estoria | « 001 ⇢ INTERLUDE001.EXE »

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« 001 ⇢ INTERLUDE001.EXE »

Who: Mosley and these unfortunate souls
When: OOC: 6/27, IC: 1/26
Where: CERES Research Tower
What: Mosley takes a few lucky souls on a tour of the CERES offices.
Rating/Warning: PG-13: Some violence, injuries and possible death.

▶ VIDEO.EXE | IC: 1/25

[ The broadcast comes bright and early for those paying attention to their CereVices; the man who appears on the screen is strikingly pale, white-haired and piercingly blue-eyed. He looks young, no more than nineteen or twenty and he's dressed in a crisp black and white suit. He stares into the screen for a long moment, long enough to be, frankly, just a bit uncomfortable.

And then white eyelashes blink and an awkward, unsure smile spreads across his face. He lifts a hand to fix his tie and speaks. ]

This is Mosley.

[ The smile drops, leaving him with a blank expression once again. ]

CERES has decided in a show of good faith to open our doors to you. I have been given the task of, [ He lifts his hands to emphasize with air quotes. ] "being your tour guide." If that is what I must do, so be it. The lazy worm does not get the apple, after all.

[ He looks down at the tablet on his desk, giving it a few taps and suddenly an icon appears on the bottom right hand of the video. ]

That link will bring you to a listing to make an appointment. You will be given a time. Show up promptly or do not, it is no matter to me. The tour will leave ten minutes after your given time and that will be that. Tours will only last a few hours so you needn't worry about the rest of your day. You will certainly return home in time to catch the latest episode of [ Air quotes again. ] "Banana is the New Black." I hear there's going to be a cliffhanger!

[ A pause and he looks oddly thoughtful. ]

I suppose you could also steal it off the internet? [ Blank again. ] Which would be wrong. Our lawyers will contact you if you do that. Do not.

[ And then another of those awkward smiles before quickly turning into something a bit startled and he taps his tablet again, ending the video. Replies to this feed have been disabled, unfortunately. Seems like someone isn't feeling very chatty. It's a miracle. ]

▶ ACTION.EXE | IC: 1/26

[ The next day, that Monday, those who take Mosley up on his offer will find that him standing there right in front of the main CERES office building, waiting. It’s with that same disconcerting smile that he unlocks the door and ushers them in.

Welcome, all of you, to our lovely CERES!

The group will find themselves standing in a lobby. Clean white walls and floors, a bright blue rug leading towards the elevators on the far wall, and a white reception counter. At the counter are two CERES robots answering calls and directing any visitors (though the lobby seems quite empty today) and on the wall behind them is a hologram of the CERES logo for all to see. Mosley stands in the center of the carpet in his usual suit and claps his hands together, putting on a smile. ]

Welcome to CERES.

[ And then the smile drops. Voice flat, he continues. ]

There has been... talk over the past few months that we at CERES have not been working 24/7 to help you, our clientele, return to your homes safely and soundly. There has also been... talk that we do not do anything. That this entire company is a farce, which is honestly quite hurtful to both me and the other hardworking staff at this company. Mr. Vincere had his way of running this place but Ms. Recreare is fond of a more hands on approach. We want to share that approach with you.

[ He spreads his hands to indicate to the building around them. ]

CERES has many fingers in many jars and they've all been sealed tight for a while. We would like to open those jars. So once again, welcome to CERES and please follow me.

[ After that, Mosley turns and begins to lead the group off. ]

▶ RUN.EXE | MOD NOTES

This is the event log for these sign-ups! Your groups have been sorted below; here are a few handy links for you:

Group 01 | OOC plotting
Group 02 | OOC plotting
Group 03 | OOC plotting
Group 04 | OOC plotting
Group 05 | OOC plotting
Group 06 | OOC plotting
Group 07 | OOC plotting
Group 08 | OOC plotting
Group 09 | OOC plotting
Group 10 | OOC plotting
There is no tagging order, so feel free to tag in whatever way works best for you as a group.

The tours will technically last 3 hours icly, but that may change as ic events happen; oocly, the threads will last as long as necessary, though Mosley will come and collect your characters if they are moseying around too long! There will be mod involvement in each of the tours.

If there are any questions, feel free to ask them here. You are welcome to plot with your groupmates by using the ooc top level comments linked above. Thank you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

. . . LOADING HIMEKO INABA.$$$ . . . LOADING KOUSETSU SAMONJI.$$$ . . .
. . . LOADING MYRIAM SCUTTLEBUTT.$$$ . . . LOADING TAKAMACHI NANOHA.$$$ . . .
. . . LOADING RIBBONS ALMARK.$$$ . . . START TOUR.EXE. . .

People ask me "Mosley, did you ever think you'd find yourself working in the corporate sector?" And I have to say no, no I never imagined this for myself. Personally, I thought I'd take a crack at reality television -- that's where the real money is -- but I suppose this is equally as fulfilling.

[ Mosley has led the group to the elevators and is waiting for one to arrive when he just starts talking. He won't respond to any replies, just talks loudly over them until they stop even as the elevator opens up and he ushers them inside. ]

Then I think to myself, is this really the corporate sector? Sure, CERES has stock and money and ... whatever the else companies of this magnitude have but at the end of the day, this really is a family company, don't you think? Don't answer that, I wasn't talking to you. No, no, I really think we're just here to help. We're like... like a charity organization! We make homes for the needy. For instance, where were you all supposed to go, lost out there in the Nexus Code as you were? We helped give you a place to sleep at night and what's so wrong with that?

[ He presses the button for floor 124 and after that little speech, he falls silent and watches as the numbers slowly climb up and up and up. The elevator is actually rather fast so it's only a few minutes until suddenly they stop and Mosley leads the group out. They're in a large circular room, doors lining the walls all around them with odd symbols on each of them. The entire room is also made of wood paneling, a stark contrast to the white tile of the rest of the building. After a moment, Mosley pulls out a key ring with a ridiculous amount of keys attached. Forty-seven if one was to count. He picks one out at random and approaches the first door on their left. ]

I thought we would do a bit of light reading for this tour but I can't remember exactly how to get to the light reading room. I know what you're thinking, "Mosley, this is your headquarters! How do you not know every single room within it?" And it's hard, okay! It's hard and sometimes you just... you just wish you could take a break!

[ Dramatically, Mosley throws himself at the nearest wall and pillows his head against the wall, shoulders shaking as if he were crying. There's a soft click a moment later and the floor panel underneath Mosley's feet slides away into the darkness. He looks down underneath him, eyes going a little wide and with a soft oh, he plummets below. The panel slides back in place after a moment and the keys fall neatly on top. That was a bit awkward.

Now there are only doors and the keyring. What now? ]

[oh god, why does Mosley talk so much. she's definitely paying attention and recording all of this on her CereVice for the newspaper (and for her own, more personal reasons) but hearing him drone on like this is kind of bothersome, in her opinion. well, at least she's not alone in this adventure. but seeing as she's partially here for answers, she might as well ask the important questions]

Seriously? Are we in a cartoon or something? That was a rather dramatic exit.

[yes. clearly the most important questions.]

Edited (apparently i can read i'm so fucking tired) 2015-06-27 00:56 (UTC)

[Well, if he WANTED to talk on and on, Scuttlebutt wasn't going to stop him. She would keep her tape recorder on and simultaneously take notes with every word he said

--though Scuttlebutt didn't know shorthand, so how much she would actually get written was up in the air.]

Right, right...! How hard for you... do go on...

[only to eventually gasp as he plummeted]

Kaaaaaahk!

Edited 2015-06-27 01:00 (UTC)

[ Kousetsu was of course just being his usual silent self. Silent as he may be he was definitely looking about the place with a keen eye, observing and watching everything with some mild trepidation.

Not to be trusted is the first thing that comes into his mind. But he wanted to find some answers about Tenka and others who have gone missing. He wanted to know for Soramaru, Sousei and Chuutarou's sakes at least. Upon Mosley's sudden and rather dramatic disappearance Kousetsu will calmly walk towards where he was situated and pick up the key ring with his usual stoic face. He doesn't look that shocked?! He doesn't express emotions well, forgive him, but it was strange how easily he was disposed of. And why would Ceres do that to one of their own? He was alert now if anything came from those theatrics. There were a lot of keys on the heavy keyring now hanging from his hand, were they supposed to use this then? He'll look around the area before stepping towards the group then. ]

...perhaps we should use this to check these door for a way out.

[Well if this isn't off to a wonderful start. Light reading indeed. They're all here on their own now with no tour guide. That was all the information they were going to be getting out of him. But perhaps there was still more to be found. The keys were left behind after all. He nods to the man who picked them up. This was honestly quite unexpected, but he is well practiced at remaining calm in such situations as well.]

A fine welcome indeed. We'll have to proceed on our own. Preferably as quickly as possible.

[He does not wish to linger in this room for any longer than he has to. Proceeding straight across, followed by a small spherical robot, he examines the symbol on the 23rd door.]

47 doors... But do these symbols mean anything to anyone?

I could... bust open the floor panel and fly after him? [ Nanoha offered helpfully. Search and rescue wasn't her speciality, but she could definitely fly down a hole. ]

I'll try to see if I can do it without blowing half the floor up, until then, I think our only choice is to just try all the keys on all the doors until something clicks? It's not ideal, but times like these, brute forcing it always works out far more easily than trying to be clever about it!

N-No...

...Whatever they are, they sure are symbols, though.

[she'd take out her camera for a photographic record: ]

[ker-FLASH!]

It's possible that the symbols might match one of the doors.

[it's an idea, but it's one that may or may not work. well, at least she's staying calm, and collected]

And it probably would be for the best that we try not to blow things up, least we end up activating a trap of some sort.

[ Kousetsu nods as he listens. He's not a particularly talkative sort but he is a very good listener at least. The symbols had no meaning to him either so he can't give any insight on them if he wanted to. He'll stare back at the others before looking at the door before them. ]

...yes. Trying all the keys is for the best. Destroying this building's interior may result in unwanted violence afterwards. [ Not that he really cared about Ceres and its buildings but the violence that may come of it was more important to him. If they could all get out of this unharmed that is the most ideal situation. He'll hold up the keyring then and nod. ]

Then I will try one...

. . . NEW FILE CREATED . . . CHECKPOINT #001.SAV . . .
. . . CONTINUING TOUR.EXE. . .

[ It will take a few keys, but if he keeps at it, eventually he will find a key (key # 13) that opens the door in front of him.

The door will open into a room that is distinctly different from anything else in the city. It is covered in dust, for one thing. Rows upon rows upon rows of shelves stretch out into the distance of the room, the ones at the back shrouded in shadow and darkness. The lights flicker, dim through disuse and lack of maintenance.

And on all of the shelves, there are documents, papers, binders, and the like.

There are probably thousands upon thousands of documents in here, and unlike the rest of the colony, they are all on paper. ]

Now, what could those documents be... Sss, sss, sss!

[she'd see if she couldn't just take the tiniiiiiiest glance at them. Read the cover page, at least.]

An archive. They may be storing information here not found in the system.

[As he scans the shelves he shakes his head, annoyed on principle at all things analog. If anything looks interesting he skims it quickly. They have a lot of reading to do.]

They invited us here, and they just sort of... left us unattended, right? So it wouldn't really be a problem if we were to glance through them, would it?

I don't know. [she shrugs, somewhat halfheartedly] If we are going to be looking for information, however, it would be for the best if we tried looking for anything about the Flamines, CERES itself, and any information they might have jotted down on us.

Well, pull something down and leaf through it, then! Sss, sss, sss. Yell if you find something... I'll snap it with my camera.

[ There were far too many books for them to go through all of them. But at least they could work on a few sections together if they pooled their resources. Kousetsu for the most part is walking down towards the darker area of the archive. His movements slow and careful as he rests one hand on the sword at his side. He isn't a big talker so, you know, don't mind him. He'll randomly pull out a book on the upper shelf in the back of the room, skimming through it silently as he does so. ]

[ The first shelves have contracts, such as contracts of sale (the older ones, such as Julius Vincere buying the land on Tellus) to the brand new, such as the contract of sale for Bellona Recreare from Julius Vincere. They all seem very legal, and very legitimate.

A little further on, there are history books, and further on from that, there are pages upon pages of legal and scientific jargon about the sale of unquantifiable substances.

In the far back, where there is hardly any light, the book Kousetsu grabs is full of technical jargon, almost impossible to decipher. It seems to have been written by an Elias Segej.

And in the far back, there is a door, while on the other side of the room, there is a desk. ]

This is definitely more Yuuno-kun or Vivio's place. [ Her old friend and her adopted daughter were licensed librarians of the Infinite Library, which was more a dungeon with all the books than any usual conception of a library, and were experts at the kind of high level search spells and multi-tasking needed to pore over these sorts of documents. Nanoha and Raising Heart together could scan through a few books at once, but she had always been better at far more direct magic.

So instead of doing more reading of things that were entirely beyond her, she's started exploring the room instead, opening the door in the far back and poking around the desk, trying to see if there's anything interesting in the drawers. ]

[don't mind Scuttlebutt, she's busy photographing documents!]

[sometimes the line between journalism and "corporate espionage" was thin indeed...]

[skimming is rather easy for Inaba Himeko. but she doesn't seem to be all interested in the first shelf after pulling out a few documents, so when she reaches the next ones, she decides to read up on some of the history, wondering if there's anything particularly interesting there... primarily things on the Flamines' existence if anything or about CERES' history]

Hey, did any of you guys find anything? [might as well ask]

[ one of the desk drawers is locked. In the other, there is a packet of matches, and a note that says In case of emergenc but otherwise seems to be torn off.

Other than that, there is only typical desk supplies, and a bizarre amount of scissors.

Meanwhile, Inaba will find a bizarre lack of Flamines in the history books; all of the chapters are on the establishment of CERES, the creation of the colony Cerealia, the purchase of the planet of Tellus (though from whom it does not say) and the like. There is even some of the names of the earlier characters in these books -- just how recently were they written?

And from the darker areas of the room, there's a creak. ]

[Scuttlebutt jumped!! knocking over her pile of documents]

What was that noise!?

[ While Nanoha had been happy to not blow a hole in the floor of the building, a busted lock on a desk wasn't nearly as big of a deal right? Besides, nobody locked a drawer if there wasn't anything worth hiding inside, and it wasn't as though there was much else she could contribute to an investigation besides her brute force.

But busting things open was still the last resort. ]

Who's carrying the keys? Do you think any of them would fit in this desk drawer?

[ Then the creak sounded, and she was on alert. She was a bodyguard here on Cerealia after all, and if anything dangerous showed up, she was pretty sure at least half of the crew assembled here were completely incapable of battle. ]

I'll go check for the noise. Raising Heart, give me a light.

Yes, Master. [ The gem that hung around her neck detached itself and started glowing a light pink as she headed slowly towards the source of the noise. ]

[clicking her tongue, Inaba closes the book with a slam; that doesn't sound like a good noise alright]

Everyone, stay on your guard. [but first, let's just quickly run through the book while recording all the pages of it with her cell phone instead of her CereVice. because she might have to double check this info for reference later... maybe to see if there's any more recent news in it, especially regarding ~~our new overlord~~ the new CEO's background]

[ The creak puts him immediately on guard the sword at his side not being drawn quite yet but he will grip its handle as his eyes narrow. The books he was flipping through are placed back in the bookshelf as he turns to regard the others.

He'll look down at the keys in his hand before nodding. The desk might prove to have useful information, true, but now with the unknown noise he's not sure if it's wise to open it. ]

There is a door here as well. However I do not know if it is safe to open it. [ Then again getting stuck in this place, almost like a cage in its lack of doors, was far worse. ]

I will come with you to investigate. [ He'll direct his attention to Nanoha as he holds out the keys for Inaba to take. ] ...if it becomes too dangerous please use these to open the door and get away.

▶ GROUP SEVEN.EXE

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▶ CHECKPOINT ONE.SAV

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