Hank Anderson (
sociallychallenged) wrote in
dualisnet2019-11-02 06:25 pm
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[Hank still wants to research into the missing people and initiate his vague plan to devalue the iterations. Right now the public see them as a protective force for good. Hank wants the people to see other fucking people as their reliable protective force. That in the many variations of temperaments and personalities and creative resolutions to conflict, they can find their safety.]
I have a case that could use some assistance from some specialized outsiders. If you could come to me and lay out your experience and training, I would like to offer you temporary deputy work in helping solve this case.
Necessary qualifications include:
-Combat against armed opponents
-Negotiation and Interrogation
-Ability to secure an area until CSI arrives (cursory crime scene analysis a bonus)
Due to Dualis's policy on providing payment through credit, if you would want rewards we would have to attach a name to your activities. However if you'd want to work off-record [which is as close to anonymously as he can get] we could come to some sort of arrangement such as donated payment.
I'll be at the cat cafe to conduct interviews 4:00 to 6:00 in the afternoon for the next week. You can show up when it's convenient to talk. Sounds like a fucking weird place for it, yes, it'll make more sense when you're there.
I've also arranged for donated goods to be offered when people come in and might find themselves in a state of disrepair or any nicer version of saying fucked the hell up. New clothes, medical things like crutches for people with chronic conditions, sanitary supplies like soap and toothbrushes, things of that nature. So if you want to donate something to the people coming in there's a donation box in the dormitory's lower entryway and they'll be taken to the temple.
Hank is pretty sure he'll be able to tell if someone is bullshitting their credentials and whether they'll do intentional harm with their new role. It's hard to do background checks when different universes are involved, but he thinks he's figured out a way to beat the system without having to use any of the department's lie detectors.
Note: Plotting post here.
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He folds his arms, teeth grit. What the hell? How is this place worse and worse the more he learns about it? It's not that he's not used to something in his head leeching his memories but this is something else.
"So the people you said were killed and came back... They're all clones?" He's pushing back his anger, half turned back to Hank now. "How do we know who's a clone? Or that we're not already one?"
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He raises his hands and motions towards Squall. "The reason you can't do summons could be that chip in your head. Not sure. So no matter how strong we are? We can't do anything until we take care of that. 'Cause he could get a wild hair up his fuckin' computerized ass to turn everyone's powers off. Also that Suzaku guy? He didn't have to touch him. He just had him enclosed in as pace on his turf and fuckin' turned him right the hell off."
That's what's evident from the memory, anyway.
"We don't know yet who's who. Not many. Anyone who's been here longer than a year. Maybe some people that aren't with the Heart anymore."
He thinks of something that Thane just mentioned. "Hey, can you do me a favor? Can you go ask your buddies how your abilities were all limited? Thane's onto something I think; we can judge a little more about what he's done to us. Remember to do it where you got sound and visual cover, alright?" He's going to aggressively reinforce that.
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"I know someone from the Heart who's been here a year. I go to her bar sometimes. She'll be in danger." And as much as he doesn't trust the Heart as a whole, he does kind of like Nick and doesn't want to see her dead. She'd have her clone and the Head coming after the Heart to worry about.
He shakes his head, trying to sort the information and his thoughts. "I'll tell my friends and ask the ones not from my world. It won't change my ability to summon if we turn off the chips. The Guardian Forces aren't here. They didn't arrive with any of us." He unfolds his arms to shrug off his jacket and pull up the short sleeve of his shirt, showing off a tattoo of a stylized lion on a shield. "But some of us did get the magic tattoos from the city. We'll be able to use some magic if we have to." He pulls his jacket back up.
"We have plans to gather our own resources. It might be a good idea to keep those separate for now but I'll let them know they can trust you."
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But Hank stops and puts his hands up.
"Squall. Please listen to me. Making plans now is a bad idea." He wants to be harder. He wants to scream and curse and talk about how stupid that fucking is. But he won't, 'cause this is a child soldier, and while it does mean soldier it also means young and too ready to fight.
"It's not just that he can turn off your powers. It's that he can turn you off. Just like that. And then there are eight to nine million people in this one goddamn city. This is a huge place. Each one of them can be triggered to swarm you like a bad zombie movie. And they're not going to take turns and come at you one by one, you won't get time to rest and he's not going to pick just the big burly fuckin' men to go after you. He's going to pick everyone, regardless or age and gender, and they will tear you apart.
"And we don't know where the fuck he is. That temple? Might just be his face. Like... you know the computers in our room. The screen is in one place, but all the information is in the box, right? The tower- whatever it's called. All our memories and everything are being kept in a server farm and if you go after him from what we know, you might just punch the screen while the rest of him is just fine, still active, still watching.
"Now, trust me, please. I do wanna fuckin' attack him and take it out. But wouldn't you rather those nine-million people be on our side, or at least not a risk? They're both his victims and his tools. And wouldn't you rather know for absolute sure we're hitting the right place?"
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But then Hank continues to talk and his own expression darkens a little, a scowl forming. He's not looking to attack without a plan. He knows this is bigger than that. Even though Hank isn't wrong to think so. He's a soldier, a mercenary. His whole purpose is to fight.
He shakes his head, impatient and he's folding his arms again. He sounds annoyed.
"We're not going to just attack. We're not that stupid." As much as he wants to. And he does grip his arms as he says that, equal parts frustration and anger at the situation. "There's not enough information. I'm not risking everyone's lives for that. We have until our year is up before our clones are ready, so we'll prepare, then fight."
He loosens his grip to gesture with a hand, the petulant anger making way to a far more steeled expression - the kind expected of a soldier.
"I'll help you, whatever else you find. You'll know if I do too. But if the time comes and the city is still under the Head's control, I'll do whatever it takes." Give his life. Die trying.
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There's a fuck of a lot to be worried about. Especially now that the Heart did something as stupid as they did. Fuck, they could have just told them! They would have believed them. But they went and made the Head mad and made it crack down.
"And I really just don't wanna see you fuckin' die. I want 'noble fucking death' to be the very last thing on the list. I want as many of us to live as possible." He just learned to handle his own life a little better. He doesn't want to go and watch people with so much more potential than him. "And that's not just an idealism thing. That idiot with the Heart was right about one thing, I really think we can do this with the right intelligence. And I'm absolutely fucking sure, without a doubt, we can do the best version of it if we're patient.
"Okay. Right now I've been using my current case to find some places to hide out. I avoided using iterations for the investigation so I was able to find where people had already been successfully been hiding from them and keep it private. So we can use those. Can your guys help us map out the underground and the areas around the city? I can keep digging up up some above-ground spots."
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"When I said plan, I mean gathering resources. Money, shelter, weapons, food. We have nothing to fall back on if another blackout happens or if we get hunted. My friends and I have a place but it's too far out of the city and our clones found us there already. Seifer is making weapons there..."
He inhales slowly. "I don't want to die. I don't want anyone else to. But we have to be prepared if it happens." He ducks his head. "If it comes down to it, I rather it be me."
He wants his friends to go home and live a better life, okay? He looks back again, focusing back on tasks.
"We can look underground."
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Hank's tried to be a decent fucking person, respectable at least, someone with perspective on this shit. If he was stripped away and that persona was used against the people he was trying to protect? He couldn't stand that.
"There'll be no other black-outs. The last black-out was arranged by the Heart. Rather than fucking telling us they were making doubles, they decided to pull a fucking showy stunt and try to traumatize us into following them. They released the copies before they were done- those copies did manage to kill a couple of people at that. Not here that I know of, but out on the street.
"They won't kill you during a black-out. They'll mob you in a crowd and tear you apart right in a public space. So you need to avoid crowded areas. Don't ride the train or the subway. Don't go to public events where you won't be able to run. Be sure of all the exits."
He rubs between his eyes. Right.
"So uh... a lot of the people here have abilities. New people are limited. The doubles aren't. So another reason we need to reprogram is that we really could use that shit on our side. But until that happens we'll just have to assume they're all on the side of the Head.
"By the way, I figured out a way we could disguise our voices if we need to speak to someone covertly. An iphone. That friend we have? She has one. Has a thing called 'Siri' that can do text to speech pretty well. We use that and we won't have to worry about someone recognizing someone's voice." And they may need that if they try to reprogram any clones and want to remain secret while they have them.
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That information about the blackout just makes him more annoyed. The Heart is going to be done for at this rate. They have to go it on their own.
"Do you know someone who can replicate that iphone?" They can't all use it. Though voice changing is something he'd like to look into.
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Or ask someone else to. Someone that knows what the fuck they're doing. Right.
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He breathes deeply. Ugh. This is a lot.
"Don't get caught." Hank's been their best source of all these information so far. He'd hate to lose him too. Not that he hasn't been paranoid cautious but he's getting way too close to the heart (hah) of it.
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"Now, if I move out when it's closer to me and you having been here for a year? I'm gonna fuckin' do it 'cause I'm now in a position where I don't want to die." The implication is that, at one point, he genuinely wanted to. "And I think we should both get out and go into hiding if we can't take care of this before month eleven, alright?"
It'll be rough, because commerce depends on digital, trackable currency. They'll have to barter. But it's better than dying or giving up.
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"That's why we need all the resources we can get our hands on while we come up with a better plan."
Not being able to fight his way through things is rather irritating. He clicks his tongue.
".. I'm going to go. Keep me posted."
He needs to think and warn his friends.