JGoB, Tuesday Evening
There was really only so much time even someone like William could spend with his nose buried in a book. Eventually, he found himself at JGoB (slightly blasphemous name aside, they did manage rather excellent pastry) with a mug of tea, an apple tart...
And a book.
Shut up.
Lady Myria LeJean
While Myria had become accustomed to simple human things like walking and breathing, her jailors were not.
Nor were they used to the glands that influenced their actions.
And, try as she might, trying to steer them away from the real human in their path was not happening. "Walk," she reminded them kindly. "Do not float."
The Auditors
Two Auditors looked at each other for a long time.
Talking with their mouths was still...foreign. "What is he doing?" one asked finally.
Lady Myria LeJean
"Consuming the nutrients necessary for continued function of the body." And it was...
Something.
Not that she'd allow them to know she had tried it.
William Murdoch
William had looked up reflexively at the sound of the shop's door opening, and now was trying to figure out what was wrong with the people who'd just entered without making it look as if he were actually staring. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but they didn't seem to move the way a human ought.
And then he'd heard one of them inquire as to what he was doing.
Definitely suspicious. He didn't say anything just yet, eyes flicking back to his plate and the half-finished pastry.
The Auditors
"He is looking at us," one observed. The rest of the Auditors shuffled closer to look at William's plate.
"No, he is looking at this piece of porcelain."
"Ceramic."
"He was observing the food product."
This was hugely productive.
Lady Myria LeJean
Myria smiled at William, silently wishing he would run like a clever little human ought to. "Immaterial," she said. "There are more important matters to attend to."
William Murdoch
Unfortunately, intelligence and sensibility did not always go hand in hand. And so there was no running on William's part.
"Can I help you?" he asked, his tone one of forced politeness.
The Auditors
There were more consultations. "Why would we require assistance?"
"Do we appear to need assistance?"
"What could he possibly offer us as assistance?"
Six pairs of eyes focused intently on William.
Lady Myria LeJean
Oh. This was not good at all.
"No assistance is necessary," Myria said sharply. While they knew they did not have to listen to her, the bodies tended to respond to tones of voice. "We are leaving now."
Just so long as one of them wasn't clever.
The Auditors
Four of them spun on their heels (one hovered slightly abovethe ground as she did so), responding instinctively to the tone.
One man-shaped Auditor crossed his arms and glared at her. "We do not wish to leave. There are things to observe and categorize." He pointed at the counters full of baked goods. "They...smell."
This one was going to be clever.
Lady Myria LeJean
"It is what they do." She gave the one hovering a look that worked better than any mouth could to voice displeasure.
William Murdoch
"Who are you?" William asked, his tone sharp. They most certainly did not belong here. Were they these 'Auditors' that had been spoken of on the radio?
Lady Myria LeJean
"They are--" Myria stared at them. No other Auditor had a name save for her. And humans would expect names.
The Auditors
The Auditors consulted among themselves. "Foreign," one finally offered.
William Murdoch
Not a good enough answer. "Well, you've got that right," William nodded. "In fact, I think you need to leave. And perhaps fix whatever it was that you've done that's destroying so many worlds."
Because making a polite request was going to
work.
The Auditors
There was more consultation, then the six Auditors turned to Myria with identical expressions of "and we're supposed to care...why?"
Lady Myria LeJean
"I don't believe you understand," Myria said, smiling at William again. William, the dim, dim little boy. "Mr. White, Ms. Lime, Ms. Red, Mr. Canary, Ms. Lilac and... Mr. Dark Avocado are foreign. Very foreign."
Run, you pathetic little sack of hormones and flesh.
"Run along."
Run.
William Murdoch
Oh yeah, that collection of names really made them so much less suspicious.
"This is my home," William said stupidly stubbornly. "I don't believe I shall."
The Auditors
They would get to the puny human in a moment. For now there was a matter of names to discuss.
"We do not wish to be Mr. Dark Avocado," said one male-shaped Auditor. "We wish to be Mr. White. We are senior and white is a more significant shade." He pointed to another male-shaped Auditor. "You are Mr. Dark Avocado now."
With that settled to his satisfaction (though the other Auditors looked decidedly less impressed), he turned to Myria. "What shall we do with the human?"
Lady Myria LeJean
Myria's eyebrows went up of their own volition. As these things were wont to do.
"Nothing that will draw attention to us," she decided, shooting the boy one last look. Why couldn't he have simply run away rather than insisting on attempting bravery? "There are still many on the island who would notice."
William Murdoch
"What do you mean do with me?" William demanded, only just now getting the feeling he ought to have run some time ago.
The Auditors
Did you know that six physically beautiful faces could look so scary before right now, William?
There was muttering among themselves about protocol and The Rules before one asked Myria, "Do we worry about attention?"
The very concept of "worry" seemed strange to it.
Lady Myria LeJean
"We do," she confirmed calmly. "We are still outnumbered onthis island at the moment."
William Murdoch
No, no he had not known that.
"That's right," William said, trying to impart a bravery he didn't quite feel. And now was trying his best to edge past them and to the door, yes.
The Auditors
Mr. White walked toward William, reached out and brushed against his shoulder, and William disappeared like he'd never been.
"Oh dear," Mr. White said, looking at Myria. "We didn't realize they were so fragile."
Lady Myria LeJean
"These forms do bring that risk," Myria said, already thinking of how to slip loose of them.
So long in this form had driven her mad enough to want to continue living. How terribly sad.
The Auditors
The other Auditors were already spreading out through the store, investigating various terrifying aspects of human culture: counting the number of bear claws, sniffing tea bags, and complaining about the lack of symmetry to the tiles on the floor.
Mr. White shrugged a shoulder, wondering briefly why the body did that without his thinking about it. "This world will be gone like the rest and then we can return to our natural state."
And finally get all of the filing done.
[ooc: and with that, your on-island PC disappearances are good to go!]
And a book.
Shut up.
Lady Myria LeJean
While Myria had become accustomed to simple human things like walking and breathing, her jailors were not.
Nor were they used to the glands that influenced their actions.
And, try as she might, trying to steer them away from the real human in their path was not happening. "Walk," she reminded them kindly. "Do not float."
The Auditors
Two Auditors looked at each other for a long time.
Talking with their mouths was still...foreign. "What is he doing?" one asked finally.
Lady Myria LeJean
"Consuming the nutrients necessary for continued function of the body." And it was...
Something.
Not that she'd allow them to know she had tried it.
William Murdoch
William had looked up reflexively at the sound of the shop's door opening, and now was trying to figure out what was wrong with the people who'd just entered without making it look as if he were actually staring. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but they didn't seem to move the way a human ought.
And then he'd heard one of them inquire as to what he was doing.
Definitely suspicious. He didn't say anything just yet, eyes flicking back to his plate and the half-finished pastry.
The Auditors
"He is looking at us," one observed. The rest of the Auditors shuffled closer to look at William's plate.
"No, he is looking at this piece of porcelain."
"Ceramic."
"He was observing the food product."
This was hugely productive.
Lady Myria LeJean
Myria smiled at William, silently wishing he would run like a clever little human ought to. "Immaterial," she said. "There are more important matters to attend to."
William Murdoch
Unfortunately, intelligence and sensibility did not always go hand in hand. And so there was no running on William's part.
"Can I help you?" he asked, his tone one of forced politeness.
The Auditors
There were more consultations. "Why would we require assistance?"
"Do we appear to need assistance?"
"What could he possibly offer us as assistance?"
Six pairs of eyes focused intently on William.
Lady Myria LeJean
Oh. This was not good at all.
"No assistance is necessary," Myria said sharply. While they knew they did not have to listen to her, the bodies tended to respond to tones of voice. "We are leaving now."
Just so long as one of them wasn't clever.
The Auditors
Four of them spun on their heels (one hovered slightly abovethe ground as she did so), responding instinctively to the tone.
One man-shaped Auditor crossed his arms and glared at her. "We do not wish to leave. There are things to observe and categorize." He pointed at the counters full of baked goods. "They...smell."
This one was going to be clever.
Lady Myria LeJean
"It is what they do." She gave the one hovering a look that worked better than any mouth could to voice displeasure.
William Murdoch
"Who are you?" William asked, his tone sharp. They most certainly did not belong here. Were they these 'Auditors' that had been spoken of on the radio?
Lady Myria LeJean
"They are--" Myria stared at them. No other Auditor had a name save for her. And humans would expect names.
The Auditors
The Auditors consulted among themselves. "Foreign," one finally offered.
William Murdoch
Not a good enough answer. "Well, you've got that right," William nodded. "In fact, I think you need to leave. And perhaps fix whatever it was that you've done that's destroying so many worlds."
Because making a polite request was going to
work.
The Auditors
There was more consultation, then the six Auditors turned to Myria with identical expressions of "and we're supposed to care...why?"
Lady Myria LeJean
"I don't believe you understand," Myria said, smiling at William again. William, the dim, dim little boy. "Mr. White, Ms. Lime, Ms. Red, Mr. Canary, Ms. Lilac and... Mr. Dark Avocado are foreign. Very foreign."
Run, you pathetic little sack of hormones and flesh.
"Run along."
Run.
William Murdoch
Oh yeah, that collection of names really made them so much less suspicious.
"This is my home," William said stupidly stubbornly. "I don't believe I shall."
The Auditors
They would get to the puny human in a moment. For now there was a matter of names to discuss.
"We do not wish to be Mr. Dark Avocado," said one male-shaped Auditor. "We wish to be Mr. White. We are senior and white is a more significant shade." He pointed to another male-shaped Auditor. "You are Mr. Dark Avocado now."
With that settled to his satisfaction (though the other Auditors looked decidedly less impressed), he turned to Myria. "What shall we do with the human?"
Lady Myria LeJean
Myria's eyebrows went up of their own volition. As these things were wont to do.
"Nothing that will draw attention to us," she decided, shooting the boy one last look. Why couldn't he have simply run away rather than insisting on attempting bravery? "There are still many on the island who would notice."
William Murdoch
"What do you mean do with me?" William demanded, only just now getting the feeling he ought to have run some time ago.
The Auditors
Did you know that six physically beautiful faces could look so scary before right now, William?
There was muttering among themselves about protocol and The Rules before one asked Myria, "Do we worry about attention?"
The very concept of "worry" seemed strange to it.
Lady Myria LeJean
"We do," she confirmed calmly. "We are still outnumbered onthis island at the moment."
William Murdoch
No, no he had not known that.
"That's right," William said, trying to impart a bravery he didn't quite feel. And now was trying his best to edge past them and to the door, yes.
The Auditors
Mr. White walked toward William, reached out and brushed against his shoulder, and William disappeared like he'd never been.
"Oh dear," Mr. White said, looking at Myria. "We didn't realize they were so fragile."
Lady Myria LeJean
"These forms do bring that risk," Myria said, already thinking of how to slip loose of them.
So long in this form had driven her mad enough to want to continue living. How terribly sad.
The Auditors
The other Auditors were already spreading out through the store, investigating various terrifying aspects of human culture: counting the number of bear claws, sniffing tea bags, and complaining about the lack of symmetry to the tiles on the floor.
Mr. White shrugged a shoulder, wondering briefly why the body did that without his thinking about it. "This world will be gone like the rest and then we can return to our natural state."
And finally get all of the filing done.
[ooc: and with that, your on-island PC disappearances are good to go!]