World War Burst Into Conspiracies: S3

[13:02:13] * Oxford changes topic to 'Poikanen - lahti tarvikkeita. Scout pohja kun olen poissa.'
[13:05:16] <@Oxford> Sunrise comes early, this far to the north. Cille feels as though she's only slept for a few hours, but thin fingers of light are already poking through the gaps in the hutch and working their way tenderly up the opposite wall.
[13:07:17] <@Oxford> Vladko, clearly used to the early dawn, continues to snore softly beneath a mountain of blankets, one arm draped lazily across Cille's chest. She, on the other hand, cannot get back to sleep.
[13:11:45] <Cille_Lund> She wakes up, and nearly startles herself. Where is she? What is she sleeping on? ...Oh right, she did that. Yeah. Totally did that. Recalling the very act might be enough to keep her awake, but...hmmm. ...While she doesn't want to go back to bed, it's...really comfortable here. ...Ah, right, there was a third person. Can she...look around without disturbing Vladko's well placed arm? Cause that's what she'll do, so as long as she doesn't cut in on his sleep!
[13:18:56] <@Oxford> She has to roll her neck back at a strange angle, but by wriggling her shoulders a little bit she can prop herself up enough to look around the inside of the lean-to. Vladko mumbles something quietly in his sleep and shifts a little without waking.
[13:23:13] <@Oxford> Inside, Cille can see the supplies stacked up in one corner, and the dirty dishes from last night's supper piled next to an upturned wash basin. Marupol's bed is empty, and the blankets folded up neat and smooth over the sleeping platform. The red-head herself is nowhere to be seen.
[13:27:07] <Cille_Lund> ...Hmmm. Did she wake up before them? She certainly wasn't taken in her sleep (and that wouldn't really make too much sense, considering they're still in their beds). Perhaps she's paranoid enough to be sure to keep night watch or something. Or...maybe she didn't sleep? That wouldn't be good. ...Nothing like a good dose of worry to wake her up first thing in the morning.
[13:28:55] <Cille_Lund> ...She'd make a note of the time if there were a clock, but from here, all she can really do is note her absence and the time of day. She's helpless here, tied down by the warmth of another person. ...It's a nice tying down, though. Even if she can't get back to sleep, it's...really nice here.
[13:34:33] <@Oxford> Vladko continues to doze, shifting one in a while and mumbling. He seems to be a restless sleeper. Eventually he ends up face down on the bed, with his arm slipping back down to his side as he rolls over, and his warm breath blowing against the whispy hairs on the back of Cille's neck.
[13:40:08] <Cille_Lund> No wonder he ended up with most of the blanket. ...Hm. With the tying down no longer as much of an is--aaa, ok, that's enough. If she wants to be her plaything, it might be better to let him be awake for that. Just gotta...free herself from the blankets, and...worm her way out. The worry doesn't cease. Vladko's alright, but is Marupol? Even if she's in a...questionable position, she is helping them. So, she'll make sure she's alright by looking around, and perhaps peeking out of the lean-to. Watch your head, Cille.
[13:47:28] <@Oxford> As she ducks through the door of the lean-to, she notices a piece of paper with some words in Novgoraadi written on it in faint pencil, tacked to the doorpost with a nail. Outside, Cille squints into the dazzling light of a thousand tiny pools, each reflecting the morning sun across the tundra. Nothing moves but the tall grass, swaying in the wind.
[13:55:17] <Cille_Lund> Aaa--whoa, that...that's STILL a good view. If she wasn't all the way awake before, that certainly did it. ...Had she not something pressing, she might have paused to draw the scene, breathtaking as it was. ...But yet, there is a message here she can't quite read. Perhaps she'll have to rouse Vladko after all. It's not TOO early, right? More time with awake-Vladko is a good thing! Close the lean-to anyway, just in case, and...attempt to wake up Vladko. "RISE AND SHINE, VLADKIPOO." Oh for fuck's sake. She snaps the crystal, which had gotten big through the course of the night, right off. Is this what she has to pay for them not speaking up during their long talk throughout the night?
[13:58:46] <@Oxford> He stirs, complaining drowsily. "Whhamhmmp?" With a little more prodding, his eyes blink open, and he pushes himself up onto his elbows, rubbing away the sleep with one hand. "Good morning, Cille. It's a little early, don't you think?"
[14:03:12] <@Oxford> He stands up and stretches before pulling a collared shirt on over his head. "Would you like me to make you some coffee? Marupol likes karsk, but I didn't think Cimbrians drink that."
[14:04:42] <Cille_Lund> "...A bit early, I guess. Certainly too early for the hollering of the voices. Couldn't get back to sleep, and Marupol isn't here either. ...There's a note on the doorpost, probably from her, can't read it." She's...still kinda groggy herself! "I'd think nothing on it if I weren't a worrywort, but I am. ...Coffee would be nice, and...since I've never had karsk, I'll see if it's good."
[14:09:06] <@Oxford> "Well, okay," Vladko says as he pours coffee from the kettle into a mug and adds a clear liquid from a small flask. He trades Cille the mug for the note, and reads it while the warmth soaks in through her hands. "Maru's gone for supplies, but she wants us to scout the base while she's gone."
[14:14:31] <Cille_Lund> ...It's certainly warm. Oh god, she IS this cold. Best she drink some, then. ...And is--was THAT what that was? ...This is still fine. "Ah, that makes sense. I imagine my sudden entrance wasn't accounted for. Seems like we're getting up early for scouting then, huh?" Sip. "...It's good~"
[14:14:39] <@Oxford> The karsk smells strongly of alcohol, but it tastes just like sweetened coffee. Cille's first gulp drops like an ember into her stomach, warmth spreading out toward her extremities.
[14:15:53] <Cille_Lund> It IS in fact good! ...And warm. Maybe the warmness tying her down wasn't just Vladko, but simply the fact that it was...warm. ...No, it was both. Definitely both.
[14:19:48] <@Oxford> When she looks up, Vladko has poured himself some as well. He lets out a satisfied sigh as he takes a sip. "You'll come with me, right? You can stay here if you want, but it'd probably be boring for you."
[14:23:38] <Cille_Lund> Enough for everyone~! "Of course I'll go with! I've had more than enough sitting around and doing nothing, after all." From the heart, that statement.
[14:28:44] <@Oxford> "Alright," he says, and after another swig that half-empties his mug, Vladko sits down and ties on a thick pair of boots over his wool socks. He gets a plain, brown coat from the rack and does up the buttons. The last thing he grabs is a pair of binoculars. In no time, he looks ready to go.
[14:31:17] <Cille_Lund> ...Are there any supplies for her? Spare coat, perhaps? If not...well, she's got an option, but she'd rather not resort to that immediately. Strange outfits wouldn't help cover situations any. She tries to finish off the karsk as she checks.
[14:32:17] <Cille_Lund> As warm as the coffee makes her, the cold would probably put a stop to that quickly if she just goes out there. She wants to go with, but she refuses to be a drag, which she would be in this weather!
[14:34:59] <@Oxford> The doesn't seem to be an extra coat, but Vladko offers her a gray sweater that is much too big for her. Worried she might still be cold, he tugs a fur-lined hat with earflaps down onto her head, and then steps back, nodding in approval.
[14:37:43] <Cille_Lund> ...This is fine. Being warm beats being cold. "Thank you, I should be good now~" It shouldn't be cold like this! "Ready when you are~"
[14:40:15] * Firespitter (~Firespitt@Rizon-500CE1E0.static.axtel.net) Quit (Ping timeout: 240 seconds)
[14:42:22] <@Oxford> Vladko leads the way out the door and around the lean-to, back in the direction Cille first approached from last night. The ground squishes underfoot, each step squeezing water out from thick clumps of lichens and tightly-packed grass, and her shoes are speckled in mud in no time. Looking back, the lean-to has already almost disappeared against the backdrop of the tundra.
[14:46:06] <@Oxford> Vladko is silent and wary as they walk. At one point he crouches and urgently waves for Cille to do likewise, listening carefully for the sound of an engine until he's satisfied it was nothing after all. At length they approach a low ridge where the soil is dry enough to support a few thin pines. Vladko crawls on his belly up the slope until only his head and binoculars peek over the top.
[14:48:13] <Cille_Lund> ...It really was well hidden. She would have been safe there...but her own safety isn't her number one priority! It never was, really. Ever since she got dragged into this entire mess, and a great time before even that, it never was. Thankfully, she's still pining for someone else's safety. Perhaps considering her situation, she's going for the safety of a lot of others. She crouches when told without a second thought, of course. Not caring for your own safety so much isn't the same as being suicidally reckless (though she was one of those at some point, it never worked out). Follow the leader, he knows what he's doing!
[14:53:08] <@Oxford> He watches silently over the ridge for a moment, and then waves for Cille. "It looks clear. Come on up and take a look," he says, grinning with excitement.
[14:54:05] <Cille_Lund> She nods, wondering just what he saw that causes such excitement! She peeks up, to take a look herself!
[14:56:40] * TemporalMechanic (~TemporalM@unlimited.vhost.works) has joined #WorldWarBurst
[14:59:47] <@Oxford> Stretched out over the ridge, she can see a half dozen buildings in a small cluster across the plain. The grass is taller on this side of the ridge, and there are fewer pools of water dotting the surface. She can make out two towers, one that looks like a sentry post and another with a large blue water tank atop it. A half-cylindrical hanger sits nearest to them, with the landing strip nearby.
[15:02:44] <Cille_Lund> "...Never seen a place like this before..." She looks in wonder! ...And some tenseness. This is definitely a thing. "...Is that water? ...There IS a lot of water here..." She keeps it down, of course!
[15:05:49] <@Oxford> Vladko nods. "The permafrost is only a few feet deep here, so the water that gathers on the surface doesn't have anywhere to go. In the winter, it will all freeze solid."
[15:08:23] <@Oxford> Suddenly, the wind shifts, and the sound of an aircraft's hum reaches them. Vladko puts an arm over Cille, and together they press themselves down against the springy soil.
[15:10:53] <Cille_Lund> She nods in understanding, and quickly ends up PRESSED DOWN...in understanding. That was a plane, yep yep. Hopefully it didn't see them!
[15:13:36] <@Oxford> Fortunately, they have pretty good cover thanks to the small string of pines along the ridge. If they had been caught in the open, the danger would be much greater. Looking up through the green boughs of the trees, Cille can see that it is a transport plan, with two engines in the wings and a third below the cockpit. It banks gently and lines up with the runway below.
[15:15:10] <Cille_Lund> ...Transport. Could it be carrying...?
[15:18:22] <@Oxford> The plane comes in at a shallow angle, and Cille can hear the squeak of its tires on the runway as it touches down. Vladko still has the binoculars, but he might not know what to look for the way Cille does. The transport comes to a stop, and a door with inset stairs swings down just aft of the cockpit.
[15:20:37] <Cille_Lund> She whispers quietly before anyone gets out of there. She has no viewing equipment of her own, but...hopefully, he might be directed to look appropriately before she has to keep it down. "See if you can figure out what they're carrying."
[15:25:11] <@Oxford> "Alright, let's see," he says, grinning below the binoculars pressed against his face. "It looks like passengers...a man, old man...and a bald guy, glasses, and...huh. There's a girl down there, too. And uh, two soldier-types, with rifles."
[15:29:23] <Cille_Lund> "...A girl...? ...Looking about as old as I am, perhaps?" Quieeettlllyyyy.
[15:30:06] <@Oxford> "Yeah. White hair, skirt. They're going inside, it looks like."
[15:31:57] <Cille_Lund> "...Seems unnatural, so I think my guess might be right. She's probably a pendant user. Or at least a future pendant user. Of course I can't say for sure, but..."
[15:36:31] <@Oxford> All Cille can see are tiny figures moving around on the runway, and the hanger doors sliding apart just enough to let the little group inside. Vladko nods. "It's strange, though. I haven't see any of them here before."
[15:39:38] * TemporalMechanic (~TemporalM@unlimited.vhost.works) Quit (Ping timeout: 240 seconds)
[15:43:01] <Cille_Lund> "Perhaps you weren't here long enough? It's likely that some are new, though. Perhaps all of them."
[15:43:46] <Cille_Lund> "...Ah, I want to see what they're going to do in there, but that's just impossible for now."
[15:44:50] <@Oxford> "Well..." Vladko says, frowning. "No, you're right. Even with you here, it'd be too risky to try to get any closer."
[15:46:42] <Cille_Lund> "I could work some magic if I truly wanted to, but even then, with a potential pendant user on the scene, it's just not going to happen without risking too much." Still, seeing just this at least comforts her in making her feel like she's more likely to be right!
[15:50:42] <@Oxford> Vladko can see the gears turning in the girl's mind. "What is it that you think's going on here, Cille? You sound like you've got a theory."
[15:53:55] <Cille_Lund> "If this place is tied to the pendants, she wouldn't be odd here. Perhaps she's an expert on pendant use, guarded like this due to her importance. Perhaps she's coming here to get a pendant herself, and the guards are because this place is just that important." ...Wait, white hair? ...Did...did one of those Nov girls she fought earlier have white hair? Perhaps she might not know, perhaps their hair might change color, but it's worth a thought.
[16:01:20] <@Oxford> "So, like we thought, this is much more than a simple air base. But why put it all the way out here? This is quite remote for something that could be done in any innocuous government building, and they wouldn't have to fly girls here one at a time." He frowns, and scoots back down the ridge a little. "Do you know anything about how pendants are made?"
[16:06:38] <Cille_Lund> "I don't have a clue. It's...why I was wondering. Though now that you mention it...either it's because they want it to really be a well kept secret, pulling all the stops and keeping it off anyone's radar, which is understandable considering what it is, or..." She thinks for a moment. "...because it might be very apparent that something awful is going on in there from the outside, so it has to be far away from everything. Magic isn't usually subtle, after all."
[16:07:11] <Cille_Lund> "...But even so, we were just handed our pendants. So...that first one doesn't really make sense..."
[16:10:53] <Cille_Lund> A chilling thought occurs. She does her best to ignore it, but asks anyway. "...Was she...unhappy?"
[16:11:46] <@Oxford> "The second one does make more sense, but like you said, what you girls do isn't subtle. Marupol and I haven't noticed anything...strange, up until now. Just scientists and soldiers, and shipments of machinery. We were leaning more toward aircraft test facility than anything to do with pendants..." He stops suddenly as she interupts. "Unhappy? Who?"
[16:13:32] <Cille_Lund> "The girl. ...A strange question, but, I want to ask anyway."
[16:16:34] <@Oxford> "She..." The ex-pilot thinks for a while, and then nods. A cloud crosses in front of the sun. "Yes. She stared down at her feet the whole time, but she went along with the men as though nothing she could do would matter."
[16:21:15] <Cille_Lund> "...I see. Then...what goes on in there...can't be good, no matter how one looks at it. ...Worst case scenario, she might not leave that place alive. Perhaps that's the secret." The very thought makes her stomach turn.
[16:26:06] <@Oxford> "Whatever it is, it will be impossible to learn more without getting in closer." Again, he frowns, looking at Cille with concern. "Maybe we'd better not try, though. Just send the information back to the underground, and let them figure out what to do with it. Marupol and I aren't equipped for infiltration."
[16:29:41] <Cille_Lund> "...If I tried anything drastic to save her, they'd become more on guard, which would risk everyone's lives. ...It can't be helped, then..."
[16:33:14] <Cille_Lund> TIME TO STACK THE DEPRESSION. "...I wonder if the information will be put to good use. What I've been thinking certainly seems hard to explain to people that don't quite get it, perhaps even ridiculous."
[16:33:53] <Cille_Lund> "...And aside from all that, if Albaea is doing the same thing that they seem to be doing..."
[16:35:36] <@Oxford> "Tell me," Vladko says, backing slowly away from the ridge until he can sit safely without being seen from the base. "Whatever you're thinking, I need to know it."
[16:39:24] <Cille_Lund> "...If the current reigning power of Novgoraad understands that this is going on, as well as the one in Albaea...just manipulating us to fight their selfish battles, while keeping us from knowing the bad parts of pendant use, with blatant disregard for anyone involved in their usage or creation..."
[16:41:31] <Cille_Lund> "...But yet, that manipulation is how they stay competitive in their own squabbles, as we're their strongest force...they both need to be taught a lesson, but..."
[16:42:52] <Cille_Lund> "...let us say that we found out exactly what awful things are behind their creation, and that anyone with a sound mind couldn't live with themselves. Would the girls even care? Would they even find out? Albaea is certainly good at failing to let us know anything."
[16:43:46] <Cille_Lund> "The only way this can come to a satisfactory conclusion is if the strongest force of both major powers turn on their respective countries, which really have it coming, if I'm right. Yet, my faith in people doesn't bode well for even that..."
[16:44:52] <Cille_Lund> She's totally shaking. THIS IS SERIOUSLY SOMETHING. She's not taking her own thoughts quite well.
[16:45:44] <@Oxford> "But why do you think the secret behind making pendants is something horrible?" Vladko asks, tilting his head. "I'm sorry, it's just... I'm a pilot. Or was one, anyway. Planes are just built by people in factories. Why wouldn't there just be some kind of...chemical process, or something, for making pendants?"
[16:48:04] <Cille_Lund> "My faith in most people is a good starting point for it being horrible. ...Perhaps the chemical process involves her? Or perhaps she's a victim of the side effects. Perhaps...water might be involved, somewhere. This place does seem to have plenty."
[16:50:40] <Cille_Lund> "I mean, unless...that water tower thing is common for places like this?"
[16:51:40] <@Oxford> Vladko shrugs. "Running water is nice. Whatever it is," he adds, shivering, "we should probably get back to the camp. Marupol might be back, and if we're lucky we might be able to get a message out tonight."
[16:52:41] <Cille_Lund> "I suppose. Still, that's an awful lot of water. But yes, we'd best head back, before my imagination starts getting anymore wild." She'd shiver, but she's way too warm in this to even attempt!
[17:04:56] <@Oxford> Vladko nods, and stands up. He puts an arm around Cille's shoulders to protect her from the chill, and together they carefully make their way back across the tundra, toward the warm, dry little hut. There, they can seek shelter from one another, and plan their next move.
[17:05:05] <@Oxford> /session