tvk | ♫2 - Dispossession

[Audio; Mid-afternoon]
[There's no video, but the uncertain tone in Devola's voice would paint a fairly accurate picture of her expression for someone with a half-decent imagination.]

Another round of it, huh... I guess it goes without saying, but I'm gonna go ahead and say it anyway; with all the recent... stuff, noone should be going out alone. Not during the Dark Hour, at least. Buddy system, people. Call it a gut feeling, but anything else would be riskier than usual. I'd really rather not see any of you washing up, so to speak.

[Action; Late afternoon/early evening.]
[Anyone in the park with a keen ear might pick up an unnatural sound, light, twinkling and very much different from the natural noises in the park. Following it to the source is simple enough, despite the random off-and-on nature of the sound.

Devola sits at one of the park's tables, tinkering with a small pile of metal, to one side is the box said metal should be inside of, and to the other is a piece of paper she seems to be jotting notes down onto - or perhaps creating a diagram. Whatever the case, she seems rather engrossed in whatever it is she's working upon.

What better way to deal with a rash of unexplained deaths than to focus on something else, right?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Man. If this keeps happening, I guess I really should get serious about investigating the Dark Hour. I wanted to leave the Shadows alone, but if they really are killing civilians...

Might be a good idea. Though, like I said, I'd definitely try to get someone else to watch your back. Even I can go around solo normally, but with all the weird crap going on...

[A pause.]

Just feels more dangerous than usual, you know?

Of course it's more dangerous than usual. Normally Shadows can't even kill people who aren't us, right?

Yeah -- Sorry, I guess I kinda insulted your intelligence there by not thinking myself.

Though now that I actually think about things, I've never even seen them pay attention to the coffins during the dark hour. It's like they're not even registering them.

The coffins are the people that are supposed to be here and didn't get dragged here from all the way across science fiction. The Shadows are probably used to them.

When you say it like that, it's almost like the Shadows are some kind of antibody sent out to clean up foreign objects. Which really would beg the question of "what are we doing here?"

Antibodies...?

I like that analogy. Even if it makes me feel like a virus...

[She huffs, being conscientious enough to keep from doing it directly into the receiver.]

Frankly, I'd rather be the antibody... what are they called again, white blood cells?

Though, running along with the analogy if we would be the antibodies, why are we the ones chosen instead of, y'know, the natural citizens.

I guess we'd be a vaccine, then. But a vaccine is dead viruses and the antibodies...

...hell, I lost the metaphor.

...If this was a particularly grim story the surprise twist would be that we're all shadows which think we're human?

Abandoning the metaphor suddenly sounds pretty good!

Gettin' waaaay too philosophical for me anyway...

Aw, you don't like philosophy? It's kinda fun! Where else can you say so many things that all amount to so little when it's all said and done?

I dunno. Politics? Office work? A date?

[A pause.] Alright, I'll grant you those. Kinda forgot they were actually... things, and all.

Yeah, me too about one of those...

Still, philosophers get paid for it. I think - it is a job, right?

Probably one that pays better than police detective.

Can't be all that bad, can it? You're a defender of the people and that sorta thing!

To be completely honest, I can take or leave most people...there's exceptions, though, I guess.

That's fair; everyone's got people they can't get along with, after all.