Campfire 01

[modsurge]

It’s about two weeks after the arrival of the newcomers in the empty city. The beacon light flickered out on the first day. The power finally shuddered on as of this morning, although only in a few areas in the Commerical and Residential districts. It looks hopeful that other areas will soon follow, if work continues. The wall is being patched at a steady rate, and the few monsters within the city have been hunted down and taken care of. Lately there’s even been time to focus on learning the written language of the city, and those dedicated to the study may finally be beginning to pick some meaning out of the unfamiliar syllabary.

For the first time, things are feeling almost calm. What better time to start a bonfire in a park of the Residential district, drag a chair out of a nearby house, and gather up as evening starts to fall?

Comments

[bestaround]

[ Unlike SOME people, 9S sticks close to the fire, if a little quiet—like he hesitates to butt into a conversation easily. But when there's a lull in the chatter, he eventually speaks up: ]

By the way, since we're all here... You all remember that spotlight from the other side of town, right? I managed to find its location, and—err... I hope it wasn't presumptuous of me to disable it for the time being.

[thephix]

I had wondered what happened to the light, what did it turn out to be?

[bestaround]

Just a normal light, but with no electricity to power it, it shouldn't have been operational... But it was, thanks to some—I guess it was crystals growing underneath.

[thephix]

So it wasn't meant to lure us here, then.

[Both a relief and a disappointment, since it means it wasn't a trap, but it also means there's no one here who might offer an explanation.]

Did you happen to keep any of the crystal?

[bestaround]

I don't know, but I have reason to believe it had been luring those creatures we were having problems with. Anyway, I did get a piece.

[ He shifts his backpack to reach into it, pulling out a shard that fits in the palm of his hand. ]

It kept its glow for a while, but it's since faded off.

[thephix]

Yes, I think you made the right choice to disable it, though perhaps we should find another way to signal in case there are more people brought here.

[It's a fine line to walk, not drawing enemies but wanting to make sure anyone else who's lost can find them.]

May I look at it? I'll return it to you, of course.

[bestaround]

[ More people?? The thought hadn't even occurred to him. ]

I'm sure it can be repaired, but we'd have to restore power to that section of the city, first. I'm interested in what was in the rest of that building, too.

[ As he responds, 9S lifts his palm toward her. ]

[thephix]

Perhaps if we could broadcast the light in bursts it would be less likely to draw the creatures.

[Just a thought, as she carefully takes the crystal from 9S, turning it over in her hand and regarding it with a critical eye. She'd love to get it under a microscope, to see if she can figure out how it works.]

These were giving off some kind of power?

[bestaround]

Yeah—some kind of energy, I suppose. The light wouldn't shut down until I broke off the crystals from the floor. This is the only piece that kept its glow for a little while afterwards.

[thephix]

I found a laboratory in the commercial district of the city, we may be able to learn a little more about these crystals if we could study them more closely. If you aren't adverse to the idea?

[She hands the crystal back as she asks, to show that she meant what she said about not keeping it. 9S went to the effort to find it and handle the light, so even though they're sharing resources, Max feels like this can be His Item.]

i want not one but TWO anais threads

[segundo]

Crystals? [ Pinged, because crystals are used to power things in his universe. Hello hi. ] They weren't blue, were they?

softly gasps.... ///

[bestaround]

The opposite, actually; more like a golden color. [ The shortest of pauses, and since that didn't seem like a question out of the blue (ha): ] Had something in mind?

[segundo]

[ He makes a noise of disappointment. ]

Where I'm from [ in a manner of speaking... ] we use Balmera crystals to power all sorts of stuff, like ship engines. They've got a blue glow.

[bestaround]

Balmera... Nope, never heard of it before. Still, even if it's the wrong color, do you think it could be something similar?

[segundo]

[ His mouth thins. ]

Maybe...? A Balmera is like a living planet. It grows crystals with its life-force; if this place is growing crystals, then...

[ Lance looks down at the ground, gently tapping it with his foot. ]

[bestaround]

[ 9S' eyes follow downward as well, and after a moment, he reaches into his backpack to pull out a small crystal shard. He holds it out for Lance to see in the palm of his hand. ]

Like these? It's not glowing anymore, but...

[segundo]

[ Lance observes it; it's small, and currently lightless in Nines' palm. He can see the black leather glove through it. ]

I guess, just way bigger. As tall as me. [ A beat. ] Um, taller. And wider. These things are huge. I mean, the bigger the ship the bigger the crystal, you know?

[thoughtlock]

Does it look easy enough to turn back on?

[bestaround]

In theory. Some of the crystal growth may have caused damage, but I don't believe it's anything irreparable. But even if we fixed it, we'd still need to restore electricity to that district.

[thoughtlock]

Oh. I kinda thought we could just... stick a crystal back in it. [??? That'll work right]

[bestaround]

[ about that ]

Well, uh... All the crystals are broken now.

[thoughtlock]

[...well. She can't even be mad t b h.]

That's how I would have turned it off, too.

[bestaround]

It was the only way to, really; the switch wouldn't do anything at all, and I don't think it would've been a good idea to keep the thing running.

[thoughtlock]

You think those things were following the light, too?

[bestaround]

No doubt about it. Something different from those bladed creatures was in the building trying to get into the room, too. Like... a really big bug.