[Locked to Luceti Residents]

[malnosso]

My dear people of Luceti --

An invasion, all under the guise of a fantasy. What’s been done will not be forgotten. Certainly not by you, and not by the denizens of a dozen other enclosures who suffered similar attacks at the same time. As we speak, programmers and engineers hard at work combing through the barrier’s nuts and bolts. If the Cultists and his Lordship exploited some natural weakness in the dome, they will find it. Patch it up. Curious, isn’t it, that the Count chose yours to invade with his own two feet?

But there are other matters to discuss. I spoke with some of you only a few months ago. Let me announce more completely what I, back then, only intimated. I’m Carol, and I intend to spend some time in our little town. If you like, you can consider my resolve to continue my work here a sign of good faith. I remain unarmed and -- I assure you -- wholly peaceable. In this way, I hope I may have faith in you as well. After all, we are kin in a strange kind of way.

It is my duty -- as well as my pleasure -- to be Luceti’s liaison with the Organization. You must have many questions, concerns, and many many curses. Bring them to me, and we’ll see what can be done. We can talk here. But if any of you find the journals distasteful, you can also come have a seat with me at the sweet little tea shop. I’ll be there for the afternoon.

[As usual, this voiced post has a neatly typed 'written' section as well.

A thread with CJ can be found here.]

Comments

[chikaidestroyer]

[He nods his head briefly, glancing at the shop for a moment. The crowd was thinning, at least.]

Of course.

[The brewing of the tea doesn't take as long as others they had in the shop, so it's not long before Albert returns with a teapot and a pair of cups.]

I imagine you had to be told a number of things before you could come in to do damage control.

[liaising]

Believe it or not, Mister Silverberg, I was meant to already be in residence. Chance and circumstance are all that saved me from the same chaos. Not that my absence didn't afford me a briefing or two, of course.

[chikaidestroyer]

Yes, I do recall that you said you would be coming in awhile ago. [He averts his attention long enough to pour the tea.] What kept you away, if I may ask?

[liaising]

You may. [She touches a tentative palm to her cheek, as if checking for a blush. Or perhaps just pretending to.] My presence was requested at a trial. A rather long and protracted one.

[chikaidestroyer]

[He sips his tea, watching her touch her cheek. Hm.] Something you were involved in? [Considering the little he knows of her acquaintances...] Or were you a character witness of sorts?

[liaising]

The latter. How fitting, hmm? I spend my professional days bearing witness to the characters of this or that enclosure. How different when it's a single person being judged.

[chikaidestroyer]

Fitting indeed. [She had been careful to keep her explanation of the trial neutral, which lent itself to the idea that it was someone she knew well in a positive way.] How is Specialist Davis? [Was he still a Specialist?]

[liaising]

I'm afraid I haven't seen him as recently as I would have liked. We live...very different lives, he and I.

[chikaidestroyer]

I'm sure your roles lead to very different assignments. I had thought you would have Luceti in common, though. [There's a certain implication there, but he moves past it.]

Not everyone was completely affected by that Shift.

[liaising]

...Were you?

[chikaidestroyer]

[He shakes his head.]

The Count had measures in place to detain the unaffected, of course.

[liaising]

...I can only imagine that they were particularly awful. The Count is not a gentle man.

[chikaidestroyer]

A throwback to the experiments conducted during my first year here, in some ways. [He weaves his fingers together thoughtfully.] Do you know if he escaped? Will he be a continued threat?

[liaising]

...His escape hasn't been confirmed. [ and considering how purposefully the organization seems to keep her out of a few loops, take that as you will. ] But our first step is to fix the vulnerability in the barrier.

[chikaidestroyer]

Understandable. [Not that he didn't sound faintly put out by the lack of information.]

This was quite an ambitious grab for power. Is there anything we can do, from our side?

[liaising]

There is a matter that could use some clarification. Were you with those who performed for the Count at his keep?

[chikaidestroyer]

I was. [He frowns at that particular question, considering the lack of concrete results that had come out of the actual mission. It was only through the Observer that they had learned Zompano had gone missing afterwards.]

I was one of the designated actors.

[liaising]

...Did anyone speak to you about taking extra actions against the Count, during that mission?

[chikaidestroyer]

[Albert shakes his head at that, frowning. He recalls what Leonhardt had said about the mission long after the fact, after their encounter with the General, but that was not the question asked.]

If anyone was spoken to about extra actions, it certainly wasn't me. [He continues with a wry tone.] Even if I was spoken to about such things, I hardly have the skill set necessary to take on such a man.

[liaising]

And yet, I wondered for a moment if your apparent unsuitability might have, in the end, made you the perfect candidate. Ah, well. It's not a mystery that's mine to solve.

[chikaidestroyer]

It was an odd mission overall, even if it wasn't apparent at the time; infiltrating a festival to gather information doesn't seem to quite align with the majority of missions that are handed down. Whatever the case, someone profited from the Count being deposed.

[Just a little conspiracy talk. Even if it wasn't much of a conspiracy as it was the truth.]

[liaising]

He had many enemies. Although, I wonder if it might be more accurate to say he rather had much competition, instead.

[chikaidestroyer]

Besides his unique position of being in charge of our enclosure, I can't say I know his agenda well enough to speculate further.

...Did you know him?

[liaising]

Not personally, no. I think we may have both been in attendance at a few particular events, but his circles were never my circles. As far as the corporate ladder goes, my rung isn't as high as many seem to think it is. I choose to take it as a compliment.

[chikaidestroyer]

Considering the attention that we received from the former CEO, some of the residents may be under the impression that there is a certain level of authority needed to have access to our enclosure. [Something of a verbal shrug.] But you are here for a specific job.