November Mingle

[etrayamods]

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: November 22nd - Early December
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, and an unexpected guest!
NOTES\WARNINGS: N/A, please note any needed warnings in threads.

⏵ arrival ⏴ Welcome to Etraya! Arrival goes as expected - or it would, except it is not just Aurora that greets the newcomers as they arrive. Certainly they receive their earpiece so they can communicate with one another as those before them have, however there is what seems to be a woman waiting for them that is of a more flesh and blood persuasion as they leave the hospital. She carries an air about her that isn't quite like the newcomers themselves, but she is decidedly not one of the companion bots, nor Aurora. She has bone-straight blonde hair reaching past her shoulders, with a straight-cut fringe hanging above her eyes. The black dress that ends just before her mid-thighs also has a rather revealing neckline, though the sleeves which cover her arms almost feel like a mockery of modesty considering the rest. She is also wearing black stockings and black pumps, and the red of her lipstick is striking against the extreme contrast in shades she otherwise holds. As each newcomer independently files out of the hospital, she makes certain to garner their individual attention, either with a wave of her hand, a wiggle of her fingers, or directly calling them over. She is persistent, and with being so new, it is wise to heed her. Not that anyone can force one to, if they choose to walk away, nor does she seem interested in trying to, but she has her means for those proving stubborn. However, those who aren't... “Hey! I know you’re not just walking past me. I’ve got- you know, plot relevant, written all over me. I picked this dress out just for you, you know?’ “C’mere, listen up. Mama’s got a little bit of homework for you, but it’s gonna help you, too, okay? I need you to go find the hot goss, the piping hot tea on the street for me. Find out what everyone’s saying about the people we’re stuck with, okay? People are a lot more relaxed and honest when they talk about others, right? This is about efficiency. Efficiency, honey. Don’t worry, I’ll be in the trenches, too. But make sure you come find me again. I’ll be around here, okay? I know you’re as confused as I am. Well no. I’m much less confused than you are. But if you can tell me about the people here, I’ll tell you more about where you are and what this is about.” For those who ignored her, or those not newly arrived, they will receive a message through their earpiece: “Girl. Hey. Listen. I’m kind of in a pinch, okay? I need like… a little favor. But its a fun favor! I need you to get your girl some info. I need the word on the street, honey. I need the tea piping hot- I need you to go talk to your friends, enemies, frenemies, butt buddies, cousins, and have them tell you about anyone they know. I need straight facts and good gossip on everyone here. And then get back to me. Kisses. And this isn’t something for nothing. If you bring me some good goss, you’ll get some good info in turn about your whole situation. Cause that’s what you’re missing most besides home, right? Context.” ⏵ spill the tea ⏴ Tatianna having now tasked everyone (new and old) with finding out more about their fellow inhabitants—if not for their sake, for her curiosity—and in exchange she will give them valuable information that may aid them with acclimating here, or something far more valuable depending on how hot the goss is! However, she will not just hand out her secrets so easily, and so she will need one piece of gossip about each inhabitant. So she expects everyone to get mingling and talking, she isn't a charity here! To assist in this, the companion bots have set up cozy little wicker daybeds around the main hub of the city. All of which are suspiciously cozy and warm once you have sat down on them, but especially so with the accompanying aroma of the tea wafting from the kettle which rests on the center table, accompanied by sweetmeats. The tea itself also stays warm despite the cool autumn air, and so long as you stay within the daybeds, the biting chill won't reach you either. However, the tea is not only perpetually the right temperature, but it seems to have a way of loosening one's tongue. Especially the more one imbibes it. Did you mean to share that secret that might not have been yours to begin with? Or that personal detail about your best friend that wasn't meant to be known by anyone but who they themselves have told? Probably not, but the cat is out of the bag now, isn't it? Well, hopefully word won't get around...after all, it isn't likely who you are talking is going to tell everyone else, right? Right? Adding to the oddity of it all, the tea one drinks might not be the same tea that their companion is drinking, despite it pouring from the same kettle. What might be one person's earl grey, is another's pumpkin spice chai. Whatever it may be that pours out, it certainly seems to be to one's liking, or its closest approximation. There's probably some deeper meaning in that, some sort of symbolism one might surmise from the nature of sharing gossip and it being tainted by personal bias, but who cares about navel gazing about such a thing? After all, this is meant to be an enjoyable endeavor! Getting to know your fellow inhabitant should feel as comfortable as catching up with an old friend. What better way than to do it by sharing tea you both will enjoy? ☕ ⏵ close knit ⏴ As the tail end of November draws nearer, people will have already begun to see the first flakes of snow. It grows colder, and while there isn't quite a blizzard or a snow storm happening, the snow does not seem to let up with its descent. It doesn't quite get so cold that it is untenable, of course, but it would be advisable to bundle up! In fact, the companion bots seem to be on the case with assisting in just that! Around the city people will find groups of companion bots busily knitting sweaters, scarves, gloves, hats, and so forth. In fact, the moment they see someone they clock as not quite bundled enough, they will insist on supplying them with whatever they deem as being without. Are you already wearing a scarf? Well, clearly you need two of them! How about the gloves? Couldn't hurt to have several pairs! However, that isn't all that's available to people, after all there are cafes out and about where one might get a hot beverage to help fight off the cold, but for those less inclined for such establishments, the companion bots are here to serve! There is at least one companion bot per knitting group that seems to have hot cocoa on hand. If they see someone who is looking particularly cold (almost everyone is, the companion bots aren't particularly keen on the signs of successful temperature regulation), they will have a paper cup of hot cocoa imposed upon them that has their name on the side. Or, sort of. It is at least a close approximation of their name, or maybe it is an alternate spelling? Really, who can blame the bots for getting confused, there are so many of you! ⏵ snow more games ⏴ The snow is here to stay, but that doesn't mean that it has to be a bad thing! With everyone well supplied in their winter garb, the companion bots have set up spots for fun activities! Perhaps the inhabitants would enjoy a fun snowball fight, or some sledding? Some of the waters have frozen over, so ice skating is always a possibility too. Though one might want to be careful if they are to venture past what the companion bots have marked as safe. Some of the companion bots are trying their best at making a snowman, but all their efforts seem to come out rather...square. They're trying their best, but maybe they can learn by following the inhabitant's examples. There are others that will offer gold star stickers to those who seem to dominate in the snowball fights, but unfortunately the stickers don't stick too well with all the snow. Well, they tried! People will still find bots out and about with nice warm beverages available to fight off the cold, too. That service will continue to be available for the foreseeable future. Similarly, if someone comes out who is a little too under-dressed for the weather, the bots might have to pick up those knitting needles again, so be sure to put on your winter clothes..! ⏵ NOTES ⏴ To report information to Tatianna, do so here! She will only give each person their rewarded information once she has a bit of information on each character in the game. Each bit of gossip does not require a thread to count though it should be IC knowledge gained through IC means. Try to check what gossip has been given to her already, because doubling up will not yield results! Good luck! For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ. ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

[aimsforknees]

[ John's philosophical takes only go so far. This is still within his wheelhouse. ]

I'm sure for an academic it would open up a whole branch of research they never knew before. I think they would be excited.

[ Or maybe they'd be smallminded and reject reality since it didn't fit the theory the had ascribed to the world. ]

[unaliveyourself]

It comes down to the age-old dichotomy of the thrill and terror of the unknown, I suppose.

[He removes one arm from behind his head to pour himself a cup of tea and swirl the liquid inside, watching the little ripples he creates swish and sway before he hums, looking back up at John curiously.]

How about you? Do you find it exciting, having your world broadened like this?

[aimsforknees]

[ Does John find it exciting? Does he find anything exciting? He's not sure that's something he feels anymore. There's a certain amount of wonder that comes with the implication of "exciting". Kids get excited, John just feels... it's hard to say. ]

It's interesting. And yourself?

[unaliveyourself]

Heh. You do like to keep all your of cards close, mm?

[Interesting could mean any number of things. It's the ultimate non-answer. He's not entirely surprised, at this point.]

I'm not sure what I think of it, exactly. It doesn't especially change much for me. If anything, it only reinforces our insignificance in the scope of the multiverse. Even if every single person from my world were to perish, it wouldn't change the fabric of reality in any particular way. Humanity would still persist in your world, for example, and vice versa.

[aimsforknees]

[ John gave a non-answer because he doesn't feel any particular way about it and saying "I don't care" doesn't sound very good. It's a bit too revealing. So yes, John does like keeping his cards close. He can't imagine himself admitting as much as Dazai just did. ]

Is humanity as a whole more important than any one particular world?

[ He can't imagine making that distinction himself. ]

[unaliveyourself]

No, they're equally insignificant.

[It is a reveal of something, to be sure, but Dazai only ever reveals what he wants to reveal. John is clearly too skilled at what he does to learn anything from directly; the wiser play is to appear to have the disadvantage in a conversation, just to see where it goes. Even without that ulterior motive of sorts, though, this kind of thing Dazai just finds interesting to talk about.]

Did you know that on an average day on my Earth, 170,790 people die? Barring any specific unusual circumstances, I'd wager it's roughly the same for you. That's 119 people a minute. In the time we've spent having this conversation, nearly six hundred people would have died -- if time were moving at the same pace here as in our worlds, anyway.

[Which apparently, it isn't! Fun facts he's learned very recently.]

But the point is, you go on about your day despite all of that death, don't you? Focusing on your personal matters and the people close to you. Humans aren't designed to face death on that kind of scale. They wouldn't be able to function. Yet, they instinctively fear death, all the same. Fear of loss, of pain. A single friend being lost in an accident will always ache more than a thousand in a disaster far away.

So what does widening that scale even further really change? The life of even one single friend will still be more precious to you than all seven billion in my world.

[aimsforknees]

[ What would John sacrifice for seven billion people? Would he sacrifice himself? Harold? Is Harold worth seven billion people? It's not an easy question to answer, aside from the fact that Harold would not weigh himself equal to or greater than perhaps even one other person. That's not how John values Harold, Harold is worth so much more than that, but seven billion?

And even then, isn't John trying to fight that, one life at a time? He can't save 119 people per minute, but one a day? He's spent his life trying to save lives, and hopefully has succeeded. He thinks he knows a little about thinking about death on that scale. ]

Do you believe that one person could be more important than seven billion?

[unaliveyourself]

[He hums thoughtfully; in truth, he doesn't even need something like tea that loosens the tongue to go on a tangent about utilitarianism vs deontology, philosophical ramblings about different views on morality, but in this case, he doesn't bother. This is the second time John's asked him something like that. It's clear he's fishing. But while Dazai might be willing lay some of his cards on the table, there's others which aren't coming out of his sleeve at all.

Would he sacrifice seven billion people for a single person? Not for most. Not even for the Agency. But there is one. Odasaku ... he'd let his world burn, let every world burn, if it meant Odasaku was able to live -- even if only in a place like Etraya. He hasn't stopped thinking about it since he realized it was possible.]

Mmm, how do you define 'important'? There's no objective measure of such a thing, after all.

[aimsforknees]

[ Everything is always a philosophical discussion with Dazai. John shouldn't expect a straight answer for anything at this point. He's not even sure he could tell what a real answer would be. Dazai just seems to like asking questions for the sake of doing so. ]

What do you think "important" means?

[ John is not going to answer this question first this time. ]

1/2

[unaliveyourself]

[Not for the first time, Dazai finds himself idly pondering on John's background. He's been trained to resist interrogation, certainly. Maybe a professional interrogator himself? The way he carries himself, his wariness toward his surroundings, the suspicion of food and drink from the get-go suggests field experience of some sort, so probably not the kind that's called out to question prisoners and captives in a secured location.]

John-saaaaan, [intoned petulantly, that already unnecessary honorific dragged out for a longer time than reasonable] it's not very nice to answer a question with "you first".

[unaliveyourself]

[It's only about a moment he buys himself, to decide on how to play this. He could play coy about it, deflect and mess around until they're on another topic entirely, but it won't give him any new information, which is what he needs most of all, in Etraya.

Instead, John will get his answer, but it might be a little more than was bargained for.]

I suspect you already have some idea that I don't have a single answer to that question, or a simple one. The reason you wouldn't answer first is because it's similar for you, isn't it? We're not good men.

[Dazai's all but certain of that. John is too secretive, too cagey with his thoughts and feelings, to be someone who has never gotten his hands dirty.]

But you wouldn't be asking me what you have if my answer didn't matter to you, if those lives didn't matter to you. So you'd like to know how I weigh lives, in order to understand just how dangerous I might be, if I had to wager a guess. I'll give you this much for free -- important varies, based on the situation, but I do prefer to avoid loss of life, when possible.

[aimsforknees]

[ "We are not good men" is quite the admission from Dazai. Not only does it reveal his opinions about John but reveals a lot about himself as well, and things John hadn't assumed yet. Dazai had done a good job of masking with the sheer number of philosophical questions he spews out; annoying and obfuscating. Now with his own admission John has a better read on him. ]

We can agree on that; I prefer not to kill people.

[ John doesn't think he needs to hide that he's killed people before. Dazai has clearly figured that much out and it would be such an easily disproven lie to try and deny it. No, they're both in situations where they're surrounded by danger and death, John feels confident about that. ]

Importance does vary, there's no set order to it.

[ That's not entirely true, there are some people who are important no matter what, but— John isn't going to mention that. It's too revealing, especially considering Harold is here. ]