piper90npcs: (Richard Washburn)
piper90npcs ([personal profile] piper90npcs) wrote in [community profile] piper902021-01-14 07:28 pm

Jorgmund Emergency Announcement

[In the middle of the night, when even the night watch shifts should be pacing through the dorm area, there’s a peal of noise from the communicators impossible to ignore or sleep through. It’s clearly an alarm of some sort, like tornado alerts back on Earth. It goes on for solid three minutes, long enough for everyone to move on from being woken by it to loathing it, before a message shows up on the communicators-

-and the doorways out of each of the dorms are sealed with a semi-translucent forcefield.

On the communicator screen, Richard Washburn shows up and straightens his tie.
]

Hello, employees. Believe me, I’m not any happier about this midnight interruption than you are, but we’re currently in a state of – mild – emergency. I don’t want anyone to get overly excited, but until the situation is resolved, you will remain in your dorms. Depending on how long this takes, all activities scheduled for tomorrow morning have been suspended.

The reason for this is that we have an intruder in your living quarters. We have this footage from a few weeks ago.

[A new image shows up on the communicator: a security camera video of a Santa Claus with a line of the highest executive-level parents and their small children waiting to tell him their wishlist. A little girl in pigtails and a sparkly t-shirt of a Christmas tree hops up onto his lap.

“Ho, ho, ho!” Santa says, and he boops her nose. “Aren’t you a peach? Tell me, little one. What would you like for Christmas?”

“I want a big plastic spider!” the girl says excitedly.

“A creepy little child, aren’t you? Well, that’s just swell, because that’s my favorite flavor,” Santa says, and then – blurry on the security camera footage – transforms into a mass of black goo, latching onto the little girl’s face and suctioning to stay on. The child’s mother screams and yanks her daughter away, and the footage shows pure pandemonium as some parents lunge forward to help the mother with her daughter while other parents snatch their own children and start running. In all the chaos, the black goo vanishes.

Washburn flicks the footage away and reappears on the screen.
]

Thankfully, there were no fatalities in this incident, and after we couldn’t find any evidence of the attacker, we assumed that it was a freak incident of the Stuff. However, there was recently another unsuccessful attack on a teenager by this same creature posing as one of the tutors on the Rig, and then again on another thankfully unharmed child disguised as another child, and then on another child under the guise of a children’s television show host named “Mr. Rogers”, and tonight-

[He takes a deep breath, annoyed, as if this is somehow the Hires’ faults.]

-tonight we found a security breach to your floor, and we have good reason to believe that the shapeshifter is posing as one of you.

We know this: we know it poses as figures appealing to children, so for obvious reasons, you won’t be allowed anywhere near any Jorgmund staff whatsoever until this is resolved. We know that its ability to disguise itself is relatively seamless. And we know that it preys on minors.

If you can determine who among you isn’t at all appealing to children, we can consider releasing you from your dorm and discussing next steps to search out whoever’s been replaced.

If this starts taking long enough that it jeopardizes the Jorgmund’s mission, we may start taking more drastic measures to ensure that we aren’t harboring any imposters.

I’ll keep you updated if you keep me updated.
bothbarrels: (PB: Now what do you say)

[personal profile] bothbarrels 2021-01-16 12:20 am (UTC)(link)
[ He knows this answer very well, because he got right into the fray with her once he realized it was happening. ]

Nine.

[ It takes him a moment to think of another question; this makes him almost smile, because it's so contradictory to how the other Freelancers probably see him. ]

How old was I when I started being able to buy beer because I was so tall?

[ It was that and a fake ID, of course, but he leaves that part out. ]
fromfryingpantofire: (A - Down/Upset)

[Text - Locked]

[personal profile] fromfryingpantofire 2021-01-16 12:34 am (UTC)(link)
[Sam doesn't like it. He doesn't like it at all. He's frowning as he pulls the comm away from his ear, tapping out a reply.]

You also know what happened with Jess in that hotel room. That's probably the easiest thing to ask me about. Guess we'll see, though.

Stay safe.
alderaani: (esb0996)

[personal profile] alderaani 2021-01-16 12:39 am (UTC)(link)
It's a start, I'm trained with weapons and fighting hand to hand.

Where can I best help?
fromfryingpantofire: (A - Considering)

[personal profile] fromfryingpantofire 2021-01-16 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
Definitely not. You've heard Ric when he gets going.

[It's mostly amusement. Especially since Julio is stuck in the room with them.]

And yeah, it probably is. I keep meaning to see if somebody has some silver, but I think that's beyond our means at the moment.

[He probably needs to see if anybody can steal some silver, really, but that's not something he's saying out loud at the moment.]
greyerrant: (helmet)

[personal profile] greyerrant 2021-01-16 12:48 am (UTC)(link)
I could almost form a squad out of them.
trialbyliar: (pic#14449513)

locked to setsuna

[personal profile] trialbyliar 2021-01-16 12:53 am (UTC)(link)
[Ah. Well then. This he can work with. He drops the train of thought that had been planning how to verify her identity if she insisted on coming to him, focusing instead on the task at hand. Casually, he adjusts some settings to lock their conversation down.]

For a magical girl, you've got some balls. That's the Ultimate Supreme Leader you're bossing around, y'know.

[He says it with a cool, condescending air, but he seems distracted. He's not even looking at the comm, instead leaning to more closely examine something on one of the other monitors.]

Buuut if you're gonna offer up your services like that, how can I resist? The game's more fun when you have more cards to play. Be a good minion and I may even reward you when this is all over.

[That's not ominous at all. But he glances back at the comm, grinning cheekily.]

So your first task is to go search the area around the rewards lounge!
parannoyed: (031)

[personal profile] parannoyed 2021-01-16 01:02 am (UTC)(link)
By all means, call the equivalent of special ops CPS and take us away from him.

"Failure to thrive" doesn't even begin to cover it.
greyerrant: (Angry Garvi)

[personal profile] greyerrant 2021-01-16 01:03 am (UTC)(link)
I am not sanguine about Mac's chances.
parannoyed: (040)

[personal profile] parannoyed 2021-01-16 01:05 am (UTC)(link)
I can't believe I'd ever say this. Ever.

Ever.

But I agree.

That said, the only thing that puts "making them stop fighting each other" even in question is she can turn into a ten foot tall monster and rip our arms off if we do something she doesn't like.
Edited 2021-01-16 01:08 (UTC)
ownperson: (pb; purple hmm)

[personal profile] ownperson 2021-01-16 01:10 am (UTC)(link)

[ South snickers for the same reasons. ]

Fuckin' sixteen. You fucking giant. Still had a few more inches on me back then, I had to catch up.

[ She taps idly as she thinks. ]

...first broken bone?

parannoyed: (005)

[personal profile] parannoyed 2021-01-16 01:12 am (UTC)(link)
And tortured an innocent AI. Don't forget that one.

Also lied to us and made us fight people who didn't actually deserve us killing them all, by lying about them being insurrectionists when our program was actually the one doing illegal things and stealing things from our own government.
xrater: (02)

[personal profile] xrater 2021-01-16 01:15 am (UTC)(link)
I believe I mentioned 'your friends'.
parannoyed: (033)

[personal profile] parannoyed 2021-01-16 01:19 am (UTC)(link)
You know, I won't even deny it. That was his entire MO.

Case in point: he fished you out of a diaper pail.

[Taaaakes one to know ooone.]
bothbarrels: (PB: I'm considering it)

[personal profile] bothbarrels 2021-01-16 01:19 am (UTC)(link)
What, you mean that time you jumped off the top bunk and fractured your heel? Six.

How about...

[ He taps his chin with a finger. ]

Tell me about the first place I got us banned from.
Edited 2021-01-16 01:27 (UTC)
parannoyed: (005)

[personal profile] parannoyed 2021-01-16 01:21 am (UTC)(link)
I wouldn't say the Alpha was a friend.

He was kind of an asshole.

But fair point.
walkingballpit: (39)

[personal profile] walkingballpit 2021-01-16 01:22 am (UTC)(link)
Wait - the superheroes? If anyone should be dealing with this, it’s the superheroes.

And who says I’m a superhero? Super anything is super subjective.
xrater: (Default)

[personal profile] xrater 2021-01-16 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
I'm sorry, I must have missed the part where children hated primary colors, bad jokes, and messages about good triumphing over evil delivered with the flaky crusts of fruit snack pies.

You've literally been a member of a team called the Legion of Super Heroes.
ownperson: (pb; purple smug look)

[personal profile] ownperson 2021-01-16 01:36 am (UTC)(link)

I've gotten way better at jumping off of shit since then.

[ She rolls her eyes dramatically and kicks him in the shin. ]

Oh, god, Drew. The fucking basketball court at the park. They were bitching at us again because we kicked their asses all the time and then you threw a punch before I even had the chance. Fucking hypocrite of the century, I swear to fuck.

[ She tilts her head, then grins. ]

Okay, how many times did you try and fail epically to give me the talk about "being responsible" when you finally figured out I had my first girlfriend?

Edited 2021-01-16 01:54 (UTC)
walkingballpit: (42)

[personal profile] walkingballpit 2021-01-16 01:42 am (UTC)(link)
Why am I surrounded by geniuses with picture perfect memories?

And I’ll have you know orange is a secondary colour.

[ He is reduced to that as an argument. ]
bothbarrels: Jude Law (PB: Oops)

[personal profile] bothbarrels 2021-01-16 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
[ His ears turn red at the tips and he rolls his eyes at her. ]

Probably, I'm not sure, three times?

[ He sits back and dangles a leg over the edge of the bed. ]

All right, let's go waaay back. What was my favorite toy when we were like four?
ownperson: (pb; purple laughing 2)

[personal profile] ownperson 2021-01-16 02:12 am (UTC)(link)

[ South laughs. Yeah, that was the reaction she was going for. ]

Three times exactly. You tried so fucking hard but I wasn't having any of it. It was hilarious.

[ She's still grinning as she answers: ]

That fuckin' baby doll that was meant to be mine, but I never touched it and you like adopted the damn thing. ...which y'know, yeah, that makes sense, looking back.

[ Him calling Theta something like his son is still fresh in her head. Yeah. Definitely makes sense. ]

bothbarrels: (PB: Are you kidding me?)

[personal profile] bothbarrels 2021-01-16 02:26 am (UTC)(link)
And yours was that beat-up monster truck that belonged to Dad as a kid.

[ He glances at the comm device. ]

Is that enough? I mean, we're clearly both in full cahoots here.
heterochrocatic: (107 » No one's around to judge me (oh))

[personal profile] heterochrocatic 2021-01-16 02:28 am (UTC)(link)
Probably. She's way too nice to shoo them off.

[ Groan. ]

I am not awake enough for this.
heterochrocatic: (080 » Dead or alive)

Re: video;

[personal profile] heterochrocatic 2021-01-16 02:30 am (UTC)(link)
I'm not some fuzzy pet.

[ Grumble, grumble, grumble. ]

They can all get lost for all I care.
ownperson: (pb; purple neutral sideways 2)

[personal profile] ownperson 2021-01-16 02:32 am (UTC)(link)

[ After nodding in confirmation of the thing about the truck, South adds: ]

We've barely been apart in our lives, it's why we drive each other fucking nuts. Even if we can't be sure memories are enough without anything else, we can confirm basically anything the other says. Seriously. Anything.

Page 8 of 16