modmachine: (Default)
Hᴇx - ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴅ ᴍᴀᴄʜɪɴᴇ ([personal profile] modmachine) wrote in [community profile] cityofhex2016-10-29 08:29 pm

WEEK 01

Somewhere, a gear slips.

It's sunset on Halloween night; a night of celebration for the dead and the once-dead, a night of wariness for those bound closely to the spirits. Everything seems to move more freely on this night; the sensation of boundaries crossed is almost palpable.

A handful of those native to the city will certainly feel such. Between one step and the next, there's a feeling of pushing against something, something you didn't know was there before - and it gives. Physically, nothing changes, but you now know something is wrong, as though waking from a dream. Something has slipped, and you remember. Hajime will feel the sensation most keenly, as the things he recalls lack the sharp details of a demon's memory.

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Sixth, the New Arrivals all also find themselves taking steps - the first thing the group will become aware of in the city is being shoved out the door of what seems to be some kind of broken down factory. The alley they step into is wide enough to get a truck through, but shows little sign of human habitation; only a cardboard box, half-dissolved by rain, and a few bits of stray glass from broken bottles can be seen. Their phones and any other communication devices they possess all beep loudly, once, after the door slams shut.

Except... What door? When they next blink, while there's still a vaguely door-like outline, the concrete wall has changed; where the door was, there's a metal sheet, machined with faint circular patterns, seamlessly integrated with the concrete. Banging a fist on it produces a solid sound, as though the metal was at least an inch thick. Though there is a feeling of being watched in the alleyway, no one will approach until they leave it, not even a passerby walking the not-quite-yet-dark street at either end. Until they step out of the alley, it's as though they don't exist.

And there's a good amount of foot traffic passing the alleyway by. Though it tends towards people in a college student age bracket and people in a vaguely street punk sort of fashion with odd accessories, neither is an absolute rule by any rule. Following the flow of traffic leads to a run-down park that's mostly skatepark with a few picnic tables and a small greenspace that's been taken over for a dancefloor. The tables are covered in odd junk and there seems to be some trading going on.

Haseo and Ryoji will both have better knowledge of what the place is, and have standing invitations to the party that's starting up as the Sin-Eater trading post winds down.

Elsewhere: On a beach bordering the bay, a group of changelings holds a bonfire. Periodically, someone throws a papercraft skull into it with extreme prejudice; almost all the skulls are inhuman in some way, though the craftmanship of the paper-mache makes it difficult to tell at times. Those in the know have to be aware that such an overt display won't pass unnoticed by the Autumn King... But the tall and built woman who seems to be the center of the festivities shows no fear in the season of fear.

In the Residential District and even a few places in the Sixth, trick-or-treaters are as much a feature as they are every year. Children in costume run about with little concern for who they approach, while their parents maintain appropriate wariness from sidewalks or cars. A small group of children, however, galivants with no supervision - and there is something uncanny about the trio. It's best to give them a treat if they approach you, else you might find yourself the recipient of a cruel trick in return. Unlike the other trick-or-treaters, they're out and about well past midnight; nearly to dawn, in fact. When the sky begins to lighten, however, all three stop immediately in the middle of what they're doing and - with the sound of mad, fey giggling - bolt off in the direction of the farming district.

The prompts from the Test Drive also remain available for interaction.

The rest of the week:

Weather forecast: Though Halloween is a clear night, clouds steadily roll in for most of the rest of the week, hanging overcast in the sky with occasional breaks and sprinkles of rain slotted in. Mornings are foggy and chill, warming slightly in the afternoons but not varying all too much in temperature. Frost has yet to set in, though, making it possible to sleep outside if you have adequate cover, but it won't be very fun.

Moon Phase: The 30th was a New Moon, so Halloween's sky is decorated by a fingernail crescent that grows to almost a half moon throughout the week.

The Clean-Up: After Halloween, of course, everything must slowly go back to normal. Most folks clean up their own messes throughout the first morning of November, but shards of gutted and thrown pumpkins can be found most everywhere, and at the park where the Sin-Eaters partied, a lone Security Officer inspects the aftermath for signs of unusual activity. Aside from the remains of pumpkins, which are mostly left to rot, decorations vanish over the course of the week and all but a few are gone by Thursday morning.

The College: Though enrollment for the fall semester is over, the deadlines for winter are fast approaching, and there are a number of tables set up in a large area to entice prospective students. Most of them are manned by undergraduates, but the English program's table is staffed most of the time by a single Tired Professor with mousy brown hair. Occasionally, the Tech Student at the next table over takes pity on the man, bringing him a hot-chocolate to help warm his fingers.

[Feel free to use this post as a jumping-off point for logs and interactions! You are also welcome to post your own logs to the community as needed. Mods will be available on plurk and discord to answer questions, and can be hailed for exploration logs off this post.]
chalicejoker: (Mopey)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-07 02:32 am (UTC)(link)
"Attention from something impossibly powerful." Hajime seems rather calm about this, though he does glance over one shoulder as though discussing this might bring something out of the woodwork. "It wouldn't hesitate to wipe you from existence if it decided you annoyed it enough." He knows; he'd had jobs like that often enough before his Fall.
runs: (considering all that)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-07 07:58 am (UTC)(link)
So something like one of the megakons. Never piss off a dragon, and in the end it's of minor importance if they're actually owned by one or not.

"Does it own this city?"
chalicejoker: (Bored)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-09 05:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"In a manner of speaking, yes." Hajime nods. "Though most are unaware of it."
runs: (forward and ahead)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-09 08:33 pm (UTC)(link)
That doesn't seem to be too strange to her.

"And why do you know about it?"

Because it is hunting him. And she didn't want to be involved with it, but she can see it, and she doesn't like that, so she kind of ...is, probably. Or will be, eventually. Things don't tend to just leave you alone.
chalicejoker: (Standard Expression)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-10 03:57 am (UTC)(link)
"Let's just say I've crossed it." Vague answers are the safest ones, right?
runs: (forward and ahead)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-10 03:12 pm (UTC)(link)
"But you aren't a stigmatic. What are you then?" If he gives her vague answers she'll ask specific questions. She can still ask him all the things, after all.
chalicejoker: (Contemplative)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-12 03:54 am (UTC)(link)
"Something that got away." Oh, he can keep right on being vague. At least, he'll try.
runs: (duh)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-12 02:20 pm (UTC)(link)
"But you don't look like that."

Even though he smells like he could look like it. She squints at him, trying to see through ...some kind of illusion? Or did he build a think around himself?
chalicejoker: (Creeper)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-12 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
"If I couldn't stay hidden, I'd be dead," Hajime replies smoothly. Like he's going to explain the intricacies of his Cover.
runs: (considering all that)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-12 11:22 pm (UTC)(link)
That's no answer, but a fair enough reply. She's witnessed the consequences of not staying under the radar one time too often.

"Do you still look like a person without the illusion?"
chalicejoker: (Uncertain)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-13 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
"Depends on what you mean by a person." Hajime shrugs.
runs: (considering all that)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-13 05:43 pm (UTC)(link)
That's a good question. "Like ...normal living beings who have brains to think with." AIs aren't persons, sorry. If you need to steal people's bodies to be a physical person, you become an unperson as soon as you become physical.
chalicejoker: (Skeptical)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-13 08:22 pm (UTC)(link)
"I'm person enough, then." Hajime considers it. "Thinking for myself's what got me into this in the first place."
runs: (forward and ahead)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-13 08:29 pm (UTC)(link)
"So you were something like a corporate drone." Thumbs up to you, weird not-a-wheel-guy, for getting out of that.
chalicejoker: (Satisfied)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-14 02:10 am (UTC)(link)
That might be the understatement of the century, but it's close enough. Hajime decides it's worth showing a little amusement for. "Something very much like that...but far more dangerous."
runs: (duh)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-14 12:27 pm (UTC)(link)
"Elite security service members are corporate drones, too," well, to a degree at least, they know more about the world than your average salariman, "and they're anything but harmless."
chalicejoker: (Amused)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-16 01:38 am (UTC)(link)
Smart kid. "That's probably a little closer to what I did." Yeah, that's amusing Hajime a bit.
runs: (considering all that)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-16 08:01 am (UTC)(link)
Oh. "...If that was what you did, why are you working as a photographer now?" Most people in her surroundings back home use what skills their corporate (or otherwise bound) days gave them to make a living even afterwards. No reason to let skills go to waste, and no way to afford such a thing besides.
chalicejoker: (Satisfied)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-17 02:36 am (UTC)(link)
"I'll let you in on a little secret--no one ever suspects the photographer." At least, not in his experience. Not yet.
runs: (duh)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-17 09:44 am (UTC)(link)
"Don't people get angry because they think that you're spying on them?" That would be her first thought if someone directed a camera at her.
chalicejoker: (Amused)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-19 03:31 am (UTC)(link)
"Only once." Hajime shrugs. "And that guy was spoiling for a fight anyway. Someone else talked him out of it."
runs: (considering all that)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-19 07:35 am (UTC)(link)
"...And how long have you been at it?" She crosses her arms over her chest, tilting her head and staring at him incredulously. Only once, seriously?
chalicejoker: (That Shirt Why)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-20 04:43 am (UTC)(link)
"Long enough." He's really not good at this whole direct answer thing.
runs: (forward and ahead)

[personal profile] runs 2016-11-20 08:04 am (UTC)(link)
"Longer than a month?"

This is turning into a game now. She likes games.
chalicejoker: (Amused)

[personal profile] chalicejoker 2016-11-21 02:34 am (UTC)(link)
"Longer than a month." Really, he's putting up with this for far longer than he might have with another adult. He's not sure if his Cover likes kids, or if he just likes kids, nor would he admit that to anyone--probably not even himself.

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