the ocean

[instar]

Five pigeons, one with a beetle glued to her foot, fly to Seattle and find the aquarium and the orca tanks.

There is one with just one orca in it.

Five pigeons land on the glass edge of the tank.

Comments

[morphbox]

<Are all foods as amazing as French toast?>

[aeskhyne]

"Some of them are better."

[morphbox]

<That is impossible,> says Ax faintly.

[aeskhyne]

"You know what," says Trouble, "when we've all got our generic human morphs, I am gonna take you on a food tour of Phoenix and show you just how wrong you are."

[instar]

"You and what money? I guess you could use your generic human morph to get a job and a place to crash if we gave you some startup funding..."

[pandion]

"Also, if Ax eats like that in public he will get attention," Andi points out.

[aeskhyne]

Trouble shrugs. "I'll figure something out. And a lot of places do takeout, we can do the eating in private."

[sundayfish]

"The 'generic human morphs' aren't going to have much in the way of legal identity."

[instar]

"Yeah, Dad, you might have to work outside your comfort zone if you want to assume a Frolis-maneuvered persona and do work and have an apartment," Bella says, "I don't see a good way around that unless somebody here is secretly a hacker."

[morphbox]

<Human computer systems must be embarrassingly primitive, if they are on a level with the rest of your planet's technology,> scoffs Ax. <Identities are tracked on such things? And people believe them?>

[instar]

"...Do go on."

[morphbox]

<I'm not a computer specialist. But given a human computer interface I would not expect to take long to determine how it works and how to accomplish various tasks on it.>

[instar]

"...Okay. Charlie is a Luddite, so he doesn't have a computer here, but that is very good to know."

[aeskhyne]

Trouble snorts.

[palmofyourhand]

"Identity fraud. My favourite," says Ethan.

[instar]

"Or possibly just outright robbery, although I'd want a while to sort through possible targets."

[pandion]

"Ax, do you have qualms about stealing?"

[morphbox]

<...I would be more comfortable taking from Yeerks than from innocent bystanders.>

[instar]

"Embezzling large amounts of money from the Sharing would be kind of obvious, but maybe we can find a heavily Controller-infiltrated bank or corporation or something."

[palmofyourhand]

"I don't have qualms about stealing," Ethan puts in. "Ax, do you have qualms about teaching me to steal?"

[morphbox]

<...I am not sure to what extent I can. I would be relying on a large body of education that you do not have.>

[instar]

"And stealing from Yeerks is preferable anyway, so."

[palmofyourhand]

"But you don't mind if I watch, do you?" he coaxes.

[morphbox]

<...I will allow you to watch if Princess Bella prefers,> says Ax uncomfortably.

[instar]

"Princess Bella thinks that having more than one person with the skill would be a decent idea but isn't sure that it won't be used inadvisably by the particular volunteer in question."