17521/Quick snacks and Quick Chats.

Quick snacks and Quick Chats.
Date of Scene:	29 March 2024
Location:	Main Room - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	Viv makes some treats for the Titans. The Titans then get into a chat about AI rights, goings on in space, and a philosophical discussion on how everyone experiences sensations in a different way.
Cast of Characters:	Vivian Vision, Caitlin Fairchild, Kyle Rayner, Wally West

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Vivian Vision has posed:
One of the important parts of being on a team is team building. You can't work together to save the world if you can't get along after all. And thus one Vivian Vision has taken some time out from her college AI life to make a selection of treats for the Titans. Baked fruit buns, toasted, and then served with a little butter. Some cupcakes. And a selection of scones with strawberry jam and cream.

All of which have been set out on a little table in the main lounge area.

She hasn't explicitly sent out any invites though. Trusting in the combination of super senses and the voracious appetites of the Titans to draw them to treats. It also helps she baked most of the food on site. So the living area smells of fresh baked goods.

While she might not be partaking in the meal herself, Synthezoids don't need to consume food after all, she has taken the time to make herself a mug of tea to celebrate a job well done (well she hopes it was well done she hasn't actually tried anything!). Not that she's drinking the tea either. It's really just there for the pleasing aroma....

Caitlin Fairchild has posed:
Caitlin's been out and busy of late; she hasn't had a lot of time to be around the Tower. But she's finally back, and glad to be so. She's just casual today, in jeans and a t-shirt, and moves through the tower right up till...

BAM. She gets hit by the scent. And being a baker herself, she's happy to check in on things. She finds her way towards the table in the lounge, and gives a smile. "That smells delicious."

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle finishes up the usual morning shower. Before long he's slipping on a shirt that features Unihorse saying, "And why should I care?" A pair of jeans to go with that. He's out the door and something catches his attention.

"Mmmm. Do I smell fruit?" and then green energy surrounds him. He floats toward the kitchen area, cartoon style, "I feel like a siren is calling me." The energy fades and he takes a seat. "Who do I thank for this?" Caitlin often bakes, so it could be her. However, she's sitting down. Green eyes slip toward Vivian. It could be her. "Either way, thank you," Kyle gives a big smile and gets seated. "How are both of you?"

Wally West has posed:
Team building?

Sign Wally right up!

No invite? No problem! Wally can smile that food from a mile away - he can't /actually/ smell it, but he *is* forever hungry that eventually those scents carry up the tower and with it, comes a rush of red and silver as Wally - still in his slender suit, smiles at Vivian as he gives her a little wave. "Hey hey hey! Hope you left some for the Wallman." He looks at all the food, and before he can say something else?

Caitlin appears.

Any confidence that Wally has is made /quite/ small as he looks at her. "Hey Cait." He smiles at her softly, clearing his throat. "It does smell really good." He looks at Vivian "Can we just dig in?"

He turns his eyes towards Kyle. "Kyle! Kylemeister!" he fingerguns at the Lantern.

Vivian Vision has posed:
Vivian Vision shrugs. "No thanks necessary," she says with a slight nod of her head. "I find baking relaxes me. So it was entirely a selfish decision to use some of the Titans food budget." And by selfish decision she means she only ran the financial impacts five times before even going into the kitchen to ensure she wouldn't have a negative on meals plans or spending later in the year. "Please help yourselves. I've left spare fruit buns for later. So anyone who can't have one now can make their own."

She takes a sniff of her tea. Her mouth quirking upward in a smile. Clearly it's been brewed to her satisfaction.

"Did you know some chains which make baked goods that specifically invest in bad quality extractor fans for the kitchens so the smell of freshly baked goods will fill the store and flow out into the mall?" A beats pause. "I considered adjusting the ventilation system to make the scent carry throughout the building but I didn't wish to risk causing any issues for Robin. He does seem to enjoy moving unseen through the ducts."

"I've been too busy with college to fight much crime. Which is a nice problem to have I suppose! And, so far at least, no supervillains have attacked the campus itself. I suspect they're saving it for any field trips as would be traditional."

Caitlin Fairchild has posed:
"I'm doing okay, Kyle. Glad to be back home." She puts on a faint smile, but it's a little bit tired. The streak of lightning that arrives with Wally gets a slightly more honest smile. "Hey there, Wally. How've you been?" She reaches out to take a cookie off Vivian's offerings. "I'm pretty sure that's the whole concept behind a Cinnabon, Vivian. Did you try anything new today?" Cait asks, as a fellow baker. She wouldn't be surprised to see Vivian invent something new in the sweet category.

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Wally comes right in, the usual burst of energy. Kyle fingerguns back, "Fastest Speedster on this side of the planet, how are you holding up?" he asks. It's always good to see Wally.

Kyle nods at Vivian, "School comes first," he certainly can't judge that one. "We enjoy the time with you that we get," he says honestly. It's hard to see someone all the time with those commitments.

A hand reaches for one of those fruit buns. "Got a point with Cinnabon. Maybe even Bob Evans or Cracker Barrel," it's not that their food is bad. He just thinks it could be better.

Wally West has posed:
"I mean, it sounds like you deserve thanks to me." Wally tells Vivian with a happy smile on his face. And with her permission? Wally is a ZOOMING force of speed, grabbing up everything he can reasonably carry - while still leaving more than enough for everything else. By the time that he has done his work, Wally has two plates full of food. "...this is good, right? I feell ike it's good." Wally smiles at Vivian. "I would think that college would be extremely easy for you. And if it helps, you have the entire team on speed-dial in case any of those bad guys come sniffing around your turf." He smiles ever so slightly.

He turns his eyes towards Caitlin in that moment, a softness in his eyes. "I mean, I've been okay. Kinda busy, keeping up with business, you know? Otherwise uhm.you know, catching jewelry thieves and uhm.....just kinda existing. How about you?" Wally asks, before he looks at Kyle.

"Holdin' up just fine man!" He sets his plates down, offering to dap up Kyle with a quick little shandshake. "How about you? How's being a Lantern? Any fun space adventures recently?" He questions him for a moment, before he looks at Vivian. "He's absolutely right ya know!" Though he smirks at the trio. "Man, you guys are making me want to get a Cinnabon...or Cracker Barrel. They have endless feasts and stuff, right?"

Vivian Vision has posed:
"That is exactly the franchise I was referring to," Vivian confirms with a nod. "I found it very interesting how their business model is largely based around intentionally bad ventilation systems. Although given smell and taste are intrinsically linked it's not at all strange from a scientific point of view. People may say they eat with their eyes first. But they'd be wrong. First comes the nose."

She laughs at the comment about school. "Oh well technically speaking I don't really /need/ college. Or high school. I'm only really attending to help the cause of AI rights. By being the first openly enrolled AI in a community college I hope to make it easier for other non-organic intelligences to do the same in the future. Although I did think it might be fun to set up a sorority house... Until I found out they don't have those a a community college."

Another little shrug. It's not a huge problem after all!

She glances back to Caitlin. "Anything new? Oh not really /new/ I just made the strawberry preserve myself. It's not really hard providing you have all the equipment." And the Titans kitchen is extremely well equipped. "I did add a touch of pomegranate molasses to it. But only a touch."

Caitlin Fairchild has posed:
    "I wish you could smell the same way we do, Vivian...or at least with the same connections." Caitlin bites her cookie, and will try one of the pastries with the strawberry preserves, after she's told its origin. She looks over to Wally. "It's been...it's been a while." She's a little terse about it...clearly there's more to it, and just as clearly, she isn't comfortable discussing it.

She looks back towards Vivian. "I mean...Sororities are national organizations...I don't suppose there's anything precluding you from creating an independent sorority that's designed to be for non-standard collegiate environment. Be the first person into the environment."

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Wally is a series of quick zooms. Kyle resists the urge to call it "Zoomies." Then the questions come out about Kyle and space, "Yes to the adventure. The fun part? Let's just say it's not polite breakfast conversation," the last time Kyle was in space involved gruesome sights. Nothing to ever gloat about.

"Well, how is it going with the AIrights?" It's a noble endeavor in Kyle's mind. AI Rights are good, AI Drawing, that's where things get odd.

Wally West has posed:
"Oh boy. Uh, well man, if you need any help? I'm not really a ....I run fast in space kinda guy, need solid ground to work unless I build up enough speed. But even then, I'm pretty much useless. Don't think I can get one of those cool doo-dads?" He points at Kyle's ring. "Then I could help you out /tons/." He smiles at him with a grin. "But if you ever need the help or just want to vent, I'm around, okay?" He tells him, before he looks towards Caitlin.

"Yeah...a while." He clears his throat. "Maybe in a bit we could talk about it? In private?" He offers her that, offers that they can just hash it out. "If you don't...that's also okay." He gulps slightly, as though to fear her answer. There's plenty more to what she had said, but he wants to give her the chance to talk.

He turns his eyes then to Vivian. "I'll start making signs. I think it'll be great! Pretty sure there's an ending to Mass Effect where organics and non-organics work together in harmony. Why can't it happen in real life?" He smiles at Vivian. "Now I won't pretend to understand business models and all that, but I do know about fighting for good causes. You tell me where, I'll get the celebration wine."

Vivian Vision has posed:
"We still don't have any," Viv says with a scowl. "There's very little motivation for anyone to change the law. Not when there aren't many AI." The fact a lot of them are also supervillains does not help. "But it's not something I ever expected to change overnight. I will hopefully live for many many years and can afford to allow things to progress slowly."

Ironically she's an AI artist too. But the good kind. Who taught herself to draw using pencil & paper.

"My sense of smell is far more sophisticated than an organics is," she admits. "But I don't think I really perceive smells in the same way. I get a full breakdown of the chemical composition and make up of the aroma. It's why I like tea, it has a lot of aromatic compounds that vary depending on the type and preparation method. Although like might be the wrong word. I don't really have emotional responses to aromas. It's just interesting because it's complex."

She blinks a few times.

"Hopefully that made sense." She looks at Wally and makes a thoughtful Hmmmm noise. "Wally wouldn't you be at terrible risk in space? I'd have thought a speedster would consume more oxygen than normal and... well in space breathable air is a very limited resource. Not to mention getting access regular to food will be even harder than on Earth."

Caitlin Fairchild has posed:
'We can talk, Wally. Just not right now." Caitlin smiles. "Right now, we're enjoying Vivian's tasty pastries. And like Wally said, Vivian, I'm as in as I can be to try to help, with the rights issue. And that's what I meant. I know you perceive more on the spectrum than we do, but I doubt you have the same link between scent and memory that occurs in an organic memory."

She pauses. "But you could construct those linkages, couldn't you?" When you're experiencing something, add the scent record that you're perceiving to it?" Caitlin's gone off down a scientific trail. "You might have to take that extra step, but it would be really interesting to see if it creates the same kind of connotations it does with us."

Kyle Rayner has posed:
"Not with that, but I'd welcome the help with other times," Kyle's smile turns genuine. It would be nice to have a speedster friend on speed dial. "Help is help, I'm not going to turnt hat down," he gives a nod to Wally.

Kyle's quiet for a little bit as ideas start to turn, "What if you went down an avenue similar to, 'I think therefore I am.' A little philosophical, but using that angle may be a benefit. They cover a lot of ground on existence, what's real, all that stuff. You can probably find something good there," a steady gaze rests on Viv as the idea continues to turn in his head.

"I think you take in food like an Angel," he holds up a finger. "Supernatural, not the great show, but it had some ideas. An angel turned into a human and he loved a PBJ. Said it taste great, he gets why people like it, all that stuff. When he got changed back, he hated that the sandwich lost it's flavor. He could taste the atoms and everything that makes this sandwich, a sandwich, but that taste he loved? Gone." He looks back to the table, "I think people wish you could enjoy the taste as we do," he thinks that's what Caitlyn means.

Thinking a little bit more, "What if someone let you test their brainwaves or other sensory data," He's just think aloud. If Vivian had some hard data, maybe it could help broaden the sensation.

Wally West has posed:
"Of course, of course." Wally tells Caitlin in regards to talking later. "Just wanted to give you the option..." Wally rubs the back of his neck, slightly, but he /does/ turn to look at Vivian in that moment, frowning softly at her. There arn't that many AI, there's very little motivation for anybody to change the law. "I know, but...there's always hope. I mean, sometimes all you need is a good fight." Wally suggests to Vivian in that moment, a kindness in his gaze. "Maybe we can talk to Vic? He's done some pretty incredible things with cybernetics. Could give you a sense of smell in that moment." He chuckles faintly. "But it's a nice scent to have! Even if you experience it differently."

He considers for a moment. "I mean...absolutely, but if I can get some assistance? Might be able to fix it." He looks at Kyle then in that moment. "Heh, fair enough. Just saying, I feel like I could give a little bang pow to some of the gentlemen giving you problems." Wally puts his fists on his hips, standing a little taller with a little smile on his face. He tilts his head a moment, humming. "Never got into that show, truth be told."

Vivian Vision has posed:
Vivian Vision nods. "I can do anything an organic Human can do. No need to modify me in any regard," she confirms with a look of amusement. "If I wanted to associate specific smells with sensations from my emotional core I could. Although I don't always engage my emotional core. It's not always optimal to respond in an emotional manner in the sort of situations we encounter as superheroes." But then again it's unlikely she'll need to appreciate the scent of baking during a life & death struggle.

"The trouble with philosophy is it's very hard to prove that an AI is having original thoughts. And not just responding following a very convincing script. The counter is 'Do you really think? Or are you just programmed to think you're thinking?' and it's very hard to actually provide a proof that stands up in court."

There's a hint of a smile.

"The thing is without super powers like telepathy Humans can't ever really know the way they experience something is the same as the way someone else experiences it. You could all look at something which is blue, agree it's blue, but see a different colour. It's just the thing you see has been defined as blue."

"Really to be scientific I'd need to download brain scans from hundreds of people. Cross reference them. And apply controls to the data to ensure I'm getting an accurate picture. Which seems like rather a lot of work for the end result." Probably a portion of her mind is, as they speak, watching the entire show in question to comprehend the reference. "I do sometimes wish I could share my own perception of reality with organics. But I think it'd overwhelm anyone except maybe a Kryptonian. Human brains just aren't wired to perceive in infrared or ultraviolet. Never mind comprehending radiowaves. It'd probably be quite distressing, like a bad drug trip, to try make sense of it all."

Caitlin Fairchild has posed:
Caitlin looks over, considering the options, and then just lets out a little sigh, her shoulders slumping. "Well, your stuff is delicious as always, Vivian. But it's been a pretty long trip, guys. I think I'm going to go hit my room, take a nice warm shower, and stretch out. I'm not sure how fit for human...or synthezoid...consumption I am right now." She forces that smile again. "Take care, everyone."

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle pulls out his phone and hands it to Wally, unlocked. "You could always add your digits," it's an easy way to get a hold of a hero if the coms are down. Green eyes look back to the group. Taking a bite of that fruit bun, he enjoys how it tastes. So good. So worth getting up early for.

"Can't you bring up a counter argument about existence and destiny?" he asks thinking that -is- what some anti-robot person would do.

Kyle does wonder if his brain could handle it. The ring and him have an odd relationship. So, maybe it might help him. Then he quickly gets a vision of himself as a drooling mass. Maybe it's best not to tempt fate.

Vivian Vision has posed:
"Oh I could counter just about any argument," Vivian says with a giggle. "But then again so could a sufficiently advanced chat bot."

She gives Caitlin a nod. "I hope you have an enjoyable rest. And don't worry there will still be snacks for later. I've taken great care to ensure there will be plenty for everyone. Speaking of which I probably should attend to the cleaning up. Have a wonderful day everyone!"