thenine: (Default)
The Nine ([personal profile] thenine) wrote in [community profile] overjoyed_logs2017-02-11 04:11 pm

Chapter 3

Who: OTA
Where: Quad
When: Week IV, Day VII - Week VI, Day VI
Summary: Chapter 3 prompts!
Restrictions/Warnings: Violence, blood, et cetera. For anything surpassing 'R' on a rating scale, please create your own log.
Notes: Please title your subject line in the following format -- Open / Closed | Date. OOC event information can be found here. Calendar information/dates can be found here.

Quick Navigation
The Nine
The Company
Westies
True Leithians
Leith
Resistance
The RAC

The Nine: Promises Unmade



Using the increase in unrest, as so many opportunists do, those within the Nine who seek to pursue their own agendas - whether that be family prestige, personal gain, or systematic upheaval - will find bountiful footholds to secure their positions. Land Kendry continues to assert itself as a leader in these troubling times, with Land Derrish falling in tow. Their first target, Land Hyponia, is shaken, careful not to make any mistakes that could crumble the already cracked mortar holding them together with the nobility.

Aggressive though Land Derrish may have been, their sights have moved elsewhere, now focusing on driving forward oppressive legislation to replace the Seventh Generation Accords, rather than further eroding the power of Land Hyponia. Kendry is looking to control a functioning oligarchy, not cause a war over the territory that would be up for grabs should Land Hyponia fall.

With the announcement of the Seventh Generation accords confirming already widespread rumors, those within the Nine are careful to place blame for the decision on the activities of the Resistance. For many, this is a believable conclusion, as the attacks by the True Leithans shook society at its core on both Westerley and Leith. Being a radical group, their intentions have been conflated with those of the Resistance in the eyes of many. Discourse on the subject isn't uncommon, but any within the Nine who seek a different target of blame best do so quietly, as dissent from within could quickly have one labeled a sympathizer of the unjust cause of the Resistance.

On the surface a harmless placating measure taken by the Nine, the new PDDs being distributed through the Quad are touted as the pinnacle of communication technology. While some higher ranking Company officials and members of the nobility may already have access to quick and reliable network connection, these capabilities are now universal with the installation of the Meshwork.

The Meshwork will enable all characters to interact in real time via text, video, or voice, but it isn't without side effects. For some reason, characters who frequently use their PDDs or who are in areas of heavily concentrated network use may suffer from headaches, nosebleeds, blurred vision, and/or dizziness, with more severe side effects including temporary blindness, loss of balance, short-term memory loss, and hallucinations. Connection of these symptoms to the PDDs is not the most common diagnosis, as many think the afflictions are a result of the aftershocks of P43X.



The Company: Balancing Act



With clean up from the P43X attack not yet completed, all Company officials should expect to have no singular responsibility, and little time for sleep, as they find the expectations levied upon them to only grow. Frayed nerves can create a hostile working environment, though anyone could be on the receiving end of any outbursts.

The streets have returned from their throes of death with new life, but the city's usual clamor is being overtaken by the roar of protest. Some are peaceful demonstrations; some are violent riots, every display a reaction to the repeal of the Seventh Generation Accords.

…At least, that’s what it says on paper, the docket that many Company officials receive outlining simple but brutal crowd control and suppression tasks. Whether a bar has been taken over as a hub of dissent, a street corner filled with unmoving protestors, or a Company affiliated storehouse raided, there's plenty to do for those tasked with keeping the peace. You may simply wish to make arrests, or you may welcome the chance to get your hands dirty - the law is on your side, and all voices daring to oppose the order of things need silenced.

Those who don't take to the streets will likely find themselves on border control duty, checking the identification and supply dossiers of all incoming and outgoing ships. No one gets in, or out, without the proper clearance. Ship-wide searches have become standard practice, producing storerooms overflowing with contraband. Some may welcome the chance for banal organization, while others may take some 'bonus compensation' for themselves. With the tightening of rules comes the increase of bribery, and Company officials looking to line their pockets will find their opportunities in surplus.

Get caught, however, and there's no second-chances. Although the Company audits have concluded, tensions only grow, and anyone found helping those with diverging agendas will be punished swiftly, cast in with the rest of the dissenters.



Westies: Tidal Force



Bereavement weighs heavy in the wake of the P43X attack on Westerley. Burdened by being both the last location of infection and the last to receive medicinal aid, Westies are entrenched in the solemn task of burying their fallen while the merciless machine of the economy marches on. Whether it’s the result of a lost loved one or the continued illness of primary caretakers, the end result is the same: families all across Old Town struggle to feed their children and make ends meet. It’s always been a guiding principle of Westerley—if you can’t work, you can’t eat—but with so many who can do neither, the situation in Old Town begins to grow dire.

But there’s hope, albeit in the form of a double-edged blade: with the newly distributed PDDs and Meshwork installation, nonprofit organizations are able to conduct themselves on a wider scale, drawing in more donors from outside of Westerley. While their efforts are ultimately but a drop in the ocean, the renewed spirit of community and altruism provides relief—as well as nourishment—for many who might very well die without it.

That same tool which allows the people to come together is also used to rend it; rumors begin to circulate through encrypted bulletins about the emergency meeting held on (Week IV, Day VII). Some of the rumors are wild speculation and fanciful daydreams, but in the mire of them, a grain of truth slips through.

The Accords have fallen, they say. Be ready.

Most people disregard the rumors, writing them off as the idle machinations of conspiracy theorists. They cling to their hope that soon their children will walk a planet that is bountiful in food and sunshine, that the land promised on Leith will deliver them from the hell they current endure.

It’s those people who shout the loudest when the official announcement confirms the rumor. The Accords have been repealed. (Week V, Day III)

At first, protestors gather in small, grumbling groups, little more than angry drunks. But as more and more people take to the Meshwork, the wrath of the few awakens the desperation of the many, and over the course of the night, the peaceful protest swells into an unruly riot. Workers strike, but without any legal protection, they swiftly find themselves rebuked by unemployment. Now with nothing to lose and everything to gain, the riots expand, filling the streets of Old Town with anger and tension. Company personnel become popular targets, and within the next day, all travel permits to and from Westerley are temporarily revoked. The moon closes its docks in an attempt to smother the flames of the rebellion.

What starts as a movement for change shifts into a violent cataclysm, homes and businesses burned down, families torn apart by dissent within and outside of themselves. The Company seems content to let Old Town destroy itself, to let them “get it out of their system”, but all too soon that stance changes as well. With the death of a distant cousin of the Derrish, Company orders shift. Lethal force is authorized, and all too eagerly, used.

Once the death toll begins to climb, the protests decline. The riots soften, though they do not disappear outright. Company and Westie optimists take to podiums in a desperate attempt to bid their fellow compatriots once more into peace.

But something else awakens in the fires of those riots. Something far more dangerous than the chaos of anger: something controlled, methodical.

They call themselves Hyperion, and they are the new faces of the Resistance.




True Leithians: Rested Laurels



For this faction, the time to scatter is nigh. Their work is complete: the Accords are no more, and the militant leaders order the reintegration of their soldiers into civilian life. Leith’s rightful owners retain the precious land that was once threatened, and although their methods were extreme, they are justified by the end result.

But while the True Leithians see this as only a rested pause in their work, their benefactors—those who provided the resource and information that allowed their wicked deeds to see fruition—see this time as the closing of a chapter. Loose ends that might later lead to Qreshi officials or even potentially the Nine themselves are dealt with severely and harshly, albeit quietly. Several prominent figures of Leith’s highest echelon of society simply disappear, and curiously, those around them don’t seem to remember that they were ever there in the first place.

Their benefactors are not the only group that would see the True Leithians burn. Among the first wave of missions delegated beneath the Resistance is the assassination of known True Leithian sympathizers. Unlike the Company, the members of Hyperion are ordered to perform their tasks loudly, to send a message written in the blood of the True Leithians.

The citizens of Westerley will no longer be the gutless pawns of the Quad. They will strike back, and they will uncover the source of the True Leithian’s funding and information.

If the True Leithians thought themselves ruthless, they’ll soon learn a new measure of savagery when Hyperion converges on their trail.



Leith: Olive Branch



The atmosphere of Leith is one of both hope and mourning. Recovery on Leith proceeds more efficiently than that on Westerley, their infrastructure and resources better able to accommodate those that were felled in the P43X attack. But although agency has the streets of Leith cleaner and the surfaces shining, the spirit of the moon itself suffers a devastating blow in the wake of the attack, the people of Leith unprepared and unseasoned to deal with the psychological ramifications of so much death.

But they are not yet hardened by the experience, drawing together in the spirit of cooperation to restore not just the physical aspects of their homes, but the mental fortitude of their people. Charity drives and galas proceed in extravagant fashion, as if by the display of their assets they might rebel against the somber circumstances on which they’re hosted.

For most on Leith, the fall of the Accords arrives as welcomed news, the citizens of the moon long since opposed to sharing their land with those of Westerley. But although the sense of satisfaction with the ends is high, there’s also an undercurrent of regret for the means which provided it. Unlike the True Leithians, most of the citizens of Leith are not radical or extreme, and they offer their sympathies—but only their sympathies—to those Westies in their midst.

News of the riots results in tighter security around the Westies still stationed on the moon, and for the days that the violent storm on Westerley builds, Leith in turn becomes markedly quieter and more conscientious. Moderates come together over the Meshwork and propose a Peace Summit, a meeting of both delegation and charity, once the riots and dangers of traveling have passed.

The summit is sanctioned by Leithian officials, as well as the allocation of surplus resources to aid their sister moon in her recovery. While many citizens of Leith eagerly await the news of lands once lost to their families for the Accords, many more donate their time and hands as part of the newly created Good Will Corps, a coalition of both political pundits and regular people devoted to strengthening the connection between the moons rather than sowing division.

Volunteers—and some individuals who are voluntold, join the Good Will Corps on a trip to Old Town where the Peace Summit is scheduled (Week VI, Day III), lending their time, their labor, and their technology as a gesture of good faith.

But whether or not that’s sufficient to see the Peace Summit garner any steps towards system stability is another matter altogether.


Resistance: Sacred Grove



The people of the Quad barely have time to remove the packaging from their new PDDs before a new voice of dissent begins to worm its way down the feed. Encrypted messages, quick flashes of imagery begin appearing at random on open networks and closed channels alike, pitting the harsh realities of the suffering, suffocating Westerley against the excess and decadence on display by both Leithians and the Nine, showcasing the disparity in the starkest of lights.

All of it aimed at one purpose, to spread one solemn truth: the branches of the Mother Tree are burning… and the Nine seem to be holding the matches.

The name whispered, the one goading dissent, echoes through the Quad - Hyperion - followed slowly with the murmur of hope. Of an intellect so profound that not even the Nine themselves will be able to stop it.

With an artful ease, this new force begins to reach out, to commandeer the discordant efforts of the Resistance and reforge it into something stronger, faster. Deadlier.

It starts with a select few receiving instructions directing them to safe houses already stocked with equipment and supplies, each with tech tailored to that cell's purpose and loaded with dossiers far too complete to have been compiled by the average citizen.

Some of the background information appears to come directly from the records of the Company, or the Nine themselves, while still more from planets outside the Quad.

Some even hint at records long since sealed by the RAC.

Nothing points to one faction over another. Nothing reveals the how or why this Hyperion has decided to play these particular cards now, but one thing is quite clear. There's a deep laid plan being set into motion, and neither the Company or the Nine will see it coming.

All these leaders have to do is gather their forces...



The RAC: New Grade



The citizens of the Quad were not the only ones affected by the P43X - the upper ranks of the RAC's field agents is notably thinner - and with tensions shifting yet again between the moons, they cannot afford to be ill-prepared and understaffed. In order to bolster their ranks, the decision comes down the pipe of a new assessment system:

Peer Evaluations.

Many of those that have been in their current ranks - those between Levels I - III - will be eligible to receive a two-part assessment of their capabilities to operate efficiently at the next level through successful completion of live warrants. These field evaluations can be conducted by any Level IV agent and turned into Central Command for compilation and rank change approval.

Unlike the lower level agents, Level IV assessments will still be conducted by RAC's Central Command, once all of the subordinate assessments have been completed and processed. These agents should take note - part of their own evaluations for Level V will be the efficiency with which they're able to evaluate those below them.

During this time, warrants will still flow in and agents sent to answer - especially once the travel bans go into effect on Westerley, as those agents alone bearing active warrants will be able to enter and leave the atmosphere, though their docking point will be limited to the Prisoner Intake facilities.


slotted: (ʏᴏᴜʀ sᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ's ᴏᴜᴛ)

[personal profile] slotted 2017-02-27 03:40 am (UTC)(link)
. . .

[ well, rhys gets props for being straightforward. but...????? ]

I've been working here for years.
demonly: (pic#6628320)

[personal profile] demonly 2017-02-27 03:42 am (UTC)(link)
Fine, I see how it is, leave me here by myself so you can go hang out with chicks and Company workers...

[ Yes, those are crocodile tears in his eyes and a petulant frown on his face. Rin is just being an immature baby, but it's not like he actually expects Lavi to drop everything and work here. People had to do different things to get on in life and even it's well known within the Monastery that he has beef with the Company, he's too nice of a person to hold it against someone he considers close to him. ]

What are ya doing specifically anyway? Ya better make serious money.

[ Since Rin is literally making 0 for being here!!! ]
tousei: (i need to fill these with more jokes)

[personal profile] tousei 2017-02-27 03:46 am (UTC)(link)
[ A blink is all he gives. If he recognizes her name, he doesn't show it. ]

Julius Visconti. A pleasure to meet you.

[ He's polite, but not in the overly deferring way. Merely quiet and honest. ]
fledges: (022)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 03:48 am (UTC)(link)
[Sometimes Kate just can't contain her grossness. She makes a face at him as she pulls away, trying to comb her hair back down into shape now that he's messed it all up. She sobers a little at the mention of the Scarback tunnels.]

Sounds like we have a plan. But, hey... Can you call me if you see John? I haven't been able to get ahold of him since this whole thing started.

[And she's worried.]
inksplashes: inksplashes | do not take (two dollar store tramps)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 03:48 am (UTC)(link)
[ Anime physiology isn't fair?! Maybe if Badou trips and falls Lavi can use him as a flotation device...!

He turns and twists down tunnels without pausing to see if Nailchu is with him or not, not stopping his run until he's under one of the grates that leads to the above surface. Busting through like he's the koolaid man (but with more using the handle and muscles and less creeping), Lavi sprawls out on the alleyway, for once not giving a damn if it's Old Town.

At least he's not sleeping with the fishes. As for Badou...? ]
tousei: (yeah man he only has one expression)

[personal profile] tousei 2017-02-27 03:49 am (UTC)(link)
[ He doesn't know what to say. ]

No... it's alright.

[ It's not a bad feeling, but it...'s unusual, really. ]

I'm sorry. No one has hugged me before.

[ Rachel did, when he was very young, but that doesn't count. ]
tousei: (I CANT EVEN FIND A HAPPY ICON)

[personal profile] tousei 2017-02-27 03:54 am (UTC)(link)
[ This is a very emotional scene, which makes him all the more grateful towards Sion for being patient, and understanding. These are not two things that are easily afforded in this kind of times. There are very little words left. What has been said had already been said, the depths of kindness and empathy are not things he thinks he deserves - but if he works towards paying it forward, perhaps he will be able to earn his due one day.

He stays quiet and unmoving throughout, both as a sign of respect towards the other and out of his own weakness. ]


I will. Thank you, again.

[ He knows better than to hope for success, but he can respect the other man's wishes. ]
shikomizue: (pic#9306732)

that which cannot remain silent ❁ lapis

[personal profile] shikomizue 2017-02-27 04:03 am (UTC)(link)
[Proceedings broken into blocks, Takasugi doesn't enjoy the luxury of free time until the formal discussions have ended. During the breaks given to the delegates for them to stretch their legs - and their palms for 'encouragement' - he would perform. Sometimes the song struck from the foreign instrument mingles with the still leaves in the garden, and other times it clashes against the bare concrete and minimal decor of the center.

Tonight he's been requested to play a lilting lullaby for those staying late to discuss further actions, the melody waning as the milling bodies within the hall dwindle.

As he's packing the instrument away, his motions careful but long practiced, he'll speak to the nearest passerby, raising his jaw to meet their eyes with a heavy lidded glance.]
Are you enjoying it?
brokeassgoing: (thats cute)

[personal profile] brokeassgoing 2017-02-27 04:16 am (UTC)(link)
[he'd....probably float real well?? just around the riverbend...juuuust around the riverrrrbeeeeeeeennnd

better scootch over because here comes Badou up your ass]


Get up, get up, get up, upupupupup! MOVE YOUR ASS.
inksplashes: (But I'm not gonna think about that right)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:21 am (UTC)(link)
[ The plan settled, he's halfway through lifting his glass when she asks about John. He only knows of one John he might run into in the tunnels, and as much of a friend as he considers that man, even Lavi doesn't address him by first name.

Cue turning slowly on seat to fix her with a look (and reach over to ruffle her hair again because she's looking far too serious). ]


Sure, no problem.

[ A beat. ]

So John, huh?

[ He definitely says that name with a strong, lilting emphasis. Like a ten year old. ]
shikomizue: (pic#10797489)

emphasis on criminal

[personal profile] shikomizue 2017-02-27 04:28 am (UTC)(link)
[Rhys sounds his usual strained self, the forced confidence on his face exactly as he'd imagined when desperate threats scrawled across his monitor months ago.

Now, instead of coercion, Takasugi offers a tilted head and a relaxed smile.]
I apologize for not introducing myself sooner,

[He approaches, hips leading a confident stride.] My name is Tani Umenosuke - this ship belongs to me. [Instead of and outstretched hand he shifts to pull a chair near the cot and sit, posture wide as he leans forward.] I hope you're finding our accommodations acceptable... they're not what you're accustomed to, I imagine.
lefthandfree: (Default)

james buchanan "bucky" barnes | ota + closed catch all

[personal profile] lefthandfree 2017-02-27 04:30 am (UTC)(link)
(pm or hit me up at [plurk.com profile] crashfade for any specific prompts!)
fledges: (024)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 04:35 am (UTC)(link)
Hey.

[She just had that fixed! Kate pulls her headband out this time, and begins to smooth out her hair again with a long suffering sigh.]

Steinbeck. Why are you looking at me like that?
inksplashes: (it's a sweet butter knife)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
[ So that's what that sigh sounds like from the other side. Huh!

Like a perfectly mature young adult, he's going to grab for her headband to try it on himself. She could try to use his?? ]


I've known Steinbeck for years and never called him John. You two must be preeeeetty cozy.....

fledges: (050)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 04:41 am (UTC)(link)
[Kate allows him to snatch her headband, but he gets a very judgmental look for it as she kicks the leg of his stool.]

It's not my fault you're allergic to first names.
rhygret: (guess so?)

[personal profile] rhygret 2017-02-27 04:42 am (UTC)(link)
What is that--is that like a real question or are you just being sarcastic? Because I...honestly can't tell. [ Rhys may have been just a little bit short with her at that start of that sentence, but by the end he's pretty honest. Rhys can't tell after the amount of political (and outright) snark and derisiveness he's seen throughout the day, like he's reached some sort of saturation point or something.

It's left him feeling and looking a little worse for wear as his security detail takes up their posts to block out anyone looking for trouble. Hopefully.

What actually catches Rhys the most by surprise about all this is that his broker is apparently a performer? A...well, cute one. It's weird. He expected dirty dealings in the back of some run-down shop. Not this. ]
inksplashes: (the good the bad and the dirty)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:43 am (UTC)(link)
Except I'm not in the slightest~

[ Is he getting singsong? Yes. Quite. And kicking the chair is rude, Kate. It did nothing to you.

Does he look fabulous with two headbands? He hopes so. ]


So when did you two start gettin' cozy, hmmmm?
fledges: (078)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 04:45 am (UTC)(link)
[She sighs again.]

We're not cozy.

[Much to her dismay.]

Are you trying to play matchmaker or something?
inksplashes: inksplashes | do not take (pic#)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:46 am (UTC)(link)
[ What the hell, man! You aren't a zumba class!!

Lavi complies by means of rolling because look he's tired and running from a death torrent of water ... actually happens to him more often than you'd think, but still.

He groans, blinking wide and sitting up. His clothes, of course, are filthy, but that's better than being drowned. ]


You are definitely a bad luck charm, Nailchu. Geeze.
Edited (i repeated an icon r.i.p.) 2017-02-27 04:47 (UTC)
inksplashes: <user name="inksplashes"> dnt ('cause i just don't give a shit)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:49 am (UTC)(link)
[ He's practically glowing at this point. ]

Aha! So there is a match to be made then! Kate and John....am I invited to the wedding? Who's your maid of honor?

[ Hopeful look. ]
fledges: (049)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 04:51 am (UTC)(link)
[Kate can't help it—she laughs at the absurdity of the entire conversation.]

Maybe you, but I have to decide if you look good in purple or not. It might clash with your hair.
inksplashes: (Don't think I've ever used a day of my e)

[personal profile] inksplashes 2017-02-27 04:54 am (UTC)(link)
[ That's better. She's laughing again and looking a little less dour, which means this conversation? Totally worth it. ]

No way. Purple and orange is a classic combo. They bring out each other's best features!

[ You know, LIKE THEIR FRIENDSHIP.... ]
lefthandfree: (blind leading the blind)

closed | handsome jack

[personal profile] lefthandfree 2017-02-27 05:17 am (UTC)(link)
[He’d decided to stop by the safehouse to stock up supplies since it’s not really useful to leave the place decaying and stark if it’s going to be of any use. He has a duffel pack and crate with him, the crate being set down when he stops to open the door. He notices that he’s not alone as soon as the door slides open, but he leans over to pick up the crate again and walks in before reacting to the information.]

Well, well, well. [He grins as he walks into the main of the safehouse, the door shutting behind him and locks clicking back in place.] If I knew it was gonna be a party in here, I woulda brought us some brews.

[He finds an open spot on the ground toward the wall and sets the crate back down.]

Hope I’m not interrupting anything. [He looks back toward Jack as he brushes his hands off against his pants.]
fledges: (037)

[personal profile] fledges 2017-02-27 05:19 am (UTC)(link)
Okay, okay, you can be the maid of honor, but only if you help me pick out the cake. Do you like chocolate?
brokeassgoing: (pic#9511199)

[personal profile] brokeassgoing 2017-02-27 05:25 am (UTC)(link)
[that's nice Lavi he's gonna just keep laying here on his back
dying possible]


Eat shit. Don't blame me, blame your karma.