❧ Flashback

[luministimods]

[After getting dug out, Nathan makes his way over to the general store, limping as he walks. He looks quite the sight with cuts, scrapes, and gashes all over his body (the worst of it is on his legs), and his suit is scorched, tattered, and just plain non-existent around his calves. He's even missing a shoe and looks a bit thinner than he was the last time he was there. But for a man who was crushed under so much debris, he doesn't seem in pain or anything; just inconvenienced.

Once he's inside the general store, he walks over to the vid screen, activating it so he can contact everyone's CAT devices and all of the other vidscreens around town. When he speaks, he doesn't sound strained, not like he has in any of his other appearances in the town and spacestation.]

I hope everyone can hear me and none of you were caught in that blast. I'm sorry it even happened, but--[He falls silent, his eyebrows knitting in concern.] There is much I need to tell you now that I'm here.

Please, meet me in the White Rabbit pub in half an hour. All of you. It's time you had some answers.

[The video transmission ends.]


Plot Details: Flashback

That was a close one! But thankfully, Nathan was found! Good job! Not only that, though, but something else was too. This is Nathan's CAT and it revealed a very, very interesting fact to Sophie and Fuu.

Yep, that is indeed the man in black. It's taken him a couple years to finally show himself--or rather, accidentally get recorded.

But you know what? Instead of me just sitting here explaining things, I am going to let Nathan do that for me. No doubt once everyone hears the transmission from him--and when they hear everything Sophie and Fuu have learned--they'll probably have questions. So! What a better way to discuss things than over dinner? The pub is unharmed, and Nathan is starving, and no doubt some people may need a drink or two.

All action and stuff will, again, happen in this entry. I'll make a starting comment with Nathan and we can go from there. This is kind of like a mingle/party post, so if people want private conversations with each other, you can make threads in this entry. In Nathan's thread, everything he says can be overheard, so people can bring things up again to him or threadhop, whichever works best. (Just in case, I would recommend tracking your threads if this does happen.) Also, if your character wants a private conversation with him, definitely say so in the subject heading! (And if your character wants a conversation with Ten or Wash, please say so too.)

What else... Oh yes! Those who lost powers should have them back in full now, and those gained them, well, you're back to normal. Balance is restored and all that. As for the town itself, the townspeople have started to clean things up. Oddly, things haven't been reset yet as they have when odd things happen. By the way, if people want to continue their other threads from the previous entry, you are more than welcome to do so! There just won't be any more searches for Nathan.

This plot will only last a week, so don't waste any time in getting to asking him questions! The sooner you ask, the more you can find out. When a week has passed (so until Tuesday evening), unfortunately, I won't be continuing those threads.

If you have any questions/concerns/etc, I'm making an OOC comment in here so everyone can use that! Or ping me through the usual channels~

Comments

[wind_of_reason]

[Hey, but she doesn't know Nathan's not responsible yet... Not acknowledging it doesn't make it go away. (A lesson Fuu herself is learning the hard way.)]

[She tilts her head curiously at the last question, glancing over at Sophie before shaking her head.]

We saw it from the beginning, from when the man in black started gloating about us being 'perfect'. But nothing happened to us when we saw him. ...But then, his face was always blocked by that hat.
Should something have happened?

[luministimods]

Then you saw what I was able to record! Oh good. But don't worry if nothing happened. Actually, hearing you say you've never seen his face confirms what I thought all along. Had you seen his face when you were first taken, you might have remembered exactly how you were taken. [Shakes his head, mostly to himself.] No wonder he wears that stupid hat.

[wind_of_reason]

Seeing his face is connected with how we were taken? [she repeats, trying to work that over in her mind.]

It doesn't have to do with the device he was holding? [She gestures vaguely in the air how the man in black (she really should ask what his name is so she can stop calling him that) held the whatever-it-was. Those times are returning to her memory more clearly now, but she's still fuzzy on that detail.]

[luministimods]

[He sighs, waving his hand dismissively] No, seeing his face is merely a memory jogger. Bit like how an amnesiac will see something familiar from her life and bam, it may trigger a memory.

The device he uses is what's at fault here, but it is merely one of the tools he uses. There are others combined with different materials that have all been combined to keep you tied to this place.

[wind_of_reason]

[She tilts her head, wondering what kind of material that could be (but no, not something like Escudo, she's sure).]

That sounds a bit like what the man in black was saying about anchors. You each have one. A 'someone', actually... [ She trails off, shaking her head slightly.] I don't know how it works, of course, but I assume that if we could have helped to protect your anchor or flush out the man in black's, that you would have told us about it.

So what keeps us here, and how can we safely break from it?

[luministimods]

[He shifts a bit in his seat when she mentions anchors.] I can't say one way or the other about mine. The less we talk about it, the better we'll all be. As for the 'man in black', as you call him, I've always thought his might be a Resarci.

But what keeps you here is far, far different. The technology used to bring you here must be shut down and all materials must be destroyed. However, as simple as that sounds, there are catches. If you or anyone else destroys it, you in turn will also be destroyed. And there won't be any coming back from that. You will be dead in this universe as well as your own. I can destroy what keeps you here, however since I'm of the same universe.

[wind_of_reason]

[A flash of a grin-] Apologies, but I haven't gotten around to asking the man in black's name yet. I'm sure you have a name to put to the almost-face.

[But her face at once returns to the sombreness that his statement deserves. It's a good thing that they haven't accidentally destroyed these materials, or been led into it by the man in black. But then, he does want them alive, doesn't he.]

I'm sorry, Mister Nathan. This puts a huge burden on you, to save all of us one piece at a time.

But, what is it all for? To bring all of us from all across time and space, literally, to keep us alive but unhappy in this little fishbowl... It's been proven that our minds can be messed with to the point that we don't even remember being anywhere else than here. What does the man in black gain from doing it this way?

[luministimods]

Oh, I do. His name is Ferran.

It isn't as big of a burden as you think. It's my job and I'm more than happy to do it.

But what he gains from it all.... [He frowns.] Only he knows for sure. Why anyone has done this in the past has always been different. But think about it for a moment. If he didn't want you to remember at all, he could have made it so, but it's only been temporary. Why do you think the things he does never last?

[wind_of_reason]

[Don't answer a question with a question!
Fuu rests her elbows on the table, propping her head in her palms. Why, indeed? What if the reason why is so outside her realm of understanding that she wouldn't even be able to guess at it! With a sigh she straightens up, folding her arms on the table. She will just have to build a hypothesis with what she knows.]

It must be to further us towards whatever end he's imagining and whatever gain he's foreseeing. He said in the video... that he's poked and prodded us towards perfection. Perhaps the experiences don't last, but how they affect us does. [She shakes her head.] I feel that there are a hundred varied threads within my grasp, but in the tangle I cannot connect the right ones together.

As I told you before, there are a thousand other prettier, smarter, stronger people that he could have stolen. I don't understand what makes us [a gesture at the assorted characters gathered around] so 'wanted'.

OH NO YOU DIDN'T

[manicurious]

There are not a thousand people who are prettier than me!

[luministimods]

[Nathan sighs exasperatedly] Ichijou, you're gorgeous, and you're very beautiful yourself, Fuu, but he doesn't do it for looks--at least, not what I can tell.

I think you may be onto something though, Fuu. That's sort of been my line of thinking.

[manicurious]

[Oh yes, he likes that. He likes that a lot.]

Why, thank you!

[wind_of_reason]

[BLUSHING! Just- blushing.]

I'm sorry Mister Ichijou. I suppose I meant, from my universe.

Th-thank you, Mister Nathan.
I'm not sure how Mister Ferran could find that valuable, but I hope we don't find out the hard way!

[luministimods]

[He nods, reaching for his glass, a sombre expression on his face.] I hope you don't either.