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cityofhex2016-10-29 08:29 pm
modmachine) wrote in 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.]
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.]
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"Yeah. That's right. I can show you a few places... given how people avoid the Sixth... there's other stuff around, but there's ways of protecting yourself. ... Even if a gun won't help a lot with most of them. Can you climb okay?"
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And as long as she has her commlink on her, ever since she got here. This whole city is an oddly forgiving Matrix hole, and she has found that she can simulate WiFi by keeping them in her commlink's direct network.
"And even then I can get up and down in a pinch, I'll just have to levitate."
Which she would rather not. Unnecessary magic raises all the wrong attention.
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"There's a few places I know that are close to some heating vents. They smell a little funny, but they're warm. And the smell keeps other things away." It's not awful, but some of the restaurants have smells that aren't great.
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"I grew up next to a waste facility."
If Tobias pays close attention to the smell in the room, he might notice a faint scent of... well, waste. hanging in the air. It's been there ever since he landed in front of her, but it's really faint enough to not be immediately noticeable.
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He turns, letting her see his back. If she's going to attack him... that would be the time. But hopefully she won't. He kind of likes her.
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She will move quickly once he has turned around, but not to attack him; no, she just will take off her trousers and shoes and coat to get dressed properly this time, with shirt and undies underneath, and once that is done she'll zip around the room to pick up little boxes and bundles from various places where they were hidden. Most of them, including the gun, end up in hidden places under or inside her coat. Only a necklace made of pretty pebbles around her neck remains visible.
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"All ready to go? Do you need help carrying anything?" Not that he expects her to hand anything over... but it doesn't hurt to ask.
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She's only been in Hex for a few days, and never had that many more belongings than what she could carry easily on her person at any time even before Hex. There simply is nothing that he could help her with.
"...What's your name? I'm Kitty."
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She makes a face at him and follows him, her feet light and quiet on the floor. At times, she circles around areas that are structurally weak or that would creak, he otherwise straight line bulging to one side or the other - she might not have been in this building for more than a few day, but she had developed some routines about how to walk the path downstairs already.
"How long have you been living on the street?"
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"I have a tent that I live in sometimes, but... three years. I lived with some other people for a while, but not anymore."
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It's better not be too direct though, probably. Some people get pissy when you remind them that you are mortal and your security fragile. He'd be highly hypocritical if he was like that, though, she thinks and has to grin briefly.
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"One of them... didn't make it through a fight. And then I left. I didn't want to get the others hurt if I did something dumb." His throat feels tight - too tight. It still hurts, thinking about her. Thinking about what he should have done differently...
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She's been over this with at least one of the others from the team each time they lost someone. Because it's hard to not blame yourself, and she did, but she's never had real issues addressing it with them and she always had someone around to talk her through it. "If they didn't kick you out themselves, they probably were worse off for you having left. You probably had some routines and knew each others styles, probably complimented each other well enough, or you wouldn't have stuck together before. And then you left and regrouping always means that you're more vulnerable. And finding replacements that fit can be hard."
Does Eärendil fit? She still isn't sure, even though he's been with them for a good long while. He compliments them well, at least, and that is the only thing that really counts in a decker.
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They do, at least. He hasn't stopped fighting. Everything is gathering information. Everything is peeking in dark corners where those things might be. He'll pay them back ten times over for what happened.
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She's in an eternal "why" phase, okay. Or perhaps not. As a part of metahuman society, she's only two years old, after all. And she will mature into an adult sooner rather than later, too.
"Why can't you be around them?"
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He doesn't want to hurt them. They owe each other too much. "Fights between people like us can be... awful."
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He's afraid of hurting one of the others by attacking them over what happened.
That makes more sense.
"How long have you been alone?
...Does being alone make you feel better?"
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This isn't a conversation he wanted to have with anyone, much less a kid.
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Is she going somewhere with this? She might be. Or not. She isn't quite sure herself and not exactly thinking ahead.
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It takes her a heartbeat to realize that she's kind of offering, but ...she barely knows him, but he seems trustworthy enough, honest, helpful and doesn't pry more than necessary. And he's not properly human, too.
And she has tried the being alone thing for a couple of days now and realized that while she likes being alone, she only likes it on her own terms. When it becomes a forced state of being, it gets lonely.
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... Maybe for now, at least. There's... he still doesn't know what she is, and he wants to know, and he knows he can't trust anyone, but she's not possessed by a Strix. And she's different, too. "We need to get you set up, first."
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"What do we need to do to "set me up"?"
They've almost reached the entrance now and are about to step out onto the street, and something - Oh. She stops abruptly and reaches inside her coat to produce a small black item. Contact lenses, she almost forgot to hide her eyes again. As abruptly as she stopped, she crouches down, balances the container on her knee and starts to pick the contacts out and insert them into her eyes.
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He notices that she stops, and waits, smiling slightly. "Well, first we've got to find you a puffy jacket. You'll want one when the snow falls, and it's easy to hide things under it. I'll also see if I can snag a tent from somewhere... even if you don't end up using it, you can use the material to make a lean-to so wind stays out."
He hesitates, before letting out a long breath. "Or you can come to the tent city in the central district with me... if you can avoid asking people there questions. The one rule there is that you don't push people for answers. They'll tell you if they want - and if they don't want to, don't push them."
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So this is happening on the 6th of November, if that's okay with you?
That works!
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