audio ✁ ❛ towards the door we never opened ❜

[misfortunes]

Good afternoon—City, isn't it? I suppose this is an offer for work; we're rather in need of doctors—a physician, a surgeon. . . a veterinarian. . .

Vincent. Instead of asking for things we don't need—

[ Though that would make one wonder about his definition of "need." ]

—why don't you try asking for a way out, instead? That way, we won't keep anyone waiting any longer.

Well—the master's overstrained himself, after all. . . [ but, returning to the audiofeed - ] It's a matter of some urgency, you see. It seems we won't be staying.

Comments

voice forever

[dispossess]

And why is there no choice?

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Because for some reason, something or someone wants to keep us here.

[dispossess]

Interesting. You don't know more than that?

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Can't really say we do. There are deities, there's a clock that keeps ticking, and outside the barrier surrounding the City there are apparently monsters. I don't know if any of this has any connection, but it might.

The deities aren't very inclined to answering questions.

[dispossess]

[ Through all of this, the vague sense of anger and discomfort in him has yet to quiet; he is, still, able to smile at the young man speaking to him as if they were having a conversation about the weather. ]

Maybe they need some convincing.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

[Ah, new people. Always so clueless.]

What kind of convincing?

[dispossess]

Whichever kind is necessary, of course.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Good luck getting them to listen.

[dispossess]

I'll pretend you mean it.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Works for me.

[He shakes his head.]

I'm just saying that they don't do listening, or interacting, so I wouldn't get my hopes up.

[dispossess]

I haven't.

[ At least, he wouldn't call it hope. ]

[destinedtobeunpopular]

[Is it just him or is there something strange about this guy?]

Good.

[dispossess]

[ Luckily, it's not just him. ]

Is there anything else?

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Quite a lot of things, if you think you need to hear them.

[dispossess]

[ It is useful to know what he's up against here, if only for the good of others. ]

By all means.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

This is the City. We don't know why we're here, exactly, but it might be connected to the clock that we can hear in our heads and how the City seems to... encourage interaction. About every other day or so, it likes throwing curses of different kinds at people. Most are harmless.

There's a barrier around the City that protects it from monsters that are apparently lurking outside. That might also have a connection to us being here.

If you try asking the deities, they most likely won't give any answer. Can't say we know how much influence they have over anything, really, but they're there and they have some sort of power over us.

[dispossess]

[ Ah, he hadn't even noticed the clock amid the usual din in there. Interesting. ]

Cursed, and with no escape.

I've read something like this before, probably.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

It does sound like a storyline for a book.

[But when thinking about it, so does his whole life.]

[dispossess]

I wonder who wrote this one.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

Someone very bored.

[dispossess]

They do have quite the imagination, though.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

It seems so.

[dispossess]

However, I can't say I appreciate being part of this story.

[destinedtobeunpopular]

None of us really do.

Curses aside, the City isn't that bad, though.

[dispossess]

What isn't so bad about it?

[ The only good he's seen has come from elsewhere. ]