melodiesofkupo | 001 (How does one formalities?)

[Takeshi has been... very careful. Since the last time he replied to something on the linkshell. However, he can't help but have a feeling of dread as August rolled in. Maybe he's just paranoid. But in the middle of the night, there is a text appearing on the list from him.]

Out of curiosity, what does everyone think of this invitation to the Empire? (Also what does someone wear to those kinds of things?)

Locked to [AU] Reno
Found something interesting in the 'Width. Be visiting soon.

Locked to Nagito Komaeda
Said I'd message you when I had something. I finished the map, so I'm sending you that now. Expect the other thing before some of us accept that most gracious invitation.

[Attached is crystallismap.jpeg and wor.jpeg. It's far rougher than what the official images look like, more like outlines that have been erased and redrawn until it seemed right and then redrawn over with ink. He's no ultimate artist (or any artist, for that matter), but it's passable and isn't inaccurate.]

Locked to Kenichi Nakagawa
Hey dad. Found something of interest you should see. I'll be between Arito and Yun'Ashia for most of the month working on adding to it, but lmk when'd be good to visit.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[...Oh. War.

That's. Significantly less pleasant.]

BUT IS THERE SUCH THING AS A BENEVOLENT EMPIRE? LIKE... PERHAPS THEY SEEK TO FREE STRUGGLING NATIONS, PERHAPS THOSE UNDER A MORE TYRANNICAL RULE, AND WELCOME THEM WITH OPEN ARMS.

[That still doesn't sound flawless by any means, but... optimism?

There must be a silver lining.]

That's a question better asked of someone else. I've only heard of one- two now. First one wasn't very friendly.

AH! RIGHT. THAT'S PROBABLY A SUBJECT FOR THE LOCALS...

[Hmm... All the same, it's rather clear that such a positive mindset isn't all too common at this time.]

OH, BUT WHAT WERE YOUR EXPERIENCES LIKE WITH THIS OTHER EMPIRE? ASIDE FROM THE AFOREMENTIONED LACK OF FRIENDLINESS.

[It's probably not an identical situation, but it never hurts to gain a broader understanding, and it might give him a clearer idea of what to expect.

Lake Ira's already proof that this world isn't as... peaceful as the one he is accustomed to. The kingdom of monsters was, after all, very benevolent... aside from the hostility towards humans. And negativity overtaking the masses.]

it's not a conversation for a linkshell chat

[Oh. That's... not a good sign. Did he offend? Was he prying too much?

What to do, what to do... Well! For starters...]

OH. WOWIE. THAT SURE WAS NOSY OF ME, WASN'T IT? SORRY ABOUT THAT!

[Now, how to hopefully recover and get things on lighter terms...]

ANYWAY!!! I SUPPOSE A LESS PROBING QUESTION WOULD BE... WHAT DO YOU PERSONALLY THINK WOULD BE THE SMARTEST PLAN OF ACTION? I ADMIT, I'M OUT OF MY ELEMENT, AND THERE'S SOMEONE VERY IMPORTANT THAT I'D LIKE TO PROTECT.

[He thinks back to what happened at Lake Ira. Frisk probably learned their lesson, but that was just one killer. If the empire is malicious...

Well. He hopes it won't be.]

No worries. It's just... a sensitive topic.

A few others have said it already, but: hope for the best and expect the worst. We have no idea what could be waiting for us, but we need to be prepared in case things turn sour.

HMM... JUST A MATTER OF FIGURING OUT THE ADEQUATE PREPARATIONS, THEN. WEAPONS, ITEMS, HMM... MY HOVER BOARD MIGHT BE USEFUL.

IT MIGHT ALSO BE WORTH A BIT OF RECONNAISSANCE, I SUPPOSE! IF THE EMPIRE REALLY HAS BEEN CLOSED FOR SO LONG, THERE COULD BE ALL SORTS OF SECRETS, GOOD AND BAD.

A word of warning, then: be careful what you say in public view on these things. You never know who might be listening in.

OH.

RIGHT.

SHOOT. I HOPE THAT LAST MESSAGE WON'T CREATE TOO MUCH OF A PROBLEM. I KNOW A FEW PEOPLE WHO WERE CERTAINLY WARY OF PEOPLE MONITORING THESE DEVICES IN THE PAST...

[Oh dear. The last thing he wants is to upset those empire people and destroy all chances of good will!]

I've lived in fear of the same thing happening once before, and having my letters intercepted. While I'm not so paranoid that things will repeat here, sometimes with the powers that be, it's better to err on the side of caution.

[Especially since some of them have moved out of the Center's neutral ground and into the other nations that might not be so keen on what they could do to disrupt negotiations. Does he realize this? ...Not entirely, he's still very young and politics isn't his thing. He just tries to do what is right with the circumstances he's given.]

Weapons... might be stretching it a bit. We don't exactly want to send them the wrong idea, after all.

[Someone's lucky he's merciful and good at covering his tracks when he needs to.]

[Oh! Good. He made a cover excuse. That's a relief! He can definitely work with this.]

TOO TRUE! I CERTAINLY WOULD RATHER GIVE A GOOD IMPRESSION.

BUT DO YOU THINK GIFTS ARE A GOOD IDEA? THIS COULD BE A FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY AT CULTURAL MINGLING, AFTER ALL.

Edited 2018-08-09 23:42 (UTC)

[Congratulations. It was your one "get out of a bind free" card with him.]

Depends on the people and the kind of gift? Though I don't exactly know anyone who would turn one down.

[Except him. He would.]

HOW DO YOU THINK THEY'D FEEL ABOUT SPAGHETTI? OR DO YOU THINK SOME SORT OF ALFREDO DISH WOULD BE MORE APPROPRIATE FOR SUCH A HIGH CLASS COUNTRY?

OR MAYBE A PUZZLE IS MORE APPROPRIATE.

[Something with spikes? Or maybe that's not fancy enough. Ah, where to begin?]

I'm gonna leave you to that one

[washing his hands of this madness.]

001 (How does one formalities?)

text

text

text

text

text

text

text

text; private

text; private

text; private (1/2)

text

text

text

text

text