synflux | 02.

Entry tags:

wuthering waves: rover

02.

WHO: Rover and you!
WHAT: Snooping log
WHERE: August event - Seoul
WARNINGS: as they come up.

01. CRIME TIME

ooc. this is a free-for-all snooping log following this thread where i asked the mods about the criminal activity in the area leading up to the kaiju sightings. there's plenty of leeway to be had within the situation they'd laid out, and rover's willing to partner with whomever's interested to explore these scenarios.

to give a general overview of her capabilities, rover isn't an interrogator, neither is she a spy; she's your main tank when trouble comes down. she can be very straightforward in situations where more delicacy is required. if you want to make things easier, we can assume they've skipped the introductions and your character and rover know each other already by name.

these are the situations i've thought of to fit the bill:

A. chats with grunts - OTA - happening in various areas of seoul, where one situation leads to another, and ends in a late night stroll through the markets where Outsiders are told about the increased activity. this can be as exciting or straightforward as you want; the mods said that being nosy gets the citizens in trouble, so a goose chase around town is possible as well.

B. difficult evacuees - EVERLIGHT/REDEMPTION - happening during the evacuation where Outsiders were told to investigate for kaiju remains. maybe they find a group of more vulnerable people not quite trusting of the seoul government who've decided to stay behind, trusting instead that the gangs they pay fealty to will uphold their end of the bargain to protect them. these groups decided to stay in their dwellings despite the danger. again, the situation can be as exciting or dramatic or straightforward as you'd like!

02. JUNE, I NEED A TEXT OPTION.

ooc. here you go!

03. WILDCARD

ooc. if you come up with something else, i'll roll with it!

contact: PM or plurk @ ilium.

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[ Elan's just standing here, minding his own business, sampling tteokbokki in peace. It's noisy, but the market is always noisy. What's a few shouts here and there, cursing, the sound of an upturned chair...? Getting the sense something's not right, he pokes his head around a stall to see what the commotion is about. ]

[ it all started with a series of questions, really. and rover, being as impatient as she is, pushing forward with her line of questioning - until she hit a wall, verbally so, as she is cautioned to leave.

and she was willing to do just that. she was willing to let it go, drop the issue, move forward to something else - another target, another day. but perhaps her efforts have been noted. end of the line for her busywork today, as she noted the exits being closed off.

so she did what she had to do, which is escape. this results in a commotion as rover sidesteps one goon to the next, deftly, like a dancer moving through the stage deliberately and elegantly. and then the predictable chase down the alleyway happens. rover runs.

she recognizes him, still standing in front of the stall. ]

- come with me.

[ and he gets pulled away as a few punks swarm the stalls and go running after them. ]

[ But his tteokbokki...

With his meal lost and some gangster-looking punks on his tail of a sudden, he turns to demand an explanation. ]

Hey, what the hell is going on?!

[ What he should have done was ignore the commotion. What does a guy have to do to tour Seoul in peace... ]

... I'm taking you out of this mess, what does it look like?

[ she turns on him, and then sees he still has a bit of tempura in his hand. or did. she takes it and eats it. ]

- Hey, thanks. [ they're still running. ]

[ Are you kidding? Distracted by their pursuers, he doesn't realize his tempura's been snatched until it's too late. Now is he not only being chased, his dinner's gone too. Wonderful. His day is going great! ]

More like you dragged me into it!! [ Nevermind the tempura. He starts glancing around for escape routes. ] What did you do to piss them off?!

I'll explain later.

[ and hey, if he's an outsider like her, eventually it's going to smack them in the faces anyway, as far as she's concerned. ]

That tempura was great, by the way. Good choice.

[ they exit the stalls and get into traffic, and rover leaps over the barricades to move right through the cars. they're still being pursued. ]

You need to have your priorities checked!

[ Forget the tempura!! The imminent threat to their life is more important!! Also, why are they suddenly running through traffic what the heck. There's honking and beeping and he waves at a car that narrowly swerves aside to avoid hitting him. ]

We're here to hunt kaiju not start street brawls!

That is the priority.

[ after having weaved thru traffic and out into another alley, rover pauses so the two of them can catch their breaths. she is quiet for a while, listening around her surroundings. ]

... I think we've lost them. [ her voice is even, low as she says it. ] But we should keep moving.

And the reason why it ended in a brawl was because people here are very touchy regarding the involvement of some gangs with trading kaiju parts for money. [ she sighs. ] I thought I could get leads, but ... well. You saw.

I'll get you your food, just help me keep an eye out for trouble.

[ Elan braces himself against a wall to catch his breath. His stomach churns from the burst of exercise and he glances back the way they came. ]

Forget about the food. Not like I can stomach it right now.

[ Who can think about eating when they're being targeted...Besides Rover apparently. ]

Let's just call the local authorities and be done with it.

Good call.

Since most of them are still within the same area, it won't be too difficult for them to clean up the mess.

[ she watches him try to gather his breath and she looks at him with a bit of worry. ] Are you alright?

I'd be better if there wasn't a gang on my tail.

[ He huffs. He's not out of shape but he doesn't have the stamina of a shounen protag, please give him time to recover. ]

Why did you go barging into their turf by yourself? [ He won't say she could have been killed because who knows, maybe she could've taken them all out and won. Outsiders and their weird powers. But— ] You stick out way too much.

Sure. Maybe we'll work on your cardio when we get back.

[ kidding. anyway rover just hums at his question, and then she says, ] ... you think so? I thought it wouldn't be too bad if I just went, honestly.

But maybe I need company next time. If nothing else, there's safety in numbers - so I'll keep that in mind.

[ Elan makes a face at that. Honestly, it would do him good as a LILITH agent to train a little more. Anyway, how strong must she be to not have to think twice about confronting a gang... ]

We're foreigners. People are going to be suspicious and clam up. You'll need a damn good undercover story...but leave me out of it.

[ He's done the undercover thing before. He's through with it! Free him. ]

You seem experienced.

[ undercover story, huh .... ]

How'd that come about for you? Was that from your previous job?

No way.

[ His immediate, knee-jerk reaction is to lie. Don't peg him as a spy wtf. ]

It's just common sense. If you go poking your nose where it doesn't belong, try not to get caught.

[ Spoken like a troublemaker. Is this explanation even helping his case... ]

No? You sounded so sure about it.

... I guess you're just a crime enthusiast.

[ does that count ... anyway they're going to walk towards the station. more moving, but at least they can take their time and they're not worried about moving through the crowds, or traffic, to make their escape. ]

[ ...What? ]

I think the only enthusiastic one here is you.

[ He responds dryly. Please...he's the most crime unenthusiastic person here. Though he might prefer her thinking that as opposed to him having a shady past. As they move towards the police station he keeps glancing back to check they aren't being tailed, even jumping a bit when a stray cat darts into the alley unexpectedly. ]

I'm not, not really. I just happened to have a knack for getting into trouble.

Aren't you curious about what the city's up to, with regards to the kaiju problem? [ rover asks him, and then adds, later on, and more to herself - ] ... well, it's certainly a personal interest of mine.

[ she sees him get jumpy over a cat and smiles, patting him on the shoulder. ] Relax. I'm with you.

[ she's not sure that's much help, but anyway! ]

[ He bristles a little at the touch. Thanks, cat. You're sure making him look paranoid, but he likes to think of it as having a healthy sense of self-preservation. ]

Yeah I'm curious, but not enough to go sniffing for danger. The kaiju will come for us sooner or later, trust me. Why do you care what's going on in someone else's turf anyway?

I wanted to know if there's anyone else who has knowledge of the kaiju, or any of the gangs have had contact with it.

A lot of the people who were targeted seem to have been part of the crime scene. So I figured I'd follow some rumours and see where that takes me. [ rover pauses, and then says, rather thoughtfully, ] I guess I was too persistent in the questioning, and they didn't like that.

You're going way above and beyond what we're being asked to do.

[ He might be exaggerating a little, but he's a chronic underperformer himself. Another turn of a corner and the police station's in sight. ]

( from here. )

What if I'm the one that can't?

[ playing along. ]

No, but you gave me a good excuse. Dead end.

[ rover laughs. ] I'll say that's unfortunate. I'll also say something like, "that's rather predictable, for you."

[ also playing along.

rover hums at her words, tilts her head like a bird, watching him. ] Where to, then, boss?

We can try another club inside the district. Seems to be busy, with a more mature clientele. Perhaps we'll have some luck there.

That's what I was thinking. [ he hums. ] People's mouths tend to be looser when inebriated. Moreover…

[ A small little smile for being on the same wavelength. Considering she'd been down to play bodyguard… she'll receive another pin drop to a seedier location in the area, off the main road. ]

How good are you at holding your drink and acting?

[ they might just be skirting with danger! ]

[ rover looks at the pin drop, with a furrowed brow. ] I can hold my drink. I don't act very well.

I'll get you out of trouble if needed, just give me a signal.

[ she can handle danger! danger's fine. pleasantries are fine, but anything more than that and rover feels it's gonna tax her social skills. so she's quick to point out her flaws to him. ]

[ For a brief moment, Elysium looks thoughtful, hand at his chin. ]

You're good at getting along with people, right? If you can get along with Callisto, you can get along with anyone.

[ smiles. beatifically. ]

Just do that. Nothing special.

Ah ... well, sure, but what does he have to do with it?

[ hello?????? ]

In any case Callisto thinks I'm mean to him. So I'm not sure ...

Oh, just that acting's irrelevant when you're that genial… since we'll probably be encountering some pretty seedy guys.

[ he means exactly what he means, hello ]

That guy's humour is in the negatives. If he's still talking to you, I doubt it.

[ deffo the sort of person who'd pull the pigtails of the people he's fond of well into adulthood. Elysium doesn't like him—but he can be objective about how he personally hadn't been the most amenable, even if he thinks he shouldn't need to be. ]

Well, if you say so. You probably have more experience about this than I do.

[ she just beats them up.

also rover has a rather confused look on her face, torn with the idea of defending the guy because sure, he's unpleasant, but he does have a sense of humour? she's seen it, it exists. he can even be genuine and pleasant at times. but then why does elysium need that clarification anyway? it's irrelevant information.

so she just sighs. ] ... let's just go.

Entrust yourself to me, and you shan't have a worry!

[ that just makes it sound more questionable.

Anyway. Happy to move away from a throwaway topic as they amble onwards to their next location. It's all a part of blending in with the locals, or at least their fellow tourists and foreigners, if tourism's even possible in TYOOL 2278. Elysium most certainly wouldn't be able to pass off for the former, but he'd like to think that he more than offsets the handicap with pure friendliness. As they encroach on the club: ]

How have you been spending your time otherwise? Outside of our mission detail.

That's a nice tagline.

[ the response to that question is easy as they make they way towards the next location. rover is doing rover things: ]

Hanging out. Checking in on some friends. [ a pause, and then she adds, ] One of them has been rather despondent about ... being here. Or maybe he's been like that for a while, we've just gotten to know each other a little better now, and I can parse through his loneliness sometimes.

I'm a bit worried about him, so I try to prod him towards doing nicer things for himself. [ beyond just - living, existing. ] I'm sure he finds my company tiresome at times, but we're still talking. So long as he doesn't mind me trying, I'm okay working hard on our friendship..

[ geto. she's talking about geto. ]

You sound like a meddler. [ before she protests: ] Takes one to know one.

[ a cheeky grin and a delighted laugh as he clasps his hands behind his head, relaxed. ]

… Haha. I happen to know one of those, too. We started at the same time around four months ago. For a number of people here, this place is an improvement over their last. [ It says something that Elysium could take her words verbatim and apply it to the person he's thinking of—Miss Gebura of Ruina fame. ] Work, eat, spar, sleep. Rinse, repeat. [ … ] That's no way to live, right? But they're doing better these days with a little [ a lot of ] encouragement.

It's hard to unlearn years of habit. More so, a lifetime of them. Was this what you meant by being able to pick your troubles these days?

[ he's right that she'd go and protest him; but otherwise is quelled by his explanation. and it sort of makes sense, really. she does meddle into things. if she ever does protest it'd be rather mild to begin with.

she thinks about his words, nodding carefully at their rather similar predicament, and finally says, ]

I feel like ... the persistence of people to encourage others to move beyond survival is necessary for enduring LILITH. It can be viewed as meddling, I suppose, but we also have few choices with the limited amount of people we have for the tasks we are assigned to accomplish.

I think the trouble comes when we are asked to weigh one person's sins over the other. It causes conflict when others from their own worlds, privy to their history, makes it difficult for others to move forward because of unresolved differences, perceived or otherwise.

I am not ... defending anyone's past, I am more inclined to sympathize to people for their troubles. What I'm saying is that it is a practical move to disregard the past in order to move forward. [ rover sighs. ] But that's not something easy or fair to ask of anyone.

[ and really, if it had been her, she wouldn't know if she'd be able to do it. ]

Anyway ... those are my troubles lately. [ a genial smile. ]

[ That's more in depth of an answer Elysium could've ever expected, but he doesn't let it show, keeping quiet and pursing his lips in thought as he turns her words over in kind. ]

I don't think it's wrong for anyone to hold true to their convictions. [ He laughs, sheepishly, because he knows it isn't that simple. ] But I agree that it tends to overcomplicate things when we've all been brought here to achieve a common goal. It's a lot easier said than done, isn't it? To tell people to set aside their differences when it comes to it.

[ He recognises that their perspective of it isn't so conventional and that everyone has a baseline of what they consider 'non-negotiable' for a reason. Even Elysium has a threshold for it, as negligible as it might be. ]

In an ideal world, people would come to an understanding based on an individual's actions in the present. Though to some, it's possible that it'd be tantamount to denying their own selves.

[ It's not black or white: them being on the side of humanity or not. Elysium smiles, marginally strained. ]

At the same time, practicality isn't always the solution. Without a little discord, mankind wouldn't be the ever-evolving species it is. You certainly sound like you're doing all you can, Miss Rover! [ There's more confidence when he turns to meet her directly. ] That's the most anyone could ever ask of you. At the very least, it seems there's hope for your friend yet.

[ it's been weighing in her mind for a while, after all, turning the problem around like a puzzle that isn't easy to be solved. pulling it apart presents more problems than answers. and she doesn't mind hearing what he has to say about it; he's been here longer than she has, he likely has an approach to it that works for him. ]

... 'denying their own selves' ... yes, perhaps there's some truth in that. Your convictions are part of who you are, and the more strongly held they are the more difficult it is to consider a life without them. Or at least, challenging them when presented with alternatives.

It's a very human response.

[ not reasonable by any means, but predictable regardless. and maybe that's why rover feels so separate from the emotions tied to it. the past and the present are just a slight disturbance in an infinite chord. unburdened, she carries nothing into the present but her own anxieties about the fragments of a life she can't remember. ]

... I'll do what I can for him. Perhaps in learning more about my friend, I can come to understand others in a similar predicament as he is.

In any case I can't let his cynicism win. [ rover gives a slight smile. ] I don't like to lose.

[ "A very human response." What a way to put it. Elysium's brow quirks in interest, but shelves the thought; it does little to contribute to their current conversation. ]

I like the sound of that: how you don't intend to let his cynicism win. I'll have to keep that in mind for some of the other people I've come to know here.

[ what he can't get behind, though… is what he reaches over to rectify in this exact moment. if she doesn't move out of the way, he's pressing one of the corners of her mouth further up. even if she does, he won't look particularly bothered for it. ]

Why don't you wear more of your confidence? Like so.

It's a tough battle, I know. You can always talk to me about it.

[ she doesn't move, wondering what elysium is up to, until he presses a finger on the corner of her mouth. rover looks at him in surprise. ]

- I suppose that's necessary as well. [ rover touches his hand briefly, mostly to gently pull away from his touch, but she squeezes his hand lightly to indicate no great harm or offence done, letting the two of them hold each other lightly before she releases him. and then she says, rather teasingly, ] Aren't you a heartbreaker, with moves like that? I don't think you're beating those allegations at all.

[ and it also reminds rover that the boys are the same. callisto had said something similar to her, too. ]

[ The challenge is what makes the eventual victory all the sweeter, though he will keep her in mind the next time he has a particularly disastrous showing—of which, there are bound to be a lot. Steps forward, steps back, such is the cycle of life. He's never truly vexed by them, but they do make for fun stories in their own right.

What he's a little less used to, however, is the reciprocation of touch; Rover holds onto him, and her warmth has him staring dazedly at her contact, almost taken aback. He's not so much a heartbreaker as he is a clown, and she just barely releases him before a flush begins to creep up to his cheeks. ]

You don't think it's that I'm understanding more by day why you had so many suitors?

[ A laugh that might just be a touched flustered, but it's in good nature. ]

Consider it me reciprocating the behaviour I'm given in kind. If I didn't know better, I'd say you probably face the same allegations, given how comfortable you are giving me a run for my money.

Oh my. I didn't know you can turn that pink.

[ rover just laughs at his face - all in good nature, yes, but she can't help but tease him over it. ]

You overestimate my abilities. [ she smiles at him and extends a hand. ] You're free to hold onto me if you wish - call it 'building tolerance', or whatever you'd like. I won't judge you too harshly about it.

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puts hand over timestamp

it's ok ....

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