networkinthenight | [Network] - WEEKLY BULLETIN

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WEEKLY BULLETIN

announcements
What do you get when you combine a Catholic and a spirit child? I don't know, it's not a joke, it's just an announcement that one of the spirits-- a baby, it looks like-- has been adopted.

What an awful week, though. Both the exploration group and the distraction group did so well, and honestly? It made a difference. You guys should be proud.

On a lighter note, autumn is just around the corner! Look for temp drops and gusty weather cropping up in the next week or so.

classifieds
None.

If you wish to submit an advertisement, please drop them by the post office.

obituaries
Capt. Ben Winters: at least he died as he lived: doing something worthwhile. Thank you, Winters.

Number Five: clever right to the end.

A whole host of people have gone missing since the party... We haven't found their bodies or their lanterns yet, but I think it's safe to assume they're probably gone. Here's the list: Melisandre, Yaeris, Gene Hicks, Ahven Sychantus, Scott Ryder, Nathan Drake, Brienne of Tarth, Raylen Givens, John Constantine, Chloe Frazier, Irwin Wade, Elisha Harper, Dick Grayson, Aragorn, Rafe Adler, Billy Russo, Ben Hargreeves, Kyna Midha, Washington, Sam Drake, Daniel Riordan, Replica Riku Dawn, Eleven, Shadow Moon

[Worthy of note: this bulletin comes to you not via a newspaper, but by the network, now that Robin's connected with you guys once more!]

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[And Cao Pi, naturally, sounds like he might be volunteering. It's not all bad - the man clearly has leadership experience, to put it mildly. But he doesn't come across as likeable, which seems like an important factor when considering these people are not his national subjects. Sure, none of them are here by choice, but none of them are required to follow a leader they don't wish to, either.]

No, the Keeper is not our friend. And you're right about the others. But in this setting I might suggest multiple leaders. We're a small enough community to meet as a group and decide what our leadership should look like and what our plans should be for moving forward.

[But they do need an emergency plan, and it will have to be kept off the network. Away from the spirits' ears, too, if possible. Nothing can be kept completely secret but if the idea is to have not just an escape route or a defense position but also one that the Keeper and the spirits won't expect in case either turns on them, then they have to be careful.]

[right and right again. He'd be all up on the network volunteering to run the show right this instant if he didn't have a shred of pragmatism. He knows he barely knows anyone, the party proved that. He hasn't endeared himself to anyone but maybe one there-but-for-alternate-dimensions countryman. He and Rosinante get along but haven't really forged a bond yet. Hence, his hesitation and dancing around the issue.

Which his comrade seems to already understand, good.]

What would you say if I went public to propose some sort of town meeting? For people to share their ideas face to face rather than relying on messages. Care to show up and offer your wisdom?

Yes, I would. And I would like to hear what others have to say, as well.

[There's a lot to be learned from people who hail from so many diverse worlds. By meeting as a group, they'll have the knowledge and experience of people from multiple backgrounds and technological levels to draw on, and all of that is valuable.]

Besides, I think a town meeting after so many losses is needed. Both to talk about what happened, and also so that we know who among the remainder is interested in cooperating.

Then, I shall propose it. Soon, but perhaps just after the ferry arrives in order to allow any newcomers to catch up quickly on the state of affairs. We should not wait.

[there he goes, saying 'we' like he really wants to include others in his plans. Well, he does, just maybe not in the same way as they do]

Good. That timing should work well. We could meet alongside the bonfire, so that if anyone walks by and somehow has missed the announcement, they should see us. I can keep the spirits from listening in if we decide that's necessary.

[Sure, they might get suspicious, seeing a bunch of mouths moving with no sound, but who knows what the spirits think is normal for them. And if they do wonder, and do try to listen in, how will they inform the Keeper of what they've heard?

Except - wait. She has already said they do that. That's how these bulletins get written, according to Robin. The spirits tell her. It's completely the opposite of his interactions so far - he can speak to the spirits and they understand, but can't speak back. Meanwhile, the Keeper speaks to them with the foghorn, and they tell her things.

Something isn't adding up and his brow creases slightly at the realization.]

Have you spent much time speaking with the forest spirits yourself?

[yes good. it's a plan, and he'll get right on it. Or, well, within the day.]

I...have not, I admit. [he feels awkward trying to hold conversations with them when they can only gesture back. it makes them seem dumb and he just can't with dumb] Only at the party, I did make a considerable effort. There was one, and I found it beneficial to show it respect and treat it well but I'm still wondering about it.

They're hard to speak with, aren't they? They understand us, but they can't respond except in squeaks and chirps. Can't write.

[It must be a language that can be learned, though, surely. Perhaps that's what the Keeper has done with her twenty years of waiting and "resetting" everyone who arrives.]

The lighthouse keeper understands them, since they bring the news to her. As much as I don't trust them or her, we really need someone who can befriend her for the sake of the information she has.

[aha, he sees the train of thought. Lucky for you, Rosinante, you're talking to someone with information]

She told me she has a piece of technology that translates for her. But apparently it only exists in one form, where she is in the lighthouse, and cannot be transported to us or copied. Conveniently. [SNORT. On the one hand it makes perfect logical sense, on the other hand it doesn't alleviate his suspicions one bit.] She seems to already have a good rapport with the ones who were here when we arrived, but you have a point - it would be better not to go through middle-men, and get it directly from the source.

Of course.

[He doesn't go so far as to roll his eyes, but yeah. Convenient is right. Ugh.]

I'm not sure her rapport with the others is as strong as you think it is, unless you've heard something from Rastus that I haven't. Ingram is no friend of hers. It doesn't much matter who, anyway, just so long as it's someone we can trust.

[Rosinante already knows who he would nominate, too. Not himself, for he's already gotten irritable with her and while it's not beyond possible to retry, it would be better to use someone who hadn't already gotten off on a bad foot. He'll re-read the messages later to be sure, but.]

Kuai Liang seems level-headed. I trust him.

[a tip of the head] I wasn't about to take her word for how much she talks to Ingram or how well they get along, but perhaps I did believe her on the topic of Master Rastus. I should approach him for his perspective, if he cares to give it.

[he can even go ask for something he doesn't expressly need as an excuse.]

Ah. Yes, he is earnest and capable. That would be one possibility. I should like to get to know a few others before really exploring that tactic, though.

We have time.

[Probably. But the idea that they shouldn't rush into things, shouldn't make decisions and shouldn't volunteer other people without thinking on it and considering options, is one he can get behind. No point in being impulsive. That's how people get killed.]

Do you have others in particular that you're looking to get to know?

Ah, yes. I noticed a few by their network names challenging the Keeper. Most of them had excellent points and reasonable logic rather than knee-jerk emotional responses, those are the type of people I'd love to meet.

[if he's not volunteering names it's because he feels like Rosinante has enough work on his own shoulders already, no need to pick his brain for identities.]

[Even in the current circumstances, he can't help but smile just a little, just for a moment. Yeah, that sounds like a helpful set of people for Cao Pi to speak to, all right. He saw a few himself in that network post, of course - but he really has had a lot weighing on him lately. Hasn't read every comment yet, though he intends to get back to it once he's had a moment to mourn those who went missing.]

Good. I'm sure you'll find yourself some pleasant company that way. Let me know if I can assist in any way, aside from the meeting you suggested. I'd like to see what information we can dig up.

[Of course, he doesn't begrudge the others their emotional responses. He completely understands. But Cao Pi isn't interested in them, and is more easily handled when one appeals to his ever-so-rational and intellectual side. It must make him feel intelligent and powerful to be associated with those particular traits.]

[mmmmm that's good sarcasm]

Oh, I will. I'm still learning your particular set of knacks but you have some good ones.

[even if they haven't really bonded on a friendlier level, Rosinante is pretty much the one person Zihuan can say he trusts, although he's aware that road doesn't go both ways. But then, he'll be really shocked if anyone decides they trust him in turn. That'll be their first mistake.]

[A compliment? How generous. He's always suspicious of those. People cave to them so easily. At least in this case, he does understand where the flattery comes from. When it comes to his particular trade, he has a few skills he's honed. A few things he knows he's good at, that give him some sort of value.]

Well, if you want to talk somewhere more comfortable, I wouldn't mind a cup of tea.

[he means it, too! Credit where credit is due and all that. But he also means it as an acknowledgement that he knows that Rosinante knows his game. Touche, might as well keep playing in case others are watching]

Has the store come by actual tea, yet? I found the offerings last month highly lacking.

[he doesn't need to chat right now but you said tea...]

I don't think my palate is as refined as yours. The black tea with a little milk and sugar seems fine.

[Nothing like Sengoku's preferred green teas, always easy to drink without adding anything, but plenty acceptable all the same. It's mostly an offer to let Cao Pi learn more about him, since he implied he could use the opportunity. Might as well, Rosinante figures, if they're to work together on anything at all. He's still going to be far from an open book, but hey. One step at a time.]

[well that he can agree on, there are things he wanted to ask a month ago and hasn't yet...

He breathes a dry laugh.]

My people discovered tea, you know. [invented it, whatever] A thousand years later, it became elevated into an art form for the elite. And, I'm finding out, another five hundred years after that it comes in little bags. I haven't tried it with sugar, perhaps I'll take you up on that so you can show me.

[With a nod, he folds his tablet and slips it into an inner pocket in his coat. Standing then, he tosses the dead remains of his cigarette in the post office's trash bin and shoves his hands into the pockets of his pants, adopting a slouch as he begins to walk. Because really, what is the point of good posture when everyone is so much shorter than you?]

Have you moved from where you were staying before? The homes in the village look nice.

[after their short jaunt, Cao Pi is already used to this strange height. It also gets him an opportunity to throw his shoulders back, head high, so he can talk while they walk]

I haven't, no. I somehow managed to escape having anyone invite themselves into my room so I don't feel crowded enough, yet. [airily:] A house of my own sounds nice, but I think some part of me doesn't want to get too settled.

[On the one hand, he gets it. He's staying in the Invincible also still - previously because he liked his roommates well enough, and now because it feels central and easy to access in times of emergency like recently. If they need a large space to hold people and defend against the threats from the darkness, he might as well live there.

On the other hand, that last comment in particular strikes him as mildly amusing. He almost chuckles. He definitely smiles a little.]

Oh? Planning on moving on from this afterlife so soon?

[inertia is a powerful force, you know]

Hardly. It's an irrational feeling, as most of them are. I suppose it really doesn't matter, it is simply a place to lay down once in a while and keep whatever things I'm accumulating. [he tips his head slightly to the side, almost a shrug but not quite] It is also much closer to the tavern.

That it is. When we meet with everyone else, I'll suggest establishing it as the primary meeting point in emergencies. If we have one place everyone can come to, it will make it easier to account for everyone.

[Because the last thing they need is another situation where people scatter, and twenty end up missing. It's going to haunt him for a while.]

A secondary location in the village might also be useful in case the bridge is destroyed. I don't want anyone trying to jump that river.

[Speaking of things to tell the new people: river bad. River sings and threatens to drown you, apparently. Probably more than threatens, if you press your luck.]

My thoughts exactly. In the middle of the chaos, I considered how many people might have fled to the village instead of the buildings around the bonfire, and it bothered me that I had no way to go and see for myself. [tablets aside; they've already discussed the limitations of those, not the least of which is people taking a moment to type out or record a message]

There are a number of minor issues for which we need solutions before we can even consider our larger goal, aren't there? Strategies to deal with the various dangers as they come up, evacuation, protection, communication.

Yes. The network is helpful, but we can't assume it will operate in all situations. And there are unknown factors still that Doctor Ingram will supposedly fill us in on. Some other threat, and some other individual we have yet to meet.

[Another reason to wait until the new shipment of souls has arrived: they will have heard whatever it is Will has yet to say and can talk about how to incorporate it into their plans.]

But we're a small enough group of people. We won't be able to organize everyone, because there are always those who think they know better and want to do things their own way, but we can try to get the majority to agree on something.

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