[The feed clicks on to the sound of a voice all but dripping in smugness. It belongs to someone who, apparently, has found no shortage of amusement with his current situation.]

Ahh, how scary! Trial? Conviction? How could someone like me, who's never done anything wrong in his whole life, be convicted of any kind of crime? [He chuckles quietly -– okay, maybe 'never done anything wrong' is a bit of an exaggeration.] And calling me “inmate”? So rude. I do have a name!

Really, though... what an interesting situation. To be pulled away from home so suddenly like that; it's disconcerting to say the least. But what's the use in lingering on what's already done, hm? There must be so much more to this place than this little.. ah, welcome lets on.

I'd like to know more. About everything. About all of you, whoever you are. There must be a lot of fascinating people here if this is indeed some kind of prison.. [He's getting more and more excited as he continues.] So many terrible people who've done so many terrible, terrible things. I wonder, do you feel bad about any of it, now that you've obviously been caught? Or do you still think you're just an innocent victim caught up in someone else's mess? I'd really like to know what you think~! [He starts to laugh, but cuts out a second or two later.]

[ when the video feed comes to life, alois trancy looks like he's swallowed an entire sunbeam. that's how wide his smile is and how rosy his cheeks are. besides the usual honey-colored hair that frames his face, there's impossibly black silky strands tickling under his chin. he peers through the wave of hair at the camera (which one hand keeps in place), while a few polished fingernails card themselves through it. ]

Guess what, guess what? [ is the giddiness detectable? it should be. ] Claude has come! My Claude! My Claude came to me and while it took him a fuck of a long time, he's here now, and I've forgiven him for being so unpunctual! And, for leaving me alone for so long, of course. [ isn't he a kindly master? .... and, yeah, yeah; never mind that claude faustus has been charged with crimes just like everyone else. nope, alois likes to fancy that claude charged in to rescue him from unbearable loneliness. ]

He's really terrific! The best butler in the entire world. [ adding quickly: ] In all of them, you won't find one better and he's all mine.

Anyhow! Today Claude and I are going to bake a cake! [ the view gets a tad rocky, he's leaning back to switch his communicator's camera to the side of claude's face and ear. the entire time, he's been perched and wiggling on claude's shoulders, kicking his legs, or leaning backward—giving the trancy butler a hell of a time of keeping him steady and unscathed. ] Isn't that right, Claude? It'll be the bloody most wonderful cake you've ever seen or eaten!

[ swoop! the camera suddenly pans up to a top view of the two of them, with alois looking cheerfully upward. ] So, if you'd like, you should come and have some.



(ooc: ;w; yep. claude and alois'll be in the kitchen this afternoon baking (or, trying to teach how...) a cake and making a mess of things and herp derpin'. either one or both of us will tag those who comment in. feel free to come help them out in the kitchen, laugh at them, or eat some cake. i promise it'll be good.)

( action )

[voice]

[it's a strong attempt at being blank and completely devoid of emotion, but her voice ends up sounding very quiet, as of she doesn't want to be heard.] How strong do you have to be to kill someone?

[Link is picking up a piece of wadded paper and shaking it at you. Yes, YOU! Littering is despicable!]

I strongly suggest with the cleaning only a few days complete everyone should do their part to keep it in excellent condition. If we are to be in prison we might as well be in a pristine prison.

[Ew, he's holding someone else's trash. Is that gum?]

[Oh, look, she lives after all!]

Marina—that is the people of Marina—I was wondering if anyone else had flowers in your room when you returned there after the facility-wide cleaning. [She thought everyone had gotten flowers and it was just a nice touch from Acumen, but then no one else had mentioned it, so now she's curious.]

Ah, that's all I think. [You may now continue your regularly scheduled lives.]


(OOC: I should probably mention, that you did not. No flowers for you!)

[Hello, Marina! It's your creepy friendly neighborhood scientist-guy. He seems all smiles, as per usual.] Hello, everyone! I had a question. Or rather, I had a few.

So it's been a few days, but, um... Does anyone know where I can acquire some medical equipment? Or a telescope, or even fairly small pieces of glass and sandpaper?

If I'm going to be stuck here a while, I may as well keep myself busy.

[Plus, he has projects. Many, many projects. His smile grows a little more.]

Also, I noticed there's a hospital. I've never stepped inside their facilities, but judging from the outside, it looks fairly state-of-the-art.

Has anyone checked that out yet?

[Because Shinra's oh so curious on what's in there.] Do you know if it's possible to become a volunteer there? Or to... borrow ["steal"] fairly meaningless extras?

Just... out of curiosity. [Sooooo, anyone want to help Shinra break into the hospital? He's about to turn it off, but he remembers something else he wanted to ask.]

Oh! Also, before I forget, I was wondering if anyone knew how to create and install locks? I'm not the best at mechanics so it'd be nice if someone would be able to put a lock on my apartment door for me. I'm not sure how I can repay anyone just yet, but I'm sure we could work something out. Thank you!

[The transmission starts, light dim and musty like the books lining the walls behind the young man that appears on the screen. He seems confused, nervous even, eyes darting from one end of the room to the other and tongue flicking out every so often to lick at his lips. A nervous tic, perhaps, just like his voice grows more rapid with every sentence, pronunciation remaining surprisingly clear despite his fervor.

The situation is familiar. He's trained for this. He's been here before and although he doesn't know who he's talking to, he's talking to someone. Keeping an open feed gives him a greater chance of someone hearing him than not talking at all, and so he talks. Someone will hear him.]

Acumen. First used in the 1530's, the word stems from the latin acuere, to sharpen, hence giving it the meaning of sharpness and in extent shrewdness, keen insight. Another synonym is "the ability to judge well" which alludes that the person using this word as their moniker believes themselves to be the ultimate judge. This in turn points to some sort of God complex with the creator of this AI, although not your typical narcissistic personality disorder - by using the construct as his or her spokesperson the individual behind it can remain hidden much like the Wizard behind the curtain.

And just like in that story the suspect may be feeling inadequate and insecure about him or herself, thus hiding behind a construct in order to keep their appearance flawless - it's the only way they can act as an absolute judge without being hindered by their humanity. A similar logic lies behind the hoods of executioners in the past - by making them virtually faceless the guilt of taking another persons life or in this case their freedom can be absolved into a disembodied concept of justice…

[Pause. Brows furrowed in thought he worries at his bottom lip. This isn't helping. He's not even sure who he's talking to, to be perfectly honest, but that has never stopped him before and if anything doing the math may help clear his head.]

One point six zero nine kilometers under the surface… that translates to roughly a mile. Pressure equals depth times fifteen divided by thirty-three… so at 5280 feet that would result in a pressure of 2400 psi which in turn equates to over a ton per square inch. Right now the limits for commercial diving is roughly at 500 feet, one tenth of the assumed depth we're at now…

[This would be a good time for someone to interrupt. He'll go on forever if you don't.]

[OOC He's restrained and as such bots will take him away to the salt mines work before long! I'd also really appreciate if those interested could fill in this PERMISSIONS POST so we can get some profiling done here.]

[There's a quiet sigh as the video flickers on. Some of you might know this man! It's seaweed head Gilbert, looking worn out. Not to mention grumpy. He can't find his cigarettes anywhere, from his turned out pockets. The same with his gun.]

Hello. My name is Raven and...like many of you, I've been taken by Acumen.

I won't plead, or beg. The welcome message was clear enough. But if there's anyone from my world, or someone who has knowledge of Pandora or the Baskervilles, I would like to speak to you.

Thank you.

[He picks up his hat, and lowers it so the upper half of his face is covered, even as he turns off the feed. There's nothing more for him to do then to sit and wait.]

I don't know what the hell is going on here, but someone better start talking since I have a lot of questions that need answering.

[Tim wasn't worried at first. Or, well, he was but he was confident it would just be a matter of getting out of this place one way or another and then deal with the consequences. He wasn't going to just sit and cry because his secret identity might have been compromised. It could also be a joke... come on- cloning? Really?

When he realized he couldn't just hack the network or the communicator to get in contact with Bruce or O or anybody... well, then he would be lying if he didn't admit to be slightly worried. Still, not freaking out for Robin. There were still options, there was always something to do, so he opted to get in contact with the other inmates of this so-called prison.]


Yo. Not to be annoying or anything because I know the machine already told me the basics but call me slow on the uptake, if you must.

I'm Alvin Draper. Could somebody fill me in? The hell is this place? And how and why did I even get here to begin with?

[Today is quieter around the shelter -- and there's less food. It's getting kind of cramped in here, isn't it? And boring. There are plenty of games and entertainments left over from the party, but everyone is gathered together and... finding things to do.]

[So what are you doing?]

[Rose is restless, beyond restless even. This is the longest she's been cooped up in one place possibly ever (she doesn't count the TARDIS. There was just so much of it and the possibilyt to go anywhere in the Universe and time). It drives home the 'we're trapped' point like nothing else here has. She's pacing in the main area, picking at her fingernails and staring out at the window. Occasionally she'll pick up a cup of tea and take a sip then put it down. Tea is supposed to be relaxing, calming even and yet every bit of her is completely keyed up.

It's been nearly two weeks, now. Really- I've tried to be understanding. Crime must meet punishment for the functioning of society, as weak as this punishment truly is. Corrective containment without the reinforcement is all you need in a bubble full of petty thieves and murderers wet behind the ears.

It was quite cute, nearly charming for oh, say, the first few days. I laughed because jokes are meant to be funny, and I certainly didn't want to offend. That would be rude, and a princess minds her manners.

However.

Surely the Almighty would find its time better spent dealing with crimes of a higher caliber.

I tire of all this camaraderie, this friendship that spoils even the bloodiest of hands. Punishment is most effective under fear, power, and brutal authority. You crush until the prisoners can no longer crawl on their own. How I hate to see all this opportunity wasted.

Take pleasure in the relationships you have established here, my fellow criminals! Enjoy this peace- for it is only the eye of the storm! People are nothing more than pawns, and without the proper measure, even pawns will turn and strike.

Speak to me of kindness and of love if you so desire. Soon you will understand how worthless it is in the end- how easily loyalty can be tossed aside by fools!

It is nothing- do you hear me? Nothing!

[ooc | Azula is going off the deep-end. I apologize to everyone I didn't tag in my last post- but I'm getting out of that RP slump, now and I'm back with some fresh crazy :)]

Good morning, Marina! [Have a very smiley pink haired girl on your video feed!] For anyone I haven’t met, I’m Lacus Clyne and I’m very glad to meet you.

It seems as though we’re all going to be in the shelter today, so we should make the best of things. I was thinking that we should get together and have a big winter banquet! Anyone who wants to help cook should please feel free to come to the kitchens and assist, and if not you should still come and enjoy the food with us.

Dinner will be served at 5 in the main cafeteria, and after that maybe we could have fun playing games and watching movies together. I hope everyone has a good day, and I hope to see everyone at the feast!

[A few minutes later]

I just learned that today is also Ritsuka’s birthday! To celebrate there will be a cake and some special desserts and decorations. [as many decorations as they can find without access to the store.] Everyone please, stop by to wish him a happy birthday!

***
((OOC Notes: Mingle post, open to all! Reply to Lacus by [video] or there are several action options: [cooking] any time before 5pm ICly, [dinner] a huge buffet of almost anything you could want, or [after dinner] for card games, board games, and movies throughout the cafeteria and nearby common rooms! Your character is in no way obligated to be at all of these, but they could be if you want~

Also! A link to Ritsuka’s birthday party will be added once it goes up. There will be cake and lots of special desserts and pretty decorations in one area of the cafeteria.

If anyone wants to intentionally or unintentionally sabotage the food, please contact me OOCly before you do so. Thanks and ENJOY!))

[Standing right next to what must be the door to a public bathroom in the shelter, he opens it then turns around to look for anyone before he speaks out through the communicator, so everyone will know what he has to say about this...]

-- Is Acumen serious?

Not only am I forced to be here away from my hive but now I have to be here for two more days? Too many fuckin' humans are here at once! Forget that, this bathroom is now mine! No one else is allowed to enter, no one! Well, except maybe my moirail but that is it!

Got that? Leave me alone!

[With that, he backs up inside and slams the door of the bathroom closed so no one can bother him...

That is, unless they try to talk to him or go in to use his claimed bathroom.]

[Sup, folks. Have a Hideki poking at the screen.]

Is it on? I thought these things were supposed to tell you when they started recording! Uh.... Right! I'm Hideki Motosuwa. [Smile!] Alright, so I read everything in these brochures and I gotta say... ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!?

Acumen? Supernatural abilities? Britannian? I may not have remembered much from school but I know there's not a language called that! Oh, did you mean British, maybe? I always thought they just called that English. -- Wait, that's not the point! What's up with these welcome packets!? What is this, a vacation? Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying tie me up or anything like that. It's not really my thing, if you catch my drift. I'm just saying that it's sketchy! I mean, is it really alright to give criminals a movie theater? There's even a baseball team!

I'll just get to the point -- I know that I'm innocent. Just how many of you are really criminals?

[ For Mikado, the boy has spent the past hours doing a number of things.

1. Promptly freaking out, ripping the thing off of his face, and trying to find something familiar in the place he woke up in. This has failed.

2. Belatedly noticing that there was a... welcome basket? Okay... near him. This had a pamphlet in it.

3. ...Upon further notice, this pamphlet seems crazy. Or some kind of fiction. It's not as if-- This caused him to stare out the dome windows. He was really under the ocean, wasn't he? Ah.... Oh. O-okay. Sure. Why...not....

4. Looking over the brochure more carefully. Britannian? Now that… wasn’t something he knew. And this was supposed to be written in it? Cue angling the paper and squinting to see if anything changed.

5. …Oh. A communicator. That was the thing he ripped off. Hm. Let’s see….

He plays with the setting for a moment, adjusting to the controls. When he’s done, it connects, the sight of a younger, somewhat nervous boy appearing. Surprisingly, though, there’s a bit of excitement tucked at the edges of his eyes. ]

Ah, I… I’d like to thank to people who made the brochure. It was, um…. [ A lot to take in. Still debating the fact or fiction of some of it. ] Helpful.

[ He gives a quick smile, then it fades from nerves. ] Uh, so. Once we’re here. What are we supposed to do now?

[And Shinra, oddly enough, is smiling as he wears the headset.]

This is new! I've never been much for bluetooth systems, much less those with screens... How peculiar, though. I'm going to assume the screen's primarily for some sort of video or retina scanner, yes? Because there's not much else one can do unless this also acts as a viewfinder for light particles not seen by the naked human eye...

[Oh right. Nerd speak. And there's the whole ‘being somewhere unfamiliar' thing, the more important things to focus on! Koi ponds, places far too pretty to be the local streets of Ikebukuro, Japan... After his brief moment of distraction with the headset, his smile drops. Srs Bsns Shinra Tiem.]

As much as I appreciate getting to play with this new device, I'm pretty certain I shouldn't be here. Assuming whoever gave me this is who brought me here, I apologize but I can't stay. I have a date with my girlfriend tonight, and I'd rather her not find out I've gone missing.

[Incubator hadn't been made aware of this place before, so he decides to approach the situation with caution. Instead of joining the chorus on the communicator, the small fuzzy creature listened for a while as he examined his welcome basket. Then he paused, trying to psychically search for local magical girls, only to find that his telepathy was greatly limited. It was enough to make a decision or two about his immediate predicament, even if he would have to perform more tests too discern the extent of his new limitations.]

[Eventually, he abandons his basket on the walkway and climbs the nearest tall building with a set of deft jumps. He contorts his body so his paw can reach the communicator. Time for the first test--who can hear him?]

[Voice]

[QB speaks with a rather cute and upbeat voice, sounding almost like it might belong to a child--an effect ruined by his mature word choices. He doesn't address anyone in particular; he appears to be thinking out loud.] Of course there hasn't been a mistake. When every action is a crime, every person is a criminal.

This prison appears to be the result of an advanced culture lacking the ability to consider moral relativism. None of you should feel so alarmed by the accusations. What may have been acceptable on your world doesn't match the legal acceptability of this advanced artificial intelligence.

Committing crimes does not automatically make you a "bad person" by your standards, because your standards were never considered or applied to begin with.

[The glare Arya throws to the device in her hands is no less strong than it is a little silly. snow flakes are caught in her mussed up, messy brown hair and her eyelashes as she blinks them away impatiently.]

I want to see my father. [She has no idea how this device works, but she's heard voices and seen people talking and maybe it was a magic mirror! (like the ones old Nan would tell her in the stories) and if it was it meant that she wasn't alone.] I want to see him! I swear, if you gold cloaks hurt him again I'll take Needle and punch you full of holes. I don't care if I committed crimes, that Joffrey deserved everything, and he deserves more. I'll give him a royal black eye once I get out. And I'll free my father too.

[They're passionate words, surprisingly filled with a loathing that seems beyond her age. She breaks off here and for a moment she looks as vulnerable and small as a girl of twelve should look. it wasn't going to work, she had no idea if this stupid mirror was working and if people were watching. She drops the communicator to her lap, obscuring the view.]