main plot The Taste of Death

[MacThorstenson he/him]

6 minutes ago, Voidus said:

"Perhaps we should bring them along, they've already been inside the building before after all. They would be able to spot differences faster and may be able to provide some context for what we find there."

"Ok. When they let me know that they have completed their current objective I'll send them their next instructions, or we can deliver them personally," He grinned at the thought "Though you mentioned other department heads? I wasn't aware we had any to be honest. I thought they were kind of" He waved his hands in the air, as if to indicate that the departments had disappeared into the Void.

The Trouble with saying things like, the other departments were gone, was that nothing is ever really gone. In the vast infinities of the alleys, you could technically find every single possible combination of atoms, much like the Library of Babel. People long thought dead sometimes wandered out of those alleys, but it didn't happen enough to rely on it. It just happened enough to make any statements about things existence annoyingly imprecise. 

 

[Darth Woodrack he/him]

"I know your scared, but I need you to answer the question. How do we turn that thing off?" Silva said, calmly, her hand still on his shoulder.

@Ax's Boyfriend @Silva @Sorana @I think I am here. @xinoehp512 @kenod

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita accepted her coffee, dropping one spoonful of sugar into the black liquid and giving it a stir before bringing the cup to her mouth. She immediately began storing heat in her brassminds; with her tin on so high, even warm coffee would likely feel hot to her. Lita took a tentative sip, adjusted her storing rate slightly, then took a larger drink. 

Tin let her catch the slight unease in Laurelai's expression. Lita didn't blame her. Very soon, her own nerves would begin to catch up with her, but for now they were drowned out by the total sensory overload of her surroundings. She wrinkled her nose in irritation, then dipped her hand into her pocket and brought out her second vial of tin, flicking the cork off and pouring the shavings and liquid within into her coffee cup. She gave it another little stir with the spoon, then continued drinking. The warmth of the drink twinned pleasantly with the familiar burn of Allomancy within her.

This is necessary, she thought forcefully, sipping the coffee and savoring the bitterness. "Good coffee," she remarked to the TUBA member, blowing the steam across the cup and into the air, her enhanced vision allowing her to see every tendril bend and swirl. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Laurelai sending an Alleycant message, eyes moving slowly across the room. Lita pulled her own pen into her hand, sending Laurelai and KanMien a message of her own.

When their leader arrives, she'll likely be smart enough to ask for our names. Shall we be truthful, or will we be donning aliases?

@Voidus @kenod

[Fatebreaker he/him]

7 hours ago, Voidus said:

Perfectly rational, definitely no ulterior motives for this. He thought to himself, trying to justify the decision. Just business.

Quote

Dad!Voidus is adorable. 

 

[I think I am here. he/him]

11 hours ago, Darth Woodrack said:

"I know your scared, but I need you to answer the question. How do we turn that thing off?" Silva said, calmly, her hand still on his shoulder.

@Ax's Boyfriend @Silva @Sorana @I think I am here. @xinoehp512 @kenod

“Well, the letters say it grows bigger, right?” Wes looked at the Vortex.

“How big was it originally?”

[+Sorana she/her]

Mike kneeled down next to man and smiled.

"Just tell us what you know about it. We don't plan to hurt you."

@Ax's Boyfriend

[+Ark1002]

The man looked at mike, eyes falling on the bloody cut.

"O-okay."

"It's in that letter, what I know. It started out as big as a man. Now it's the size of this room. And the building is the size of four city blocks."

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

18 hours ago, AonEne said:

Deteca took in the new information with wide eyes. "We're in the same room, why are you texting me..." she mumbled, trailing off; the words were more to let her gather her thoughts than anything else. The images were immensely worrying, and the fact that the Ghostbloods wanted to meet almost more so. "Yes, you can tell her. They're welcome to send someone to Didgeridoo as well." She looked up. "I suppose we'll have to go aboveground."

"I'm nervous, okay?" Tena said. 

We're going to a meeting with the DA at DIDGERIDOO, and Deteca says that you're welcome to send someone as well, she texted to Zokora. @Sorana

[+Sorana she/her]

58 minutes ago, Ark's Boyfriend said:

"I'm nervous, okay?" Tena said. 

We're going to a meeting with the DA at DIDGERIDOO, and Deteca says that you're welcome to send someone as well, she texted to Zokora. @Sorana

Zokora held the message out for Lusk to see. Someone. Singular. Whoever went would be in danger. A smile touched her lips, when she considered Lusk stepping back from the risk.

"Do you want to go, or should I call Althea?"

She asked and looked around nervously. Whatever he decided, hopefully it didn't end with her staying on this bridge. The ship was scary, too many ghosts were flying around.

@I think I am here.

Edited June 19, 2019 by Sorana

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Edahs examined the sphere and hissed with irritation. He couldn't tell much just by looking at it.

He turned towards the scientist. He would know what it was, wouldn't he?

Edahs reached out an hand to grab his arm, extending his mind to probe the other man's.

@Ax's Boyfriend @Sorana

[kenod]

13 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

Lita accepted her coffee, dropping one spoonful of sugar into the black liquid and giving it a stir before bringing the cup to her mouth. She immediately began storing heat in her brassminds; with her tin on so high, even warm coffee would likely feel hot to her. Lita took a tentative sip, adjusted her storing rate slightly, then took a larger drink. 

Tin let her catch the slight unease in Laurelai's expression. Lita didn't blame her. Very soon, her own nerves would begin to catch up with her, but for now they were drowned out by the total sensory overload of her surroundings. She wrinkled her nose in irritation, then dipped her hand into her pocket and brought out her second vial of tin, flicking the cork off and pouring the shavings and liquid within into her coffee cup. She gave it another little stir with the spoon, then continued drinking. The warmth of the drink twinned pleasantly with the familiar burn of Allomancy within her.

This is necessary, she thought forcefully, sipping the coffee and savoring the bitterness. "Good coffee," she remarked to the TUBA member, blowing the steam across the cup and into the air, her enhanced vision allowing her to see every tendril bend and swirl. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Laurelai sending an Alleycant message, eyes moving slowly across the room. Lita pulled her own pen into her hand, sending Laurelai and KanMien a message of her own.

When their leader arrives, she'll likely be smart enough to ask for our names. Shall we be truthful, or will we be donning aliases?

@Voidus @kenod

KanMien tapped their cup of tea, considering Lita's question. Not sure, they signed back. Both could work. Still, we aren't using any disguises, so it isn't as if they wouldn't be able to recognize us in the future, and at least some of them might recognize us from the meeting with Sudiov. I'd suggest being honest, since if they do happen to be familiar with us they'd be more likely to trust us. They frowned, remembering this was TUBA they were talking about. Correction, they signed, they'd distrust us less than they already do.

***

A large black fox slowly walked through the alleys, watching the ancient stones. Emotions flowed through her, something humans might have called excitement, or trepidation, or perhaps curiosity. She tried to remember the last time she had left her domain, left behind her research. Still, it felt right, for something strange was afoot. New things, things that had never happened before, things that happened so far in the past only a few remembered them. Or maybe they had happened only recently, and it just felt like such a long time, or perhaps it was both. She sighed, the normal, human sound coming across as unnatural when she made it. She looked forwards, seeing the figures walking there, walking towards them.

"Hello," she said, looking at them. She wondered if she had met them before. She was almost sure she had, at least for two of them, but it might be that she was simply remembering things that hadn't happened yet again. It happened to her sometimes, a consequence of how time flowed within these paths, and how she existed in so many of them.
Again, it didn't matter. She knew who they were though, and that did matter. Common courtesy, she thought, and a shiver went through her, her body folding in on itself, a young girl standing there when she finished, small tentacles still retreating back into her body. "It has been a while," she said, smiling, her expression looking unnerving with her black eyes and pale skin.

[MacThorstenson he/him]

Mac felt the alleys shift behind him, and turned away from the Stranger and Voidus as a large black fox appeared next to the World Spike. 

Who... Wait. In the back of his mind, an early memory from his days in a research assistant resurfaced. Was that Aylitha? "Aylitha? Is that you? My gosh it's been forever! I'm Mac, we worked together on the early stages of [REDCTED]. What have you been up to in the Bioscience department for all these centuries?"

Now that he could put a name to their face, he began to remember more about this Eldritch fox, how they had both came to the alleys around the same time, and while he focused far more on the external application of the DA's various technologies, they had delved deeper and deeper into the lifesciences. 

@kenod

[kenod]

42 minutes ago, MacThorstenson said:

Mac felt the alleys shift behind him, and turned away from the Stranger and Voidus as a large black fox appeared next to the World Spike. 

Who... Wait. In the back of his mind, an early memory from his days in a research assistant resurfaced. Was that Aylitha? "Aylitha? Is that you? My gosh it's been forever! I'm Mac, we worked together on the early stages of [REDCTED]. What have you been up to in the Bioscience department for all these centuries?"

Now that he could put a name to their face, he began to remember more about this Eldritch fox, how they had both came to the alleys around the same time, and while he focused far more on the external application of the DA's various technologies, they had delved deeper and deeper into the lifesciences. 

@kenod

Aylitha tilted her head, sifting through her memories. "Ah, right," she said when she found him. "That has been a while. I think so, at least. Linear time is confusing me nowadays." She smiled. "I'm actually the department head currently." Her face clouded as she thought about what he had said though. "It has been centuries, you said? That's long right? Sorry I haven't been in touch, I've been have a ... hard time focusing on things nowadays. I only got the message about the Alley 0 meeting a few minutes ago. Or was it a year ago?" She shook her head, then smiled again. "Still, it's nice to see you again. What are you up to nowadays?"

Edited June 19, 2019 by kenod

[MacThorstenson he/him]

Speak of the devil, more department heads have shown up. Its almost like voidus knew it was going to happen. 

He grinned, "I have actually been promoted to the head of the Counterintelligence department. We were recently just discussing something that popped up concerning a new group in town, and were going to go stretch our legs and figure out what was going on with that. In fact, Voidus just mentioned asking the other department heads if they wanted to join us. So, would you? I imagine that despite your love for science it can get boring cooped up in a lab for all these years."

@kenod

[kenod]

3 minutes ago, MacThorstenson said:

Speak of the devil, more department heads have shown up. Its almost like voidus knew it was going to happen. 

He grinned, "I have actually been promoted to the head of the Counterintelligence department. We were recently just discussing something that popped up concerning a new group in town, and were going to go stretch our legs and figure out what was going on with that. In fact, Voidus just mentioned asking the other department heads if they wanted to join us. So, would you? I imagine that despite your love for science it can get boring cooped up in a lab for all these years."

@kenod

Aylitha smiled at him. "Congratulations," she said. She thought about what he had said, about the trouble in town. It had been a long time since she had left the alleys, ignoring Karin, and she found herself reminded of the old days, back when she was young, back when her body wasn't hers yet. She had almost forgotten what it had been like. Unconsciously small tentacles started forming on her arms, lashing out in anticipation. "That does sounds... interesting,"  she finally said. "Yes, I think I'll join."

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

5 hours ago, kenod said:

Not sure, they signed back. Both could work. Still, we aren't using any disguises, so it isn't as if they wouldn't be able to recognize us in the future, and at least some of them might recognize us from the meeting with Sudiov. I'd suggest being honest, since if they do happen to be familiar with us they'd be more likely to trust us. They frowned, remembering this was TUBA they were talking about. Correction, they signed, they'd distrust us less than they already do.

I agree, Lita signed back, resisting the urge to nod. There was little point in a secret communique if she gave away the game with physical reaction. She continued sipping her coffee, feeling her Tin reserve grow. Lita scaled back a bit on the level of her burn, and as she did so her anxiety rushed in to take the place formerly occupied by sound and light and temperature. She heard her heartbeat quicken, adrenaline and caffeine racing through her body, setting it on edge.

Lita considered pulling the Coin out of her boot, nearly overcome by the urge to flip it, to just look at it. 

Pull yourself together, she told herself, stuffing her free hand in her pocket to avoid fidgeting. Her fixation with the Coin troubled her - she'd only had it a few days, and already it occupied much of her thought. She knew herself well enough to know she was latching onto something that seemed real and powerful, something that represented a kind of polestar in her life. A direction.

She had done much the same with Forian when she'd first met him, drawn to his power like metal to a Lurcher. He had claimed her, used her to give himself even more power, and she had loved him for it. These people would use her too, in their own way. It was the price demanded - a price she would pay, sure enough. Still, she wondered. How much of her would be left on the threshing floor when all was said and done? Would she even know herself, or would the woman in the mirror become someone else entirely, a bent reflection? 

And would it be such a pity? The little voice whispered. How much of Lita is worth keeping? All that fear. All that weakness. 

Mac's earlier words about limits, about preserving one's humanity, replayed in her mind, and she chewed her lip in pensive irritation. He wanted to keep his soul as intact as one could, in his position. Wanted to hold out for his place in paradise - for that elusive shine. Well, he could have it. Lita had already been turned away from one paradise.

There was no point in polishing ones metal, forever staving off the rust. Lita fingered the point of the spike in her pocket, mouth drawing unconsciously into a tiny, cold smile. No, there was no point in polishing.

She would keep her metal in blood.

[Voidus]

20 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

Lita accepted her coffee, dropping one spoonful of sugar into the black liquid and giving it a stir before bringing the cup to her mouth. She immediately began storing heat in her brassminds; with her tin on so high, even warm coffee would likely feel hot to her. Lita took a tentative sip, adjusted her storing rate slightly, then took a larger drink. 

Tin let her catch the slight unease in Laurelai's expression. Lita didn't blame her. Very soon, her own nerves would begin to catch up with her, but for now they were drowned out by the total sensory overload of her surroundings. She wrinkled her nose in irritation, then dipped her hand into her pocket and brought out her second vial of tin, flicking the cork off and pouring the shavings and liquid within into her coffee cup. She gave it another little stir with the spoon, then continued drinking. The warmth of the drink twinned pleasantly with the familiar burn of Allomancy within her.

This is necessary, she thought forcefully, sipping the coffee and savoring the bitterness. "Good coffee," she remarked to the TUBA member, blowing the steam across the cup and into the air, her enhanced vision allowing her to see every tendril bend and swirl. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Laurelai sending an Alleycant message, eyes moving slowly across the room. Lita pulled her own pen into her hand, sending Laurelai and KanMien a message of her own.

When their leader arrives, she'll likely be smart enough to ask for our names. Shall we be truthful, or will we be donning aliases?

@Voidus @kenod

We're here in an official capacity this time. Laurelai agreed. Truth would seem appropriate. We're not disguised after all, too easy for them to look into our identities anyway.

It was one of the reasons she regretted travelling so widely before she joined the DA, she'd left a long trail for people to follow if they were curious about her. And her joining the DA hadn't exactly been clandestine either, if you knew the right people to ask then you could probably find out about it. So she wore that information like a disguise in itself, created a persona around it and wore it out just as she did with any other disguise. Laurelai of the Dark Alleys was useful sometimes, sometimes to intimidate or discourage, sometimes when she simply didn't want to deal with people. But it did bring up the question, if her real self was simply a disguise then who was she underneath?

She started, realising she'd lost herself in thought again, and mentally chastised herself for ignoring her surroundings. She needed preparation just in case things went south, she couldn't waste time in idle musings.

"So." She said aloud, addressing the man from TUBA. "How has your night been? Busy?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Voidus smiled as Aylitha joined them, he hadn't expected anyone else to arrive so soon. As Mac had noted, the various department heads didn't tend to be too active outside of their own experiments and departments. Many, like the Stranger had been, were thought lost, or deliberately secluded from the world, somewhere deep within the ever changing maze of Alleys. It wasn't far from the truth in some cases, spending long lengths of time in an Alley without connecting it with any others tended to disconnect it somewhat, leave it inside a giant tangle of other lost Alleys. But he'd had to untangle one such knot earlier when he called a meeting at Alley 0, it may have caused other Alleys to be somewhat more connected as well. This might not be the last lost department head they saw today.

"Good to see you again." He said to Aylitha. "It's been a while I believe."

He frowned for a moment as he thought. How long had it been? Voidus shared Aylitha's problems with keeping track of time, it was such an elusive construct, malleable but also somewhat unyielding. And when you lived long enough it was hard to share the same perspective of it as others tended to have. But then again, none of those present were exactly typical by normal standards.

He caught himself a moment later, realizing he'd been drifting in thought again.

"Well regardless, it would be good for all of us to get out again." He said with a small smile. "Perhaps we could have a meeting after the business at hand is dealt with? Foster a little inter-departmental collaboration?"

[MacThorstenson he/him]

"Yes, I think I'll join." Aylitha said,

"Great, Now I thin-" Mac suddenly stiffened as he felt the alleys shift. Moved by a force of evilness so great that even the DA tried to avoid them.

HR.

"Run!" He whispered, "They're coming! Meet at Didgeridoo!" With that he stepped back and disappeared into the alleys.

---

Having discovered that his latest mission was a red herring, Cam walked out of the alleys near the worldspike determined to do his job properly. 

"Hello Voidus, Stranger, Aylitha! Haven't seen you guys in a while!" He grinned while coming closer, "Sorry to bother you, but after you jumped over that chair earlier, I realized that chairs are a safety hazard. So now I need to remove the chairs from this alley, its a safety hazard you see. So if I could just slide on by here," He tried to edge closer to them, reaching for the chairs they were using.

@Voidus @Fatebreaker @kenod

 

Edited June 19, 2019 by MacThorstenson

[Fatebreaker he/him]

12 minutes ago, MacThorstenson said:

"Yes, I think I'll join." Aylitha said,

"Great, Now I thin-" Mac suddenly stiffened as he felt the alleys shift. Moved by a force of evilness so great that even the DA tried to avoid them.

HR.

"Run!" He whispered, "They're coming! Meet at Didgeridoo!" With that he stepped back and disappeared into the alleys.

---

Having discovered that his latest mission was a red herring, Cam walked out of the alleys near the worldspike determined to do his job properly. 

"Hello Voidus, Stranger, Aylitha! Haven't seen you guys in a while!" He grinned while coming closer, "Sorry to bother you, but after you jumped over that chair earlier, I realized that chairs are a safety hazard. So now I need to remove the chairs from this alley, its a safety hazard you see. So if I could just slide on by here," He tried to edge closer to them, reaching for the chairs they were using.

@Voidus @Fatebreaker @kenod

 

The Stranger immediately froze, panicked, and half shouted, “It’s for a project! I filled out the paperwork! The meeting was at a time that wasn’t conducive to my schedule! I’m already certified! No comment at this time!” His go to whenever anyone from HR spoke to him was to rattle off a list of potential responses in hopes that one of them was the right one. He then clapped loudly for no particular reason and turned himself into a lark which flew away hurriedly.

[Voidus]

Voidus' eyes widened with realization and a touch of what may have been fear. There were very few things that would prompt Voidus to take action on something, the imminent destruction of the world might do it if he was feeling motivated. But one thing always worked, there was one situation that would never fail to cause him to expend any of his not inconsiderable resources in order to avoid. A meeting with HR.

"Yep. Chairs." Voidus began to say, mind whirling to try to find a way out. "You know, while you're hear, I heard something about a large blood spill-"

He cut himself off mid excuse, remembering that he'd already used that one.

"Sorry, what I meant to say was that I think there's a lab somewhere in Alley 249 that hasn't yet been set up to be ergonomically for its researchers. Could you look into that? It would be a terrible shame if someone had a repetitive strain injury due to an incorrectly set up workstation."

His speech continued to speed up as he spoke, eyes constantly wandering and looking for a chance to escape.

"Thanks for that, got to go." He quickly muttered as he purposefully strode past, Alleytravelling after Mac.

The Guardian paused in its circuit, the only break in its regular rhythmic steps since they'd all entered. There was a faint whine of confusion as it regarded the happenings below it, but then it began to tread out its careful loop around once more. This time moving away from Cam from HR.

[Silva]

The silence was eerie. Almost worst than the actual communicating earlier. He felt like they must have been discussing something, but how, he had no clue.

He pulled out the tray of cookies he'd put in the mini-oven. The chocolate was just about to melt and the scent of baked goodness traveled up his nostrils. Heaven on the Alleyverse. Besides, no one ever liked to have serious conversations without warm cookies. Hopefully Deteca and whoever was planning on coming there with her would get there soon enough. Otherwise he'd have to stick the cookies back in the oven, which would shift them even farther away from prime moistness. 

"So. How has your night been? Busy?" one of them asked.

 Eiran jumped slightly at the sudden noise. 

"Y-yeah. Just been one thing after another." And one horrific vision after another since the first one of the empty spot on the ceiling. He still wondered what that had been supposed to show.

An image of Joe's mangled body materialized in his mind's eye. He knew Joe was skilled and wouldn't let that future happen, but he winced instinctively at it anyways. 

[AonEne he/him]

9 hours ago, Ark's Boyfriend said:

"I'm nervous, okay?" Tena said.

Deteca bit back a laugh. "That's fair, after what..." She only realized that she'd trailed off after she'd done it. "Ready to go?" @Ark's Boyfriend

Quote

1 hour ago, ZincAboutIt said:

There was little point in a secret communique if she gave away the game with physical reaction.

...they're all twirling stuff in their hands all at the same time, though. If I saw that and didn't know what Alleycant was I'd just be creeped out

16 hours ago, Fatebreaker said:

Dad Voidus is adorable. 

The question is, is Husband Voidus equally adorable? Is she still alive?

 

Edited June 19, 2019 by AonEne

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Quote

Sorry but why are we saying Dad!Voidus when we could all be using the vastly superior and more efficient Voidad?

 

[Sherlock Holmes he/him]

3 minutes ago, AonEne said:

Deteca bit back a laugh. "That's fair, after what..." She only realized that she'd trailed off after she'd done it. "Ready to go?" @Ark's Boyfriend

Tena nodded. 

[AonEne he/him]

Quote

Oh my goodness Voidad. *bows down to Zinc*

Should we RP the walk over or timeskip to the diner, Ax?

@Ark's Boyfriend