2020-10-07: Web of Horrors: A Meeting of Magical Investigators (Interlude)
| A Meeting of Magical Investigators | |
|---|---|
| Evie, Hector and Vic catch each other up on their investigations into the corrupted sectors in Prospect and the victims of this issue. | |
| IC Date | October 7th, 2020 |
| IC Time | Evening (around sunset) |
| Players | Evie, Hector and Vic Rasmussen |
| Location | The computer lab at the Nexus |
| Prp/Tp | Web of Horrors |
| Spheres | Mage |
| Theme Song | a metal cover of "Take On Me" by A-ha |
Its less than an hour before sunset and Vic is eating 'dinner' at the Nexus' computer lab. Microwaved burrito and popcorn with a bottle of pink fluid in a re-used Snapple(tm) bottle which has had the label meticulously removed from it. A large container of popcorn and a microwavable popper is next to the Keurig and microwave as well as a matched pair of salt and pepper shakes, an herb dispenser and a canister of olive oil Pam(tm).
Along with her meal, Vic has her laptop set up and she's occasionally putting hands to keyboard - after wiping them on a paper towel - as she's hammering away at a code project. From where it is tucked into her bra, her smartphone is playing a metal cover of A-ha's "Take On Me".
It's still early fall, and still plenty warm out, but Evie shows up in a full blown Eevee hoodie that's about a size too big for her. And she might have already eaten. And she's got notebook and pen to take notes with, since this is apparently one big info-dump session going on here. The choice of tunes does not go unappreciated, though, as she starts bopping along once she's in earshot of Vic's phone.
Hector strolls in, reading his cellphone and sipping on a Big Gulp. He sees people chilling and gives a nod, "Sup?" he says as he takes off his backpack and flops down into a chair.
Vic looks up from the computer and smiles. "Hey there Evie and Aitch-two!" she says excitedly before asking, "Anything new and exciting going on?" as if she wasn't expecting them - or at least someone worth speaking with - to show up at about this point in her evening meal.
Evie waves. "Heya Vic! Hector! I'm getting used to these VR glasses - thanks Hector - and, well. Digital Web is definitely /unique/. Until a few days ago I just assumed it was a fancier Internet, but it's starting to look like its own realm. Kinda like the Umbra, or a Tron-ified version of regular space. Also I almost talked a mad scientist out of blowing up Frankenstein." She mutters at herself with that. "Emphasis on almost, and that's a bit of its own story."
Hector nods a bit at what Evie says, "Sorta, if the Umbra was ever-expanding and people could change any facet of it's reality by exerting their imagination through coding or magic, or better yet, the combo. Just be careful where you go. Did you guys get my email about Sector 3 - that creepy neighborhood that loops in on itself and stuff?" (i.e. what i paged the other day)
"Heard about that yeah," Vic says, "So you two are looking into the link dead people also? Cause I have information I've gathered and some that was given to me by another investigator - one of two I've connected with in the last week."
Evie curls up into a seat and pulls her legs in close when Hector brings up that creepy sector. "Okay.... so I though I'd come to terms with my mortality but the description you gave left me rather unsettled. Like, there's knowing you'll die and then there's /seeing/ it happen. And I'm already acutely aware of worse fates... AND you have to get killed in the sector to leave. Nope on a nope sandwich, I'm out. All yours there." She softly whimpers right into her knees. "Moral support for a mad scientist? That was kinda fun. But voluntary horrorterrors? Noooooo thank you."
Hector nods, "Ya, though I couldn't remote view the sectors with just my mental mojo, and going in alone seemed like a dumbass idea, so I got the info secondhand, but def reliable." he sips his soda and then looks to Evie, "I mean, just code up a suicide prog linked to a mental command. You get stuck just pop it, it derezzes you and you reboot in your homebase. That way you can just ditch if you gotta, no uh, torture."
Vic reaches out to her laptop and taps a quick note, to remind her to follow Hector's suggestion. "Did any of you find any evidence of the minds of the five victims?" she asks, also adding, "Or are you aware of much about them even yet?" as a follow up question before taking the cap of her bottle and drinking from it.
Evie shoots Hector a glare. "Nope. Nope nope nope. Still dying. And then I get tracked, and then some demonic Nephandi whispers or something tell me I should jump into an evil fucking vortex... HARD pass on sector 3 for me. I can work on setting up a killbox or whatever for the funeral director's tracking program, but I'm not diving into that hellscape. Won't blame anyone else for doing the same - should probably just quarantine it from the outside."
Evie's ready to just leave it at that, not seeming to have a lead that Vic is looking for... but. She might just have that lead. "So in sector 1 - a Frankenstein-Dracula hybrid - there was an eldritch abomination where von Neumann's... er, Frankenstein's monster should have been. So many faces, so hideous, and I swear it was sucking in all the surrounding Quintessence. I think it was even willing me towards it - I felt drawn in its general direction the entire time - it got so bad I had to intentionally will myself not to jump in the Lovecraftian horror vortex. That Nephandi whispers thing wasn't a throwaway comment."
Hector raises an eyebrow at all that, "Uh, that sounds, un-great." he sips his soda, "I'm glad you're safe." and then he shakes his head at what Vic asks, "Nah, I don't have any info on the peoples minds, sorry."
"Well, there are five people in the hospital with nothing in their heads but autonomic activity," Vic says. She sips her drink again and then continues. "Alice, Charles, Edna, Vincent and Yolanda," she says to put names to the victims. "I can email or hard copy you their information," she adds with a total disregard to HIPPA regulations, "I've personally scanned Vincent and a new ally brought me information about Mrs. Edna Stein, apparently its high end, potentially highly experimental magi-tech that's being used here... and my informant believes this is just a proof of concept for a larger release."
OOC: the info about the names is about midway down the page in log and it has been assumed that both Evie and Hector now have the information.
Evie sighs in lament. "Wow, okay, hit me with the sob story why don't ya. Okay, poor Edna probably needs my help too, so I... I... suppose I could suck it up and brave thanatosis for her?" She's really trying to will herself to go in rather than put as much distance as possible between her and the Very Bad Thing.
Hector listens to Vics run down and then checks his phone to see the file transfered, he nods then, "Well there's still two more sectors to see what's up in, and no one should go anywhere alone near the corrupted sectors." he offers to Evie, about facing the big bag, "And with the ditch program, and some antitracking progs, and going in atleast a pair the danger should be, lesser."
Vic nods to Hector and then, addressing Evie specifically, says, "I wasn't trying to guilt you or anything. Its just that I really want to find a way to recover them is all." She grabs a handfull of popcorn as she asks, "Is there anyone else you two know of investigating?" and then, before putting the popcorn into her mouth, says, "I've met a D-Web contact who's more applicable than her name and an Eastern mage who's the one who checked out Edna's place, at some point we're going to check out the tech related to the issue."
Evie hmms. "I got nothing else. I mean, I do know another techie, but she's just a computer geek. Not really anyone you'd call Adept." A shrug. "Pretty sure you don't want full-Sleepers helping out here..."
Hector shakes his head, "Nah I dunno anyone else working on it either."
Vic nods. "I don't like the fact that someone is using our sort of tech to do such things to innocent people," she says. "Lets make sure to keep each other in the loop, alright?" While she has no true authority to dismiss the discussion her request does seem to have some finality to it.
