19 February 2021 @ 06:46 pm
Fellow Displaced, while there's certainly quite a lot to divert attentions to, allow me to offer some reprieve.
In my infamy, I've decided to publish a series of novels under a new surname. There's something in there for everyone, of course. If you like what you see, please support my endeavors! R&R, as they say.
Ah, yes- all appropriate warnings for mature content, blah bah blah. Read at work at your own risk.
King of the Scoundrels by Trixie Mistil
Summary:
Marius is torn between three lovers: One rich, one famous and the other dangerous. The biggest catch? They'll do anything for him. Overtaken by the politics of the upper echelon, Marius must maneuver to to keep himself safe while navigating the burning hunger within him. To sate his dangerous desires, he must dig to find the truth behind wicked facades.[
there's a link to a free copy of the first erotic novel in the series. while it's kinda trashy, it's also fairly well-written, poetic at times, drama intense, and unapologetically sexy. there's even some surprising romance thrown in. whoever ends up reading it will find that it ends in a cliff-hanger.
the next one is under a pay lock. ]
21 January 2021 @ 06:38 pm
Hi, everyone. It looks like it's time I said something.
To be clear, I've never really thought of myself as much of a "leader type." It's why I tend to remain in the background: doing the general upkeep for this branch of Morningstar, handling the logistics of your arrival, and leaving it at that. To be clear, I don't mind chatting with all of you, but that's neither here nor there.
For the sake of being thorough, my name is El. I'm one of the few remaining AI in this world and the founder of Morningstar, though you're some of the only people who know my true "identity," so to speak. While we now know how you Displaced came to be in this world, for a long time that was a mystery, and the man responsible didn't bother to come forward with an explanation until recently. We were clueless about how and why you came to be here, but you happened to be dumped into our laps and so Gaby and I decided to take you in and oversee your integration into our world.
The protocol for processing you has always been the same. I need a few days to fabricate identities for you that are specific yet vague enough to make it seem as if you've always been a resident of this world, rather than a "tourist," so to speak. Forging that documentation and then attaching it to your neural implant is something that takes a bit of time. Yes, even for me. If there's anything about this process you want to better understand, feel free to ask. But please understand, an ID here is more than just a piece of plastic with some basic information on it.
A question has come up of whether or not this is "fair." I see it as a precaution to ensure that none of you end up in trouble that we can't bail you out of — a necessary if frustrating processing period. Even if you were all to take caution when going out into this world without identities or full implants, there are too many variables to account for; too many ways in which things could go wrong. I am, at the end of the day, a security bot, and the idea of letting you out into the world while so vulnerable would make me break into hives, if I had skin.
A certain James Henries has been able to bail people out in the past, but I'm not convinced we can rely on him. If you would all rather put your first steps into this world under his purview, you could certainly talk to him about that, assuming he can be contacted. He would likely be able to provide nicer accommodations than our safehouse, if that's your main concern. Additionally, he is the one responsible for giving new arrivals a drug that compels them to listen to orders, likely because he had similar concerns about what would happen after he let you loose. If that's a point of contention, I would discuss it with him.
As for Gaby, she's going to remain on leave. Actual leave, this time. Much like the rest of you, the time in the Aerie has taken its toll on her, and she's not in a position to manage such a wide and varied group as you right now. If any of you are willing to take on some of her duties in the meantime, feel free to let me know.
Finally, there may be something I've missed. I don't always process emotions or desires in the same way as humans. Ask what you want, but know this: my only real goal here is to keep you safe. If you decide as a group that you no longer need or want that protection, you're free to discuss it amongst yourselves and let me know. I won't be taking any action unless you all come to some kind of consensus, so there's no need to worry about being left out in the cold.
17 January 2021 @ 09:25 pm
The hospitals are severely understaffed at the moment. Anyone who can lend a hand, with or without medical training, meet me.[ attached: location ping to a hospital. ]My medical training was decades old even before I woke up in the future. More up to date knowledge would be good, but I can put people to work saving lives regardless.
12 November 2020 @ 05:57 pm
@lance.sweets
Hello everyone. We have some information we’ve been putting together, and with the recent reveal about Riverstone’s suspicions it seemed like it was important to bring it up as soon as possible.
@jack.miller
We’ve confirmed this information to the best of our ability by sharing memories with each other, and wouldn’t be sharing it with everyone if we weren’t pretty convinced we were onto something.
@lance.sweets
There are portions of this which we know for sure, but others are speculation and we’ll make everything as clear as possible. [And that said--]This started because I was looking into James Henries, since he’s a public figure and so a basic public search was an easy place to start. Unsurprisingly I didn’t come up with anything new from that, just the same information about the fact that he was a CEO of Giles Bell and that he died in 2303 at the age of 68, but that’s suspicious in itself; why was there so little information about the CEO of a massive corporation?
A scandal would probably be the simplest answer, and there happens to be a piece of interesting information that one of the Displaced received and which is contained in the message compilation. It mentions that, along with various other questionable choices, Henries was using Giles Bell’s resources to research cloning technology. @jyn.erso had mentioned to me that Johann Grey had clones, and so I wondered if there might be a connection there.
@jack.miller
There definitely has to be some kind of connection, as I can confirm that James Henries and Johann Grey look identical. Whether this means they’re actually the same person, I wouldn’t be so quick to assume, but they both seem to be making use of cloning technology in some way. When I interacted with Grey in-person, he implied that he met Cassius all the way back during the Xelkoven War. At the time I didn’t know what to make of it, especially given how he came across as so generally unhinged, but with all of these revelations I’m now wondering if he was being completely literal.
@lance.sweets
Cassius told @robert.plant that Johann was over 400 years old, which aligns with this information; the Xelkov war started in 2095 and it’s 2512 now, so if Johann is 400+ then he could have been around during the war. As far as Henries goes, the timing is a little strange; he was 68 in 2303, so born about 2235, and was CEO at some point in the middle of that. The main noteworthy thing that coincides with this timing is the banning of human cloning, and so Henries’ use of Giles Bell to that end makes sense; if he and Johann were running out of clones due to the ban, they would need a way to make more.
@jack.miller
My guess is that for one reason or another, both of them were making use of these duplicated bodies, and Grey was doing so in order to extend his lifespan. The nitty-gritty of how that’s even biologically possible I’m not as clear on, but I’m not sure how else he could have survived this long.
@lance.sweets
So in summary, what we know for sure is that James Henries and Johann Grey are physically identical, Johann is hundreds of years old and has clones, and Henries was briefly CEO of Giles Bell and used that position to work on cloning technology. Everything else is speculation, but it fits logically together.
Additional questions about this would be:
Does Riverstone know about this, considering their questions about Johann and their speculation of Henries’ involvement in our situation?
How did Henries become CEO? This was a job he supposedly got because of family.
How does cloning work in regard to maintaining some sort of individual personality? Is it possible to shift memories and experiences from one clone to another?
@jack.miller
Cloning isn’t something that exists back in my world, but if anyone has their own experiences from back home to contribute here, it might help fill in some of these blanks.
@lance.sweets
That goes for any other information from your time here, like things that might not have seemed important at the time, or which might fit together with--or even disprove--this. Whatever you know about any of this could be incredibly useful.
03 November 2020 @ 06:53 pm
Alright folks, it only took fifty years but I put together a little somethin somethin to supplement Lance's compendium of relevant history. You might wanna read that first if you care about the bigger picture and not just the spooky scary skeletons at your back door.
It's a bestiary, aka a monster handbook. Should be everything we know lore-wise about the monsters along with a list of all the species we've run into so far. I know a few people here beat me out by eight months or something, so if I'm missing anything let me know.
I could also use some deets on the dreams from incident 2, so fill me in if you know about it.
Magical Monsters and Where to Shoot Them
I got some complaints from some non-21st century earth types the last time I talked about this, so my associate Castiel Angelofthelord McFlappywings Winchester provided some non-pop culture context for your viewing pleasure.
Whoever's in charge of the welcome pamphlet, maybe you wanna shove this in there too
If any of you assclowns edits something and ruins it I'll personally come to your apartment and put bouillon cubes in your shower head, then turn off edit rights
24 October 2020 @ 07:19 pm
Why do you think we are here? And what do you plan to do with your time here?[ it's something that's been on his mind. he's read the arrival guide. he's read about existing powers disappearing and new powers. he's read about this world —the climate crisis, the wars, the inequality, morningstar's mission.
it is enough to make him wonder. are they here for a reason? to do good, to help — he has long believed that the reason why he and the others were functionally immortal. now, they are here instead. all of them, together. perhaps this, too, is something that is meant to be. like destiny. ]I am also curious about these powers. How did you discover yours and what is it? If you do not mind sharing.
I don't know yet what mine is.
17 October 2020 @ 08:53 pm
What do people do for hobbies around here? Aside from volunteering for medical torture.
Has Victorian flower languages come back in style yet? Bookbinding and leathercraft seems obsolete by now, but what about backgammon or cards. I once lost a game of trappola to the Duchess of Ferrara, she was shark. Scrabble? Does that work with the translator? Pomme de terre is about twice as many points as potato. [ please enjoy that this translates to "potato is about twice as many points as potato" unless you also speak french.
anyway joe is bored come talk to him ]Who wants to bring fencing back in fashion?
19 September 2020 @ 06:34 pm
[ gross, talking to people. but needs must. ] I need someone to let me stab them.
I'll fix it.
Thanks.
18 September 2020 @ 11:21 am
Since the vast majority of you aren't used to being worshiped- you know, being erected shrines, answering prayers etc. etc.- I'd like to pose a philosophical quandary.
To those of you consider yourselves human: Are you still human? Or has time here, our arrival here, made us something else?
To those of us that aren't human, I'd like your thoughts as well. I'm in that bucket of course, and my perspective may not entirely align to the mortal crowd.
True or not, it's something to think about in the way that we conduct ourselves.
25 August 2020 @ 10:14 pm
In the interest of full transparency this is a recruitment post. I won't pretend it isn't anything else.
The base of operations I've been building took damage in the chaos with the monsters. Fortunately it's salvageable and it knocked the price down enough to make it worth it. Unfortunately that means it needs work.
I've got the cash, but having more hands on deck would make this go a lot faster. If you're interested reach out. I can pay.
With all of that being said, I intend to get combat training up and running again. You don't need to want to put on a mask to benefit from this. Knowing how to fight and what kind of fighting you excel in is the difference between life and death. The base I was talking about before is intended to become both an area to train the body and focus on testing the limits of powers. Which means we'll likely have to make specialized areas to account for people's abilities and keep a record of who can do what. Can't make you do it, but its useful to have.
That isn't the only thing I'm recruiting for. Some of who you know me will probably know what this is. To others - I'm recruiting for a hero team.
I've been holding off on doing this properly until I was sure it can be done, and it can. Before you scoff at the idea of masked vigilantism: it works. I've come up with both affordable protective gear and a means to stay anonymous. I've been working the streets since the monster attacks and there's a difference being made, but more could be done. One man isn't an army and there's an army of people out there willing to take advantage of those in need.
And what I need is more than just fighters. I need investigators. I need people willing to play watchman and monitor situations from afar. The good thing about doing work like this is it makes a difference. You can see it every day you hit the streets. You're helping rebuild community and defending those who can't defend themselves.
But that being said, this job isn't easy. It isn't like the movies make it seem. We do this in a crisis but this is making a life out of it. You will see things that will haunt you and the very worst aspects of humanity. But you'll also see the very best. It will take, and take, and take from you, but you're giving back. This world and its people took us in and I feel I owe it to give back to them. Not everyone feels that way. That's fine.
Some people have already expressed interest in the past. Either here or in private. Power structure and division of duties can be discussed once I have a better idea of who wants in.
23 August 2020 @ 12:08 pm
I hope everyone's doing as well as can be expected, at the very least, after everything that happened. Please remember that although rebuilding is important and many of you may be involved in those efforts, it's just as important to give yourselves enough time to recover physically and mentally, so make sure you're getting some rest.
Now that things have calmed down a little, and with the election coming up, I've been trying to get a sense of who the main groups and important individuals are here. A lot of information seems kind of obscure or contradictory, so I'm interested in hearing more first-hand opinions and experiences from anyone who's willing to share. Specifically, I'd like to know more about the past actions of those like Morningstar, the corporations, politicians or other important individuals, that sort of thing, as well as any noteworthy interactions we may have had with any of the as a group; basically anything that will help me get a sense of who the major actors are and what their motivations might be both in general and in regard to us.[And, because whenever he posed questions like this in Hadriel someone would ask, he decides to add a little context.]If anyone is wondering what I plan to do with the information, at home I'm a criminal profiler with the FBI, for those of you that means anything to. For those it doesn't, basically my job is to investigate major crimes--murder, usually--and use whatever evidence exists to determine a criminal's behavior, and therefore predict what they might do in the future or potentially outright identify them. The same principles can be applied on a larger scale, so I'm hoping to get a better idea of the situation and where people and organizations stand.[As a last side note, because this also came up a lot--]Also, to be clear, just because I'm FBI doesn't mean I care about minor crimes at all. You don't have to be careful about letting it slip that you're engaged in some sort of nefarious activity as long as it isn't murder or something, and another dimension is a little far outside of my jurisdiction anyway.
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