UserWiki talk:Aquelon

I am going to use this to test out the wiki drafts I have made and see 1. how long they are and 2. whether the formatting exploded. Watch this space for Tacos-related teasers, I guess!

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Appearance

Wanda Schenn is an astronaut who uses she/her pronouns. She often sheds her bulky space suit to play blaseball, electing instead to wear a simple flight suit, but has never been seen without her helmet. Those who have attempted to discern any identifying facial features by looking within the helmet have only reported seeing "an endless corn field that stretches to a horizon that doesn't exist," with some haunted by hallucinations of a space-like void for days following the encounter.

Before

██████ Schenn grew up in a one-story rambler in South Lebanon, Ohio. By her ██████ year in high school she had made the cut for the varsity █████████ team at S████ ████████ High School. By all accounts, Schenn—the child of German immigrants—was a driven, talented young student-athlete with a natural understanding of physics and a stubborn streak a mile wide.

In her █████ year of high school, she met Augusta Chadwell, who she would later identify as her best friend and confidante. The two were both interested in space exploration, and together brainstormed something they called the Wanderer module: a simple space shuttle, meant to be manned by a small crew of perhaps two.

The two attended ██████████████ University together; Schenn achieved her Bachelor's in Aerospace Engineering and went on to earn a Master's in Engineering.

~~Because of~~ Despite Schenn's demonstrated proficiency in engineering, she was ███████████████ the Ohio Worms █████████████████████████████. Schenn ███████████████████████████████████ until the Worms' Descension.

she was mine. her bones were built from the calcium in the dust she inhaled, her eyes sharpened by the thin crops of my barren soils. i knew her. all that drove her was a simple desire to see just how far ohio went, so i gave her an answer. why was she not satisfied? ohio can feed any wandering soul, if only they stop to eat.

DO NOT BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ
HISTORY IS WRIT BY THOSE EXERCISING DOMINION

During

Schenn played for the Ohio Worms following their return to the ILB as a pitcher. Reportedly, she enjoyed but did not particularly look forward to the games she would pitch, finding more joy in participating in blaseball with her friend Chadwell than in the splort itself.

An investigation by ██████████ suggests Schenn and Chadwell continued their work on the Wanderer, conducting regular tests, building prototypes, and otherwise adjusting their plans in their shared laboratory space, although it appears they were not prepared for any actual voyage.

On Day 89 of Season 13, Chadwell was incinerated by a rogue umpire in the Wormhole. A fan in attendance, who only identified themself as "Greg," shared an account of the event with a local news outlet.

"I knew it would happen the moment I stepped into the Wormhole. It was always going to be that way. They had plans, you know, and set their eyes beyond the horizon. Augusta was so beautiful. I didn't enjoy it, when they died standing out there in the field. She didn't do anything except dare to look where she shouldn't have. In the end it was a lesson, even if it was crude. Ash is impermanent and useless, and death means nothing in this game, but it was the only way they would listen. They should have known that someone would always stay."

after all, when you're from ohio, you never truly leave.

After the incineration of her best friend, Schenn was devastated and inconsolable. Following the game, she was overheard by fans as she insisted that she would "get out of Ohio, whatever it takes."

oh, little wanderer. there's a reason you named your tin and tile contraption that, isn't there? did you know, even then, that you would never truly leave? that it would be temporary? did you know that even descension would not provide you the opportunity you so desired? hindsight is such a beautiful, valuable thing, and i have done nothing but look back and watch you flail and flounder, a blind little creature seeking the light of the sun. go back underground, wanderer; the world beyond is inhospitable for little worms.

Launch of the Wanderer Module

Instead of attending any post-season celebrations with the rest of the Worms, Schenn became noticeably withdrawn and moody, and retreated to her laboratory. After ████████████, she had the first and only fully-functioning Wanderer module prototype created: it was scaled down slightly from the original plans, built to accommodate one pilot instead of the anticipated two.

While the laboratory burned to the ground shortly before the Wanderer module was scheduled to launch, an investigation led by ███████████ recovered a single cassette recording, presumably made by Schenn as she ~~left~~ tried to leave. The transcript of the partial recording is as follows.

"I'd feel bad about it. I would. Except... oh, I don't know. Augusta isn't — she can't tell me — I want to go. I do. There's this, this little voice in the back of my head that says stay, wanderer, stay, and I keep wondering whether I should stay after all. Who's going to look after my parents, translate complex English into German? Who's going to look after Augusta's dog? But then, but then I remember, I've been in the ███████████ for, for who knows how long, and I haven't talked to my parents since we descended. Augusta doesn't have a dog. I am playing blaseball in, in Ohio of all places. I want ~~to stay. there's nothing for me out there. i don't know where i would go or who i would be~~ — I want to leave. I have to."

The Wanderer module launched on ███████ from █████████, Ohio and landed in Lake Michigan, Chicago ██ days later.

Wanderer Module Ground-to-Space Transcript

Following the recovery of the Wanderer module's black box, an attempt at recording the transcript was made. Parts of the transcript remain unintelligible or missing. Flermilab, based in Chicago, has published sections of the transcript for members of the community to view and access for free on their website; those sections are replicated here.

CONTROL: Final check.
WANDERER: Engines running, seatbelt buckled, all systems are go.
CONTROL: Winds fair, skies clear. Safe journeys, Wanderer, and may you find your way home.
WANDERER: Thank you, Control. Countdown?
CONTROL: 10...
CONTROL: 9...
CONTROL: 8...
CONTROL: 7...
CONTROL: 6...
OHIO: oh, wanderer. i thought you'd gotten over this petty urge to run away. well. perhaps i shall join you.

OHIO: how do you feel, wanderer? do you feel vindicated?
WANDERER: It's very quiet up here. It's lonelier, too. I always thought Augusta would be here.
OHIO: foolish child. you know as well as i that augusta could not make this journey with you. either she would die or the calculations need to get your little tin can rotating in the atmosphere would not work, no matter how many times you checked.
WANDERER: It's pretty, though. You can see everything. A small blue dot; the stars.

WANDERER: I thought...
WANDERER: Bird's eye view, right? You climb and climb and climb so you can see the world from above. Matters of perspective.
OHIO: is something the matter? 
WANDERER: ...This isn't what I expected.
WANDERER: I... I don't see an end. It's just... more.
OHIO: tell me in the tongues you know. tell me as best you can, wanderer, is this satisfaction? is this what you wanted? a vantage point, to see just how far you cannot go?
WANDERER: I don't have a word for it. The only place I belonged was playing blaseball with my best friend. I have no family, not one I would recognize; no team, for all their well-wishes, who can replace Augusta. I thought there would be a void out here that matched the void in me but there is stars and a small world and Ohio and it just won't leave me alone.
OHIO: i think the word you're looking for is 'homesick,' wanderer.
WANDERER: I'm never going to see Augusta again, am I?
WANDERER: (quiet, muffled sobbing)

CHICAGO: WANDERER MODULE YOU ARE ENTERING CHICAGO AIRSPACE
OHIO: no. NO
CHICAGO: ALSO, IF WE MAY SUGGEST A DESCRIPTIVE WORD, WANDERER MODULE
WANDERER: I — I suppose.
CHICAGO: ABGESCHIEDEN
WANDERER: German?
CHICAGO: YES. MEANING "SOLITARY." MEANING "ALONE."
WANDERER: No... no, that's not quite it. Erm — Mutterseelenallein?
CHICAGO: AH. WE DID NOT REMEMBER THAT WORD.
CHICAGO: THAT IS VERY LONELY INDEED.
CHICAGO: WE DO NOT KNOW WHERE YOU ARE FROM, WANDERER MODULE, BUT YOU HAVE TAUGHT US SOMETHING, AND YOU ARE WELCOME WITHIN OUR BORDERS IF YOU LIKE.
OHIO: you don't get to take her from me. you don't. you don't.
WANDERER: ...Chicago. Sounds like a nice enough place.
CHICAGO: YES, QUITE
CHICAGO: INCIDENTALLY WE HAVE HAD A JOB OPENING RECENTLY SHOULD YOU WISH TO FILL IT
WANDERER: Not space travel?
CHICAGO: NOT YET
WANDERER: I'll take it.
OHIO: what are you doing. stop this at once.
CHICAGO: IN THAT CASE, WANDERER MODULE, WELCOME TO CHICAGO WHERE YOU ARE FROM

There is no turning back.
But there are those who welcome the wanderer, and those who watch her leave.

After

Chicago

WELCOME TO CHICAGO, CHILD OF THE STARS.

YOU ARE NOT NEW TO US. YOU ARE HERE; YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE. WE KNOW YOU, AND WE KNOW YOUR HEART; IT IS GOOD. DO YOU HEAR US, CALLING FOR YOU? THE SIREN ON THE HORIZON, THE RED LURE? YOU ARE FREE TO GO, WANDERER; YOU ARE FREE TO TURN AWAY. BUT IF YOU CHOOSE TO STAY, THERE IS A PLACE FOR YOU. YOU EXIST, WANDERER; YOU EXIST. YOU WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN: WANDERER THE HOMESICK, THE LONELY, THE BOLD, THE BRAVE, THE BEAUTIFUL. WE CANNOT PROMISE YOU THAT WHICH YOU MISS. BUT WE CAN PROMISE A PLACE WHERE THE EARTH IS HONEST AND KIND, AND A PLACE FOR YOU TO MAKE YOUR OWN. A PLACE WHERE, SHOULD YOU ASK, SOMEONE WILL ALWAYS ANSWER.

WELCOME HOME, WANDERER.

Ohio

do you regret it, wanderer? do you miss me?

i know you, wanderer. i know the way your stomach lurched when you climbed into that vast expanse. i know the way your heart called for me. i know your weakness, wanderer, and that weakness is the soft soil is the soft dirt is the quietude of the things underneath, the certitude of that which remains silently buried. i would have consumed you, decomposed your soft flesh into something useful, something to build on. it would have been a kinder fate.

you are lost to me.

Arrival

The Wanderer module crashed into Lake Michigan, where it was recovered by Wesley Poole. Schenn was recovered from the module and brought to the Fire House. Since her arrival in Chicago she has refused to speak, electing instead to use a form of non-verbal communication involving a combination of Morse code and Socks Maybe. However, some say she will occasionally hum along to the sound of the theremin.

According to Schenn herself, she recalls little from her time in space, and refuses to speak about it at length, mentioning only that it was "very, very lonely." She either does not remember or refuses to acknowledge any previous names she may have had. Instead she goes by Wanda, short for Wanderer.

Like all of us, she is from Chicago. Her jersey number is 513.

An Encore
Things don’t end neatly. Things don’t end at all.

And Beyond

After spending most of the era in Chicago, Schenn was sent to Los Angeli just in time for the last two seasons. It is unclear why she wound up there, especially if she had any choice in the matter. Both Los Angeli and Ohio are known to be… far-reaching, so there may be a point of familiarity there, for good or ill. However, the two are very different in population density, and while Los Angeli is everything all the time, Ohio is only ever always itself.

Schenn was initially very overwhelmed by Los Angeli, finding it overwhelmingly loud, overwhelmingly infinite, and entirely too many things at once. McKinley Otten was a non-overwhelming presence that helped her get acquainted, while Yummy Elliott was a big help in showing her around when Schenn began to get used to the place and became extremely curious about it. She became fast friends with both, and also with Basilio Fig, and can often be found helping them raise plants and hanging out mostly silently.

The torn-off second page of a tourism pamphlet was found in the hotel room Schenn used when she first arrived, reading as follows.

WELCOME TO LOS ANGELI! (continued)the Infinite Cit(ies) welcome you, Wanderer, and WE hope you enjoy your time here, WE suppose.
Los Angeli’s recent history is defined by the moment when WE realized WE would never be the place we were before, again.  the moment when everything, already weakened, fell apart.

DID YOU KNOW? many blaseball players from Los Angeli used to have different names!!! for instance, sexton wheerer used to be sexton wheeler, NaN used to be █████ █████, lee dNO NO NO, and wyatt pothos used to be Wanda pothos! isn’t that a fun coincidence, Wanderer? isn’t it a fun coincidence how frequently this sort of thing happens here, Wanderer?

FEELING A LITTLE DOWN? a little negative? a little like a burden on the team? a little like you could do absolutely everything absolutely right and have the exact opposite of the intended effect?  don’t worry!  every team received a subtractor, you just seem to have been unlucky!  it’s not your fault!  it’s not OUR fault either!


there’s just one short warning WE have for you, Wanderer, just one thing WE implore you to keep in mind, just one bit of privacy WE value more than anything else…
Don’t Look Too Close.

Early Concerns

Schenn’s curiosity, stubbornness, and interest in space reminded several of her teammates of the deceased Nicholas Vincent. Elliott was quoted saying, “Well, I can’t say she’s the spitting image of xem, because of the whole spacesuit thing, but like, they have a lot in common. Which is kinda worrying.” Reportedly, when Schenn heard the specifics of Vincent’s demise, (Give Wanda A Bad Day here)

there’s no way to put this nicely, no apology that can undo what WE did. and honestly, WE would do things much like that again, and have. perhaps not further incinerations, but certainly not kindnesses. ...WE would say you don’t have to stay here, Wanderer, but at the moment that is just as empty a promise. the most WE can offer you is privacy. WE will keep OUR secrets locked up, of course, and OUR sprawl seemingly contained around you.

and also, WE can offer, WE are not the people who inhabit OUR streets. they’re innocent in this. if this Cit(ies) is not your home (and WE wouldn’t expect it to be), then at least your companions can come close.

OUR admittedly useless apologies, Wanderer.

Season 24

Schenn was one of the players in charge of driving the Chariot, the Tacos’ heavily-improvised rocket ship, during Season 24, although Vito Kravitz and Lucas Petty did most of the driving. Silvaire Semiquaver was often seen helping her with navigation, and the following is a recording from the Chariot’s emergency black box, dating back to the evening of Day 82, after the Tacos found their series in Ohio cancelled and the Worms simply gone. For purposes of legibility, names have been unscattered in this transcription. ((should they be?))

SEMIQUAVER: Steady.  Keep going.
WANDERER: …
SEMIQUAVER: I’m told the black hole’s gravitational pull has likely not increased enough to warrant significant directional change yet.
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: ...
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: Hey, Wanderer.  You were from Ohio, right?
WANDERER: -. ---
SEMIQUAVER: ...Must’ve been mistaken.  I bring this up because, well…
SEMIQUAVER: I’m from Tokyo.  And both of those teams are in the black hole.
WANDERER: --- .... .-.-.- / --- .... --..-- / .-. .. --. .... - .-.-.-
SEMIQUAVER: And I don’t know if that means th--
WANDERER: --. --- --- -.. .-.-.-
SEMIQUAVER: Hm?  Oh.  “Good?”  I take it you aren’t a fan of the Worms?
WANDERER: - .... . / - . .- -- .-..-. ... .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- / ..-. .. -. . .-.-.- / .-- .- ... -. .-..-. - / -.-. .-.. --- ... . / .-- .. - .... / -- --- ... - / --- ..-. / - .... . -- --..-- / - .... --- ..- --. .... .-.-.- / --- .... .. --- / .. ... -. .-..-. - .-.-.-
SEMIQUAVER: So it’s a problem with the place, rather than the people?  I can respect that.
SEMIQUAVER: Though, I don’t know for sure what happened to any of those places.  Haven’t passed by any of them to see; it could just be that the stadium is gone, or even just the players.
WANDERER: .- ... / .-.. --- -. --. / .- ... / - .... .- - / -.-. .-. . . .--. .. -. --. / .-. --- - / --- ..-. / .- / .--. .-.. .- -.-. . / .. ...
 OHIO?: not    dead
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: ...
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: ...Do you have radio?  With everyone else asleep, it feels…
WANDERER: .-.. .. -.- . / .-- . .-..-. .-. . / .- .-.. --- -. . / --- ..- - / .... . .-. . ..--.. / .- -. -.. / -.-- . ... .-.-.- (morse code) Like we’re alone out here?  And yes.
SEMIQUAVER: Not quite how I’d describe the situation, but please do see if anyone else is on the radio.
WANDERER: .-. .- -.. .. --- .-..-. ... / --- -. .-.-.- (morse code) Radio’s on.
SEMIQUAVER: This is the Tacos’ Chariot, is anyone receiving?
WANDERER: .-- . .-..-. .-. . / .-- .- - -.-. .... .. -. --. / - .... . / -... .-.. .- -.-. -.- / .... --- .-.. . / ... .-- .- .-.. .-.. --- .-- / - .... . / -- . .- --. . .-. / -.-. --- -- ..-. --- .-. - / --- ..-. / - .... . / ... - .- .-. ... / .- -. -.. / .. - .-..-. ... .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- / . . .-. .. . .-.-.- / .. / -.. .. -.. -. .-..-. - / - .... .. -. -.- / .. .-..-. -.. / -- .. ... ... / .- -. -.-- / --- ..-. / - .... . / - .... .. -. --. ... / .. -. / - .... . .-. . --..-- / -... ..- - / .. / -.. .. -.. -. .-..-. - / - .... .. -. -.- / - .... . -.-- / .-- . .-. . / ... --- .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- / ... --- / ..-. .-. .- --. .. .-.. . --..-- / . .. - .... . .-. .-.-.-
SEMIQUAVER: You’re right… the way the black hole swallows up even the most indomitable forces in its path is… well.  We’re still on course, and likely to stay that way long enough to return to the desert.

WANDERER: -.. --- / -.-- --- ..- / . ...- . .-. / -- .. ... ... / .-- .... . .-. . / -.-- --- ..- / ..- ... . -.. / - --- / -... . ..--..
SEMIQUAVER: Do I ever miss where I used to be?  Tokyo was great.  ...Do you?
WANDERER: …
WANDERER: . ...- . .-. -.-- - .... .. -. --. .-..-. ... / -... . - - . .-. / -. --- .-- / - .... .- -. / -... . ..-. --- .-. . --..-- / .- -. -.. / .. / -.- -. --- .-- / - .... .. ... --..-- / .- -. -.. / - .... . / --- -. .-.. -.-- / --. --- --- -.. / - .... .. -. --. / - .... . .-. . / .-- .- ... / .- .-.. .-. . .- -.. -.-- / --. --- -. . --..-- / .- -. -..
SEMIQUAVER: So whether you do or not doesn’t matter.
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: ...So whether or not that matters also doesn’t matter?
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: And we don't even know if it's gone for good.
WANDERER: ...

???: (burst of radio noise)
SEMIQUAVER: Looks like someone is picking up our signal.
LOS ANGELI: chariot, WE are receiving.  this is ground control Los Angeli.
SEMIQUAVER: Understood.  I still have insufficient information to determine where you are relative t--
LOS ANGELI: it’s irrelevant.
SEMIQUAVER: Mm.
LOS ANGELI: anyhow, WE are just confirming that you do appear to still be on course…
LOS ANGELI: and that upon further reflection, Wanderer, you are not the only one unsure how to feel about what they were before... everything.
LOS ANGELI: ...introspection.  not OUR strong suit.
LOS ANGELI: Over and Out.
SEMIQUAVER: Well, that was quick.
WANDERER: ...
SEMIQUAVER: Not a lot of steering to do, right now, still a few hours before we have to consider making any adjustments.  If you wanted to wake Vito and Lucas up and get them in here, we could.
WANDERER: -. .- .... .-.-.- / .. - .-..-. ... / -. --- - / . -..- .- -.-. - .-.. -.-- / ..-. ..- -. / --- ..- - / .... . .-. . --..-- / .- -. -.. / .. .-..-. -.. / .-. .- - .... . .-. / -. --- - / -... . / .. -. / - .... .. ... / ... .. - ..- .- - .. --- -. / .. -. / - .... . / ..-. .. .-. ... - / .--. .-.. .- -.-. . --..-- / -... ..- - / .- - / .-.. . .- ... - / .. .-..-. -- / -. --- - / .- .-.. --- -. . .-.-.-
SEMIQUAVER:  At least there’s that.  Alright then, onwards it is.

Elsewhere

On Season 24 Day 91, with the black hole bearing down on the league, Felix Garbage was swept Elsewhere. Reportedly, Schenn froze up for a solid ten seconds in a clear panic and then dove in after him.

Schenn had previously learned (describe undertaker in a tonally appropriate way) from fellow Firefighter Justice Spoon, but had not used it since joining the Tacos, expressing that although Elsewhere was an interesting place to explore, it was very empty and lonely. It can be assumed, however, that she decided being Elsewhere was better than leaving someone else Elsewhere alone over the long upcoming offseason.

Reports on Schenn’s status as of the end of Season 24 vary.

Trivia

Schenn's maiden and only voyage lasted ███████████.
... --- -- . - .. -- . ... --..-- / ... .... . / ... - .. .-.. .-.. / .-- .- -. - ... / - --- / --. --- / .... --- -- . --..-- / -... .- -.-. -.- / - --- / - .... . / -.. .- .-. -.- / .- -. -.. / ... --- ..-. - / .--. .-.. .- -.-. . ... / -.. . . .--. / .. -. / - .... . / . .- .-. - .... --..-- / -... ..- - / - .... --- ... . / -.- .. -. -.. ... / --- ..-. / - .... .. -. --. ... / .- .-. . / .... .- .-. -.. / - --- / .- -.. -- .. - / --- ..- - / .-.. --- ..- -.. .-.-.-
Her pre-game ritual is "Warding off demons." The ~~identity~~ identities of these demons remain unclear.
She is often spotted occupying the garden that once belonged to Atlas Guerra, and although she is never seen working within, the small produce garden is productive and healthy once more.
While still in Ohio, Schenn pitched one game against Wyatt Pothos, whose first name used to be the same first name that Schenn would later go by: Wanda. This pitcher matchup only happened because of the Jazz Hands’ catastrophic reverb earlier the same season. Schenn lost 3-7.