001 ♌ [Text | Laptop]

[hopeungovernable]

[She had been relaxing at home, a cup of green tea in one hand and a laptop propped in front of her when the numbers seemed to come full force at her again. It was easy to type them out, a quick string on her screen--and it changed things.

The first few things she sees are just messages. Questions and answers about these numbers from people she's never met. But she presses past it. There's something about a mine and wills and suddenly Leola is not sure what she's stumbled into.

Her typing is hesitant at first.]

Did I stumble into a forum? I suppose I could have picked up the numbers from one of my students and this is an elaborate joke. A marketing campaign for a movie maybe? It's clever though I'm not sure what I'm supposed to get from this. A movie about people trapped in mines or something? Isn't that a little off? Too soon?

And really subliminal messaging was proven to be impossible despite what fiction leads you to believe. So I'm not sure how I came by these numbers. Perhaps you could enlighten me. Or I suppose I could just ignore whatever this is.

Classes are out for the summer, I think I'd rather read than get sucked into some silly forum goose chase.

Comments

[happybirthdaytoyou]

[Have the beaming face of that bakery guy that's sometimes on bus ads. (It's fairly likely you taught his daughter a few years ago.)]

Not a joke and not a hoax! We really were trapped in a mine where we had to fight evil bats.

[hopeungovernable]

[He's definitely familiar. More than a little familiar actually. Hmn...She ponders him over, trying to recall where she's seen him before. Then a bit of politeness kicks in and she fiddles around to video]

You do realize how silly that sounds? Like something out of a bad Syfy movie. "Vampires from Below" or something.

[Yes, she makes the airquote signs. She's so mature sometimes]

[happybirthdaytoyou]

[He raises an eyebrow.] Ms. Davis, just because something sounds silly doesn't mean it isn't real! I had to replace my second-best rolling pin and cake knife because they were covered in bat guts!

[hopeungovernable]

Oh Mr. Yokugawa! [She instantly straightens and puts down her tea.] You're really--[Then she stops. Adjusts.] Of course it can be real but you do understand how it sounds...

[And then there's another message, a link. FAQ. Ah time to see what this is all about. And see if it's just some strange hallucination on her part]

Excuse me for a moment while I...catch up?

[And she'll be back in about ten minutes, having perused everything on that page with an air of disbelief. So what does this mean for her. She always thought he call to action or something would be less.

Deadly sounding.]

Strange unearthly threat that wants to exterminate us if we don't do as it says. That's a bit much to swallow.

Voice

[icy_heavens]

[Well now. Here's a voice she'll probably recognize.]

I know it sounds made-up and completely insane, but unfortunately this isn't advertising or a joke; it's reality.

Voice

[hopeungovernable]

Toushiro. I didn't take for one to be involved in things like this. Are you really sure?

Voice

[icy_heavens]

[Holy crap. That's Miss Davis. Give him a second; he's processing the fact that his English teacher is on here now. Terrific.

[There, totally together now.] I'd think my involvement would prove at the very least it's not a joke. [The class doesn't seem to think he even has a sense of humour, since he's always got that serious look.

[Sigh.] I was in the mine when it happened, okay?

text

[testsonseashells]

FAQ. Will tell you most of what you need to know.

text

[hopeungovernable]

Well

That was very helpful actually. If unbelievable. Not to say I don't believe you all, but a dose of skepticism never hurt. One doesn't like to hear that the world is in danger from strange other...alien-like people.

Re: text

[testsonseashells]

Was skeptical myself. Then saw mutants. Caution understandable.

Any other questions? Also - alteration which accompanied network code?

text;

[thorny]

Oh, but this little network is simply filled to bursting with intelligent and scintillating people! Why would you even think of skipping out on such riveting conversation as video games and wrong numbers?

text;

[hopeungovernable]

[Oh she likes you]

It certainly would be a challenge. Luckily, I've found people welcoming. I'm a little startled to see how small the world is actually. Locke City seems to hold so many people that I can't figure out how I've run into so many.

Though I don't think we've met.

text;

[thorny]

That's one of the winsome charm of a crowded city, I've found; no matter where you were originally from, eventually all of the people that you have no interest in dealing with filter in and flood your daily life in an unavoidable manner.

And no, I don't think we have.

[hahaha sorry she's not giving out her name unless specifically prompted, and even then only the first name]

[iaijutsu]

If you've already seen the FAQ, that covers most of it, I think...but if you still have any questions, we're always willing to add what we can.

Or at least some of us are.

[hopeungovernable]

It does cover most of it. I suppose I just wonder what exactly this means. Is something expected of me?

[iaijutsu]

We seem to be expected to fight back against whatever the forces that have been stirring things up are, but we're not entirely clear on what exactly expects that of us. One source claimed to speak for "the earth that has chosen [us] to defend it," but we still don't have an idea of how legitimate he was, and he is now deceased, so getting anything further in that regard seems unlikely.

[text]

[acequeen]

You know, that's what we've been wondering, too -- about these numbers and how we got them. Some people think it's crappy, others seem to be excited about these things.

[text]

[hopeungovernable]

And what's your take on it?

[text]

[acequeen]

That nothing here makes absolutely no sense, of course! I mean, I've just encountered furry monsters just a week or so ago.

text - handwritten

[entertainaplanb]

[This is the handwriting of someone who needs what they write to be clear - smaller than it would be on a chalkboard or whiteboard, though.]

Not exactly a forum. People have been calling it the secret numbers club, which is catchier and less ominous than the vertigo club (that was the best I could come up with, but it's weird enough without the Hitchcock parallels).

It's at least an interesting way to spend the summer.

Re: text - handwritten

[hopeungovernable]

I was never very big on Hitchcock. Though I'm going to assume it has something to do with the alterations as one of you called it.

[entertainaplanb]

Well, there's that weird vertigo sensation, and then things happen. Something shows up, you remember something, a few people have had... pretty extreme physical things happen to them. (So far I've been lucky on that front.)

I see someone's already sent the FAQ your way.

[dorkytracksuit]

i wish.

[hopeungovernable]

Aren't you a sweetheart

[dorkytracksuit]

i mean i wish it was some silly forum you know?
it would make things a lot easier.