citylogs | [OPEN] Let's experiment on the experiment...ers.

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[OPEN] Let's experiment on the experiment...ers.

WHO: Tsuruno Yui (

strongroots), and YOU.
WHAT: Spreading word about the experiment
WHERE: Around the City! Outside your apartment, in your face-- But also a portion of it at the Welcome Diner
WHEN: From early October to before the City event on the 19th!
WARNINGS: None!

[ PROMPT 1: FOR BUMPING INTO, BE BUMPED INTO! ]

There's a pair on a mission--and hopefully, a pair capable of wrangling some of their friends to join in on sharing out some fliers they've made for an experiment. But as it is, you may meet this pair when they knock at the door of where you're staying, or while you're out on the streets! Each with a friendly face, from the boy's calm nod and "Hey--you got a minute?" or the girl's [description here].

Or you've escaped meeting them in person, but found their flier slipped under the door of where you're staying. And on it reads...

PLEASE READ!A group of us want to hold an experiment on how the city will react if we don't go to a new location immediately or any event it runs. The newsletter they gave out mentioned a Halloween party, and the report in the office also mentioned a test running from the 19th to 31st of October.

What happens if we run our own party in this timeframe? What happens if we don't take part in their experiments? We should test how they react.

Don't talk about this on the network. Come to the Welcome Diner if you want to find out more. We want to hold a meeting with everyone about this plan on the 14th at the diner.

Let's see how willing they are to act.

If you come to the Welcome Diner, Robby Keene and Tsuruno Yui can be found, especially during the first week and a half of the month; others, too, with the activity taking place there. But the pair are usually behind the counter, or Robby.

Take any of the above locations -- outside your character's apartment, on the streets, or the Welcome Diner -- as a place to bump into them, or to be bumped into.

[ OPTION 2: THE ARRANGED MEETING ]

[ lookie here. ]

[ OOC: Hi this is an IC post on the subject of experimenting with city events. Both Robby and Tsuruno can talk with your character, or if you would prefer one or the other, make a note of it in the subject! ]

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[ Definitely getting part of the army from the paramilitary part, there. Okay. ]

So you're not always on duty, [ he says as a way of confirming, though he asks before Midnight can do so: ] Do you sleep for a living when you're not on duty?

[ It's dumb on purpose, playful. He's definitely playing up 'I'm the one interviewing you' angle, here. ]

[ This is fun. Midnight sticks his hands in his pockets, taking in a very satisfied breath. He likes talking about himself. ]

Oh, in that case, I'd be right awful at it. Insomnia, you know.

[ Midnight laughs. ]

No, I was coming back from covering a shift in outgoing sales, got a bit dizzy, and sat down for a bit. When I woke up, I was on a train. Very disorienting, although I doubt I need explain why.

Asking what your job was what I meant anyway. [ You know, even if imagining the guy taking a break on a bench is funny, which is as far as Robby's imagination will go for that. ]

Outgoing sales is what?

[ Asked, curiously. ]

A position you only need worry about if you ever consider a career as a salesman, lad.

[ Midnight laughs. ]

I suppose, in the simplest of terms... I am a part of a militarized security department of a pharmeceuticals company. I do work part time in their sales department organizing and sending goods... And before I left, I was part-timing in their manufacturing department preparing shipments. I wasn't just a soldier, in that sense.

[ ~~is isn't in, me~~

But, well. That's a whole lot of business side than Robby would have expected, but being part of a militarised security for a pharmaceutical company sure is ~~Resident Evil~~ unusual, Robby thinks. He's not in the know enough to say whether or not that's true. It does make Robby quiet as he processes it, if for a short moment. ]

Big business. [ Is his very observant conclusion. But he's not going to just guess at the reason for what sticks out at him, his curiosity this time sounding more actually confused, genuine: ]

Why does a pharmaceuticals company need its own military?

[ ~~homie you are So Good~~

Midnight nods approvingly. Good. He already knew it, but Robby is rather sharp. ]

Excellent question. I looked into the same question myself before I decided to apply for basic. It's so very rare for a corporation to look for anything other than profit, after all... Philanthropy in the company's directive means nothing without action.

[ Midnight shrugs. ]

But the history of the company checked out. I had my doubts, but when just about everyone is on first name terms with the CEO and most of the leadership, and everyone in said leadership is terribly honest about both their work and the flaws and challenges in their work, their failures... It was a simple decision to give the whole concept a chance.

The security department, as it turns out, is mostly there to protect their assets during philanthropic outreach. And... Well, explanation of that requires a bit more background. Are you interested in the rest?

[ Because Midnight's used to having to explain Oripathy, Reunion, and Rhodes Island to others at this point. The explanation, however, is rather lengthy. He's honestly all right with just moving on to something a bit more fun. ]

[ He weighs his options to decide his interest. There's still a bit until they reach the apartment complex him and Mister LaRusso are staying at, and this line of questioning had been a way of keeping any subjects off himself.

So. ]

Sure. This got something to do with the state of the places they go?

[ Kind of like entering a shitty, torn up part of the world with the wrong people ready to jump them? ]

[ Sure, sure. Midnight's always happy to be the center of a conversation. He's a great fan of himself. ]

I'd say... Perhaps. Some of the outreach we do extends into places with fairly dangerous environmental factors. The trouble the forward teams have with spiders and slugs alone...

[ Midnight shakes his head. Most of his live combat experiences have revolved around getting rid of those. It's tedious, mildly dangerous work. ]

But when it comes to danger... I'd say the greatest danger humans face in our world are other humans. As far as I can tell from those I've spoken to here, this seems to be a fairly universal concept, no?

[ Well. ] I've never heard of people having a bigger problem with spiders and slugs than other people. Unless you clean for a living.

[ He feels like he's being humorous, but also: slugs and spiders?? ]

Slugs and spiders can't ambush you for your gear. [ Unless you're a fly. Or a gardener's cabbage. ]

[ Midnight laughs. ]

The garden variety pests do not, no. You're from Earth, are you not? Stationary metroplexes, one species of human, one moon in the sky? Given your skepticism, I'd assume that there's nothing that can mutate an insect's genetic structure as well.

[ ... Midnight is aware that he's probably dropped a lot on this poor boy's head, but he does like prefacing this with what he had to learn rather early in this city: his threshold for normal has had to expand considerably. ]

...radiation? But, uh, you're saying something changed the slugs and bugs?

[ Look, he's going to focus on the insect part here, even if 'stationary metroplex' had him ?????????ing inside, like he didn't know what the word metroplex meant.

Especially one that isn't stationary...apparently? ]

Radiation... Yes, I think that's the proper way to put it.

[ Midnight nods! ]

Unlike your Earth, Terra has a bit of a problem with meteorological phenomenon called Catastrophes. Storms that hail down Originium, a black mineral that consumes organic material around it. While Originium is in the body, however, it alters the tissue around it, enabling rapid chemical reactions. Meaning... if anything living comes in contact with it, there's a fair chance said creature is doomed to a rather explosive death.

[ Slugs and spiders included. ]

[ ... ]

... Sounds bad. [ ... and like a simplification, but there's no humour in the remark: it really does sound bad. Even Robby's poor imagination can picture it to some degree. Especially if... ]

How often does it happen?

[ Hopefully not that frequently, right? ]

[ Midnight pauses for a moment, sizes up his young charge with a look. Not to bring down the mood after such a productive planning session... But he also doesn't like to lie if he can help it, even if he's good at lies. ]

Often enough that evacuations are a semi-frequent occasion. Those privileged enough to live in nomadic cities are spared the trouble of having to move every other year. Those who live landbound... They aren't quite as lucky.

... I have heard that Earth is a bit more fortunate with regard to its weather, though. That cities are able to sit on land and simply spread without regard for borders... It's something I can't fathom, although I do try to imagine it every now and then.

[ He finds the world that Midnight comes from one hard to imagine in return, though he doesn't speak in turn; just lets the failed attempt happen in a quiet second. ]

We have our own problems. Water levels are rising, the world is heating up, and we're the ones doing it. [ Not that Robby is really up about the world, and his tone has an edge of humour that sticks to Robby's expression as he looks back at Midnight. ] Your world would hate it, seeing it taken for granted. But whenever I hear about other places, ours all sound self-made.

But a lot more other people sound better at handling what happens here. How a city can just screw with your head.

[ Or maybe that's unfair, but Robby can't help but see that about most others here: how more well-equipped they are to endure the absurdity of their environment. ]

[ ... That's an equally odd concept to him. Midnight thinks for a moment, imagining the consequences of an oceanbound Terra, then shakes his head. It isn't something he'd like to think about for long. Frightening.

Perhaps there isn't anything dark and monstrous in the waters of Earth, though... Not that drowning is a palatable fate. (Nor are manmade dooms. Surprisingly, among Terra's problems, the Catastrophes rank somewhere in the middle of the list. Most of the rest come from human nature.) ]

I see... This place isn't the sort one settles into all that easily. It seems to go out of its way to make one feel mildly unwelcome, doesn't it?

[ ... Midnight shakes his head. ]

I think that speaks well of you, though. It means, at some level, you have a strong sense of what and where your home is. It's a gift, you know... To know where you're from.

Why? [ It's curious, but maybe more confusing for Robby to hear. Wondering, maybe-- ] I don't know that much... I mean, I never really cared about where I lived.

[ He wouldn't particularly say he has any amount of pride for it. ]

[ Midnight shrugs. ]

You don't have to care for a place to know it's somewhere you belong. It's a shame, but for some, home is a terrible place to be. But being aware of that is a gift as well.

[ He takes in a breath, humming thoughtfully. ]

Let me put it to you this way. Is there a skill you feel confident in? If I were to ask you to demonstrate your ability to fix a car, cook a meal, climb a tree... Is there something you know, without a doubt, you'd be able to do?

[ There's a pause, but: ] ...I guess.

[ He's not going to name it, since it doesn't seem like the skill itself is the point. ]

[ It is certainly irrelevant, but it's good to know! Some people go their entire lives without something like that at all. Midnight grins. ]

That's a home for you in a sense, then. Even if nothing in your life is going quite like you expect, even if you're lost in a sea of unprecedented change... That is something that can't be taken from you.

Some don't have that sort of stability, you know. That's where having a physical or emotional sense of having a home comes in. Having perspective on what you know to be true, in a place where you can feel comfortable... That's something that's quite valuable. It's reassurance in an uncertain world. That's why the defense of one's home tends to be taken so seriously.

[ It's the kind of conversation that takes time to sink in, and where Robby isn't certain it is all sinking in. But he's a little smart, or tries to be. It's more than just taking in Mister LaRusso's lessons, something more advanced from metaphors.

But, in the case of homes... ]

I didn't have anything like it for a long time--a home, [ though the word doesn't sound right, and despite using it, he decides on: ] --a skill. It made me feel grounded, even when everything was going wrong; I thought I could be more than what I always thought I was when I had it. But I made a mess of it, too.

[ Using it, and with the people surrounding it. ]

But here... it's no good. [ He breathes out, remembering: ] Someone once said that knowing karate's good, 'cause then you can get away from what they throw at you here. But it doesn't work that way. I'm still trying to find something that grounds me again.

[ To this place, a purpose. He wants to do more than he can, when there's so little he has to give. Wants to learn more about this city without playing the rules set by them. Not walk into obvious experiments.

An afterthought. ] ...making a home's easier when you have people around to support you. I was planning to run away once.

[ It's added like a joke, with a tip of his head. Not a very homely-home if you plan to ditch it, huh. ]

[ Not a homely-home, indeed. Midnight laughs, looks at Robby. Yeah... That's just about the age, if it wasn't too long ago. ]

Suppose that means you had reason to try, no?

[ It's a rhetorical question. Specifically very rhetorical; Midnight catches the joke and moves on quickly. ]

Karate, huh... So you lot have that, too? I wouldn't give up its virtues that quite yet. I'd say that, after a certain point, this place becomes a mental gauntlet than a physical one. It makes the task of making a home a bit more pressing. It's easier to get through these things as a group rather than individuals, after all.

And the discipline of a martial art facilitates that, I should think. After all, a good part of any relationship is the ability to continue showing up.

[ ... Midnight glances at Robby. ]

Do you still feel as though you need to be any more than that? More than what you always that you were... That's what you said, isn't it?

... Yeah, [ he answers; after a small pause, and not immediately looking over at Midnight. ] Sorta--but it's not a bad thing. Just means I want more out of life. Not the life I was heading for.

But that's a story I don't wanna tell. [ He looks at Midnight then, humour in his voice before he looks away again. ] It doesn't matter here, anyway.

[ Instead of stories, let him nod ahead. ] There, that's the building.

[ Just so Midnight knows to swerve towards the front doors once the small brick wall between the apartment's empty small car park and the pavement comes to an end. ]

[ Ah, swerve he does. Midnight looks up at the building as they approach, waiting for Robby to lead the way to the correct floor. Home and family are difficult topics no matter what world one hails from, it seems... ]

I can see that. The future tends to hold more promise than the past, hmm?

[ Midnight's always been much more concerned about the now, anyway. ]

For example: in your future is dinner, and a well-deserved night of sleep. I'd look forward to that, were I you.

[ They're on the first floor, luckily, so Robby points out the door next to the one he stops outside of, to signal where he'll find Mister LaRusso. ]

That doesn't surprise me. You sound like you've got a lotta ideas.

[ There's humour to his tone, nothing more to the observation. ]

Mister LaRusso's got wine, if you ask. If you wanna stay and have a chat with him.

[ And that humour's sticking. Well, you know, if we're all throwing ideas out here tonight... js js. ]

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unrequite - 2023-12-18 02:59 (UTC) - Expand

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