destroyed the earth 200 years ago. Now we're living with what's left, like radiation and mutated animals. And broken phones. Lot of broken things, actually.
That's what I've heard from pretty much everyone else, too. Think I'm the only person here who came in after it happened. Either way, it's why I'd never seen a cat or a laptop or a working car before coming here.
[He shrugs, going back to his whiskey.]
So our worlds must be pretty different. Kinda weird to think about.
Guess that makes all of this really new and shit. Where I come from, most of this stuff is super dated. The laptops are way anachronistic, but that's magic for you, I guess.
[He's working on figuring it out.]
It's always weird hearing about people coming from places other than home, but post-apocalyptic is pretty new.
Yeah, it's all new to me. The laptops are pretty cool, but it took me a little while to figure them out. Back home, stuff like this could've changed everything. You worked with them every day though, huh?
[Kind of impressive to think about. Wrench must be pretty smart.]
You'd probably hate it where I'm from, if you think this place is low tech.
It's probably a little easier to learn on shit like this than if you were dumped back where I live or something. I... probably wouldn't be a fan of going completely without, nah.
[At least he can kinda make stuff similar to home if he tries.]
But yeah, uh, they're pretty much a constant presence, you know? Which actually can fuck up a lot of stuff when you involve corporations and the government and shit, but the tech itself is cool.
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[Trial and error is totally the key. He grabs the next beer when the bartender brings it.]
You just gotta be careful when smashing 'em. Make sure they deserve it first.
[...He sometimes gets attached.]
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[Huh.]
...What does a computer do to deserve it?
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[He shrugs at the question, miming hitting something with a sledgehammer and narrowly missing knocking the beer over after he sets it down.]
Gets old and shitty sometimes, gotta have a mercy killing. Sometimes if it's used for evil you gotta put it out of its misery too.
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[He frowns a little at the mention of mercy killing, but nothing more than that.]
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I'm working on it, though. Got a freelance position with the computer guys here. Gonna force it to work for me.
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[He doesn't really have a great love for technology, but he can appreciate that what Wrench is telling him is pretty impressive.]
What kinda things can they do?
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[He looks like he's having a good time talking about it.]
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[He's not entirely sure what Wrench is talking about, but the guy seems to be enjoying himself.]
Friend of mine has a pip-boy that tells you where you are. It's like a mini terminal, but she wears it on her wrist. Doesn't do any of that other stuff, though.
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[The pip-boy thing sounds neat, but before he can ask about it, something else catches his attention.]
War?
[He's gonna guess it's different from the usual wars where he comes from.]
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Yeah, there was a nuclear war that pretty much destroyed the earth 200 years ago. Now we're living with what's left, like radiation and mutated animals. And broken phones. Lot of broken things, actually.
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[That is definitely something that's gonna fuck up all the phones and shit, yeah.]
I know everybody's practically threatening that shit one way or another, but man, total destruction of the world's never, uh, got that far yet.
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[He shrugs, going back to his whiskey.]
So our worlds must be pretty different. Kinda weird to think about.
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[He's working on figuring it out.]
It's always weird hearing about people coming from places other than home, but post-apocalyptic is pretty new.
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[Kind of impressive to think about. Wrench must be pretty smart.]
You'd probably hate it where I'm from, if you think this place is low tech.
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[At least he can kinda make stuff similar to home if he tries.]
But yeah, uh, they're pretty much a constant presence, you know? Which actually can fuck up a lot of stuff when you involve corporations and the government and shit, but the tech itself is cool.
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[He makes a thoughtful noise, leaning against the bar more.]
How does it screw things up?
[He's curious about Wrench's world. It's so different from his own, and clearly different from Ryslig, too.]
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[He makes a gesture towards his mask.]
That's sorta what this is for. Throws off surveillance. Can't have any facial recognition if they can't see my face.
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[Like he needs people to see the sorry state he can get in after too much time with nothing but alcohol and his thoughts.]
Makes sense. They can't watch us here though, right?
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[A damn shame, but at least he and his friends tried to inform the masses.]
I haven't seen much in the way of surveillance around here, but I still like wearing it.
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[Unless he's just misinformed, like the people in Wrench's world. That's not a comforting thought.]
Kinda get what you mean. Still like wearing my beret even if I left the military.
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[Way to try to make people paranoid, Wrench.]
But cool, cool, you get it then. Sometimes you just have stuff you like.
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Thanks.
[Yeah, way to go Wrench.]
Anything I can do about it?
[Assuming he ever gets to go home.]
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Keep an eye out, man. If this was home, I could give you some tools or something but it ain't gonna work if your shit's different.
But I bet you'll be fine.
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[He's still going to be suspicious, though.]
Hell, maybe I should get a mask if I ever get back home. Like you.
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[A legacy that transcends even the apocalypse. Neat.]
It's a cool thing to have, anyway.
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