12966/Stranger Danger

Stranger Danger
Date of Scene:	04 October 2022
Location:	Danger Room
Synopsis:	Emma does some Danger Room telepathic training with Tabitha.
Cast of Characters:	Emma Frost, Tabitha Smith

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Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost is up in the monitor room, and has her fingers crossed together. "I'm going to be giving you some evaluations as to how some of your newfound psionic abilities are going in training, Ms. Smith. This will be purely evaluatory and the safeties will be on and the system is set to abort if you have any undue mental stress or anxiety."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The younger of the blondes nods her head. Hands behind it binding that wild mane of hair into a ponytail as she listens. "I been mostly working on kinda shutting the background noise out. Everyone's and especially mine. Kinda like wat Betsy does. But probably not the same reasons." she admits.

Boomie at least remembered to put an X-Suit. The black and yellow padded one, midriff baring amidst that shiny faux leather clinging to her.

"So how much of this is the sim and how much uis it gonna be you? I mean, like, there's limits to what an AI can do, even if you like linked in cerebro." she ponders and grins as she begins stretching out.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost would fold her hands, "I'm merely going to be evaluating you, Ms. Smith. I will not be engaging with you personally, merely monitoring. I'm here in case there's some sort of fluctuation and it requires a manual abort, or somethign unusual happens." She would fold her hands togehter up in the observation room.

"And I'd much rather not have you leave here with a concussion." She would go on. "The scenario will start off somewhat simplistically and we'll see how it goes."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There's been some jokes that maybe Tabby needs to start wearing more and more armor. But she kinda glared when someone suggested shoulder pads. She even dry heaved.

"Great, is it a concussion when the hit comes from inside the skull?" she asks with a look up at the booth where Emma is monitoring and controlling things. Ther woman could have done this from across the mansion. But you still need fingers pressing buttons. <<That salad was so not enough!>> she says to herself and maybe still inadvertantly talked in moos with out realising.

That damn Bessie has some answering to do while she recovers from that ordeal.

Emma Frost has posed:
Poor thing. She'll no doubt end up with a huge set of epathulets with spikes on them, and one of those weird domino things that covers the sides of her face and her forehead and her neck but leaves all of her face hanging open too if her luck keeps this up.

"BEgin."

No, Emma doesn't have to push buttons, and she could be doing it from anywehre within range, but it's simply easier this way and lets her get the psychological advantage of being there in person.

Tabitha has an array of a dozen 'personas' now floating about her. Psychic phantasms that are seeping extreme amounts of negativity. Disorientation. Trauma.

LIke souls wrenched from thier bodies by the Shadow King.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
At least her thoughts are still mostly human, and in English. When the apparitions appear Tabby hmms and ponders quickly how maybe to solve the issue. She can feel the drain, on her emotions and stuff and there is some attempts to block it consiously. Mostly by scattering her memories and feelings about.

Of course one thing Tabby does have in spade. Compassion. <<Hey, guys! you doing okay? No one's going to hurt you. In fact like we can help you here find where you need to be. Whether it's like your real bodies...>> it's a sim so technically niot that. <<Or like crossing over to somewhere peacefull.>> she states though with the drain she pinches her nose and keeps herself ready to go psychic fight if she needs to.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost goes to watch then, psionically observing. <<Quite. Not everythingw ill be having to behave aggressively. Mor eoften, calming and trying to sort things out if not resolve them>>
    The simulated minds are highly disoriented, floating over and moving about like flailing spectres. Radaiting heavy distress in each direction as Tabitha goes to do her role of soothing them and trying to collect them.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The girl starts with one of the entities first, reaching out with her own mind to try and peek into the mess of jumbled energy. The probling is light. She's still not so experienced at deliberately reading minds so slow going for now.

There's something in there but she needs to find it. The blonde making sure her work comes with a sense of reassurance and safety. She doesn't want anyone to hurt the entity, least of all herself. <<It's okay. We'll make sure you're golden!>> she adds if the projections can understand her like Emma is.

Emma Frost has posed:
That's all the point of this is. Something simple to build herself up with. The first phase goes well as Tabitha's able to relax the simulated spectres and simacrulums over to some state of lethargy and relaxation, them going around rahter obediently.

There's a flash of light, a signal that Emma is moving on to another test and giving Tabitha a moment to focus herself.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
So far the testing isn't too far from stuff she's done without telepathy. This is just doing it with a new power set, working more in feelings than words and a psychic hug can feel just as nice as a real one.

When this test ends Tabby breathes and tries to adjust back to a neutral gear. There's a bounce on her feet, a little more bouncing elsewhere about Tabby before she looks up and nods to Emma letting her know the girl is ready as she's going to get.

Emma Frost has posed:
This is why it's called testing. One has to show that they grasp the basics. Those are easily enough expanded upon what one is already familair with. There's a pause and then another light flashes in acknowledgement.

THe next group is more aggressive. It's a constant bombardment of extremely negative emotions. Hate. Rage. Loathing. Suffering.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
These are emotions that come at Tabby a bit harder than she liked. Her defenses take a beating like all the trailers and and camper vans that were her defenses were bogged in mud. She's had more than a few experiences feeling like this. The Loathing of herself especially.

There's some tears welling in those eyes but it's a test still. But she kinda knows what might cause a lot of those emotions. And she reaches forward to them psionic spectres and starts trying to twist them into what can cause those emotions.

Fear! Just like that old muppet said. Fear leads to all that stuff. So she shows them fear, then shows that she can keep going despite it.

Emma can feel Tabby struggling with it. What she knows and what she feels not quite ever meshing completely and it's as more of a drain on her than the last test was.

Emma Frost has posed:
It's the simulation. And that's why they have simulations. To est. To evaluate. As Tabitha goes to keep on struggling with it, Emma watches and monitors. She makes no move to intervene, even as Tabitha's stress levels would fluctuate over as Tabitha would handle it as best seh could.

The barrage continues to go along over as Tabitha goes to sort through them. Tests. Hormones. Life. Stress. Frustration. Sports.

Tabitha's being fed along the mental associations ofw hat could be any student body.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The test moves on and there's a reprieve from the more hostile emotions. Breathing is less ragged but there is a jump when the imagery of testing shows. It's school life and she pictures the tests, some of the kids she was studying with over the years. The danger room. There's a few flash backs beamed to Emma when it hits Stress and Frustration.

Hormones gets a deliberate wry stare up at the booth. Admittedly the memories and feelings. And there is a LOT of that she actually tries to bury. Those are not safe for a class environment. Even when snippets hint at things in class.

There's more overlap. Even Sports get's mingled up in there but she seems to be able to categorise things as they come. Though again when they overlap with Hormones they get squashed as fast as they can. <<Not cool on that Emma! Next time I let you have all of that lot at once!>> she teases playfully. It's the reason for the attempts at psychic stealth after all.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost would just fold her hands togehter <<Focus, Ms. Smith. If you can't keep your concentration amongst a group of high schoolers then I'll need to have you sent somewhere isolated to meditate and work through your issues. Perhaps one of those retreats that Logan enjoys going to out in the Canadian wasteland. You'll find ag reat deal of space there to center yourself.>>

Now, the test moves on a moment later as rather than all those emotions flooding about.. They're being directed right -over- at Tabitha!

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The fact that she is working to keep her brain going from where it shouldn't is part of the test after all. <<Those are just Canadian Hick Bars and wooden cabins he built himself. Bet they don't have any plumbing!>> she points out.

Of course the test moves and now there's a whole bunch of psychic noise aimed at Tabby.

There's frowns and a look oc foncentration. It's like being out in public, lot of untrained and unfiltered noise. And as if she'd been caught in the middle of it.

That gets her clutching her head. She does her best to block but eventually she lets out a yell as it starts overwhelming her.

Emma Frost has posed:
And that's when the safeties kick in, and everything shuts down as Tabitha's stress level goes up. The lights dim, and faint muzac starts playing. Emma comes down a moment later with a small thermos with cold water in it. "Drink it. Just a little bit at a time. Relax. Don't push yourself."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
By the time Emma comes down from the booth and brings that water, Tabby is on her knees with fingers rubbing her temples like she just had a migraine run a marathon through her nugger.

The water is accepted and she even sips slowly.

"I can deal with a few random thoughs aimed my way. But I've never had so much at once." she states and wriggles to sit on her butt, the last couyple sips taklen before the water bottle is hands back up to the more experienced Telepath.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost would nod at Tabitha, "That's the way telepathy goes. Most often it is teh way that powers are discovered. The first time walls go down. Opening your mind rests upon your capability to maintain those shields while also takingt hings in, and not being wholly overwhelmed. This is just a simulation to determine your baseline capabilities."

The real thing will be much, much worse is what she's saying

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There's a nod of Tabby's head. She knows that feeling. Lot of everyone she knows with the same power had years since they first had their minds opened up. Tabby's been at it for months and had a whole bunch of extra neurodiversity on top of things.

She's got a ways to go.

"So this gonna be one of those things where you go back and confer with the big brains. There's no real fail like an IQ test cause a number don't determine how clever someone realy is even if they can math well and stuff?"

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost would nod, "Yes, this is simply the start of things. One has to take a test first to determine aptitude. This isn't an exam you pass or fail. It is one yous imply take to get an idea of what sort of a level you're at. YOu did completely reasonable and have no reason to be frustratedw tih yourself."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The girl picks herself up finally and stretches out. Working the brain leaves the body needing some attention after long non stretches. "Yeah. It's different from my booms. I had to learn to dial that down on my own. No one taught me till I came here. And I still did a lot of that myself." she explains.

At least she's not demonstrating the booms but she can always just set up a sim later in the Danger Room. "Least this time I don't gotta learn it all 'On the streets'." she says and airquotes with a giggle. Half joke.