[open] this ae night, this ae night

[psycholawgy]

Who: People who went to the tower, and then people who want to hear about what happened in the tower!
When: 8/25-8/26.
Where: The CERES Tower, and then the Sanctuary
What: A catch-all log for the CERES Tower Exploration, and then a discussion of it!
Rating/Warning: Will edit when needed.

---

THE TOWER
[ As per the mod post:

All groups will find that the tower is deserted, and all technology is shut off. Through some fiddling, some of CERES’ databases can be accessed, but only in the most basic of safe modes. Hacking will just get everything to shut off again, as it takes too much power from whatever emergency power source allows the systems to turn on.

There are no dangers, but even so, the characters won’t have long in the tower before their code starts to warp strangely. If they stay too long, they will be glitched right out of existence -- and then right outside of the tower. They will find that for the next three ic days, all food tastes burnt and sleeping is extremely unsatisfying, to the point that they don’t even feel like they need it, before they go back to normal. Characters will have a maximum of 3 IC hours in the tower before that point.

Feel free to thread out characters meeting up before the exploration, or bumping into each other in the rather big tower, amongst other shenanigans! ]


THE SANCTUARY
[ there isn't much of a preparation for this, but there will be a text blast alerting everybody to go to the sanctuary if they so please to discuss what people have found in the tower.

as usual, a variety of flavours of pizza is being served. there may not be pizza for everybody however, as athena is rather broke. (sweats) remember to leave your cerevices in the basket by the entrance! ]

Comments

[magicburst]

A) Meetups & Explorations
[Jessica shows up ready and willing to get down to business. There's no use slacking off anyhow now that she's getting an idea of what she's supposed to be here for. The conclusion to her original journey had been a scattershot hunt but Arba had been much more clearly defined. It seemed like here was a little more muddled again but exploring the tower seems the easiest way to figure out what's really going on. And the redhead is more than eager to have some direction for this particular journey.

She turns a glance to hear nearest companion.]

Well then, we may as well get started.

B) Splitting Up?
[Inside the tower there really isn't that much threat. Jessica still urges caution - particularly in Chihiro's case - but she doesn't seem too reticent about splitting up to search through files and such.

Of course she's absolutely no help with the computers. The ones that do want to function don't function like the one in her apartment and so she's left furrowing her brow at it for a few moments.

She will take a moment to admire the view of Cerealia though from here at the top. Peering out the windows, she smiles a little.]

This reminds me of the view from the Stonecloud. It's awfully easy to forget what shape the city is still in from up here, isn't it.

C) The Sanctuary
[And like the meetup day, Jessica is there not long after the text alert. And she's completely ready to get down to business. Her hands are settled on her hips and she looks among the rest of the group.]

So where shall we start?

D) Wildcard
[If I missed a prompt or you have one in mind, feel free to tag in!]

B!

[playboyknight]

[Angelo finds himself at Jessica's side as he's worried for her, so he approaches her from behind with a grin.]

You're not wrong, darling. Although, what is the Stonecloud? Was that something you experienced on your adventure with Yangus?

[magicburst]

That's right. It was a floating ship actually. Honestly it was more like a small city on the inside. It was really amazing how much they managed to fit within it.

[She pauses there as she glances over her shoulder at him, then she turns around more to look at the room itself.]

Have you managed to find anything? It mostly just looks like whoever was here left in a hurry.

[playboyknight]

Is that so? I'm rather jealous. All we did was camp everywhere, yet it felt a bit nostalgic all things considered.

[He nods a little and spills what he found to her.]

I found evidence of the Flamine trying to contact CERES through phone logs, but the calls were never taken. I'll also look through a stack of papers I found again as well. I didn't sort much of it because there was so many, though perhaps we can look together? It's reminding me of when we were trying to find information in regards to that ship back in Castle Trodain.

[magicburst]

Both of them have their charms, I think. Flying like that is certainly faster than sailing or walking but I can't say I minded any of the other two.

[She's attentive as she talks, blinking a little in surprise.]

I wonder what the Flamine were calling CERES for. Aren't the two of them fighting one another? Or that's what I thought anyhow.

[Then she makes an amused sound.]

It's not quite as overgrown at the castle was though.

[playboyknight]

We all thought the Flamine were fighting against CERES until we learned recently that they're allies. However that's a long and complicated story.

[One he'd rather not go into, so instead he looks over at the stack of papers he was sorting.]

We should try and focus on the task at hand.

[magicburst]

That make things a bit trickier then. And by the looks of this place, it isn't as if they took their time in leaving.

[With that covered she turns her attention to the stack of papers he had been sorting through. She considers the pile, then divides it in half.]

There we are. Let's see what we can find in this then. The machines in here don't seem to work... or at the very least don't work in a way I understand.

[playboyknight]

[Angelo decides to become quiet as he goes about working on the pile of papers, though his eyes look towards Jessica every now and again.]

Have you found anything yet?

[magicburst]

Well... maybe.

[The document she holds up though is completely blacked out. She gives it a firm frown.]

Though it looks like there isn't that much to glean from it. You don't know a group called "DC", do you?

b!

[onethousen]

[ Chihiro isn't a computer whiz, but she does know how to use them. To an extent. She hasn't had to deal with things in safe mode that often, but she can still read Cerealian through whatever weirdness was put in her code that also lets her speak it (she's still not sure how that works), so navigating the menus isn't so bad. ]

Hm?

[ Jessica's comment prompts her into looking up, toward the windows. She glances at the screen, considers what to do, then heads over to join Jessica for the moment. ]

What was Stonecloud like?

[magicburst]

Honestly it was more like a floating city than a ship. It was something we used for travel in the last world I visited.

[She glances back over her shoulder at the computer screen now, frowning a little.]

Having any luck with it?

[onethousen]

A whole floating city?

[ This sounds fascinating, to be honest, which means Jessica has her full attention through all the feeling weird for a beat. Then she's also looking back to the computer screen. ]

There's some stuff to read, but it looks like when CERES left here they turned everything off wrong. Or made it that way on purpose, probably. There's a folder called Contracting that I got to, but most the files in it won't open 'cause it says they're possibly corrupted. Though one did!

[magicburst]

Well at least there's one working then! That's a start.

[She'll join Chihiro near the computer.]

Well, there weren't a lot of people living there or anything like that. It has a lot of shops on it though and when you were inside you definitely wouldn't have thought it was an airship.

[onethousen]

[ About all it'll really show is call logs, for what it's worth... then the printouts they can find around. Chihiro tips her head to the side, tapping Y again to activate the menu. ]

Why did it have so many shops if a bunch people didn't live there? Were they reliant on tourism?

[magicburst]

Not that I'm aware of. I think they were mostly meant to act as support for those traveling on the Stonecloud. Weaponry, an inn for rest, those sorts of things.

[onethousen]

[ She Doesn't Get It, but she nods anyway. Accepting different places have way different standards of what they do and why they do it is much easier overall. It's what she's learned to do in the Spirit World, and then here. ]

Huh. That's pretty interesting, I think.

[ UP comes a call log, which looks like lines and numbers and catalogued names in an ongoing sheet of text across the screen. FLAMINES is evident by one number, each call in tagged as coming in, no return calls going out. ]

This is called "Call Log." I think that's pretty much what it is, too. Most these numbers don't mean anything to me, or the names and stuff. Though if you go down here...

[ She clicks on the down arrow, navigating to the portion that says FLAMES on one of the lines ]

You can make it show all the recent calls made from that number.

[ She hits enter. ]

They're only incoming, though. I don't know if anyone ever returned these calls.

[ How to avoid creditors DON'T PICK UP THE PHONE ]

[magicburst]

I suppose they must have been made once CERES cleared out then.

[Her eyes runs down the list of similar numbers.]

They've called quite a few times. They must be desperate to get in touch with them.

C!

[moribound]

[Minato's made haste to the Sanctuary as well, even if he doesn't look particularly impatient after tearing his attention away from the pizzas spread out on the table to look at Jessica.]

You and Ogino-san are new, right? I don't mind answering any questions the both of you might have...it's a lot to think about. [He has his questions regarding the blacked-out contract with the so-called 'DC' too, but Minato feels it's his responsibility as the most senior member of their group to keep them informed while he looks out for anyone who might have something new to add.]

[magicburst]

Any new world has it's issues one has to learn about. Or that's what I'm figuring out so far.

[That said, Jessica thinks on her first question.]

Angelo said that while CERES painted the Flamines as the enemies, they were actually allies. He did say it was a long story so I won't ask you for every detail but I would like to hear more about that.

[moribound]

I wouldn't say they're allies exactly, but it's true that CERES has dealt with the Flamines in the past. [What else...Minato ponders on that a bit with his attention diverted from his pizza for now.]

They made a contract with the Flamines to destroy our worlds, and the the implants in our eyes were made by a group called the Flamine Federation. [His eyebrows are furrowed when he talks about the latter part, seeing that the implants made little sense considering that the Flamines called themselves mercenaries.] Some of us were pulled into a dark area with a terminal connecting us to one of the Flamines a few months ago, and that's how we found out that CERES had been lying to us all along.

[magicburst]

[Jessica really does listen attentively. CERES, the Flamines, the Flamine Federation... this seemed a bit more complicated than she had assumed it was going to be. That wasn't wholly surprising though.

In the midst of her thoughtful silence though, she couldn't help noting something else.]

I'm not distracting you from something else, am I?

[moribound]

Nah. [Minato's quick with his answer, setting down his plate just as quickly.] The pizza can wait. There's a lot everyone should know, and it's good to hear it from someone who's been there before. [The timeline document was helpful, but Minato knows people tend to listen faster to someone experienced.]

[magicburst]

[Ah, that's what the food was. Jessica is curious honestly, never having experienced pizza before now. She moves closer to have a look over the choices, talking as she does so.]

So then who are we here to help precisely? It can't simply be ourselves, can it?

[moribound]

[That's a good question. CERES seems to have been using them, the Flamines certainly didn't need them and it was dubious as to whether the deities of Tellus had any use for them.

In the end he shakes his head, conceding he has no idea.]

It's starting to seem that way, but I doubt we could have helped anyone else now that Mosley's gone. Even so, that depends on who 'DC' is...we don't know anything useful about them though, so I can't say much.

[magicburst]

[Ah, that seems to bring down a bit of her "I'm here to take care of business" attitude.]

This isn't my first time arriving in a different world on the brink of crisis to help out. It was much easier to figure out what to do last time though, even if it was a bit convoluted.

[Hm. So they don't know who this 'DC' is. The contract was completely blacked out as well so...]

Do you think there may be anywhere else we could search for information on 'DC'?