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 [BGM: Spot On]  It's never exactly comfortable when you're standing over a dead body. Even less so when you killed said dead body. But when the person you killed wasn't the person you were supposed to kill? ...Yeah, it was pretty awkward. Luckily, I was the one who was the most composed.   Oh gently caress. Oh poo poo. This, uh, this ain't good. This is reaaaally not great.Yi had stood up from his hiding positions in the bushes, and was now making his way over to the corpse. A little risky, standing out in the open by the dead body. But, eh, no one was around. If they were, they would've said something before this point.  You're telling me! You saying we just shot some civvie?! Because, uh, yeah, that's not great! We did this under the assumption Lock was just some gambling lowlife!  People like that can disappear pretty easily, the police don't give a poo poo about cases like that. But are you telling me we just shot a complete normal person? No, not just a normal person, a government official! An employee of Governor Aija! That's not nothing. That's not something that can just be handled. Okay, okay, calm down everybody. No need to freak out yet. Nobody's been freaking out. Shut up! Look, we're jumping to conclusions. Oh? That right? Pray tell, what conclusions are we jumping to right now? Kinda feels like this is a pretty straightforward case. Not exactly a lot of room for nuance. Well, uh... we were tasked to kill Lock. Who's to say that's not Lock? What? I mean, what do we know about Lock? My description was pretty sparse. And I mean, yeah, you wouldn't think a government secretary would be a gambling scammer or anything. But, you know. It's possible. Maybe he has a double life! Maybe he wears a wig and makeup! Goes out, spends his nights dressing up. It's possible. This is the angle you're going with? Seriously? Yi, settle down. It's fine. We just got the wrong guy. It's not the end of the world. Settle down? Settle down??Uh oh. Maybe not the time to pull the tough Thane card. Thane, I get logistics isn't your strong suit, but we just screwed the pooch majorly. It's not just a matter of the innocent person we killed. Although, to be clear, that's also quite bad. Sure, sure, whatever, but we also screwed up the hit Art put out. That's a big revenue hit! Not to mention, possibly damaging our relationship... Pfft. Of course. Of loving course. What? No, nothing. Just makes perfect sense to me that your main concern from all of this was that we might be losing some of our precious money. Okay, you know what? I don't see why you're talking at all, especially considering you're the reason we're in this mess. Excuse me?Yi, could you be cool for like, a minute? If there was more conflict, in my eyes that increased the chances that my disguise would somehow be found out. I'd have to do my best to temper things before they got out of hand. Yi– No, no, I'm serious. Thane and I here were taking things seriously. We actually were, you know, doing our jobs... then you came and interrupted us for no reason at all! You came to, what, play cards? No wonder we weren't on our A-game. Are you serious right now? Are you actually saying what I think you're saying? Because if you are, you're even more batshit than I thought. I had absolutely nothing to do with shooting this random guy. If you're going to be blaming anybody, blame your masked buddy over here, why don't you? I mean, he's the one who actually shot the guy, you know? How it's anybody's fault but his boggles the mind. I take no blame in this. Shocker. Why should I? I just did what I was told, followed orders exactly as they were given. Yi gave me the description – I followed it. You're blaming me? I'm just saying, you even encouraged the shot. I think assigning blame is a dumb practice. But if you were going to, I don't see how it's logical the blame lands on my lap. Tch. I can't believe this is turning around on me. If the shoe fits. What did I do wrong? I mean, we got a description, and this guy matched it. How on earth should... … No, you know what, that's a good point. Your own point? That you haven't said? That's a good point? Shut up for a second, would you?[BGM: Last Dice]  Yi began pacing around, with a contemplative look on his face. I exchanged a brief look with Lara. It felt like we should interrupt him, but we also had no desire to. A few seconds later, Yi just nodded. Yeah, there's no way. There's no way this rear end in a top hat just happened to get shot. No poo poo, Yi. We shot him. That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying there's no way it's a coincidence that this dude ended up being where he was. I mean, it's the exact time, more or less. Exact place. Exact clothing. I mean, it lines up all too perfectly. If this dude just happened to walk by this park at this time in that outfit, then he must be the unluckiest son of a bitch that ever walked the earth. I agree. It is logical to assume that this was not a case of chance. Oh good, I got Thane's approval. Thank God. All right, fine, maybe this wasn't a coincidence. So what are you saying? I don't know what I'm saying. I guess I'm saying I don't think it's any of our faults that we shot this dude. Like I said. Yeah, yeah, you were right. So then... what happened? You think Art screwed us? Huh? I mean, think about it. He was the one who provided the details for the hit. He told us time, place, description. If anybody could arrange us to kill the wrong person, it'd be him. All he'd have to do is change the 'who'. Okay, but why? Why what? Why lie about it? He already has us performing a hit, why give us the wrong identity? Wouldn't that just make our job harder? Possibly run into confusion? If he's placing a hit, I think he would just tell us straight up who the target is. It's not like there's any difference whether we're killing Lock or Secretary Gani. Eh... Eh? I don't know about that. There is a difference between Secretary Gani and Lock. The latter, like we said, has very few connections; the former is a somewhat respected member of society. ...And more importantly, works for Governor Aija. Hurting Aija is, uh, something that needs a bit more deliberation. Not saying we wouldn't do it, but that's gonna affect things like cost and the time to put the hit into motion. Aha! See! Art probably needed Gani killed, knew it'd be troublesome, fed us false info. Mystery solved. Yi shook his head. Sorry Lara, I don't think that's it. And I'm not just being vindictive here, legitimately, I don't buy that explanation. Huh? Why not? A breach of contract like that... It's no laughing matter. I mean, misleading who we kill is a serious breach of trust. Could lead to serious damage on our end. If we ever found out that he intentionally misled us... I know we like to avoid clashing swords directly with Olympo for a couple reasons, but a direct insult like that trumps everything else. We'd have to make Art pay. It's a matter of pride. Tch. Maybe Art just thinks we wouldn't find out; it's not out of character for him to be a cocky son of a bitch. Eh, I don't see it. Not when there's a simpler explanation. Oh yeah? And what's that? Secretary Gani and Lock were in on it together. What exactly do you propose 'it' is? gently caress if I know. Although, we were thinking that the hoodie was meant to meet with Governor Aija, right? Maybe there was going to be a tradeoff. Lock and Aija had some sort of deal, Art gets wise to the details, thinks Lock's going to be the one meeting with Aija, puts the hit out.  Turns out, this Gani rear end in a top hat is Lock's partner, and goes to meet with Aija in Lock's place. And just like that, miscommunication created, we've got a dead secretary. Huh. I guess it's possible.I shook my head. I don't think so. Thane, you know, you're being a real pain in the rear end tonight. ... Okay, what is it? If there was some shady meeting happening, why would Gani be the one sent to meet with Aija? Why not Lock? How should I know? I'll put it another way: it makes way more sense for Lock to go as opposed to Gani. I mean, Gani works for Aija, right? Then Aija would definitely recognize Gani. So? Maybe Aija knew who she was meeting. Okay, if that was the case, why have the meeting here? Why have it now? Don't Aija and Gani work in the same building? I feel like if there was a deal between the two, one where Aija knew who she was dealing with, they'd just do it there. Hmm. All right. I'll buy it. So then, what's your theory? Huh? I mean, if you're gonna be poking holes in mine, you've gotta have an idea to replace it with, right Thane?I just sighed. I didn't mean... fine. What if... ...Art was just wrong? Huh? We know very little about what's happened. That includes how Art got his information in the first place. Lara suggests that Art misinformed us, but why put the burden on Art? Maybe he was misinformed, either accidentally or on purpose. Simple as that. Nah, I don't like it. Shocker. Hey, you tell me what sort of misinformation causes you to get like 90% of the details right, but the identity of the person is wrong? That makes no sense to me. If you know as much as Art did, you don't just happen to get the most important part wrong. I can't think of a situation where that happens. Seems to me like you're not very creative then. Excuse me? Look, we know too little. I'm not saying I'm right, but it's possible. Anything's possible. I suppose. ... Thane's right. We know too little, and just speculating like this isn't getting us anywhere. Right now, no matter how we got into this situation, the fact is, we're standing in front of a dead body. The wrong dead body. And we kind of have to deal with that. Do we though? Can't we just, like, run off? We can. If we want to be sloppy, and idiotic. Let me rephrase. Can't I just run off? You can't be serious. Are you seriously suggesting that you just ditch us now? Now of all times? I mean, I don't think I'm going to help much. Like you said, I don't belong here. I don't know what I'm doing. Oh, gently caress off! You had your chance to pull that card, and you got offended when I suggested you do. Now that we're in the poo poo, you're standing here, useless or not! Fine. If it'll make you happy. You know? It will. It really will.Yi shook his head, scowl not leaving his face. Jeez. The nerve of this girl. I mean, seriously. Can you believe this Thane?I just shrugged. Not starting this up again.  All right, Mr. Yi, we're dealing with a dead body now. So, what do we do? How do we go about this? Hmm... well, I guess the question is whether or not the hit is called off. Seriously? Isn't it, like, way too late for that? It's not too late until we decide it's too late. Who knows, maybe any minute the real Lock will come walking here in his grey hoodie? You were the one who said that this guy walking here at the time wasn't a mistake! That was a theory! I could be wrong! That's rare, coming from you. At this point, if the real Lock was coming, we'd have seen him I think. Safe to say he won't be here. All right, fine. Lock isn't coming here. It's still too soon to call off the hit. Uh, no? Look, when the Duats are contacted to do a job, we need to finish the job. If we don't, our name becomes cheap. Even if we're fed faulty info? Even when it's not our fault? Yi, I admire the spirit, but how exactly do you intend to kill the real Lock? I don't know...[BGM: Challenger]  Yi paced a bit more, then sighed. Fine. Maybe I'm being a little irrational right now. Funnily enough – I'm a bit thrown off my game. But at the very least, we should get in touch with the employer. Let them know what happened, see if they have any suggestions on what to do. You mean call Art? Exactly.And then, Yi took out his phone. All right, let's just get this over with. Probably not going to be a pleasant conversation, but, well, gotta happen.A few seconds later, a call was made. The phone rang for a bit. And then... *click.*  Hello? Hey Art! What's up? How's life treating you? ...I am fine. Good to hear, good to hear. I am not in a chatty mood. Is the business handled? Business handled? Why so clinical about it, Art? Just answer. Look, the answer's kinda... Kinda? Okay, this conversation's gonna be a real pain in the rear end if you refuse to address things head on. Look, you're not being recorded – give it a rest.I heard a sigh on the other side of the phone. Fine. What does 'kind of' mean? About that– Hey, is that Art Deisma? Wow, such a fan! Who is that? That, uh, that's one of my coworkers. Lara. One of your coworkers? I put you on speaker. You put me on speaker? What on earth made you think tha– Art, Art, friend, take it easy. Think of your blood pressure. The only people on this call are people you can trust. Totally! I mean, I'm just honored I get to be talking to you. All right, that's enough of that. I'm also here. Very good Thane, you are here. That sounded patronizing. Perceptive. Wait, did you just say Thane? As in, 'Shadow of Panthea' Thane? No, as in the defunct rock band member Thane. Of course that Thane! Who do you think you're talking to?A deeper sigh was heard. Who am I talking to? What has my life become? Hey now Art, that's a little rude to say on the phone, don't you think? Care to be a bit more respectful? I'd prefer not to. And that's a real feisty tone for someone who apparently only 'kind of' did their job. What does 'kind of' even mean in this context? I was getting to it! Say, Art, how'd you get the info for this job? I don't see why that's any of your concern. It is. Because we killed the wrong person. You what?! Okay, see, this is why the speaker phone was a mistake. I would've delivered the news a lot smoother. Sorry. How do you deliver that news smoothly? Hold on, hold on, what exactly did you morons do? Hey, hey, Art, it's not our fault. See– We followed your information in the hit. The man showed up dressed as you described, at the time you described, in the place you described. It's not our fault that the person matching that description wasn't Lock. It wasn't Lock? It wasn't. It was Secretary Gani, if you'd believe it! What? I know, crazy right? ... I truly do apologize for this news. But as my associate so bluntly put it, we were just following the directions you gave. You were certain that Lock would be the target, right? I was, I did, I just... just... give me a second to think.The other side of the line went silent for a moment. Okay, okay. I don't know what's going on. All I can presume is that I was misled. Hey, that's okay! Happens to the best of us. I can do without the theatrics, Ms. Lara. Oh, uh, sorry. Heh heh heh. You know, that's what I like about you Art. You get down to brass tacks. I respect that in a man. Don't you start, Yi. You sound awfully jovial for somebody who screwed up a job. Hey, we were just doing what we were told! I told you to kill Lock. Lock may not have shown up at the time and place I described; that is my fault. However, you went on to kill a totally uninvolved individual without confirming their identity. They matched the clothing description. Does it sound like I care? I don't know how you do business with Yi, Mr. Deisma, but that to– Hey, hey, hey, woah now! I apologize Art, I really do. I want to make it up to you. What can I do then? How do I make it up? What's our next move? Ugh... Again, the line went silent. Give me a minute.*click.* The line suddenly went dead. Did he... did he just hang up? Very good, Lara. You know what the sound of a phone hanging up sounds like. You know, you've always been a tool Yi, but usually you were cooler about it. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just... frustrated is all. Bit of a perfectionist. When things go off the track like this, it, uh, it gets under my skin. We're all annoyed, Yi. Get over yourself.Yi flashed a nasty looking grimace at me. Whoops. Might've been going a bit far there; back to being the silent type for me. So, what now? He said he'd be a minute. We give him one. He'll call back soon. Okay then.[BGM: Silence]  And just like that, a wave of silence flushed over the three of us. It was far from the first time we were all staring at each other quietly... but this time, it felt noticeably more awkward. ... ... ...So, uh... anybody know any good jokes? Really, Lara? I don't. I mean, I've heard some. But I can only ever remember the setups, never the punchlines. That right? Yeah, it's a real problem. I tried asking a comedian friend of mine for help, and he had this weird advice for me–*briiiing* Ah, it's Art. Really banking on that phone call coming in time, huh? Yup.*click.* [BGM: Challenger]  Yi picked up the phone. Yi speaking. I know you're speaking. I called your phone. Someone else could have called my phone. Yi. Look, don't turn this around on me! Saying who's speaking when you pick up the phone is a very common practice, you're the rear end in a top hat for making a thing of it. Okay, fine, whatever. Look, here's the deal: the hit for Lock? It's still on. Sure thing. Got any leads for us on that front? No. Awesome. We have some gathered information on Lock; I'll be sending you what I have. Besides, you Duats are supposedly resourceful. Lock is a two-bit conman – he operates in your circles. Hey, you want us to find the guy, we can find him. I'm just saying, this guy's apparently pretty elusive. I hope you're not expecting a quick turnaround on this. I would hope you'd prioritize it, but yes, I do not expect immediate results. The need for them has dissipated. As for your incorrect kill, you won't be penalized for that. I would sure hope not! Don't push me, Yi. Fine. Thank you, oh benevolent Art. You are welcome. That is all. Wait, that's it? Ms. Lara, as an outsider, perhaps you do not understand the specifics of this arrangement. I would like as little contact with your little posse as possible. Frankly, I've already made two more phone calls with you people than I wanted to today. And the dead body? Deal with it. You're a bunch of murderers, right? Surely you have protocols for this. Erase evidence tying you to the crime. Make it look like an accident. Dump the body. I don't care, just don't get arrested. Or do get arrested, just don't testify against me. It isn't my problem anymore. Never change, Art. I don't intend to.*click.* And like that, Art hung up.
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| # ? May 16, 2024 18:59 |
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 [BGM: Ones Are Wild]  Well, isn't he just a bundle of fun? Sometimes you gotta work with assholes, Lara. I'm surprised you hadn't learned that by now. Oh trust me, I have. Oh, ha ha. Very funny. Could we please just start the clean up and be done with it? I don't know about you two, but this isn't exactly how I like to be spending my nights. At this point, it's almost morning. That it is. Okay, well, I don't think there's that much we need to do. It's cases like these that are custom built for our police contact. I'm gonna hit 'em up now. Isn't it pretty late? Aren't they likely asleep? Nah, I had them on call for this in case things went south. You just had them awake at this hour, just in case? Yup. drat, Yi. You're brutal. Just picking that up now? Yi chuckled to himself. Anyways, last call taught me to not put calls on speaker phone in front of you animals. I'll handle this myself.Yi started messing with his phone, walking a bit away from the corpse... leaving me alone with Lara. Well. This is... awkward. I had been trying to avoid one on one situations with Lara. But there was no natural way to get around it at this point. So I just stayed silent, and hoped Lara would follow suit. ... … ...Don't think I forgot about everything.poo poo. Oh? Don't 'oh' me. Playing coy is a bad look for you. I wasn't playing coy. I just don't care if you remember. Tch. I'll do it, you know. You know you won't. I will! Hm. ... ...I'm serious. Okay then. ...[BGM: Bidding]  Lara continued to just stare at me. I tried to give nothing away; the mask helped with that quite a bit. It looked like Lara was about to start speaking, but luckily, Yi walked back over. Saved by the bell. All right, well. Cavary'll be here soon enough. So we just have to wait for now? Pretty much. Okay then.And like that, Lara began to walk away from us. I sensed some frustration in her. Jeez. Can never just be in a good mood, can she? Bit hypocritical there? Is it? …For some reason, I was having a bit of trouble staying in character as Thane. My personal feelings were being particularly feisty tonight. ...You know, we're going to have to deal with her soon enough. I know. I mean, we've managed to stomp out all the fires before they've started so far. But I mean, imagine if we let some of them slip through the cracks? We'd be– I know.Yi shook his head. Ah, man. You know, the mere existence of them, in my mind, is grounds enough? You think so? I mean, obviously I think so. But that's not really what matters. Right. You know, I really thought last time you'd get something good. You sure you didn't? If I did, wouldn't I tell you? Eh, who knows. Maybe you're holding out on me. Let me rephrase then. If I did, would I really be doing nothing? Okay, you got me there. Next time then.I just nodded.  Yi patted me on the back, and began to walk away himself. Guess everybody needed their own space. ...Well, good enough for me. The less conversations I had to go through where I only half-knew what I was talking about, the better for me. Man. Why was this role so stressful for me? Who knows – I guess just the fact that I knew nothing about 'myself.' Oh, and the psychotic murderers surrounding me. That doesn't help. Anyways... I checked my pocket. Yup. I still had it. That disguised trip to the V-Hall the other day ended up being worth the risk. People are creatures of habit, after all. And if there was a time to use it... ... Just surviving was hollow motivation. Just learning information, barely above that. It was never my motivation then, and it shouldn't be mine now. Thane's mask was a curse, but also a blessing. A perfect opportunity, the more I thought about it. So then... if I wanted to start destroying the Duats from the inside, why not start now? It was this thought that was interrupted by a faint noise. Immediately, I snapped to attention. I saw Yi and Lara act similarly – and just like that, we all made for cover. Lara dove behind some bushes. Yi also went behind bushes, though his approach was a lot more casual. For my part, I just took a few steps and put my back up against a tree. None of us were overly frantic; it was pretty obvious who was coming, after all. Still, couldn't be too safe – always the chance this was just a passerby. But... no. Coming into vision, I could see our trusty police making his way here. Seth Johnson.   Ugh... This is sick. Y-you guys are sick. ...You guys are around, right? You didn't just call me here to leave me with the dead body? Oh, come on! Watch the tone, Seth. Ah!Seth jumped half a foot in the air as I spoke up. Well, I can't blame him; I did move from my spot behind the tree to sneak right up behind him. I could say that I did it to better emulate Thane... but being honest, I just did it because I thought it would be fun. ...I was right. It was. Gah hah hah hah ha!Yi came out in stitches. Even Lara was chuckling a bit. Classic! Absolutely classic! Thane, man, don't let me give you poo poo again, you really are a legend. Noted. I d-d-don't see how it's funny to be joking around at an active crime scene! Especially out in public. Oh, come off it, Seth. Some would say this mood is exactly why a joke like that lands. No, I think you would've laughed if I got scared by Thane in any context. Eh, true enough. Am I the only one weirded out by the fact that Thane apparently gets more comedic when he's around a dead body? Kinda weird. I don't get more comedic. I'm just unaffected. Huh. That's better, I guess. ...Oh, right. You must be Seth, our police contact, yeah? U-uh, yes? Cool! I'm Lara, nice to meet you.Lara stuck out her hand. Seth hesitantly accepted the handshake.  Nice to meet you too. Another, uh, Duat Senior Officer, I'm guessing? Yep! In fact, you've got the luxury to be dealing with all three Senior Officers, Seth. Oh goodie. Lucky me. Anyways, I just wanted to thank you for everything you've been doing. I know you might not love the arrangement, but it's because of work like yours that we can do what we do. So earnestly, thank you. You're welcome? She doesn't mean it, Seth. This is just her shtick. Huh? Hey! Could we please not get off track this quickly? Again, I want to get home. Y-yes, please, thank you. All right, all right, you two raise a good point. Time's passing rather quickly; before we know it, those freaks who like to run at the break of dawn might start waking up soon. We do have something of a time limit for this coverup. So then, what exactly are we looking at? To put it bluntly? This is a government official we accidentally killed. You accidentally– No, no, okay, forget it. Details. What happened exactly? What evidence is there? Not a whole lot. The three of us were hanging out in those bushes. Shot him in the back with an unmarked sniper rifle. In our defense, we didn't know it was him. You didn't know it was him? Wh-what are you talking about?!? Are you just shooting random people for fun now? Of course not! Seth, buddy, it's more nuanced than that. See, we thought it was somebody else... and it turned out not to be someone else. That's not...Again, Seth trailed off. Then he just sighed.  Do you people have to murder so much? Look, I don't like this any better than you. And trust me, if we killed the person I thought we were killing, you wouldn't have any problem with any of this. I find that hard to believe. All right, maybe you'd have a teensie tiny problem. But I chalk that up as more a 'you' thing than anything else. Ugh. You know, I'm getting really sick of cleaning up after your messes. I know, I know. I'm sorry Seth. But you know that if you actually decided to refuse our help, you'd end up with your head on a pike back at Duat HQ, right? ... ... Heh heh heh heh. H-heh, heh, heh.Seth nervously joined in with Yi's chuckling. Yi slapped Seth on the back twice with a bit of force. Ah, I kid, I kid. You'd actually just disappear at the bottom of the ocean. ...R-right. I mean, head on a spike? We're not animals. Of course, of course. Hey, Yi? He gets it. He wasn't even putting up a resistance, just doing some standard grumbling. No need to keep with the threats. Bah. Always a buzzkill, Lara, always a buzzkill. Guys. Time. Okay then, let's think. How do we want to cover up this murder? Lara, you've just been coasting here, I want to hear your actual idea on this. My idea? Uh, a bit on the spot, but okay. ... We, uh, we could contact some of our people, have them bring over a truck. We load the body up. Transport it away. Dump it in the ocean. Then it's like the murder didn't even happen. Simple. Wow. What a garbage answer. Seriously? Yeah, seriously? You became a Senior Officer with that sense? Now you're just being mean, Yi. Are you–Yi looked over to Seth. Oh. Whatever. Anyways, no, bad idea. There's a ton of blood and poo poo here, Aija saw the man die, and... it's just a lot of work. There's an easier way. And that is? Simple.[BGM: Ones Are Wild]  Arson. What? We just burn down the park, this guy with it. Now who's doing too much work? It's actually pretty easy to start a fire. Besides, this actually cleans stuff up – all forensic evidence of us being here, clear cause of death for this guy, motive in the first place... all burns away. Uh, okay, well I d-don't hate it... but maybe, not that? Not that, huh? I hadn't considered it. We don't need to harm the park. You guys are putting too much thought into this." Agreed. Here, look, I'm a cop. You brought me in to help with stuff like this. You want to know what your best course of action is? Hit me. It's just a botched robbery. You remove this guy's face mask, so he's easily recognizable... also makes him look less sketchy. Take his wallet out his pocket, steal all the valuables from him. Remove the bullet from his head, disguise the fact that he was killed by a sniper. Won't that come out in forensics? Yeah, but by that point, they'll have forgotten a lot about this case. Seriously? That works? Messed up, r-right? What about forensics? Proof that we were here? I'll be one of the officers first on the scene. I'll make sure to remove any forensic evidence that ties directly to you. You be sure you do that. I don't need to tell you what happens if any of us end up in jail, do I? No, no you do not.Yi let out a small yawn. All right then. Sounds sensible enough. Thane, want to do what the man said?I didn't. But I nodded, and bent down and looked over the corpse.  Ah, man. I felt pretty bad about what I did to this guy. But, well... enough waffling about. I made a decision. I'd just have to live with it. For now, I had work to do. As instructed, I removed the face mask. Then I... ...retrieved... ... the bullet. Ew. Okay, hated that. But whatever, now for the wallet. I rifled around in the guys pockets. Eventually, I found it. ...drat, not much in here. Oh well, not the point. I also found his phone in that pocket. Hm. For good measure, I decided to give it a good stomp. ...There. Back in the pocket that goes. And that was everything I had to do. But... the others weren't really watching me right now. If there was a time to use the secret weapon... ...This could backfire, in a lot of ways, and I wasn't sure if this was the right time. The right tact. I wasn't sure about a lot of things. Frankly, I still didn't know enough about enough things. But, well, that was the point, wasn't it? If things stayed static, nothing would break up. There'd be no opportunities, no weaknesses. This, I think, would force moves. ...So then. Quickly, I looked back to make sure I wasn't being watched. And carefully, I took it out of my pocket: a cigarette. A stub, more like it – one that Yi had smoked. Very carefully, I placed it under Gani's arm at a point hard to spot. Then I walked right back to the others. [BGM: Silence]  You done now?I just nodded. Excellent. So are things handled? Pretty m-much, uh, I guess. I guess I can send an anonymous tip for this body? ...Actually, it would be better if one of you did it. I have an early shift today. I'll partner up with Pandora, make sure we've got incompetency on our side.As the group continued to chat, I subtly turned back to the body. I took my phone out of my pocket. I slid over to the camera app. And very carefully... ...As quickly as I had taken the phone out, I slid it back into my pocket. Luckily, Lara, Yi, and Seth were too busy discussing business to notice. And that'll all work? I think. I mean, I hope. The verb 'hope' there, ironically enough, doesn't inspire much of it. Well–Immediately, we all went silent. All for the same reason. We heard something. [BGM: Last Dice]  Someone, approaching. Last time, everybody stayed close – we pretty much knew who was approaching. This time? No clue. So instantly, all four of us ducked behind the same set of bushes... we got as low as possible... and we held our breath. We would stay as quiet as possible. The person got closer... and then, I could hear them getting right next to the body. Then? I heard the light sound of weeping. ...Weeping? Not surprise? Then that meant... I thought I knew who I'd see as I peeked out... and I was right. Grieving above the body was Governor Aija herself. What is Governor Aija doing back here? Shhh. But that's weird, right? Who cares? Seth, what does this change? She's probably going to call in to report the body soon. Luckily, we already did what we needed to. I can handle things from here. You better. So we can leave now? I think that would be for the best.And just like that, we slowly crawled away, until we had enough distance. And then, quite quickly, we all left Panthea's central park. That was quite an experience, I thought to myself. But I couldn't get content yet. The work had just begun. ... [BGM: Silence]   Hey, here's an idea. You know how you sometimes get situations where one person is about to kill another person? But then the would-be victim is able to talk the would-be killer out of it? Not with, like, threats or bribes or anything? Just a full-on, no tricks, talk-no-jutsu reversal which gets them to change their minds? Want to know why that works? It's because on some level, deep down, the person wants to believe that they are good. It's a desire almost everyone on this earth has, no matter how evil we may seem. The unconscious mind can go to deliciously ridiculous lengths to justify itself and its actions. Convincing someone of their own flaws, their own evils... it's not an easy task. But it is quite possible. ...But only if, on some level, the person wants to be a good person. We're at the end of this round of cards, which means it's time to see how Devon's doing.
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Jan 3, 2024 02:22
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Junpei posted:Oh shoot thank you for correcting me, 'preciate it. Oh, that was in addition to what you said. Wikipedia supports both statements.
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Jan 3, 2024 02:49
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This has been a great set of cards so far.
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Jan 3, 2024 04:34
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Some of these cards are starting to make me think that we're not playing as seven distinct characters, but a far smaller amount. Odin's remark about not meeting 'Mercury' for the first time, Laverna's remarks about being tired and the idea of Lock being an alternate persona that he uses when he needs to is what's leading me down that track. We know there's more than one, since both Lock and Vels have come into contact with Devon, but aside from that they've been fairly isolated from one another. Obviously there's no need to confirm or deny my speculations, but I am interested to see where this all leads.
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Jan 3, 2024 14:19
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The small bit between Thane and Lara confirms that Thane's perspective occurs after Mercury's--I wonder if that suggests that Thane gets killed while chasing them, by someone who falsely believes he's after them instead? Or perhaps that's Mercury under the mask, if we're going with the "multiple perspectives" theory, though that seems unlikely. Mercury is fun, not only because they impressed Odin, but also just refuses to be intimidated by him. Calling him out on his legacy actually being his sons was great--because Odin obviously considers his legacy his power and skills, and seemed briefly surprised and/or angry at being corrected. ZCKaiser fucked around with this message at 20:10 on Jan 3, 2024 |
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Jan 3, 2024 15:27
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I thought Mercury was a girl? At least, that's from my fuzzy memory. Though I don't remember how many people have had confirmed genders. Like Laverna and Eris obviously are girls, and Lock and Devon are guys. Not sure if anyone else has been locked in.
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Jan 3, 2024 15:53
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Vels and Mercury are nonbinary, and while Thane the actual person was male we don't know the impostor's gender.
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Jan 3, 2024 19:35
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 [BGM: Ones Are Wild]  It was early morning. The sky in the early morning had an odd air about it. And from my position on this roof, I could get a nice good look at it. I wasn't sure why I was on the roof of an abandoned building; I guess, if I had to diagnose this random whim of mine, I liked pacing around. I liked pacing around in the open air... pacing without wearing a facemask or hoodie. But I needed to lay low, now more than ever. And up on the roof of this abandoned building? Nobody would see me up here. There were taller buildings than this, sure, but they weren't in this area of Panthea. So here, I could pace with relative privacy. Pace to try and clear my mind... though, that was a sketchy prospect. It would take a lot more than just pacing to calm myself now. I mean... holy poo poo. Holy poo poo, was I trash. I never held myself in the highest esteem, but this was a new low. I had performed, to put it simply, pathetically. I could feel the iron grip of the spiral. If I lost focus for even a second, I could find myself spiraling in it. What had I done? How had I messed things up this drastically? The Polly job... that was... I mean, wow. Wow. No part of that went as planned. It was truly incredible, how absolutely complete my failure was. How much of a joke of an assassin was I? I would be laughed out of the assassin community. ...I mean, not like there was an assassin community, but if there was, I'd be laughed out of it, for sure. And you know, if it was just this? Maybe I'd get over it. But this was coming off the heels of my failure to kill Lock, my failure to fool the cops in the latest Cock Robin killings. I was... it felt weird to refer to it as slipping – I mean, it's not like I ever had a golden standard of assassination to live up to, but drat it, I could do my job. I could kill the person I meant to. I was a base-level of competence at the very simple job of murdering people, and now even that was slipping away from me. gently caress. gently caress... How had we gotten here? I mean really? How had I messed those hits up? ...No, I knew how I messed them up. Those failures had very deliberate and specific causes. How did I get... here? Into the assassination business? That this was my one job, a job apparently I wasn't suited for? I could feel myself slipping. Slipping back in time. Slipping to the start of this whole thing. That night. [BGM: The Wire]  That damned night, at my lowest point, at that damned bar. The idiot who was harassing me, calling me worthless and pathetic. I started by just striking him once – a simple punch, to shut him up. He was following me out of the bar, you know, coming at me. He had started to shove me around. What was I supposed to do? So I hit him once; across the face, just to get him to shut up. And then I kept walking. I thought it was over. But then, that rear end in a top hat... he had a switchblade on him. He ran at me. If I hadn't turned around in time, who knows what he would've done. As it was, he only stabbed me a bit in the side. Then, I just flew into a rage. I had been suppressing a lot for a while, and here was the perfect outlet for all of it. I reached out at his throat, and just started... squeezing. Strangling. He punched me once or twice in the side, but it was faint resistance. I wasn't trying to kill him; I was just trying to show him I wasn't joking around. But I wasn't mindful. When I let go, threw him back to the ground, I thought that was it. I continued to walk away. I was done with that scum. ...But then I didn't hear anything. ...And then I still didn't hear anything. ...And finally, I got nervous. I turned back around and approached his limp body. It couldn't be... still, I checked for vitals. And to my horror, I couldn't find any. Without my knowledge, my intent, I had accidentally choked the man to death. I would learn later that the man was already in poor health. Diagnosed with a rather disastrous disease. In fact, his inability to pay for treatment was the likely reason he was spending drunken nights provoking fights with strangers. ...We all have our demons.  Anyways, I began to freak out. This was bad. Real bad. I couldn't even play this off as manslaughter, something with a light sentence that could be swept away... this was murder. I had killed... again. I would go away for a long time for this. At first, I thought about trying to hide the evidence – cover up my crimes. maybe flee the city. But just as soon as I had those thoughts, I gave up on them. I was tired. The man was right, my existence was aimless. I couldn't keep running or hiding or fighting, I was too exhausted. Prison felt right for me. So there, in that abandoned street in the dead of night, I called 911. I told them what I did. They listened quietly. And then, I heard a soft voice on the other side. They said they'd come and pick me up immediately. And then I just waited. Waited on that curbside. And waiting there, I felt... content? It was strange, really strange. Regardless, that feeling wouldn't last forever... wouldn't last particularly long. Soon enough, a police cruiser rolled right up... and out of the vehicle stepped Chief of Police Arrianne.  You Devon?I just nodded. I didn't know what to say. The Chief looked at the body... then back to me... and back to the body. Then she sighed.  All right then. Get in. I didn't have to be told twice. Aimlessly, I made my way into the back of the police car. Arrianne went back to the driver's seat... and we drove away. At the time, I thought it a bit strange. Shouldn't somebody be looking at the body? Do officers typically arrive by themselves like this? At the very least, I thought I would be in cuffs. But those concerns, how to put it... they were muted. They were thoughts I was having, sure, but I didn't actually care about any of them – I barely acknowledged them. I was far more concerned with every other aspect of my situation. The drive was long, silent. I just looked out at Panthea, as it was at the dead of the night. I thought about how it could easily be the last time I saw these sights. The Chief, for her part, stayed equally silent; no badgering, no questioning. She just drove ahead, with a steely look in her eyes. Eventually, we arrived at the police station. I could see it out the window. It didn't look like many were there, which made sense. It was pretty late. For a few moments, Arrianne just had the car parked outside. We both merely looked out at the police station. Then, I heard a sigh come from the front seat. Then, some faint mutterings, made to nobody in particular.  This is as good a chance as we'll get. Fine, then. We're doing this.Then I heard her take out her phone. There was some typing. A few minutes later, the car started moving. ...Moving away from the police station. I was unsure what was happening. A part of me was too nervous to ask... but I figured, at this point, what's the worst that could happen?  Um... where are we going? Just be quiet. This will not take long. And that shut me up pretty quickly. The Chief's tone made it perfectly clear she wasn't in the mood for a bunch of meaningless questions – and if you had to give me one thing, I knew how to shut up when I needed to. So I stayed quiet, as the car continued to travel through the night city. But now, those muted questions started to come to the forefront. This... I didn't know much, but I knew this wasn't right. This wasn't normal. What was going on? I had no clue. ...Honestly speaking, I thought I was being taken to be murdered. I know, it doesn't make much sense, but that's just what crossed my mind at the time. I also thought that all of this must have something to do with Odin. I mean, it had to, right? It felt like the only explanation. Whatever the case, I knew I didn't like what was happening. But I didn't need to worry for long. Soon enough, we had reached our destination. We had come to a building I barely recognized. I knew it was important, but I couldn't place it. Get out.Again, no need to tell me twice. I made my way out of the police cruiser. So did Chief Arrianne. Follow me.And like that, she led me forwards. As we entered the empty building, I suddenly remembered: this was the Governor's Office. Why... what were we doing here? It didn't make sense to me. But at this point, I was just in for the ride. We walked forwards, and I noticed Arrianne moving over to a painting. She reached under it and pressed something; then, we continued down the hallway. Finally, we found ourselves in Governor Aija's office. Ms. Aija took a moment to look me over... then, she spoke up. [BGM: The Bomb]   Is this him? Of course. Hm.She looked me over once more.  Well, aren't we feeling judgy tonight. Oh please, Arrianne, it's an understandable reaction. Is that reaction not the very reason it is him? You have me there. All right.Aija took a moment to straighten her posture in the chair. Hello there. I'm Governor Aija. Um, I know. I mean, hi. Nice to meet you. It is nice to meet you too, even if these aren't the most ideal circumstances. Yeah... Speaking of, it is my understanding that you are here because Arrianne here picked you up for a rather serious crime? …I couldn't meet her eyes. I don't know why, it's just... I guess I just had an aversion to admitting what I had done. Devon. Please, could you tell me what you did? There's no need for judgement. I'm not going to criticize you; this isn't some weird, arcane punishment. I just want to hear you explain what happened.I didn't know what to say. I was so unclear on what was happening. But... I was being offered a chance to confess. To repent. I wasn't particularly religious... still, it felt like the right thing to do. I found that I wanted to. Like this was the last chance I'd get to do this. ...So I talked. I explained myself. I told the whole story, from how I had been lingering away at my apartment to the encounter at the bar to my eventual decision to call the police. I didn't filter anything, I didn't make excuses, I just... confessed. Spilled my heart out. I maintained eye contact with Ms. Aija the whole time I told my story. ...And she held it back with me. And she was right, her face didn't betray any feelings of judgement or revulsion. Then, when I was finished, my face dropped to my hands. I didn't cry. I hadn't cried for many, many years. But I felt like it. It was... a cathartic experience. ...And then, after a pause, I heard Ms. Aija speak up. Well now. That is a story. A very sorry story indeed, Devon. I'm sorry that had to happen to you. T-to me? I... Governor Aija, I wasn't the victim. Is that right? I can't say I condone your actions, Devon, but considering everything you've told me, I think you're also worthy of pity. Oh. Well, um, thank you, Governor. That's very... nice of you to say. Chief Arrianne just clicked her tongue. Damned drunkards. I am so tired of their type. You would not believe how many crimes occur right outside of bars... the havoc they have wrought, the sadness they have caught. It is disgusting. Now, now, Arrianne. Let's not let personal feelings creep into things. The important thing is, one man's life has ended, and another's is irreversibly tainted. Hm.Arrianne just looked down, sour look plastered across her face. ...Even I could tell that this situation was unquestionably bizarre, and my curiosity was starting to get the best of me. U-um... Governor Aija– So, Devon, you've told us about yourself. Would you now like us to talk about you? Huh? To explain what we know about you. ...I guess? Good. For starters, we know your last name: Devon Deisma. …I didn't say anything. It's not like I was trying to hide that or anything, but still, hearing my full name... it wasn't a pleasant experience.  Middle son of Odin Deisma, Panthea's local tycoon. However, in an act of shocking callousness, the man disowned you as his son, called you all sorts of names. Disappointment. Unworthy. Pathetic.Without meaning to, I flinched. Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend. Let's just stick to the facts, okay Aija? I was just trying to– ...forget it. The point is, Odin has tossed you to the curb. But that wasn't enough for him. A man that prideful doesn't like the idea of having a failure of a son; it doesn't gel with his self-image. And so, he deployed his considerable wealth to effectively scrub your existence away. You can't actually erase a person's existence, of course, but you can do so in most ways that matter. And of course, he had your help, or at least your permission, in this exercise. So now you are, in many senses, a non-existent man. Someone who doesn't exist... not to the public, at least. I guess. That is rare. That is valuable. It is?I didn't know what they were getting at.  Moving on, you were also awarded for your time in the military. In fact, you received a rather prestigious reward. Y-yeah, that's right. Army man, huh? Thank you for your service. That's not necessary. Really, I didn't do much. Didn't do much? That doesn't seem right. Because, according to the award, you single handedly held one of our country's bases. That doesn't seem like much to you? I was lucky. Lucky? Is that right? Maybe. Though I must say, you must be quite lucky to have pulled off everything that you did that fateful night. I mean, I've been reading some reports about the incident as you've been making your way here.She has access to those reports? According to the eye-witnesses, there was a lot more on your side than just 'luck.' ...I guess. You guess? Yes, okay, I'm good at killing. Happy? I'm poo poo at most things, but don't you worry, I was really good at murdering all those men. Hell, I'm so good, I can kill when I don't even try – case in point!I gestured all around me. Ms. Aija and Arrianne just stared at me. I guess my outburst was a little weird.  You say that like it is a bad thing. Huh? You have a self-professed skill, and yet, you are treating it as a negative. Well, I mean... killing is a bad thing. Is it? Huh?I didn't know what to say. It was such a simple question, seemingly... and yet, I couldn't find a good answer for it. I spent more than a couple moments in silence, just grasping around for an answer. Then, Aija spoke up. Devon, I'm sure you're wondering why you were brought here. ...I am.Ms. Aija just nodded to this. You see, Devon, to me it looks like you're trying to throw away your life. ...And I don't think that's right. Wh-what?I didn't even know how to respond to this. You are a skilled combatant, Devon. Just eyeing you, I can tell that your physical shape is admirable – and that's after wasting away, drinking and driveless. I can only imagine what you'd be like if you'd applied that body from a young age. Any sport, you'd probably have been perfect for, not to mention the technical skills you possess. Your time in the army was valuable learning – and you learned it in record time. You have the body and skills of a perfect soldier... not to mention, the blood of a Deisma. A lineage most would envy uncontrollably. I don't... that's not, that isn't... Governor Aija put up her hand. Arrianne, please. Some tact. Just being honest.Ms. Aija shot Arrianne a dirty look. Then, she turned back to me. Forget all of that. Devon, every life is valuable. None should be thrown away. But I'm a killer. So? You're saying just because you've ended other lives, your own life is not valuable? Where exactly is the logic in that? If anything, your life is more valuable – you carry those you've killed with you. That's...I had never thought about it like that. Still, I couldn't understand what Ms. Aija was saying back then. But I'm useless. Useless? Devon, Arrianne just explained exactly how useful you are. ... This delusion that your life has no purpose? It's just that. A delusion. There's exactly one way your life could be worthless, Devon... and that's if you throw it away, right here and now. ... Ms. Aija's words stung. Was I... being a coward? Was I running away? …Wait a second... But then, was she saying I shouldn't have called the police? ...Why did you bring me here? Huh? I'm not stupid. I know you brought me here for a reason. So why?Ms. Aija and Arrianne exchanged a look. A silent contest, of sorts. Then, Ms. Aija turned back to me. ...Because I believe in second chances. Huh? If we did nothing - if we do nothing - you could go to jail. Be charged with this crime. You'd probably be found guilty. Murder like this, could be thrown away for life; you'd spend the rest of the many, many years you had left, rotting away in some cell. ... But I don't think that's for the best. To me, that's a waste – a waste to everybody. Instead, I want to put you to use... to give you a purpose. A... purpose? You want to make things right? Then you should work for it. Put your skills to good use, for once. I don't understand. What are you saying? Devon, how do you view Panthea? Huh? Do you view it as a good city?I took a moment to think. I had never really considered it. But I considered everything I knew – what I saw around. ...Not really. I mean, I want it to be... but it's not. Exactly. You're exactly right, Devon. Few people get it right on their first try like that, very insightful. So then, if you got that one right, maybe you'll know the answer to this: do you know why Panthea isn't what it could be?Instantly, I knew that I didn't know the answer to this one. I shook my head. One word: conflict. Conflict? Conflict. The eternal human element; the unavoidable barrier. For Panthea to evolve, it needs to make progress. But with all the conflict around, it's impossible. Huh. I don't... think I get it. You do not get why conflict is a bad thing? Um, no? Okay. Maybe this story will make it a little clearer. You know, my brother was a good man. Honest man. A true angel. He was a hard worker, he cared for his family, he had dreams. But all of that came to a sudden stop one day. Do you know why? No. Because of a really, really, really stupid conflict. Because some Shikome hotshot wanted to score big against the Duats. Because some Shikome idiot didn't know how bombs work. Because of that, three innocent civilians died that day. ...Including my brother.Up until now, Chief Arrianne had only spoken in an even-keeled, low voice... but all of a sudden, I started to hear the sparks of a barely-contained fury coming from her. In front of me, I noticed Governor Aija turning away. She put one hand to her mouth, and her eyes were clenched shut. It was clear, this death had affected them both. That's the truth about conflict. It's ugly. It's messy. It harms everyone. As below, so above. The same principle holds true, in a much less grave way, in politics.Aija had seemingly composed herself once again. To make Panthea live up to what it could be, changes need to be made. Big changes, sweeping changes. Changes that many would oppose, because either it would put themselves in jeopardy, or because change scares them. And most importantly, to make that change, you need power. And power will always attract conflict, because everybody wants power. Everybody fights for it. Everybody struggles to keep it. ...And before you know it, the power is never used. Nothing changes, conflict rages, Panthea burns.I could see the picture pretty clearly. And I couldn't say Aija was wrong. Everything she was saying, it lined up perfectly with what I believed, what I had learned. ...But it left one major question. So. So?Arrianne's eyebrows furrowed, but Ms. Aija put up a simple hand. What exactly are you asking us, Devon? You're right. That all sucks. But what I don't get is what any of that has to do with me... with us. Ah. Well, about that...Aija sat back in her chair, uncomfortably moving around. We want you to stop the conflict. Arrianne! What? I dislike this beating around the bush. I'm telling it to Devon straight. I still don't understand. Devon, you want to make Panthea a better place, right? Right. You want to dedicate your life to a good purpose, right? Uh huh. Well then, good news. Ms. Aija here is trying to make Panthea a better place for everybody. A safer place, a stabler place. But to do that, we need to handle these conflicts... and unfortunately, a lot of these conflicts are hard to handle. But... there's one way to stop them for good.Finally, the implication was dawning on me. You're not saying– I do not suggest this lightly. I have... weighed this decision for a while now. Very, very carefully. But whenever I do, I think of my childhood. I think of my late husband. I think of what I see when I pass by the streets every single day. I think of cases like yours. And... the right thing to do becomes extremely clear. Change must happen. Change can't happen so long as there is conflict. The only way to settle conflict is with violence. And so... You want to use me as a soldier.Neither Aija nor Arrianne responded... but their faces told the story. Of course. It all made sense now. Devon. I said that life is valuable... and I believe that. So then, by that same token, can't deaths be even more valuable? ... It is a horrible plan I am proposing. But I truly believe it is the best way... no, the only way to create a Panthea without conflict. Without suffering. But the only way I can do it is with your help.I thought about everything that Aija had said. About what my life had become. What I believed in. You know, when making major life decisions, you'd think that you have to weigh them extremely carefully – that you'd need a lot of thought to come to the right choice. But no, it's more the opposite... at major junctures, the right option actually tends to come to you pretty instantly. Okay. I'm in.For a moment, surprise covered Aija's face. And then, it shifted into a smile. Excellent. And like that, the Anti-Conflict Trio was created. To make Panthea a better place, we'd all do our part. We'd put out conflicts, and we'd make the city a better place. It took a while to get everything into place.
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Jan 6, 2024 01:50
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 content warning: emotional self-harm, extreme mental spiraling, implication/mention of child abuse, suicidal ideation [BGM: The Gungniri]  For starters, we needed to deal with the little fact that I had strangled someone in the middle of an alley. Luckily for me, a member of our Trio was the Chief of the Police; she outsourced that case to a police officer that apparently she kept around only to be a gullible stooge. I think the name was Pandora or something? Point is, Arrianne pulled some strings, and the case dissolved into nothingness. The force already had their hands full – plenty of cases slipped through the cracks. The hope was that by the time we were done, that would no longer be the case. I also spent time becoming the perfect assassin. Getting back in shape. Researching effective methods. Acquiring the proper equipment. Early days, I dealt with some immediate and reprehensible targets, and I took to assassinating people pretty quickly. It wasn't a case where my first few objectives were bungled, training steps I needed to take – from my very first victim, I was efficient. ...However, we quickly ran into a problem. Aija realized that everybody who stood in her way happened to die in an unexplained assassination case, things would start looking pretty bad before long. So we had to come up with a workaround. Hence, the Cock Robin Murders were born. If it looked like it was the work of a psychotic serial killer, then things would be far less suspicious. Who cared about motive? It was just the work of some psycho. Of course, that would only work if the Cock Robin Murders did happen to random people. I was pretty uncomfortable with the idea of just killing random strangers from different walks of life, as was Ms. Aija. Luckily, Chief Arrianne came in with a clever idea. She was, of course, a police officer... meaning she came across her fair share of dead bodies herself. So then, the plan was clear. Arrianne and I would both become the 'Cock Robin Killer.' Arrianne would set up the key items at a variety of crime scenes, ones that looked unlikely to be solved, ones that threw off the scent... and when somebody needed to be dealt with, I would fill in the next verse. It was an efficient system. It worked like a charm. That was my job. That was my life. That was my purpose. [BGM: Silence]  That was how I got here. And now... and now? My purpose. My life. My job. It was all in shambles. This was the one thing that gave me worth – the one good thing I had ever done. Were it not for that fateful night... were it not for Ms. Aija's generosity, were it not for Chief Arrianne's resourcefulness, I would have died alone and unloved. I would have died never having done anything of worth. I would have lived a pointless existence. And without my job... my life.. my purpose... I'd slip right back to that pointless existence. Without anything to offer. My only meaningful achievements firmly in the past. *bzzzt...* All of a sudden, my spiral was interrupted. I felt a vibration. ...Huh? I was so out of it, I didn't realize the very obvious truth. This was my phone. However, as I came to that realization, the momentary shock I felt dissolved into something far more insidious. A deep-seated fear. ...An inability to even look at the screen. But I had to. I didn't want to, but I had to. If I didn't, things would be worse. Though my arm resisted, I managed to pull out my phone. I looked at the screen. Sure enough. It was Aija. [BGM: The Poison]  I was waiting for this. I hadn't yet had a chance to actually have a conversation with her. ...That wasn't quite right. I didn't want to talk to her. I was waiting for her to contact me. That definitely didn't make things better, but what could I do? I couldn't bring myself to contact her. I'm not that strong. … I had to pick up. If I didn't, I was truly useless. I steeled myself; whatever was on the other side of that phone, I deserved it. I'd be fine. I'd take my scolding and move on. Hell, I was Odin's son, I was no stranger to scoldings. This'd be a cake walk. And besides, Ms. Aija was nice; she was understanding. If I explained myself properly... well, I couldn't expect not to be berated, but maybe she'd understand? ... *click* … … ...Hello? Devon. Um, yes? What the gently caress is wrong with you? … Instantly, my defenses shattered. I said I'd be fine. I thought I'd be fine. ...I was lying. What was wrong with me? Odin could beat me on the daily and not achieve results Ms. Aija just did with a single sentence. For whatever reason, I was already feeling queasy... but I held on. Wh-what do you mean? What do I mean? Did I stutter? I asked you, Devon, what exactly the gently caress is wrong with you? … Well? Ms. Aija... it's entirely my fault. B-but, I can explain. I think, um, I think Polly knew he was going to be assassinated. When I broke in, he had bodyguards – not just one, he had two bodyguards. And I know, I know, patrol for that, check for that. That's the thing, I did! I used Art's help to track his purchasing history. I did reconnaissance, I gathered intel. And for the life of me, I didn't find hide nor hair that he had bodyguards. And they were up, like, really late at night. And I don't know, I guess when I was confronted with them I just panicked. I tried... I tried to salvage the mission. I thought if, I don't know, I just didn't spill blood, the hanging story could still work, so I didn't use my gun until too late. If I had just shot first, asked questions later, this never would have happened. That's entirely my bad. And, well... When it was three versus one, even still, I could've won. But the cops were coming, and... you said I'm your weapon, right? Well, I'm of no use to you as a weapon when I'm in jail. I know we've got Arrianne on our side, but if I was found at that house, there's no getting away. I know I failed this mission. But I'm still able to help out for futu– You're useless to me as a weapon if you're compromised! Ms. Aija shouted in an angry tone I hadn't heard from her before. She was... very upset. Compromised? I don't... are you saying, uh, did Polly recognize me? Because that can be dealt with. I mean, the Polly hit is still on so– There are photos. …I couldn't think of a more disheartening three words. ...What? There are photos! Photos that place you at the scene of the crime. Huh? No, that... that's not possible, the whole time, I was locked in combat with the– Well obviously this combat couldn't have been that 'intense' if somebody was able to get a picture of you. …I had no response. This was devastating. How... do you know this? Ha! How do I know this? I was shown this photo. I was also shown another photo taken of you – a photo taken of you and me. Together. Do you know what this means? ...Yes. What does it mean? It means I'm compromised. Precisely! Precisely. …I had no words. I had no arguments. I had nothing. I mean, if this was in the hands of a journalist, we'd truly be hosed. So, wait, it's not? No, just some opportunistic rear end in a top hat. Don't ask me how he got both of these photos, I don't want to think about it too much. Luckily, we're dealing with rats, and rats can be exterminated. At present, this particular rat is trying to use these photos to extort me. That's horrible! Let me handle this, I'll make sure this guy neve– No. Bu– What part of no don't you get? … You moron, what don't you understand? This guy knows about our connection! He's been stalking us. He's probably expecting you to make a move, you think he won't account for that? But then... what can I do? Nothing. You can do nothing. So you're just going to give into this guy's demands? Did I say that? No. Right. Luckily, there's another person I can turn to at a time like this... though they're none too happy with me at the moment, thanks to your little screw-up. You're turning to Art? At this point, he's the brother less likely to screw things up. ... I am giving up a lot by asking for his assistance. However, apparently, he has a contact at the Duats, so I'm using him as an intermediary. They will... handle things. Yes, I've resorted to consorting with the Duats of all people. This is how low you've dragged me. Hold on a second...I knew I was in the doghouse, but there was something I couldn't help but bring up. Art has a way to put out a hit other than you? Then, why was he willing to pay so much to kill Polly through me? Finally, a sensible question. I had a similar concern. Apparently, Art had reason to believe he was not the only Deisma brother with a Duat informant. Though, he himself admits this is groundless suspicion, born of very little evidence. Still, he wanted to avoid the chance that Polly would hear of his own hit through the network. ...Thus, using us. Oh.I guess that made sense. Though, did Polly really have a Duat contact? I wasn't sure how much sense that made to me. ...Although, it made perfect sense that Art would think that. Okay then, so, what should I do? What should you do? Easy: nothing. Nothing? Ms. Aija, I r– Oh my God, how do you not get it already, are you actually incapable? You are exposed. You are a liability. I can't have anything to do with you. Hell, this conversation is a risk! I'm just having it because it's even more risky to not tell you verbally that you need to get your poo poo together. ...[BGM: Silence]  I heard Aija sigh on the other side of the call. I... look, we'll reconvene and see what our options moving forwards are soon enough, see if we can salvage things. In the meantime, please, just keep your head down. Maybe rent a room at a motel. Get some rest, get your head right. ...Okay. Devon, don't give me that tone, answer affirmatively. Okay, Ms. Aija. Good. We'll talk soon. Don't call me, I'll call you.*click* … I just... stared. At nothing. I couldn't bear to think. Because if I did, I'd have to process what just happened. I'd have to face the reality of the situation. I'd have to know just how massively I had screwed everything up. [BGM: Spot On]  God, gently caress, gently caress, gently caress. I knew this would happen. It was only a matter of time. I couldn't be trusted with this. I mean, loving hell, what was I thinking. Saving Panthea? Me? Ridiculous! Like clockwork, I had managed to screw it up. I was exposed; my secret identity, my one asset was gone. Now Ms. Aija was going to discard me. I was useless to her. I was useless, period. I never had any purpose in life. Until now, I had found the one thing, the one good thing I could do, and I ruined that too. Stupid, Devon, stupid! Why hadn't I checked security more thoroughly? It was sloppy... arrogance! Once again, I underestimated Polly. Once again, Art had gotten me in this lovely situation. Why hadn't I taken out my gun in that house sooner? Why hadn't I stayed and finished the job? Screw the police – I was a weapon that didn't miss, I was a Gungiri. I should've finished the job, consequences be damned. And I didn't! Because I can't. Given any sort of responsibility, I'd screw it up. I started to get a physical headache. gently caress... all sorts of memories started flashing through my head. Polly making fun of me. Failed tests. Art's betrayal. Odin berating me. The day I spent in the iron coffin. The coffin's coldness. My failed attempt to escape from it all. The day I left the Deisma household seriously. My time at the military. The lunches I ate alone. The soldiers I killed in the raid. Man. After man. After man. That I shot. The cold feeling of the badge against my chest. The crampedness of the apartment. Odin telling me he was erasing my existence. My hollow acceptance of it. The nights I spent at the bar. How wordlessly I got into that police car. Reading the Cock Robin poem. Murdering. And murdering. And murdering. And those sleepless nights, every night, in that same cramped room. It all spun in my head, jumping from one topic to the next. It was uncontrollable. I knew I was spiralling, and I could do nothing. [BGM: Silence]  AAAAAAAARRRGGHH!!I audibly screamed out into the world. At what? At nothing? At it all? Who knows. All I know is what happened next. I began moving forwards. I just couldn't handle it any more. The spirals. There was nothing tethering me anymore. Everything I did ended in failure. There was one simple way to put it all away. I walked forwards. And forwards. And finally, I was at the edge. My feet were right at the edge of the building. I could see down. ...It really wasn't that far a drop. I mean, comparatively. But you really don't need to be too high to get to a fatal height for humans to fall from. You don't need to get too high to get humans to be nervous looking down. That's, uh... death by falling off a building would hurt, right? More than a bullet to the head, maybe? I should know that. I was an assassin, I should know what hurts and what doesn't... and yet I don't. Ha. Whatever. It was easier with a pistol anyways. I had experience killing sinners. I took the classic six-shooter out my pocket and put it to my temple. This was it. I had enough. Right now, I could get out of the way for good. All I had to do... was do what I was good at... ... ... [BGM: The Pistol]  ...gently caress this. I dropped my arm. gently caress this. No, no, no, no, no. This wasn't right. This wasn't what I should be doing. I flashed back to what Ms. Aija said. All lives are valuable. And deaths, too, could be valuable. I was sorry for my mistake, so I'd just excuse myself from responsibility? Was I that big a coward? Apparently. But no, that's not right. None of this was right. I turned away from the ledge. What I should do, is make things right. My purpose? Of course I still have my purpose. It was just slightly changed. But to make things normal, I just had to handle things. I just had to do my job. Stop the conflict. And maybe doing this would end things. Maybe this was my final volley of sorts. Last shot before I burned everything to the ground, including myself. ...Well, that's fine. I'm already a dead man walking. Future prospects couldn't scare me. My death would be valuable. I kept walking towards the stairs. Sorry, Ms. Aija. For once, I wasn't going to be listening to your order. I was going to make things right. As almost a nervous tick, I began spinning the cylinder of the pistol. There were many people who stood in Ms. Aija's way that I could have eliminated. That I should have. Laverna. *spin.* Lock. *spin.* Polly, and his two bodyguards. *spin.* I was going to be careful. I was going to be smart. I was going to collect information. *spin.* And then, I was going to put things into action. I'd manipulate them all into showing up in one room. And then, in a single instant, I'd wipe every last one of them out in one go. *spin.* I looked at the gun I had in my hand. Six bullets. Five targets. Perfect – a shell for every head. ...And one for insurance. ... [BGM: Silence]  Well, that very nearly got quite dark. ...Hey, isn't that weird? Why would it be darker if Devon did take the big fall, as opposed to him deciding to kill a bunch of people? That doesn't make much sense. Probably because people get their knickers twisted when suicide's on the table. ...But why? Why's it bad to joke about suicide, but a good murder joke gets the crowd a'rolling? Well, it's subjective, of course. Some people think you can joke about both, some think you can joke about neither. But by and large, people find suicide taboo, murder not-so-much. Maybe it's because people might know others who have killed themselves? But come on, when you look at the statistics, the suicide rate isn't that much higher than the homicide rate. If you ask me, homicide's the far more tragic event. When someone's killed, their lives, dreams, desires, plans - they're ended without any consent from the victim. With suicide, at least the person going gets to do it on their own terms. Full consent. If some random, innocent person was locked in solitary confinement for a month with no good justification, people would call that an injustice. Or prison in some places, but let's not get even further off topic. But by that same right, if somebody chose to imprison themselves for a month, well, some might suspect that said person was a little loopy, but no one would really have a problem with it. What's the difference? Some people cry out that there's never a good reason to kill yourself. But that's arrogance. The privilige of those with lives that didn't drive them to want to kill themselves. If the remainder of somebody's life will almost certainly be filled with pain and misery, of course it makes sense to cut that off at the pass. Are there plenty of unjustified suicides? People who didn't have a good reason to check out? Sure."= But let's not pretend that that's the only type. Then again, I don't particularly care about any sort of death, so perhaps I'm not best person to speak on the topic. ...Oh right, poo poo, we had a bet to settle, didn't we? Totally skipped my mind. So, Arrianne being an accomplice to the Cock Robin Killer. That little scene with Lock eavesdropping probably already gave you a decent idea, but it still wasn't completely clear. But now, It's now as confirmed as you can get. She is. Which means, you're not getting your bet back. Sorry. But come on, between you and me, you were just betting that she wasn't because you thought that this was some sort of trick, weren't you? Look, maybe I'll make a bet where the answer seems obvious, but it's actually a trap. But maybe I'll just make an obvious bet! You can't predict me, and don't even try – else, you'll lose even more chips. We need another bet, though. Something else to bet on, something else... well, hey, what do you know? Devon pretty clearly set out a mission statement at the end there, huh? 'Gathering Laverna, Polly, Lock, and “the two guards” in one room.' And then there was some stuff about killing them, but you know... who knows what will happen on that front? I'm more interested in betting on that first bit. Will Devon be able to gather those 5 individuals and himself in a room? What do you think? I think he won't.We hit a tie, so I had a tiebreaker vote done by an unrelated person. Like before, their vote won't be counted for the purposes of how many chips we bet, which will still be 50%. Someone's down on Devon. Okay then, price time, what you betting?We're betting 28 chips. Cool. Cool cool cool. Well, I guess we'll just have to see how it all shakes out, won't we? New round of cards, so it's back to Laverna. Mix. fucked around with this message at 15:37 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 6, 2024 01:51
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I think he'll get them all in a room, but I think this is a trick question and that there aren't five individuals and himself to gather. So I'll say no.
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Jan 6, 2024 03:19
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Kinda torn. On the one hand, it's possible that they'd end up in a room together and then Devon enters and starts shooting, which would technically count as "Devon gathers all 5 and himself in one room". On the other hand, given the different motivations and personalities on display, I could easily see Laverna or, more likely, Lock not being in the room because of their own stuff. Writing it out, I'm gonna go with no.
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Jan 6, 2024 03:58
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One more day for votes  Also, as per usual, I'd be interested to hear what people's thoughts/rankings are since we're at the end of a batch again, especially now that we're properly in the final third of the story.
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Jan 6, 2024 19:17
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I'll be contrary and say yes. Let Devon accomplish something, he's not done that in a while. Anywa, I don't think anything's changed too much, though we're starting to see more of the cast interacting with each other and really starting to explore the side characters like Arrianne more. Mercury has actually gotten more interesting now that they're off the ship, at least.
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Jan 6, 2024 19:24
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I think Devon will absolutely get together a room full of people who want him dead. I don't think he'll be remotely successful at killing them, but we do need to hit the point where all these separate stories start pooling their information to find the truth at some point.
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Jan 6, 2024 22:13
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Which non-viewpoint character do you find the most effective villain (not 'they're the most successful in the story', in terms of how well you like them as a villain/how good you think their writing is)? Aija? Yi? Art? Odin?
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Jan 6, 2024 22:21
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Probably Odin and Yi for me. They're the ones that really seem to have accepted their role in the story and are just having fun being the baddy.
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Jan 6, 2024 23:04
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I think he won't. We hit a tie, so I had a tiebreaker vote done by an unrelated person. Like before, their vote won't be counted for the purposes of how many chips we bet, which will still be 50%. Someone's down on Devon. Okay then, price time, what you betting?We're betting 28 chips. Cool. Cool cool cool. Well, I guess we'll just have to see how it all shakes out, won't we?New round of cards, so it's back to Laverna.
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Jan 7, 2024 15:37
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Heads up, the LP's gonna be on pause for a little bit (not too long, hopefully), a lot of RL stuff has kinda hit the fan all at the same time so I need to focus on that for a bit. I'll still probably work on updates when I can, though, and I don't really see it being too big of a pause, but wanted to at least say something.
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Jan 10, 2024 02:14
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Okay! Pause is going to be ending probably sometime this week, things have kind of resolved broadly and its more just a lot of weird stuff left lol. I'll be working on new updates and get things up and rolling here soon. (Without getting into detail I went into the situation with a solid chance my 10+ year relationship would be ending and somehow came out of it with a second relationship instead so, uh, kind of not how I expected that to go!)
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Jan 21, 2024 15:42
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Huh? What? is appropriate.
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Jan 21, 2024 15:51
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 [BGM: Raise]  There are but so many ways to describe making your way to a crime scene, just like there are so many ways to make an entrance. I tired of attempting creativity or theatrics; at this point, they had served their purpose... they hardly seemed necessary. Instead, I decided to just approach straightforwardly. I knew where the scene of the crime was, so I took a direct path towards it. Simple. However, before I actually reached the scene, I was met with a familiar yet unwelcomed face in my periphery.   Oh dear. The pre-emptive 'oh dear'? Gotta say, that's rare. Don't see that one too often. Anyways, how do you do, Laverna? How is life on this fine morning? Life is fine, for those who have it. Unfortunately, the number of us who still possess it has dropped; thusly, I have been summoned to the scene. People die every day, Laverna. With that logic, you'd be summoned everywhere all the time. Why is it, Kane, that I see you so frequently? Usually when an individual is present at so many landmarks of tragedy, they are either a detective or a criminal. Oh come on, that's not fair. I'm a journalist! That's gotta fit in the 'detective' category, right? Excuse me? You would dare conflate journalism with the noble profession of detective? Noble? Actually, nope, not getting into that. Not a full-on detective, obviously, but like, a side variant? At best, I shall grant journalists their own, third category. Even still, this does not explain your presence. It is quite early. What would motivate you to wake at this hour? I could ask you the same thing. Why are you here? I was actually called to the scene. So was I. Who called you? Not who, but what. I was called by the story.What a cheesy line. I see. A valid defense.With that, I tried to keep walking. Kane wasn't ready to end the conversation, however. Anyways, Laverna. I met up with your sister recently. Oh? Yeah, we had a nice conversation at Smith's. It was nice. Eris is pretty sharp. ...Well, I guess that tracks after all, family genes or something. Anyways, point is, I talked with Eris. Is that right? Wow. What a disinterested tone. Cold, Laverna, so cold. To be frank, Kane, I couldn't care less – about your affairs or hers. Aw, you don't mean that. The two of you are sisters, aren't ya? Surely you care, just a little bit. And what makes you think that? Well, for one, she talked about that favor she did for you recently, vis a vis your website. That doesn't seem like a favor asked for or delivered upon if there was no connection whatsoever. She spoke of that, did she? drat Eris and her loose lips. That supposed to be some secret? Oh, man, my bad. I didn't mean to rat on Eris like that. I mean, I was the one prodding her about it in the first place. If you're going to blame anyone for the incident, blame me. Believe me, I do. Though, that does raise a question: why were you prodding on such a subject? Ah, that. See, I was looking into your background a bit. Nothing shady, I swear; just wanted to do a story on you. A story? On me? Yeah, it'd be great. I mean, no one can deny you certainly have a style about you. Ace detective of Panthea, helping out the incompetent police force? Yep, that's definitely a story The Oracle should run. Hmm. You sound unenthused. Not one for the starlight? I did not get into this business for fame, and to highlight me is to miss the point entirely. I'm missing the point, huh? All right. I'll buy that. So then, mind telling me where that point is? The story should never be about the detective. Rather, it should always be about the victim. In the end, the murdered party is always the main actor in a homicide. It is their life that should be remembered, honored. The victim's the main actor in most murders? That's an interesting perspective. I get it not being the detective. You're the invisible hand of justice, a non-party, yadda yadda yadda. But usually people would call the murderer the main party in a murder, not the victim. People would be wrong. I'm not making a judgement call. Just saying, it's an interesting distinction. Probably says something... though, damned if I know. Looping back to the point, I get your sentiment. Still, doing a story on you is way easier. To change targets, I'd need a victim worth writing about. Oh, do not worry. If you are looking for a star victim whose story you wish to tell, I can supply you with one before too long. That right? Let me just throw out a random name then, see how you react: Maximillian Collins.I tried to stifle my surprise. I usually managed to do that pretty well; however, Kane's smile told me I wasn't successful in this instance. Right, right. That's all I need. Hmm. Moderately impressive, I must say. If I might ask - how exactly did you come to that conclusion? It's a rather specific one. Oh, a magician never reveals his secrets. Kane. It's nothing complicated. I've been looking into you. You've been looking into Max. In my looking into you, I've found traces of you looking into Max. Simple as that. Simple as that, huh? If Kane could track my activities like that, then I definitely was not concealing myself well enough. That was a problem to circle back to. In that case, well researched. So, you think you'll crack the case? I got to admit, in a city with a surprisingly high homicide rate, that double murder back at the gala still sticks out like a sour thumb. I know I sure as hell would like to figure out what happened there. And you seem the best chance this place has got to getting some of those answers. If that isn't the half of it. Look, Kane, I am not a soothsayer. I know not the future. Nor the past, or I would be the greatest detective in the world. (Not saying I'm not, just saying that fact would not be in dispute were I able to glean the past with absolute accuracy.) I simply know the present, and in my present, I am searching for the truth that has been buried. I know I will not rest until I find what I seek. I know I have the skills to uncover any mystery I set my mind to. And therefore, I know that, sooner or later, I shall have the story of Maximillian Collins you so desire. Neat. Sounds exciting, I'll be waiting for it on the edge of my seat. Anyways, enough small talk. We're here today because of the current incident, not incidents in the past or in the possible future. A man was shot in Panthea's central park in the middle of the night – a government official, no less. Scary stuff. We live in dangerous times. A fact you seem to omit from your articles, I might add. Bah, details. So, do you think you're going to be able to solve this one? I am an ace detective, unparalleled in deductive skills. I intend to pursue this crime with my full attention. With that in mind, I can only surmise that the criminal will, indeed, be captured. Mhm. You know, last time we met up, I remember having a conversation that was an awful lot like this one – except, back then, you failed to catch the criminal. Seems to me like you do a bit more talking than you do solving.I could feel my face scrunch up. It was a moment of surprisingly legitimate indignation. Tch. For the record, I had that case solved. Were it not for the fact that my proof was deemed ineffective, the thief would currently be in handcuffs. All right, well, A) probably not, at this point the thief would probably be in jail, people don't wear handcuffs 24/7 in jail. ...Or maybe they'd be on bail, I don't know. B) That's a pretty big 'if.' If I recall correctly, I did not say the world 'if.' Laverna, I don't even kind of care. My point is, 'proof' seems like a pretty big part of the whole 'solving' process. That being illegitimate isn't something you can just shrug off. I mean, can you imagine if a murder mystery just ignored the proof? 'Mr. White, you are the murderer!' 'Can you prove it?' 'No, but you definitely did it! You're a real shady looking son of a bitch!' 'drat, you got me.' Point made. For your information, despite the victim tragically passing away, the case of the Vanishing Vase is still open in my eyes. In fact, I plan on bringing charges against the true culprit any day now. I simply await the correct time to strike. That right? Well, I hope you catch your guy. And I hope you catch the guy who did this one, for that matter. As do I.Kane looked over to the crime scene, where police officers were clearly visible. All right, well. Probably shouldn't keep you from your work for much longer. There's a murder to solve in all. Good luck with your detectiving. Get me a good story. Thank you, Kane. I'll be sure to do just that.I began to move further down the trail. Then, after a mere few steps, I stopped. Actually... Kane. Yeah? For a moment before speaking, I thought to myself. Is this a good idea? Should I say this to Kane? It took a moment's consideration before I landed on the answer. In the end, things were coming to a head. Time was precious. Every moment wasted was meaningful. ...And, more to the point, I severely doubted it could bring about any real blowback. So then, why not? I can throw you some leads right now, if you'd like. Leads? Just some things you might wish to follow up on your own time. Mere suggestions. All right, throw 'em at me.I nodded. For one, investigate the link between Polly Deisma and the Duats. The link? Cross-reference people with known Duat allegiances against people who have been seen conversing with Polly. If my hunch is right, there will be a surprise awaiting this line of investigation. Your hunch, huh? Okay. Weird, but I'll give it a look. Also, you would be well served spending some time looking into the connection between Officer Vasquez and a now-deceased police officer. He went by the name Isa. Was the nephew of former Police Chief Apis. Connection? Awfully vague descriptor, that. I'd call it apt. Okay, well, again, feels weird, but I guess I can spend some time on that. Good. You're welcome.[BGM: Opening Lead]  And like that, I turned face and moved towards the crime scene. That should probably do it. With Kane dealt with, I decided to move forwards. I made my way further down the trail, further into the central park. Step by step, I made my way nearer to the dead body awaiting me... until there were no more steps to take. Then I was standing with the rest of the cops, surrounding a dead body. Ah. Man. This didn't feel good. Most crime scenes, they felt bad. But this one? There was a particular pit in my stomach, looking at the splayed out body. Mmm, not good. Don't like that feeling at all. I shook my head, and gave myself a slap. Head in the game. I noticed Seth and Baldera approaching me.  You okay there, Laverna? Naturally. I'm just activating my detective glands. Dare I ask? Pain makes your body release adrenaline. Adrenaline makes your brain move faster. If your brain moves faster, you can get through bad trains of logic faster. If you can move through bad trains of logic faster, you will reach the correct train of logic sooner. Ergo, by administering a moderate amount of pain unto myself, I improve my detective skills by, why, I don't know... a factor of five. Wow. Well, you s-sped through a pretty bad train of logic right there in a record time, so I guess you have a point. Be civil. I think I put that pretty civilly, if you ask me. Moderately civil. I can live with that, uh, I think. Forget Seth. I often do.  The point is, you're here Lav! Good to have you at another crime scene. Good to be at another crime scene. It's funny, I never feel quite as alive as when I'm next to someone who is unmistakably dead. ...O..Okay, well, that's kind of the spirit. Just gonna b-brush past that one, huh? The point is, we've got another pair of hands on deck. So, uh, is this just the thing that happens now? Laverna just c-comes by to all our investigations, she's just a part of the team? Ah, ah, ah! Not so, Seth. Unlike a team member, I'll not come to help when I don't want to. Great. Awesome. Let's just g-get to investigating, could we? Let's. I feel we've run the gamut on pre-investigation topics of conversation; at this point, it's just derivative. Adds little to the scene. Okay, well, kind of a weird way of putting that, but point taken. We're here for a job, let's do it. So, it's, um, p-pretty obvious what the crime here is. Indeed. Improper disposal of waste. Wow, dark, Laverna, holy poo poo. Lav![BGM: Dummy]  Just trying to lighten the mood. I've been told dark humor is a common bonding practice amongst those who work in high-tension situations. Not like that, Lav. Totally inappropriate. I actually liked that one quite a bit. I'd appreciate more humor like that. Don't listen to Seth, he's an rear end sometimes. Hmm. My rapport with Baldera is already high enough that it can afford a hit. Therefore, it's optimal to make more jokes like this, to improve my relationship with Seth. What? You know what, whatever. The crime we're here to look into, for your information, is a homicide. A particularly grisly one at that. Is it? Excuse me? I don't know, this man was shot in the back of the head with a gun. Rather instant method of death. Not overly graphic. Surely this one doesn't rate that highly on the 'grisly' scale. Well, it sure feels grisly. I d-don't think that 'grizzliness' can be quantified like that Laverna. Why not? Maybe it feels worse because it happened in a public place that's supposed to be for families. That's, uh, a p-pretty dark atmosphere. No, I think it's the victim that's bumming me out. I mean, a government official being shot out in the open? One of Governor Aija's right-hand men? What's this city coming to? The victim, Secretary Gani. I met him before, correct? Yeah, at Aija's gala. Yes, yes, the man you accused of murder. Uh, right. I remember now. You quite laid into him, didn't you, Baldera? Okay, you know, I don't really remember how the night went. I do. The point is, he seemed like a decent guy back then, so we should try to avenge him. Really? Kind of seemed like an rear end in a top hat to me. Seth! Not relevant. Ah, but Baldera, that may be relevant. 'Assholes,' as Seth so bluntly put it, are far more likely to create grudges, whereas if this Gani was a bona fide nice guy, the motive would likely be less hatred-driven. Baldera shook her head at this. No, that doesn't have anything to do with it. Oh? We're pretty sure this is a robbery case – unlikely the perp even knew Gani in the first place. That right? Elucidate me on the reasoning that has brought you to this conclusion. His wallet's been emptied. He doesn't have any valuables on him. It's a pretty random location. Signs point to a typical hold up burglary gone wrong. Hmm. Perhaps, perhaps. Aren't you jumping to conclusions a little quickly with that, though?At this, Seth audibly groaned. I thought he might. S-seriously? I knew this would happen. Speak up, Seth, I have trouble hearing you when you grumble like that. I wasn't ta– You know what? Just, l-look, Laverna, don't make this more complicated than it really needs to be. I know you like to make a big thing out of every mystery... but sometimes, a robbery is a robbery.I nodded. Sometimes. And sometimes, it's an elaborate conspiracy, filled with multiple betrayals. It is my job to sort between the two. And how are you going to do that?[BGM: Dealing Hands]  Seth sounded pretty fed up with me. Hm Maybe I should put him on his toes, just a bit. I looked around the scene of the crime. Let's see... Is this not a particularly odd place to commit a murder? Well, it's not like there's a normal place to commit a murder. Actu– Laverna, I know you're going to start listing out places where you'd expect murders to happen, please try and stay focused. Why the sour mood, Seth? ...More to the point, how'd you know? Let's just, um, call it a deduction and move on. A deduction, huh? We may make a detective of you yet. I'm getting a headache. Before Baldera pulled us into a thoroughly unnecessary tangent, I was in the middle of pointing out the peculiarity of this crime scene. This is the central park, for Pete's sake! An extremely public area! Some may even call it the heart of Panthea. And, look, right over there!I pointed to a set of benches nearby. The scene is within short range of a meeting area. Surely you'd be hesitant to commit a robbery here.Baldera shook her head.  Sorry to say, Laverna, but I don't think you're right. Our preliminary autopsy puts the time of death smack dab in the middle of the night, closer to morning even. Time like this, almost nobody's around. You could pretty reasonably expect absolutely no witnesses – the fact that we got even one was a minor miracle. So, you have taken a swing against me. However, I still say the scene is odd!I didn't want to move on from this point quite yet. Rather, now instead of questioning the place, I question the time. If nobody was around this late in the night, why would someone attempt a robbery? How should w-we know? The criminal could be any l-lowlife scum. Could be a junkie, up at the late hours of the night. Crime of, er, opportunity. Or, the robber specifically chose to look for victims this late at night. Just because almost nobody was around doesn't mean that there couldn't be a few strangers passing by... and if nobody did come, no harm, no foul. Yes, see, exactly. Plenty of plausible explanations. So quit trying to make this crime more interesting than it is! Hmph. Well, forgive me for having a sense of adventure. Adventure?[BGM: Challenger]  Our investigative dialogue was going well. However, we then experienced a familiar interruption. Walking over was the Chief of Police, Arrianne. Didn't get a hit. Aw. That's, uh, that's a real shame.For a moment, I thought Arrianne would just skip by my presence. ...Which, I wouldn't have objected to. Instead, after this brief informational quip, she locked eyes with me. I tried to remain unfazed, though, I had to admit, Arrianne's aura vaguely put me on guard. Probably been that way ever since I confronted her in Nohoi's Nest. Definitely been that way since I got wise to her part in things. Laverna. So you're here for this investigation as well, is that right?I nodded my head. Happy to help, as always.Arrianne turned to Baldera. Ms. Vasquez, I do not have an issue with Ms. Smyth's presence. However, I would appreciate it if we did not make keeping me in the dark about inviting her a common practice. Sorry, ma'am. I didn't mean to, honest. You were just busy with the witness debriefing. And that's an excuse? No ma'am.The chief sighed.  Very well then. Let us proceed. Say, Chief? Yes Mr. Johnson?" You've l-looked over the scene at this point, yeah? Naturally. So, after your initial canvassing, what do you think our odds are at actually catching this killer? Mr. Johnson, I greatly dislike this line of questioning. Our odds of success should not influence how we do our job. S-sorry, ma'am.Then, Arrianne closed her eyes briefly, before opening them. ...I do not believe we have a great chance at catching this culprit. Signs point to this being a spontaneous crime with a motive of robbery, no relation between the victim and the killer. There aren't any definitive witnesses, no cameras; in lieu of forensic evidence, it will be difficult to come up with a hard suspect, even harder to mount a prosecution. How dreary. Crime often is. I must say, Laverna, I find your presence curious. Like the last scene you came to, there isn't much of a traditional 'mystery' to be solved. I know those are the situations you thrive in, as well as the situations you prefer. Indeed. I too bear umbrage at this. This appears to be an utter failure at utilizing my skillset, akin to cutting a pizza with a battle axe. Pray tell, why was I brought? Uh, Lav? You were the one who called me. Asked if I had any interesting cases. Yes, interesting cases. Important qualifier there! I'm sorry.Baldera meekly looked down. Ah, well. I might as well still aid where I can. After all, Seth has laid down the gauntlet at my feet. Betting that I couldn't disprove the notion that this was a robbery, who does he think he is? E-e-excuse me? I did no such thing! Oh, sure you did. It's called subtext. It's called delusion! This discussion is unproductive. If you wish to lend your skills to this investigation, do so at your own discretion. I shall. I deduced that there was a witness? You mean you heard that there was a witness. Yes, whichever. That seems important. However, before I come to battle, I first must arm myself. The weapons of interrogation oft lie displaced around the corpse. ...You want to examine the crime scene a little closer?I nodded.  Good to know at least one amongst you has been paying attention. A fair place to begin.With approval, I began moving closer to the corpse. However, before I could get too close, Baldera spoke up. Hey, Lav? Yes, dear Baldera? This is an important investigation. The crime scene is not a place to be taken lightly.Baldera spoke in a stunted manner, but her eyes were intense. I could get what she was trying to convey to me. 'The Chief of Police is here. She's less forgiving than us. loving thin ice.' Right, right. Yeah, it probably wasn't smart to get on her bad side now. I nodded to indicate my understanding to Baldera. Understood. I shall save my Espiritis Ventriloquism for another day. Excuse me? Ha ha, oh Laverna, you and your non-sequiturs. Always so amusing. Isn't that right, Seth? Leave m-me out of this, please.[BGM: Pip Count]  All right, that's enough of that. I took a few steps forward, until I was right next to the body, then I bent down to get a better look at it. Jeez... looking at the body for the first time, in the light of the day... I had made fun of Baldera, but sure enough, it was a grisly sight. The bullet had done a number on this guy. Sorry, Gani. I don't think I could call you a good person, but more than likely, you didn't deserve this. I'd just have to make sure your death wasn't in vain. Okay... okay. Let's see, Gani was about this tall, from the looks of things?I held my hand out at the relevant height. Seems about right.Arrianne and Seth also nodded. If that's the case, then that tells us a bit.I took a step away from the body, keeping my hand at the same level. Then I angled my hand slightly downwards. All right, so, obviously this is a rough approximation, but from the looks of things, he was shot around here. The bullet struck about where I'm holding my hand. ...But I noticed that the wound was slightly angled upwards, which means the bullet started its trajectory at some point along this line.I moved my hand away and slowly down at the angle I mimicked. I kept moving all the way until I put my hand in some nearby bushes. Ah, smart thinking, Lav! Right. With this, we know that the, uh, the killer was probably slightly shorter than Gani, and they must've put the gun right up to his head. Or the killer is really short, and shot at him from a bit of a distance. Or the killer was lying in the bushes when they shot him. Uh, yes, okay, I guess those are also possible scenarios, maybe. Let us try and focus on the likely possibilities, shall we? Right, sorry. Hm. I've noticed something weird about the body. Do tell. Gani... his outfit is totally not his style. Right? I thought so too. Are you really criticizing the victim's fashion? It's not that. Rather, it's not irrelevant, the way you're putting it. I mean, he was wearing an oversized dark hoodie; that's atypical for Gani. Well, you know, p-people can try mixing up their style. It's just notable, is all. Also worth noting, due to the tear in the hoodie, he must have had his hood up when he was shot. That has been noted. Did you disturb the body? Or was the hood down when you found the body? It was down. Then, why would some robber remove Gani's hood? Careful with the speculation, Laverna. The man fell to the ground after being shot. It is entirely possible that the hood came loose from his head during that fall.I had no choice but to nod at this. I had forgotten about that possibility, but Arrianne was right. This didn't prove much on its own.
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Jan 26, 2024 16:45
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 [BGM: Pip Count]  For the record, does Gani happen to live near here? Uh, that's...Seth looked down, awkwardly. He doesn't live particularly close. Like, he's not super far, but it's not right in his area. However, the central park is very close to the Governor's Building, where Gani often works. The relevance of that fact is in question, however. Gani was not working last night. Then, Seth, how do you propose to explain Gani's location if this was a simple botched robbery? Um, he, uh, doesn't l-live too far from here. Maybe he couldn't sleep, and was going for a l-late night run? I've been told that's something people who are in shape do. A late night run? In this wardrobe? Seems awfully implausible. Then it's one of a thousand different explanations, I don't know! He was on a bar crawl, there. The toxicology report will determine if he was, in fact, inebriated at the time of his death. It was j-just an example.[BGM: Ante Up]  Badgering Seth further at this point was likely not worth it. There would be a time to break through his 'robbery' theory, but I needed more bullets to fire his direction. Ironically, I knew exactly where to find more. I walked back over to the body, and looked closer at the victim's head wound. Well, well, well. Isn't this interesting? So, you noticed. How could I not? It's quite a peculiar omission, whenever the murder weapon is removed from the crime scene afterwards. Huh. That's a weird way of putting that. Am I wrong? Not at all, just not a perspective I considered. Just goes to show, until you look at something from someone else's window, you're just seeing a photo of reality. Wise words, my friend. Back to the task at hand, however, I must inquire as to why the bullet was removed from the late Gani's skull. Quite a gruesome task would turn most men's stomachs... I can't dismiss it as a mere haphazard action. Y-yeah, probably not. Maybe the gun the culprit used was connected to another crime? The killer knew that the ballistics records we have on file could c-connect us to them? Possibly. Though, that's quite a clever line of thinking to come up with so quickly – seems atypical for this 'random druggie' you seem to be intent on pinning the crime on. Ooh, maybe the bullet wasn't taken out for some clever reason! Maybe the murderer just has some screws loose, took the bullet as some sort of trophy. That seems highly eccentric, to the point of contrivance. Really, Lav? Are you the person to try and raise this point? Do not downplay the depths of depravity Panthea's scum may stoop to. Deviants are often filthy individuals, in need of serious help, utterly unbeholden to normal sensibilities.I held my tongue on this point - I doubted arguing with Arrianne right now would accomplish much. It's a g-good clue, Laverna. We should keep it in mind moving forwards.Though I wanted to push further on the missing bullet, I decided to back off. As it stood, it was too broad a clue to really be used effectively. What else, what else could be used? I bent down again and began rifling through Gani's pockets. A few seconds later, I took out a phone... a phone that was thoroughly broken. Aha! A clue. Is that necessary? Honestly, I'm just glad she d-doesn't do that every time she finds a piece of evidence. With her track record, I wouldn't put it past her. Look what I found in Gani's pocket. I proudly held out the broken phone in my gloved hand. Yes, the phone. We already have that logged in evidence. Really? Aw, and here I went, thinking I had something neat. Obviously we'd check the pockets, Laverna. How incompetent do, do you think we are? Don't. I know, I knew right when I said it, just d-don't. I shan't. Instead, I shall raise the possibility I know you have already wisely considered. Is it possible that this phone's destruction can be attributed not to the whims of chance, but instead to the gun-wielding perpetrator behind this case? It is. Why, that was quite matter of fact. Then, hello, clue! If the killer broke the phone, this means that they wished to conceal what was written inside said phone! A huge clue! Uh, Lav, I really don't like being a Seth about this... Excuse me? But, we really don't know that the phone breaking has to do with the murder. We don't know when it broke, or how. I guess. Are we, um, just going to brush past the f-fact that Baldera's turned my name into a verb? I don't consent to that, I object! Lighten up, Mr. Johnson. I, wh, tha...Seth fizzled out. Still, the phone's brokenness being chalked up as mere coincidence seems an incredibly dull way of viewing things. Laverna, we take these things into account. We will not forget this fact. However, on its own, the broken phone's weight as evidence is quite light. It's not on its own...I drifted off. Whatever. I knew when I was being stonewalled. [BGM: Raise]  I turned back around to the victim. I began giving it a final thorough search – looking at it from a variety of angles, up close, from a distance. Finally, I gingerly lifted one of Gani's outstretched arms. Nothing was under it. Hm... So, is this it? In what sense? Like, evidentiary. Have you yet removed anything from this scene? Bagged clues, moved important items... anything of that sort? No. I mean, uh, I don't think so. We shouldn't have, n-not quite yet. Jeez, wouldn't you know best, Seth? Get it together, would ya? Sorry. Seth would know best? Why's that? Oh, Seth here was one of the first officers to arrive at the scene of the crime. Yeah, um, me and Pandora got here initially. Before that point, the witness stood right next to the body. And after they arrived, while waiting for the rest of us, Pandora took an initial statement from the witness while Seth secured the scene. So nothing should've been removed from this place.I nodded. I understood. Got it, got it. That's an important piece, I'll note it. Is it r-really? The witness didn't get to the scene of the crime immediately. The killer still h-had time to, uh, tamper with stuff. Yes, the missing bullet is proof enough of that. Right, so, uh, I don't think that matters all that much. Instead of responding to this, I turned around to the victim one last time. I gave Gani a small nod. Then I turned back to the group. Okay. We have circled around the truth for long enough. I wish to converse directly with the witness. All right, cool. Let's go talk to her. Hold on a second.As I began to walk past her, Arrianne put a hand on my shoulder. I would hope there is no need for me to say this. Still, I must state this nonetheless. The person you are about to talk with is not just a witness; they are the Governor of Panthea. And, unlike you, they are not accustomed to stumbling across bodies, much less the bodies of people they are close to. Governor Aija is, rightfully, shaken. I know how you can get, and I would like to remind you of your position. Ask questions. Learn the truth. Be a detective. But I will not tolerate excessive badgering. If I sense you are not conducting yourself in a manner befitting an investigator cooperating with the Panthean Police Force, I will end the interview, and promptly eject you from the scene. Do I make myself clear? Crystal.I gave Arrianne my most innocent smile. Relax, Chief. I know my manners. I'll ask what Aija saw, nothing more. It'll be fine!Arrianne didn't respond, she just sagely nodded. [BGM: Challenger]  And with that settled, I walked over to the benches, and approached one Governor Aija, who was talking with Officer Pandora.  Okay then, how about this? Will my laptop get heavier if I download more files on it? That's a ver– ...ah, sorry Pandora, it appears we'll have to put our chat on hold.Aija then turned fully towards us. Laverna, right? My, you remembered me! I'm flattered. Of course I remember you. You're the intelligent young lady who aided the investigation during that truly awful event that took place back at my gala. If I remember correctly, I offered you a job at the time. You did, indeed. Again, sorry for declining that.Aija simply shook her head. There is no need for that. The offer was a mistake on my part to begin with. Looking at you now, it seems clear to me that being a private agent suits you much better. Still, I don't offer employment to just anybody. It's only natural that I remembered you after that.I smiled appreciatively.  So, Governor. I can't help but notice that the victim in this case was your secretary. That must be difficult.A slight frown clouded Aija's face. Yes, Gani... he was a very good employee. With me for a while. He could seem, well, less than dependable at times... but I knew he always truly had my back, and there was nothing more valuable than that in my line of work. Finding his body... It was pretty traumatic, to be honest. But, well, I'll just have to move forward past this incident. I know it's what Mr. Gani would have wanted. ….Though, he also wouldn't hate it if I did stop to grieve, at least for a bit. A desire I plan on fulfilling....My eyes scanned Aija's face as she gave this explanation. This was a civil meeting so far, but really, I just had one thought in the back of my head during this meeting. What exactly was Aija's angle with all of this? I knew a good part of it, or at least, I thought I knew a good part of it. However, the full truth... well, I'd have to go forward with this interview to get any further with that. I know this is hard for you. However, I wish to do everything in my power to bring the monster who killed Gani to a swift justice. To do so, I require your testimony. If at all possible, could you please describe how you found the body? Of course. Anything I can do to help, I'll do; I just want the truth to come out. That said, I'm not sure how much help my story actually will be. It's pretty short and uneventful. That's fine. Really, anything you have to say will be a huge help. The smallest detail might turn the world. The smallest detail might turn the world, huh? I like that. That's a nice saying.[BGM: Ura Dora]  I couldn't tell if Aija meant that or if she was just being diplomatic. I thought it was actually pretty uninspired, I had a dozen sayings just sitting in my back pocket for the right time that I liked way more than that one. Okay, where should I begin? Give me a moment to recollect my thoughts.Aija closed her eyes, and put her hands to her temple. For a moment, she just breathed. Once she was done 'recollecting herself,' she put her hands back down and smiled.  Last night started like many. I was working late hours back at my office. I've been doing that a lot as of late, upcoming election and whatnot. What can I say, I guess I'm a bit of a workaholic, you know? Some weeks, I end up spending more nights sleeping at my office than I do at my actual house. But those are the sacrifices you have to make if you wish to be an effective leader, I suppose. At any rate, it was extremely late. Far past a time those with a functional sleep schedule should be awake. Really, someone in my position should not be up at the hours I was. It has a cavalcade of negative effects on your health, and it takes effort to realign your sleep cycles. Regardless, this was the state of things. Easier said than done, I suppose. At any rate, I was met with a bout of insomnia – happens to me every now and then. When I'm at the office this late, and I'm unable to do anything else, sometimes I decide to go out to the nearby central park for a walk. It clears my head. Something about the open night air, the stillness of it all... ah, but I'm missing the point, right? So, I leave my building in the middle of night - closer to daytime, really - for a walk. I go to the park... and, for some time, I'm just walking. No real point, its just an aimless wandering. I'm deep in thought. Then, all of the sudden, I hear a gunshot. Or at least, it sounds like a gunshot. I'm frightened, of course, but if one of my constituents has been injured, its my civic duty to go and try and help them, stop any preventable deaths. I ran over to where I heard the gunshot come from. Wow, you ran towards the gunshot? Late at night, by yourself? How brave. I'd sooner call it stupidity, but thank you. Did you start moving right away? More or less right away. However, I was a fair distance from the source of the gunshot – it did take a minute or two for me to arrive at the scene. But not particularly long? I wouldn't say so, no. I tried to be as swift as reasonable. So you wouldn't say that the culprit had much time alone with the body? No, not too much time. Especially when you consider that this area is pretty wide open, and there are lights right nearby with the benches. I might be cutting ahead a bit, but I presume you didn't see the assailant fleeing? Uh, correct, I did not. Right, so then, considering the wide open area, the killer must've started running away a decent bit before you arrived at the scene. So, considering that, the window of time they had alone with the body was considerably limited, wouldn't you say? Uh, Lav, is there a point to this line of reasoning? Just let me work my magic. It is fine. The detective is right. I made my way to the body as fast as I could, and I didn't see anyone running away. I have to imagine the killer only had a few moments to themself before they fled. Anyways, once I found the dead body, I got closer. I examined it, and I saw...Aija stopped speaking briefly. So, uh, after discovering that, I called the police. Told them how I found the dead body. Then I walked over to the benches, well within eyesight of the body, and waited for the authorities to arrive. ...And that's all.[BGM: Trick Score]  I nodded. Understood. So, got what you wanted? Not quite yet. A few more questions, Governor, if you would. Of course. Anything you want to know.I took a moment to compose the line of questions I wanted to throw at Aija. Had to be careful how I proceeded. This walk, in the middle of the night. You say you do this frequently? Frequently would be putting it too strongly. Every now and then would perhaps be more accurate. Every now and then, right. I must say, it strikes me as slightly odd that you'd go out for walks in the dead of night. I don't wish to be crass, but this isn't exactly the nicest part of the city, nor is this a particularly nice city. And as a politician, you must surely be aware that you have enemies. Are you saying I have reason to fear for my safety? As much as every other woman wandering the streets in the dead of night, at the very least. I merely ask out of curiosity. Well, it would be a lie to say that the danger you speak of has never crossed my mind. However, I have far too much faith in this city to believe that I would actually come to harm. Hmm. How long would you say this walk of yours was? Umm... you know, I couldn't quite tell you. The time seems to escape me while I'm on those walks. Okay, but did you not check the time when you went out for the walk? I probably did? I'm sorry, but after it all, I'm struggling to recall such details. Ah, it's okay. We can just check the security cameras, use that as a reference. What? Security c-cameras? I actually visited the Governor's Building once. I noticed that the main entrance had a camera that monitored everyone who went in or out. Since it's standard protocol, I'm sure that camera has a record of when you left. ... Oh, you seem nervous? That's strange. What reason could you have to be nervous about that camera? That doesn't make much sense. I believe you're mistaking nervousness with confusion. I just took a second to recall what you were referring to. Ah, excellent. Apologies, but checking that camera might be impossible. Around a month ago, the software we use to store the footage went on the fritz, and ever since the camera's had a problem with the actual 'recording' part of its job. We're looking to get it fixed, but that keeps on getting delayed. Is that right? How unlucky. Speaking of luck, isn't it just an awful coincidence that you had to find the body? The body of your own subordinate? I mean, you were just out on a walk, and you happen to be right in the vicinity of the murder? To top it off, Gani has no real reason to be this far from his apartment, and he ends up dying here all the same! Talk about odds. Quite. Some bad karma must be catching up with me. Actually, one more question for you Aija... what's your height exactly? Laverna. Watch it.Arrianne had been glaring at me for a while. Now, she appeared to be right on the edge of making a move. ...Yeah, I had pushed it too far with that last comment. That one was unnecessary, just provocative for the sake of it. You're right, I'm sorry. That was utterly uncalled for. Apologies, Governor, I just have a tendency to get overly enthusiastic about my job. When I'm in the groove, I tend to lose myself. Let me ask you a more appropriate question. You were close to the victim, at least somewhat. I have doubts about this being just an accident. Tell me, did your secretary act 'off' at all in the past few days?[BGM: Bust]  Did Gani act weird in the past few days... Hm, that's a good question. It's sometimes hard to tell with Gani.That tracked. Actually, there was one thing that struck me as odd. Earlier, yesterday, he snickered at something on his phone. I asked what he was doing, and he mentioned that he had recently been texting with Polly Deisma. Polly Deisma? Indeed. I dismissed it as some weird joke on his part, but it stuck with me. Huh. That's, uh... weird. Certainly. Okay, well, I think...I took a moment to go over my thoughts. Yes, I think that is all I have for you. You are free to go now. Thank you. I hope I could be of some help to you.Aija never even slightly addressed the fact that I basically accused her of the murder. Interesting. You would expect that somebody who was hiding something there would be more defensive about that. To have something to do with this murder, and despite that remain utterly unmoved by accusations? Well, it certainly takes an iron will. I'm sure you were, Governor. Thanks for your time, Ms. Aija! Sorry about this. It's fine. Happy to be of help, Officer Baldera.[BGM: Ante Up]  With partings exchanged, the other officers and I walked away from Aija, a bit closer to the corpse. Well, I'd say that was productive. It was? It was! I hope you are happy with yourself. I am. Hm.Arrianne wanted to say more, but she held her tongue. Okay then, the evidence has been searched through. What is our analysis? What do you three believe is the truth of this murder? The truth, huh? Well, gosh, I don't know if I can answer that rightly. She d-doesn't mean the actual killer's name, Baldera. She's just asking for a general description of the crime. And to that question, uh, my answer hasn't changed. His wallet was emptied. And, um, actually, I think Ms. Aija's testimony actually h-helped this theory. The killer didn't have a lot of time after shooting Gani before fleeing. Immediately, they grabbed the b-bullet because they had used the same gun in another crime, and they emptied the wallet. Then they ran away. That's the behavior of a startled thief. X + Y + X + Y + X + Y + X + Y. [X] - If - Then - Because - And [Y] - The criminal put a gun to the back of Gani's head. - Gani saw them. - Murder was necessary. - The motive was robbery. - The culprit took the wallet. Solution: If the criminal put a gun to the back of Gani's head and Gani did not see them then the motive was not robbery because murder was not necessary. [You won 7 chips!] I shook my head. [BGM: Showdown]  This is a premature conclusion, one I simply can not get behind. Shocker. If the killer took the time to grab the bullet, that suggests a certain level of awareness and desire to not get caught, agreed? I don't think anybody could go against that. The fact of the matter is, murder is a serious crime. It's not something someone would commit lightly. They probably just wanted to commit a r-robbery. Then things went south, they had to kill Gani. The evidence doesn't suggest that reading. That gun wound, the most plausible explanation is that somebody slightly shorter than Gani put the gun right up to his head and fired. If the gun was still up to his head, I struggle to imagine a scenario where the killer felt the need to fire, if they only planned on robbery. Well, even still, er, people can kill for, for money. It's not insane. Sure, but if this was a random hold up, how much money is this killer realistically expecting? You must admit, the populace wandering around in this area, this late at night, wearing that attire, can not be presumed rich. Well, what if they recognized Gani?" Recognized him? Being Governor Aija's secretary, and working nearby, it's not implausible that some opportunistic criminal knew Gani's face, general occupation. If you knew he worked for Aija, you could more safely assume that he'd have valuables on him, and be willing to go for it, right? No, that's not possible. Gani was wearing a hoodie, his face was obscured. What if Gani wasn't wearing the hoodie with the hood up at the time? Again, not possible. Remember, the bullet went through the hood. Or, what, are you implying that Gani put the hood up after being held up? Tch. Then, uh, the culprit saw his face from the front, then circled around and caught him from b-behind.I shook my head once more. The crime took place at the dead of night. Gani was approaching the benches, which were lit up by lights. If the culprit was initially in front of him, it's most likely that Gani would have been able to see them. And more critically, if the path in front of Gani was lit up, then seeing Gani's face would have been harder while he was back in the darkness. Okay then, Gani was recognized by his voice. His voice? Yeah, m-maybe he was on the phone with somebody. The culprit recognized his voice, popped out, held him up, shot him. Hey, this even explains the b-broken phone. The culprit smashed it so we couldn't trace the person he was talking with at the time of the crime, then put it back in, um, in his pocket to make it look less suspicious. That makes sense, right?I looked for a counter. However, Seth's theory made enough sense; I had to let it stand. So, you see? Robbery's more likely. I guess... are you sure though? Lav, got any more points to make?I did. However... the remaining pieces of evidence that were obviously weird all served to implicate Aija in some way. So long as Chief Arrianne was standing nearby, it was unlikely she'd let any line of reasoning that relied on blaming Aija stand. And since Baldera was obviously also an Aija fan, it probably wouldn't be winning me any points with her either. Instead, I merely sighed. I just don't believe in the robbery explanation. Feels weird to me. There are indeed some oddities to this case, Ms. Smyth. However, considering everything, I have to side with Mr. Johnson that robbery is the most plausible explanation. We will still conduct a thorough investigation, of course. Of course.  Well, if that's the narrative you're settling on, then I find my presence thoroughly unnecessary, as much as I'm sure you'd miss my color commentary. I am a detective. I solve mysteries. Were there some conspiracy that ended Gani's life, I'd be an indispensable tool towards reaching the truth. However, if that truth is the mundane answer that Gani was the victim of a random botched robbery, then that is not a mystery, that is a statistic. I've never been one for numbers; thus, I shall make my leave.Arrianne just nodded at this, wordlessly. She was accepting my leave. Gani's death... in reality, I wasn't going to just leave things like this. I was just biding my time. This case could be used, but an important part of this job was patience. Mindlessly pursuing victories whenever available got me nowhere. I needed to be far more strategic in how I revealed the truth. [BGM: Kicker]  However, before I leave, could I talk with Baldera for a moment in private? It's about a personal matter.Seth briefly looked to Arrianne. Arrianne merely shrugged her shoulders. Do not take long. We won't!And like that, Baldera and I were free to walk a fair bit away from the others. That was weird, huh? I've no time to look to the past. That case is already of little relevance to me, only to be picked back up when it shall serve my interests. You know that that is not the reason for which I called you over. Of course. By the way, guess what?I had something to ask her, but no harm in letting her give me some news first. What? I hate to say it, but I think you're totally right about Arrianne having something to hide. Remember the case back at Polly Deisma's house?I nodded. Well, a ton of forensic evidence was stolen! Like, poof! Gone. Really? How bizarre. Right? It couldn't have been Seth, I don't remember him ever having an opportunity alone with the evidence box. But there were a lot of officers who could've taken it. Including the Chief!I simply shook my head, silent. Anyways, good thing I found out about the missing evidence before it was too late. You did? Yep. Because of that, we were able to examine the scene a second time for hairs and the like. Got some more samples. And guess what? We got a hit on one of the samples. Is that right? Yeah, except, get this. The hit wasn't in our city's database, it was from another city's! In fact, it was a hit in more than one other city! Hm. Interesting. Yeah, totally. We haven't actually gotten the full report on that yet, there's been logistical hang ups, and we only got the indication that the DNA matched other databases yesterday. But I'm really curious what'll show up. Yes, indeed, I'm sure that's very interesting and whatnot. However, Baldera, that's not why I called you over. Oh, right, sorry. The checkup I tasked upon you. Were you able to confirm it? I was! You were right. In the days leading to his death, Maximillian Collins paid a visit to the Panthean Records Office.[BGM: The Wire]  The Panthean Records Office. A government program tasked with keeping all sorts of information, and giving the public access to it. It had a compilation of all the city's laws and ordinances, as well a history of when what legislation passed by who. On top of that, it housed birth records, death certificates, and family trees. I let out a smile. How did you know he'd have visited there? Simple. I am rapidly pursuing the truth behind that murder. In fact, I believe there is a suspect I already have in mind. Oh, really? Who is it?I shook my head. For now, it is only a theory, best kept to myself. There are still a few things I need to confirm for myself; given the results of those inquiries, it is possible that the true culprit is not the person I am thinking of, but rather a second suspect altogether. ...Though, taking personalities into account, I find this latter possibility far less likely. Anyways, you should get back to your fellow officers. Thank you for your aid in my investigations, and know that the culmination of these truths shall soon be presented for all to see. All right, good to know. And Lav? Be safe, okay? Panthea can be...Baldera trailed off. Say no more. True, the detective being murdered right as they are reaching the truth is a common trope. However, this is not the right genre for that sort of twist. ...Besides, I am sure to always carry plot armor in my pocket. Uh...Instead of explaining myself, I turned around and walked away. A few moments later I heard Baldera also going back to her coworkers. Leaving the crime scene, I had a confident smile plastered across my face. ...One that didn't leave even as Kane approached me once more. [BGM: Silence]  Well? How'd it go? Rejoice, Kane. You will get your story quite shortly. A story like none other, one filled with intrigue, betrayal, and juicy personal drama. I shall grant you this tale any day now. Can't wait....  Jeez, just what is Laverna's obsession with this Max case? I mean, I get why that case is relevant. But what's her angle on it? Because really, she's been pursuing it rather doggedly for some time now. I mean, she will just not let this thing go. I guess its just one of those... what do you call it? Gut calls? She must have a gut call about this situation. ...I wish we could really know what she was thinking. Hey, don't look at me – the only thoughts I can display are the surface ones, whatever she happens to be directly thinking at the time. And even then... well, no. Let's just say I'm presenting them in a way that tells the best story. Next up, it's Lock.
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Jan 26, 2024 16:45
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Side question: Do you like Ez as a narrator/facilitator/framing device so far?
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Jan 28, 2024 06:05
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 [BGM: Stand]  Ah. Things were going well on the whole 'Bach campaign' front. ...At least, if you measured that via Kamapa sentiment. Which, you know, an undoubtedly biased way of judging it. But still, it was still a good sign of things. I was trolling the site, specifically searching for all posts related to Bach. Felt like as good a way to keep a pulse on things as any. ...Ooh, here was an interesting one. 'Bach announces intended legislation at latest rally meant to aid Panthea's homeless'. That one went quite well. And the comments agreed.   met Bach lately. super chill guy. actually understands the reality of the situation. used to support aija, but her promises turned out empty. im ready for change. here's hoping bach winds up different.  BachOrBust!! Bach's the change we need! We have a chance to really make a difference with this election. We can't be discouraged by the current numbers!!! We need to support Bach with all of our might!  In theory, I'd like to back Bach with the amount of enthusiasm that this thread seems to have put in him. However, I have some reservations. Frankly speaking, I'm surprised that so few people have paid attention to the utter lack of qualifications Bach has for a job like this. On its own, this isn't damning of anything. Politicians have to start somewhere, after all. Why not here? However, I've also noticed a trend of Bach being unable to deliver actual policy intentions, just vaguer promises. This announcement, for example. It talks a good game, but read the actual article. The 'proposed legislation' is loose at best, and even in the little bit revealed, it already raises some questions in regards to practicality. Unfortunately, when you compa– Boooooooring. I moved on. All right, so, not universal, but the point was, Bach was getting some good press. And more importantly, Aija was getting bad press. I mean, there were a ton of posts like this:  Here's a compiled list of Aija's campaign promises. Here's how many she's actually gotten done.  Are we surprised? Aija's just like every career politician. Entirely in it for herself. Full of talking points. Honestly, I'm surprised more people haven't seen through her shtick at this point. Remind me, how is she still in office?  I was willing to give Aija the benefit of the doubt for a while. Optics are important, governments move slowly, yadda yadda yadda. She made token gestures towards her promises. But she's had long enough. She's not what she promised to be. I don't think I can deny that anymore. BachOrBust! Get Aija out of office! Enact real change! Of course, posts on their own had limited use. Word of mouth, marketing, that was all well and good, but what really showed the changing tides were actions. And actions also seemed to be lining up. I noticed multiple posts plugging Bach's donation site. He (I) had been getting community funding for his campaign... and that donation number has grown rapidly. People can post all they want, but it takes real passion to put their money where their mouth is. If people were actually willing to donate like this... it meant Bach had tapped into something real. It meant I had tapped into something real. Well, I still had to give Bach quite a lot of credit; it was his voice, his messaging pushing things through. Still, without me, he'd probably still be floundering around. What else, what else... oh? What's this? Ah, this was good. This was really good. Apparently, Kane made an offhand statement earlier today. He said he was willing to run some actual coverage on Bach. That at this point, the race 'warranted fair treatment to both sides.' And, would you look at that! Already, there's a piece that acknowledges Bach on The Oracle. A fluff piece, no doubt, one that doesn't go into much depth, just mentioning him in context to a larger story. But still, that was progress! And from the looks of it, the coverage wasn't instantly biased. Reminder to self: definitely reach out to Kane. Try and set up an interview between Bach and Kane. Reaching out to the Oracle's readership could be a big win. All in all? Things were on an upswing.   This is good! This is really good, Bach! What? You're doing quite well on the internet. Oh. That's nice. That's nice? You don't sound that excited? Yeah, well. I kind of would prefer to do well on the polls. Bah. The polls are skewed, they take from a limited sample size. And the internet is representative? Okay, okay, fair point. But still, there's a narrative around you now! That's a good thing! Uh huh...It didn't sound like Bach really agreed with me.  Well, look, Lock. Again, I have to, um, thank you for everything you're doing for me. That all seems very good. Things are looking bright. Right? But, uh...Bach looked around awkwardly. What is it, Bach? You can share it with me![BGM: Dummy]   Do you have to be doing this at my apartment? Is that totally necessary?I gasped in mock shock. My, oh my, Bach! Do you not appreciate my presence? Not really? Wow. Going straight at me like that. I get it. I can respect it. I don't mean to be rude. I'm just saying, you know, I like to relax. You're always relaxing when hanging out with friends, Bach! No? Also, again, I don't mean to be rude, but we're not exactly friends. You're right. We should change that by hanging out more. See, this is the sort of thing I'm talking about. Having an argument with you is exhausting. Well, there's your problem, pal! Just don't argue. Then things'll all be peachy. I...Bach thought of a response. Then he just sighed, defeated.  All right, Bach, I know I'm not a joy to have around. But do I really warrant this level of dejection? It's just... do we know if you're... you know...Bach had trouble broaching the topic. Not going to be hunted down by assassins and murdered? Something like that, yes. Bach, you care about me? Aww. I care about me! Criminals operate on a no-witnesses policy! I feel like any second my door's going to be caved in and I'm going to get a shotgun blast to the chest. Well there's no need to worry about that. No assassin worth their salt is going to use a shotgun for a situation like this. I mean, unless Aija's going really cheap. Lock! Look, we're safe. Aija might have a stranglehold on this place, but there are certain lines she just doesn't have the capital to cross. Her political opponent being gunned down this close to the election? That's one of those lines. ...Especially when she doesn't know what possible loose ends I've hidden around, possible accomplices I've had. Honestly, that's half the reason I'm here right now; I know she's not going to be making a move while I'm here. I guess... I don't know, you might be giving her too much credit. You've clearly put her on edge. If she's really got the police chief in her pocket like you claim... You worry too much. Besides, it's not like I'm careless. As a person of high interest, obviously I took some precautions when I came here – I don't want to be tracked either. Well, that's good to hear. Despite my best efforts trying to make him feel like things were fine, Bach still looked incredibly nervous. What was getting his goat so badly? I guess things had just gotten a lot more intense than he ever expected. Anyways, the ransom plan didn't work. I gave Aija a chance to get rid of me fair and square. ...Well, not really. Those photos were always going to come out, obviously, but still. Token efforts. Which means, it's time to go forward. Lock, I have to ask you again. Is this really such a good idea? I mean, people are being killed. Aija is willing to kill over this. Won't publishing those photos just agitate her? She already took a swing at me, Bach. Things aren't exactly going to get worse after this. If anything, this puts Aija on the defense. She'll be busy putting out that fire. And this fire will be? A complete digital blitzkrieg. To start, we reach out to some Oracle journalist – probably not Kane, he might kill a story this damaging at the pass, call it 'groundless speculation.' But, someone below him, more open to the idea, we give him the photos and the details. Once an article is completely written, it's a lot less justifiable on Kane's part to kill it outright. When the article comes out, it's full steam ahead. Share the photos everywhere. Every online platform. We use campaign funds to push it heavily. We control the narrative, go full conspiracy theory. I don't know what's more damning and crazy than the truth, but we find that, and then we say that. Dozens of sock puppets. Widespread speculation. Completely overwhelm the narrative. Then... we get you on stage. Don't fully endorse these conspiracies, that's too much. But bring them up as reasonable doubt. There's a lot of supplementary material you can go in on.  When Aija's direct opponent shines a light on this, Aija can't resist. She has to address it. And there's a fun thing about wielding the truth at someone. They don't have elegant ways to deal with it. They only have a few options. Aija can ignore it. I love this option, it lets us run wild, flaring up the speculation to 100. She can flat out deny it. This always comes across as unconvincing, and often increases the backlash. She can try and counter it with more lies. A high-risk gambit, but it leaves her open to further attacks from the truth. Or, she can accept and try and downplay the reality. I kind of hate this option the most, because she can actually pull this off decently. She probably will choose this as well. But, even still, that means engaging with her on our level. That lets us lobby more points at her. There's a lot of ammo that can be used against Aija. I mean, that all sounds nice Lock. But... will it really work? Huh?I was a little taken aback by Bach's question. It was so dumb I didn't even know where to start with it. Will photographic evidence work? Lock, I know you think it looks obvious because you know the truth. But a Governor employing an assassin like that? It's actually too crazy. People straight up won't buy it. It's so crazy people can't not talk about it! It's so crazy people will dismiss it. Normally, sure. But we have the photos! Those look bad. Really bad. They do, sure. If you had released them immediately, with no forewarning, you probably would've had a decent shot of convincing people. Aija'd be caught off guard. You could work up fervor. It would be good. But then you went and did the stupid ransom thing. If it worked, we would've had more capital to use against her! It was a worthwhile risk. Maybe. But it lost you the element of surprise. The assassination might've failed, but do you really think that was Aija's only plan? Uh... This is the person who uses assassins in an election sh–Bach took a moment to breathe. [BGM: Raise]  This is a woman who uses assassins in landslide elections. She is paranoid, she is thorough. And in the time you've given her, she has almost certainly accounted for these photos coming out. And how's she gonna do that? They're just pictures, Lock. They don't prove nearly as much as you think they do. Sure, she's seen talking with this random assassin guy. Maybe they look close. But that far from proves that they are working together. Aija could...Bach thought to himself for a second.  You say that the Chief of Police is in her pocket? Uh, yeah. And you got that first photo by getting people to harass and vandalize Aija? In so many words.Why did I tell Bach about that again? Well, what if the Police Chief altered the report of that harassment? What if they pinned the harassment on the guy in the picture? This meeting wasn't intimate, Aija was scared. This guy was caught outside her house. He tried to talk his way out, later on, he ended up going on a rampage at another house in the Forest. He looks unkempt. Maybe he just has a grudge against anyone living in that Forest? Maybe he's violent against all perceived 'elite.' Suddenly, Aija looks sympathetic. Really? The photo does not give off that vibe. And the corroborating eviden– I'm not saying it makes perfect sense. I'm saying it sounds plausible enough. Plausible enough for people to dismiss the far more absurd-sounding claim without looking into those fine details. Especially while Aija has the finances to put people who can spin this narrative into overdrive. Face it, Lock; these photos aren't the smoking gun you think they are.A part of me wanted to fight this more. To bring up the last little piece of this puzzle: the camera stuck in Aija's office. The conversation she was caught having. Maybe my memory was bad, but it felt like it'd be a lot harder for her to talk her way out of some of the things she was caught saying there. That if I really wanted to bring Aija down, I totally could. But. Breathe. Let cooler heads prevail. Let's not let that little tidbit out to anybody. That camera was more important than it initially seemed; in fact, that had become the last card up my sleeve. I had thought up some ways to use that card that were too important for a dumb argument like this. So no need to tip it to anybody, not even Bach. I'd be sitting on that until the time was right. Instead, I just shrugged my shoulders. Were you always such a pessimist, Bach? No? Hm. It's hard to tell. It feels like you're always a real buzzkill when we talk. You know, there might be a correlation there you're not seeing. Mmmm.... nope, don't see it. Anyways, why do you always have to go to worst cases? Smile! Be happy! This is going to work. Sure, the effectiveness is up in the air... but still, it'll definitely get people talking. And the more people who talk about you, the more leverage we have. The more damage your talking points against Aija will hold. The more chance of an upset we have. So hold fast! Hold strong! We can and will still win this election! Yay.Bach was thoroughly unenthused by my speech. In fact, he sounded almost scared by it. Poor guy. Really didn't have the temperament for this occupation. Oh well – that's why I'm here. I decided to kill a bit more time. To Kamapa I go. I wanted to pat myself on the back some more by looking at Bach hype. Scrolling through Bach related posts... … ...Uh oh. Huh. This couldn't... this wasn't right. This was just some flash in the pan drama. Except... that ratio was pretty good. Lot of comments. This was an Oracle article?? People were taking this serious. Uh oh. Thiiiis could be a problem. Better try and nip this in the bud. The post's title? [BGM: Furiten]  Governor Candidate Bach Underwood Caught On Tape Calling Supporters 'Losers.' I mean, that was just ridiculous. Instantly, I went into the post. The comments were pretty instantly toxic.  Huge shocker! I really believed in Bach. He always seemed so genuine. He spoke to me in a way so few politicians did. I even met him in person. Super nice! For the first time, I was excited about an election. For it to come out that Bach was just like any other politician... It's pretty heart-breaking.  Duh! Aija's always fought for this city. People were seriously falling for this Bach guy's crap? Well, good reporting, Oracle. Now maybe people will see the truth. Told you. What were people saying? This was a toxic turn. Not even any debate about it! Just, this is how it is; Bach is scum, end of story. What was... I then saw a comment that transcribed the audio clip. ... No way. This couldn't be right. Bullshit Bach said this. It was an audiofake, clearly. He would never say something like this. I clicked on the direct link. I was hearing this for myself. No way was this legit." [BGM: Silence]  God, can you really believe people are following me? Crazy, I know. What a bunch of suckers. I mean, they seriously believe Aija's somehow different from other politicians? She's doing what all politicians do. Her job. I'd be doing the same. But because a bunch of losers can't get their own poo poo together, they look for a scapegoat to blame. Enter me. I knew it'd work, I guess, I just didn't think it'd work to this extent. I thought people would be a little smarter, is all.... That... was Bach. In no uncertain terms, that was Bach's voice. No way to mistake it, no way to bullshit it. Incredibly clean audio of Bach, too. Spoken with such contempt. There was no getting around this. This was damning. This was campaign ending! This betrayed everything Bach stood for. This... [BGM: Dance]  I looked up. Bach, standing near me, simply had a defeated look on his face. He couldn't even work up a surprised look? He obviously heard me play this clip. Bach, what the hell?! Did you just hear that! I did. Did you know about this? How would I? Well, are you not freaking out?! You seem to be doing that for me. Not the time, Bach. Not remotely the time. Bach, how on earth did they get this clip? When did you say this? Why?Bach couldn't meet my eyes. Instead, his gaze just went to the floor. A pale grimace covered his face. Bach... ugh, gently caress, what an idiot! Whatever. I couldn't worry about him right now. I stood up and began to pace. My head went into overdrive. All right, fine. We're dealing with this. We can deal with this. We can get ahead of this, we can spin this. There's a way to spin this. We have a counternarrative available. What?! We just have to attack the source, that's it. You just have to say... say that it was taken out of context! What context wo– Say you were making a joke. A dumb joke, of course, but you were in the middle of parodying yourself. Parodying what conspiracy theorists thought you were like. You were in the middle of saying 'hey, wouldn't it be crazy if I was like this?' That you don't believe any of that. Lock... I mean, we've got a lot of ground to stand on. What's with that audio quality, huh? That wasn't the sound of someone who had a hidden recorder. That wasn't over the phone. That sounded like someone who was willingly being recorded. Why would you willingly let that be recorded, huh? And for that matter, what was with the way you talked? It's obvious you were putting on a character, that's what you have to claim. Lock. You can get your family to testify, your friends. Normal people can say that's not how you normally talk. It'd be crazy to hide talking like that all the time, right? And furthermore, the Oracle is frankly disgusting for not thoroughly fact-checking this source! This is a smear campaign orchestrated by Aija! We can turn this around. In fact, this could even be a good thing! It's getting more eyes on your campaign. Lock! There's more. What? There are more clips than that one. Worse ones. They're sure to come out if you push more. Huh? What, why are there all these clips? You don't get it Lock. You're right! I really don't. The thing is...[BGM: Silence]  I was never supposed to win this campaign. Never supposed to win? What sort of defeatist attitude is that? What's the point in that? That is the point. The point is for me to lose. Bach, you're not making sense. Would you just talk straight? I can't work with you if you're like this! I don't think that's what this is. You're smart. You know exactly what this is. You just don't want to acknowledge it. You are giving me way too much credit. Just explain yourself! It's pretty straightforward. I'm a plant. Wh-what? A plant. Surely you know what that means, right? A spoiler candidate? A patsy? I was put up to this by Aija. I was never going to win; I was just there to make sure nobody else did.
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Feb 3, 2024 04:24
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 ... Heh. Of course.  Of course, Bach was a plant. That shouldn't have been a surprise. It was actually kind of obvious, now I thought about it some more. All the signs were there. There were like a dozen red flags. Little things that didn't make sense. Clues I had filed into the back of my mind. ...Clues I had pushed back, more like. I collapsed back onto the couch. How hadn't I put this together? Was I just dumb? Was I in some sort of denial? As tempting as that explanation was, I didn't care enough about Bach to go into denial about him. A part of me wanted to get outraged – start shouting out, throwing a fit. But I couldn't get there. Emotionally, I didn't have the energy for that... because I wasn't upset with Bach. Not the most upset with him, at least. I mean, it's not like I ever really trusted him. He was always a piece in my eyes. Someone I was extorting. Not an actual partner." No, the person to blame for not catching this earlier was none other than myself. Catching this information ahead of time was part of my job. A critical part. ...A critical part I had completely passed by. He was a piece I hadn't researched how to operate. He was a con I hadn't properly thought through. I totally could have figured it out. I should have. I just... didn't. I felt like letting my head fall down in shame and disgrace. But... no. That wasn't how I operated. That wasn't how I reacted to setbacks. I was resourceful. Adaptable. Quick-witted. I had been hit with worse. I had survived harder blows. And I survived because just as soon as I put my head down, I raised it back up. gently caress self-anger. I made a mistake. Fine. Everybody makes mistakes. That's the problem with being human. Honestly, you have to account for the possibility of your own slip ups when creating plans; it's a kind of random variable. But not everyone could do what I had done. Not everyone could recover from mistakes. I was still a cut above the others. And I'd prove it here and now. [BGM: Double Down]  Okay. Explain. Huh? 'I'm a plant' isn't enough. If you're gonna pull that on me, you have to be prepared to answer for yourself. So, do just that! Explain it all.Bach just looked down for a moment, considering who knows what. After a couple more seconds, he nodded. Just to himself, I guess. Then he looked back up at me, with a steely look. You're right. An explanation... after everything, you deserve at least that much. Let me try and sum it up.I crossed my arms and sat back. All right. Have at it.After making this declaration so confidently, Bach already began to look like that determination was waning. He looked around, nervous. Began pacing. I was a bit impatient, and I wanted to utilize his guilt, so I decided to push him some. Well? Sorry, I'm sorry. I'm just thinking about how to put this. There's kind of a lot to explain, you know. But all right... just to be clear, I've been honest with you.I raised an eyebrow at this. Mostly! I mean, mostly. About what I've said. What I believe in. My history. Moving from Stagbluff, my job, all that. All of that, that's been honest.[BGM: The Poison]  As you probably already know, I'm not, uh, the best liar or anything. So I figured the best policy was probably just to, well, leave details out. ...Starting with the detail that led to this mess. You know how I said how I liked to blow off steam by gambling? Uh huh.Already, I could guess where this was going. Yeah, well, I had a lot of steam to blow off. You spent a lot of time at Nohoi's Nest? Yep. Hm. Given your skill set and your job, you probably couldn't spend very long gambling before running a loss that actually affected your life. No offense. ...Well, some offense. At this point, I think you're owed some offense. That's probably fair. And you're not wrong; I was never a great gambler. And, uh... Let's just say you weren't the first to get one over on me in that den. It's pretty sad. All my life, I've been a step behind. Never able to reach my dreams. Never able to advance further in my job. Always the sucker that got the short end of things.... Anyways, you were the first to make such a huge swing at my finances, at least. Before that, I was never totally wiped out like that... but my gambling problem was doing serious damage to my wallet. I knew I had to quit, so I did. Even still, my debts weren't that easily forgotten. The damage was already done. I just... I needed money. Not, like, 'my life depends on it' money. But I had practically no savings. It's li– You don't need to justify yourself. Everybody wants money. You don't need a special reason for it. Just move on. ...Right. It makes sense that you'd understand that. So anyways, my life was pretty normal. It obviously came as a surprise when I was put in contact with Governor Aija. You met with her in person? Just once. She appeared in my apartment without warning. It was late at night; I get the feeling she made it a priority to make sure nobody could trace her coming to visit me. And, well... she proposed pretty much this. And what exactly is this? I was to act as a spoiler in the upcoming election. Apparently, I fit the criteria she was looking for. The right blend of 'man of the people' and 'political outsider.'" According to her, my background as an Olympo worker gave me a sympathetic edge... but not too sympathetic. I was the exact level of electable she had been looking for - somewhat, but not too threatening. I mean, not that me being too electable was really a problem. Like I already mentioned, before the arrangement was made, she made sure to get a lot of insurance. Audio files, videos, et cetera. It was a wide range. I mean, it puts your little photo session to shame, honestly. Exposing positions clearly made under duress are one thing. But some of the stuff she got as insurance on me... well, it was life ruining. All right, first up - not a competition. And you agreed to this that easily? What if it was some sort of trick? I was at a pretty low point in my life. Even if there was a chance that it was some sort of scheme, I was willing to take that gamble. Plus, in my mind, I figured it would just be easiest for Aija to go along with the deal as described. She could clearly afford it. Why make a bigger thing of it than it needed to be? I see.I wonder how accurate that would be, normally. ...Eh, forget that. I had a lot more to worry about than random hypotheticals. From what you could tell, was this a normal practice? Like, did she regularly fix elections in this manner? Uh...Bach thought for a moment. Then he shook his head. I couldn't tell you for sure. But if I had to guess, it didn't feel that rehearsed. I could almost sense... vulnerability from Aija's part as well, during the negotiations. Like she was out of her comfort zone. If I had to guess, I'd say this was her first instance of doing something like this. She was testing the waters, seeing if she could actually pull it off.I thought about this for a second. I guess that was plausible. Perhaps a sign of her ever-growing influence, that she now felt like the easiest way to handle elections was something like this. I wonder, had things gone differently, would Aija have decided to use Bach as a spoiler in future elections as well? It seemed entirely possible. Anyways, the arrangement was fairly simple. I would rally my hardest during the primaries. Secretly, this campaign would be financed by Aija, herself. Behind the scenes, she worked to boost my visibility and sabotage my opponents. Again, all in ways that couldn't be traced back to her. Obviously. Then, come finals, I'd just ease off the gas. Aija was already a campaign veteran. She'd be able to defeat me without the need of the insurance. And, after all was said and done, I'd be given a very generous payout afterwards for my part in all of this, and my silence. And I mean, a very generous payout. More money than I could ever hope to make on my own. When I heard all this, I was conflicted. Obviously, the entire deal felt shifty. I didn't like the underhandedness of it all. But like I've said, I never had a real problem with Aija. And more importantly than that, the pay was really good. That's what it comes down to, doesn't it? I guess. I don't know. I was just tired of living without meaning. I wanted to do something with my life. The idea of running for Governor appealed to me, even if it was like playing pretend. End of the night, I shook hands. I was in. And... we got to work. I played my part. Wasn't half bad, if you don't mind me saying so. Was a better politician than I would've thought I could be. Things were progressing very nicely. I had won the primary. I was well on the way to losing the main election, getting paid. And then I came into the picture, huh?Bach just sighed. That night at Nohoi's Nest... what a mess. I really am a wreck. When you made that ultimatum, I can't tell you what was going through my head. I couldn't exactly tell you the truth, could I? If I did that, you'd turn around to Ossa and rat on me. So I figured, what the hell, I'd go along with it. It's not like you could actually turn things around. If you wanted to be the campaign manager of a sunk ship, go ahead. ...But then you started making campaign moves. You began to piss her off. Hey, wait a second... you were the one who gave my information to Aija, weren't you? You almost got me killed!At this, Bach just dropped his gaze. He couldn't meet my eyes. Lock... trust me, I didn't know. I didn't know Aija would do that. I didn't know she was like that. I mean, obviously, I knew she was a little sketchy, but to go as far as hiring an assassin... if I did, I promise, I wouldn't have said anything. But after that happened, I knew I definitely couldn't say anything. I couldn't stop working for her, knowing how she dealt with problems. Lock, it was terrifying! I had gotten way more than I was bargaining for. On the one hand, despite my best efforts, you continued to push this campaign that was already dead in the water. On the other hand, I had to answer to this shadowy figure who apparently had connections with an assassin! So I... I don't know. I panicked. I did nothing.Again, a bit of anger flared up in me. Bach was very nearly responsible for the death of me. But with his explanation, I couldn't rightfully get mad at him. He didn't know better, and I believed this version of events. After all... if he didn't mean it, shouldn't he have warned Aija about my plans with the photos? I mean, true enough, I didn't let him in on a number of details, but he knew that I wanted to get a picture of Aija and Mystery Man together. He could have reported that to Aija. It probably would've been safer for him to do that. Instead, he didn't, and likely just reported that I had been acting on my own. That said something. Anyways, that's all I have to say for myself. I get it if you're pissed at me. I can't say I'm overly proud of how I've been acting throughout all of this either. But it is how it is. I don't know what your plan was, but it's dead in the water now. So do what you want. Post those photos if it'll make you feel better. That'll suck for me, but I can't help it. Maybe I deserve it. Or, if you wait for the election to be over, I'll get my payment from Aija. Hopefully. If you wait for that, I'll pay what I originally owed you for the bet. But that's it. It's over. So just throw in the towel.… ...Hm. ...Okay... okay. Okay, okay, okay. So, that explanation was pretty good. Basically in line with what I thought when Bach first said he was a plant. So then, what did that mean? Was it as Bach had diagnosed? Hopeless? Time to throw in the towel? Well, it didn't look good. For sure, for sure, if I pushed more on Aija directly, this would just result in more insurance being released. The photos, too, are probably not the smoking gun I hoped for. Not after Aija's had time to prepare against it, not when Aija had far more concrete evidence against Bach. I mean, I could damage Aija's image somewhat, but not enough to win this election. So it was hopeless? ...No, no. Of course not. Maybe for the average person, but I was better than that. I was better than Aija. I hadn't faltered up until now. I had always managed to stay a step ahead of everyone else. And when I didn't, I managed to get out alive anyways. This case was no different. This wasn't good. But it wasn't that bad. ...I could work with this. There was still a line of play to threaten Aija's position. ...And threatening Aija's position still felt very necessary. But to do that, there was one person I'd need on my side. [BGM: Ante Up]  ...No. What? You're wrong, Bach. It's not over. Nothing's over, not until I say it is. Wh-what? How are you... What can I say, Bach? I'm an optimist. This whole thing, it's a step back, to be sure. I don't even want to imagine what the 'insurance' means for us. But what sort of campaign manager would I be if I just backed down now? I said that I was getting you that Governorship, and I meant it. We just need a new outlook on all of this. Really? Are you serious right now, Lock? Are you really going forwards with this poo poo?!All of a sudden, Bach's voice was raised. There was an anger in his tone. A look of indignation across his face. He was... actually angry. Hey, wait, Bach, listen. No, you listen, Lock! I don't know what you're thinking, and frankly, I don't want to know.  Fact of the matter is, you've got no skin in this game. I do. End of the day, you can slink off to whatever hole you came from, but I'm staying in Panthea. My home. If you release that photo, Aija releases that insurance, that's my reputation that's getting damaged. I'm the one who has to keep living. I'm the one who has to get a job after this all blows over! I'm going to be very mindful of your reputation, Bach! Why would I believe that? Why would I think you'd keep my safety in mind? From the start, I was a tool for you, right? A pawn, someone you got leverage over through trickery and extortion? Just like everyone else, just like Aija, I was another sucker for you to use. A tool in some bigger proxy war. Well, I'm sick of it. I just– You just what, Lock? What is your problem? Why can't you accept that this is a lost cause? Why do you want this so badly? That you'd go this far! Is it really the money?  Is whatever you plan on doing that profitable that you'd go through all this poo poo? Bach... do you really think money is my main motivation in all of this? You're saying it's not? Okay, I might've given every indication that it was. And yes, money is kind of a big thing with me. Sue me! Money's nice. If I can get you in the Governorship, I'm definitely going to exploit that. But Bach, that's not it. Or at least, that's not all of it. I don't do things without thinking about the repercussions. If I just wanted cash, there are easier ways, believe me. I mean, targeting Olympo seems like the way to go for that. Maybe scam the Duats, though that kinda feels risky. Point is, if my only metric for my actions was what would make me the most money, I'm sorry Bach, I wouldn't be wasting my time with you. Then... what are you trying to do? Well... hm. Let's just say I've got a chip on my shoulder. I don't like bullies. And Aija? She seems like the biggest bully of them all. You're... against bullies? Really? Is that so hard to believe? Bach, do you think this is the type of person I wanted to grow up to be? My past... well, it's pretty hosed up, if I'm being real for a second. I don't... I'd like it a lot if the things that made me the way I was couldn't happen again. ...But the way I see it, if anything, Aija's way of going about things is more likely to make people like me than not. Perhaps a lowlife like me doesn't get to play this card. But as much as I want to make money, I also want to make Panthea a better place. And I'm pretty sure you feel just like me. That's...Bach looked down, more unsure than ever. You know I'm right, Bach. Not at all. Not the slightest bit? No! You said you were mostly being honest with me, Bach. Was that a lie? ...No. So then, what about what you believe? Panthea being a place where diversity is its strength? About creating a city of actual fairness, not this faux mockery of one? You claim to love this city. Do you not want to help it? It's not that easy, okay? Isn't it? You just said you're sick of being a tool. Well, this is your chance to break free! I'm not saying our relationship is great. But it seems to me like you're really a tool of Aija. That's... You said you were 'fine with Aija.' Can you really still say that now? Now that you know the truth? Aija fixes elections. She assassinates people she views as threats. She collaborates with Duat members. She's not a Governor, she's a dictator in disguise. She's a shadowy ruler that's keeping this city under her thumb. Christ, that's like textbook levels of evil. That's the type of villainy that you usually have to look to fiction to find! And it's right here. And you can stop it. And... only you. ... You also said you wanted your life to have more meaning. Well, this is it, Bach. This is your chance at something more. You might not have been able to reach your dreams. But you are able to make a change: a real one. By pure chance, you've been put in a position where you are pitted up against someone who needs to be stopped. Are you really going to back down? Are you going to give up on this one chance? I...Bach looked down. Doubt and confusion circled his face. He was giving what I said serious thought. But... but, I mean, even if I wanted to do something... It doesn't matter! Like I said, we've already lost. Aija's insurance makes me completely unelectable. And I've no doubt she's made copies of that insurance, and hid it away. The moment we do anything that looks threatening to her, she'll release it. So, we're done for. Show's over. Even if I wanted to make a change... even if I was willing to put my neck on the line, throw away the cash I was promised, go up against someone proven to use assassins, it wouldn't change the fact that it's a fight I couldn't win. Oh, Bach. Always such a Debbie Downer. You need to have faith! How? How can I have faith? It's simple. Have faith in me. Oh, goodie. Hey, I haven't failed yet! That feels very much up for debate. It's time to show you what a real campaign manager can do. So what are you suggesting? I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. From the very start, I've told you there's been a surefire way to win this election. It just requires a large amount of capital up front. Okay. So? How are we supposed to get a ton of cash at this short notice?[BGM: Silence]  I took a second to stop. To think. Scanning everything I knew. What vulnerabilities existed in this city? … I can do it. You can? It's not going to be easy. It'll probably take everything I've got. But I can get us that cash. And then, we can show Aija how to really get elected.Bach just sighed. If you say so. If you really think you can get your hands on that money, please, by all means, go for it. Oh, Bach. Bach, Bach, Bach. Why are you talking about this so passively? Huh? For this to work, I'm going to need your help. M-Me? Don't sound so nervous. This is going to be fun....  For once, I agree with Lock! ...I don't know why I said 'for once' there; I actually agree with Lock a lot of the time, more than with most of these idiots. But yeah, this is going to be fun. Lock needs a handicap like this thing with Bach to make things interesting. If you didn't stunt his obviously overpowered cunning, this would be a cake walk. Though, maybe I should revise that thought about his cunning. I mean, he already beat himself up about it, but even still, come on Lock. Not realizing that Bach was an Aija plant? That's some sucker poo poo! That should've been seen through a while ago! What idiot couldn't put piece that together? ...Actually... Since you bet that Bach didn't have a big secret, I guess you're that kind of idiot! Ahahahaha! No chips for you! Ah, well. Them's the breaks. Say, you think after the election is over, Aija plans to have Bach killed? Or, like, 'die of natural causes'? A little brutal, but leaving a loose end like Bach out there to ruin her later plans also seems out of character. Mm, then again, so long as Aija properly covers her tracks, there'd be no proof. It'd just sound like the ramblings of a sore loser. ...Then again, just the random accusation might be too much shade for Aija? It'd likely stop her from doing the same move again, or at least, make it exponentially harder for her. Even still, her once-political rival dying of mysterious circumstances might be the bigger headline. And it's not like Bach would have good reason to say anything. Unless he tried to extort her for more money down the road, a very Bach thing to do. ...Or a very not-Bach thing to do. Oh, I'm torn. Thoughts? Aija would have Bach killed. Oh? And why do you think that? She's paranoid. Ah, well. Quite possibly. It's just a thought experiment, though. Thinking about what would have happened had Lock not come to town. Now though? All bets are off. I suspect we'll see an election unlike anything Panthea's seen before. ...And I can't wait. Wonder what Vels is up to?
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Feb 3, 2024 04:24
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I'll admit I didn't actually see 'Bach was a plant', but it does make a lot of sense in retrospect. Funny how we've gone from 'Kane is the main character in all this' to 'the Duats have their finger in everything' to 'Aija is the main mover and shaker in every story'.
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Feb 3, 2024 05:07
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That was an exciting revelation. I also somehow just noticed that Locke's icon is not a valid die, with both the one and the six being visible at the same time.
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Feb 3, 2024 07:27
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 [BGM: Ante Up]  Getting to the Olympo building was not a difficult endeavour. Quite smartly, they located the main headquarters in the center of Panthea. It was also the tallest building around. They really made it feel like Panthea was Olympo's... or at the very least, Olympo was Panthea's. One of the two. The point is, just like the company felt like an inherent part of the city's economy, the company's headquarters felt like an inherent part of the city proper. ...Whatever. At this point, I had mused over the size and location of Olympo's headquarters ten times more than any sane person should. What was I doing? I had things to do. I should just enter. And so, enter I did. I then made my way over to the front desk receptionist.   Uh, hello? I'm here to have a meeting with Polly Deisma. In his office. Could you please let me up to see him? Is that right? Well, I'm sorry, um, visitor, but Mr. Deisma's office is on a restricted floor. I can't just let anybody up there. If you don't have proof of this meeting, I'm afraid I can't do anything.I sighed. Then I pulled out my phone. I took a moment to call a number. *ring...*  Hello? Hey, Polly? It's me, Vels. I'm at the Olympo main building. Oh, already? That's cool. Hey, look, I'm a little busy at the moment, but just go on up to my office and I'll meet you as soon as I can. Yeah, that's what I was going to do. But I can't get to your floor. Apparently it's restricted or something. Ah, is Amby giving you a hard time? Put me on the phone with her for a second. Sure thing.I did as I was told, handing my phone over to the receptionist. ...Oh, hi Polly. Uh huh. Okay. Most certainly. Okay, got it! Nice talking to you too. The receptionist hung up, then handed me back my phone. Alright, you're good.She then reached in a small basket in front of her, fished a card out of it, and handed it to me. These are visitor pass Ids. Good for one elevator pass up, one down. That should work for you. Thank you. Happy to help.That minor hurdle jumped, I passed by the receptionist table and made my way over to the nearby elevators. I entered, scanned the ID, and pressed the button with a star next to it. Next thing I knew, I was going up. The doors opened. And here I was, on the restricted floor. Progress. I walked forwards, and was greeted with the restricted floor's security station. [BGM: Silence]   Visitor? You could say. Alright. Put any metal objects or personal belongings on the tray. Then walk through the metal detector.I just nodded. I took the phone out of my pocket and put it on the tray. Then I stepped forwards and moved through the metal detector. Zethe still thought it worthwhile to give me a quick patdown. He also gave my phone a quick look. Then he handed it to me and nodded. Good to go. Cool.Man, how obsessive was that? I guess it was warranted, but still. I walked further down the hallway, passing some doors. I got to a turn, went left. Eventually, I came up to Polly's office. I was going to enter right away... but then, I stopped. I heard something. Someone. I got closer to the nearby door which was the source of the speaking. Which, admittedly, probably looked proper sketchy to anybody who might pass by at this point in time. ...Let's just bet against that being a thing that happens. I just wanted to hear what was being said. Because in the room, I heard Art Deisma's voice. He was having a heated conversation. I tried to see what I could pick up. [BGM: Trick Score]  Yes. Yes, I know. My fault, should've handled it, uh huh, uh huh. Can we get past that, please? ...You know, I don't know why we're having this conversation in the first place. I didn't come asking for your advice. … Honestly? No, I don't care how. I'm sure you have your ways. ...I'm sorry if that hurt your feelings. I'm just cross, for perhaps obvious reasons. … Well I mean, if you're already offering... ...No, I'm aware of that. The issue is that as it stands, she is in an incredibly compromised position. And if she's compromised, then she can't help me, and then she can't help Olympo. But what can we do? There are no leads, we were thoroughl– … What? No, that can't be right. ...If the situation was handled, she wouldn't have come to me! ...Okay, well, that doesn't really sound 'handled.' That sounds like a stopgap. ...Such negotiations have already been proven entirely fruitless. Is this not simply attempting the same trick, different way? ...Yes, this time we'd have the hidden knowledge, but that doesn't change the core issue. ...Alright, fine. If that's really adequate. You know, you are the one who taught me to be complete. And your tone seems very much in line of 'good enough.' ...Again, yes, I know you never liked her, that isn't the point here. I heard Art let out a deep sigh. Just... is any of this really necessary? No, I mean any of it. We are a monolith of a company. This sort of action is beneath us. We should not have to rely on such underhanded methods. … Is such total dominance necessary? Rather, is it not more impressive were we to achieve it without stooping below our level? … Who says? Who says methods don't matter? Why not? Why shouldn't they. ...Yeah, yeah, burden of proof. I understand... I don't know. I guess I'm just tired of it all. Of people getting hurt. Of the scheming. It is... draining. … Yes. Yes, of course. Nothing worthwhile is easy. I know that quite well. But even still... No, I'm not questioning you. You know what? Forget it. I don't know why I decided to talk to you of all people about this. My tone? So sorry to hear that. Pray tell, what will you do about it? Let us not forget who runs Olympo. ...Just doing as you said.*click.* Art's argument had come to an end. Hm. Some interesting stuff to be inferred there. ...However, I instantly realized something. [BGM: Silence]  If the call was ending... Immediately, I rushed to the other side of the hallway. I opened the door to Polly's office. Just as soon as I entered, I closed the door behind me. At the same time, I heard a door opening on the other side of the hallway. I stayed put, pressed against the door – not daring to get in sight of the windows. I'd strongly prefer Art not see me. ...Did he hear the sound of the door slamming shut? That question was answered with a tentative knock on the door. I just stayed put. Not moving. Not breathing. Just waiting. ...And a few moments later, I thought I heard the sound of footsteps leaving. Ah, thank God. Looks like Art got bored or something. [BGM: Opening Lead]  I took a breath, and began walking around the office. It was nice enough; number of things scattered about. I would normally take in the scenery, but I was more focused on something else. Let's see... ah, that looked like it would do. I walked over to a bookshelf at the side of the office – a bookshelf I highly doubted was ever put to much use. Well, I'd be putting it to use today. I lifted up one of the books on the top shelf. Beneath it, I left my little present. I let the book drop back down, mostly covering it. That was good enough. So now, I waited. I wasn't sure how long it'd take for Polly to get here. A part of me wanted to keep snooping around, but there probably wouldn't be much use in that. Instead, I just took out my phone. Let's just kill time. I spent a bit browsing through some apps, and after a bit, I heard the sound of the door opening. I looked up, sure enough: enter Polly Deisma. Ah, Vels! Polly.After one more press of the screen for good measure, I stuffed my phone in my pocket. Then I straightened up, walking to the center of the room. Polly, for his part, just kept walking to his desk. He then took a comfortable seat behind his desk. His desk's seat was very comfortable and spun around. How nice. I like those types of chairs. Then again, who doesn't? It's a binary choice. Either you have a chair that lets you spin around, or you have a chair that doesn't. Doesn't exactly take a genius to tell which situation is winning. Vels, Vels, Vels. What is up? So good to see you, mi amigo. Good to see you too, Polly. Glad I can. Considering everything, I decided to proceed with caution. I mean, I always had in the past. But even moreso now. I spoke quietly. I made sure to look down. My hood obscured a lot of my face. ...Maybe it was a little cold. But it just felt like best practices, you know? Couldn't be too safe. As am I! Moreso than you, I'd even wager. That's a wager I imagine you'd win. Aw. You wouldn't be weeping upon my death? Utterly unconsolable? I'd find a way to move on, somehow. How sweet. But seriously, I have to give you my deepest thanks. Honestly, when I picked you two up, I was sort of unconvinced. The idea was Chara's. I never could've thought... well, I guess I just underestimated Art. I never really thought he'd put my life in jeopardy for such material things. Really disillusioning. Really stings. I'm sorry to hear that, Polly. That must suck. Oh, don't worry about that, I'll be fine. I mean, it's not like Art and I have really been close for a while. Obviously. I just... I guess I always held onto some hope that we'd be able to repair that bridge. But funnily enough, I don't think we're gonna be able to get over this one. Attempted assassination feels like the line. Like maybe that's where you call it. And you're sure it was Art? I mean, it has to be, right? I don't think anybody else would have motive to kill me. Fair enough. Say, did you know the guy that actually tried to kill you? Wh-what? No, uh, no, I didn't. Why would I? I dunno. Just got a weird vibe. Yeah, no, I didn't. But speaking of, as I was saying, I don't know how I could repay you, Vels. Without your diligence, I would be dead. You literally saved my life, and I'll forever be in your debt. Like, seriously, whatever you need - I can hook you up. Good to know. For starters, you could let me in on what's happened with Krish. Krish, right! Don't you worry, I covered for them. Like, when the cops came. They told me how that Seth guy was dirty, how he couldn't be trusted. I was able to give them a head start, they got away just fine, and I hid their presence from the police. Really? Seth didn't find out? "Nobody suspected a thing." … Okay, maybe a small amount of people may have suspected a small amount of thing. But they probably thought it was related to me being a screw up or something, so we're in the clear! Good. That's good to know. Hey, what can I say? I know what's up. I'm good to my word. Uh huh. So what now? I can't imagine you have Krish staying in that burned down house. Yeah, no, unfortunately with the repairs happening there, that option wasn't exactly viable. I had to get creative. Basically, before Krish left, I told them to just hide in the forest for a bit, and then meet at a certain spot at a certain time. Then, I drove them to the best hotel in Panthea and booked them a great apartment. Polly! Are you serious? Hey, hey, I'm not stupid, okay? You told me the situation. I know the Duats are looking for Krish. I was careful about things, you know? I was strategic. I came late at night, and paid the person at the desk good to keep things on the downlow. I also dressed Krish up pretty heavily... and here's the best part of all of this: I also needed a place to stay while repairs were being done. So I booked the room in my name. Put everything on my dime. So you're rooming with Krish? What, me? Be a burden like that on them? That'd be unfair. No, I'm staying with Chara for now. But still, paperwork wise it'll look like it is me staying there. And Krish knows how to keep a low profile! They're smart. Still, the Duat information network almost certainly is searching hotels. Are you really still on that? Don't you think the Duats have more on their plate than some kid? They're a monolith. They have a lot of agents. Sure, but the hotels have already been pumped for info! They got nothing in the past. Why would Krish suddenly show up now? It's still standard practice to keep the hotels under surveillance." Sure, but to a diminished extent. It'll be fine, Vels. It's the best option. ...I didn't like it. Krish was still in more danger now than they were before. But it's not like Polly was wrong, per se. It seemed like a reasonable amount of precautions were taken. Ultimately, I had to concede that in all likelihood, Krish would be safe. Okay. Thank you Polly. I appreciate what you've done for Krish. Hey, don't mention it! No skin off my back whatsoever. Just looking out for the squad. I mean, doing this? Kind of the least I could do considering you two saved my life, don't you think? Correct. Right. So don't sweat it. I'm down to keep Krish out of Duat eyes. Speaking of![BGM: Dummy]  Vels, what's your situation looking like? You were also put on the Duat watchlist, right? Where are you staying these days? You know. Here and there. Here and there? I make do. You don't need to worry about me; I'm fine, really.I really didn't want Polly to push on this point. For some reason, I felt like I'd have a harder time batting the issue away from Polly than I would from Krish... and I didn't want the conversation to head in this direction. I already had conversational plans. Luckily, it seemed as though Polly didn't really care. Playing it close to the chest. Telling only what you need to tell. I can respect it! It's smart, that's smart. Those are the street smarts that keep you alive, you feel me? Mhm. You know, I appreciate your bluntness, Vels. So many people here at Olympo? They're fake. Posturing, false smiles, the whole shebang. They never just say what they want, what they're thinking. But you Vels? You're straightforward. You're honest. I respect that.Heh. I try. Speaking of Olympo, how are things going on that front? Still at a standstill? Well, you know, it's all about how you look at things, you know? 'Standstill' is a real negative term. I like to manifest positive things. Okay, but is it not a standstill? No! Not really. I mean, on the big issues, yeah, we're not making a ton of, you know...Polly performed some confusing hand signals. Forward motion. But on the sides, those are all sort of progressing. The sides? You know, the peripheries. The things that aren't directly tied to progress, but help. I've been making inroads at the company. Toeing the ol' company line, helping people out. Not just in a casual way, but like, in an official capacity. Learning the culture. Just generally befriending other bigshots. And this is useful because... Look, I believe in a little thing called the power of the people. I like forming coalitions. Befriending everyone I can. You never know who will end up being helpful some time down the road! So for your information, I think this has been very useful work. It's just not obvious. I guess. Still, I'd prefer advancements that are actually tangible. Yeah, same. But who knows. A shareholder's meeting is approaching pretty soon. Maybe there'll be an opportunity there? You think an opportunity will just fall into your lap? It's always possible. Mmm.Alright. Enough was enough. Time to see how things would play out. [BGM: Grand Slam]  I began to casually pace around the office. I made my way over to the bookshelf. I looked at it with feigned interest. And now... I noticed something. I reached up, delicately pushing a book up. I unearthed something that was being covered up. This whole time, Polly had been watching me with vague interest as he spoke; however, as I lifted the book, he began to focus in. Awesome. I pulled out the little baggie hidden below the book. Hey. This is... What the?!?Polly jumped up in surprise. What is that... Hey, hand that over! Is it yours? N-no! No, I've got no idea what that's doing there! But, you shouldn't have it. That right?I maintained a stone face. Polly's freak out was understandable. He probably was very confused. After all, he hadn't left any drugs under that book... I had. The average person put in this position would react in a similar way to Polly. But most would be more confused... maybe even a bit accusatory. However, there was a different hint in Polly's voice. A hesitation. Likely grounded in the fact that he wasn't sure whether or not that should be there, whether he was just forgetting this little baggie. In other words... to Polly, it was entirely plausible that this discovery was legitimate. As I had expected. What is this? Huh? What is this doing here? I don't know! It's not mine. I've got no idea what it's doing there. Hm. I looked over to the book again. It's your office. Yeah, and? Maybe I'm being presumptuous, but I don't really know why anyone would hide drugs in your office. Seems pretty dumb to me. Surely there'd be better places. I-I... Chara comes in here a lot! She's in here all the time when I'm away. It's basically her second office. We basically share the office. It's gotta be hers! Chara's? Really? I mean, that's the only thing I could think of. I didn't take her to have a drug habit. Neither did I! That's why this is coming as such a surprise to me! ...Polly. You really expect me to believe that this is Chara's stash?Polly looked down, conflicted. If I had to guess, he was legitimately asking himself that question. ...And ultimately, it looked like he landed on the reasonable answer. No. So, it's yours? Probably. Probably? ... Polly, you said you're trying to become the CEO of Olympo. You're trying to become a better person. This isn't acceptable. Hey, that's not recent! It's not? No, I've been clean for a while now! You must've found some of my old stuff. Even still, this...My tone came across as incredibly judgemental. Hey, I told you about this! I told you that I used to be a party animal! I know, you did, just... I didn't realize you were doing stuff this hard. What did you think I was doing? I don't know, weed? Seriously? Vels, weed is, like, barely a drug. ... Okay, I realize statements like that aren't helping my case.Polly took a moment to breathe.  I'm sorry for freaking out like that. It's just... I'm not proud of this. I'm not proud of myself, how I used to be. I already said that, you know, but this is a particularly dark chapter of my life. The person I was... look, I've got an addictive personality. It was pretty bad. There were just stretches of time I wouldn't remember. But seriously, that's the old me! And even still, I only ever harmed myself. I knew how to handle my trips.This was proving surprisingly effective. One baggie had put Polly in 'tragic backstory' mode. This was a worthwhile plan. I mean, it was a bit costly – had to actually buy the supplies. But as luck would have it, I had a pretty good avenue towards that regard. I had to say, as low as I've been, I never thought I'd be participating in drug deals. It was a slightly surreal experience. Did they usually happen via dead drops in restroom hidey holes, or was that just the newest drug dealing meta? Perhaps I'd never know. So, you're claiming you always had things under control? That this little habit of yours never got out of hand? No, I always kept it under control. I mean, as in control as I reasonably could keep it. Obviously, it wasn't, like, smooth. Or easy. But this was a problem that I faced alone, and affected me alone. I made sure of that. Hmm. I don't know about that.
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Feb 4, 2024 16:34
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 [BGM: The Bomb]  I did research into you, Polly. To make sure we were in safe hands. I had always heard the rumors – general gossip mill. But I didn't ever know any specifics. Not until I went looking for them. And these 'scandals?' They don't look good. They really, really don't look good. Where did you get this from? Not long ago, The Oracle put out an article that compiled most of the relevant stories against you. The Oracle? Seriously? gently caress that place, for real. Don't shoot the messenger – and don't duck the question, Polly. You made a nuisance of yourself in public multiple times. Doing things that frankly seemed insane. They speculated at the time that those incidents took place that you were on drugs; looks like they were right. It's not like I was making an effort to hide it. A lot of those incidents I wouldn't call harmless. It wasn't that bad... Practicing karate on swans at the central park? That was a case of self-defense. Shouting at random kids about where babies came from?" I was provoked. Throwing a squirrel in a fast food window? ...Yeah, I got nothing on that one. This is really bad, Polly. I know! Why do you think I wanted to change? God, what is your deal right now? Are you after me? After you? Have you turned against me or something? Are you working for Art? Working for Art? Are you serious Polly? What possible reason would I have for that? Could you please be reasonable? I'm trying to have a sensible conversation right now. You're making that quite difficult. ...You're right. I'm sorry. I am. I just, I don't know, I get defensive about that stuff. Yes, I'm not perfect. Yes, I did some bad things in my past. But it's not like anything was out of malice, you know? Nothing serious, nothing permanent. Callista. ...The moment I said the name, it was like a bomb had dropped. Polly completely froze up. His face flashed with shock. And for a moment, that's how it stayed. Then it transitioned to fear. Anger. Confusion. Fear, again. Regret. Irritation. Sadness. Rage. ...Then, back to shock. All in the space of a few seconds. That certainly settled things in my mind. I... sorry? Callista. I d-don't, uh... how did yo– Callista. I, that's, you're not... Polly was looking around, uncomfortably. It was like with a single word, I was cornering him. He was physically recoiling. ...It was kind of pathetic, actually. Almost sad. ...Almost. I want you to explain Callista. How does that fit into your version of things? How is that not serious? L-look, you don't get it. You just don't get it, okay? I don't know what you think you know. But, you know, it's totally wrong. Off-base. So, you know, let's just move on. I'm mistaken? Yeah! Okay then. How? Huh? How am I mistaken? The whole Callista thing... You can't trust a thing that girl says, man! She's, like, totally unreliable. Super jilted. Because, you know, I was an rear end in a top hat to her. I won't dispute that. I was a dick! But because of that, she apparently feels like she has carte blanche to just say whatever she likes. And because of that, she's been spreading some really serious poo poo about me, and none of its true! It's scary, like, seriously – but it's the truth! Huh. So Callista was just, what, lying? Probably. Okay. But then... that's weird. Because, as I understand it, a reporter was actually pushing her to speak out more. To talk. If she was really going to spread malicious rumors, you'd think it would be the other way, right? Ah! ... Ready to tell the truth? Look, the truth is... Callista doesn't know what happened that night! I'm sure of it. Neither am I! I blacked out, and we went shot for shot. So if I don't remember anything, there's no way she does. Anything she might've said... well, I think it was just her guesswork. She got bad vibes from me, again, not for unjustified reasons. So she jumped to the worst. Thought the worst about me. Then, when she realized that she shouldn't be spreading things she didn't know for sure were true, she backed off. Nothing weird about that, right? That makes sense? Polly... You really should stop lying. Guh! If you really didn't remember what happened, you wouldn't call it 'an accident.' And if she didn't remember what happened, you wouldn't have to 'talk it over with her.' Okay, what the gently caress?! How did you get all of this information? Where is this coming from? Let's just say a little birdie came to me. Little birdie?!? What little birdie knows about you?? I got a private investigator to look into you, and I couldn't find out about you! Polly, this isn't the point. We're talking about you. Tch. Fine. Fine? Fine! Fine, you got me, okay? I was a piece of poo poo. I did things I'm not proud of. I never denied that, you know? I said it from minute one! You shouldn't have faith in me![BGM: Last Dice]  I was a lovely person. I have a lovely past. You should be supporting me not because I'm worth it, but because of what I can do for my workers. I thought we were past this! You might have been past this. I was past it at the time. But I never got past this, because I didn't know about it. Okay, well, now you do! What are you trying to accomplish, huh? Why are you hounding me with random stuff from my past? Can't I try and just move on, be a better person? This isn't just 'stuff,' Polly. Whatever. Whatever? Look, you don't get it, okay? You don't get how hard it is to be in my position. You don't know the things I went through in my childhood, okay? You don't know how it feels for the only comfort you feel to be found at the bottom of a bottle. You don't know how lovely it feels to not have control of yourself, to have to deal with what feels like another person's mistakes. There is so much stress in my life, you know? It's only natural that it'd... What are you doing, Vels? Look at me, okay, stop hiding behind that quiet voice and that stupid hoodie! What am I doing? What am I doing? Polly, what are you doing? Huh? You asked why I was pushing you like this? Why I was bringing up all this poo poo you claim is in the past? You don't see how incredibly relevant this is? Fine. Let me make it clear to you. Right now, you've been asking me to support you in taking over the Olympo company. For me to do that, I need to make an informed decision as to who would actually be a better CEO. That involves assessing both the character of you and Art. You want to hear about Art? Because, believe me, I've got stories. I'm not talking about Art right now, Polly. I'm talking about you. Do you want to know what I think about you right now? No. I'm going to tell you. I think you're charismatic. I think people like you. I think you don't intend to do harm. That's the positives category. I also think you're utterly unfit to run a business. For your entire life, you have coasted off of your last name. The majority of your life, you have never really done any hard work. And the bit of it you willingly subjected yourself to, as your brother accurately guessed, was nothing more than a token gesture. Something to make yourself feel better. I'm certain if you surveyed the people you worked with, they would all say the same thing. They probably didn't say it to your face – maybe because you were really above them on the totem pole, maybe because you're affable. But almost certainly, they all resented you, viewing you as the entitled brat that you were. Entitled brat? Oh trust me, it gets worse. You are also a crippling alcoholic and habitual drug user. Both substances can be used recreationally without much harm; this is not one of those cases. These are serious problems, and your struggles with them are valid... but they don't excuse your actions. You say you've tried to move past it. I'm sure you have. But instead of going to rehab, you're just 'trying harder.' And evidence doesn't back up that you've really stopped. That's– Most importantly, you have had a long history of poor decisions and reckless actions in your past. Many of which have caused harm to others. Some of which certain people may call unforgivable. Now, you ask if people should be allowed to grow. I don't know. Personally, I'm more hard-line than most folks, but I acknowledge redemption should be possible. But to do so, that involves atoning properly to those who you hurt. To do so, it involves repenting for your actions. To do so, it involves improving both yourself and the world around you. And I haven't seen evidence of you doing any of that. All I've seen is you whine, complain, deny, and do everything except taking responsibility for your actions. And if you ask me? I don't think that's the person who should be running a multi-billion dollar company. That's just me.[BGM: Spot On]  For a moment, Polly's expressions cycled through a number of emotions. Finally, it settled on a completely defeated look. Slowly, his head began to dip. You're right. You are absolutely right. I'm... I'm scum. I'm really scum. Even now, I thought I accepted it. And yet I couldn't own up to my past to you. I'm sorry. I really, I just don't deserve pity. If you never want anything to do with me again, I'd understand it. I don't... I don't deserve any of your compassion. Your help, your benefit of the doubt. Of course, I won't stop protecting Krish. But you can just... do what you want. You should. You could do a lot more good than helping an rear end in a top hat like me. ...I don't want to walk away. I want to make sure the best person wins the race for Olympo. And you haven't convinced me that person is you. But... And more to the point, I don't buy this 'woe is me' act for a second. I don't want your submission. I want you to own up to the truth. This does nothing for me. Okay, I get it! I suck! I'm garbage! How many times do you want me to say it? I suck! Go help Art, that's for the best! This has been thoroughly established! There's nothing for me! If I could die to make up for my mistakes, I would! But that wouldn't fix anything. What would fix things would be if I use Olympo for good. That's what I'm going to do. With you, or without you! Huh. Wow. You really are shameless, huh? ... Heh, yeah. Man, I'm like, totally unforgivable. It's funny, really. I tried to be a Buddhist, ended up an rear end in a top hat. So close, real fine line. Ah, well. All you can do is laugh, you know? Really? You're really struggling to find an angle here. Look, I just don't know what you want from me! I confessed, didn't I? What I want is the truth. I told you the truth! Not the whole truth. You basically know the truth! You know I sucked in the past! You know I'm trying to be better! You know I don't mean anyone harm! I mean, you know me! No, I don't. I really don't know you. Is that right?I nodded. Well, in that case...[BGM: Ones Are Wild]  Maybe you should rethink your position right now.Polly's face darkened, and his voice hardened. Excuse me? I mean, if you don't know what sort of person I am, I'd say it'd be pretty dangerous for you to come in and start harassing me like that. That is, if you really don't know what I'm capable of.Wow. This was so absurd, I couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. Are you serious? Are you trying to threaten me right now? Ah, why do you have to make everything so dramatic? I'm just laying things out honestly. Knowing what you know about me, do you really think I'd let a twerp like you get in the way? No, no I'm pretty sure you're trying to threaten me right now. And for the record, it's really not working. I mean, you think I'm scared of you? You're incompetent! An idiot. You've always been carried, first by Art, now by Chara. Eh, I just let them do the boring work. Never been fond of busywork. Look, I'm not saying I've ever been a great student. Not saying I'd be a good businessman or anything. But don't get it wrong, at the end of the day, I'm quite smart. Did you know back in the day, Odin used to say I always had the most potential? The most 'natural intellect?' I can be scary, I just need to be motivated. And let me say, Vels, you're doing quite a good job of motivating me right now. ... This stare lasted for a couple more awkward seconds. In those seconds, my perception of Polly was slightly but significantly shifted. Then, just as quickly as Polly had put on the serious expression, he dropped it, slumping back into his chair. Ah, man, this is awkward. I totally killed the mood, didn't I? My bad, my bad. I get a little intense when I remember my past. That's on me, by the way, I should reel it in. I don't want to create an uncomfortable atmosphere or anything, though. That's, like, really not my scene. You get that, right? Right, right. Yes! Thank you. Phew, I was worried I really gave off the wrong impression right there. So yeah, big point is, you're right. I need to change. I need to become a better man if I'm to inherit Olympo. You are absolutely right about that. Thank you, Vels, for calling me out like that. I need people to hold me accountable more often – else, I'll really start to lose myself. Thank you. You're, uh, welcome. Anyways, I think we're past that, right? Honestly, after getting all intense like that, I wish you'd just totally forget about that conversation. It's really embarrassing. You can do that, right? Just, totally forget the last couple minutes happened? Sure. Awesome! You're the best Vels.[BGM: Silence]  Anyways, I think that's all we have to talk about. I'll keep housing Krish. Wouldn't want the Duats finding them, that'd be real bad. As for your part... You know, I don't think you really need to do anything. You've done more than enough already. Thanks for that! I can handle the rest from here. Okay then. Cool. ... Oh, you can go now, by the way. ...Or we could talk for a bit longer. No, no, I think I'll be going now. Alright then. Take care.And just like that, I decided that the meeting with Polly was over. I walked out of his office, still uneasy. Even though I knew, functionally, he couldn't do anything, I still felt like speed walking down the hall. Past the rooms. Through Zethe, through the security protocol. Until finally, I reached the elevator. I entered it, still feeling a bit uneasy. But then, as I turned around... I saw Art at the end of the hall. And I saw him lock eyes with me. Immediately, I began pressing the elevator button to the first floor. I also pressed the button to make the doors close faster. Then I kept my head down. Hoped my hoodie would cover most of my face. Even from this awkward position, though, I could tell Art was making his way down the hallway pretty quickly. Likely trying to get a better look at me. Sorry for him, that hallway was a bit too long. He was a bit too late. Before he could get that close, the doors were closed, and the elevator was going down. Doo doo do dooo doo. And just like that, I was on the first floor. It was just a bit more walking from there until finally, I was out of that accursed building. Back in the open air of Panthea. And then I was just walking around outside. Decompressing. Ugh. I felt... dirty. That was an exaggeration. But it felt apt. Polly... [BGM: Opening Lead]  God, you know, I kind of knew how the conversation was going to go ahead of time. I knew there wasn't an elegant way out. I had no idea it was going to go that poorly. I mean, it's not like I had faith in Polly. But somehow, I was still disappointed. I guess I thought, just on some level, he couldn't be that bad. He probably had issues, but still, he was... I don't know what I thought he was. I guess I just didn't want to think that both Deisma brothers were completely unredeemable. God, what was Odin doing as a father? One's a fluke, two's a pattern. ...Well, usually one's a fluke, two's a coincidence, three's a pattern. But I only had two to work with, so the saying had to be altered. Why was I feeling so down? I guess I did actually have some faith. No, not faith. Hope? Hope that some segment of society wouldn't be completely hosed by power? Silly me." Anyways. *beep!* I took out my phone from my pocket and pressed the stop button on the recorder app. That's Polly taken care of. I worried a bit about the sound quality, but it would be fine. Polly didn't say in explicit words anything completely damning, but he pretty much implied it in any way possible. This recording was basically a silver bullet. I could kill Polly any way I wanted now. In the business world, in personal relationships, in the public eye... ...And that'd just leave Art in control, huh? ... Ah, gently caress. What a fork. It was kind of genius, in a way. If both options sucked, it was hard to make a move against either. Made you want to just give up on doing anything altogether. But that wasn't the right option. Well, I was in no rush. I had gotten what I came for. I'm sure I'd be able to find some way to put it to good use before too long. In the meantime, there were about a dozen other problems I should be juggling about now. Polly's comeuppance would have to wait. ... [BGM: Silence]  Oof. Not a good look, Polly. And by that I mean acting all threatening and scary and then immediately letting someone walk out with a prime blackmail audio file. Pretty lame, if you ask me. Honestly, why doesn't everyone have secret recorders on their person 'on' at all times? Seems awful convenient. ...Oh, is there a law against that or something? There might be. Eh, whatever, just be smart about it. I guess it'd also, like, eat up a lot of data or whatever. And if someone ever found out about it you'd probably, like, be killed by seven different aquaintances. ...Okay, maybe not my best idea. Still, clearly it's effective in certain circumstances; case in point. This was a fun scene to watch, you ask me. I quite liked watching Polly cycle through possible approaches, having them all fail. Problem is, unlike most people, Vels has played things too close to the chest. Polly's completely unable to correctly read the situation. His tried-and-true methods of manipulation are rendered ineffective in that context. And to be clear, I'm not claiming that Polly is some sort of sociopathic master of perusasion. People can develop such habits subconsciously - simply mirroring whatever ends up being effective. Though, maybe Polly is a secret mastermind of some type? Can't rule it out. You'd think if he were he wouldn't constantly be in so much poo poo, but you know, maybe that's his 4D chess showing. I wonder how Vels is going to approach things, especially with this whole 'upcoming shareholder meeting' that was mentioned. Probably going to be, like, important or something. I'm just saying, it's sort of been set up? Be a bit weird if it didn't pay off in some way. But, like, how's that going to change things? Who's going to be the CEO by the end of it? Right now, Art's sitting pretty, but Polly's been developing this whole counter-plan. But after this whole encounter, I doubt Vels wants Polly to succeed. ...Not that Art is seemingly much better. Who knows, maybe Odin will decide to be a wildcard and somehow claim the CEO mantle for himself?" Or maybe the third Deisma brother, Devon, will make a dark horse entrance! It could happen. Maybe Chara'll somehow make a power grab? Maybe she'll prove her virtue and the Deisma brothers will surrender to her? Or maybe this whole time she's been as scheming as the rest of them, and the shareholder meeting will be the moment the plan sprints. Or what the hell, something else completely could go down! It's really impossible to know, it's totally up in the air. ...And you know what things that are up in the air are good for? That's right baby, I'm sure you saw this one coming. Time to g-g-g-gamble! And hey, since there's so many different outcomes to bet on here, I'm cranking up the payout to 4-1. That's right, this is your chance to win big. So come on, what's your gut say? Really go big with this one! At the end of the next shareholder meeting, who will be the CEO? None of the above. Really betting on 'chaos,' aren't you? Well, Panthea's been pretty chaotic as of late. Can't honestly say I'd be surprised if some unexpected option ends up presenting itself. And now, the amount you're betting?Half of you guys said none of the above, so we'll be betting half our chips, which rounds up to 18. Alright. Well, let's see what the fates have in store, shall we? And on that note, let's see what Eris has in store, too. Mix. fucked around with this message at 20:12 on Feb 8, 2024 |
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Feb 4, 2024 16:34
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Because there are multiple options for this vote, I'll let you guys pick two options, not one. The vote options are: - Art - Polly - Odin - Devon - Chara - None of the above
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Feb 4, 2024 16:35
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Does Eris make the line about 'the third brother, Devon' if you haven't played enough of Devon's stack for that reveal? Anyway uhhh gonna split my bet and go Art and None of the above.
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Feb 4, 2024 17:06
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ApplesandOranges posted:Does Eris make the line about 'the third brother, Devon' if you haven't played enough of Devon's stack for that reveal? No, if you haven't hit the reveal it's removed completely, as is the option to vote for him
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Feb 4, 2024 17:35
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I’ll go for Art and a different person.
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Feb 4, 2024 19:47
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ApplesandOranges posted:Does Eris make the line about 'the third brother, Devon' if you haven't played enough of Devon's stack for that reveal? Wait, did i miss the reveal that EZ is Eris?
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Feb 4, 2024 21:22
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Mix. posted:No, if you haven't hit the reveal it's removed completely, as is the option to vote for him I'll guess Devon and none of the above If only because if it is actually Devon, none of the above being an answer that flips to correct if you don't know about him yet would be really cool/clever of the game.
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Feb 5, 2024 02:11
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None of the above. Really betting on 'chaos,' aren't you? Well, Panthea's been pretty chaotic as of late. Can't honestly say I'd be surprised if some unexpected option ends up presenting itself. And now, the amount you're betting? Half of you guys said none of the above, so we'll be betting half our chips, which rounds up to 18. Alright. Well, let's see what the fates have in store, shall we?And on that note, let's see what Eris has in store, too.
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Feb 8, 2024 20:12
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Forgot to post the results yesterday, woops. Next update will be tomorrow. Also, Themis posted recently that the third game is actually basically complete already in terms of actual content, it's all just bugfixes, proofreading, cleaning some stuff up, etc, so we should have a proper release date for that soon. I probably won't do the third game immediately after this, though, I want to get to the other LP I have semi-prepped already first (and it'll give me time to see the third game and what it would entail, though it's definitely on the list. ....There's also the third ABiMe game, whenever that one gets released lol, but that one's... not as big of a priority since its probably gonna be a lot harder to LP.)
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Feb 8, 2024 20:14
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Can't say I'm surrprised by Polly's reveal, but I am kind of vaguely disappointed. Ah well, rich gonna rich.
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Feb 8, 2024 21:07
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| # ? May 16, 2024 18:59 |
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don't you hate it when your two options are 'smart rich rear end in a top hat' and 'dumb rich rear end in a top hat'?
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Feb 8, 2024 21:30
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