Chapter 3

[thenine]

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.

Comments

[rhygret]

Right? I mean, taste aside the waistline certainly doesn't let you forget it. Or well. Mine...doesn't. You probably burn it all off doing triple-backflips and extreme sports.

[eggplanting]

I don't do any extreme sports! [Rude.] I just think they sound fun.

[She's too much of a tight-ass to spend money on thrills, and it's also a facet of herself that she's recently discovered. Apparently she's a bit more of an adrenalin junkie than she expected.]

[rhygret]

I notice you didn't deny the triple backflips. [ And yes, he's going to sound coy and suave about this. Because he can only do that with things that don't matter. ]

[iuramentum]

[ If she looks unimpressed, it's mostly unintentional considering her resting expression is pretty neutral.
The "pretty lady" statement isn't winning him any brownie points though. ]

Very well. [ She isn't terribly pleased about explaining her gambit, but he's got a point. ] By advancing by two places, I open the way to advance with either queen or bishop --

[ She selects the bishop, moving diagonally 3 spaces. ]

-- thereby applying pressure to black's front line.

[ In truth it's a fairly common strategy. "Scholar's Mate" is all about aggressive development to achieve checkmate early into the game. ]

[eggplanting]

Okay, okay, I'll give you that one, 'cause she's an AI.

[That would actually be hard.]

[rhygret]

[ SEE ]

Exactly. One of the best--state of the art when she was first integrated into our home's security systems. [ to be his cybermom ]

[rhygret]

You think? [ No wait,t hat sounds almost desperate. Rhys quickly clears his throat and starts again ]

I-it's a great idea sure, I mean duh! I just. I dunno, Westies in general seem pretty...ungrateful? I'm not saying they can't be otherwise, just that they...don't tend to be. To Nines.

[eleutheron]

[ Fenris folds his arms over his chest. He has a look like 'you're damn right I'm right'. It's not generous of him, being so harsh with this stranger. Vaughn hasn't done anything explicitly wrong; he's simply part of a faulty system. So many of them are. But it's been a long few months. ]

Enforcer.

[ He nods to the weapons at his hips, which look pristine, as though rarely used. ]

[digophelia]

Oh, yes, it would, I could find people to work with me and find-

[ And just as Alice seems to prattle on excitedly, perking up as she continues, nearly blowing past at his offer. Alice manages to flash a smile. ]

You would?

[ Much like she is with hers? ]

I.. I would be deeply grateful, Mr. Julius.

[digophelia]

And a Scarback as well.

[ She shouldn't ask such a thing, not when she knows John Steinbeck so well, her dear friend, not someone she just met, and yet- ]

Is it true what they say about Scarbacks?

[digophelia]

Well...

[ His compliments get Alice a little flustered, in the way a parent would have their child in a fuss. It's a side she wouldn't show anyone else, not even to Steinbeck, how she hides behind her hair and looks sheepishly down in the box. ]

I- I wasn't really looking to find a niche in the market.

[ Or is he just talking Jack-speak once again. ]

I don't look for appreciation or praise, I feel terrible for them, you know? I know what it's like to lose a parent at such an early age.

[ And that thought is strangely more painful in Jack's presence. ]

It's easy to be forgotten in an adult's world.

[tousei]

Of course. Anything, to help.

[ He will die soon. In the time that remains... he must make it count. ]

I serve as an Enforcer, thus we may not be able to meet often. But do message me, I will see what I can do.

[shikomizue]

[Too late, he caught how eagerly Rhys latched onto the idea of receiving laud.

Tucks that away for later-] But you'll need them. If not their trust, then their greed - is that what you're thinking?

[Leaving aside the issue of just what Westies could possibly have to be thankful to the Nine for, other than the chance to loot and rampage.]

[rhygret]

Ssssomething like that, yeah. People want security and they want to feel like they're in control for once. I...can understand that, you know? So if I can accomplish that with this plan then I think I have a real chance of selling it here.

The only problem is me being a Kendry, buuut...that's something to work around later. [ Which is to say Rhys isn't going to let himself at all be deterred by it; he fully intends to see this through. ]

[shikomizue]

[Takasugi understands the man's determination - he can see a reflection of Rhys's self worth in his grand scheme. That the 'genius' echos the desire of control only assures his reading further.]

You'd be selling stability. [Ah. What a revelation.]

There's certainly a deficit of that here. [He leans forward, abandoning his perch on the bar.] Aa. You have a long endeavor ahead. Keep me informed - I'd love to be a part of such ambition.

[kirkwalled]

[ While Hawke wouldn't ever breathe it, she would appreciate that. There's something terribly interesting to her about her Company assignments more than anything else -- as if being let into the belly of the beast without any expectations to stay and suffer for it. It's probably why she ends up with so many friends who work for the Company, feeling the strong association here with the faction back home that hurt so many. She can view the Company with a mild sense of detachment as a result -- no personal feelings involved when you've killed them yourself.

Right now though, she's still reading through the file, a yawn slipping out of her in the process. She's pretty sure he's underestimating her -- which is exactly what she wants but, it's still strange to go through the process. She wonders if anyone will ever start expecting things of her again. ]

Oh, probably. We also have lots and lots of rope. I'm very good with knots, [ And up to him, a sharp smile. Why is Hawke like this -- ] And my fingers.

[ Not that she's actually attempting flirting but it's always funny to throw innuendo at someone new and see how they react. It always kind of tells her where to go from there. ]

[demonly]

Uhhh, that depends on what ya mean?

[ His brows furrow a bit, confused by what she's trying to imply. ]

People say lots of stuff about Scarbacks.

[refactor]

[ If he finds her explanation suspect, he certainly doesn't show it. He just continues to smile, full of an easy charisma, and he nods along with her explanation. ]

Well, that's friggin' sweet, then. [ He looks to their tagalong thoughtfully, but then shrugs ] Man, I'd ask to see it, buuuuut this guy isn't quite important enough that I could write it off. So! Some other time? Hell, maybe if you get bored, I've always got real pieces of crap in Intake that could use with, uh, seein' some new tech if you get my drift.

[lacuscular]

[ Well.. he has a point. But it's not like they actively pursue criminals underwater or anything so how do they know for sure.. She doesn't say anything immediately in regards to that, deciding to let it go as she throws a boot on. ]

Well... [ She's not used to such blatant praise-- so much that she fumbles with her words a bit. She'd be blushing if not for the fact she hears a stray tummy growl and doesn't see any shift in expression from her partner...! Juvia will.... pointedly look at his tummy, then him.] It would be nice if things were simple like that.

Although, some part of Juvia thinks that this would've happened, regardless.

[rhygret]

Wait, really? I mean--no, yeah. That'd be...that'd be great. [ Rhys blinks, but immediately perks up. He's not exactly sure how he'll keep in touch but...well, he's scanned the man with his eye already. That should be all he needs. ]

Thanks for the...enthusiasm.

[refactor]

[ It's definitely just Jack-speak, because he can never express anything like a normal person... Though at least underneath his unusual way of talking and of viewing the world, there's a nice sentiment there somewhere. Partially. He still can't help thinking of it in business terms, so her particular pick is also savvy to him, even if it wasn't quite intentional for that purpose. ]

Aww, what! C'mon, you can take credit for this, kiddo.

[ His grin is wide, but earnest rather than a sharp one that he seems to wear more often. He's a rough, vicious person, as he work in Intake easily showed, but it's not as if he doesn't have his softer moments. Clearly, she had an easier time pulling them out, since the enthusiasm of the smile does at least dim at her more somber sentiments. ]

—Yeah. That, uh- No, I get what you mean. [ He breathes out a sound that might be a laugh, but it's followed with a shrug. There are two things he could tell her here, and he knows they could help him relate to her, but... He doesn't. Jack is far too private and protective over his past, so those details have to be pulled out of him. But even so, with how he pauses to consider it for even a second, there's probably a sense that there's something more there for him to say that he doesn't. Instead, he turns the sentiment of the attention back to her. ]

I mean, it's a good reason for it. When you're puttin' it that way, I'm- Well, correct me if I'm wrong here, but super don't think I am, but guessing you kinda felt- feel that way yourself, so. [ It's blunt, as Jack tends to be, but being so straightforward isn't malicious, and that's clear. ] Hey, I figure trying to do better because you know how much it sucks is a hell of a good reason for anything. That's, uh, how I got into my line of work. More or less. Trying to make things better is always better than just living some kind of easy, cushy life, y'know?

[homonka]

Of course, sir.

[ What she does not add--is much too smart and trained for that--is that Qreshi people are hardly exempt. The Nine themselves, they wield power with responsibility and station, but their broods? The sons and daughters they seed this universe with?

They're breathtakingly weak.

Still, he did not ask for further qualification so she does not offer it, instead--in her own pathetically weak way--seeking instruction. ]

Will that be all you require of me, Lord Simms?

[homonka]

[ His improper state of dress is forgivable, albeit distasteful--she'd arrived without warning and thus he has ample excuse for such a poor state of presentation..

But the casual lounge and utter lack of gravity to him?

That's just irritatingly improper.

Keeping her cool, she clears her throat softly, remaining standing--as she's not been invited to do otherwise. ]

As I am sure you're aware, my superiors are keenly interested in the summit's participants but I am unfortunately ill-suited for deployment.

[ Indeed, they'd covered that in her grit-teeth reply moments before-- ]

But that need not mean I cannot participate through a proxy.

[homonka]

[ As you should, she replies without voice, a sharp glance levied his way in faintly warmed acknowledgment. She's pleased with his obedience--she is always so very pleased when they're obedient.

At least, provided they are not her own.

Turning on her heel without further preamble, she moves without looking back to see if he's following, trusting that he is. Gliding past corpses and scorched streets like a phantom, untouched by all of it. Her attention scatters, violent instincts left to their own devices like an automated program while her mind chases down the fathomless (traitorous) confusion.

When she stops moving--checks back into her body, so to speak--she's facing another angry rabble blocking the entrance to the Company barracks.

There's no honor to be had in killing them. They're defenseless, and in large part, helpless.

Softly but commanding: ]

Disperse them without killing them.

[ My, how the ruthless commander is changing. ]

[kirkwalled]

[ She doesn't expect the knee. Should've expected the knee but didn't and it's enough to wind her that when he grabs her, she curses herself. She didn't want to give him the end and she jerks as the circuits flash. No, no, no.

In the end, it's easier to go with the roll and though she's underneath him now -- she can recover from this. If his hands are on her waist, it frees up her own hands and she scratches upwards, tugging at his shirt and her other hand grabbing for his throat. He's heavier than she expected but she just needs an inch, just an inch. ]

Why are you -- why are you even doing this? If you're angry, I understand, but you can find better solutions that committing the Company's injustices, Fenris! You're so much better than this.

[ She can't help it, she feels so naive saying these things but every time she looks at him -- there's a strong urge to see him do better, be better. She barely knows him but her faith in him feels endless and she can't just write it off. She just wants him to be happy, of all things. ]