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[sketchycharacter]

[Not that he's always Mr. Cheerful regardless of circumstances, but Nate's expression looks a little sad, a little wistful, on the TAB today.]

I know the Ingresses space kidnapped a bunch of new people recently—condolences, by the way—but for those who knew Isha Devan, she...won't be joining us the rest of our journey. To wherever the hell we're going.

[He knows where they're going in theory, but the trip has ground to a halt with what they've found at the midway hub. Nate's not taking part in the diplomatic talks with the Savrii, because seriously who would ever want that.]

But! I guess she had a secret project she didn't tell me about, because she left me this behind as a parting gift.

[The video on the TAB pivots to show a mechanical robot dog that looks very much the style of Q, Isha's dog, but instead of a greyhound, this one is modeled after a German Shepard.]

Things aren't the best right now, I know. Better than right after the crash but still not great. So for anyone who wants to distract themselves with something silly and mostly pointless, I've got a project for you: help me name my dog.

Comments

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[otiosity]

I'd say "not even a good-bye" but that doesn't seem quite her style.

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[poolhall_killer]

Is that an electric dog...?

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[sketchycharacter]

Nah. She'd rather sweep off mysteriously in the night, leave us wanting more.

[Of course, that assumes any of them have control over their presence here, and they both know that's not true.]</small?

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[sketchycharacter]

Robot dog. She built and programmed it.

[otiosity]

Exactly. Maybe leave a sort of cheeky message for us to puzzle over instead of feeling sorry about it.

[She reaches up to scratch her nose and then glances at the scars on her arm. It's an idle gesture but carefully calculated. She's sorry to see Isha go. First Adam and now her. Now Hawke is the only one left who remembers what happened in that arena. She's lost a friend and now has to carry that with her.]

[buyeverything]

So a pal of yours just. Built you a robot dog.

[He's not jealous, but also what the hell how.]

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[desynched]

Sorry 'bout your friend.

[ She offers him a sympathetic smile. Lena knows a thing or two about being separated from people you care about. But at least they'd all been together in the same world. ]

[ But she brightens up. He doesn't need another sad face full of pity but someone to bring a little cheer. And she's pretty good at that. ]

I'd go with Sparky but, I dunno, doesn't really look like a Sparky, does he? Or she.

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[poolhall_killer]

Ah, I see.

[He's no good with names, but he is going to try...]

Junior?

[really, Venom]

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[sketchycharacter]

Junior? Are you saying this is my kid, that I look like a dog? I'm offended.

[No he's not.]

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[poolhall_killer]

That wasn't my intent. I assure you.

[Hmmm...]

What is the robot like?

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[sketchycharacter]

[He gives her a nod, acknowledging the sympathy but not wanting to go into it. That's not his thing.]

I think if it starts sparking, something's wrong. And...I dunno, I never thought about robot dog gender before.

[sketchycharacter]

I don't know about just. [It was probably difficult. Or maybe not, but it seems like it should have been.] But yeah, yeah she did.

[sketchycharacter]

[Nate doesn't know that the scars are connected to what Hawke had to do in the arena, so the gesture goes right over his head.]

At least she left something to remember her by. Don't tell me you don't think my robot dog is awesome.

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[desynched]

Never had a robot dog, so I'm not much help there. And I think Omnics usually just pick their own gender. The ones with a concept of gender, at least.

[otiosity]

[He doesn't. She didn't tell him the whole truth. Maybe because she didn't want him to worry or maybe because she was afraid he'd fine what she did to be disgusting or something like that. Maybe both. She gives her arm a final glance and then drops it.]

Depends. I need to see how he wrestles. As a Ferelden, I'm basically a dog expert.

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[sketchycharacter]

Pretty much exactly like a real dog, but metal. Not sure if he'd sniff another robot dog's butt, though.

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[sketchycharacter]

What's an Omnic?

[sketchycharacter]

Oh yeah, why's that? Are they the official dog of the country or something?

[He's noticed how devoted Kitty is the Hawke and vice versa, but he figured that was a Hawke thing.]

[warandpeace]

Nice dog.

[He's not had the best experience with AI, but also not the worst either. Peace Walker taught him a lesson in that.]

Mekken. Mek for mechanical, ken for dog.

Does it have any useful functions? [Besides being a slick looking dog.]

[buyeverything]

People have magic here, Nate. For all I know she snapped her fingers and it poofed out of thin air.

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[poolhall_killer]

[It sounds similar to a magehound in his world. It would be strange if it did have that particular canine behavior.]

So perhaps a common dog's name would suffice.

[He doesn't know any of said common dog names.]

[otiosity]

Yes. In Ferelden we show respect and honor the dogs that live and work with us. Much of our myth surrounds dogs. Kitty-[Who barks and sniffs at the TAB.] is a Mabari. The most important breed of dog in the country. So yes, I definitely know a thing or two about dogs. It's in my blood.

[ryuuzaki]

What does it do besides dog things? Did she leave instructions?

[He sounds coolly interested.]

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[flynnitomite]

well pets are supposed to take after their owners, yeah?

so Shitface should do the trick

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[nicearsenal]

Well seeing as it's you and your dog, I'm going with Frank.

[As in Sir Francis. Ooh, no wait! Better idea!]

Or Wrecks. That's probably more suitable.