CONCORDIA, DAY :025 - :032

[onemind]

CURRENT EVENTS

     CONCORDIA, DAY :025 - :032

The media monster is in full swing in the days following the bombing at the Royal Gaming Parlor. If the bombing at the Ven Diagrams warehouse was enough to kick off a bunch of public furor, this has been that times five. All the usual suspects are on parade: REPRESENTATIVE GORAM SAFFIT OF LARANN has addressed his constituents and the public at large with another message decrying violence and pushing for synthetic regulations; Mind Life has stubbornly published multiple statements similarly discouraging violent protest with the insistence that the only way to head off these attacks is to recognize and understand that the synthetic experience as valuable; Public Security has been in force throughout all blocks of the city, though it again seems like they don’t have many leads to follow. In fact, a large percentage of both media coverage and extranet public opinion has started to take not so subtle stabs at the Public Security Commissioner, Seong-Hye Ngozi. Is she dealing with this threat as effectively as she could be? Is there perhaps a better way to track down the people perpetuating these attacks?

Public Security raids in Subspace has gotten more aggressive and many low-level clubs popular among the young technophile crowds have been all but gutted by security sweeps; there’s a sweeping sense of paranoia among many of the denizens of the underground - no, most of them probably have nothing to do with H+H1 or EXTRAAA, but a lot of them have less than clean records and that’s apparently the only excuse Security needs right now to take people in.

If there’s one good (??) thing to say about all this, it’s that the anti-synthetic sentiment in Concordia has slaked slightly in the days following the attack; most people don’t really mind if androids or chips get blown up, but if these rumored biochauvanist are targeting androids in public venues then that means putting actual lives in danger. Everyone - Goram Saffit, Mind Life, and Public Security - seems united in the sentiment that attacks like this are simply unacceptable; no matter what ideology is being fought for, ending (organic) lives is the wrong way to go about it.

In the meantime, there’s plenty to dig into and the Hosts won’t have to do it alone - one DAY 25, a new batch of hosts wake up back on the Station… including one old friend (welcome back to the land of the living, Jessica Jones). They’ll be arriving on Concordia just after dark on day 26.


     IN OTHER NEWS...

Angel will fall into a coma on day 25. Keep your fingers crossed that she wakes back up!

Private security employment and integration has risen by 7%; it turns out that tragedy is great for select wedges of the Concordian economy.

Many companies looking to protect their androids have increased security protocols on their units. Casual interaction with corporate androids has gotten more difficult to obtain; most service droids (cab drivers, garbage units, etc) won’t engage in conversation with a stranger unless it’s required to complete their assigned tasks.

With the increased security sweeps along Subspace, any host with a flag on their security profile will want to be very, very vigilant and extra careful not to get stopped by Public Security. It’s incredibly possible that they might get taken in for questioning if they get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

A candelight vigil is being planned outside the Royal Street Parlor (currently closed for renovations) on DAY 31; it’s very likely that a number of public figures will be in attendance.

In the wake of the Royal Street Parlor bombing, Kun-Kun’s public support has somewhat increased. He’s still getting called a ROBOT FKR in the comment section of videos, but there’s more of a ‘Can you not?’ sentiment in response.

Public Security will release Anakin Skywalker’s remains from the morgue on Day 29.

OOH-LA-LA! You thought some game parlor bombing was dramatic? You won't believe how much more compelling it can get! According to local tabloids, Saffron (a rising star of the stage; if you don't know her, then where have you been?) was spotted on the arm of one of the hunkier Bout It Out contenders at the parlor just before the explosion. Hopefully they're both okay! :''''(

TIMELINE OF EVENTS

DAY :025 (August 14-15) - Angel slips into a coma. The new Hosts wake up on the station to a brave new world.

DAY :026 (August 16-17) - All of the Hosts make it down to Concordia to meet up with their new forced-family.

DAY :027 (August 18-19) - The Host’s combined snooping around has lead to something, as a representative (or multiple representatives?) from EXTRAAA connects to everyone. This log will go up on the 14th, but in-character this contact will only last for approximately one hour on Day 27. Get your tagging in early, because all mod-responses to this post will stop end of day 8/19.

DAY ??? - Kun-Kun’s reps will contact the hosts to organize a meeting with Mind Life’s Sheena Frey; the in-character date on this will depend on host response.

There WILL be a log posted for the events of Day :025-026, as well as a log for EXTRAAA’s contact on Day :027. All other IC logs (including any IC plotting and planning) may be player organized/initiated.

OOC UPDATES

Hi again guys! We want to take a second to thank you guys again for being so great, and for really taking this explosion plot and running with it. There have been a lot of great ideas and IC action happening in the aftermath, including some exciting player-plotesque initiatives; we’ve purposefully kept this calendar light to give space for you guys to slot in your plots and plans accordingly. If you have something that you feel have a larger scope - big open logs, mini-player plots, etc - that you’d like to put on the timeline, go ahead and comment in the appropriate subthread below and we’ll edit it in.

Further, this is a casual reminder for new and old players that if your character is using a fake ID on Concordia, we have a place for you to dump info about them (complete with an excellently ridiculous randomizer - thanks Avali!) over HERE.

As a small side note, we wanted to mention that we’ve made a policy adjustment when it comes to re-apping a dropped character back into a capped cast. We’ll be accepting re-apps into capped casts as long as the character has been dropped from the game for at least two months. This policy may change in the future if we feel the game is becoming unbalanced, but for now this seems like it should work. Be aware that other than re-apps, the MCU and Star Wars casts are currently capped and accepting no new applicants. Additionally, we’re getting close to the game cap?! COOL.

Last but not least, during the application period we made reference to characters feeling incomplete if they belonged to incomplete broods. Just kidding! Due to recent apps trends, all broods are full (or as full as they're gonna get anyway; some of you have some dead weight. GET IT).

As always, feel free to use this space to plot and plan; if you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to ask them below if they’re related to current events and plots, or on the FAQ or the MOD CONTACT posts if they’re more general!

-Abby and Donna

CONCORDIA MISSION: OVERVIEW • DAY :008 - :013 • DAY :018 - :022
NAVIGATION • PREMISE • FAQ • RULES • GLOSSARY • SYMBIOTIC SKILLS • ABILITY POINTS

( CODE BY WHAMBAM )

Comments

[erbier]

"It isn't. Now answer my questions."

[onemind]

A small noise in the back of her throat. "I thought I did. No, I don't know who blew up the parlor and I haven't been able to find out using my usual methods. I figured we'd repeat the experiment and see if I can't get some better data to sift through, right?" Y shrugs. "Friends are-- people like you, people like me. Undergrounders sick of being roughed up and scapegoated by PS and these nutjob bombers and everyone else between the two.

"Or did you have other questions you wanted to interrogate me about? Or, better, is this the part where I get to be bossy about you being honest with me?"

[erbier]

"Thank you," short and acerbic, that's a start. "I will tell you anything you'd like to know if it will help this process along."

She doesn't try for Mara's permission, if it goes sour she will have Aoba wipe this woman like a stain.

[snaphiss]

Mara gives it anyway. ( Good. A small nugget, nothing essential, will build trust. )

[onemind]

Mild, deceptively easy, her teeth glittering in her dark mouth: "Is asking you to start with explaining your bogus credentials too much too ask for?"

[snaphiss]

There goes that plan ᕕ( ᐛ)ᕗ time to just lie your ass off. Mara quickly comes up with a semi-plausible cover story, and hopes it doesn't conflict with anything Ilde's said, or the thousand and one cultural things she doesn't know as a non-native.

In short, she hopes the Force is with her.

( First, act like you've been caught. Look conflicted and unsure what to say. Stall. Then send me out of the room. I'll wait in the lobby, and you'll send me memories of what she's saying. I'll still be here. )

( Then, pretend to lose your poise a little, and tell her that your old identity had to be discarded for trusting the wrong people. You were with an organization similar to hers, but it doesn't exist any longer. Imply there's no trace of it. Stay vague on details. Say you're trying to set up or join a similar organization in Concordia, but you want to make sure it isn't a trap like last time. )

[erbier]

She purses her lips, would rather just own up to it at this point, but she had brought Mara along for her a reason, her expertise. So she looks away from Y, reaching up to fiddle with her hair, looking anxious. She is a bit anxious, it isn't entirely feigned.

She does ask Mara to excuse them for a moment and asks Y if she could have another drink, sits back and drinks of it slowly in silence, contemplating. She does not want to outright lie, it is perfectly plausible that Y is part of the group who contacted them about this before.

"Who I was before would not serve me here, in order to move around in safety the credentials were created for me. My desire is to find these bombers, and to gain information on the anti-synthetics to diffuse their violence, but I must be careful to not be trapped."

An abbreviated version of Mara's story, just enough truth to satisfy her.

"How did you discover this? Do others know?"

[onemind]

Y pours her another drink. Sure, no problem; she seems confident in her current position.

"Your management is bogus. Someone I know wanted to send you fanmail and it didn't check out. I thought it might be an independent gig, but even then your records don't line up. You've got history in your file, sure, but there's no footage of that history. Your manager doesn't have it either and I doubt your pretty reporter friend does either. But hey, maybe that's just me being paranoid.

"Before I tell you the other thing - 'Who I was before'? What's that supposed to mean?"

[snaphiss]

Ilde sends Mara the memory, and Mara thinks over it. She tells Ilde to stall nervously while she thinks up a plan, to fill in the gaps in her story with Y's obvious need for a dirty victory.

( Tell her... your previous identity would be too obvious. And that you can't say any more without putting people at unnecessary risk. )

She hopes it's vague enough for Y to fill in the blanks with her own guesses. Y seems to like winning, and Mara hopes giving her a false victory will satisfy her.

[erbier]

"Why falsify an identity if the one before it would not be noticed?" She puts this as if it's just a mere question of logic. "There are others involved, I would prefer not to say more and jeopardize them."

Because she's freaking considerate like that.

[onemind]

"That's fine, as long as you're understanding when I say I prefer not to say who else might or might not know about you." To use her words: "It might, you know, jeopardize them."

Y takes another drink. "So now that we both know you aren't here to cry about getting revenge for your so-called friends, why don't you tell me why you're really interested in all this? Why are you chasing this so hard? Why do you care? Or, if that doesn't fly, what's in it for you?"

[snaphiss]

Mara doesn't like it, but she'll have to let that fly. She could tell Ilde to push back, ask for assurances, but it's just wasting time. They need information, and they need it now.

( Say you are here for revenge, and then parrot space parrot her words back to her about motivation. You know, you're with people tired of being kicked around, all that. )

[erbier]

"I want my revenge," she doesn't have to lie about that and the sharp tip of her voice says as much. The bombing and its consequences have ripped her brood asunder and she is furious. "I want the bombers, and anyone attached to them that we can find. They have caused enough damage, for people like us, wouldn't you agree?"

[onemind]

A pause as Y considers her, the whites of her eyes illuminated by the glittering liquid in her raised glass. "Sure, I agree." Why not. "Since we're done playing stupid, does this mean you're not going to put on the show?"

[snaphiss]

There's one thing Mara can't figure out.

( Why is she so interested with this show? Would it actually gain her something, or is she toying with us? )

[erbier]

"I don't have the resources." There had been a possibility, if she could have gotten the entire host to coordinate, but that had turned fruitless, as she should have expected. Of course there had been too much squabbling and moralizing. "Is there another reason you are interested in this plan?"

She tempers her tone of annoyance, turns it more towards a genuine question, a willingness to listen.

[onemind]

"To find out what the motive behind these attack is. That tournament had a bunch of people who were there to watch Adetkunbo get clocked. Are these the same people behind the bomb on the Diagram warehouse, or am I dealing with a different set of whackjobs? If it is and they're anti-synth, why target a place filled with a bunch of people on both sides of the issue instead of blowing a Mind Life rally out?

"So we get a similar mixed crowd in place and see what happens." She grins across her drink. "Motive finds bad guys, right? But hey, if you've got a way to jump ahead then do tell."

[snaphiss]

Which is an interesting proposal, but a little short on assurances.

( Tell her you want to, but you're short on resources, and you need assurances that more of your people won't be hurt. )

[erbier]

Ilde shake her head, getting tired of all of this.

"I agree with your sentiment," and really, she does. She personally doesn't even *really* care if more people were hurt along the way, as long as they weren't any of her people. "But I do not have enough support to man this enterprise. Unless you are able to conscript enough hands to make it so, it cannot be done."

[onemind]

She waves her hand, dismissive. "It's fine. I just wanted to make sure I was being clear with my intentions." There's an edge of sarcasm there - poking fun at how much she's had to explain herself, maybe.

"Consider it off the table. Unfortunately, your image is the only thing I know you have going for you. So right now that makes you useless to me."

Cold? Maybe. But Ilde's made it infinitely clear she doesn't appreciate being jerked around, so better to just be straight with her.

[snaphiss]

Interesting. Y says Ilde is useless, but Y herself can still be used. She has-- says she as-- her own underground network of agents. That could come in handy later, especially if the Ngozi break-in goes according to plan.

Mara relays the sentiment back to Ilde, and lets her come up with her on plan for what to say. Ilde has done very well, and Mara feels confident she can handle herself from here on out.

[erbier]

"Very well," she's not even offended, she's pretty sick of her 'image'. "I have other skills. But first... will you tell me what you know about these people?"

Ahtaliah Ven, Goram Saffit, Commissioner Ngozi.

The people they're about the be investigating, to decide if it's worth offering follow up.

[onemind]

"Why don't you start by telling me what you know about them?"

She's tired of answering questions. Tit for tat, darling.

[erbier]

"That Ngozi is a liar, and little more that matters. But that will be remedied, soon."

Which is enough said about it.

"If you already know their movements and motives, I will not bore you with the results."

[onemind]

She quirks an eyebrow and takes a drink. "Feel free to bore me."