Scene #9262: Librarians On Duty

Owner	Pose
Audrey Basque	The last few days had been really good for Audrey. Like, really good. She's been able to stash away her thoughts on some matters, almost entirely; it was unusual, and even her friends had noticed she was a bit peppier than usual. She'd had no major incidents for two whole days and that was, also, a nice break. Can't go running into awful stuff every day, statistically. She had class this morning, and it came and went like every other class. It's a formality, the finishing touches on an education that's basically already complete because Audrey is a bookworm who reads ahead, studies ahead, and has incredibly demanding parents she bows to without question. But right now? Right this instant? That's all very okay, because she... does not care? Indeed if anyone comes to the General Works floor today, they'll find Audrey whistling to herself as she helps inventory some of the piled up books that aren't labeled or tagged yet. She's wearing the librarian uniform, because it's only proper, though she hasn't modified it yet or anything. It's not like she's expecting to do magic today, and if she had to, she has her change of clothes with her. It's not glamorous work, but the way she's sneaking a look into almost every book she gets her hands on, it's not bad work either. Angela certainly isn't kidding when she calls this place The Library, capitalized and emphasized like that, though Audrey isn't quite sure where the books are coming from. Are these all books donated to her, like the ones she'd brought? That'd mean she receives an insane number of them though. Come to think of it... "Hey, Mister Roland? Are you around the corner?" He usually was somewhere on this floor, if he was anywhere at all, so she gives it a shot. It's not like her question is urgent, but if he's right about, what's the harm? Come to think of it, isn't this Petra's floor, too?
Angela	The Library IS getting in new books. So far the Library isn't engaged in, say, duels to the death where the losers turn into books or anything like that but that's only because Angela hasn't gotten around to it yet. Instead, Angela has been sending Roland and the former Control Team--the people she sees as most loyal to her--out and about to bring books back to the Library. Malkuth hasn't even gotten a chance to give them a piece of her mind because she hasn't had a chance to talk to them yet! Because she sure wants to give them a piece of her mind. Audrey can check the books no problem. There's just one problem... cro e n pt ehr pyt'sotnereettn. t..h ohaht mcfs oyisyiocu aioe. There seems to be an issue with the books because they're all garbled up nonsense! Well, not all. In fact, if Audrey goes around checking carefully she'll find that the garbled books tend to be all kept together while if she goes to another bookshelf she'll find actual real books. The trick to finding actual books vs. garbled books is that the shelves and sections that are unlabeled are 'garbled books' whereas the books and shelves that DO have actual books seem to be using the dewey decimal system to organize them, though part of the issue is they aren't entirely all organized up right now--particularly in general works. But the books themselves are labeled too. Any book that has the prefix 000-099 is a 'General Works' book and Roland has been dutifully putting them in proper order as other numbers come after those prefixes to dilineate just what is what and keep everything tightly organized. Eventually, anyway. Audrey can hear voices approaching. "I still have my problems with Angela, but there's nothing getting mad will do about it right now. I'd just be stamping my feet and making a fuss for nothing." A new voice is saying, a woman. Roland is with her apparently as his voice can clearly be heard. "Yeah, that's fair. Guess I'm in a similar boat, though I gotta say this work beats the Fixer work outside. ...So you actually lost your human body back at LobCorp but the power of the Library gave you back your old body?" "Yeah that's right. I think so. Angela said she worked on it and the others are still asleep." "You don't exactly sound too thrilled about having your new body back--" "No I really like it! But I'm still not happy with how things went down, you know?" "...This is this, and that is that huh...?" "Exactly!" But then Audrey calls Roland's name and Audrey can hear him go 'woop!' before turning around a bend, quickly, until he sees Audrey whereupon he slows down a bit, a lazy grin appearing on his face. "Yo! Audrey! Can I help you with something? ... Ah, now that you mention it--you haven't met Malkuth before, have you?" Malkuth is a young woman with long brown hair with a red hairband in her hair. She is wearing a different sort of uniform to Roland and Audrey both, but the themeing clearly indicates she's also a Librarian. Malkuth bows her head, a bit hastily, in greeting. In her hands--and in Roland's--are some books they were sent out to fetch. Local to the City, apparently. Local to this NEST most likely. "You seem to be in a good mood." Roland says. "Have good classes?"
Petra Soroka	With each passing day, Petra feels simultaneously better and worse, and also, sometimes way more of one or the other, because her moods aren't particularly stable nowadays. On one hand, she's making friends, constructing little bits of a routine and a support network, and generally 'managing' each day as it comes. On the other hand... she still has nowhere to call home, just cycling between the Library and the woods and wherever else might have her for a night, living out of her mirror like a suitcase. Cinder isn't getting any less dead, so every bit of 'moving on' is later followed by a crash of misery and guilt. And days go by without talking to Lilian, and each time she does, she wants to talk to her less, and the stretch of distance and silence keeps getting longer and longer, and harder to imagine a way of it resolving. It reminds her of those days in jail before Dimo arrived, when she could read anything into the silence and was increasingly certain that it was her worst case scenario-- she was wrong, back then, because back then it was the world against both of them. Now it mostly just feels like the world is against her. So in the way of driftwood in a cyclical current, Petra ends up back at the Library. Collecting books for Angela is a pleasantly low-demand task that increases relationship points, so it's her default whenever the fog overtakes her ability to do anything else. And Petra's access to esoteric libraries is pretty impressive, even though she's not up to any of the grand adventures that some of the other ones she's aware of would need: today, she's processing copies of the books that were in George's library in the computer world Niko was trapped in. She's staring at a copy of one of the, now outdated, Author's books that details how Niko needs to sacrifice themself for the world to go on, when the conversation around the corner reaches her ears. Petra slides a marker in to keep her place in copying the book, and gently shuts it, sighing and closing her eyes. If it was just Roland, Petra might not feel better by going out there to talk, and if it was just Malkuth, then Petra... can't imagine how she'd feel, but probably worth. Audrey, and particularly Audrey in a good mood, makes it worth it for Petra to slip out of her copy office to wander over to the others. Petra is wearing the black and white outlined suit of a General Works librarian too, with her own special armband, but she's wearing it a little sloppy. The top button is undone and the collar is ruffled out a bit, with the tie loose and low, because she was alone until now. "Yo, Audrey, Roland. ... Malkuth."
Audrey Basque	Ominous conversations to eavesdrop in, you say? Something about LobCorp, bodies and being brought back. So something about that big war everyone keeps talking about? "Oh! Hello, Mister Roland. I was actually just wondering where Angela keeps getting all these books," she says matter-of-factly as she raises one of the garbled books that's doomed to the garbled pile. "There's a lot more than would be feasible to bring her, is there some secret garage downstairs where trucks come in with them or...?" She doubts there IS a secret garage and most likely it's something to do with the place being... weird. At least there were some real ones sometimes to make up for all the nonsense ones. "Malkuth?" Malkuth bows her head, and Audrey responds by mirroring the gesture exactly with a big smile. "I haven't! But it's nice to meet you. Audrey. I'm new. A friend of Petra's." She pauses. Huh. Hadn't said it out loud before. Didn't taste as foul as last time she thought about it. Didn't at all, actually. Oh well! It's certainly not the time. "Mhm mhm!" she responds to Roland about her mood. "I guess I just woke up on the right side of the bed. They can't all be bad busy days, can they? Plus, it's nice to be helping Angela out. How do I put it... what you see is what you get? It's nice." Speaking of nice-- "Petra, good afternoon! I didn't know you wore the uniform too!" It's a bit messy, and Audrey actually can't resist the urge to take a step forward, put the garbled book under her arm, and help adjust Petra's collar and tie just a bit. "Long morning?"
Angela	Roland says, "Hey Audrey, yeah--most of the junk books get moved outside in the..." He seems to have difficulty coming up with the words. "The weird areas. As we replace them with real books. It sounds like the big reason they're kept up here at all is for appearances. Gotta make the Library look full or it won't be enticing to go hunting for books in the first place. But she uh--explained the Dewey Decimal system, I remember...our floor's stuff, at least, and Malkuth helped remind me which numbers were for 'History' right now so..." ''Yo, Audrey, Roland ... Malkuth.'' "Hey Petra! Looks like Audrey's taking to the work here like a duck to water--" What you see is what you get? He wonders about that. As far as he can tell, what he sees doesn't seem to have anything to do with what he gets. Malkuth is considerably colder. "...Petra." She says back. She remembers what happened to Cinder so she can't be without sympathy, but it's just not as big as her frustrations with how everything went down. "..." She makes a face as she struggles between what one set of feelings tells her she should be doing and the other set before ultimately exhaling out a sigh. "Hey Malkuth, don't strain yourself or anything." Roland interrupts. Malkuth's face reddens. "..I'm sorry about Cinder. I didn't get a chance to say it before so..." Cinder WAS her Agent after all. Petra too, actually. So she does feel some sense of responsibility to her. She looks over to Audrey and adds to her, "A friend of Petra's? Well I'm an enemy of Petra's and one of her old bosses, so--nice to meet you too." She doesn't think she can say FRIEND right now!! Audrey can find what looks like an Encyclopedic history of a whole bunch of famous Fixer offices amongst the shelves--definitely supposed to be upstairs, actually, rather than down here. "Ah--that's one of ours isn't it..." She says. Roland gives Audrey a look that suggests 'Don't worry I understand about half of what happened at any given time too'.
Petra Soroka	"I didn't know you wore the uniform too!" "Ah--" Petra stiffens up when Audrey steps close to her, sharply inhaling. She doesn't pull away or resist having her uniform corrected, and she even stands up a little straighter when Audrey reaches out for her tie so she can get to it easier, but there's still some tense flinch reaction instinctively. Then, when she isn't... hit? Embraced? Her reactions might be the same for both; she closes her eyes and sighs, easing out the tension into a droopy smile. It's hard to tell if it's a psychic or emotional aftereffect, or if there's any difference between those things at all, but ever since the events in the Shrine a few days ago, there's an intangibly comforting property to Audrey's presence. It's a little like her meditative exercise to tone match the environment that she's in, when she takes a small breath while Audrey is close to her, and tangibly shifts her own mental posture to match. "Ahah, I mean... it's not like I could keep wearing my L-Corp uniform." She definitely still has it and wears it out in the City itself, though. She raises up one finger, mock-lecturely. "And besides, I have to set a good example for my employees, don't I?" "I haven't been doing all that much, though. Just woke up super early today--" By which she means barely slept, and gave up on it around four in the morning. "And decided to do some of the grunt work I've got piled up. I'm surprised to see you around on your own, though. I--" She narrows her eyes, realizing something. "... I don't think Ange has the money to pay her employees yet, actually...." "..I'm sorry about Cinder." That's a good enough answer for how Petra should treat Malkuth, despite being 'enemies'. For a lot of people, it seems like the past year and a half stopped existing when Petra declared war on the Tree of Light, namely with Rita. Malkuth caring at all, and bothering to give condolences at all, is... something, at least. Petra still doesn't know where to categorize her in her head. She dips her face down, avoiding eye contact. "... Yeah. I am too. ... I'm glad to see you walking around. Makes me happier than the alternative."
Audrey Basque	Audrey nods to Roland, understanding the gist of the idea. Right, a library with only a few real books would look a bit sad, wouldn't it? Plus it's not like these books are empty, they're just... weird, yeah, thanks Roland. "I see, I see! I wonder if there's a way to decipher these. It can't just be random gibberish, right?" Could it? In such a quantity? There had to be something to the books. Even if she's underequipped to be the one to figure it out. The tension between Petra and Malkuth would be hard to miss. Cinder-- Petra's said that name quite a lot. And well, the context, made it kind of easy to guess the nature of what happened. Just not the specifics, for Audrey. Then Malkuth is very forward. "An enemy? Mm, Petra mentioned she was very good at making those." Not in those words, exactly, but the intent was there. Actually it might well have been in those words, too. "Regardless, it seems like we're all here to help Angela, one way or the other, so let's do our best to get along!" Another bow. Does she hope she can soften whatever this is for Petra's sake, or is she just doing her usual thing of appearing small and harmless so the bear calms down? The look she gives Roland is maybe a bit less "I'm confused too" and more "I think I got this one, actually". Though she definitely agrees with that too. As Malkuth points one of the books she's holding out, Audrey shows it to her. "Oh! Good thing I held on to it. Actually..." That title is... "Might I borrow it? I'm woefully uneducated about matters of the City. I barely know what a Fixer even is, this might help." She whips back around, to Petra; still beaming. She notices the flinching, but decides not to make a deal of it. It's good enough Petra let her fix that uniform, that was going to bug Audrey the entire day otherwise. Listen, some habits stick no matter what. "I'm sure you'll set a great example for me then. Ah, money? That's not an issue. Rich, remember?" She might not have her dad's accounts, but she's got enough. "Really, Angela's paying me in knowledge. That's much more valuable." Spoken like a rich white girl, though. "And it's helping me meet people here. Like Malkuth!" One of those days she'll have to ask Petra about Cinder. The whole story. Not the time, not the place, but one day, when it's right. "If I may ask, what happened that you weren't walking around?" As Petra put it. She didn't want to say "lost your body" outright.
Petra Soroka	"I wonder if there's a way to decipher these. It can't just be random gibberish, right?" "I wonder... maybe Ange and I could work something out." Petra doesn't have any of the intuitive sense of the Library like Angela does, but she's had a tugging sense of... something, ever since using her power on Angela in the midst of her meltdown. She hasn't had the time or mental fortitude to study it, but it's a logical first guess that she somehow manifested a fraction of Angela's own EGO alongside her, which means... well, Petra has no idea. Like a lot of things with Petra Soroka, there's no precedent to base it off, so she'll just have to work on it with Angela. "Maybe it's something like... every book contains a record of some kind, but it's just scrambled throughout the entire book? I don't think her EGO would just make junk filler text for imagery without any purpose." "Mm, Petra mentioned she was very good at making those." "Aren't I," Petra says aside, a bit exhausted. "She has every right to be my enemy, though. Between the two of us..." She lifts up her eyes to meet Malkuth's finally. "... We're probably the two who are most stubborn about our decisions, right?" "I'm woefully uneducated about matters of the City. I barely know what a Fixer even is, this might help." When it comes to explaining Lore, Petra gets more energized, slipping up beside Audrey to ramble a bit while encouraging her to take the book. "You know, the City's actually really skeezy on having any good written collection of its own history. They're real book burner types-- though, I guess, the books have all already been burned, and now they're just strict about what gets made in the first place. Like, you'd struggle to find any good record on the Smoke War, and that was just a decade ago, much less the Machine Purge or any sociological texts about Districts beside the one you're in. Honestly, even though there's not really any Library besides this one you could go in to just, chekc out a history textbook or whatever, I'm sure there's people in the City that know way more than they let on. So I've kind of thought about, uh, going around and trying to find them and writing down what they know, since... well, who else will?" "But also-- I or the Sephirah can probably fill you in on a bunch. Or, actually, Roland might be the best one of any of us to explain the City, since my perspective on the City is really weird, and he actually lived in it his whole life." "Really, Angela's paying me in knowledge." "I get that, but," She pouts. "It's about the principle. I'm your boss too, so it reflects bad on me if I can't pay you for helping Ange." "If I may ask, what happened that you weren't walking around?" Petra leans back against the bookshelf, carefully angling herself when she props her foot up on it that she's placing it on the wood and not on a book. She folds her arms and looks to Malkuth-- actually Malkuth, for real, who Petra easily recognizes from seventy thousand loops with the Cognition Filter even though it's been turned off for her for almost the entirety of this loop-- for her answer. "... The Sephirah were all tortured for eternity and stuffed into robot boxes and meant to die last month. Rather than 'what happened that she wasn't walking around', they were all expecting to never do it again outside of the boxbots. ... And other than that, she's just been sleeping for a couple weeks while Angela worked on giving them human bodies. That's what I meant, really."
Angela	Roland, at this point, realizes that Audrey is an ally. An ally in not knowing what the fuck is going on. If he lures the Sephirah into tlaking with Audrey, he might actually learn something when she asks really good questions he doesn't think to answer. Why, he'd even be helping her since she also seems to want to know what the hell happened! He is learning gradually, and he knows better than to rush it. Not like he has a life out there to get back to anymore so he can be as patient as a turtle on this. ...But it really does nag at him when they talk around stuff and he gets like a third of a picture that spells out another third that leaves another third as utterly blank. ''And besides, I have to set a good example for my employees, don't I?'' "Well I'm not really used to working for Angela." Roland tells Petra. "Any tips for getting along with her, how she likes work done--I know she doesn't like it when people talk too much but there's gotta be more." He hopes, because he isn't very good at being moderate about talking, he either barely talks or he rambles on, like he only has 'work mode' and 'homelife' mode these days. Hahh... The talk about Cinder doesn't improve his mood. His expression gets dark. It's hitting a little close to home. ... And not in a way he can actually express to Petra at all because of how close she is to Angela. There are some things he just can't risk right now just in the hope of someone who might understand... ''I don't think Ange has the money to pay her employees yet, actually...'' "Well I'm a slave I think my payment is 'living'." Roland says. "Though I do get free room and board which is better than it was out there if you can believe it. Ugh, by now they probably pulled someone else into my apartment already..." Maybe next time he gets sent out he can go there and clear them out. ... He's not ready to give up those memories. ''I'm glad to see you walking around.'' "...Yeah. It's nice to have a real body again, even go outside." She suspects that 'being able to go outside' was part of Angela's plan to make peace with her and unfortunately it takes active will to prevent that from working. She had REASONS for wanting the project to succeed that went beyond her basic comfort. That's why she risked her life in the first place and--that's why Elijah died, isn't it? "I'm glad you're up and about too." It surprises her a little that that's true. ''I wonder if there's a way to decipher these.'' "Boy, if there was, this would be bigger than a mountain of knowledge, but if it's a cipher it isn't word by word or sentence by sentence--the whole book is a cipher. That'd be a crazy job to try to unscramble, because I don't think the lettering is consistent either. You can usually tell where the e's are if it's just a substitution cipher." ''Ms. Petra mentioned she was very good at making those.'' "Isn't anyone who doesn't just sort of passively go through their life?" Malkuth asks. "If you don't make some enemies, that means you were just content with everything around you--or too scared to push against it. I don't think having enemies is a bad thing but... it can be a little lonely sometimes." This might explain why Malkuth ended up being the one who took charge of the Sephirah counteroffensive. But she does smile a little at Audrey's pep. "Yeah..." It doesn't quite reach her eyes, but her big loss was like three days ago to her.
Angela	''I barely know what a Fixer even is, this might help.'' "Oh sure...!" Malkuth offers it over. "Just be sure to bring it back up to my Floor." As a former researcher, she isn't going to object to knowledge being worth more than money, that's a pretty common view amongst the Lower Floor Sephirah. ''If I may ask...'' Malkuth startles a little. It's been a while since someone asked about her body. "Oh, I wasn't--''not'' walking around. I had a body it was just, like, half this size and was a square metal box with my name on it with thin metal limbs to move around on. When Elijah died she got put into that box and eventually I guess I ended up who I am today." "When Elijah died?" Roland asks desperately. "Ah--" Malkuth's cheeks pinken. "I don't tend to think of Elijah and me as the same person but--there was an accidnet here back when I was at Lobcorp--really, I was just being careless--but Elijah believed in giving it your all too and well--sometimes that happens when you give it your all and try your best and push your hardest. Sometimes you mess up and pay a price because you were trying." ''We're probably the two who are most stubborn about our decisions, right?'' That actually gets Malkuth to smile in a way that reaches her eyes at Petra. She even laughs a bit, not unfondly. "Yeah... I like that about you, Petra." Enemies!! She sighs as Petra gets into the nature of the City as bookburners. "Yeah... It's really frustrating actually. Even the Nests are missing a lot of the detail, and the Backstreets? Forget it. That's why it's important to gather up what we can in District 12 before someone burns them for fuel..." Roland scratches at his cheek, considering how to explain The City. "Sure, let me think where to start. Actually, any question about what The City is like will help me out a lot, Audrey."
Audrey Basque	I wonder... maybe Ange and I could work something out. Petra's response has Audrey quite excited. "Let me know if I can help! ... I probably can't, my skills don't really have anything to do with literature, but I do know a lot of languages." The perk of studying astrology through its history. Sure, there's translations of those old texts and tablets, but if you want the real version, you have to understand it straight. No filters, no translations. Petra and Malkuth were the most stubborn? She expected that of Petra, but Malkuth looks so... unassuming. Then again, so does Angela, and she's can apparently remove people's limbs. And remake them. She never really thought to stop and ask what the Library even was. They're real book burner types-- though, I guess, the books have all already been burned, and now they're just strict about what gets made in the first place. "Oh. I had a feeling, seeing the state of the city, but I didn't think it was that bad." Machine Purge? Smoke War? Those sound really important. More questions for later. "I'm fine with whoever wants to take some time to help. As long as it's not inconvenient." Is Petra getting more into it? Audrey would smile, if she wasn't already quite a bit. The Sephirah were all tortured for eternity and stuffed into robot boxes and meant to die last month. "... literally?" She must mean literally, at this point. And Malkuth all but confirms it. If you don't make some enemies, that means you were just content with everything around you--or too scared to push against it.. Audrey munches on that one for a moment. She wonders which of the two applies to her best. She can't decide. And really, it might be both. She simply responds by addressing the matter of the small square robot body instead, catching the meaning between the lines. "So did you get to pick your new name, or did they choose it for you?" The book is clutched tightly as she receives the OK to borrow it. She'll definitely comb through it through the day. Roland asking for a specific direction has Audrey ponder, and then ask: "Well... I'm gathering that there's a lot going on, politically. Angela wasn't shy that her presence and the Library was upsetting very powerful people. So... who're the big players? The big corporations, the ones we need to know about? I've heard people say things like "W Corp", and "LobCorp" which Petra and Angela already kind of explained to me, but there were some other names... the Middle? The Head?"
Petra Soroka	"Any tips for getting along with her, how she likes work done--I know she doesn't like it when people talk too much but there's gotta be more." "Hahhhn..." Petra sighs, a lot like her. "Let's see. She's really direct, so if you can be direct about what you're doing and what you want back, I think that would help. She might poke fun a bit, but deep down she wants what's best for you, so don't get too caught up in her teasing or she'll get upset. If you're reliable about the work you do, and don't get bitchy at her, then you'll be pretty much one of the best employees around." "Well I'm a slave I think my payment is 'living'." "You're a servant," insists Petra, who has very particular opinions about the word 'slave'. "When I have, like, literally any money again, I'll make sure you get some kind of salary." On the matter of apartments, her expression sinks and she sighs sympathetically. "Yeah... my apartment turned into rubble the moment I looked away, from... something or other. I don't even know if it was one of those monsters, some infrastructure thing, or something else. So I feel you. I don't know if Ange wants you wandering through the City on your own, but I bet it'd be fine if we went together to check it out." "I don't tend to think of Elijah and me as the same person but--" "...I guess I've never thought about that." Petra tentatively eases into a conversational stance with Malkuth. If Angela's working with her, then Petra has no right to undermine that, and besides-- Malkuth was her boss, and even though the war is a steady bitter feeling, Petra has a lot of familiar memories with her. "Do you think that's because of all the 'growing up' you've done since you were Elijah? Or do the memories feel especially distant, since you didn't have them back before the stuff with the project? I think... probably..." PHONE: Xion says, "Do you..." An exhale, her voice broken behind mask. "Do you think any of us will survive this as we are?" "... if I was called by a different name during all of that, I'd probably be sticking with it now, too." "... I probably can't, my skills don't really have anything to do with literature, but I do know a lot of languages." "I actually, wasn't thinking much in terms of, uh, codebreaking or literature skills... I was thinking with weird fucked up spirit magic. I don't even really know what practical skills would help with this, but you've probably got more of them than I do." For no reason besides enjoying the conversation and wanting more of it, Petra wanders off on an unrelated tangent. "What languages? Probably like... Greek, right, and some of those cool ancient ones? I know... uh... English, Esperanto, and Korean, mostly. Actually, it's weird to think that I'm just fluent in three whole languages, huh. I guess I know enough Spanish and German that I could survive as a tourist, too." "So... who're the big players? The big corporations, the ones we need to know about?" "Oh!" This is the kind of political, tactical talk that Petra used to be utterly garbage at, but given how much time she's spent in the City, it's almost second nature to her at this point. It's practically entertaining, rather than frustrating, to dissect the political environment of the world like this, now that she actually understands it. "The Head's the government of the City, and they're just like, turbo-evil. They send Arbiters to murder people who step out of line, like Binah. The Middle's one of the five big Syndicates, which are basically just gangs that rule over big sections of the City-- they're all named after fingers, like the Thumb and stuff. For Corporations... there's one for every District, but I'm mostly worried about Warp Corp and maybe TimeTrack, because if they take L-Corp's fall as a specific thing to attack them, they might retaliate against Angela."
Angela	Roland nods along. He has noticed some of this himself but it is still good information. He has noticed that sometimes Angela doesn't mind being teased back and sometimes gets real mad. It does seem like the former is when he keeps it playful--which he generally does--but he suspects the times Angela got mad were times when he got a little more pointed. She may be taking that as getting caught up in it. A retaliatory rather than cooperative teasing. How else to put it? "Well I'll do my best to work hard and--" Ah he went too far with his joke.... "Oh, Yeah, yeah I know. I was just joking about when my title kept getting changed. She actually apologized for the 'slave' thing herself after." Guess Angela might be a little particular about 'slave" too. She essentially was one after all. "Gonna be tough for this place to make money legit, though. It's not like Angela can open up a bank account in The City or register with the Hana Association." He frowns sympathetically at Petra's own apartment woes. "Hell..." He hates the Wings too much to swear by them. "...That's rough. Specially for your commute. If you need a place, I'll lend you my apartment since I won't be using it. I know it's not 'home' but it's better than some alley." Angelica never mentioned her, he thinks, so it should be safe. Malkuth is gradually warming up to Petra as well, like exercising out and massaging an old muscle. "I think some of it is growing up a bit, some of it is just not being able to return to my old life. I'm not completely different or anything, Elijah is still in my DNA....if we used the same name, yeah, I wouldn't mind using it. But... I'm Malkuth now. That feels like my name more than Elijah does." She frowns thoughtfully. "There is a floor of Language but I'm sure that's Gebura's floor. It's colorcoded to her." Neither Malkuth or Roland countermand Petra's description of the City and-- THERE WAS AN ARBITER HERE??? No, roland thinks, that makes sense. Okay, Warp Corp was involved, T Corp was involved... "Don't forget R Corp. They really needed us so..." Malkuth murmurs. And R Corp?? Wait... these people... these companies... A dull ache rests in Roland's heart. They are the companies involved in the Smoke War. The ones he was working for--He remembers it, the monster... Not really. But he remembers the feelings. Sweat starts running down his neck as his breathing gets quicker, more shallow. "The Smoke War... people don't like to talk about it in The City." Roland says bluntly. "Careful about bringing that up with the others. They may've been involved. And I know there was shit involved there that nobody ought to have seen." Did Malkuth pick her name? She shakes her head. "Oh no. But I don't mind it. I think it's cuter than Elijah." Roland exhales slowly. The big players... "A, B, C Corp. They compose The Head. N Corp and T Corp are probably the next strongest ones. L Corp was a huge player before, well... And so was the L Corp before that. Everybody needs and wants energy after all. G Corp used to be big but bioaugments have fallen out of fashion... Tendencies to go out of control." He rubs at his neck. "The Middle is one of the five Fingers, the five biggest Syndicates in The City. The Associations, there's thirteen of those, are the biggest Fixer groups. Most Offices are at least somewhat affiliated with an Association."
Audrey Basque	What languages? Probably like... Greek, right, and some of those cool ancient ones? Audrey puffs up, a bit proudly. "English, of course, and Japanese; Chinese is invaluable, as is Spanish, and as far as ancient texts go, you really can't do without Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, Aramaic and Arabic. There's Sumerian, but I'd say it's less I can speak it and more I can kind of make it out. I'm skipping over a few, and some of them it's less that I speak fluently and more that if you give me five minutes I can figure it out. Common bases and all--" She catches herself a bit short of giving Petra the hour-long lecture. "I like Esperanto, but I don't speak it. It's... "not relevant to my field" so it wasn't important that I learn it like the others. But I like learning. So, maybe when I have time..." The possibility of an excuse to sneak in some study time with Petra, and have her come over the dorm room again, is a nice bonus. Petra always sounds like she could use a good night's rest but never gets it, now she's talking about her destroyed apartment, and the way she passed out that one night... Lore, though. That's important too. Audrey gets an explanation from all three of them, to various degrees each; she follows along, nodding here and there. "That explains a lot about what the Head and the Middle are, and why everyone was concerned about that weird... magical tiger thing at the... what was it, a club? So there's all these corporations vying for power on top of the government doing awful things? And... the Associations, and Fixers, they're like, bounty hunters, basically? Small paramilitaries? You mentioned having your own office," she notes to Roland. "Is it common? To go in the business alone? It must be dangerous." Which means Roland is dangerous? He seems so... Normal? A bit lost, but normal. There's the Smoke War again. How many wars has this city gone through? Side-note: "Elijah is a cute name! Malkuth is too. I think Malkuth makes you sound cooler and more mysterious though. IT's kind of got that unique vibe to it."
Petra Soroka	"Gonna be tough for this place to make money legit, though." "'S okay." Petra is not actually interested in making money or skilled at it at all herself. She's almost hostile to the concept as a baseline, for reasons she's thought about but never properly came to a conclusion on, and where more sensible people might have been freaking out about losing their savings when the District 12 banking system collapsed, Petra sort of just shrugged as her entire past year of pay vanished. This is because she is too disjointed from society to really be beholden to money, but that's a complicated thought. "I'll figure something out. Maybe Heyalexa can make a deal with all the Concord resources we've got now. Or I'll just find money myself. Like... after everything, I'm not going to be stumped by not having a fucking business plan." "If you need a place, I'll lend you my apartment since I won't be using it." "Didn't you just say it probably got seized?" Petra points out. "Besides, there's not really any good commute point here if you lived in District 12. Don't worry about me; I'm managing. I was trying to show sympathy, not be pathetic." "Don't forget R Corp. They really needed us so..." "If Myo shows up for revenge, I'll dribble her like a basketball and then pass her over to Gebura. I bet R-Corp of everywhere has got plenty of business still with everything collapsing like it has been." "The Smoke War... people don't like to talk about it in The City." Petra's expression twists in annoyance. Obviously that's true, but it reminds her too acutely of other things she was told to avoid talking to anyone about, especially the people who knew anything. "Yeah, yeah, I lived through the Faction War, I got it. I'm sure there's someone out there who would rather their story actually be told, rather than just letting it die with them because it's too fucking tragic and traumatic to bother remembering. That's literally the sort of shit that supports the status quo the Head already prefers." "I like Esperanto, but I don't speak it. It's... "not relevant to my field" so it wasn't important that I learn it like the others." Petra startles for a moment, confused at Esperanto being irrelevant to that particular realm of study, before remembering that she and Audrey have pretty different backgrounds within the study of space. "Mhm, I don't know how good I'd be at actually... teaching, though. I just know it since I spoke it as a kid." ". . . and why everyone was concerned about that weird... magical tiger thing at the... what was it, a club?" "Oh, that was Cadrasteia's fault. She's usually more of a hindrance than help on every mission she goes on, and every conversation she's in, so you'll want to keep an eye on her. There wasn't supposed to be a stupid magic tiger there, just everything the Black Silence left that I was investigating."
Angela	''I'm not going to be stumped by not having a fucking business plan'' "Stubborn, right?" Malkuth asks, but largely rhetorically. "I'm sure you'll figure it out." ''Didn't you just say it was probably seized?'' Oh, Roland thinks, he forgot that his 'Kick whomever took over out' idea wasn't really the sort of plan that a Grade Nine would come up with. "Ah, yeah, but I can hope right? Especially if we're heading out to check it--" He frowns. "...But no, you're probably right. Commute isn't great from here to there and far as I know it doesn't have a Warpgate... But I do have some personal belongings I'd...rather not leave behind there, you know?" He sighs, rubbing at his eyes. "...It's just...sentimental stuff. To warn you ahead of time." ''I'll dribble her like a basketball and then pass her over to Gebura.'' "Who'se Gebura?" Roland asks. "Aside from the Librarian of Language, I guess. She some sort of linguist?" Gebura is definitely not a linguist. She could speak a few different languages and she COULD read but she never had a formal education so she's not exactly academic about either. ''Petra making a very good point.'' "..Huh, when you put it like that... Well I know a little bit about the Smoke War." He pushes through because spiting the Head is stronger than his trauma. "For instance, the smoke--it actually mutated people with prolonged exposure, there was a mental component--they had to wipe the minds of anyone who learned too much about it--as much about safety as it was about protecting the secret of a Singularity. And ... a lot of the soldiers who were promised a shot at the Nest, well, they took back that offer shortly after the War. Only people who jumped on it real fast before they changed the rules got to actually move out of the Backstreets. I suspect concern about the effects of 'Smoke' spooked the people in The Nests but I never heard any confirmation on that one way or the other." He frowns. "But memory erasing tech in The City, it's never perfect. Wiping someone's mind repeatedly is hazardous, of course, but the right triggers can bring the memory rushing back too. Some stuff just lingers no matter how you try to scrub it clean." You can reset time, but you cannot reset a tale. Roland didn't see a Tiger at that club ... Oh because it was Madeleine's fault? "The Black Silence? ... I could see them having a magic tiger. Colors always have some weird tech or goober at their disposal." He crosses his arms. "I know Korean and French mostly. How about you, Malkuth?" "Korean, English, Hebrew..." Roland looks back to Audrey. "It sounds like you've got the gist. I know more about the Associations than the Syndicates but The Middle is a dangerous gang that goes ballistic at even the smallest slights, call each other Big Brother or Little Sister like creeps. Worst part is, if you hurt even an 'associated' member of their 'Family' they will go after you and everyone you know. The fewer of them around, the better." He frowns thoughtfully. "Hana Association, though, that's the First Association and the Zwei Association was formed shortly after. Hana runs all the Associations, and Zwei tend to be the peacekeepers and guardians of the communities of The City, though they also will send people to protect 'important' individuals and the like. They usually carry huge zweihanders so they're easy to spot. Plus they have the shield emblem patch with the number 2 on it."
Audrey Basque	"I'm certain the Concord could provide. They... hey, Petra, did they assign you an assistant too?" Audrey asks, seemingly out of nowhere. "That was kind of awkward to find out, she got into my dorm room somehow and we kind of had to have a long talk and, she's just keeping tabs on me? But she's also been helping answer questions and get me settled in a bit." Apparently she might have more than one, but she hasn't-- there was something about asking, and she hasn't yet. She listens to Roland and Petra talk about matters of revenge, the Smoke War and all-- it's out of context, for her, but it'll be important to learn eventually. She snaps back to attention as Petra hesitates on teaching. "O-Oh! Not... necessarily to teach me, just... I can find an app, or books, or videos, but nothing beats a real practice partner. Especially for language. Plus, we never got to play with those Playbricks that one time, we could..." Audrey clears her throat, hand in front of her mouth and trying to regain what passes as her dignity these days. Thankfully it's not hard to change the subject. "Cadrasteia? Is she a Fixer too? Is she the woman with the wolf head who showed up?" Then Roland finally provides context on what the Smoke War sounds like it was about. Awful smoke that mutates people? And it's an infohazard too? Memory wipes, betrayals... what IS this city? With the mention of 'Little Sister' Audrey perks up. "Oh, yeah... there was... there was one of those there, wasn't it? The bodies, I think? The word sister definitely kept coming up. So I guess that's why everyone was concerned about The Middle retaliating, and not disturbing the bodies." So they could prove who did it? It was one of her first outings, give her some slack. "Apologies if I have a lot of questions about the City," she finally manages. "It sounds like you've all had your entire lives to learn its history-- more than one lifetime, in some cases," she looks at Petra knowingly. "And here I am trying to learn everything in a day. I'll do my best, so thank you."
Petra Soroka	"But I do have some personal belongings I'd...rather not leave behind there, you know?" "Oh, duh. But we'll just kick out whoever's there and make sure you get all your stuff back when we visit." Petra is not even a Grade Nine Fixer, but she's something different and worst. "I won't judge whatever collection of Fixer dakimakuras you've got, or whatever, don't worry. It'd just be a hassle legally to actually stick around there." "Who'se Gebura?" "Man, you really have not kept up with the internet, huh. She's the Red Mist. She's still sleeping though, same situation as Malkuth. No idea why she'd be assigned to Language, though." "For instance, the smoke--it actually mutated people with prolonged exposure, there was a mental component--they had to wipe the minds of anyone who learned too much about it--as much about safety as it was about protecting the secret of a Singularity." "I literally just don't believe they could possibly have actually done that thoroughly. I mean, you know something about it, right? So you must've slipped through the cracks. I bet there's thousands of vets who did too, because the thing about the City not actually caring about everyone's stories, is that they accidentally give up some of their control over what the story is. And I want to make it a mission of mine to find all those people." "The Black Silence? ... I could see them having a magic tiger." "No, unfortunately, he's an assassin. Cadrasteia-- Madeleine, one of our beloved Partners," Petra says, derisively, for Audrey's benefit. "Is just more trouble than she's worth. ... I promised to meet up with the Black Silence, actually, but I'm really not even sure where to look about the Pianist stuff. I guess I could check with Argalia at some point to see if she's got a hook of some kind." "If you've heard about the Pianist," Petra explains to the person who has so, extremely heard about the Pianist, "It was a massive monster attack in District Nine that practically wiped out the Backstreets. I've got some ideas about why, but... well, half-formed ideas aren't, like, necessarily better than no ideas at all. There's someone I could try to talk to, but she's dead, so it's kind of hard to reach her." "Korean, English, Hebrew..." "... You know English?" That, of all things, surprises Petra. ". . . call each other Big Brother or Little Sister like creeps." Petra looks a little dejected for a moment. "They... hey, Petra, did they assign you an assistant too?" "O-oh-- a-ah... well... there was someone who showed up on Hydrochoeria... but I don't actually spend a ton of time there. And the warpgate to get off of it still doesn't work. Ah... oops... I should probably check on them...." "Plus, we never got to play with those Playbricks that one time, we could..." Petra giggles a bit, because Audrey's really easy to read-- so's Petra, but she's not thinking about that-- and being wanted for company is just a good feeling. "That's true. I'll try to not pass out so quickly next time."
Angela	''Cadraeista? Is she a Fixer too?'' "She might be associated with the Trideag." Roland says to Audrey. "Least in the news, all Outsider Fixers are supposed to be working with Trideag." But of course that's just a rule and Petra's proof that not everybody's following it. ... Well, maybe not. If she doesn't do that silver goop trick, and you just looked at her she wouldn't really look atypical for any other City citizen. He shakes his head at Audrey's apology, though. "You don't have to apologize for that. It's smart to figure out the deal of where you're working, even if it's in this Library." A woman with a wolfhead? "You mean like... a wolf mask?" He asks, visibly confused. There's no reason for him to assume that The Pianist and this other lady are related, after all--so he doesn't. He knows HE didn't see a lady with a wolf head while he was there. He cups his chin in thought. ...which is soon disturbed by talk of bodypillows. "Hey... I know it because it's my job. I'm not a hobbyist or anything. It's different. ... And besides, they'd be a pain to lug around. What i'm looking to bring back--most of it should fit in my pocket. Gonna focus on what's important rather than try to drag a truckload back here." ''She's the Red Mist'' "The Red Mist's name isn't--" He looks at Malkuth, for a moment, who is giving him the biggest shit-eating grin ever. "--Okay, yeah, you got me." ''I mean, you know something about it, right?'' Roland rubs at his neck. "Yeah, that's how I know it's not a perfect tool. I don't remember ''everything'' but stuff from around that time pops up into my dreams sometimes. I don't like talking or thinking about it--but you're right. The Head would prefer I didn't, so I don't see any reason to hold back. I'm already dead if they catch me since I'm working for Angela." He gestures upstairs. "...Speaking of if you were looking for her, she's up a couple floors in Literature. Said she's working on the next Sephirah." He frowns, though. "...Tigers can eat the evidence, though, right?... Ah, what do I know..." He HAS so heard about the Pianist and Roland's smile fades. "I think everyone has. That many people losing their lives in an instant--that doesn't happen that often. There's not even enough for a Syndicate to move in and take over." ... "...You say that like you have reached the dead before. And you've surprised me enough that I don't actually know if that's ridiculous or not." Roland admits, glancing over to Malkuth. "Ahh, probably talking about Carmen, there. She was the orignial leader of our research group. She... IS hard to reach right now." She then smiles at Petra. "Well, yeah...! It's one of the more common languages around here. Probably third or fourth most? It might've changed in the last ten years though." ''Petra looks dejected for a moment.'' Roland notices and seems embarrassed. "The way they say it, it isn't the way you and Angela say it, I swear. It's a capital F Family thing not-- It's not real like what you have. Their loyalty is all surface level." He actually feels a little bad about that, he didn't mean to stomp on that parade.
Audrey Basque	Audrey can be easy to read! Especially when she's in a good mood and somewhere she considers safe. Even then, only about certain things! Things she doesn't think about enough, or things that betray a bit of what she's really like. Just a bit. On the matter of Madeleine, Audrey doesn't really have much to say; she barely caught wind of what was happening then, and understood even less than what she saw. Red Mist? Gebura? Sounds important. Still sleeping, same situation as Malkuth-- that brings a bit of context at least. "It does sound a bit unbelievable they would have memory alteration magics on the scale of this city. No, even if they did... there are so many different... I don't know what you would call them, locally, but Places of Power, broadly. Like... leylines, or man-made constructs that are acting in a similar way." There's so much power in the city. Even the Library is basically radiating it. To Audrey, if she looks for it, anyway. "So to think wide-area memory alteration would be able to just... work, unimpeded in these conditions... Petra is on to something. There must be a lot of people who remember things, but they know better than to speak up." Either way-- Petra essentially accepting the invitation adds a layer of glow to Audrey's mood. "I'll avoid turning off the lights until you're ready to sleep, so the ceiling doesn't make you too sleepy." She gets it though. It's pretty. That's why she made it. Looking back at Roland and Malkuth-- Audrey has to clear her throat again at the rather uncouth talk of bodypillows, but thankfully Roland masterfully deflects that. "I hadn't really thought about what allying with Angela would mean. Come to think of it, I guess that means I need to be careful moving in the City too?" That really hadn't dawned on her. Ah well. "If you can all weather it, I see no reason why I can't. Or maybe it's more accurate to say I don't have a choice anyway. If not now, it would've been later. I may as well get used to it already." Still-- that's intimidating. Especially with how Roland and Malkuth especially speak of those groups. They sound dangerous. "... ah." They'd been chatting for a while. "I completely forgot to eat before coming here. I can go pick something up at that nearby sandwich shop you all seem to like. Do you want anything?" Her treat, obviously. Fair payment for all the exposition.