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I'm Feeling Lucky
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Serendibite ONLINE   Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sat, 25/11/2023 21:18 (1 Year ago) |
Andreja Buivis"Alrighty, sweet cheeks. Here we are. Ready for your first big day on the big kids' side of the playground?" Andreja grinned at Laurence. "Don't worry... you'll be fine. You've got Angie after all." She laughed, flipping her hair. Putting her hands behind her head, she glanced back at him. "So, what'dya know about this place?" Narcisse MichonNarcisse slipped inside the conference room, and began sorting through the papers that the secretaries had prepared for him. Here it was. Cases. He grimaced. The usual array, he suspected. Small time thieves, kids with a bit too much money looking for attention... The blue page markers indicating a case of theft appeared predominant this morning. What a shame, a tough one might be a chance for him to get out of this place, at least for a while. But as he sorted through the files, he noticed a few red ones. Those were dangerous. He moved the blue to the side and began examining the red. Right there at the top- Murder in big bold letters and a caption. Y Rhoddwr. Ah. A murder in that city? You didn't see that every day. And for them to outsource it to a little agency in Trydanfaid... He had to admit he was intrigued. He put it off to the side and began filing through the rest, eager to get back to the more interesting cases. Small time thievery... He thought for a minute, and then wrote down the assignment. Niwa Atsushi, Cassidy Louvin, Iliya Orlov Volkov. If there were any last bits of detective blood in that little Atsushi's veins, this should be no challenge. It'd be the boy's first real task- leading a couple of freshies through a simple purse snatcher's case would be a good opportunity for him to improve his standing in the organisation. Plus, he was intrigued by some of the names on there. The Volkovs... What business did old Volkov have sending his kid here? It was tempting to put his own name on there, or at least Nora's- He made a couple notes for his secretary, and assigned their profiler as Lydia Satou. There, simple enough. A break in. Jing Yu, Cali Mabey, Andreja Buivis, and Laurence Walton. Relatively safe case, there wasn't really any kind of danger for the kids. Would probably be good experience, and maybe an eye-opener for the Buivis kid. She didn't belong here, and he wanted to make sure she knew it. Satou could profile for them as well. Next on the list... Ah, a red one. Somebody pissed off someone important, he thought, narrowing his eyes at the graphic images. Stella De Caelo, Jace Mawer, ... His hand hovered over the paper, wondering if he should put his own name down. He was tempted. But... "Buraddo, would you look this over? I think you might be suited for it." He pushed it towards their end of the table. [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Fri, 24/11/2023 02:50 (1 Year ago) |
NarratorThey returned Eloi to the Agency... but along the way, they were intercepted by a friendly neighbourhood Nora, who told them to 'get their asses home'. She added on a smile and an "or else", but you didn't hear it from me. Eloi was deposited at his apartment, and the two dumbasses returned to their respective residences. And thus begins Chapter One of our story... Day One--- October 7th, 2071. 0500 hours. The lights must've gone out in the middle of the night. Blackouts were slowly creeping towards the city centre. It was to be expected. They would be on in a few minutes. Oh god. His face smashed into the wall. Gasping for air, he pushed himself up off the floor, but couldn't manage to get his leg untangled from what had tripped him. oh god oh god oh god- It was a monster. It was holding onto him, dragging him into darkness and he couldn't escape no matter how much he fought how much he writhed in its arms- No... it was a coat. Papa's coat. With a choking sound he gave his leg a yank and immediately the back of his head collided with the wall. He panted, pain and primal terror warring on the priority list in his head. He squeezed his eyes shut and fought against both sensations. You're safe. Nothing hurts. She's coming to get you. When he opened his eyes, the lights had come back on. For a moment he sat there, just staring into the wall, into the blankets on the floor which had apparently gotten tangled around his legs as he slept. It was... The tingling wore away. He got to his feet, heartbeat still hammering, fast as a rabbits'- and nearly stumbled again. Narcisse made his way into the bathroom, holding onto the walls. Staring into the mirror, he focused on making his expression calm. You're fine, you're fine, you're fine- He splashed his face with water and finally allowed himself to rest on the counter. He could hear his heartbeat. Steady, quiet thumps. Narcisse checked his watch. 5:01 AM. He heaved a sigh and finally allowed himself to collapse onto the floor. The tiles bit into his knees, but he found he didn't really care. His head was still screaming at him and he had work in a few hours. Alright. Time to get a move on. --- By 7am he was dressed and ready to go, sipping his usual cup of earl grey and checking the tabloids. He found gossip rather distasteful, but it was important to keep up on modern pop culture, both for his work, and so that he could proudly tell Nora that "sounds like a skill issue" was a phrase that went out of popularity last century. Unfortunately, some dumb teenagers were planning to bring said phrase back, judging by one of the features. He frowned at the quotation. The Kurai model, huh? Androids of that make are smart enough... am I possibly getting old? Ah, it was time to be getting off to work. He really should keep better track of time. He exited his apartment and took the stairs. The elevator had been broken for weeks. Ever since the last family moved out, the place was quickly becoming... well, a dump. The landlady passed him as he walked down. He gave her a nod and a smile. She just stared at him with grey, empty eyes. It was a fifteen minute walk to the agency. He took his time, studying his surroundings. It was rather hard to tell who was human these days. Even in the slums where people accumulated, androids were still the predominant species. You couldn't tell on a first encounter. After all, they were made to be as indistinguishable from humans as possible. That smiling lady selling flowers, for instance. He knew she was a Kuma. She waved at him and he waved back. A person came up to her stand and she started up cheerful conversation he could barely make out as he walked on. They seemed just like anyone else. The old stereotypes of robots- metal, awkward, none of that had any weight on how the androids acted. If you went by old stereotypes, you might assume his landlady was an android. But he knew... personally... that she was as human as it got. Her eyes were so empty... A group of children played by a set of trash cans. One jumped along a trash bag, trying to reach the windowsill of some old office building. As he passed, they all stood up straight and waved at him. One grinned- he was missing a tooth, and behind that, some wiring. He'll need to go into a mech-doctor for a replacement, Narcisse noted. The only real way to tell someone was an android was through an empathy test, No androids allowed there- only human beings were capable of empathy to the point of self-sacrifice. It was an evolutionary paradox. It made no sense in the grand scheme of things. They couldn't feel empathy, so of course it made sense why androids weren't built with any sort of 'morality core'. That would be dangerous... if androids could feel real hatred or sense of injustice, then they would want revenge on people. If they couldn't care, but they knew they'd be wronged... well, that would only lead to mass genocide. Androids had kept humans alive, purely out of self interest. They needed them to fill certain roles in society. Besides, people were weak, powerless; they were no threat to the affairs of state. The idea of an android who cared... that was dangerous. An android with emotions, or one who at least believed they had some close approximation of it... Narcisse shivered, though not because of the cold. He stopped at the concrete steps and gazed up into the Clockwork Detective Agency. At work... at last. With a sigh, he entered into the building. He would have to make his way to the conference room, where he'd be organising today's cases with his fellow Head Detectives. For some reason, as the door closed behind him, he felt as if a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders. Some choice was out of his hands now. He tried not to think about it. "Get back here, girl! Don't you dare walk out on us, you hear me? You're going to come back and apologise to your mother-" "I'm leaving!" She shouted back. She heard Mrs. Buivis take in a sharp breath, ready to start yelling anew. Andreja slammed the door behind her and stormed down the steps, breaking into a run as the gate approached. The man standing by it- Nickerson- merely let her pass. Sympathy shone in his eyes. She hated it. "Go tell her that she can suck eggs!" she yelled at him. "You too! The whole lot of you!" Before he could say anything stupid, she jumped onto her bike and revved it up. With a bang she was off, leaving the mansion and- apparently the adrenaline- behind. Exhaustion swept over her when she hit a red light. She stared into the bulk of the garbage truck in front of her, fingers tightening on the bars of her motorcycle. Her phone started ringing. The Cow, the contact read. She hit Ignore. Before it could start up again, she typed up a text. Gotta work today. Don't bother me. She slipped the phone into her back pocket and started up the machine, following the truck through the green light. Before long, she'd reached the agency and was clambering up the steps. Janitor work. What would Kaya say about her now, she wondered. [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Thu, 23/11/2023 00:51 (1 Year ago) |
Niwa AtsushiNiwa frowned deeply. Has Keiki fallen into a life of delinquency and crime? Huh... weird. He didn't remember them being like that. His memories of Keiki were of reading Mary Shelley and leafing through English textbooks. He could even feel the dreamy feel of the pages against his fingertips as they slipped off and fluttered softly down. The touch of Keiki's hand on his... All of that was fading as he stared into Keiki's eyes now, devoid of all that light and warmth he recalled from those sunny afternoons. Even their face seemed to have lost the thought he'd once seen in it. They're like everyone else, he realised, everything dulling once more. Nothing like the Keiki I want. "It's not about any of the... stuff you've done or been up to. It's just that this was an assault... one that needs investigating. We should-" A voice. He went rigid. Immediately Niwa ran it over in his head. The tone... the sound... the vibrations were off. He blinked and the voice was stored in his head. He could work through that later. "Come on, Keiki," he urged. "Even if you don't like me, help me get Eloi back to the Agency." [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Thu, 23/11/2023 00:28 (1 Year ago) |
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Accepted! [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Wed, 22/11/2023 13:23 (1 Year ago) |
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Looking good! Just need a history and I'll accept her [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Wed, 22/11/2023 03:06 (1 Year ago) |
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Accepted! I see SuzuMeg in our future 👀 [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Wed, 22/11/2023 02:30 (1 Year ago) |
Niwa AtsushiOh. Keiki didn't seem happy to see him. Niwa wilted. For some reason he'd thought... no he'd hoped... Even my hallucinations can't be kind to me, he thought bitterly. Guess that's life for you, huh? "Noo. I'm just a random person who looks exactly like your ex." They spat. He flinched as the glob of spit trickled down his face, reworking his expression into something more neutral. Less... emotion stuff was hard. "Anyways, I'm not here for you. Your little old pal here seems hurt. I saw that funny lookin' fella run off, the one with the shiny face." "The shiny face?" he echoed curiously. That weirdness left, replaced with... something darker. When he stared at Keiki's face, for some reason he felt like Keiki needed to be... No! he gave his head a shake. That was weird. That needed to shut up. Keiki's side profile was stunning in the moonlight. High cheekbones, swoopy bangs, perfect little button nose. As pretty as ever, he thought bitterly. Too pretty for little ol' Niwa, huh? "Made me curious, y'know? I've got some...work to do, which hopefully will pay well. Then I'll see if anyone knows anythin' on our mystery fella...how are you, anyways? Work going well?" "Keiki," he said calmly. "I need you to come with us to the Agency tomorrow." [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Wed, 22/11/2023 02:19 (1 Year ago) |
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Accepted! Thanks for the awesome idea, bestie <3 [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Tue, 21/11/2023 02:04 (1 Year ago) |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Mon, 20/11/2023 03:38 (1 Year ago) |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Mon, 20/11/2023 02:55 (1 Year ago) |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Mon, 20/11/2023 02:39 (1 Year ago) |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Mon, 20/11/2023 02:37 (1 Year ago) |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 22:20 (1 Year ago) |
Niwa AtsushiNiwa's whole body froze as fight or flight instinct raged inside him. The person who was touching Eloi... who was talking to them... He found his mouth moving before he could stop it. "...Keiki? Is that really you?" [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 20:38 (1 Year ago) |
Niwa AtsushiNiwa nearly breathed out a sigh of relief as Eloi's hand found his. Together, they crept into the alleyway. As far as he could tell, the figure was gone... but that didn't mean it hadn't left something behind. And- there! On the ground, right by the dumpster. Some little thing he knew Eloi couldn't have seen... or anyone, really. He held up a finger as if to say- hold on -and kneeled next to it, picking up the thing. He curiously turned it in his hand, trying to discern what it was. It was almost familiar... A little keychain with a sheep charm. He could make out the details on the wool and the creature's blank, blank eyes. There was even a little insignia on it. He opened his mouth to read it aloud- And then something bashed into the side of his head. Niwa hit the ground and a second later he saw Eloi, right next to him. A boot came down by his head and a gloved hand snatched up the keychain that had clattered onto the concrete when he came down. A high pitched voice cursed. Niwa remained where he was, pretending to be unconscious, curiously listening to her voice and trying to pinpoint it. Then the boot vanished and he heard the sounds of footsteps quickly breaking into a run. He waited a moment, then sat up and rubbed at his head. Okay. Well... that was interesting. He'd have to dissect the whole interaction later. For now, onto Eloi. He turned his attention on his companion. Third Person POVAndreja's mocking laugh followed him out the door. "See you later, darling~ hoping you're looking forward to this new month as much as I am!" The doors opened easily, and the two split up, heading their seperate ways. But even as they took their respective transports, there seemed to be a strange number of eyes on them. Almost as if everyone on the street were watching them... from an old woman in a red dress standing under a streetlamp, to a wild teenager running down the street... There was never a pair of eyes not locked on them. With Cadence Laurier...There was no response. Narcisse's door was locked, presumably for the night. Ever the punctual one. No sound came from his office. It was really time for her to be heading home. She had the key, of course, if the doors did end up locking her in... but despite what the propaganda claimed, no city such as theirs could ever be safe at night. It wasn't worth the risk. [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 18:24 (1 Year ago) |
Niwa Atsushi"Maybe! Do you think maybe we should split up? There might be multiple ways they could have gone... At least, I think so..." "Multiple ways?" Going into the alley would be a solid way to get himself killed, then. The man in there would stab first, ask questions later. Eloi would probably get the jump on him after... Maybe we could swap? Eloi goes in, gets attacked, and I- He banished the thought. What ridiculousness. He was the hero. He wouldn't let anyone sacrifice themself for him. Niwa would be noble, heroic... and he'd... "I really think he's in the alley. Please." Coward! he cursed himself out. What're you doing? Jace Mawer (Nora)"Aww." Nora grinned at him, resting an elbow on the table and propping up her chin with her palm. "Come on, isn't there something a little kitsch 'bout this place? Silly goofy, in all the right ways." She laughed, but inside she was curious. Why is he so determined to impress me? It's not like this is the first time we've gone out to dinner together. Her fingers drummed thoughtfully on the cloth upholstery. With new eyes, she studied those around them. College students on those terrible first dates, old couples... Someone was even getting proposed to in that corner there. This place was... So expensive! His taste really has changed, huh? Andreja Buivis"It's. Walton. Laurence. Walton." "It's a skill issue, Wart." She smirked. "Sure, run along home. You're stuck with me tomorrow, though... and the day after... and the day after that day, and-" "The doors will automatically lock in ten circa minutes," mumbled an unknown male voice from the speakers. "Any remaining employees, please make your way to the nearest exit." Foiled again! Drat. Fiddlesticks. Go to hell, disembodied speaker man! [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 02:52 (1 Year ago) |
Jace Mawer (Nora)"Aww, something wrong?" Nora teased him as they walked along. "It's a nice restaurant! I'm so very flattered that you thought to bring old Mawer along." He'd looked at something on his phone just then. For some reason, it had spiked her curiosity. Maybe it was just because of her own "personal" case... but she couldn't help but wonder if it had anything to do with Louis Michon's random appearance at the Agency. The two were seated at the table and the waitress gave them their menus. Between skimming the options (even she had to admit they were all terribly romantic), she kept taking peeks at him, trying to read his face. Why had he invited her out like this? Did he have something he wanted to discuss? Some information he wanted out of her? Her eyes narrowed. Was he trying to distract me from whatever the old man was doing? [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 02:16 (1 Year ago) |
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Accepted! [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 02:13 (1 Year ago) |
Jace Mawer (Nora)Nora giggled, but her eyes were elsewhere, scanning the crowds. When no Louis Michon appeared to her, she relented and smiled at Jing Yu. "Holding the door for me~ what a charmer." She slipped inside and was immediately enveloped in the smell of fancy restaurant bullsh*t. Everything was upholstered, from the walls to the legs of the chairs. The lights were almost too dim, so that she had to squint to make out the cheesy art on the walls. She admired the terrible overdoneness of it all. What a theme- "ugly aesthetic that relies on the embarrassingly awkward and blind-to-gaudy-sh*t courtships of young college students." "Welcome to 18th Century Blues." The woman behind the desk smiled at them. "Table for two, I presume?" [Read more] |
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Serendibite ONLINE Forum Posts: 116 |
Posted: Sun, 19/11/2023 01:46 (1 Year ago) |
Jace Mawer (Nora)"Oh?" Nora cocked their head playfully. "Well, in that case... of course! I'm always glad to catch up with an old friend." They noted grimly that their target had once again escaped into the crowd. A little bit irritating. They cursed themself for taking their eyes off him. Foolish... Everyone knew that Louis Michon was a slippery one. But still, the thought itched at them... What was he doing at the party? she wondered. Here to see Narsissy? But why? Lord knows the almighty Head Detective would sooner die than bring his personal life into the Agency. But- ah. Jolting out of her thoughts, she shot "Yu-Yu" a smile. "Food sounds great! You're paying, right?" [Read more] |