luministi | ❧ ...Until someone loses an eye

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❧ ...Until someone loses an eye

[randomly in the southern lawn of the town square, a silver view finder appears. pretty innocent looking, isn't it? and in actuality, it really is! only...what it shows might not be so innocent... nonetheless, observers will notice that the remaining residents who haven't been turned into dolls yet walk past it without noticing it at all. how odd.

a few minutes after its appearance, an unregistered CAT device sends an audio message to only the new residents, but those with keen ears will notice that the voice distortion is pitched a bit higher than normal. strange. the message goes as follows:]

Things are falling apart faster than I expected, so I can finally utilize this device while everyone is distracted. Use those prizes I gave you to get a glimpse of the truth! Thought you'd also like to know that he is safe and at home with his family far, far away from here. But please keep each other safe and beware R--

[the message, unfortunately, cuts off there...]

[ooc: Remember those gold coins embossed with the image of a lion and a sun? It seems someone has had something planned for them this entire time. Good thing you can recover it with your stolen item! Of course, there are some residents who can get one coin and others with two. Those with two will be able to use the view finder twice. Oddly enough, the view finder only will let you look at things in the four cardinal directions, and once you pick the direction, you can't move the view finder. So! Comment here ICly with the direction you wish to look at. Those of you with two coins can comment twice so we can let you know what you will see with your second choice. If you wish to comment/ask a question OOCly, you can as well!

Oh, and as a note, after you have used your coin(s) and return home, you will find that the lion paperweight has moved to a different location in your townhome. How or why that happened, well...you'll see soon enough...]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Like a game? [a little puzzled. And why did she say that about reality?] Your world sounds very different. There's nothing like that at all?

Well, things have been getting tough of late. But we can handle it.

How inconvenient. I wonder if there's some way around it… Has it always been like this?

[he reaches out to touch her arm lightly, frowning.] Does it hurt?

Nothing at all like that for my world!

[She smiles. That's the spirit!]

It has only been like this for -oh, a week. But it seems that events of this type keep happening frequently here.

[Shakes her head] No. It's an... odd sensation, but it doesn't hurt. Doesn't feel much like anything.

I suppose that's something, but it doesn't seem right for this sort of thing to be happening. And… this is only one such event? What else has been going on?

[Fuu nods solemnly and proceeds to briefly describe the events - weather bubbles, the botanical garden, the alivened statues, the party and the poisoning, the murders, the amnesia and the stolen items, ending with the current situation. (Feel free to interject at any point!)]

[Hawk listens, one hand holding up his chin, a deep frown on his face.] The statues couldn't be hurt at all? What kind of rules could they have been working under? [because he knows of enemies like statues that wake up when you get too close to them back home, but they take damage like any other enemy.]

Poisoned by little machines?

That's a good question. It seems like this place is running with rules with which each individual 'new resident' is familiar with, plus rules of its own, all at the same time. But none of us could find a way to defeat the statues, and there was that time we all fell asleep. It would appear that Luministi's rules trump ours.

Yes, I'm afraid so. [Fuu shudders a tiny bit. She hated the very idea of there possibly being little machines left over in her body.]

Again, it poisoned all of us, even though we're all from different worlds and certainly have different physiology - different bodies.

It's possible that the rules of this place are the strongest, since it's where we actually are… Do you know anything about what could be causing those things? What about the people who've lived here from the start?

[he's fairly disturbed by the idea himself, and reaches out to pat her shoulder, offering a smile.] We'll have to look out for each other as much as we can, then.

[She's surprised at the gesture (we've just met!), but smiles kindly in return.]

That's the spirit. We were asked to keep each other safe, so I'll do my best to that end.

As for what's causing all this, we really still only have guesses. The most suspicious person among the regular residents is doctor Resarci, but he's gone missing. Most of the residents behave... well, rather blandly, to be honest. Only a few seem to be really involved with the happenings of the town. Here, let me show you.

[She opens the video from the Mayor (http://luministimods.livejournal.com/1268.html?thread=42228) on her CAT and points out the relevant people at the end. (The Mayor, Verita, Audrey, Miss Osculia, and Resarci, as well as Andre, Bruno the butcher, Sheriff Teger.)]

Asked? [it strikes him as odd, but he supposes not everyone grew up learning to watch out for the rest of the team when needed. And Jessica…] Good! Couldn't ask for more.

[he nods, and pays intent attention to the video.] …A Revival Program? It sounds as though there was something wrong before we got here. [frowns]

So what do these people do in town?

[Since he didn't ask for a further explanation about the 'asked' right then-and-there, Fuu will tell him details about it later.]

Yes. I feel like we were summoned, perhaps to help with whatever it was, but they gave us no reason, no mission, no task. Unless you count "enjoy the town."

[Fuu then proceeds to tell Mister Hawk a bit about the prominent residents, as well as the murders. Seeing as three of those men are now dead, and one is suspect.]

Summoned, huh… A little difficult with all that's gone on, don't you think?

[he's almost completely still as Fuu tells him about the murders, though he interrupts to ask for an explanation of 'sheriff', and takes a few moments to think this through once she's done.] So there's another side to this place… A traitor to what, exactly? The town? Or- if these people were trying to help us, it could be the program. [he sighs, and taps against the bench lightly] The sheriff, the butcher, and the bartender… they're all people who do things for the town, aren't they?

…you think it was Doctor Resarci, rather than Drew. [this said as statement rather than anything else, though he might sound a little odd, and he's laced his fingers together underneath his chin.] Why would the Deputy take the consequences?

[She nods to his statements, then blinks.]

That is a very good question. Perhaps in some way, he wanted out of the program. After all, men died over it. [Her voice drops to a whisper] The message that we just received, I believe that the 'he' who is safe is Deputy Drew.

However, it was a terrible way to leave the conflict that is happening here. There are at least two sides to this, and one side is incredibly dangerous.

On the other hand, perhaps he did it to discreetly help the true culprit.

That's fair enough. I wouldn't want to be part of something like that if people were dying. [a faint twinge, but he shrugs it off. And just as softly,] Well, that's. That's good. […he has to remind himself it's not the same here as it was at home. If they'd confronted her a different way, maybe… But that's in the past, and he forces himself to shake it off for now.]

I imagine there could've been an earlier point at which he could have left.

It makes it harder to draw out the true culprit, that's true. With someone taking the blame, who'd look for someone else?

Perhaps, but not if he wanted to keep up the facade.

[Fuu gives a wry grin at that last.]

No one but those who suspect that something else is going on.
In fact, the Sheriff in particular doesn't have to pursue it at all anymore. [She frowns, then drops her voice again.] The Sheriff is a tad suspicious, but I'd had no solid reason for it. Could this be a link to doctor Resarci?

Keeping an eye on things from the inside? [he considers it, then gives her a wry grin of his own.

and quietly, again] Why does he seem suspicious? … Were they friends?

[softly] No, I don't think so, but...

[She explains about Iussus' oddly timed arrival, the interviews and the message that came immediately afterwards, and the suspicious chase of doctor Resarci.]

I feel like even if we'd caught him, he would have walked anyways. They incriminated Deputy Drew of all people, after all. Someone was clearly messing with Sheriff Iussus' coveted evidence.

If you can't trust the people who you work with, who can you trust? [there's nothing happy about this expression. fingers flex and relax, wanting to do something but not knowing what] He only believes what's in front of him? It's too convenient. [like blood on his daggers, and Eagle bleeding- never mind Bigieu's spell. he squeezes his eyes shut, focusing on that, then looks at her when he's sure he's back in the present] Could we show that the evidence was messed with?

[Fuu doesn't answer his rhetorical question, and watches with quiet concern as Mister Hawk seems to work through something. She could appreciate the pain of memories that Luministi seemed to drag up. (Even more so since these quizzes...)]

I'm not sure how. They wouldn't let us anywhere near it, I'm certain. ...I'm not even sure what kind of evidence they picked up.
I would run that by Mister Braxiatel or the Doctor if you see them. They would likely have some idea.

[he appreciates not being asked about it- he's going to have to deal with it, but he plans for that to be after he's dealt with Bigieu ~~at least until a door or window surprises him :|a~~]

Why not let ourselves see what they picked up? …The doors could be a problem, though.

Are they used to matters like this?

[Softly] Let ourselves see? As in, break in?

It only seems to be asking questions to get inside or outside. But it's very problematic either way.

I don't know if I could say 'used to'. But they are both very experienced and clever men.

That's right. [so law-abiding]

Mm. My concern is whether it would alert anyone inside that someone was coming in.

And reliable?

[Grin~ Sometimes you've got to break an egg to make an omlette. (Fuu's wanted to break into the Mayor's office for a while now, but the Doctor wouldn't let her.)] Right.

[Tilts her head] No, I don't think so. So long as they can't hear it from the other side.

Completely.

[…he'd probably like to try that too, huh] Then it should be possible. Do you know what hours they keep?

That's good. [a definite smile this time, and he reaches out to squeeze her hand] Sounds like we really could work out what's going on.

[She blushes as he takes her hand. Really! ...But it would be impolite to suddenly pull away.]
I hope we can. Like the message today said, things are falling apart. And we'll go down with it if we don't find a way to the truth.

Well, the evidence seems to have been processed at the clinic so there would likely be copies there. Of course there would be another copy at the Sheriff's office.
And... perhaps the Mayor would have one too.

The trouble is that all three of those places would be attended to, even late at night. The clinic and the sheriff's office for emergencies, and the Mayor's secretary stays there all night, from what I was told.

...I do have a resource that might be helpful, but it's not without its weakness.

[ooc: Mun has no idea about the hours they keep, but even if the CAT didn't have it I'm sure Fuu would know by now.]

[pulling away is more polite than hitting him over the head! or less violent, at least. he lets go a little after she starts talking, propping up his head.]

Then the sooner we find it, the better.

That's three places… At a guess, I'd think the sheriff's office might be the easiest to get into, but going in sight unseen… Have you been inside? What are the interiors like?

What kind of resource? I'm afraid I seem to have left all of mine behind. [not having the opportunity to take much would do that, and the flowers from Rolante lose their potency after a time]

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(answering *all* the questions this time)

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(oh, I like you, asking all the hard questions XD)

(waah o///o too kind!)

(-^.^-)

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(answering all the questions this time)