[In the time it takes him to place her name and move on to puzzling over the first message, she manages to send the second. Typos and autocorrect errors don't always make much sense through the translation software, so—]
[Then prepare yourself because this conversation is about to get that much more interesting.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org ate you the sword guy
[Trust her, she spent a really long time puzzling over names and figuring out how to work this blasted thing in the first place. The "Jaeger" in his name threw her off but his was the only one with a name like "Erin".] FROM: korra@cdc.org this is korra
[Sorry most of you Avatar people don't have surnames??? Too bad there wasn't an Erin for her to misstext that would have been an adventure.
That said, ate you the sword guy... Uh.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
What the hell are you talking about
[He makes it a point to try not to eat anyone, thank you very much. That's a pretty fucked up thing to say, Korra. But he does recognize her name, at least, so.]
[It's a good thing they're not face to face right now because Korra's already getting frustrated with the device. On the other hand, if they were face to face, she could just talk to him like a normal human being.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org I want to say sorry
[Hey, that turned out fine. Maybe she's getting the hang of this thing after all.]
[There is an option to send audio messages instead. Talking to a machine feels even stranger than typing into one, though, so he never fell into the habit of using it. Don't worry, Korra, teenagers are adaptable, right? You'll catch on eventually, they did.
There's a slight puzzled pause after all that comes through. (Flirt banging, Korra you're lucky Eren is exactly Zero Fun and thus not the brand of asshole to make a big deal out of that one.) But he finally realizes what she's getting at. "Fire" being the key word here.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
You didn't hit me
[And she helped him kill the alien titan thing once she got her head out of her ass about him grabbing her off the ground. That probably more than makes up for any near misses and friendly fire.
That said, even if he could survive getting a fireball to the face, it's not something he's in a hurry to experience.]
[It's a good thing that Eren isn't the type to point out her device's embarrassing replacement for firebending, or else the device would likely be thrown halfway across the room by now. He's already responded by the time she's finally wrote it out right.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org fire bending
[Teenagers are adaptable, but this is feeling a lot like the time she had no choice but to get behind the wheel and wound up with the car "parked" into a pole. The next messages take some time, as she's trying to keep embarrassing mistakes to a minimum.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org If I watched where I was aiming, I would have hit you
[Technically speaking, since it's not like he almost got hit in the crossfire. And in the history of Korra's apologies, this one might be high up on the list in terms of awkward.]
[This might be the first time he's a faster texter than someone. Amazing what a few months of uphill fighting with technology can do.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
you didn't.
[Hit him. Which kind of proves his point??? Not hitting him in the face with a fireball would be nice, and he appreciates her continuing that in the future, but actually hitting what you're aiming for is also pretty important. Obviously she should do better on both fronts next time.
But awkward or not, getting an apology at all is more than he really expected. Getting thanks doubly so. And because talking to people is not a thing he particularly excels at, he doesn't help smooth that over much.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
I wasn't gonna leave you there
[Down in the line of fire, or on a crash course toward the ground. She'd be dead meat either way, and he's not that kind of guy.]
[Is he really criticizing her for not having better aim when she was attacking him? If only he could see her roll her eyes at the screen.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org Ok i will try to hit you next time
FROM: korra@cdc.org If you want
[She really does appreciate his help, though, and if she wasn't limited by this technology, she might actually do better at expressing her gratitude. Not just for what he did for her back with the titans, but it's comforting to meet someone who she can rely on in a fight. Especially given his strangely familiar (so she thinks) abilities.]
[He was friends with Annie, he's used to girls hitting him. That said that wasn't exactly what he meant, but he also failed completely at expressing it so it's not really her fault for missing it. She's not the only one who's not all that great at talking this way.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
I didn't do it so you'd owe me anything
[(In fact he's sort of full up on badass girls with ideas about debts.) "Next time," though—]
Come on, Korra, it's all snowy you'll feel right at home. He has to stop and think about that question before he answers it. 38 Ajna days, which is somewhere around three times that in the days he's used to. Too long, either way.]
She's slowly getting better at this whole typing thing, and without thinking she punches in the first thing that comes to mind, complete with punctuation]
FROM:korraE@cdc.org Homesick?
[A few months. It hasn't even been that long since she left her home in the South Pole for Republic City. Korra's not the most sentimental person, but having been raised in one place her whole life, such a stretch of time in somewhere so unfamiliar is a little daunting.]
[It's not a question he expected to get. And it's a funny thing, in scale. He hasn't really had a "home" since Shiganshina fell. But here, he'll default to calling his whole planet home. (Can you be homesick for a place you've only ever dreamed of seeing?)
Eren's home world is pretty shitty. By all rights, Ajna is a much more pleasant place to live. Snow and shai aside, there are no titans, and there are no walls. And yet.
As much he can't help but grab onto the new experiences, the far off places, the illusion of freedom he has here—]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
it's not our world. we have to get back.
[It's still an illusion. They're still being blackmailed. They still have their own fight to finish back home.]
[And suddenly she feels a new wave of anger at what they've been pulled into. She's been reminded that they all had to say yes to this, but how could anyone say no, with their world on the line? Sure, she can embrace fighting for the sake of her world, but it's hard to work for the people threatening your world in the first place.]
FROM:korra@cdc.org You will
[It's hard to tell with text, but it's not an empty reassurance. She's not sure how, but she strongly believes that they'll all make it home again someday. They have to.
FROM:korra@cdc.org you said we. do you have friends here?
[He won't argue with her. Eren's sure the CDC can't keep them under their thumbs forever.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
yeah. they picked up a lot of people from the Survey Corps.
[Friends, comrades, superiors. (Family, too.) Maybe because they're military already, because they're useful, or easy to recruit. Either way, there's more of them here from their world than most. (Maybe it's just easier to keep them in line with the leverage.)]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
five of us, three of our commanding officers.
[More than that, but Reiner and Annie can't really factor in as friends or allies anymore. (and Bertolt and Sasha and Isabel aren't here anymore.)]
[She's not sure whether or not it's a good thing. Even though it's awfully lonely without her loved ones, she's glad that they're back home, relatively safe and around to help with the crisis going on back there. The crisis she should be taking care of.]
FROM:korra@cdc.org survey corps?
[Now that's a new word, but given his fancy equipment she saw earlier, it's not too surprising that he's part of some sort of organization.]
FROM:korra@cdc.org is that like the police?
[He seems a little young for a police officer, but maybe it's like her world's version of the metalbending police force.]
[Sort of. Not really. The police are also a branch of the military where he comes from, but the purpose of the branch is entirely different.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
we're soldiers.
[He's probably sort of young for a solider, too. But it's normal, where he comes from.
And he's the first to sing the praises of the Survey Corps, but it takes him a few seconds to try to phrase it in an easy-to-grasp way. He knows, by now, that the situation back home is not a common one. Most people don't know what a titan is at all.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
we're not the police. the MPs are stationed in the interior. the corps are the only ones who lead expeditions into titan territory. to find ways to fight back.
[Wow, a.... lot of that went over Korra's head. Interior? MP? Expeditions? He does seem young for a soldier too, though he obviously has the skills. One word does stand out to her though,]
FROM:korra@cdc.org those titans are from your world?
[No wonder he knew how to take them down. She just thought it was from being stuck with the CDC for months.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
what?
[??? this conversation is going places.]
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FROM: korra@cdc.org
ate you the sword guy
[Trust her, she spent a really long time puzzling over names and figuring out how to work this blasted thing in the first place. The "Jaeger" in his name threw her off but his was the only one with a name like "Erin".]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
this is korra
no subject
That said, ate you the sword guy... Uh.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
What the hell are you talking about
[He makes it a point to try not to eat anyone, thank you very much. That's a pretty fucked up thing to say, Korra. But he does recognize her name, at least, so.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
From the Lusania mission right
no subject
Nevermind
[It's a good thing they're not face to face right now because Korra's already getting frustrated with the device. On the other hand, if they were face to face, she could just talk to him like a normal human being.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
I want to say sorry
[Hey, that turned out fine. Maybe she's getting the hang of this thing after all.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
For flirt branding at you
FROM: korra@cdc.org
Fire banging
no subject
There's a slight puzzled pause after all that comes through. (Flirt banging, Korra you're lucky Eren is exactly Zero Fun and thus not the brand of asshole to make a big deal out of that one.) But he finally realizes what she's getting at. "Fire" being the key word here.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
You didn't hit me
[And she helped him kill the alien titan thing once she got her head out of her ass about him grabbing her off the ground. That probably more than makes up for any near misses and friendly fire.
That said, even if he could survive getting a fireball to the face, it's not something he's in a hurry to experience.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
Watch where you're aiming next time
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FROM: korra@cdc.org
fire bending
[Teenagers are adaptable, but this is feeling a lot like the time she had no choice but to get behind the wheel and wound up with the car "parked" into a pole. The next messages take some time, as she's trying to keep embarrassing mistakes to a minimum.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
If I watched where I was aiming, I would have hit you
[Technically speaking, since it's not like he almost got hit in the crossfire. And in the history of Korra's apologies, this one might be high up on the list in terms of awkward.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
Thanks for not dropping me
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FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
you didn't.
[Hit him. Which kind of proves his point??? Not hitting him in the face with a fireball would be nice, and he appreciates her continuing that in the future, but actually hitting what you're aiming for is also pretty important. Obviously she should do better on both fronts next time.
But awkward or not, getting an apology at all is more than he really expected. Getting thanks doubly so. And because talking to people is not a thing he particularly excels at, he doesn't help smooth that over much.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
I wasn't gonna leave you there
[Down in the line of fire, or on a crash course toward the ground. She'd be dead meat either way, and he's not that kind of guy.]
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FROM: korra@cdc.org
Ok i will try to hit you next time
FROM: korra@cdc.org
If you want
[She really does appreciate his help, though, and if she wasn't limited by this technology, she might actually do better at expressing her gratitude. Not just for what he did for her back with the titans, but it's comforting to meet someone who she can rely on in a fight. Especially given his strangely familiar (so she thinks) abilities.]
FROM: korra@cdc.org
I owe you one though
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FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
I didn't do it so you'd owe me anything
[(In fact he's sort of full up on badass girls with ideas about debts.) "Next time," though—]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
they're transferring you guys down here, right?
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FROM:korra@cdc.org
I guess so
FROM:korra@cdc.org
Sounds like its going to be a party
[Sarcasm doesn't carry well in text, does it? In any case, at this point, it might be preferable to clean up duty.]
FROM:korra@cdc.org
How long have you been there
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Come on, Korra, it's all snowy you'll feel right at home. He has to stop and think about that question before he answers it. 38 Ajna days, which is somewhere around three times that in the days he's used to. Too long, either way.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
a few months. the days here are weird.
no subject
She's slowly getting better at this whole typing thing, and without thinking she punches in the first thing that comes to mind,
complete with punctuation]FROM:korraE@cdc.org
Homesick?
[A few months. It hasn't even been that long since she left her home in the South Pole for Republic City. Korra's not the most sentimental person, but having been raised in one place her whole life, such a stretch of time in somewhere so unfamiliar is a little daunting.]
no subject
Eren's home world is pretty shitty. By all rights, Ajna is a much more pleasant place to live. Snow and shai aside, there are no titans, and there are no walls. And yet.
As much he can't help but grab onto the new experiences, the far off places, the illusion of freedom he has here—]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
it's not our world. we have to get back.
[It's still an illusion. They're still being blackmailed. They still have their own fight to finish back home.]
no subject
FROM:korra@cdc.org
You will
[It's hard to tell with text, but it's not an empty reassurance. She's not sure how, but she strongly believes that they'll all make it home again someday. They have to.
FROM:korra@cdc.org
you said we. do you have friends here?
no subject
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
yeah. they picked up a lot of people from the Survey Corps.
[Friends, comrades, superiors. (Family, too.) Maybe because they're military already, because they're useful, or easy to recruit. Either way, there's more of them here from their world than most. (Maybe it's just easier to keep them in line with the leverage.)]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
five of us, three of our commanding officers.
[More than that, but Reiner and Annie can't really factor in as friends or allies anymore. (and Bertolt and Sasha and Isabel aren't here anymore.)]
no subject
FROM:korra@cdc.org
survey corps?
[Now that's a new word, but given his fancy equipment she saw earlier, it's not too surprising that he's part of some sort of organization.]
FROM:korra@cdc.org
is that like the police?
[He seems a little young for a police officer, but maybe it's like her world's version of the metalbending police force.]
no subject
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
we're soldiers.
[He's probably sort of young for a solider, too. But it's normal, where he comes from.
And he's the first to sing the praises of the Survey Corps, but it takes him a few seconds to try to phrase it in an easy-to-grasp way. He knows, by now, that the situation back home is not a common one. Most people don't know what a titan is at all.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
we're not the police. the MPs are stationed in the interior. the corps are the only ones who lead expeditions into titan territory. to find ways to fight back.
no subject
FROM:korra@cdc.org
those titans are from your world?
[No wonder he knew how to take them down. She just thought it was from being stuck with the CDC for months.]
no subject
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
they're different from the ones on that mission. they're just as dangerous. they're humanity's greatest predators.
[Predators as in "they hunt and eat humans," yes. And even if he knows it to be true, putting it that way puts a sour taste in his mouth. So.]
FROM: jaeger.eren@cdc.org
we're fighting back.
[Without the giant robots, it's a bit harder to wrap up the whole war in a day.]