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

[materialized]

[ Of course that's what Dazai would choose to focus on.

If Chuuya could punch him, then he would, but he settles for a sharp glare, his fingers curling into a tight fist. ]

Sure seems like it. You'd better figure something out, or you're not going to have to worry about it anymore.

[ And Dazai and Dostoevsky aren't the only one who's been moving pieces around on the chessboard. The Port Mafia is as the night, and the Boss works from the shadows. There's the Port Mafia's men, his men, whose very existence are being threatened by the current state of affairs.

It really does piss him off to be so far away from it, from everyone, at a time like this, for the sake of some worthless experiment, or test, or whatever label they're slapping on this waste of space. ]

What else do you want to know?

[unaliveyourself]

No, no, you don't understand, I really can't! Nobody stays dead, in this place!

[Would he really just ollie out and leave everyone up the creek without a paddle, even if he could? ...Chuuya knows the answer to that, after knowing him all these years, but in a way Dazai is trying to give his old partner information too, here. It's just that he's having a very trying evening, having gone from the relief of one crisis solved (the stitches from his gunshot surgery are barely healed, even) to learning of another that's evidently managed to spiral out of control in the single month he missed, and there's something soothing about making a nuisance of himself. Like his version of squeezing a stress ball.]

I was going to ask about the current relationship of our respective organizations, but from what you've said, it sounds as though the cooperation between them hasn't yet dissolved. So, what do you say to extending that cooperation while in Etraya? Our priorities do align, as long as we remain here, after all.

[materialized]

[ Well, it's at least nice of him to pretend that either of them have a choice in this situation.

Chuuya frowns, turning over what he's managed to learn on his own this place. If he takes that statement at face value, then it's disconcerting to say the very least, enough to override any irritation that he's currently feeling about the very idea of continuing to have to occupy a space and cooperate with the person next to him. He had four long years of peace, and now it seems like every other day he's being given some migraine or another.

He slumps back into his chair, blowing out an exaggerated sigh. He runs his hand through his hair, his hat tilting up slightly as his fingers slip under it. Dazai is frustratingly capable; they both are, and it's what had made them such a frightening duo in the past. ]

Beggars can't be choosers. As long as we're both here, I don't see any other option. All us squabbling is gonna do is put us as a disadvantage.

[ Besides, Mori's instructions and intentions for Chuuya to assist him don't stop at the multiverse door. He tilts his head back as he speaks, looking up first, palm still pressed against his forehead in an effort to stave off a budding headache, before his eyes move back to Dazai. ]

So, what's the plan?

slides back in 5000 years later...1/2

[unaliveyourself]

[Look, to his perspective, the Agency and Mafia were very recently at war to save their respective organizations. For all that Dazai can be detached from emotions, he doesn't discount their existence; there's irrationalities at play that had to be accounted for, especially with unknown variables like the timeline to think about. Now that he has a solid baseline to work from again, though, it's easy to fall back into the dynamic he's familiar with. He smiles one of those especially plastic punch-me smiles as he leans forward to rest his chin against the back of his palm.]

That's the spirit! But I don't believe I said anything about not squabbling. It'd be quite boring to pretend to get along after all these years, don't you think, Chuuya-kun?

[unaliveyourself]

[...Unfortunately, that baseline is about as far as he's gotten, to date. It's been -- frustrating is the word, perhaps. Wherever he looks, he finds dead ends, vertical cliffs with no footholds. The few angles he's thought of require allies that aren't here, and he hasn't had enough time to build up new associations that will help him undermine Echo and Aurora, here.

That doesn't mean he doesn't have an answer, though.]

For the moment? I've been looking into who among our ranks is most uncomfortable with our circumstances or otherwise inclined toward suspicion. Without the resources of either of our organizations available, we'll need to start from scratch, essentially, so we'll need to recruit more allies. There's a few promising prospects I've identified already --

[he starts counting them off on his fingers]

-- one is a young man by the name of Krouse, network username "blackhat". He's eager to be useful, and distinctly uncomfortable with the notion of losing or severing any relationship that exists. Likely to be loyal if we earn his trust. Another is a man named Castiel. Apparently a literal angel from the Judeo-Christian tradition, if you can believe it. Incredibly powerful, yet clearly adrift and seeking purpose, and his top priority is a friend named Dean. The two of them are likely a package deal. Third is a "John Warren" -- almost certainly an alias, but it's what he goes by, here. I'll eat my entire coat and all my bandages if he doesn't have a background like ours, which makes him potentially useful and potentially dangerous in equal measure. Usernames "Asano" and "therealtalk7" were distinctly agitated about the announcement of the last mission.

[He lowers his voice a little more for the last one.]

...Finally, Vincent Smith. He should not be trusted with sensitive information under any circumstances, but he also doesn't want to save his world, which makes him unusual enough to be worth paying attention to, and potentially useful longterm in undermining Echo and Aurora.

[materialized]

[ God, Chuuya wants to knock his teeth out.

He wants to, but the churning of his stomach is even stronger knowing that Dazai doesn't have a plan. Dazai, cagey as he is, who always have some plan that he's not willing to disclose up his sleeve.

Well, Chuuya has heard all of that. He has, is considering, but it's a lot all this considered. There's a list of names, and he's gathered enough on his own to know that they're all citizens - or whatever the Hell this place labels its inmates.

He listens, digests, the initial frustration from his antagonism dying down until he finally asks, ]

... So, what's up with this "Vincent Smith" guy? What's got you so pissed off about him? You wanna die anyway so he can't have tried to kill you, so what?

[ Because it really isn't like Dazai to warn him off of anyone, and it does concern him a tad.

Not because he gives a damn about Dazai, of course, but because it is so rare for him to speak up on anyone. If it's someone who would hurt him, it's someone who would hurt Chuuya and those he does care about too... That's all. ]

[unaliveyourself]

[Dazai hums, debating whether or not it's worth getting into the details. He's certain Chuuya would understand what he means the moment he has a conversation with the man, but in the interest of establishing an open flow of information between them, he chooses to elaborate.]

It's not that I'm angry with him, precisely.

[It's actually pretty rare to set off Dazai's anger. He simply doesn't run that hot. There's a grand total of two people in his life who have accomplished it, and both incidents are intensely personal. Disdain, on the other hand, is a lot easier to achieve, and Vincent earned that relatively quickly.]

He is a man who cannot be trusted because he doesn't seek to be trusted. Trust requires vulnerability on some level, and Vincent is a man who actively seeks out wounds like a shark sensing blood in the water. It makes him feel powerful.

[For all their unpleasant history, Dazai and Chuuya know what it means to be allies. Vincent reads to him as someone who only knows who to use people, and thus be used in turn.]