jigokulogs | May 2022 IC Mingle

May 2022 IC Mingle

1. WELCOMING COMMITTEE

The influx of fresh Lost Souls means the factions need to have a little welcoming party for them. The leaders realize things have been chaotic in the city. So some recreational activities are in order. All Lost Souls will receive a message from their respective faction leaders with orders to go have some fun.

The Shuten Clan are given an advance on their first paycheck and told to go to the Celestial Phoenix Casino. A big sign on the half boarded up door proudly proclaims UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT. What happened to the old management? It doesn't matter and stop asking questions! The important part is that all games and machines are half-price and there are special prizes available in exchange for your chips and tokens. Games range from the traditional Western style (poker, roulette, slots) to Japanese favorites (cee-lo, koi koi, cho-han).

As for prizes, they have a selection of designer goods, including some particularly nice bracelets, necklaces, and watches!

The Tamamo Clan are given a considerable number of drink vouchers for Crimson Moon Karaoke, where they can sing their hearts out and while absolutely smashed. Private rooms are cheap to rent and they even offer a special discount for groups of two or more. The karaoke machines have any songs you could possibly want, which is a little suspicious, but don't question it! Just get drunk and have fun. By all means, extend your time as you wish and drink up to get in the proper mood. This is an important bonding opportunity.

Oh yeah, as an important note: the rooms are soundproof. You can get as loud as you like, be it with singing or... something else. Don’t do anything Tenko-hime wouldn’t do!

Members of The Sutoku Alliance are given tickets to Fiance of the Funeral Procession at the Pluto Theatre and Cafe. The tickets include free food at the cafe, including beer. Sure, the star may not be a Sutoku member but that doesn't matter too much: getting butts into seats at Sutoku-owned theaters is what’s important. The Daitengu rented the theater out for the day, so there is plenty of time to mill around both before and after the show.

Make a day, or night, of it!

A funeral-based romantic comedy melodrama as the viewing fare is probably a tasteless joke on the Daitengu's part. But hey, y'all aren't still mad that they crashed their own funeral and then took off laughing, right?

Right?

The Department of the Enma members are told that they're going to be doing a team-building exercise. What exactly does that mean? That's right, it's community cleanup time! You get to clean up cans and trash in the street! You get the honor of using a department-issued bike with an attached cart to wheel around the city and pick up trash! How exciting! Teamwork is encouraged, of course. Teams that collect enough garbage will get one (1) voucher for mini-golf.

Please be aware of the local homeless population as you work, they won’t be happy to see you. They normally collect the cans in the mornings as a meager source of income that you’ll be dipping into. They're probably just not happy with Enma officials in general though. Sorry!

2. IT'S RAINING, IT'S POURING...

By the time you're done with your faction-sponsored fun, the sky has decided to open up. Hope you brought your umbrella! The rain is bad enough that walking home might not be an option right now. So take refuge in one of the many nearby nightlife spots.

Not in your faction's home territory? Doesn't matter! Make some friends outside your group or maybe get into a fight and cause some trouble. There's always the third option of ignoring everyone and drinking yourself silly instead! The rain has to let up eventually… right?

Hopefully you aren't caught near one of the cursed Haniwa figures that have been popping up around town. Their aura really dampens the mood and may even start to cause some dramatic and frightening hallucinations if you and your rain-stranded friends stay near them for too long. But remember! Do not break the figurine. Just try to move it somewhere else? And hopefully not get drenched in the process.

Welcome to the IC mingle!

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[If Cloud's silent, it's because he's listening attentively to what Kim is telling him - the man clearly has a good grip on the situation, even if he readily admits the greater scope is beyond him. No, because Kim admits the greater scope is beyond him, he's more reliable - trust someone who admits they don't know everything more than someone who does.]

... The territory was originally Sutoku - but the Daitengu doesn't want it back. [He's vocalizing his thoughts - he's a vocal thinker, as Kim will likely be quick to deduce.] But since the attack he's only wanted Enma's attention...

[He looks off to the side, his gait slowing just a bit between the two of them. He wasn't expecting to get drawn into a mystery, but it is his luck that he is already.]

...Could be that whatever was there - it's not anymore. Has anyone examined the area in detail? If the Daitengu doesn't want it back, presumably whatever was there that made them hold onto it no longer is there.

...And if they don't care about the territory, then maybe they care about who got away with whatever was actually important.

Or if they do want it back, they're not in a hurry to claim it while the turf war is ongoing. Whatever it is, it's not their primary concern.

[ While Kim hadn't been expecting to go into this much detail with this man, he can't say he's opposed to it. There's some deeply ingrained instinct in him that recognizes this as good and natural and the only way anyone ever finds answers; while Kim had been working solo for much of his career, he knows that he never does as good work as he does when he has someone to volley ideas off of.

He has no way of knowing Cloud's intentions or what they will be, but for now, they're on the same side. Knowledge may be power, but this is the sort of knowledge he thinks everyone ought to have access to. They need to know what they're fighting for, and why. ]

You're on the money, though. There was some project the Kappa were working on that was kept under lock and key. Every time we tried to get close, they'd kick us out -- quite literally. They had taken to throwing people into the river. I don't know why they cooperated with whoever headed that project, but whatever reason that was, it didn't pay off.

[ Kim sighs, shaking his head. ]

And after the assassination - or perceived assassination - whatever was hidden under there was promptly removed. As were the Kappa. As it stands, our clan's motivations remain the most myopic, even to its own members. If I had to guess what it was... a weapon? Some other piece of advanced technology? [ He shrugs. ] That would be a bit cliche, though.

Cliches are cliches for a reason. [ He shrugs a bit in the rain. ] Secret projects are the kind of thing I'm used to running into.

[ He lets that simmer, a secret project - and not even other Sutoku members were looped in. Kim might not know Cloud's intentions, but Cloud is naturally inquisitive about these things. Maybe later, Kim will understand what drives Cloud. ]

If whatever was down there isn't their primary concern - then something else has moved up in priority. Something involving the Enma. It can't be the turf was - we're keeping to the side as a third party.

...No good answers.

No good answers, [ Kim echoes, nodding his head. ] Speculation is all well and good -- we may even get close to the truth. But it doesn't matter unless we have evidence for it, and unless it is something that is actionable.

[ How many times has he discovered what is truthful, only to have his hands tied by the MoralIntern, more concerned with maintaining the status quo than listening to what he really had to say? More times than he's willing to admit. No, he thinks. The truth doesn't matter unless you can do something with it. Otherwise, you'll be stuck in-between, wondering why the hell you bothered figuring it out if there was nothing to be done about it.

He tucks his hands behind his back, looking straight ahead as he ponders this, then snaps himself out of it. ]

That's for later. And for when you haven't just arrived, I think. What do you mean, you're used to running into secret projects?

Ah- [ Honestly, truth be told, he isn't used to people asking him about it. Throwaway comments like that are his bread and butter. But Kim is sharp enough - and really, after their talk, he's at least starting to feel more comfortable with the man. ]

... [ He's silent for a beat, thinking of the best way to explain it. ]

I'm ex-SOLDIER. An experimental military division from back home. We're... changed. Augmented. The group that made people like me - Shinra Electric - owns the largest city in the world.

[ Cloud is usually composed, but there's a bit of a grim stare here - not at Kim, but at something in the distance, only he can see. ] And we're public-facing. Shinra has all sorts of top secret projects, hidden laboratories - just in the city alone. Anywhere there's a mako reactor - you can bet Shinra has something going on behind the scenes.

[ Truthfully, it's the most he's said to anyone of his situation, beyond those who already would have known. Kim has a level head and a steady hand, which gives him enough reason to trust the man. ]

Edited 2022-06-18 21:52 (UTC)

[ Shinra. Shinra, Shinra... where has Kim heard that name before? Not for the first time, he's grateful for his infamous poker face; it means that only those who are either extremely well-acquainted with him or simply extremely observant would be able to see the flicker of recognition that passes across his face. He knows exactly where he heard that word now: from Aerith, when she was speaking about her home and those who relegated her and her people to live in sunless poverty for the rest of their days. It's not that fact in and of itself that makes him hold his tongue on the matter: it's because she has told him that there are those with power that would take her and use them for their own ends, for profit, for greed, for standing.

It's not that Cloud has made anything other than a good impression on him thus far, but Aerith's safety counts for much more than Kim's gut feeling. He doubts anyone working on the ground level for Shinra has enough to do with their upper machinations, but one doesn't need to give orders to be a danger, merely follow them. It's not as though Kim hasn't had his own experiences with mercenaries, eager to carry out what they were told even if they are not truly responsible for the thrust of the wars they involve themselves in.

He makes a mental note to ask Aerith about Cloud next time he sees her. Just to make certain that he's not entangling himself with anyone that could be a danger to her. But still, that he is ex-SOLDIER is promising, and it would be incredibly hypocritical of Kim to believe everyone who works for such an organization is bad news in and of themselves. Especially those who could be considered victims of that very same system. Cloud's stare, stormy as it is, is telling enough.

Augmented soldiers. Like something out of a science-fiction novel. While his mind churns, he says out loud, ] So you're familiar with secret projects because, at some point in time, the division you belong to was one. [ They didn't start public-facing, that's for damn sure. Things like that never do. ]

It sounds like a complicated world you come from, Cloud. But you said ex-SOLDIER. That's got to be rare. Any organization that holds that much power, and any organization that has spent enough resources on their soldiers, wouldn't be likely to let them go. [ Not unless they were more of a liability than they were an asset. ] Am I right?

Used to belong to. [ Don't take it personally, Kim. Making sure people know he was ex-SOLDIER is something of a habit of Cloud's. It's not the first time Cloud's loyalty has been tested, and it's certainly far from the last. ] But... yeah. That's right. I'm sure I don't know the whole history, but given Hojo- [ Kim will notice there's something to the way Cloud says that name. An edge of restrained venom in his voice. A break in his more reserved affectation. ] you're probably dead on.

And you're right. Even if a SOLDIER does retire, Shinra would have the reach and power to monitor them their whole life, keep them from spilling any secrets. If they did, they'd probably have them executed on the spot.

The only reason they didn't catch me- [ There's... a moment. Kim catches it, in that way where someone is pausing to collect their thoughts. Cloud doesn't look, entirely sure of himself. There's a flicker of the eyes that even he might honestly have not realized as one thought has to connect to another. ]

Is... they thought I was already dead.

[ There's a conviction behind that part, despite his brief uncertainty. If nothing else, Cloud is certain that Shinra thought he was already dead. ]

[ In Kim's long years as a police officer, he's learned that reading people isn't only about reading what they say. It's not that be believes Cloud is being dishonest - he doesn't - but reading someone's body language can be just as helpful. Even in the midst of the rain pounding down against their shoulders and through his own poor vision, he sees as Cloud drifts through different emotions, but more than that, he notices -- something else. An emptiness. A moment's confusion. A flicker, as though Cloud had been trying to remember the name of a novel that he had read many years ago instead of recalling something that is undoubtedly important to the very core of his existence, the only reason he managed to escape what was an unenviable position.

It reminds him immediately of someone else. On a smaller scale, perhaps, but he could see it in Harry, when he was trying to match the disjointed threads of his life together, making connections about his own experiences like a detective rather than someone who has lived through it.

He doesn't care to point it out, though. He doesn't with Harry, and he won't with Cloud. Whatever he's carrying with him, he deserves the same patience that Kim would offer to anyone else. ]

I see, [ he says, as neutrally and as thoughtfully as though he had noticed nothing at all. ] That tracks with what I know about organizations such as those. You're a bit too young for them to relinquish freely. It seems like you got lucky. Though I'm willing to guess the circumstances of your apparent death were anything but.

Had you been wanting to leave for a while?

[ Had he been wanting to leave for a while? It's... It's hard to say, exactly. Cloud knows he wanted to leave after what happened to Nibelheim, but when and how he came to that conclusion was... hazy, at best. There's that same uncertainly in his eyes, briefly, before he responds. ]

Not... exactly. I didn't know I wanted to leave until something- until something happened. A mission I was on. It put everything else into focus.

[ He gets a faraway look as he tries to talk about it. Even now, it's hard. ] The whole village... it was burned down that day. After that - I knew I needed to get away. Needed to hide.

[ An entire village burning down. A horrible, tragic thing -- and traumatizing to witness, no doubt. But after the stories Kim has heard about the behaviour of ordinary soldiers, storming land that is not rightfully there, he is less surprised by that than he feels he ought to be. In any case, his stoicism doesn't give anything away.

It would not have been the first village that burned down. Only the first that Cloud had seen. But he's not in any position to judge Cloud, not knowing how these organizations work, how little you know until you're in the midst of it. He's only in the position to exercise caution. Not for himself, but certainly for another who may be impacted by SOLDIER's misdeeds.

Some say a traumatizing enough event can be enough to scramble your brains, to make you forget. Perhaps that's what happened to Cloud. ]

And so you pretended that you fell in battle and took your leave, [ he says, nodding. ] There may well be others like you out there. Who couldn't stand what they were doing, and fled. [ Maybe, maybe not. Who knows? He blinks out into the darkness. ]

...maybe it's fortunate for you that you're here, where they cannot find you.

[ The way Kim tells it, it doesn't sound... exactly right. Like there's something missing. But he took his leave. That much he knows. And he knows they thought him dead - but the rest of it is harder to confirm. Though- the way Kim says it, it feels factual enough. ]

Yeah. [ He adds, after a small moment of introspection. ] I ended up back in Midgar anyway - looking for work as a mercenary. From there, I fell in with some people who weren't exactly keen on Shinra, either.

It can be hard to run when the place you're running from has so much reach. And all that money's going the same way.

...and they don't mind your past? Or they don't know of it?

[ Fell in with people. Would one of those be Aerith? When it comes to people who are from unique worlds, he's noticed that most of them seem to know each other. And Aerith's view on Shinra is less than sunny. She had been willing to share that much with him, a complete stranger at the time. ]

Or, I suppose, nothing affirms their beliefs quite as much as finding someone who was previously of their ranks who wound up fleeing. [ They turn the corner, deeper into the residential area where Sutoku's Lost Souls live. He can understand their position, in a matter of speaking. He can't help but think of his contract, written in stark black and white, the offer held tantalizingly above his head: a free Revachol. Out of the MoralIntern's control, their skies, their freedom, their destiny theirs once more. What had consumed him then wasn't longing, but panic: is that what he wants? And how did they know that?

Perhaps something similar is in Cloud's own contract. He doesn't know, and he won't ask. But he'll wonder. ]

The last one. They know. Though the man in charge still suspected me for a bit. Had to prove myself to them. Go on a dangerous mission, do some dangerous things.

[ This paints one Barret Wallace in a worse light than he might be intending - but skirting around the issue of his acts of eco-terrorism is, well, a necessary line to draw for someone he doesn't know that well, just yet. It's not a lie, but it's deliberately skirting around the edges - giving Kim something to chew on, while keeping the details closer to his chest. It's almost certainly something the detective has seen before. ]

We eventually got along. Still butt heads every once in a while. [ That much was definitely true. Cloud and Barret had very clashing personalities, if nothing else. ] In the end, we all want to push Shinra out of people's lives. The reasons aren't as important as the result.

Edited 2022-07-16 01:09 (UTC)

I see. So you fell into a group of counter-culture activists, and they had you prove your mettle by engaging in... [ He waves a vague hand. ] I suppose what you call it would depend on your perspective on the matter.

[ If Kim feels any which way about it, he doesn't show it. The neon lights form the nightlife around them bounce off of the lens of his glasses, reflecting red and blue and orange, the overall effect as impenetrable as his expression is.

In truth, he's only not saying more out of respect for Aerith. After what he's heard about Shinra, he has no love for them in his heart. He is familiar with the dangers of accepting one person's perspective as the only valuable one, but Aerith's is all that he has, and he would be a liar to say that his heart is impossible to sway. It is only impossible to sway in a world that is his own, he supposes, after long enough of being ground up into dirt and grime and dust. ]

Your ex-employers would call it terrorism, no doubt. And after all that, proving your worth, getting started in a new cause -- you have found yourself here. [ A place run by forces as unreachable as Shinra was in his own home, no doubt. ]

That must feel very unfair.

...It is what it is.

[ He tries to shrug it off, but an aside glance does perhaps clue Kim into the fact that there are some worries that Cloud has, being here. Whatever those worries are, though, it's clear he doesn't plan on elaborating in detail. ]

You don't exactly get to say what's fair in life when you're a mercenary - doubly so if you're one that isn't on Shinra's payroll. There's not a lot of gain to be had bemoaning it - so it's better to have the skill to handle it.

[ It's a genuine remark, even if Kim might note there's something altogether performative about it - it's a very roundabout way to say he agrees with Kim, that it is unfair. At the same time, a lot of effort is put into making sure he doesn't feel like he gets to complain. Either out of a desire to be seen as reliable, or perhaps something else. ]

We'll see how these groups stack up to Shinra - doubt they could be worse, but... [ But Kim's intuition is on the money - Cloud isn't the type to trust organizations have his back. ]

Nobody gets a say in what's fair. You have no less power than a washerwoman. Everyone has to handle that, whether they like it or not.

[ Perhaps Cloud has more power. To fight for what he believes in, to have the power of his own physical acumen on his side, to choose which side to fight for. All of the regular people caught in the middle have nothing to do but try to survive to the next day. People who are able to use force in order to exert their will - Kim included; it had been on his mind when he'd first signed up with the RCM, bright-eyed and bushytailed - will always have more than the people who are just swept up with the rest of it.

But they don't have that much power. Not like the people who are truly in charge. They're merely caught in the in-between, of people who have just enough that they can't complain about it in the same way that others can, entirely at the mercies of the powers that be. He glances over at Cloud, mouth twitching at the corner. ]

In any case, let's not test fate with questions like those. I don't think we'd like the answers. [ He slows to a stop, just in front of Sutoku housing. It looms before them, poorly kept and in shambles, fitting of the fact that it had been freely given to them. Kim could probably move out if he wanted to by now, but he doesn't. It honestly feels a bit like home. He stares up at his own apartment, with a little squat mint plant peeking through the window. ] At the very least, we have a roof over our heads. You're still living here too, yes?

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May 2022 IC Mingle

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