synflux | closed.

[ Callisto doesn't deserve to know all the sordid details of his personal life, but it's not as though they have anything else to discuss while he crouches by the door lock, fiddling with his pick. Plenty of tidbits about his life are already public knowledge, thanks to everpresent work gossip. At this point, a little more won't hurt anyone. ]

I wasn't always a duke. I came into the title pretty late in life.

[ It was a title he hadn't even wanted to begin with, though he certainly can't deny the benefits that come with having an additional tier of power. But it's all benefits that go towards the people of Meropide rather than himself.

He, too, hears the sounds in the distance and shuts up again, and it's another 45 seconds before there's the faintest of clicks signaling his success. He pulls back and tucks his tools away and then carefully opens the door as quietly as he can before tipping his head towards the inside.

Callisto first. ]

An earned title, then... [ which tells callisto all he needs to know. not exactly about any specifics to his life, but the clear concept that such recognition didn't simply fall onto one's lap. he presumes to some degree, it took not just work, but blood, sweat, and tears. likely literal blood at that.

the only times he has heard of such an occurrence in history was normally for ones participation in war and equally unsavory dealings, and he so he could only presume the worst of it. maybe it makes him stare at the scar on wriothesley's exposed collar a bit longer. before the footsteps also seem to stop just around the bend, almost as if it was their own luck testing them. hence, he wastes no time taking that and the silent click of the door as he sign to slip in.

for once, he keeps his mouth shut, his eyes scanning the room. thankfully, it's empty, except for several shelves lined up. instinctively, he creeps behind one of them, before turning back to make sure wriothesley is on his tail. ]

[ As much as Wriothesley would like to leave all of this behind and go back to the safety and comfort of his room, he's not a quitter and he commits to all his missions until physically impossible. Which unfortunately means that he is on Callisto's tail, stepping into the room and softly shutting the door behind him.

Which leaves them here, in some weird storage room with shelves? There appear to be an assortment of items on said shelves: a few jars, some binders, a bunch of boxes. Maybe specimen boxes?

Either way, Wriothesley's getting to work, hunkering down in front of the nearest shelf in order to slide one of those boxes open and peep what's inside. All of this is going to happen in complete silence unless Callisto says something, mostly because Wriothesley has decided that minimizing Callisto's presence in his life is the best thing he could possibly do for himself. ]

[ it sounds like they haven't alerted anyone to their presence here, at least. regardless of the confirmation that no one was following them, he still keeps his own senses sharp for every minute footstep beyond the door. he doesn't speak initially, if also just browsing, even pulling several glass bottles with what appears to be something submerged in liquid.

he looks over to wriothesley. he can tell the other man is keeping his distance to some degree. it's not unwarranted, and if he had to be honest, he could comprehend where it stems from. if anything, it was more natural, and so he doesn't take offense to it. ... and in the same vein, he doesn't feel bad to break those boundaries either, much like he encroaches on this silence with his own words.

no hint of reservation to them. ] What do you make of this?

[ are they kaiju parts, or just someone's sick hobbies.

actually, some of these look a bit more like human parts, to be honest. ]

[ why do you have to ruin all of our threads like this, hello

Can't believe they're stuck in a room with jars full of dubious monster and maybe human parts, this really wasn't the sort of result he was hoping for. Though when has life ever gone the way he hoped? Very rarely, so why is he surprised now.

He looks away from his boxes and ambles over towards the jars that Callisto is peering at, the frown on his face deepening even more as he analyzes its contents. Do they have an auto-identifier on their oculars...it's 2278. ]

Not good whatever it is. This place needs to be shut down, the sooner the better.

[ Is this enough evidence to call for reinforcements? Surely it must be. ]

Unless you want to take it out for a better look first?

[ i love how we keep matching icons...

but, it's true. this thread is now marred by the fact that they are likely scanning it and they're showing up as either UNKNOWN specimens, or as HUMAN TOES. callisto seems to keep his composure, at least. as disturbed as he is, there was no point in settling on this fact beyond finding it repugnant. he slips one into his pocket. one markedly human one and then a few unknown vials. he may even gesture to wrio to take from another part of the shelf...

while he does wonder what wriothesley makes of all this, he doesn't exactly feel the need to question it out loud, either. ]

A few wouldn't hurt to get a better idea of them. [ regardless of what that actually is. if they are trafficking human parts... that is another thing to consider.

so callisto is also using his oculars and calling for backup. at least that settled it out neatly enough. ]

Maybe we should be relieved that there's the same kind of rats no matter where we are.

[ Is that a relief? In some ways it is, Wriothesley supposes. It makes the world a little more palatable, a little more predictable. Some things will always remain the same, which gives him more of an anchor to hold onto in a place that's otherwise alien and different.

Hopefully the same methods of containment can be used here as in other places.

With Callisto taking pictures and calling for backup, Wriothesley settles for flipping a through a nearby binder and pilfering out a few pieces of paper with purchase records and plans of intent and shoving them into one of the many pockets on his outfit. Man pockets, truly superior to women pockets. ]

Do you plan on exterminating them all yourself? [ Don't actually answer that. ] What now, we sit around and wait for backup?

Do you think that's what we should do? Kill them all?

[ he asks casually. almost as if he were asking wriothesley if he wanted one lump of sugar or two in his tea. if wriothesley didn't want an answer, he shouldn't have asked, or so the speedy nature in which he responds seems to suggest. ]

Or so I would say, but I think waiting may be best. After all, if we cause trouble now, they could just simply burn most of the evidence to the ground. [ if they were that desperate. he feels like slippery men like these tended to be in their final moments. ] Did you have a better idea?

[ walking back towards wriothesley, and placing a hand on his shoulder. almost as if mimicking a gesture of them being close. ]

[ Can Callisto please stop badtouching everyone in his path who doesn't want it? Rover is out there??

Wriothesley eyes the hand on his shoulder with distaste before shrugging it off. ]

You do know murder isn't the solution to every problem, right? [ He says, after having murdered his parents to solve that particular problem. But it's fine, that's all in the past now. ] But yes, I do think waiting is the right choice, once we collect some of the samples and documents as evidence.

[ Not to say Callisto is right or anything, but he's right in this one specific case. ]

Though maybe we shouldn't do it here. [ Their "privacy".... ] Someone might get suspicious.

[ hello????

he is punctuating a point? human communication is also a series of gestures and occasionally skinship, no? or so he may have defended himself. but, he can't read minds, and neither does he seem to care to. while it's probably not wriothesley's intention at all, the question does get a slight chuckle out of him. ] You'd be surprised by how many problems it solves. [ not every solution, but... he would argue it's at least a 80%+ success rate. ]

Your suggestion is fair. We also do not know exactly how frequently they check their wares. [ with that settled, he listens up close to the door for any hint of sound. when he's convinced there's no one there, he does end up moving towards one of the earlier rooms they were directed to.

now to spend time in one of the demure private rooms. ]

[ demure private rooms....this is why banging happened at the gala, because the rooms were so demure and mindful that people immediately felt the urge to sully them.

But anyway they migrate to one of the demure private rooms to hang - read: just sit around and make somewhat tense smalltalk - while they wait for backup to arrive, which it does about ten minutes later. I'm handwaving the rest of this thread to save us both but wow!! Look at this successful mission completion, with all the suspects rounded up and dubious wares confiscated.

(JK a few guys probably got away....people to track down for next time.) ]

[ i have nothing to add, but damn, you really ripped my rooms...

]

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