01-25-2015, 04:10 PM
Hammer had been reclining the back room for a couple of hours now, idly reading an e-book off of his Dataverse Device. Today was an otherwise typical day; straighten up the shop a bit, open up for the new sunny day, and promptly not do anything. Business was at its constant low for him, being a low-key shop of the selective variety. A few people tended to wander in from time to time, but didn't stay long in favor of other shops.
It was what Hammer had come to expect, really. Still, he was managing to get by alright, his status making him exempt from the radar of Imperial taxing. That would change the moment he got any significant amount of service, he knew, but by then he would also have enough means to pay it, hopefully. A fair enough system, really.
Right now, though, Hammer's mind was on the fiction in front of his eyes. This new "Hunger Games" book series that had been released over the Dataverse was something interesting and unique. It seemed to bear a bunch of themes congruent with the Omniverse itself, which had made it something of a hit with many independent critics and those looking for something different from the regulated media the Empire spat out.
Hammer was disturbed in his reading when he heard the sound of the shop's door opening from outside the peeked door of his back room. Quickly shutting down the device and slipping it into his coat pocket with practiced finesse, the ex-military man pulled open the plain wood door to greet the customer over the counter.
"Hey there- Oh, it's you again!" Hammer called out in greeting, discovering that it was Snow who had walked in. "So, you figured out that time displacement thing yet?"
"Uh..." Truth be told, Snow didn't have much idea what he was talking about. He had been looking it up on his Dataverse device after he walked through the Gate into the Vasty Deeps, so he hadn't really observed any change in time that he knew of. It also didn't help that, well, he hadn't found any answer to his question online. He wasn't quite so used to technology like this. "No...? You said you were gonna tell me about it?"
Hammer chuckled a little bit. Ah, the ever-confounding wonders of the Omniverse. "Well, let me put it like this: You know that whole 'Primes taking action creates OM' thing I told you about?" Snow nodded carefully, and Hammer continued, "Well, whenever a lot of Primes are taking action in a certain Verse, time seems to, well, slow down there. It's as if the Verse itself is tensing up, making time pass more slowly. Sometimes it even happens on a smaller scale, in just a fraction of a Verse. It's only really disorienting when you jump into another Verse to find out that a lot more time has passed there."
Snow blinked a few times. He understood the concept, but it still seemed odd and confusing. "Huh. So how does anyone keep track of time if it's always different in each Verse?"
"Oh, no, it's not that significant, really. Most of the Verses usually stay in sync, pretty much. You'd need something like a war to happen in a Verse if you wanted to slow it down to a large degree."
"Hm. Okay then," Snow passively confirmed. He was caught pondering for a moment, another previously forefront question presenting itself: "How long have I been gone?"
"Eh, about a week, give or take some," Hammer said especially casually, watching Snow's face light up. "It's not like you really missed anything here. That's one of the better parts about this weird time-thing: often times, there's not really a lot you need to catch up on." The ex-military figure shrugged a bit, as if he was kinda used to the whole thing being strange.
"Sure, at least there's that..." Snow's drifted off. What had seemed like the past day to him had ended up proving in no amount to be fulfilling. But maybe that was for the better, he figured. In a strange merging of worlds like this with its own rules, it wouldn't be so safe for Snow to just run around wildly without knowing what he was up against. His brief time in the Pale Moors had proven that much.
Perhaps he ought to slow down and stick around for a bit, build up something of note for himself before he went out trying to fight everything. Logic stated Snow needed to have at least one house that was completely on his side.
Intruding Snow's thoughts, Hammer piped up again, "What's up? Were ya looking for something to do?"
"...I dunno," Snow replied after a moment's consideration. "This whole business with being in the Omniverse just has me really thrown for a loop. I thought I knew what I was doing, but... well..."
"Hey, don't worry about it. You wouldn't be the only one feeling that way," The strong-armed man reassured Snow with a hearty pat on the back. "Just look at me! When I first got here, I had no idea what I was gonna do. But then it occurred to me: everyone brought to the Omniverse end up here for what they did best." With a wide gesture, Hammer referred to himself, "Back home, I ran a great arms shop for a couple of trusted allies. So I decided I would end up making a similar one here!"
Snow looked around at the simple, otherwise vacant shop, clearly lacking in customers. "How's that workin' out for ya, huh?"
Hammer's grand gesture slumped down in defeat. "Can't win 'em all, I suppose," He spoke in dejection. Perking up again, Hammer quickly turned back to his point, "What I'm saying is, you're here to do what you do best, because you did something great back in your own world."
The l'Cie slowly nodded, giving the idea some thought. It was true, his experiences in the works of Pulse had been something quite spectacular. But in that moment, Snow's memories drifted back to his old home. Bodhum, the sleepy seaside town that had been the cradle for himself and many a childhood friend. They had all vowed to do their part to protect their city and its people, eventually turning their little rebellious teenage club into an independent town guard. And it was all well and good, until the Purge came.
In that time of grief and panic, Snow had led NORA as a force of insurgency, putting a stop to the Purge and managing to save many lives from exile onto Gran Pulse. Even in his absence, Snow's dear friends had done all in their power to preserve NORA and what it stood for, striking out against the corrupt Sanctum and coming to aid of the Pulse l'Cie in their final battle.
That was what Snow stood for. A group of allies never truly separated, always bound by their will to do what was right for their home and their neighbors. This, Snow decided, was going to become his legacy in the Omniverse.
"You know what? You're right," Snow decisively declared to Hammer. "I'm gonna do my best make something worthwhile here; but first, I'm gonna make a couple of friends around town, get the lay of the land here."
Hammer gave a great confident smile, crossing his arm like a proud father. "Well then, good luck to ya! If I can be any help at all, you have my number."
With a nod and a wave, Snow said a brief goodbye to Hammer and left Impact. It would be certain this wasn't the last time they were going to meet up, with the idea that Snow had in mind.
It was what Hammer had come to expect, really. Still, he was managing to get by alright, his status making him exempt from the radar of Imperial taxing. That would change the moment he got any significant amount of service, he knew, but by then he would also have enough means to pay it, hopefully. A fair enough system, really.
Right now, though, Hammer's mind was on the fiction in front of his eyes. This new "Hunger Games" book series that had been released over the Dataverse was something interesting and unique. It seemed to bear a bunch of themes congruent with the Omniverse itself, which had made it something of a hit with many independent critics and those looking for something different from the regulated media the Empire spat out.
Hammer was disturbed in his reading when he heard the sound of the shop's door opening from outside the peeked door of his back room. Quickly shutting down the device and slipping it into his coat pocket with practiced finesse, the ex-military man pulled open the plain wood door to greet the customer over the counter.
"Hey there- Oh, it's you again!" Hammer called out in greeting, discovering that it was Snow who had walked in. "So, you figured out that time displacement thing yet?"
"Uh..." Truth be told, Snow didn't have much idea what he was talking about. He had been looking it up on his Dataverse device after he walked through the Gate into the Vasty Deeps, so he hadn't really observed any change in time that he knew of. It also didn't help that, well, he hadn't found any answer to his question online. He wasn't quite so used to technology like this. "No...? You said you were gonna tell me about it?"
Hammer chuckled a little bit. Ah, the ever-confounding wonders of the Omniverse. "Well, let me put it like this: You know that whole 'Primes taking action creates OM' thing I told you about?" Snow nodded carefully, and Hammer continued, "Well, whenever a lot of Primes are taking action in a certain Verse, time seems to, well, slow down there. It's as if the Verse itself is tensing up, making time pass more slowly. Sometimes it even happens on a smaller scale, in just a fraction of a Verse. It's only really disorienting when you jump into another Verse to find out that a lot more time has passed there."
Snow blinked a few times. He understood the concept, but it still seemed odd and confusing. "Huh. So how does anyone keep track of time if it's always different in each Verse?"
"Oh, no, it's not that significant, really. Most of the Verses usually stay in sync, pretty much. You'd need something like a war to happen in a Verse if you wanted to slow it down to a large degree."
"Hm. Okay then," Snow passively confirmed. He was caught pondering for a moment, another previously forefront question presenting itself: "How long have I been gone?"
"Eh, about a week, give or take some," Hammer said especially casually, watching Snow's face light up. "It's not like you really missed anything here. That's one of the better parts about this weird time-thing: often times, there's not really a lot you need to catch up on." The ex-military figure shrugged a bit, as if he was kinda used to the whole thing being strange.
"Sure, at least there's that..." Snow's drifted off. What had seemed like the past day to him had ended up proving in no amount to be fulfilling. But maybe that was for the better, he figured. In a strange merging of worlds like this with its own rules, it wouldn't be so safe for Snow to just run around wildly without knowing what he was up against. His brief time in the Pale Moors had proven that much.
Perhaps he ought to slow down and stick around for a bit, build up something of note for himself before he went out trying to fight everything. Logic stated Snow needed to have at least one house that was completely on his side.
Intruding Snow's thoughts, Hammer piped up again, "What's up? Were ya looking for something to do?"
"...I dunno," Snow replied after a moment's consideration. "This whole business with being in the Omniverse just has me really thrown for a loop. I thought I knew what I was doing, but... well..."
"Hey, don't worry about it. You wouldn't be the only one feeling that way," The strong-armed man reassured Snow with a hearty pat on the back. "Just look at me! When I first got here, I had no idea what I was gonna do. But then it occurred to me: everyone brought to the Omniverse end up here for what they did best." With a wide gesture, Hammer referred to himself, "Back home, I ran a great arms shop for a couple of trusted allies. So I decided I would end up making a similar one here!"
Snow looked around at the simple, otherwise vacant shop, clearly lacking in customers. "How's that workin' out for ya, huh?"
Hammer's grand gesture slumped down in defeat. "Can't win 'em all, I suppose," He spoke in dejection. Perking up again, Hammer quickly turned back to his point, "What I'm saying is, you're here to do what you do best, because you did something great back in your own world."
The l'Cie slowly nodded, giving the idea some thought. It was true, his experiences in the works of Pulse had been something quite spectacular. But in that moment, Snow's memories drifted back to his old home. Bodhum, the sleepy seaside town that had been the cradle for himself and many a childhood friend. They had all vowed to do their part to protect their city and its people, eventually turning their little rebellious teenage club into an independent town guard. And it was all well and good, until the Purge came.
In that time of grief and panic, Snow had led NORA as a force of insurgency, putting a stop to the Purge and managing to save many lives from exile onto Gran Pulse. Even in his absence, Snow's dear friends had done all in their power to preserve NORA and what it stood for, striking out against the corrupt Sanctum and coming to aid of the Pulse l'Cie in their final battle.
That was what Snow stood for. A group of allies never truly separated, always bound by their will to do what was right for their home and their neighbors. This, Snow decided, was going to become his legacy in the Omniverse.
"You know what? You're right," Snow decisively declared to Hammer. "I'm gonna do my best make something worthwhile here; but first, I'm gonna make a couple of friends around town, get the lay of the land here."
Hammer gave a great confident smile, crossing his arm like a proud father. "Well then, good luck to ya! If I can be any help at all, you have my number."
With a nod and a wave, Snow said a brief goodbye to Hammer and left Impact. It would be certain this wasn't the last time they were going to meet up, with the idea that Snow had in mind.