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Sneaking His Way into the Multiverse (RWBY Jaune, WC-lite mechanics)

Reader mode
Tohu said:
Sorry if it offended anyone. I just remembered how I read about Miles Luna confirming Jaune being bisexual.
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As far as I remember, the phrase about bisexual Jaune was taken out of context about shipping. So it's not canon.

And it seems to me that the people of Remnant understand what sexual orientation is, Bi, hetero and homo, if you take into account that they appeared as hunter-gatherers, like us. It's just that as a result of the historical process they developed a different attitude towards this, like, if it makes you happy, doesn't interfere with the community and doesn't attract negativity, then great!
 
Misoby said:
And it seems to me that the people of Remnant understand what sexual orientation is, Bi, hetero and homo, if you take into account that they appeared as hunter-gatherers, like us. It's just that as a result of the historical process they developed a different attitude towards this, like, if it makes you happy, doesn't interfere with the community and doesn't attract negativity, then great!
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It's funny when you think about it. The nature of the Grimm means there is natural pressure not to be a judgmental asshole that creates an us/them divide for the community, because then none of you will live to see the sunrise.

Yet somehow, you still have the whole faunus racism thing to serve as the bigotry sink but doesn't get punished by the Grimm.
 
Party2tehArth said:
@LazyAutumnMoon, thanks for the chapter. Updated on my bd so that was a nice surprise. Anyways loving the pace and the adventure. Jaune discovering that yes, foreign languages are a thing, as are other cultures lol. And seducing Lisa in his wholesome, Labrador, shonenesque ways.

Looking forward to how this story plays out!

Otherwise merry Christmas and hope you enjoy your break!!!
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Glad you're enjoying the story. Happy Birthday, and Merry Christmas 🎅
 
Mashadarof402 said:
It's funny when you think about it. The nature of the Grimm means there is natural pressure not to be a judgmental asshole that creates an us/them divide for the community, because then none of you will live to see the sunrise.

Yet somehow, you still have the whole faunus racism thing to serve as the bigotry sink but doesn't get punished by the Grimm.
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If you think of fauns as a side branch of human evolution, then there is nothing surprising, Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, I compare them because of their common features with fauns, that is, distinctive appearance, the ability to interbreed and a common territory of residence, These species of man sometimes fought with each other and then united, depending on resources and the environment. The struggle of species is such a ... difficult matter. Considering that both species have crossed the threshold of the tribal system, then the question of the struggle still remains and it is honestly a miracle that the inhabitants of Remnant did not wake up one day and did not choose violence (genocide), but are even trying to find opportunities for cooperation.
Yes, it doesn't sound very pleasant, but let's be honest, biology is a bitch,
 
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Misoby said:
If you think of fauns as a side branch of human evolution, then there is nothing surprising, Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, I compare them because of their common features with fauns, that is, distinctive appearance, the ability to interbreed and a common territory of residence, These species of man sometimes fought with each other and then united, depending on resources and the environment. The struggle of species is such a ... difficult matter. Considering that both species have crossed the threshold of the tribal system, then the question of the struggle still remains and it is honestly a miracle that the inhabitants of Remnant did not wake up one day and did not choose violence (genocide), but are even trying to find opportunities for cooperation.
Yes, it doesn't sound very pleasant, but let's be honest, biology is a bitch,
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Ah, but you're missing the point. You're talking about Earth like conditions where yes, the various tribes would go to genocidal war with one another for all the usual reasons.

This is not Earth. It is not a place where having learned tool use and creation pushes your species to the top of the food chain.

This is Remnant, and humanity (and faunus kind) is distinctly second place. At best. And the top predator exclusively hunts down and destroys humanity. Not only that, but is drawn to their negativity, be it anger, fear, hatred and all those other little building blocks that the vast majority of our divisions (be it racial, ethnic, philosophy or just plain old misanthropy) are based on.

Being an asshole is not a winning trait to have in the species, and those who are would have been actively culled for centuries, if not millennia. Grimm are the boogeymen that parents scare their children into behaving, except they're very, very real.

That's why it's funny. Roosterteeth created a world where the above is a fact of life, but failed to do consistent worldbuilding with it to the point where they even had full scale no holds barred wars between the various tribes that didn't result in everyone involved being drowned under a Grimm tide.
 
Mashadarof402 said:
This is Remnant, and humanity (and faunus kind) is distinctly second place. At best. And the top predator exclusively hunts down and destroys humanity. Not only that, but is drawn to their negativity, be it anger, fear, hatred and all those other little building blocks that the vast majority of our divisions (be it racial, ethnic, philosophy or just plain old misanthropy) are based on.

Being an asshole is not a winning trait to have in the species, and those who are would have been actively culled for centuries, if not millennia. Grimm are the boogeymen that parents scare their children into behaving, except they're very, very real.
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Colleague, you forget that the Kingdoms of Remnant are located where they are for a reason. These are places where the Grimm could not reach humans and fauns in significant quantities. And there are few such places, there is competition for them, because to take possession of such means to have the opportunity to develop.

In places where the grimms can't get to you, it's already quite possible to be an asshole due to competition between species and within species competition.

Yes, there is a possible danger, but according to Maslow's pyramid, the basic need for safety is satisfied. You have forces capable of resisting the Grimm and having surplus food. Which leads to the development of civilization. I'm not sure about wars, because we were not shown anywhere, but I think there were certain rules of combat regarding the attack of the Grimm.

What I'm saying is that the ability to be assholes is an ability that comes with safety.
I mean a standard metropolis like London, New York, Moscow or Tokyo produces so much negativity that the Grimm would storm them daily, but no, people live quite peacefully within the walls of the cities. And considering that people can also feed themselves, they have also cleared out a lot of space outside the city to grow food.

Interestingly, Mantl is the most racist towards fauns, being a place with the least resources to survive,while Vacuo, which was a thriving oasis with abundant resources before the Great War, is the least racist. Not sure if that was intended, but it's an interesting point.
 
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Hmm, I was giving this story a re-read (because it is awesome), and I had a thought. It'd be interesting for them to reinsert in Dishonored 2, but a canon version rather than the one they visited. While it'd be nice to visit Emily again and see her all grown up and crushing on Jaune, it would also be interesting from a story perspective to introduce the idea of multiple parallel realities to Jaune. Not only would it be interesting to see Outsider 1 react to Outsider 2, forcing Jaune to confront the possibility meeting of another version of RWBY, one without Jax and without the Fall of Beacon would be interesting.

...I was about to also say it'd be interesting for him to confront the idea that the next time he enters RWBY, that it wouldn't be his RWBY, but then I remembered halfway through writing this that Jaune can in fact visit previous worlds, so that point was moot.

Also, it'd be funny for Jaune to see a grown up Emily and be all friendly with her, meanwhile she's just confused at this handsome stranger picking her out of the shadows during her revenge mission.

As a side note, now I'm wondering what would happen if Jaune manages to get a hold of a copy of RWBY dvd. His reactions to the ridiculous events and increasingly poor writing before its abrupt cancelation would be amusing and likely to induce an existential panic attack in him.

Jaune: We had GODS?! And the world is a nightmare because of what was the worst divorce in history?! And why is it cancelled? Don't we have access to the multiverse? Why isn't there a finished version out there somewhere?
Tattletale: Lol, lmao.
Jaune: How about we read Worm next?!
Tattletale: Please, how could my world possibly top that dumpster fire?
 
LazyAutumnMoon said:
Knowing well the uphill struggle of persuading an Annoying Blonde otherwise, Jaune rolled his eyes, and dropped a hand on her head to ruffle her hair.

Tattletale stared.

He retracted his hand. "I…didn't mean to do that."

"R-right. Um." Tattletale swallowed. "Come on, we're wasting time standing around like this. I know just where to hit up first."
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Gossip Girl's reaction told those who know at least a little more about her than she would like. And about her fetishes too. Who knew that she was one of the dirtiest perverts?
And probably about her too.
Etc... When do we expect obscenities to appear? I doubt it will happen very soon. I will devote about 15-20 chapters to this. Especially considering the author's admission that she has absolutely no regrets about interrupting the train of thought that led John to realize that Pyrrha is in love with him. I suddenly remembered a certain Sylvie and the memes about her.
 
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Started and caught up in a night, must say this is legitimately peak. Hope to see more and soon,
 
Agent Orange said:
You're a decade too late for this nickname to catch on in the fandom but I love it. It just fits in the most insulting way possible. It has the same energy as Collateral Damage Barbie.
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It's basically a translator. Even when you've corrected the translation of a particular name 10 times, he still continues to translate as he sees fit. So sometimes such translation jambs slip through. Although, to be honest, you can't say that these shoes don't fit.
On the other hand... even translation programs want to insult her. That should mean something.
 
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Mashadarof402 said:
Being an asshole is not a winning trait to have in the species, and those who are would have been actively culled for centuries, if not millennia. Grimm are the boogeymen that parents scare their children into behaving, except they're very, very real.
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I'd argue that being competent and reliable easily outweighs whatever behavior or personality an individual has in a Deathworld. Sure, Douchei McBag is raging asshole with the largest racist boner to inversely match the size of his actual penis BUT if he can rip apart hordes of Grimm, destroy pesky Bandits and ensure the safety of the settlement/town/village/city etc. then Sir. Douchei is afforded leeway even by his victims. In their fucked up reality, they'd be Grimm food if he wasn't around to keep them all alive or atleast, maintain the comforts of their daily life. I get it, he's the largest prick this side of Remnant but he just ensured our homes aren't set on fire and our kids made into bit-sized snacks for the Beowolves, so yeah. They'd tolerate it. Until such a time comes, when they have the luxury not to.
 
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Desu-Vult2ElectricBugaloo said:
I'd argue that being competent and reliable easily outweighs whatever behavior or personality an individual has in a Deathworld. Sure, Douchei McBag is raging asshole with the largest racist boner to inversely match the size of his actual penis BUT if he can rip apart hordes of Grimm, destroy pesky Bandits and ensure the safety of the settlement/town/village/city etc. then Sir. Douchei is afforded leeway even by his victims.
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Unless Sir Douchenozzle is a paragon of war and peerless warrior, his behavior is more likely to self cull when he finds himself cut off and without support in the middle of a horde.
 
Mashadarof402 said:
Unless Sir Douchenozzle is a paragon of war and peerless warrior, his behavior is more likely to self cull when he finds himself cut off and without support in the middle of a horde.
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You're thinking like someone from Earth, not Remnant. We got a glimpse of this in Season 1 with Cardin bullying Jaune yet HE gets away with it and Jaune himself ends up SAVING said Asshole when he could have let him be Ursa meal. Sure it might be Jaune wanting to be the hero etc. But he still ended up getting Cardin out of the mess. Hell, Velvet could have fucked up Cardin if she wanted but figured its not worth hurting to crippling freshmeat for the long war.

The shows doesn't say it but it did imply that dickheads like Cardin and his team and asshats like Jacques are tolerated because they could and have contributed something or someway to the Survival of the species. Cardin and his team as meatshield for the grinder and Jacques squeezing every last grain of dust from a pile of ashes.

Yet I'd say even in ours, people like Sir Douchenozzle finds a way to the tippyty top. Just looking at politians and people at business and you'd find a number of em.
 
I hope your vacation is going well.
I've been playing Subnautica recently and realized that Subnautica would be a pretty funny jump. "This is a really low threat ratting but such a high loot ratting!" they go and fall straight into the ocean and have to leave or drown.
It would also be an excellent option for loot, several of the tech tools available to the main character are basically magic, particularly the habitat builder, repair tool, stasis rifle, and fabricator.
 
NineYetis said:
I hope your vacation is going well.
I've been playing Subnautica recently and realized that Subnautica would be a pretty funny jump. "This is a really low threat ratting but such a high loot ratting!" they go and fall straight into the ocean and have to leave or drown.
It would also be an excellent option for loot, several of the tech tools available to the main character are basically magic, particularly the habitat builder, repair tool, stasis rifle, and fabricator.
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There's also the (almost) incurable plague saturating the entire ecosystem to worry about.
 
NineYetis said:
That actually completely slipped my mind! It's dormant for 2 weeks so they could totally spread that around and cause the apocalypse.
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You can send them to the star track, I can already imagine with what diligence they will try to get the replicator and phasers...
Upd. By the way, you can even go to the lower decks, it will be crazy when the quartet of ensins meets our duo of idiots...
 
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Chapter 21: A Certain Otherworld Huntsman - We_Never_Learn
  • Threadmarks
    • *Zap!*

    Such was the sound of a delicate maiden's heart overcome by anger, at least in regards to 'Academy City's #3 Esper'.

    *Bang!*

    And that, was the sound of a delicate maiden's 50,000 electrical volts—or about the strength of a taser—striking an inch from Jaune's feet as he tap-danced on the floor tiles of the phone store.

    "Well?" asked the peeved and trigger-happy magical girl claiming to be an esper, arms crossed. "Are you going to take back your words?"

    Yes, please have mercy, he intended to say, but—prompted by a nagging thought that wouldn't go away—what came out was, "Isn't this just proving my point!? What kind of person would throw a tantrum over being called childish, except someone who's childish?"

    "Ohmigod, Jaune, shut up!" cried Tattletale as more electricity ripped through the room.

    (In truth, nothing and nobody had been hit yet, and had Jaune and Tattletale calmed down they would have noticed it. But lightning was lightning, a terror to behold.)

    As he twirled and dipped in a manner reminiscent of a jester performing at the royal court, complete with an imperious tyrant watching on to cast judgment, Jaune looked toward the opposite side of the room for aid. The other boy, the one in a navy blue school uniform, had grabbed the store employee at the first hint of trouble and taken cover over there. They hid behind the counter now, with the part-timer leaning into that boy's arms. He might be mistaken, but she seemed to be blushing up a storm as she squirmed and fidgeted in the protective embrace. Before Jaune could even say anything, the boy gave a short bow in apology and slooowly withdrew his head below the counter, out of view.

    Well, alright then.

    In that case, what of his partner in crime? His boon companion, Tattletale? No doubt, she would have a plan to rescue him from this mess.

    He spotted her nearby, notably out of the line of fire, having squeezed herself into a corner. Their eyes met, and she gave him a thumbs-up of encouragement.

    No, seriously, he could use some support right now. Do more, dammit.

    To his surprise, she did. Superpowered intuition had deciphered his silent message from across the distance, letting the heartfelt(?) plea reach her. Tattletale made her move.

    She raised a second thumb.

    "You can do it. Don't give up!"

    He really wanted to give up.

    -o-​

    Handy Antenna pair contract, requirement #3: Submit a two shot photo

    A duo stood in the frame, boy and girl, with the girl elbowing the boy aside to put herself front and center. The boy was retaliating by pinching her cheek, while she shoved a hand in his face.

    "This misfortunate Touma cannot tell if they get along, or if they want to fight each other."
    —Kamijou Touma, amateur photographer.

    -o-​

    "Uhehehe, Gekota~!"

    Academy City was a strange place. Magic lived in plain sight here under the guise of science. Putting the illogical nature aside, it's rather like a Semblance in practice, unique yet ubiquitous, and nobody in the vicinity had batted an eye at the electric light show of 'Academy City's #3 Esper', Misaka Mikoto. Thankfully, her attention span anger possessed a duration lasting about as long as one of her lightning bolts, and all parties had soon reached an accord.

    The girl's unhealthy obsession helped him there. A frog in hand was worth two locked behind the store shelves, or however the adage went, and Misaka had her priorities straight. At the moment, she was preoccupied by the two sets of frog-themed phone straps which she held out on either sides of her, looking from one to the other with a sparkle in her eyes and forgiveness in her heart…along with a face that a person should never make in public, of adoration bordering on mania.

    She was panting. It's really not a good look.

    Jaune and the rest of the group watched on, meandering outside of the phone store a mere few yards from the earlier excitement. What did it say about the people of Academy City, that they can just look past a person going on a rampage as if it were another Tuesday? In Vale, a bystander would have the presence of mind to call the police. Here, the part-timer simply got back to work with a little persuasion from the pointy-haired boy rounding out their quartet. Even now, the people passing by paid little attention to the mad giggles and fawning of an obsessed fan clutching her prizes, at best giving her a wide berth.

    After a minute of bearing witness to the childish (though never tell her that) girl's steady descent into her own world, Jaune sidled over to Tattletale, and whispered, "Should we be worried?"

    "Nah, it's fine. We've just become her favorite people on Earth, is all," replied Tattletale as she continued tap-tap-tapping away on her new phone. The girl moonlighting as a supervillainess currently disguised as an ordinary girl had been unable to put the device down from the moment she unboxed the thing. Her fingers danced on the screen at blazing speed, and her eyes never strayed far from it for long. Rather offhandedly, she added, "Well, her favorite barring a certain someone, of course."

    Those words turned Misaka so pale that Jaune would believe her a ghost and, with a squeak, the girl fumbled everything she held. She dove after the frogs a split second later, getting them back in the air before they could hit the ground, and between juggling them she stammered out a rapid-fire string of denials.

    "I-I-I have no idea what you are talking about! None at all! Who is my favorite? Him!?" She whipped her head towards the subject in question standing by her side, then whirled back at them. "That must be a joke, who would like him, there is nothing going on here, we wouldn't make a good couple anyway…w-would we?" She half-asked, half-pleaded that last bit, peering up with an unmistakable anticipation at the same boy she had so fervently protested an attraction to, as if to give him the opportunity to refute those claims and sweep her into his arms.

    Blink, blink. The boy stared at them all, total incomprehension written clear across his face.

    Jaune grimaced, at first believing it a deliberate act put on to avoid having to reject the girl outright. As time passed with the other boy just tilting his head without any sign of recognizing the awkward silence, Jaune came around to the idea that it was genuine. The guy did not understand the situation. This was further bolstered by how Misaka reacted to him. Rather than taking offense, she sagged her shoulders, and sighed. On her face, relief warred with disappointment.

    My, how complicated, and certainly not something he wanted to get in the middle of. Jaune shot Tattletale an unamused look for her part in instigating this scene, and cut into the conversation to change the subject.

    "Well, putting that aside—"

    "...my love life is something that can be put aside…"

    "Putting that aside," he stressed, "here is the coin, as agreed." His hand reached inside an empty pocket, pretending to rummage while he summoned a gold coin from his otherworldly dimensional space. According to Tattletale, its value more than paid for the two phones and a contract plan, but they had deemed it a fair price in the circumstances. The alternative was an exchange rate of zero, with maybe a stay in a police station. Having someone to deal with the paperwork was great, too, since they couldn't read a single line of the contract. He passed it over to Misaka, who shook off her malaise to adopt an expression of great interest. "Get it checked if you need to, but I guarantee you it's real."

    She studied the coin, tracing a thumb over the surface. With a soft glow, sparks of electricity crackled back and forth along the metal.

    Out of the corner of his eyes, Jaune noted a band of delinquent-looking teens walking down the nearby flight of stairs into the Underground Mall. They saw the burst of electricity, and it prompted them to study Misaka in close detail. Recognition soon dawned, after which the horrified boys fell to infighting as each sought the privilege of escaping up the staircase first. The byplay suggested that their dainty acquaintance had a reputation.

    With a hum of satisfaction, Misaka tucked the coin away in her purse. "No need for that. This is real gold."

    "How can you—"

    "Conductivity," interrupted Tattletale to answer him.

    Misaka showed a moment of surprise, which turned into an enthusiastic nod.

    "That's right! Gold carries a conductivity of 4.5x10^7 Siemens per meter. At current temperature and for a sample the size of that coin, the rate at which a spark travels through the coin can determine the purity of the gold content. It's a pretty reliable test, as counterfeiters generally use brass or nickel to create fake gold, and both are worse conductors in comparison. I have heard that one of Academy City's universities made breakthroughs on an alloy with similar properties to gold, although the rarity of it means that it would be worth a lot more right now. Of course, within a temperature range of zero to ten degree Celcius you can mimic something that can pass a basic conductivity test to a certain extent with a 4:4:1:1 ratio of—"

    The explanation devolved into a slew of scientific babble that made Jaune's head spin, composed of more numbers than words. On Tattletale's end, she didn't contribute much to the discussion either. In fact, her face had started to develop an unfriendly blankness, the smile turning wooden. Jaune spied her hands twitching, before they came up to give a short three claps of applause that stopped Misaka mid-sentence.

    "Precisely what I was about to say," Tattletale sweetly chirped. "Maybe you have a calling as an appraiser. It'd certainly be more useful than the zaps you were sending off at us."

    Misaka frowned. It wasn't hard to get the impression that the compliment sounded…patronizing, and just a tad insincere.

    *Crackle*

    Locks of her short, brown hair briefly rose upward.

    Jaune found it fascinating. Not the hair—he had seen better—but the activation of her power. It flowed with a natural ease, smooth to a degree that Semblances had a hard time imitating. There had been no telltale glow to the eyes, nor a hint of meditative concentration. The maneuver seemed to occur on an almost instinctual level.

    "That was me going easy on you," Misaka retorted. "I'm a Level Five, one of only seven in Academy City. They call me the Railgun. You wouldn't want to see me at my full power."

    "A railgun?" Jaune asked. "As in…" He gulped at the way she grinned. Could he survive the equivalent of a weapon designed to be strapped on an Atlas airship as the main cannon? Doubtful. "How on Remnant is that fair?" he murmured to himself.

    As soon as he said it, he realized his mistake. The soft, jazzy music playing from the mall's overhead speakers had failed to sufficiently drown out a turn of phrase that did not make sense outside of his home universe. Already, he could see Misaka mouthing the word 'Remnant', seeming to wonder if she had misheard.

    Tattletale came to his rescue. "Yeah, it's amazing how big our world is! The brochures say 'esper', but it really is different in person, huh?" she gushed, hiding any bad feelings she directed at Misaka earlier to sell the distraction. "The evening news makes it sound like parlor tricks, sometimes. Who woulda thought it can get so strong?" She then angled her head so the two locals would not see, and sent Jaune a sharp glance, eyes narrowed and one corner of her lips down-turned. A warning. Don't let your ignorance show.

    "Right, what Tattletale said." He winced as the glance became a full-on glare.

    "Tattletale?" Misaka asked.

    He quickly lied, "A nickname."

    Tattletale chimed in, "Yup, it's a term of endearment he uses for me. I actually go by Taylor."

    Now it was Jaune's turn to stare. Why did she always insist on giving a false identity?

    Leaning down, he muttered in her ear, "Lisa—"

    "I told you, it's Tattletale while I'm on the job," she whispered back.

    "Then, Tattletale—"

    "Except when I don't have my mask during a job, then it's Taylor."

    "I think I'm just going to call you Bob," he deadpanned. "Seriously, though, does it matter? There aren't heroes or villains to use your real identity against you in this universe."

    "It's the principle of the thing!" she insisted, which did not clarify much in his opinion.

    "Um, excuse me."

    At that, they both snapped to casual poses, and displayed their best innocent smiles for Misaka. Jaune rather thought he succeeded at it better than Tattletale did.

    "So you're…"

    "I'm Taylor." / "She's Taylor."

    "...Uh-huh, and he's…"

    "Jaune." Wait, was he also supposed to give a fake name? Too late now. "No nickname to speak of. Thanks a lot for helping us out, Misaka." Jaune then turned to the one person left unnamed in their group, letting him get a chance to introduce himself.

    The other boy had not spoken much—or at all—and in fact gave no indication of following the conversation, instead awkwardly browsing on his phone. He continued typing for a while, before he noticed all the attention on him, whereupon he shoved the phone in a pocket and pretended (badly) that he was a contributing part of the group this whole time. Growing flustered under their scrutiny, he peered from one face to the next as if searching for a hint of the current topic.

    Jaune decided to help out. "I'm Jaune. Good to meetcha."

    Epiphany struck like a bolt from the blue. The other boy dropped a fist into his palm, nodding his head. With complete confidence, he pointed to himself, and said, "Mai namu Kamijou Touma." Both hands tapped his chest, then extended out towards Jaune and Tattletale. "Naice to mit you."

    The area around them grew still. The rest of the mall carried on a lively hubbub, but within their group, silence reigned supreme for a good long moment until Jaune broke it.

    "Errrr, what?" was his witty response.

    Undeterred, the other boy gave a second attempt, "How is doing you?"

    Jaune coughed, and scratched his cheek. "That's, uh, that's a rather bold thing to ask. Is this a normal topic to talk about in Japan?"

    In tandem, Tattletale and Misaka facepalmed, the latter groaning as her not-crush resorted to using gestures to help convey his meaning—which didn't actually help and almost resulted in him slapping Jaune with his right hand by accident, with Jaune dodging at the last second.

    "I am so sorry for this idiot, please do not mind him," Misaka said, walking over and issuing a string of rebukes to the boy currently wriggling like a worm.

    Jaune frowned as he listened in. The things she said kind of sounded like words, yet they also did not.

    Something odd was going on here. The phenomenon reminded Jaune of their earlier experience in the phone store, where what should have been a normal conversation saw a complete breakdown of communication. He looked around the Underground Mall, noting again the writing that seemed closer to art, recalling the contract they signed that used the same letters. He pricked his ears to catch the conversations of people passing by, conversations where he failed to pick out a recognizable word, meaning that the part-timer and his new acquaintances were not isolated cases. The clues began to shape up a loose picture, not quite complete. It was enough to make a guess.

    He tapped Tattletale on the shoulder, and said quietly, "Could there…I know this might sound insane, but could there be such a thing as a second language?"

    That got a laugh from her. "Are you kidding? There's a whooole lot more than two. You remember what I said about currencies? In a way, it goes back to that. Ours is called English, and they're talking in Japanese over there."

    And that was the mystery solved.

    "How do people between countries do anything with each other?" he asked in incredulity.

    "We learn their language. Duh."

    His world had not needed to do anything of the sort, and Jaune wondered if they were better or worse for that. On Remnant, everyone used the same language. He wanted to say it was easier. No matter where a person hailed from, they could communicate with other people. Here, barriers existed to make it harder for people to connect.

    Yet, was Earth not admirable, nevertheless? How kind people were, to make the effort for one another. His world might have offered a simpler solution, but nobody ever saw the words they say as a point of commonality, or an opportunity to foster understanding.

    After he mentioned it, Tattletale reflected on the notion. "That's a little too idealistic, but I can't say it's totally wrong. I've heard from people that knowing more than one tongue opens a person's mind. The difference in worldviews enhances one's sense of perspective or something. They question more, doubt more, think more."

    "Do you know a second language?"

    "Even better." She puffed out her chest, smirking. "I'm fluent in a universal language. Body language. It lets me grasp the true intent of the person, no matter how well they lie."

    "Does that really count?" Jaune asked, more than a little skeptical. "What's he saying, then?"

    He indicated the wriggling worm that has yet to give up on talking to them despite knowing not a lick of their language. An 'A' for effort, though perhaps a 'D' at best on a test.

    "Heh. Easy-peasy. He's…" Tattletale stared. Then she stared some more. Jaune was about to press the point when a commotion broke out.

    "Aaaargh!" Misaka yelled, hands going up to violently rub her hair, her patience exhausted.

    "He's being stupid."

    "Can't argue with that."

    With a hop, Misaka grabbed onto the boy's waving arm, holding it still. Uncaring of how it looked to other people, she plunged a hand into his pocket, and over his protests she rummaged around. Out came his phone, and Misaka began pressing buttons, the furious click-clacks ending with a melodious jingle. She slapped it back into the boy's hand.

    "There, it's done!"

    Jaune jolted at the overlapping voices. One was hers, quieter and saying something in 'Japanese' as Tattletale called it. The second voice was also hers, and it spoke in 'English', louder and coming from a slightly different place from the girl. It did not match the movements of her lips, and carried a subtle electronic twang that was almost imperceptible.

    "Your phone has a translation app! Use it!"

    "Whoa! Since when was that there?" said a deeper voice, belonging to the boy. As clued in by Misaka, it emanated from the small device he was holding.

    "Are you a Neanderthal? It's included by default on pretty much every device sold in Academy City for the last two years!"

    On the sideline, a flabbergasted Tattletale delved into her own phone in search of the translation app. Jaune hastily copied her, navigating to an icon bearing—for whatever reason—a cutesy cartoon cat. A press, and a light green screen appeared, crisscrossed by lines. He checked with Tattletale, whose phone displayed an identical image. The lines on her screen oscillated when she tried talking into it.

    "Testing. Testing. Am I talking in Japanese?"

    "Yes, you are," answered both Misaka and the other boy, the latter giving a thumbs-up for emphasis.

    "Holy crap!" Tattletale exclaimed in utter delight.

    Jaune peeked over her shoulder. "I'm guessing this is new for you?"

    "We don't have software anywhere close to this." She observed the two locals, and the way they kept pace with her words without confusion. "And it's not simply translating! Languages have different rules and order of tenses. A sentence in English might only make sense in Japanese after you write out the entire thing. But here, there's a delay of less than a second before the app starts talking. It must have a predictive component, analyzing the inflections and speech patterns of the speaker to figure out what they might say next. That's why the output content sounds so natural!"

    "Okay."

    "Okay!? Is that all you have to say? This is groundbreaking!"

    "I'm going to be honest here, Tattletale. I have no frame of reference for anything you just said."

    Misaka heard that, and she chuckled. "Not many would. Academy City products are estimated to be twenty to thirty years ahead of the wider world. A lot of them are still in the experimental stage, so you might get a version like it released in America in a decade. The adaptive learning component works best when the app is exclusive to one person. The program refines itself over time, and at a certain point it should achieve a 99.9% accuracy rate, according to the developer." She sniffed disdainfully at Jaune. "Can your supposed 'better phone' do that?"

    She seemed to have held a grudge over him calling the phones in the store 'low-tech'. In his defense, they very much were when compared to a scroll, looking like bricks with their bulky metal and plastic frames. If that was the top of the line, then how long would it take for Hardlight screens to become commonplace?

    But that was from a hardware perspective. Provided an example of what an Earth phone can do, Jaune now studied the device in his hand with a critical eye, browsing over the menus with a sense of awe.

    Scrolls didn't possess even a rudimentary program that can provide translation services. Because, again, Remnant had one language. They didn't need such an app.

    They could do with a lot of these other ones, though.

    A glance through the app store and Jaune concluded that on the software side, Earth was insane. Perhaps it was a demonstration of how a world with a hundred different languages and a hundred different Kingdoms would develop, but the variety of options boggled the mind. Apps for things he never thought needed an app, or was possible to turn into an app. Education courses and physical wellness trainers that meant a phone could perform the function of a school for its owner. Dozens of cybersecurity programs as opposed to Remnant's single one, to turn this device into a digital fortress. Games in the thousands that would take multiple lifetimes to play. It's like there's no such thing as a monopoly. Competition taken to a level he cannot fathom.

    One development in particular, he thought, was critical and should be introduced to Remnant as soon as possible when he returned home. The Handy Antenna service was part of the pair contract package, along with the Gekota frog straps that Misaka coveted. It worked by transforming every phone into a short-range relay. With two phones, that was similar to a pair of walkie-talkies in practice, eminently useful for Jaune and Tattletale as they traveled to new universes. With more units, they connected one by one to form a web until a city could maintain its network from one end to the other despite the absence of a signal tower. Spread relay devices out over the Grimmlands, and in theory the whole world would enjoy service without the need to build expensive, vulnerable CCT towers that required defending from the Grimm. It's no weapon to help him save Beacon, but it could have massive implications for his world.

    All in all, Misaka Mikoto had good cause to be proud of her people's ingenuity, and his admission of that sentiment launched her mood to the stratosphere.

    "I told you so~" she boasted.

    He could have done without the smug, though.

    "Ugh. So annoying." / "Ugh. So annoying."

    The two boys of the group blinked, then shared a look. They had spoken with identical tones, emulated by their phones, full of world-weary experience.

    "You too?" the other boy asked.

    Jaune nodded, and jerked a thumb at Tattletale. Nothing needed to be said.

    They maintained silent eye contact for a while longer. Then, as one, they moved to stand in front of each other.

    "Kamijou Touma."

    "Once again, Jaune Arc."

    Jaune offered a handshake, hesitating as Kamijou responded with a bow. Adjusting, he copied the motion, retracting his hand just as Kamijou extended his own, fingers barely missing. They stopped, stared, then broke into laughter. Already, a sense of camaraderie was forming.

    Like recognized like, it seemed.

    A similar thing was taking place with Tattletale and Misaka. The two girls stood side by side, arms crossed and leveling flat stares at their companions.

    "You have it hard."

    "Likewise. My sympathies."

    Author's Notes: Back. ∠ "( — ⌓ — )
     
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    • LazyAutumnMoon said:
    On Remnant, everyone used the same language. He wanted to say it was easier. No matter where a person hailed from, they could communicate with other people.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    And yet there's still English sounding names, German sounding names, Greek sounding names, Chinese sounding names, etc.

    I wonder what is current population of Remnant? We saw enough places in the show to know that it's not literally just four walled megacities but I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if they contain 80 % of total population. Still how many people could they possibly contain?
     
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