exsilium | 02. [video]

[The face of a man about sixty-five years old appears on screen. He's squinting at the blasted device through glasses that he's very glad he kept, but he would still struggle to make a text post at the moment---not with his old prescription. The voice is rougher, but still recognizable as Billy's to the few people he knows.]

Please answer this question for me: it's urgent.

Is extreme accelerated aging a known side effect of the transporter? I have several other hypotheses about my sudden condition, but this is the first I should test. And if you know of any cures for this condition, I'd appreciate a pointer. I'm drawing up my own attempts at a cure, but there's not much I can do with our limited supplies.

[He sighs wearily.]

I calculate that I'll age to the point of death within the next 36 hours, or sooner if it accelerates further, so there's not much that I have to lose.

((ooc: The aging is a canon event caused by his own tinkering at home gone wrong with a delayed reaction. And there's a canon medicine that would likely be at the Hold, but he hasn't a clue.))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I'm fine, I've been through worse.

[Billy waves off the concern and uses his umbrella-cane to push himself upright.]

So there's not likely to be a trace of paranormal activity? That will mean I need to consider my other hypotheses.

We're not finding it yet, at least. I only know how to look for things in my world, they could work differently here.

[Encouraging, he knows, but in his experience it's always paranormal.]

What's your other hypotheses?

[He lowers his head, exhausted. These bald spots are...man, he's going to look rough in 40 years.]

I was forced to restore my age when it was reversed artificially in the past. The device worked, but it was untested. That could be one source.

A week later, I was exposed to negative proton energy. I was fine for several months after this, but it could be a delayed reaction. [Does it make sense? No. But it's canon.]

[...woah woah woah be kind, rewind!]

Your age was artificially reversed? How?

Evil invaders. My Earth is attacked all the time, and the enemy had the power to reverse time by reversing the rotations of the planet. I lost about ten years.

I had to reverse-engineer their method to fix things, but I might've failed.

-- you could have started with that.

[This is definitely a lead.]

What kind of invaders are we talking about here? How do you reverse the rotation of the planet?

Aliens. I don't know exactly where they're from. But they somehow made the Earth rotate backwards, reversing time---it took a heavy load of magic, apparently.

[He still has a distaste for the word 'magic', and he omits things where he can to avoid being caught out for who he is.]

My device accelerated my body's aging to restore me to an age where I could be taken seriously in my work until we sped the earth back to its rightful place.

Can you recreate that device here, reverse it -- again?

[Aliens. That's crazy even for him.]

That's what I'll try.

Thanks for all your assistance anyway. I can take it from here.

You sure? I'm pretty handy -- maybe I could give you a hand with it.

[One that isn't shaky with age.]

I'm sure. I have a friend who was there when it all happened. He'll probably be coming soon.

[He forced a reassuring smile.]

Thank you, honestly.

Alright -- [He's not convinced but he's lost in this] gimme a call if you need anything else.

I will if I need to. Thank you.

No problem. I'll uh -- let myself out.

[With a final nod he retreats towards the door.]