[005 ♟ The plot thickens...]

[justareverie]

[Video]

[ It's apparent the communicator has switched on by itself again... Anybody looking will see a simple, empty room, the only visible furniture being a swivel chair with a khaki safari vest on it, a single bed and nighstand, with an unlit lamp, his inmate's file, and an empty bottle on it. John comes into view in the process of putting a

Comments

[restoringhonor]

Where have you been for the last few weeks? If anyone heard anything from the Admiral about this, we'd know about it.

[justareverie]

I heard he answers questions sometime, however cryptically.

[restoringhonor]

People have asked. He hasn't answered.

[justareverie]

[ a drawn-out sigh. ] I should have expected...

[Private]

[most_feared]

No, I don't think it's all a sick joke.

I think half of it's taunting and pulling focus away from a legitimate problem. To my knowledge, the Admiral's not addressed a single one of anyone's concerns about this.

[Private]

[justareverie]

[ relieved sigh. ] Finally...

I've thought about that, but there's no way to discern what may be relevent and what's a red herring. I've also thought of asking the lab team, although I'm even less sure that there's a reasonable way to measure this.

[Private]

[most_feared]

There is. The problem is, I don't have a clue what someone here would do about it yet

[Private]

[justareverie]

Well... thank you. Some sense in what seemed chaotic, it's refreshing.

I agree that this feels like something that's going fundamentally wrong. Something inherent to the ship itself-- the barriers you talked about, what keeps us safe from staying affected, I assume.

And- and I can see a purpose to the floods and breaches, to the Admiral's means, though whether I agree with them is out of the question. I mean, I- don't know exactly how intentional it can be, but there's a reason, a purpose to those events, to getting to know oneself. To redemption. But scaring people, messing with their heads... that's counterproductive, if you ask me.

I could absolutely be in the wrong, here. Admittedly, first thing I thought about the figure some people saw is what if it was the Admiral himself. Nobody that's seen him remembers his face, huh?

That's the hard thing about places like these. Try to figure them out and you go insane.

... helper elves?

[frickinbaretta]

It ain't. A sick joke, I mean. Not so sure what it is, exactly, but. Whatever it is, it's no fucking joke.

Jokes don't go on this long without a fucking punchline, you know? Cons do, but not jokes.

...What is this, Wild Kingdom? [Have some levity, Locke. Freddy's amused, even if you aren't.]

[justareverie]

[ Still on sound, he makes a "huff" noise. But he has smiled a little - calmer now that it isn't just him seeing magical plants around. ]

It's certainly as pointless. A punchline would also imply the joke is over.

...Maybe a malfunction. That's the feeling it gives me.

[frickinbaretta]

Yeah, but. Malfunction of what? You say that like it's some kinda mechanical breakdown or somethin'. No matter how you look at it when machines break you don't get spontaneous plants or faceless guys.

Private

[justareverie]

Of the Barge itself. Its security systems, however they work. Of... whatever has kept this from happening before.

There's already been break-ins in the past. And I don't think the Admiral would do this.

[Private, Text]

[yeahscience]

Got nothing to say to you. John.

[But a while later...] Fine. Whatever. Not in public.

[Private, Text]

[justareverie]

Your pick.

[Private, Text]

[yeahscience]

Your place.

[Private, Text - we can spam if you want?]

[justareverie]

Second floor, room five. You're welcome to drop by.

[hourglass_twin]

The CES was...leaking, for the lack of a better word. I noticed it after I left and saw weeds growing in the hallway, I'd assumed that the gods of magic were trying to reach the Barge, since this is the night they are the most powerful, and the moons in the CES either replicated their image, or somehow brought them here.

[justareverie]

...either a convenient coincidence, or no coincidence at all.