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(Setting) Uni's Apartment
| > Right from the other side of the apartment, a faint sound of items falling to the ground can be heard.
"C-coming!"
> It was shortly followed by a loud response to those standing in front of the door.
"A moment please!"
> It seems apparent that Uni wasn't preparing for the sudden arrival of REM.
> Minutes later, the door opens, a feminine figure stands behind it; she is dressed in a formal business suit, her deep azure hair was let loose, untied.
| >REM sort of stood stunned for a moment. Eventually when he had hold of himself he whistled, clearly impressed.
"Wow! You seriously clean up, don't you?"
> He laughed before his eyes glew with curiosity.
"What are you so dressed up for? Should I not have come so late...? You look like you're about to go out on the town!"
| "B-but this is the only clothing I have—"
> Something clicks in her mind.
"Come—.. come in then."
> Their voices echo throughout the hallway. It felt as if the apartment was devoid of life except for the two here.
| >REM blinked at that and nodded once.
"Oh. Okay~. Makes sense. Still it looks good."
>He'd say before walking inside and laughing a little.
"I apologize after I read that thread all kinds of ideas popped up in my head. But eh...I figured we were just going to talk like normal. Sorry my little joke got you in such a weird conversation online."
| "You're pretty lucky though. A lot of people seem to care about you."
| > The inside of the apartment was, albeit cleaned up, still giving the vibe of unkempt.
> Various trinkets and miscellanea can be seen; on the west side of the wall was seemingly shiny collection of 'weapons' consisting of a Five-Seven and a numerable knives.
> Two tall bookshelves can be seen next to them; they seem to only contain books from the millenia that has passed, however.
> Apart from that, the apartment was looking as normal as possible for Glitch City's standards.
| "S-s-sorry if it's still messy.."
> She gestures REM to sit... on the floor.. as she has absolutely no chairs whatsoever in her apartment.
| >REM noticed the lack of chairs. He didn't seem to mind though. Seeing her gesture made him shrug and move to sit down as well. He scooted up to the wall and rested his back against it. He gazed at the books thoughtfully trying to read the titles...
"You have quite a collection of stuff~. Nah don't worry about it, my apartment is a disaster area. This place looks like a maid kept it in comparison."
| > Some of the book titles have faded, some are seemingly not in English, but some are clear: "Oedipus", "Methodical Intelligence", "Communism: A Deep Look", "Death of Arthur", "Destroying Gods: Our Hand at Atomic Bombs"
> They are all neatly tiled in a pattern, the English book are positioned down and the foreign ones are on the top.
> All of them gives of a very stramhe sense of antiquity — as if she were collecting them like a museum.
| "Aah-is that so.."
> She sat a shy distance away from REM, her mind running through some checks to make sure she hadn't forgotten something.
"Sorry, I don't have any... thing for the treat, I-I could buy you a tea or a drink quickly if you want—"
| "So...My name is Andres."
>REM interrupted casually...He gazed at that particular book 'Death of Arthur'. His eyes were distant and thoughtful as he did this. He turned his gaze toward Uni and waved her over with a small smile....before digging into his hoodie and pulling out two hot green tea cans. Both of which still gave off heat. Seemed he had them in isolated sleeves so they'd stay arm and also not burn his hands.
| >>124373
> The particular book has a fading 'sword' symbol near its text, which, even from afar, is visible.
"T-that's.."
> His introduction surprised her, but what even more so was the tea that he brought.
"Thank.. you. You are my guest.. I should be the one treating you, but—"
| "Eh. I'm not really into all that formal stuff. I realized me telling you my actual name isn't like a gain or anything. Really the deal we made was tilted in my favor."
>Andres said with a soft shrug and sheepish smile.
"I'm not even sure why I introduced myself to you as 'REM'...It's just a thing I do sometimes."
| > Andres aimed her tea at her carefully so that she could take hold of the can.
"If you don't want to talk about what you said, that's fine...I kind of just wanted any old excuse to talk to you anyway."
| "Haha, that name sure did cause confusion in the end, huh."
> She softly laughed, remembering the thread she made.
"Well—.. I'm just glad that someone wants to listen to my part of the story."
> She took an exhale before approaching one of the bookshelf; trying to find a peculiar archive in there.
> She draws out several folders, tied tightly using a makeshift tie.
"—Let's start then."
| (Would you look at that, that was a near-retcon material)
| > Before she continues, however, she sees the tea can and picked it up. A thought pops up in her head.
"—Our talk always begin with a beverage, hm?"
> She smiled at her own realization.
| >He laughed also and shrugged.
" YEAH! It was pretty great though that it exploded into such a mess."
>He grinned and leaned forward, resting his chin in his hands. He listened to her carefully and nodded honestly.
"Heh~. Well good drink seems to always accompany a good tale, right?"
>He offered a light shrug and wordlessly gestured that he was ready to listen.
| "R-right."
> Exhaling she prepares to tell her tale. She opens one of the folder.
"—After a whole seven decades, I'm finally opening this again."
> Cutting off the makeshift tie, the folder flips open. The papers contained inside has "Confidential" stamped unto them.
> Filing through the papers, she pulls out one of them; its text has mostly faded, but it was still readable.
"The Scanate. Project Stargate. This is where I'll start."
| "Have you ever heard of its name? The infamous project doomed to failure? Made by the old CIA itself — they wanted power; so they seek the unknown."
> Her eyes wander through the paper she held.
"That was they told the masses. Truthfully, that wasn't always what they seek."
| (*that was what they told […] Good job on the storytelling, Uni.)
| "To cut through these unbearable number of archived papers, let's go onto where ties to me."
> She passes the paper to Andres, promoting him to read it.
> The paper content is what most would expect: a huge 'Confidential' is stamped on its heading, its title is as clear as day, "Reports for: Subject #7"
> Just near the title, a codename was written, "UNI"
| >Andras accepted the papers before taking a quick sip of his tea and setting it aside. He then leaned back properly and scanned over them at first....before reading it properly from start to finish. Hearing Uni's tone and the way the atmosphere seemed to shift...he'd realized he was dealing with something serious and something he'd be inclined to take to the grave afterward---at least that was how he felt.
| > The paper Andres held still was full of context to Uni's story. Although most of its content have faded, there seems to be handwritten notes that helps to highlight what it was meant to hold.
> '2002'
> 'Continuation?'
> 'Future-sighting, remote-viewing'
> 'Internal subject'
> 'Possible success'
> 'Transport(?)'
> 'Hold for confidentiality'
> All of the highlight were seemingly made in a hurry.
| "I—.. I only realized this now. Recently. After the eye has given its rest."
> Upon further inspection, her left eye wasn't glowing this time; signifying that it must've been off or turned off.
| "To think that I have been held hostage for such a long time by it—"
> She opens her can of tea, taking a small sip at it.
"—H-hostage isn't really the apt word.. but... I don't have anything better to describe it."
| "... But that bears the question, how long have I been a hostage, exactly?"
> Her mood glooms in mix with confusion.
"I said seven decades, but that was only my approximation from the year written there."
> Her questions felt as if she were going down a deep rabbit hole.
"Where was I all this time, before I was in Glitch City?"
| > He watched her quietly for a moment and smiled empathetically, as if he understood her feelings. He stood and gently moved to place a hand on her shoulder.
" Seven decades, huh? You mean I've been hitting on an old lady all this time?"
> He teased in attempt to lighten the mood.
"Take your time. Stuff like this....can't be processed in just a few minutes. The world isn't that simple. Especially not for us."
> He then looked down at the papers thoughtfully.
"What was it like?"
| >>124487
"Haha—.. I'm not that old!"
> She reacted to Andres' joke, accompanying his attempt to make the mood better.
"I.. don't know. Life was always life, as I remember it. Hell, I don't even remember I was even in that project."
> She flips over the folder once more. She takes what looks to be a badge; it was a badge from CIA itself. A text was imposed on the badge, "Uni"
"My earliest memory of life was arriving in Glitch City. How odd, isn't it?"
| "But then as I see more and more people, I felt that I was unaware of what was even happening."
> She pauses, gazing at the badge with some hint of lost nostalgia.
"—Then before I know it, the eye breaks, and a whole new world unveils in front of me."
| "And thus, I was already where I am: a visitor of a missing time, deranged and broken."
> Her words reminded herself of AnoMeat and Shepherd; their issue was quite close to hers.
"—My home isn't here, or anywhere in this world. It's in the past; all these are simply lies."
| "Not true. Home is where ever you decide it is. The past is just a foggy memory that may never have been true in the first place."
> Andres replied with a small smile.
"You belong where ever you decide to belong. Feel free to quote that. It's a pretty good line."
| ".... I guess you are right."
> She gave a light smile as well.
"Well, once I get the eye fixed, I wouldn't have to worry about any of these—"
> She remembers another line from one of those papers.
"Because apparently, my task was to jot down every single events happening here— in the city where chaos reigns."
> Realizing that the mood has turned bitter for the conversation, she directs it to another topic.
| "H-hey, wait here for a moment."
> She stands up, and peeks over her "wall of hanged items", she pulls out a small coin and throws it at Andres.
"Here, catch!"
|
"Ah. So you plan to have it fixed? Even though..."
>Andres questioned curiously. He thought on that for a while and shrugged. If it was what she wanted...He turned when he was called and blinked when suddenly something was thrown in his direction. He caught it with some adjustment and hasty intent not to drop it. Then he examined it curiously. His black ringed dark blue eyes widen.
"...Ah? A coin?"
>He immediately examined it for a date. He'd not seen a coin in a long time.
| >>124513
> It's a very old coin, in a few area on it, strange rune glows in a dim contrasted purple.
> The coin itself is not a mere coin, from what it is seems, "Seal of the President of the United States of America" is embellished on one of its side.
> The coin weights more than a normal coin, giving off the allusion that its gold color was actually made using real gold.
"—I will have to fix the eye in the end.. but thank you for listening my story."
| "I can't say I didn't do it out of selfish curiosity, but you're welcome."
> Andres replied with a smile as he tossed the coin upward and caught it. He flipped it a couple of times before stuffing it inside of his breast pocket.
"Seems like talking to someone did you some good too."
| "Y-yeah, you are right."
> She felt a weight in her chest removed at ease, but she can't help but feel that she has more to say; holding back the thought, she moves the topic to something less secretive.
"S-so! That's my story. W-what about yours? What is your 'what' and 'when'?"
| >Andres stared at Uni thoughtfully for a moment and ran a thumb against his own lips thoughtfully. His gaze was distant and serious...as if he needed to think long and hard about what he was about to say.
"...It's difficult for me to explain it without endangering a lot of people. So I'm going to tell you a story that isn't true, okay? Rather...I want you to hear it and agree with me that it isn't true."
| >>125697
"That's.. strange, but I'll follow."
> She replied, her tone still cheery but holds more seriousness in it.
| >>125707
"There are seven of us. Maybe eventually eight...or nine. It depends. We're slowly born, slowly replaced. The caretaker sees after us and when our numbers are low more of us are born."
>Andres explained distantly.
"We're all the same. Just a little different here and there. Some brighter than others, some happier...others man, while the rest women. It's never too great a deviation. We all come from the same place...from that womb not a one of us remembers the face of."
| "Most of us have no idea. Mostly because it's easier to just be a little confused and live normally."
| > As her attention was focused on listening to Andres, she oftenly sips her tea.
> There were words trying to come out of her mouth, but she stops; thinking that it's best to listen.
| "I could say what we are. But I think you already comprehend. In a way...I kind of look at Lilims as our older siblings...Perhaps we're the older siblings? I'm not sure. I don't know our history."
| "Anyway...That's as much as I can say without things getting dangerous. You're smart so...I think you get it."
| "L-let's hope s-so."
> She comprehends the best she can, her thought was lifted the moment she figures out what Andres is talking about in his story.
"Wait does th—"
> Her words were snapped, she immediately remembers that the story is both false and much more of a secret than it is.
"—Nevermind. I-I guess I have the general picture."
> She softly said, having another sip at her tea.
| > Andres smiles as he watches her thought processes from her expressions.
"No...I think you get it. Maybe you're a little off or on the right track but...I think you get it. See why I'm hesitant to be straight forward?"
| > Suddenly, she chuckles in realization.
"You know, normally I would write this in a paper. I would document everything like my life depended on it. B-but.."
> She remembers her broken left eye again.
".. I guess that rush of willpower was no more when I'm left with my own thought, haha–"
| (And that's how I almost got retcon'd but then I also realized how the words still fit anyway, haha.)
| ( xD It's fine it's fine~. Uni's words fit everywhere! )
| > Andres smiled brightly at that and ran a hand through his own hair in thought.
"Wow...So this is how you felt when you spoke? Geeze...I feel like a new man."
> He laughed soon after and relaxed, even kicking his legs out and stretching. He then reached over to get his tea and took a sip of it.
"We should be friends. We can talk like this...Over and over again. Just whenever we feel like. What do you think?"
| "Ah-uhm.. y-yeah, we shall!"
> Awkwardly and with stutters, she spoke; in her mind, she remembers the board thread she posted.
".. For as long as I can stay here—.. let's be friend."
> She smiled at Andres, her expression overflowing with happiness.
| > As she stops speaking, her eyes flicker quickly, glowing in a dim red glow before dissipating.
> She probably didn't feel any of that happening, however.
| > He sighed, clearly refreshed. Even energized. He gazed up at her with a mixture of gratitude and happiness, then just sort of stared into outer space with that expression.
"You know...I'm surprised. What made you trust me enough to do this again? I mean...You chose correctly. I'm the kind that secrets die with. I forget them. I keep them sealed away...I even think about how mine might not be mine to speak."
>He turned his head and blinked.
"Oh. Keep calling me 'REM' in public."
| >>125857
"W-why I chose you, hm.."
> She wonders to herself, not finding a single good reason.
"H-h.. I guess fate leads me to my decisions?"
> That was nowhere close to her reason, but it was the only plausible and sensible one.
"'REM', okay. I will keep that.. in mind."
| " You realize you're really easy to read, right?"
> Andres replied with a cheeky grin.
" We just told serious secrets a second ago...Surely you can speak freely about it. Wasn't it just a strange whim?"
| >>125864
"Ah-uhm.. am-am I?"
> She nervously tried to rebut, but it's clear that it had failed.
"T-to be fair, the eye was the one that led me to.. to talk to you."
> It was a strange reason, but it was the truth for as long as she remembers it.
"After all, without the eye, I might still be stuck with my secret — probably until the end of me."
| "Oh I see...Heh~. I'm curious about the eye as well. Perhaps it knew what I was ahead of you."
> Andres took a tip of his tea again and noted with interest that it'd not yet gone cold. These insulators were amazing.
"So. What's your favorite thing to collect?"
| >>125875
> Hearing Andres' question, she looks around her, various trinkets and items she had amassed was all visible.
"I-I guess I don't have any favorites per se, but—"
> She snaps her finger, a sharp whirring sound can be heard coming from all direction, and all of the sudden, a book gushes in a straight line — dashing and flying to Uni's direction.
> She catches the book; it looked as if doing all that was a normality for her.
> The book itself is plain and untitled.
| > She opens the book, smiling at some of the pages she open.
"I'm.. more of an archaeologist than an item collector. I write, describe, and.. uhm.. 'study' these things."
> It's clear that she definitely had stolen some of them from an unknown place and an unknown time.
"Books are.. my favorite, I guess—"
> The book was more of a journal than a novel. She highlights the pages; it was a story from bigone days about life and romance.
| >Andres looked impressed. He watched how she handled the interesting item and carefully took in its image.
"Oh? What are your favorite kinds of books? Perhaps I'll help your collection?"
>He'd offer with a thoughtful smile.
"Though...I'm not too familiar with books myself. I'm used to screens, both physical and holographic...Only just recently have I handled paper."
>He'd say this while holding up those that Uni had given him.
"Thank you for the pleasure of that, by the way."
| >>127550
"Y-yeah, it's fine."
> Backtracing Andres' words, she thinks of her catalogue of books.
"Favorite kind of books.. I think those that potrays life — in realism — thus, I think.. I think that as long as it is a book about life and its problem; be it romance or drama."
> Her response was fluent, different from her usual stuttering response.
"Don't worry! I don't consider myself familiar with books as well."
> She later added.
| "Romance, huh?"
> Andres replied with a playful cat-like smile.
"That's pretty girlish of you. Then again I can't say there's anything wrong with a little romance...I wonder if that's why you got so flustered about that thread~."
| >>127745
"H-h—N-no, o-obviously not!"
> Her face goes red the instant she hears Andres' response.
"B-besides.. romance is an e-easily relatable genre—"
> She spoke, her attentions darted to the bookshelf before returning to the conversation.
"But romance isn't all I love, no. I wholeheartedly love tales of heroes, fantasy — whom days have already passed."
| >Andres laughed and leaned forward with his arms resting on his legs. He listened intently to her words and nodded lightly.
"Tales of heroes...You know that makes me think. This city really does have it all doesn't it? Adversity, heroes, villains...Stories of all kinds from those of romantic luxurious lives to tragic pain filled tales of sorrow. Even mysterious things...Is that what drew you here? What drew the eye to this place?"
| "T-that is actually true. In a sense."
> She leaned, letting her arms support her weight. She closed her eyes, letting her thoughts sink deeply.
"This city is an endless stream of story — no. The city is, by itself, a giant saga and epic waiting to be scribed—"
> She exhales, her eyes open in an instant; the left eye glowing in a dazzling blue neon.
"—Is what the eye would have made me agree to say."
| "But the actual suffering, the fact that is truth is what makes it hard to romanticize. Right? It's not something to be enjoyed or looked at as entertainment."
> Andres said himself with a thoughtful sigh.
"Still...It's impressive. The people that live here. All of them. Including us. Perhaps if things were different an entire series of books could be made of the stories here. Then again I guess that's still possible even with the reality of things."
| "So, Uni. What do you actually feel?"
| "What do I.. feel?"
> Taking in a moment to let the eye's light dissipate, she mentally readies herself for an answer.
"—Conflicted, I guess. By the end of the day, I'm not someone that belongs here. Technically."
> 'Technically' was given an emphasis by her.
"This all have felt like a dream. How did I know or care all this when I, myself, don't know about my own past? But that's a selfish though—"
> She ends her message with a smile.
|
| "Is it a selfish thought? For whom else do you need to think of?"
>Andres ask curiously.
| > Her response was a small chuckle, no words was left out for a moment.
"Even still, I don't think this world will collapse on its own. It makes for a great disastrous story that never ends."
|
| "I don't think I'll fault it for being never ending. It implies that to some extent wonderful meetings and conversations like these will continue as time progresses. At least until the very concept of conversation somehow becomes phased out due to some sort of universal hivemind nonsense may devolve into."
>Andress said with an amused tone. He then stood to his feet and finished the last of his tea. He gazed at Uni for a moment longer as if admiring her and smiled.
| >Finally he headed toward the door.
"It was nice meeting you, Uni. Let's do this again real soon."
| "Y-yes, we shall!"
> She stands up, bidding Andres a farewell beforehand.
"Good luck in your future days and have a save travel, Andres."
> A smile in her face ended her words.
| "REM~."
>Andres replied with a wink.
"You too. Oh! Uh...You said my e-mail didn't work for some reason? I should fix that."
| > She startled herself, remembering that nickname Andres told for her to use whenever they're meeting.
"Wh-h-yes—.. I wasn't able to send a-any messages to it. If.. if it still doesn't work we can always use danger/u/."
| > REM took a moment in the open door and played with his cellphone.
"Let me try sending a message again."
> After doing so he finally looked up at her as if expecting to hear her phone go off.
| > There was nothing instead. No sound of notification or reminder of a received message.
"Ah-.. L-let me try."
> She draws out her phone from her pocket, toying with it in a short while.
> In an instant, a message was received by REM's phone. The message, was, however oddly scrambled and corrupted.
| "Eh...? Uhhh...Uni? Your phone might be either broken or made by a cryptologist."
>REM said with a laugh. Afterward he turned his phone around to show her what his screen looked like with her message opened.
| "Wh-wha.."
> She reacted to Andres' remark before reading the message.
"Ee-eh? I sent a "Hi", not a Where's Waldo stage."
> The more she looks at the message, the more she was aware that the message was starting to become more and more corrupted.
"H-hey, I don't think this is normal."
| > REM turned the phone to look at it himself. Wait...was it worse all of a sudden?
"No...That's not normal."
>He moved to try and delete the message.
| > The message lingers still. The phone screeches a sharp sound from the phone's microphone and speakers.
"Aagh!"
> Reacting instantly, Uni covers her ears in an attempt to save herself from the noise.
> The screeching was sharp enough to be heard by anyone in the vicinity.
| > REM jumped at the sudden screeching noise and immediately fumbled around to snatch the battery out of the phone to cut power from it immediately.
"What the..?!"
>In his fumbling he nearly drops the phone but finally closes one eye and steeles himself to deftly snatch the battery out of the phone, pretty much nearly tearing off the back to do it.
| > The screeching didn't stop, however. Uni's phone reacted to the short silence by ringing the same noise — except louder and sharper.
"S-stop it!!"
> She takes out her phone, a strobing flash of color in its screen is visible. It repeats in an unrecognizable pattern.
| "Taking the battery out didn't stop it?!"
>He tried to power it off quickly, albeit without actually even doing it right, before growling to himself and preparing to smash the phone himself---that is until the other one started screeching too! He of course notice it was flashing weird colors but he was too interested in covering his ears. Dropping his phone in the process.
| > In a haste, Uni snaps her fingers, her left eye brightly shining — she throws her phone up and behind her, before suddenly—
> A flash and a blitz away, the phone was struck and pinned by a knife to the floor. The knife seems to have flown from the wall in an inhumane speed.
> The ringing and screeching had stopped — with Uni's phone being in a state of more than broken in the process.
> Uni wasn't able to react, and is left surprised, still.
| >REM slowly opened his eyes and eased his hands off his ears once he noticed the noise had stopped.
"..."
>This of course allowed him to recognize that the phone Uni had was now pinned to the floor by a knife. He grimaced.
"Okay...So. We don't have phones now...What the hell was that...?"
| "I—.. I don't know."
> Her face looks as if she was aware of something, but isn't sure about it.
"W-well, I'm.. very sorry for that. I s-shouldn't have sent you the email."
> She takes a glance at her now-in-pieces phone — the knife had went in deep and pierced the phone in a straight angle.
| >REM shrugged softly and stood straight.
"It's fine. Contrary to popular belief, I have more than one cellphone. I have the illustrious work phone!"
> He said jokingly before examining his own phone to see if it'd even power on anymore. Rather was the weird text still there.
"Uni...What was that? I guess you don't know, huh? By the way...Nice knife throw."
| > Even with the reassurance, she still felt bad for what she has done.
"I-I don't know—.. that was a first for me."
> She pulls out the pinned knife from the floor — and from her phone. A spark of electricity bursted through, but there was nothing else after that.
"I have no idea what happened."
> She exclaimed, her voice rather weary.
|
| "Let's not worry about it for now. You sound really tired. So let's rest and revisit the issue tomorrow perhaps?"
> REM offered while moving to gently touch her shoulder, again attempting at reassurance.
"I guess we can set times on /u/ again if you don't mind being embarrassed by folks again."
>He teased playfully...again trying to keep her spirits up.
| > She weakly smiled before nodding in return.
"Y-y-yeah. Let's do that—.. sorry I interrupted your way home."
| "Don't be~. The excuse to be around a little longer was nice. If I didn't have other things to do or at the very least I could get away with not doing them, I'd see how long it'd take me to wear out my welcome."
> He'd laugh before offering a reassuring smile and turning to walk out.
"Mind if I check on you later? Iunno. Feels weird just leaving you like this...Actually...Maybe I can get away with shirking my duties for a bit? I can explain away a number of things if..."
| "Don't force yourself. P-please. I accept visits as long as you aren't forcing yourself."
> She put forth a reason, but figures that it might not be a strong enough reason to stop him from visiting.
"D-don't worry about me."
| "Heh~. Forcing myself? Don't be ridiculous."
> REM replied with a laugh. He gave Uni's shoulder a light pat and moved out the door.
"I'll check on you later. Stay out of trouble, eh?"
| > She nodded in response, but went quiet after so. A light smile was painted in her face to corroborate her expression.
This thread is permanently archived
| > Slowly REM walked up to the appartment with his hands stuffed in his baggy jeans. He wore a dark brown leather bomber jacket with an extra fluffy white fur collar. He of course had his dark greyish blue hoodie zipped up under that...but this time the hood wasn't up.
>His short blue to black gradient hair was free to drape over his brow and sway with the wind.
>When he got to the right door he rapped on it once with his knuckle.
"Uni? You there?"