💻 Programming & Robotics Club Mingle 🤖

[subtract]

Who: Club members & anyone else who feels like dropping by!
When: October, during club hours after class ends
What: ??? club shenanigans
Warnings: TBA... please do not murder anyone in the workshop, there's delicate equipment in here

Programming/Robotics Club is held in the workshop on the 2nd floor of the school. There's no official schedule, mainly because Add tends to just... live in the workshop, basically, so club members are welcome to show up whenever. The room is generally kept tidy, with supplies and scrap electronics stored in a locked closet while the room isn't in use. Two highly advanced computers are available for anyone to use, or you can build/bring your own computer.

Before you can enter club area, however, you first must get past the club bodyguard... Yeah, this fucking thing is stationed by the door now. Anyone not identified as a club member may or may not get picked up and dunked in the nearest trash can. Or maybe you'll get random junk pelted at you until you leave. Or maybe it'll attack you even if you are a club member or given permission to enter... it's a work in progress. Please be patient with our good pal Ball Monokuma, he's still learning.

Comments

[commences]

01:

( ball monokuma, the terror that wandered the halls for god knows how long within this school is now standing in front of the entrance. he lifts his hand waving at the creature, and the fact that it hasn't attacked him yet causes his mouth to part in a small "o", and he's kneeling down in front of it to reach out to touch its body. it still doesn't do anything, but he's aware that it's not broken, there's no way it could be with its eye lighting up still, probably recording his every movement. )

Fascinating work... Add-kun managed to calm you down...

( he reaches up to try and tap the eye, but it's quick to raise a stubby paw, blocking komaeda's advances, and that figures — it wouldn't allow just anyone to touch there. when someone comes up, there's a smile on the ultimate's face as he turns his head to look towards them. )

What's the first word that comes to mind when you see this machine?

02:

( now komaeda's already made his way inside of the room, and he has his hacking gun in his hands while he sits in a chair in the far back corner — he keeps his distance, not wanting to cause too much trouble with his luck. maybe someone inside already saw him shoot a "bullet" towards the animatronic that disappears as soon as it appeared. whatever the ball monokuma had previously been doing has now ceased all functions.

anyway, he's tapping the screen of the hacking gun in his hand, looking at how long he has to operate it. if someone comes to the door, he moves the machine to stand in the way — "chills! kills! thrills!" is what leaves from it at first, an attempt to be intimidating in komaeda's hands. he won't do anything destructive, but he stares at whoever the ball monokuma sees through it's eyes, waiting to see their reaction.

now, someone from inside can stop komaeda from terrorizing, but he's pretty much in his own world. )

03: wildcard

( komaeda's normally wandering around to bother anyone else, so it's a free for all! if you want to do anything with him, throw something my way, or i can write a starter! )

[subtract]

[Add can be found hanging out in the workshop basically every day, which is good since he has the key to the locked supply closet. He's usually at one of the work stations prodding away at a huge robot claw, modifying the internals of the arm and hand, sometimes working with Komaeda's detached arm as well... trying to make the two compatible isn't easy, but he's been making steady progress with it.

When he's not occupied with the claw project, though, he's likely trying to make adjustments to Ball Monokuma's programming. Is the weird ball robot harassing you? Direct your complaints to this guy, maybe he'll decide to give a shit.

Dynamo is also always nearby, fetching tools and other supplies for Add when its not busy projecting holoscreens full of data for him. It may also fetch items for other club members if asked nicely. Dynamo is trying its best.]

add + dynamo

[commences]

( dynamo will be in komaeda's arm, because he's using the drone to be his little task buddy when he needs it, komaeda doesn't have the stamina to go from one room to the other. he does however make his way over to what add's been busying himself with — he'll take a seat down on the opposite side of the table as he stares at both the arms the other is working with. he's been fiddling with arms for awhile, and that's why komaeda only has one at the moment as he has offered the original for him to model it after along with the extra pieces. )

You're hard at work.

( it's no surprise, he thinks, considering part of add's braincell happens to be the drone he has with him, so it's like being able to gauge where komaeda is at all time. )

Mmm...

( mmmmmmm... it lingers, it's like komaeda wants to comment on something. )

[subtract]

[Yeah, Add has Komaeda's arm for the day so it's only fair that Komaeda gets Dynamo for the day... the little drone is happy to help, though. Komaeda is nice and a friend.

Add is in the process of closing up the outer casing and checking the joints when Komaeda decides to show up. The arm is basically complete, at least for the first revision... he stands, lifting up the hefty beclawed arm with only a bit of a struggle.]

Take off your jacket. I need to make sure the connections are functioning correctly. [aka let him attach this monstrosity and see what happens]

The weight might need some more adjustments as well, it'll probably feel unbalanced... I already made modifications, but it'll lose effectiveness if too much weight is taken off. Try to deal with it for now.

[commences]

( this is so horrible, imagine having to juggle two arms, and bother add to put on one or the other; this seems like a choice komaeda will have difficulties choosing every day. he's quite attached to his previous arm, and that's because of who made it, and so seeing add bring over the other worked on arm...

he doesn't reject the invitation, and instead does as he's told — he sits dynamo on his head (despite the fact it can float), and slowly he begins to undress himself. )

Ah... So my eyes didn't decieve me, it's not lightweight at all.

( because komaeda's dying and add's a twink too, but when it comes to durability and usefulness, maybe the weight does matter. he's fully removing his jacket, and the shirt he's wearing has a little hole at his chest which there's a hole from hangman crimes. )

Does it have a weakness? Is this weak to magic?

( there's a reason he's asking, don't worry, but he's also removing his shirt, too. make of this what you will, there's a few scars here and there, noticeable bruises along his side, around his shoulder but luckily there's no cut on his skin from where he stabbed himself with the knife either.

he places his clothes on the table, the stump of his arm visible, and he waves it at add to say hello. )

[subtract]

[crying because i'm trying to figure out what the most logical way to make this work would be... Add doesn't wanna do upkeep or deal with tracking on two arms, so let's say he managed to fit the essential Nasod bits inside Komaeda's old arm and the hand just comes off now so its less of a pain to swap. get a purse for your murder claw if you wanna swap on the go.

BUT ANYWAY what the fuck, he asked to take the jacket off why is Komaeda undressing... Add stares at this like he's half expecting the pants to come off next, but thankfully it's just the top half. okay, fine, he could've just rolled the sleeve up but sure.

his attention only lingers on the scars and bruises briefly before he gets to work, reattaching the arm to the stump the same as it was before... except now with a big heavy claw at the end. he takes his time with it, though, since there are plenty of ways the device could malfunction, and knowing Komaeda...]

Magic is just the manipulation of energy. I've improved the insulation to be more shock resistant, but I can't do anything about heat or cold resistance without better materials. [which he could've done if they'd just used Raven's arm as the base, but Komaeda was insistent on keeping his original arm intact... and as annoyed about it as he sounds, Add still chose to honour that request.] It might feel a bit unusual at first. Nasod prosthetics utilize the host's mana to form a connection to the brain, but since your arm was already functional through a different method I left those physical movements under the same control scheme. It's the auxiliary features that will require use of the Nasod core connection, and since you don't have an adapter chip... well, it'll probably be fine. Try not to activate anything dangerous.

[and those are the best encouraging-and-not-ominous words Add can offer before the arm clicks into place]

[decrypter]

[Dynamo gets a greeting first and foremost - she appreciates how helpful it's been, and she can't help being nice to it. but she has a question to direct to Add, when she hears anything like a lull in his work, and she clears her throat - it wouldn't do to startle him where he was, if he's dealing with small parts.]

Add? Do you have a moment?

[subtract]

[Dynamo offers a friendly beep in return! Helena is good and also a Friend, therefore she is exempt from Monokuma harassment, enjoy.

Add is a difficult person to startle, especially with Dynamo around, but Helena wouldn't know that anyway, so... unfortunately, she's left standing there for awhile before Add pauses in his work, squinting at some chip he can't decide what to do with. He puts it down gently for now, glancing over at where Helena is standing.]

Depends. What do you want? [not said rudely, but not very politely either. she's someone he's deemed useful, though, so it wouldn't be wrong to interpret his response as "Add's definition of polite".]

[decrypter]

I'd like to officially put my name down as a member of the club, if that's all right. With the amount of time I come here and what I'm learning, it seems only proper.

[these are the sort of declarations to make to whoever's in charge, and Add acts in charge enough to make it seem like it. or no one is in charge, and she's just addressing it to him because she's had the impulse. whatever works.]

[subtract]

Hmm... noted. [... and that's that. congrats on your membership? she already knows her way around so he's not going to waste any effort on a warmer welcome than that. at least she can rest easy knowing she'll be on any future murder-bot's "do not maim" list.

that's where the conversation would end... but he continues to stare at her for a moment longer. he's seen her frequenting the workshop, he knows she's been working on something, but he's been occupied with his own projects. maybe he can admit to being a little curious.]

Resources are limited, so I don't want them going to waste in the hands of amateurs... what have you been learning, exactly?

[notsosou]

[By this point Shin's set up his own little camp in the corner across from the door, tipping tapping away on his whirring laptop. He's also junk guardian, guardian of the junk pile (nobody quivers before him)... at least in the sense that if you want some floppies, USBs or other misc. that's already been checked and confirmed to be good without having to go digging through it yourself you can ask him. (The secret menu is whatever porn he's found doing this, though he'll try and haggle.)

Right now he's got two projects he's working on; code for the promised body for Rei Bao and something a little more secret that has nevertheless stalled out unless he can get a good look at the core of an AI's code (Rei's is, unfortunately, behind passwords he hasn't cracked yet). You can see him either hooking up the current state of whatever construction has been made and it moving or twitching as he checks Rei's feedback... or getting up from his workstation and pacing the room muttering to himself while tugging at his scarf or beanie or even hair when things aren't going well.]

[commences]

( cracks knuckles, time to be the predator inside the burrow — when shin happens to get up, komaeda will sit down in his spot. he seems a little restless, and that's a common expression he's accustomed to when handling the other. whether it looms from their shared past, or what he's seen here in yogen, he already knows that something isn't going in his favor. that's why komaeda sits down as he looks at the laptop, and he can see that the other was smart enough to have it locked up so that no one can enter it.

...

...

this can't be why he's stressed out, no, not at all. though he is curious since shin has been keeping his attention on it, and while the idea of using his hacking gun to force himself through — he thinks of doing it the old fashioned way. he reaches out, tapping on a few of the keys to see if he's able to unlock it, maybe he's unlucky, and shin catches him before he's able to put in the last letter, or maybe he's lucky to get in. either way, that's up to your discretion, he's just here to be in the man's burrow. )

[notsosou]

[I'm going to say Komaeda's random typings manage to get him in, because luck and chance doesn't seem to favor Shin. He doesn't even get not dying out of it like Naegi :' )

Shin spots him and gets there in time to see the laptop happily flip up it's default screensaver to reveal several windows full of in-progress code and some neatly arranged icons partly visible behind them on the plain desktop. One of them looks ominously like an eye. None of them are labelled.]

...

[He knows Komaeda is trying to get under his skin. That doesn't mean it's not working, but it does give him the wherewithal to try and hide it. He does have more passwords on the important stuff, but how did Komaeda get that one in the first place? First thing he's doing now is changing them all... His internal hackles are a little more on edge with how close is Komaeda is to finding Rei, but if he doesn't let on, if he pretends it's just the usual uneasy annoyance, on top of the lingering irritation...]

...Having fun?

[Get off the typewriter, monkey.]

[commences]

( you holding the blade above shin's head, contemplating to drop it depending on how far you let komaeda snoop, i'm crying.

he's happily clicking, tapping on whatever it is that he can, but he's focused unlike the other time he's played on a computer, he's thoughtful in his actions. what catches his attention though is the eye — a constant symbol that continues to appear in his life as he makes his way through yogen. it's for a moment that he pulls a rosary out his pocket to hold it up to the icon on the screen. he tries to gauge whether it's the same or not, but the black and red eye is what it is. his lips purse into a straight line, wondering why shin even has something like this on his laptop because the last time he saw it was from nanami.

he hums, lips pursed into a straight line, and it seems like shin's not the only one thoughtful — not anymore when he hears the other's voice, and komaeda turns towards him with a now practiced smile! )

Hiyori-kun!

( he doesn't know who or who doesn't know shin's special name, so he plays it safe just for the other's sanity, and to prevent the stink eye he may get if he tries anything else. )

You're finally acknowledging me... I got the feeling that you hated me...

( maybe that feeling is real, but such one-sided hate isn't needed as komaeda turns away from shin, and instead he clicks on other things that isn't the icon — you know, playing dumb is what he's best at. )

[notsosou]

[Listen,,, he makes it too easy.

He's the junk pile guardian after all... Nanami's junk, Inaba's junk, Kai's junk... it all makes it's way to him somehow.]

Hate you? We're friends aren't we? I've just been busy lately, that's all...

[Who's benefit is this for, when they both know that's a lie? He goes to the other side of the workstation, places his fingertips on the back of the laptop and pushes the lid down, not really caring if Komaeda's fingers get trapped; his own stay there. He saw the rosary comparison, so he knows Komaeda saw the eye-con. It makes him think of the eye keychain of Akira's that he still has, but that's a thought to follow up on later.]

Did you want something?

[Customer service voice and smile... There's only so many times Komaeda can show he has a weapon before the fact that he's armed ceases to scare in the moment and more is something to keep firmly in mind. Shin's terrified of the sword coming down but, with time to think about it, it can only be swung once. The smart move for Komaeda being to save it for something actually important... and just use the shadow of it.]

[decrypter]

[with Shin so focused, maybe he doesn't hear the gentle tap tap of someone coming up behind him, or she may not register as any sort of threat. either way, Helena coming over out of curiosity, she can only hear him typing away, and so it is that a soft, familiar voice comes from right over his shoulder.]

What are you working on today?

[notsosou]

[It's probably a mix of both; his hindbrain has flagged Helena as 'safe', as much as it ever does to anything, and also when he gets super-focused on something he can miss someone sneaking up behind him with a frying pan until it's too late to do more than half-turn his head towards them. The result is:]

Ghk!

[A stiffening, and then a relaxation with an exhale, adjusting his scarf over his shoulder. It's just Helena... but he's still kicking himself a bit for reacting at all.]

Don't do that... [He shifts over so she can uh... not get a good look at the screen, why did he do that. It gives her space next to him at least.] It's just a commission for someone...

[Someone who's currently on the laptop itself.]

[decrypter]

[with a murmured sorry, she comes to be next to him. even if she can't see the screen, she can hear the laptop whirring, hear the machinery, and it colors her mental landscape some.]

A commission? Did someone ask you to make them a program?

[it would make sense, given his talents...but what would someone need it for? who knows, really - this school has many oddities.

[rearranger]

[ Ranger approaches Shin with what is probably more familiarity than one should a person who they have such a standoffish relationship with. But that's never been his way, and it doesn't seem as though it'll change anytime soon. Besides, he's been relatively civil since arriving (or at least, as much as Ranger ever is - not antagonistic, at least,) having seemed to decide that there was no real point in further alienating the only two people he knows anyone of value.

He looks back and forth between the construction and Shin, curious, and waits a few seconds to see if he can catch a break in the click of keys. It was a hassle to be interrupted mid-thought, then have a hard time picking it back up later, or at least he assumes it to be such. He could always pick up where he left off just fine. ]

Whatchya doing?

[ Pointed as ever. ]

[notsosou]

[Aww, Ranger… He'd be so jealous if he knew that detail about instantly being able to pick back up... AI brains, truly the future.

Awareness of Ranger slowly filters in, a brief sidelong glance before continuing to finish up as much as he can of this segment before whatever Ranger's going to do goes directly into his train of thought like a railroad spike. That the floormaster actually waits until he's done thereby comes as somewhat of a surprise. His fingers lift, stilling and stretching.]

Sorry, I'm under NDA. It's strictly confidential.

[It's a lie, and pretty much a blatant, boundary-testing one, but it does have that grain of truth that this is for someone.]

[rearranger]

Huuh? Really? Ahahaha, I wonder what happens when there's a breach of contract in a place with no legal system?

[ It's such an obvious lie that he wonders if it's supposed to be a joke, but he plays along in a light tone that suggests that he's familiar with a few ways a person might respond to it. Simple was best, but there were plenty of other responses. It doesn't bother him, though he has to hope that none of his co-workers come here after they kick it.

But he can catch onto what kind of game this is. He sizes up the word for a few seconds and, seeming to come to a conclusion, he gives an exaggerated roll of his shoulders. ]

Nope, can't say I blame ya!

[ For not breaking it, that is. He won't push if the guy really doesn't wanna talk about it. There was probably no helping it, really, and it's not like he'd been so naive as to expect anything. ]

[dereban]

[While Inaba herself may not be a member of the club, she does actually frequent the workshop, as someone who actually cares about electronics and the like. But she is staying a good few feet apart from the robotic thing, laptop clutched in her hands.

And speaking in a loud voice, obnoxious enough for anyone in the area to hear:]

Why is there a round robot bear in front of this room--

[Except the sound of her voice does cause some ruckus. And by 'ruckus', that's defined as what one can almost call a Scooby Doo Chase Sequence™️ where it's trying to chase her to throw her into the literal trash and Inaba trying her best to outspeed it because she is carrying fragile equipment, she's not getting her laptop destroyed a second time thank you very much!!

Please send help.

Alternatively, she might be found later inside trying to scavenge for parts to see if she can use them to build something. As for what she's trying to build, that's for her to know, and you to potentially ask about.]

[notsosou]

[What's with this noise, he's trying to find where that semicolon- oh. Again? Is anyone going to... no? Okay.

He shuts the laptop and gets up, powerwalking over to where there's currently a lot of running about going on and... trying to get in between Ball Monokuma's camera and Inaba because well, he is registered as a club member even if it doesn't always remember that...

There's a non-zero chance his feet are going to be run over attempting this, nobody is having a good time, except for Ball Monokuma.]

Ack! P-put it down somewhere, it's only going after you!

[And being dunked in the trash is embarrassing but mostly harmless, he can attest from experience.]

[dereban]

And where exactly am I supposed to put it, huh?!

[Her panic seems to swell as she holds the laptop close to her chest, but it's clear that she's protective of her laptop in particular.]

[notsosou]

[Doing that sort of hop-dance and closed-mouth noise people do when they've stubbed their toe badly and are trying not to swear or yell but it's a near solid ball of metal going over them. He spreads his hands.]

O-one of the benches!? It's better than dropping it!

[He dropped Kai's laptop and it was like stepping on a dog's paw. An elderly, well-loved dog that now makes a general low volume airplane taking off sound when turned on. He needs to get on getting that fixed...]

Or just... I-I'll keep an eye on it, Monokuma doesn't go that far from the workshop...

[Because it wants to get back to it's post after finding the nearest trash can, said nearest trash cans are looking a bit worse for wear by this point.]