/Present Day - School Hallway/
Another day, another set of boring circumstances, most likely. Daniel knew that most likely, Lance and his group of sycophants would be swarming the halls, looking for anyone too weak to put up a fight.
The young man got out of the car, looking over his ensemble in the rearview mirror as he waved goodbye to Mother. She was cheery and telling him to have fun and all that, and he returned her sensibilities as best he could.
Another day...another day...
Today he was dressed in accordance with the warming May weather. A short sleeved shirt with a collar, buttoned at the first button only, to show the results of his weight lifting routine. He wore light dress pants, and a nice pair of Gucci shoes his mother got him.
The black haired teenager commenced his walk toward school, and was promptly proven right in his initial assumption. It looked like Lance was picking on a Freshman today. Hardly sporting, so of course it fit Daniel's behaviour that he'd go in there. Not even cracking his knuckles, he assumed a neutral expression as he walked over.
"Lance. Off." He didn't sound concerned for the well being of the student being bullied, simply because he didn't care for the person. He saw the situation. He saw the bully. He saw the bullying. The people mattered about as much to him as a cardboard box laying on the road.
Lance turned, and it looked like he was just about to return an aggressive show, but then he backed off suddenly, as if remembering something. He stuttered a little, "Ah...I uh...I need to...um, go now..."
Unusual. Usually Lance would fight someone who challenged him in such a way. Maybe the blond was finally smarting up. He continued on his way through the hallway, not even hearing the Freshman's thank yous and other expressions of gratitude.
He remembered that one group, devoted to solving the mystery of the numerous suicides, and decided he'd need to remember to make either a charitable donation or outright join the club himself, the latter the preferable option. This was getting troublesome.
edited 10th Jan '15 2:14:24 AM by NickTheSwing
Cards to trade, Judges to Dodge
\'\'\'Present Day - 28th of May, 2017; 6 PM; Inside Kent Soup Kitchen '/'/'/
"Why does it seem like more people are here tonight?" George wondered. He opened the fifth extra table and motioned for the latest walk-ins to settle down. Even with all the talking inside the kitchen, he could hear the sound of more outside. "If we run out of tables, hopefully Mr. Kent will let people sit on the floor. But what if we run out of food?"
And as the next hour passed, George's fears only grew. By 7:30, all twenty tables, as well as the extra seven back-ups, were filled. Worse yet, a glance out the window showed more coming. Those inside didn't look to be leaving anytime soon, instead huddling together and muttering among each other. And Mr. Kent was losing his cool.
Handing out another set of chicken and rice to some new faces, George noticed his boss's frenzied waving. He sighed and followed him to the kitchen. "Yes Mr. Kent?"
"Constantine, do you have any idea at all what is going on tonight? It's madness!" Mr. Kent whispered. Running his fingers through graying strands of hair, he reminded George of some classmates before a test. "We're out of room, we're nearly out of food, and they just keep coming!" His voice jumped up an octave, causing George's mouth to twitch into a slight smile.
The fear of running out of food was real though. "Can't we send someone to go get more from the store? Stop & Shop doesn't close for another two hours."
"I can't afford to let anyone go, and now that Marcus is gone I don't know who to send!" Mr. Kent didn't notice George's flinch at the name and kept talking. "All this madness about suicide has got this town going crazy!" He paused, eyes narrowing at George. "What's wrong son? You look off."
Shaking his head, the teenager forced a smile onto his face and responded, "I'm fine. But what do I do about the newcomers?"
Throwing his hands into the air, his boss shouted, "Tell them we're full and to leave! Better yet, start kicking people out. We can't handle them all!" With that outburst the man left through another door, causing everyone in the kitchen to jump as it slammed behind him.
Except George. Smile gone, he looked for the head cook volunteer, Venessa Jacobs and said, "I'll be back with more food in half-an-hour. Don't let anyone who hasn't eaten leave. And could you please send someone else to welcome people?" He raised a hand and gave a shake of his head when Mrs. Jacobs started to speak. "If the boss gets back before I do, blame me."
With that, he exited out the back door and started running.
RASIT Club Room: 6:00 PM
Alexander Stone scowled as a group of bullies ran down the street, most of them sporting painful bruises and broken noses. "Fuckin' pricks, ganging up on a guy like that." He grumbled, dusting himself off and retrieving his discarded schoolbag. "Now I'm late."
At least it wasn't on school grounds. He reasoned as he entered the school halls. Don't need another reason to get pegged as a delinquent.
A minute later, Alex entered the RASIT club room. He Jessica a brief nod before slumping down in his seat.
"Evening Jess." He rumbled.
edited 9th Jan '15 4:39:04 PM by svenorzokarkoff
Transcender of Gender
-5:55pm, Roger City Streets-
With one thug pinning her arms from behind and the other in front with his fists prepared for a beating, Aiden had them exactly where she wanted them.
Funny thing was, she hadn't started it this time. For once she actually had somewhere to be, and had only cut through the shady area as a shortcut. What had possessed the two numbskulls to try and mug her, of all people, was a damn mystery. Maybe she just attracted this sort of attention. Maybe they were near-sighted. She'd kinda feel bad for kicking their asses if that was the case.
Ah, well. Her head snapped back, slamming into the first guy's face; bruising at the least, a broken nose if she was lucky. As he howled in pain her leg came up next, kneeing the other guy just north of where it'd really hurt. He was knocked back, and Aiden quickly followed him as the grip on her arms slackened and let her free.
Wasting no time, a crooked smile across her lips, she grabbed the second guy by the head and brought it smashing down on one of the alleyway's walls. And then again for good measure. No blood was spilt, but he crumpled to the ground like a puppet with cut strings. He wasn't getting back up anytime soon.
Which left... "Hey, macho man, how 'bout thinking twice next time before tryna gang up on a high schooler." He backed off, nose bloody and already swelling. She chuckled. "Especially when I got biceps bigger than your goddamn pea-brain."
Aiden took a step forward and he scarpered, leaving his pal KO'd on the ground. No sense of loyalty, huh? She laughed again, louder and merrier, wiping away blood from a cut on her chin. She'd gotten sacked in the tummy too, that'd leave a bruise. The good will lasted right up until a clock nearby chimed six times, echoing along the now silent alley.
"Ah, dammit..."
-6:05pm, RASIT Club Room-
For a few seconds one could hear the squeaking of trainers against the school floor, preceding another person's arrival. The door burst open and Aiden all but fell through, short of breath and sweat beading her forehead.
"Yo, everyone! Not too late for the party, am I?"
they/them || "Forgive me, regent of queer amphibians" - Lt.BGob
5:30PM, Roger City park, Airsoft section.
Bryan packed up, the match was over and his team had lost. Badly, he sighed and decided that maybe he should be a bit more verbal in airsoft games, or as everyone had pointed out, use a less ostentatious weapon, still, it wasn't all bad. He had some fun, and his team had at least gotten some flags.
He checked the time and sighed, seems like he would be a bit late, the club would no doubt already be reviewing what they knew of the case. RASIST waited for no one. "Now they just need to get a better name," thought Bryan.
He stepped back out to the parking lot and climbed into his car, time for a long trip.
RASIST Club Room 6:15pm
Bryan stepped in and waved at everyone, he set down his bag and pulled out his sketchbook, ready to sketch composite images of what they figured the criminals, suspects, and witnesses looked like. Least that's what he figured he would do.
Combat mode, engage
Rogers Public Library 6PM
Jim rubbed his eyes as the next article loaded. Another one? Where is this gonna end? twenty-nine deaths. And now some goddam cult? This isn't normal, something is going wrong here.
The article finished loading and the teenager began scrolling again. Why am I even looking into this? I mean sure it keeps me away from the house and gives me something to do after school but this is the police's job. I should just leave it to them.
You could join the trend.
James spun around in his chair and looked around for the source of the voice. There was no one there except the librarian at the front desk. And he doubted the old woman had a voice like that.
He gathered up his things and left the library quickly. Third time this month, guess I have a stalker or something.
-dramatic music ensues-
That girl...I know she read that diary, but would she out me to everyone?
Kill her.
What...what was that?
No, its nothing. There's no chance of me losing my mask, not to someone's insipid gaslighting attempt. I cannot let it slip, even for a moment, because that would mean losing every—-
Daniel kept walking...
edited 10th Jan '15 2:12:50 AM by NickTheSwing
Sumanai Man
"Five minutes late. Perhaps I should buy you all new watches?" snapped Marianne, who had been one of the firsts to arrive. She looked at the delinquents and couldn't help but sigh.
"Honestly, we have something serious here and you insist on going out and punching people!"
She looked at Faraday, and her expression softened slightly. She felt a sort of kinship with the girl, as they had both lost their mothers to this stupid plague.
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to unlock the room earlier, I had to tutor Vale and her friend in the wheelchair."
"...Although, I've been keeping tabs on you, Faraday. Your last history exam was way below average for you. You need to work on that."
Nothing is what it seems. Master of Shipping and Sadism.
Alex gave a casual wave to Aiden "Yo." He greeted his sort-of friend/rival, and trying not to get annoyed at Marianne lecturing him on lateness. Jesus, it's like she thinks I actually go out and look for fights...then again, she doesn't have reason to think otherwise if she's listening to the school gossip.
This is why I fucking hate my rep in this school...
edited 9th Jan '15 8:47:26 PM by svenorzokarkoff
Transcender of Gender
Aiden collapsed onto one of the room's chair, slinging off her backpack and rooting around in it until she procured an energy drink.
At Marianne's words she raised an eyebrow at Alex, as if to ask You got caught up in a brawl too? Then her attention swung back to the other girl, as her telling off made Aiden chuckle.
"Hand on my heart, they were the ones who tried to gang up on me this time. This whole suicide thing ain't the only dirty business goin' down in the city." She had a gut feeling that the same could be said for Alex. Guy had a kick as strong as three men, but she'd never seen him instigate with it.
"Though, speaking of..." She grinned, turning the bottle around so it was pointing at Marianne. "Ain't gonna be long before you're next on my list. A little tousle now and again's not that bad for the body and soul, y'know."
they/them || "Forgive me, regent of queer amphibians" - Lt.BGob
Alex nodded. "A bunch of 'em jumped me outside the school gates. Aiden's right. Crime's gone up since the Jackson incident; People are scared and paranoid, and some take advantage of that."
edited 9th Jan '15 8:52:40 PM by svenorzokarkoff
I have a plan.
It had been a very rough couple of months for Simon Fisherman's study group in the Rogers High Library. After the horrific death of Andrew Buschbeck, who was one of Simon's closest friends an a shining member of the study group, nobody seemed to want to spend their after school time honing their academic skills or having fun discussions about class. Now the brightly-lit school library no longer felt inviting to him.
Irritated, Simon pushed aside all of his study materials, and straightened his red tie as he got up from his seat. It was about time he had headed back to RASIT that afternoon.
Simon entered the RASIT clubhouse unceremoniously.
"Jessica! Marianne! It's good to see you."
He suddenly noticed Alex and Aiden's rough features. Getting up close, he peered at Alex and Aiden's knuckles, and took a good long look at Aiden's forehead.
"Another fight, you two? You both should know by now that the physical confrontations, the violence... It isn't worth it. Put away your swords. Those who use the sword will die by the sword."
edited 10th Jan '15 6:04:37 AM by TailsDoll
"@[=g3,8d]&fbb=-q]/hk%fg"
Sumanai Man
"..Hmmph. Honestly, you could have run. As for your challenge, I will only consent if you beat me once on a test."
She looked at Alex. "Ugh. It's getting worse. Sometimes, I feel we are not doing enough."
"...Fisherman." She greeted Simon. "Who else is missing?"
Nothing is what it seems. Master of Shipping and Sadism.
Transcender of Gender
Aiden groaned. "Mari, you're like two years above me. How the hell'm I supposed to do that?" Aiden was obviously as smart as she needed to be, but that didn't make her some prodigy.
Simon's scrutiny was next, which she replied to with another cocky grin and a fist pump. "Hell yeah I wanna go down fighting! Ain't gonna be some pansy who keels over and bites it when I'm old an' wrinkly. We alls got different ideas 'bout what's worth it and what's not, Mr. Perfect."
Finally she glanced around the room, taking stock of who was present. Alex, Mari, Mr. Perfect, Jessica, another kid with a sketchpad that she didn't know... "Hey, hey, where's Yoshika? Think he's scrappin' too?"
they/them || "Forgive me, regent of queer amphibians" - Lt.BGob
"Probably caught wind of another bullying situation. Ya know how he is about that." Alex said.
Combat mode, engage
Jim walked home slowly, his shoulders hunched against the wind. The blonde high-schooler was constantly peering over his shoulder, on constant watch for his mysterious stalker. I know you're there, somewhere.
What's wrong with the trend? Wouldn't it be better to end it all? To ascend rather than continue on in this pitiful existence? The stalker whispered right in his ear.
James jumped back from his attacker...to find no one standing there. Okay well that's creepy. Can't head home with a stalker on my tail...the grocery store? He nodded to himself. That will work, plenty of people there, plenty of places to hide, maybe a neighborhood police officer...Yeah, totally the best option. And so he hurried for the relative safety of the main square.
-dramatic music ensues-
Transcender of Gender
"Ahhh, yeah, he's pretty gung-ho 'bout that stuff." Aiden took a swig of her drink, thinking for a moment. "Think that's how we met, actually. He was after my ass because he thought I was bullyin'. Heh, guess I can't blame 'im for that."
they/them || "Forgive me, regent of queer amphibians" - Lt.BGob
King of Anime
6PM, RASIT Club Room
Another girl sat next to Jessica, hair falling over her shoulders as she leaned back in her chair. The school day had been tough but the students gathered here had more important things on their minds at the moment. Things such as the string of suicides that had begun two weeks earlier as well as the strange things that had happened to them all.
Looking up, she interjected her own two cents into the conversation. "I don't think it really matters why you were late. Aren't we trying to do something serious here?"
A pause as she let her words sink in.
"Honestly why did we even let you guys even join us if you're not going to take this seriously? We could have invited a dog to be a part of this if we wanted a mascot. While your help is admirable we don't really need you if you're not pulling your weight, ya know?"
Sumanai Man
Marianne smirked at Aiden. "Exactly my point."
Then as the cheerleader spoke her piece, the redhead nodded in agreement.
"Excellent summation. However..."
Here she looked at Eri and narrowed her eyes. "Do you not have a problem yourself? I don't really know whether you csn properly balance your time."
"...You have a lot of things to do."
Nothing is what it seems. Master of Shipping and Sadism.
Eventually, Daniel decided to check in on that one group at the school - usually, he was this out this late out here mostly to make sure the stupid cliques didn't pick fights and act like gangs. He wondered briefly why his mother was so understanding. She had nothing to gain from his extracurricular activities, and she knew after that diagnosis what kind of man he was. Didn't she think he might be out here making trouble?
For now, though, he banished the thought from his mind as he walked into the RASIT club room, not even giving any explanation or notice beyond simply stating aloud, "Hey, uh, I heard this was a club for investigating the incidents occurring here? Y'know, the crazy cult and the suicides? I might be interested..."
Oh. Her.
Figures she'd get involved in something like this.
Opening his eyes to an empty, grey sky, Reid Riker found that his recent memories were rather hazy.
For one, he did not know what he was doing before, or even what he was doing now. Secondly, although he could recognize the area around him as slightly resembling the rooftop of his high school, it also seemed much, much wider and expansive than he could previously recollect it being, which really shouldn't be possible. Lastly, and most disconcerting of all, he did not understand why he could see the backside eerily similar, brown-haired, tracksuit-wearing boy further up ahead, standing at the of the school's rooftop.
Reid had opened his mouth to speak; a vain attempt at calling out to the familiar stranger at the edge of the building, to no success. For some reason he couldn't let out a single word, no matter how hard he tried to force it. What he could still do, however, was walk, and as such, he proceeded to approach the boy at the edge.
As he got closer, he found himself feeling more and more unsure of what he was really doing. After all, he couldn't speak, for some odd and probably terrible reason, so why even bother trying to interact with the guy further ahead? The boy also began to wonder, if he really was going to approach, should he find a way to make himself known before he moves forward anymore? After all, he didn't want to accidentally startle someone in such an unsafe position. But really, the questions he was pondering were simply attempts to avoid thinking about the most uncomfortable thought on his mind: Why is this boy standing on the ledge of what seemed to be the rooftop of a building? No matter what excuse he came up with it was still something very dangerous...
As he continued to worry and wonder, he heard something. A voice, barely more than a whisper, yet still very, very familiar, coming in the direction of the boy at the edge. He think it said...
"Pathetic."
...What?
"Come on, come on, come on. Make a friggin' decision already. You coming over here or what?"
...Was it addressing him? The more the voice spoke, the more oddly familiar it seemed. It was really starting to creep the teen out.
Regardless, Reid began to walk forward once more, albeit in a more cautious manner.
"Yeah...that's it. You finally decided on something, huh? 'Course, you needed to have somebody force you to do it, like always."
The voice calling out to him made Reid not only anxious, but also upset. What does this guy know about him? He'd ask it out loud if he could speak.
Instead, Reid seemed to get closer and closer as the voice continued to goad him on. Finally reaching the taunting figure, Reid made a chilling realization; the guy was wearing clothes identical to what he often wore himself.
"...Great. Now take a look over here."
The boy, who it was now completely obvious the voice had belonged to, motioned towards the side of him, without ever turning an inch.
Reid moved into the spot, without ever even glancing towards the figure from the side. He looked directly ahead, fearing what or who he'd see next to him...
"Look down."
He wished he hadn't.
What had appeared to be his school at first impression was in actuality an overwhelming number of stories larger. From what he could see of the ground, there were masses of black silhouettes, vaguely shaped in the generic styling of human beings, all seemingly looking up at Reid, and solely at Reid.
"They're waiting for you, you know."
He then heard them.
Cries, murmurs, unknown chatter coming from far, far below. The only other thing Reid could hear was his own elevating heartbeat.
"Now, look at me."
Reid was hesitant to move his eyes away from the crowd, not sure what he was scared of most. What the hell was going on? What was all of this? Why was he here?
Lost in frantic thought, his eyes hastily betrayed him, and he looked towards the figure alongside him. Although it was only an instinctual glance, what he saw kept his eyes locked to the person next to him.
A brown-haired teenager wearing a red tracksuit, a jersey with the number 11 on it underneath. A face almost completely identical, but different; a mixed expression of apathy and defeat strengthened by eyes burning with intense yellow, and a resent-filled scowl.
It was him.
A wave of disorientation immediately fell over the boy as he stared into his twisted reflection. He didn't notice that he was shaking, not until it was too late.
He then felt his foot slip.
He then felt himself falling.
But he still continued to look into the yellow of eyes of his doppelganger, even as it seemed further and further way...
He then felt the world start to melt around him, and waver.
It was only then that he realized that it was all a dream.
Rogers Housing Complex; Reid's Home, 6:00 pm.
Reid awoke in his bed, gasping for air. His heart was still beating frantically, only now beginning to adjust to reality. He felt hot all over, though he could probably attribute that to him falling asleep in his clothes. All he could really gather was that that really sucked. Alot.
He took a moment to collect himself, and processed whatever the hell he just experienced.
First, he lightly felt his forehead; aside from having a slight headache, he didn't feel a fever or anything, so he could gather he wasn't having some kind of weird, sickness-induced nightmare...
Second, he checked his body. He didn't find any bite marks or strange bugs, so he guessed that crossed out anything physically causing such a hellish dream...
Lastly, he scanned his room, both in the visual and auditory sense. His room was as bland as ever, and he apparently hadn't accidentally left the TV on this time...
So, he guessed, all in all, it was just an extremely lucid, terrifying nightmare that came at random. He'd rather believe that. Another possibility was that he was crazy, but he'd rather repress that thought down to a state of non-existence.
...In actuality, he didn't know what gave people bad dreams. His attempts had calmed him down somewhat, so at least some good came out of it. He was still in a bit of a crappy mood, though...
...His stomach then growled. He guessed that was another possible cause for his nightmare. Maybe. Atleast it was something he could easily solve.
Reid left his bed and went about his more or less usual late afternoon routine. He figured that, with the money his parents left him this morning, he should still have enough to maybe eat out. Taking a moment to quickly change out of his sweat-filled clothes, and possibly freshen up a bit, he headed downstairs and made sure to lock up as he left his empty home.
edited 10th Jan '15 8:12:35 AM by lightdarkhero250
I'm a ghost, you didn't see me.
Delicious in the Moomin Valley
RASIT Club Room
"Evening, Alex~ Looking mighty tired, I see?"
"Don't worry, don't worry~" Jessica flashed Marianne a smile about as adorable as her everpresent cat ear headphones. "As long as I keep them just about average I should be fine, shouldn't I?~
"Also, let's not get beat each other up if possible, alright? We're kinda trying to work together~" Jumping off her chair and adjusting the white hoodie, Jessica began walking around the room in her typical fashion. "We might not be some pro investigators, but we're doing whatever we can, right?"
Then came Daniel. "Oh hey there, Dan~" She greeted the newcomer, flashing a giant grin. "Glad to hear you'd be interested in joining-"
And then things started escalating.
"Oi, sunshine, how about you move your fancy ass outta the doorway?" The snappy, aggressive voice of Yoshinori Karazao - likely directed at Daniel - was unmistakable. The fact that he spoke with very slight Japanese accent also helped in identifying The Batter.
Big Grah
Bryan blinked and looked at everyone, they seemed... distracted, thankfully the club leaders were stepping in now. He coughed and waved at everyone... he didn't like talking.
He let out a sigh and asked "What is the game plan? How will this investigation go?"
Transcender of Gender
"...Tch, someone's feelin' a little tetchy." Aiden raised an eyebrow now at Eri, still with a smile on her face. Did she actually get pissed about anything nowadays? It didn't feel like it. "Didn't realise this was a no-fun zone. Lemme go fetch my grey fatigues."
She was thinking about just how much weight she could pull around with the demon in her head (metaphorically and physically, guy was nearly as buff as her) when some pretty boy entered. Call it gut feeling, but something about him instantly set Aiden on edge. Like how she'd felt seconds before those two numbnuts had tried to jump her.
She didn't feel endangered, per se, but it wasn't a nice kind of alertness either.
That weird feeling, and any thoughts of actually greeting the guy, went out her head as a familiar voice piped up. "Heeey, Yoshika, man o' the hour! The hell you been?"
they/them || "Forgive me, regent of queer amphibians" - Lt.BGob
\'\'\'11th of March, 2017\'\'\'
\'\'\"You are all scum, money-grubbing scum! Ever since you grasped power in Rogers, nothing is going right! We have the highest poverty percentage since Great Depression, for crying out loud! Where are the promises you threw during the campaign?!\"\'\'
\'\'\"...you\'re not willing to listen. I can see it. I don\'t need your confirmation. Let my actions speak louder than any disgusting propaganda you can come up with then... and may your eyes either be opened... or gouged out.\"\'\'
\'\'\'20th of March, 2017\'\'\'
\'\'\"A tragic suicide occured in Viceville near Rogers. A middle-aged woman\'s charred body has been found in a roadside ditch. According to autopsy report, aforementioned\'s name was Margaret Faraday. She has orphaned a daughter. What is perhaps most strange about the case that the method of suicide at hand is almost identical with a loud case of Orwell Jackson\'s public self-immolation at Rogers City Hall...\"\'\'
\'\'\'18th of May, 2017\'\'\'
\'\'\"The Plague of Orwell Jackson continues to scare the city of Rogers into terror. Another person was found dead, once again having died by self-immolation. It\'s the twenty ninth victim of this strange syndrome that no doctor or psychologist has found an explanation for. To remind, all victims apart from the first one were well-adjusted people with no reason to commit suicide...\"\'\'
\'\'\'20th of May, 2017\'\'\'
\'\'\"An illegal manifestation gathered under Rogers City Hall has been dispersed just a moment ago. Two policemen and six protesters were lightly injured, eight more apprehended and held in custody. According to prisoners\' testimonies the demonstration was held in \"celebration of Mr. Jackson\'s ascension\". Police investigators haven\'t managed to find what could this mean...\'\'\"
\'\'\'Present Day - 28th of May, 2017; 6 PM; RASIT Club Room\'\'\'
Jessica Faraday\'s head bobbed rhytmically to the music as she looked outside the window. \"Man, Yoshi\'s missing again...\" She mused, not really sounding all that concerned. They still needed him and a few more people to begin their usual meeting. As always, RASIT\'s meetings were dedicated to finding some answers regarding this odd situation that befell Rogers at 11th of March. Some more members also seemed to be missing. Perhaps they hurried there or had some other matters to attend...?
Alright. Persona Users, go ahead and catch up to the room/be in the room. Everyone else, go about your daily lives. ^_^;
Big Grah