five; video --> voice

[boughtabookstore]

[ Video for a moment. Roslyn's bent over the netbook, frowning. She doesn't look nearly as put together as normal, her hair shoved back into a messy ponytail as she rubs at her forehead. Her room behind her is a mess, none of the organization people who had visited her before would have seen. She realizes the video is recording almost immediately and sighs, clicking a button to switch it to voice. ]

I've noticed a significant uptick in people asking for the nearest bar. I believe someone out there is working on some sort of welcome booklet, but for now -

Welcome to Exsilium. Here's how you have a drink.

[ just before she disconnects ] You'll need it.

[ And attached to her post is a text list of the bars in the hold, question marks by the ones she hasn't been to and a few words' of description by the ones she has - size, activity levels. Well over half of them have descriptions. ]

Comments

[implying]

Oh, come, you can hardly say that after such a brief exchange.

[boughtabookstore]

You're right, allow me to rephrase.

You're not my type.

[implying]

I should say my answer still applies!

[boughtabookstore]

[ vanadi please ]

I date women, not men.

[implying]

Oh. [ a pause, a HEAVY SIGH. ] Terrible shame, that.

[boughtabookstore]

Not particularly.

I hope you get some use out of the list.

[implying]

Oh, well, not for you! I'm sure it's quite nice from where you're standing. It only makes me a little disappointed in what I keep in my pants, is all.

[boughtabookstore]

It's a big city. You'll get over it.

How long have you been here?

[implying]

It's possible, but I'm fully prepared to be devastated for the rest of my stay here.

Two entire days, as of today.

[boughtabookstore]

Then you likely have a long time to look forward to being devastated in.

Though some people vanish quickly.

[implying]

[ suddenly sounding a little more serious: ] Do they? How?

[boughtabookstore]

We don't know. The working theory is that they either cease to exist or the Initiative sends them back, either on purpose or accident.

[implying]

Has anyone ever seen this happen, then?

[boughtabookstore]

Not that I'm aware of.

There could of course simply be a stack of bodies somewhere. [ she sounds way too calm about that. ]

[implying]

Or perhaps they've all stumbled across the way out of here.

[boughtabookstore]

And failed to show the rest of us?

That would be rather rude of them.

[implying]

Sometimes one isn't given much of a choice.

[boughtabookstore]

Mm. It's a possibility. But I think if they did, it was that they were forced home.

[implying]

Forgive me, but— I've just come from a world where such discoveries aren't at all uncommon. It's quite the possibility, according to personal experience!

[boughtabookstore]

... Fascinating.

Tell me more about that world.

[implying]

It's called Cittágazze, and for some reason, reality is a bit frail within its confines. Windows to different worlds pop open with little difficulty, and after stumbling into it for the first time, I was able to visit any of these other worlds I chose. Quite the vacation spot, as you might imagine!

[boughtabookstore]

Is that how you stumbled through to here?

While you were there, how did you leave the worlds you visited?

[implying]

That's what I suspect, but I've yet to find the window I emerged from.

We either left through the same window we'd entered, or asked another with a PHS—the communicator provided by the Company, that is— to summon us to them.

[boughtabookstore]

And do you have that communicator with you, or did it not make the trip as well?

[implying]

[ a little subdued: ] It receives no signal here.