[open mingle] I do my crosswords in pen

[keepgodwaiting]

WHO: Constantine (keepgodwaiting) & you!

WHAT: Metaplot deciphering!

WHERE: The Welcome Diner

WHEN: Early December

WARNINGS: Probable discussion of human experimentation


Another month, another weird new building, and Johanna has been thinking. If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, then they ought to try some new things, right?

Trying to stay away from the dorms at Halloween didn't work. Trying to escape the mall had mixed results. So maybe it's time to abandon the avoidant strategy and see what happens if they approach things a bit more head-on. Starting, in her case, with investigating every open door she could find in the Science Center until she found the director's office.

(Yes, she did just get told off by several friends for running into potentially dangerous situations with no backup; no, she did not alert anybody that she was going to do this; but hey, it was completely uneventful and therefore she has not broken any promises to anyone!)

The most interesting thing in there, by far, is the unlocked computer, and with a little digging she found a very interesting email. More carefully redacted notes. And she wonders ...

So one evening -- around dinner time, after sunset, in the hopes of being available to the most residents -- Johanna posts up in the welcome diner with a stack of notebooks, pens, and her phone. She's hand-copying the redacted file from her phone onto paper, with XXXXXs to indicate the number of characters in the redacted words. It's an arduous process, and every so often she straightens up from the work with a groan to crack her back. After she gets the whole thing copied down, she picks up her phone to make a network post:

Anyone good at crossword puzzles? I've got a doozy of one I'm working on in the diner and could use some help.

Anyone who cares to join her and try to decipher the redacted words, or make additional hard copies of the file to share out, is more than welcome to do so. Or just grab a cup of coffee and share theories with each other.

[ ooc: Feel free to treat this like an open mingle, converse with other characters, hop around, etc! I'll be making a top level with the text of the two redacted files from the newsletter, in which we can crowdsource guesses about what the missing words might be!

ETA: Feel free to put guesses in this document! ]


 

Comments

[abit_ofboth]

It is probably something as mundane as a group of people in charge brainstorming random scenarios to try and throw at us. Perhaps they think if they make us go through things that we would not expect they will get a different response? The parts we can decipher of these notes does seem to indicate that they wish for us to work as a group and do not like it when things start to separate us more, but what is the purpose?

[And really, why? Though it probably wouldn’t make any of them feel any better, Loki can’t help but wonder why they are doing this at all.]

Their criteria is definitely still a mystery. The little bit of information we have right now seems to all lean towards bringing us together, so it makes no sense to do things that would tear us apart. I’m afraid I really have no idea. None of this makes any sense.

[And that might be the most frustrating thing of all.]

[strongroots]

[ It really was an end of the road for how much they could guess or get out of all this. Robby stares at the files longer, but it's just a frustrating mess, and he finally exhales, gives up on the futile effort. ]

We could write down everything we know, what we think is going on, and keep adding to it 'til something jumps out at us. [ He shrugs, a helpless expression on his face. ] I know it's nothing, but... collecting every idea and thinking of what we can do--it's all we've got right now.

[abit_ofboth]

[Loki continues to frown down at the paper in front of him, much as Robby is. He still has the urge to ball the paper up and set it on fire, but really, what good would that do?]

At very least, if we do that we might notice some sort of pattern, be able to figure out more of what has been redacted? Or organize it in some way. [He understands why Robby might think it’s nothing, but right now Loki is pretty sure that doing something is better than nothing at all. And at least this is something.]

[strongroots]

[ Well... ]

We can start now. [ He looks at Loki. ] I can grab some notebooks and pens and bring them back.

[ Hell, he'll even appreciate getting away for five or ten minutes. ]

[abit_ofboth]

[Loki’s pretty sure he’s upset Robby somehow, but it also could just be what they were dealing with here. He thinks he’s managed to keep himself relatively calm, but he knows many find him intimidating when he’s upset. Trying to control himself, Loki manages a smile and nods.]

Yes, no time like the present.

[strongroots]

[ Fortunately, it's not getting away from Loki that's on Robby's mind. He gives the guy a nod, stands from the table with a small sigh, and his expression is an exhausted one, a boy not used to circumstances such as this. Even with the time he's had to sit on this development, it's still a lot. His head buzzes with the new information, the new questions. The ever larger lack of answers.

But outside, there's a chill; the murmurs of conversation stay inside the diner, and both facts are rather nice for shutting his brain off for the five or ten minutes it takes Robby to locate a shop that carries what he needs. A couple of notebooks and pens? Not a hard find, luckily.

It doesn't ease the complicated expression he's been wearing once he comes back, but he takes the pads and packet of pens out onto the table with a "Here" that's calm enough, sits once he's done (after taking out a can of drink he got for himself, a soda). ]

[abit_ofboth]

[While Robby is gone, Loki takes a minute to just breathe. He has seen many strange things in his life, but this is the first time he’s experienced anything like this. As much as he’s thankful to be alive when he shouldn’t be by all rights, and as much as he’s thankful to have met Hob and all the friends he’s met here, he doesn’t like that they’ve all been kidnapped for some strange experiment and he definitely doesn’t like that it seems like they’re doomed to die horribly if the rulers here don’t see an outcome they want.

He looks up, slightly startled when Robby comes back. He’d been thoroughly lost in thought as to what to do about all of this. He smiles a bit awkwardly at him and takes one of the pens and a notebook. It’s then that he takes a closer look at the boy and realizes just how young he is. If Loki is having a hard time with this, he can’t imagine how hard it must be on Robby.]

Are you… doing okay? [He’s not really sure how to ask such things. He’s not used to bothering for the most part, but he is a little concerned about him.]