Archaeology Enthusiast

Housed in Aprtment D-1. Married to Tsukimi Kurashita. Occupation: Currently a 'freelance' explorer as he hasn't decided on an actual 'job' in the city yet.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A change of plans?

[scientifickuroko]

If he was aware of his poor penmanship, why had he not worked to improve it? With a quick glance back to the map, Kuroko noted his hand writing once more. Or, maybe he already had been working to better it and this was the enhanced result. If so, she shuddered to think of what his hand writing had been like before.

Kuroko hummed along to Randall’s spiel in what sounded to be like an agreeing tone. A more efficient transportation system would have definitely be a great benefit to many of the citizens of this civilization, but, really, it would affect her little. As long as she knew the coordinates of her destination, she could easily teleport herself to wherever she desired - though there were a few limitations. This map would be quite handy when taking that into consideration.

And he was only asking for ten dollars.

“My budget has been a little tight lately, but don’t mind it. I can pay for it now. Kuroko’s not one who likes to pile up on debts, after all. Though, I appreciate your considerateness, Mr. Randall Ascad.”

She folded the map up neatly so as to free up her hands and wedged it under her arm. Pulling out her wallet from her pocket, she shuffled through its contents, searching for the exact change. The currency in Civilization 9 had been different from what she was used to, and it had taken her a while to be accustomed to this change. She was constantly converting prices within her mind into the Japanese yen. America had been considered a strong world power back in a world before the nuclear bombs had hit, generating a need for these underground civilizations. Value was constantly measured by the American dollar, and Kuroko could only assume that this was the reason that Civilization 9 ran on this currency.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Even though he'd rambled on just a tad with his complaints about the transport system, it felt pretty cool to know at least someone else agreed with him and his point of view. Then again, who didn't complain about the scientists and the way they'd set things up? He had yet to find a single person who was entirely 'happy' about how the white coats had gone about all this. 

"I know I kinda don't have the right to complain, seeing as I'm still alive an' all, but seeing as we're apparently expected to spend the rest of our lives here, you'd think those dumb science guy would have put a bit more effort into stuff like that. As if I needed any more proof this whole thing is incredibly stupid, psssh!!!"

Shaking his ginger head at that, his scowl brightened to a more agreeable expression at Kuroko agreed to pay, but an utterly shocked expression crossed his face at the 'mister'.

"I'm only eighteen! It sounds like I'm really old when you call me mister, geeez! I'm not really one for formalities, myself, so call me whatever you feel like at the time!"

Though he'd been shocked at the formalities, his surprised look didn't last long. Seemed a cheerful look was almost always on his face despite the serious circumstances. 

"You're welcome! Hey, if the scientists aren't going to be 'gentlemen', I should at least try to be, heh."

With that, he made sure the other maps he was going to sell were (somewhat) safe in his pockets before waiting for the other to give him the ten dollars. This city's currency still confused him, but he was getting somewhat used to it. Another thing those dumb white-coats needed to work on, in his opinion!!

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A change of plans?

[scientifickuroko]

So, this man had composed this map himself. That would explain difficult to read text that served as labels for different parts of the city. It should have been obvious to her that the scientists of this civilization would not likely put together a map of Civilization 9 for its citizens any time soon.

“Well, your penmanship certainly needs work, but the map itself is commendable.”

In a way, a map created by a citizen of this society would be more valuable for her needs, as opposed to one that would have been put together by those suspicious scientists. He called himself an explorer, and he must have been a mighty fine one to put together such a detailed map of the civilization.

Not having been able to gather any satisfactory bits of information on the whereabouts of her loved ones, Kuroko was beginning to consider that it was now time to begin her search through the other underground civilizations surrounding Civilization 9 - where they currently resided. It didn’t look like, from the map, that there were any sort of noticeable pathways connecting the different civilizations together, otherwise this Randall Ascad would have surely noted them down and investigated them. But, maybe if Kuroko scrutinized the map further, she would be able to make out any inconsistencies that could lead to a possible secret passageway out of Civilization 9.

“I’m Kuroko Shirai,” she answered in reply to the other’s self introduction. This man was evidently quite the jabberer, and she honestly only retained bits of his monologue - having been concentrated mostly on the map. Lowering the map, Kuroko met his gaze. “I can’t say I’m much of an explorer, but that does seem to be all I’ve been doing lately.” So, yes, she would like this map, thank you very much. But…

She thought to her dwindling expenses.

“How… much are you asking for it?”

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Randall grinned enthusiastically (then again, was there any other kind of way he grinned?) at the other's praise regarding his map, the chipper expression not even faltering at hearing his handwriting wasn't the easiest to understand.

"Hah, that's funny, my old high school teach used to say the exact same thing!"

The ginger couldn't help the spirited little laugh that tumbled from his mouth soon after, before he cut himself short, saying:

"Thanks for the advice, though! Glad the map's of good enough quality to help others in the city, really."

Well, the reason he'd wanted to make these maps to sell in the first place was not just to 'get money', after all. It was to support and assist the others in the city and keep their spirits up in the best way such an adventurous fellow such as himself could do. The most important thing in this dumb place was to stay positive about what the future may hold - that everything would be rebuilt and fine in the end, yes!!

Nodding at the other's name, he said: "Kuroko, huh? I'll keep that in mind! As for exploring being the only thing you've been doing - this place is so big it's hard to walk easily from one place in it to another! Those scientists should really get some better transport up, but that's just my two cents."

A shrug after that, before an eager expression flickered to his face like a moth would to a flame.

"You're interested in buying it, then? Awesome! I'm not asking much - just ten dollars. After all, I'm doing this as a gentlemanly act, but at the same time, if I don't make money, those dumb scientists will be on my back."

A pause then, before he mused:

"If you don't have the money, then just pay me back when you can, no rush!"

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A change of plans?

[scientifickuroko]

Glancing around the area exasperatedly, Kuroko let out an aggravated sigh. Civilization 9 had been larger than she had primarily thought it to be, and she no longer knew where she had or had not yet investigated in search of her friends.

Not to mention she had departed from the orphanage without a decent breakfast. She had risen with the sun, leaving shortly afterwards, and was now regretting that decision. She supposed she could stop at a diner for refreshments and a short rest, but she was starting to become tight on expenses.

Oh, how Kuroko lamented her misfortune! In Tokiwadai, the staff had served luxurious, high class cuisine for every meal, and her parents had allowed her a rather gracious allowance for other expenses. All in all, she had lived a comfortable life in Academy City. Here in Civilization 9, however, she wasn’t even allowed to work as she was not of working age as classified by this society. This was a ridiculous notion as Kuroko had been working as part of Judgement since her primary school days. She could only rely on the meager expenses allowed to her by the orphanage she resided in.

“Heeey there! You wouldn’t happen to be interested in a map of this city, would you?”

“…?” Was someone calling out to her? Turning toward the direction of the voice, she was met with a rather enthusiastic looking man. Had he mentioned a map? That certainly would be a useful asset for Kuroko’s situation.

“Let’s take a look at one of these maps, then.” Spreading out the map she had grabbed from the unfamiliar man before her, she inspected its contents. The map itself was very detail oriented and easy to follow. Kuroko could recognize a few of these areas as locations she had visited prior, but…

What was with this handwriting?

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Ah, he'd successfully gotten the unfamiliar face's attention! Then again, he could be pretty loud when he wanted to but that wasn't exactly the point right now, was it? He wasn't sure, but this young miss with orange hair he'd approached didn't look like anyone he'd seen before, so logically they were either new to this city or this city was so big there were a lot more people here he didn't know than first expected.

"Oh, ya want to take a look before you consider getting one? Sure thing! That's a reasonable enough request! You might want to check before thinking of buying one, after all." Cheerily trusting the stranger wouldn't just run off without paying, Randall was about to hand a map to the miss but it was clear she was very interested in the maps or just as hasty as him because she had snatched one before he could even hand it out!!!

"Haha! Do you like exploring, too? Or are you just really in need of directions about this big confusing city? I've seen a lot of people getting lost or askin for directions so I figured if those scientists weren't going to do anything, I should! So I used my exploration skills to scope out the city and make an accurate and easy-to-follow map! That way less people get lost, right?" 

His explanations about why he had these maps in the first place aside, Randall paused to consider that not all people liked him being as chatty and enthusiastically friendly to complete strangers. Some people liked their space, and Hershel himself had told him off for it several times.

"Uhm, at least, that's what I'd hope to be able to do for the city. Sorry about mouthin' off like that."

Rubbing his dark orange hair sheepishly, there, he grinned hopefully at the miss's expression upon looking at the map - taking in the gobsmacked expression to be a positive one due to his hasty nature. "Wow, I had no idea the maps were that good! That's really awesome!!" 

That trademark smile so common to his expression broadening, he then mused: "Oh, wait...as a gentleman, I think I should introduce myself before I try to sell one of these maps. Randall Ascad's the name! Archaeological enthusiast, at your service! Are you interested in buying one of the maps, maybe?"

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A change of plans?

Randall let out a small huff of annoyance to himself as he paused to glance once again at the envelope the scientists had sent to him - what did they want now, after stuffing up the weather like they had? He wasn't exactly thrilled to get a personal letter from them at this point. Maybe he should just throw the envelope out and pretend like he hadn't gotten it? Nah, that wouldn't work. The letter had been sent to the Orphanage itself, and they'd passed it on to him. So if he didn't open it now, he'd be getting them in trouble!

Curse those infernal scientific minds! They probably knew that as a 'self-professed' gentleman, he couldn't willingly get a place that looked out for him (in a way) into trouble!! Well, as satisfying as complaining about the scientists was, it wasn't going to sort anything out. Thus, he resigned himself to opening the letter. Wait - what? WHAT??

He didn't have to live in the orphanage any more? What had happened there? Reading on, it seemed he was 'married' to someone else now.

Really? Man, he hadn't even met the first person these idiots had 'set' for that sort of thing, and now they were changing their mind and marrying him to another complete stranger! When were they going to realize that Sharon was the only person he wanted to marry, yeesh?! However, on the bright side, at least he wouldn't be classed as an 'orphan' any more, right?

Tucking the letter into his jacket pocket, he decided to get around to finding this new apartment - maybe he could even do some of his unoffical job while he was out here? Hey, that person seemed unfamilar! Seizing the opportunity up, the ginger fearlessly approached.

"Heeey there! You wouldn't happen to be interested in a map of this city, would you?"

Okay, so he made the maps himself and the handwriting was a little hard to understand, but they were very accurate maps! He wasn't a good explorer for nothing!

[gluboflife-blog-deactivated2018]

Tidal wave...of snow!? || open/intro/event

[gluboflife-blog-deactivated2018]

She had meant to to find shelter an hour ago but somehow she could not seem to move from her place on the ground. Every time she attempted to move herself a sense of hopelessness overcame her. It was strange, she had never felt this way before and it was taking a toll on her morale. She was usually so full of life and optimism if any of her friends were to catch her in such a state they would hardly believe it. 

A boy with bright red hair was approaching her but she didn’t move a muscle, she couldn’t move a muscle. She had been sitting for too long and the cold had numbed her limbs. When he was only a few inches away he attempted cover her shoulders with his jacket. The gesture was appreciated but when she tried to speak only a weak mumble escaped her lips.

Suddenly she realized the severity of her current situation and she manged to force herself off the ground. Once up she leaned against the wall for support, blood was now able to circulate through her body but she still hadn’t fully recovered. She closed her eyes to try and regain her composure. She may have not been able to stand up straight but she managed to speak a few words despite her nausea and fatigue   

“Th-Thank you. I-I know that w-was g-glubbing dumb of m-me.” She shook her head. She wasn’t used to the freezing weather and had no idea how to react to it. She was cold-blooded and her body temperature now matched the surrounding icy air. She came from a planet that was almost always boiling hot and her body was rejecting her environment. Her mentality was also at risk in this horrendous weather.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Though without his thick purple jacket to shield him from the cold, Randall felt the cold cut at him like a knife edge, it seemed the warm clothing had done a world of good: the strange costumed lass hadn't been responsive at all and looking awfully still but now she was trying to form words, so that was a definite good upgrade from before. If he'd been taller, he would have tried to carry the other to a warmer place, but as he was just a teenager, he was nowhere near that tall to do that! Man, that sucked: that would have been a way better way of helping the other.

No point complaining about it - that was just wasting valuable energy!! Anyway - best not to stay out in this cold too long, but since he couldn't carry the miss, how was he gonna move her and himself to some place warmer? Thankfully, that puzzle solved itself quickly enough, though not in the way the ginger might have expected at all.

"Whoa - I di-didn't think my coat was that wa-warm! It's good to see ya standing, though, that's the main thing!"

Despite his energetic statement, it was so cold that he couldn't help stammering: the miss was stammering too, despite recovering wonderfully so far.

"Dumb? Ho-how is getting caught off-guard by a snowstorm dumb? Weather can be really unpre-unpredictable, so y-you shouldn't feel bad about that! I got caught in a thunderstorm e-exploring once... In-instead, we should focus on getting inside before it gets wo-worse! You alright to walk?" 

Tilting his head one way, then the other, he tugged on his orange bandanna as another shiver ran through him. "I've b-been exploring in some bloody dumb we-weather before, but th-this takes the cake! The Orpha-orphanage isn't t-too far from here: it should still have heating, so if you f-follow me I'll take you there before we both freeze!"

If she needed a helping hand walking, he was fine with that. He wasn't about to walk off to the orphanage and leave this stranger to die, though! That would be the most horrible, ungentlemanly thing ever.

[gluboflife-blog-deactivated2018]

Tidal wave...of snow!? || open/intro/event

Feferi had been dead already for quite some time. She had already adjusted to life inside of the dream bubbles and she enjoyed visiting her friends and talking with them. Overall life in the bubbles was peaceful. She ran into an alternate of herself every now a then, each had a different story to tell about their session and ultimately their demise. One time she even met a Feferi who managed to ascend god tier and apparently she was still moirails with her goofball childhood friend which she couldn’t seem to fathom. 

Life in the dream bubbles was easy, no death, no threats, it was a utopia many dreamed of but could never obtain. One could only imagine how horrified she was when she woke up alive in a foreign universe. She could feel it, but what was it? Expanding and collapsing, it was her…vascular system! No, this couldn’t be she was dead and she had been for a over a sweep, but she didn’t actually realize it had been that long. She didn’t even let the doctor speak a word before asking for a mirror. Not even a minute later a mirror was placed in her hand. It was cool to the touch which meant she was warm, she was actually warm and not ice cold like a corpse. It was surreal and she was having trouble realizing what was happening when so much had unfolded in such a little amount of time.The reflection that greeted her made her gasp. Instead of milky white irises staring back at her she was staring straight at a pair of bright silver orbs with flecks of bright tyrian littering the surface. Her eyes weren’t what made her gasp though, the fact that she was visibly older did. She had died when she was six sweeps old and now she looked to be at last a sweep older.

While she was coming to this realization the doctor was briefing her on what her purpose was here at Civilization 9. She only caught the gist of what he was saying before she dashed out of the hospital in a panic. As of right now she was clear of only one thing, all her friends were dead and this time she wouldn’t be able to see them again. She had aged and she was alone, she never felt so miserable in her entire life and considering what has happened to her that was quite a bold statement to make. Once outside icy winds began to roll by and nip at her cheeks.The heiress had never experienced snow before since Alternia was always sweltering. Almost instantly she began to shiver furiously. Not even the depths of the Alternia sea could compare to this temperature.

She trudged through the city which had been blanketed in white. She wandered aimlessly through the barren streets until she believed she could walk no more.The cold began to numb her body and an uncharacteristic frown replace her usual warm smile. She took cover in an alley way, leaning against the side of a shop until she gradually slid and found herself sitting in a mound of snow which had been shoveled away earlier that day. She had no idea where she was and she couldn’t bring herself to think straight because of the extreme weather. The sea troll continued to sit in the middle of the blizzard, shivering and clinging to herself as snowflakes began to accumulate on her body. She had always had the will to live but in this moment in the blistering cold. This moment were she was all alone. She couldn’t find that will, she couldn’t find that unyielding strength that was there once before.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Man, oh man - the bloody scientists had really stuffed things up this time, hadn't they? Randall's normally cheerful expression was at the moment twisted into a 'none-too-pleased with any of this sodding crap' frown, the ginger constantly rubbing his hands together as he trudged heavy steps through the slowly deepening snow: he'd been out exploring the city for any sign of his chums or the chum miss Skye had told him about (maybe he'd be lucky and find some awesome artefacts along the way!!!) when the televisions in a shop window he'd passed had come on with that 'announcement' about the weather system in the city being botched up.

So now, as much as he wanted to keep exploring, he was being forced to head back to the 'Orphanage' where he was housed because of this abrupt negative change in the weather. He wasn't silly enough to go exploring in these conditions, he'd get sick and there was no way in heck he was going to trust that dodgy scientists to help him if he got sick, even though he'd gone exploring in worse conditions than this, and even though his purple coat was thick and doing a pretty good job of keeping the cold off him right now.

Stupid dumb scientists. Man, who did they think they were, inconveniencing folk like this?!

He wouldn't be surprised at all if this was some kind of set up to make the folk 'married' together start hugging and kissing and all that. It seemed awfully...similar to their plan to make everyone 'get along' that the weather system would suddenly break at this exact moment - if the weather system was that dodgy wouldn't they have lost control on it ages ago? It sounded like a whole big conspiracy  but he had nothing to back up that particular 'puzzle answer'. (He didn't even have any picarats with him, boo.)

Grumpy trudging through the snow, as Randall paused to wipe yet more snow off his glasses, for a moment he saw something odd near a shop close by the orphanage. He - he had to be seeing things. Okay the snow had officially wrecked his glasses. No, wait, but he'd just wiped them off, they were clean, so what he saw was real, as surprising as it was. Someone slumped on a pile of snow in the cold, not even trying to move out of the terrible weather. Why would anyone just stop and sit in this? Also, why did the stranger look like kinda like one of those stone statues you saw that archaeology-wise, had been placed there to 'protect' cathedrals and what-not? Was it a costume or something? if so, it was a pretty realistic-looking one.

However, despite the mix of utterly bewildered thoughts in his head, one thing was obviously clear - a gentleman wouldn't just ignore someone sitting in the cold like that!! No way! Thus, adjusting his glasses so they sat straight on his face, the ginger boldly approached the unfamiliar horned...person (okay yeah just gonna call the miss that in his head for now because he didn't have a clue). Once he was close enough, the thick purple jacket he was wearing was tugged off - despite him shivering a little in only the striped t-shirt he had on underneath, he'd been in worse weather than this - and attempted to place it around the shoulders of the other.

"Can ya hear me...hey - hey!!! C'mon, you can't sit there in the cold. It'll be bad for ya. You gotta get inside, some place warm!"

She didn't seem responsive, so hopefully she'd hear him and listen to what he had to say - besides, he'd be a real sod of a gentleman if he just allowed someone to sit here and get sick!

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A puzzling situation without an answer? (Intro/Open)

[snackooing-blog]

{ &she highly doubted that randall could have previously encountered someone familiar to her, but there was no harm in trying, she supposed. her eyes gazed into the distance for a few moments, collecting a list of faces that she could describe to him. the chiefs and detectives back at the precinct weren’t much out of the ordinary appearance-wise, so there was really no point in describing them because they would have been ignored easily really. no, someone who stood out and had prominent features… ah. }

He’s got a weird hairstyle, you can’t ignore it. Not to mention his forehead’s pretty… noticeable too. Red waistcoat and trousers and usually accompanied by a young magician. 

{ &no way could anyone forget about apollo and trucy, should they have the pleasure of becoming acquainted with them or even just passing them in a street. they weren’t necessarily the most dependent of people during a situation of that sort yet their presence around ema could perhaps calm her a little. also, no way was she going to mention klavier; despite their frequent encounters she was in no mood to deal with his glimmerous… ness. }

Archaeology AND explorer… ? Interesting. So, you’re kinda like that Indiana guy, right? Except you go digging for your treasures, rather escaping booby traps.

{ &a soft chuckle. good one, ema, good one. it was certainly a strange occupation but she’s seen stranger in her lifetime. }

Yeah, I guess, but it can’t be that hard. I’ll just ask around or something, I’m sure I’ll get there soon. And, no need for the ‘miss’, Ema’s just fine. Makes me feel like a teacher when people call me that.

{ &she’s still a spring chicken at 25! }

… If you haven’t had the chance to visit your apartment, you’re more than welcome to accompany me, since you’ve already offered help to me.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

As miss Skye decided to either place a small amount of trust in his ability to find things - or humour him, he wasn't sure which  - Randall folded his arms in thought as the lady described to him someone whom she apparently wanted to find. Huh, he couldn't say he'd seen anyone with 'weird' hairstyles like the forensic scientist was describing  yet, unless he went to look in a mirror, ha ha. A good sense of humor at himself helped him feel more positive, but the joke would have to wait another time to actually be spoken. Such a shame!

Anyway, the person Miss Skye described certainly sounded like they stood out, so even though he had indeed not seen them yet, he should be able to find them pretty easily if he put his mind to it!

"I haven't met anyone like that yet, but he sounds pretty darn easy to find in a crowd! I'll keep an eye out - who knows, maybe I'll find him first and be able to help ya there?" His serious expression didn't take long to crack- though - he was never one for seriousness at the best of times, and the lady's comment got him laughing there. Once he stopped himself from laughing, he managed to say through his smile: "Hah! I wish I was that good of an archaeologist as Indiana, but I've still got so much to learn. That's part of the excitement, the thrill of it, though. Also, I actually have had to avoid traps a few times while digging for artefacts, how funny is that?"

After a pause, he went on to muse: "Before I came across a booby trap myself, I only thought they were in movies myself, so there ya go." He'd rambled on a bit long there, as usual, but he couldn't help it. He just loved archaeology and exploring so much that whenever the subject came up he couldn't help rambling about it. Thankfully, if Miss sk- Ema - had noticed that rambling then, she didn't yet bring it up.

"Hm? Follow ya to the apartments? Sure, it'll help me get more orientated to the city as I follow ya, and it's cool to have a bit of company! If you wouldn't mind, that is!" He probably needed to find the apartments himself, anyway - even though he would be housed in the 'Orphanage', according to the scientist he'd awoken to, it wouldn't hurt to know just in case he got moved from there to the apartments!

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A puzzling situation without an answer? (Intro/Open)

[thneedsexual-deactivated2013011]

Once-ler was actually still trying to get used to the surroundings. It was just like any normal city, only difference was it was so foreign - he didn’t even know where the heck he could start going to first. His bright, almost black eyes seemed to shine with interest, his hands behind his back to somewhat hold the guitar that was resting against his slim black. 

He wasn’t paying attention to the people that he walked by, or who was nearby him. He seemed to be caught by surprised when he heard someone call out for him and ask him questions right out of the blue - and, how perfect! They were about this place! This place that he barely knew anything about, or, rather - nothing about! 

The aspiring business man looked over his shoulder, flicking his hat up a bit so it wouldn’t really cover his eyes and scanned the red-haired male in front of him. He gave a small nervous smile and shook his head, turning around to face him. “Sorry. I don’t know anything. Literally just dropped in here a few moments ago.” 

“You’re new here though, aren’t you? I am as well.” 

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Despite the 'theory' of asking someone about this strange place being a sound one - it became quite apparent that perhaps he'd jumped into action without thinking (which...wasn't all that much of a surprise, really, given he did that enough of the time without finding himself in such a bewildering situation as this), for the fedora-wearing stranger that he'd happened to seize up for query-asking didn't know anything.

In fact, they were in much the same boat as one-another, both apparently being new here, according to the stranger's last statement. "Aw, man - suppose I should have tried to figure out who wasn't 'new' here before I went around asking, huh?" A small amount of moping, there, but the teenager didn't dwell on it long. Now wasn't the time to get all sad! That wasn't his style anyway!! There were loads of people here, anyway - just had to keep asking until he found someone who could answer his questions.

"Anyway, yeah, I'm new here! Probably pretty obvious that I am, too, what with me talking to strangers like this n' all." A chipper, rather amused little chuckle from the ginger there, despite the serious circumstances. "Thanks for stopping to chat, even if you couldn't answer my question, though. A lot of the folk here are really grumpy and don't look like they want to talk to anyone, so...it's lucky I met a more reasonable person."

Randall paused, then, before grinning and stating: "Though I wish the meeting was under better circumstances, it's a right pleasure to meet a friendly face!"

...It was quite clear that this dork probably would never be one of those 'grumpy' people that didn't like talking to people, at least.

[intuitivediva]

01. Intro|| Open

What did this mean? She looked at the note in her hand, it contained a name and an apartment number. Beside the name was ‘spouse’, but why? Wasn’t she already married to the human version of the doctor, the man she loved, the man who could grow old with her… So why was she told that she’s married with someone else? Anyways, now she was in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar faces and the worst part was, she’s alone. 

The blonde could only stare at her list and vaguely remember what a voice told her to do. Still, that sounded pretty much rubbish. Rose Tyler decided to venture off on her own, just to see what has happened. This was real strange, she wasn’t with the doctor so there was no way that she had gone to space since the only way she knew of was: A, the TARDIS; B, the universe is dying—but, none of them sounded correct. Suddenly it hit her, she was informed about a nuclear disaster that had hit her home town. So if she wasn’t home, where was she? She needed information.

To the nearest person she can find she tapped them on the shoulder and asked:

“Um, excuse me. Do you happen to know where we are?”

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

For his first 'real' day trying to spread news about the little 'business' he was trying to get up off the ground to help strangers of the dumb city, the ginger had to admit he hadn't really gotten much done in that matter yet. Well, that was mainly because nobody had really wanted to chat right now! A lot of people were still pissed about this whole thing, which he couldn't blame them for - and he hardly thought it wise to go waltzing up to such folk and asking them if his new 'job' could help them. 

He might act without thinking sometimes. ...Okay, a lot of the time. However, even he knew that would be a really, really bad idea. Well, he'd just have to keep a 'stiff upper lip' as the saying went, and explore the city some more. With the sheer amount of people stuck here the same as he was, he was bound to run into a more reasonable stranger sooner or later, right? He wanted to help make a difference and work towards a better future somehow, and this was the best way for him to do that, so he sure as heck wasn't going to just forget about it! There'd be someone interested in his ideas somewhere here, definitely. He wasn't as good as he was at puzzles for nothing! 

Pumping a fist enthusiastically to get himself more pumped up for all that - his chipper grin flickered to an expression of surprise as he felt a hand tap his shoulder. Whoa whoa whooooa. He had not seen someone sneaking up on him like that! Turning around, a strange lady enquired where they were to him.

"Didn't that scientist tell you anything? Geez, I thought he was being inconsiderate enough already - but apparently this is a city the scientists made that was separated from the 'bombed' world so we don't get effected by the gases from the bomb?? I dunno how that works, but that's what I know. Sorry if that ain't too helpful, lady."

A pause, then, after he explained what little he knew about the confusing subject.

"Maybe there's a brochure that explains everything better around here? Man, maybe I should consider making some of those for my buisness if there aren't any - but now I'm getting off-topic. I'm Randall! Awesome to meet an actually friendly face around here! Lots of folk seem so mad around here, but I can't blame em."

That musingly said, he outstretched a friendly hand to the other as a sign of his 'buddy-buddy' intent , his usual impish grin spread across his face as he did so. 

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A puzzling situation without an answer? (Intro/Open)

[snackooing-blog]

{ &death ray? an eye narrowed in response to the unusual question, her lip raising a little. great, he was probably one of those sci-fi fanatics, judging by the ridiculous response. 

but, the male redeemed himself with the apology that followed. luckily for him, ema wasn’t given the chance to snap back with another snarky remark, otherwise she may have sparked a full-on argument in the middle of town! she exhaled through her nose and her arms fell from their position. }

… It’s okay. 

{ &a small huff followed. well, she supposed it was only fair she apologised too. }

And, I’m sorry too. It’s just that I’m not in the greatest of moods and I think I need time to let this whole thing sink in. It sucks, yeah, but I’ll try again later. If I try hard enough I may find someone familiar, or someone who can shed some light. Don’t worry about it.

{ &sighing again, the brunette nodded in acknowledgement of the male’s introduction. he didn’t seem as bad as he initially did, but she couldn’t help but think that the formalities could be skipped so she could visit her apartment. }

Ah, Ema Skye. Detective/forensic scientist. I wasn’t sure what I was doing prior to waking up here, but I sure wish I could go back. Nice to meet you, Randall.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Well, the ginger-haired archaeologist wasn't expecting an apology himself at all  -amber eyes moving up in a mild expression of surprise, but hey. It was doubtful the scientists would have wanted a fight breaking out between two 'new faces' here right off the bat, so probably for the best they both apologized anyway!

Come to think of it, fighting against each-other wasn't really gonna make this dumb place or the fact there'd been a nuclear strike any better, either, hm. Thoughts aside, the lady explained after the apology her side of the situation, which all made a decent amount of sense, really. Nobody could safely say they could take all this in easy stride, now, could they? Even he was having a hard time believing it's credibility.

"Someone - someone familiar? Well, I'll make an offer for ya. Since this stupid place looks pretty big and near impossible to find one person alone: how about you tell me a person you'd really like to find, and I try and help you pinpoint them? Or maybe someone who could actually pass on some decent info - I mean, since you and me are in the same boat, it makes sense to try and help each-other out 'n all."

It seemed his guess at the lady being a scientist hadn't been all that incorrect - but she was a scientist who specialized with crime scenes, not the kind of 'science' he'd assumed there. "I'm an explorer - and an archaeologist. Never thought I'd have to see human history, like - from my era - just all...gone like that." He tugged at his orange bandanna as if in throught, when he was really distracting himself from the facts at hand - or at least, doing his best to for now.

After all, he was a 'determined, brave explorer' of the unknown. ...He couldn't cry. Nor show weakness in front of a stranger. Not here, not now, as shaking as the whole matter was. "Nice to meet you too, though, Miss Skye. Good luck finding those apartments the scientist yapped on about. Would have saved a lot of bloody trouble if he'd just TOLD us where they were the first thing, but I guess we gotta work for the answer. Just like usual in life, eh?"

[gavechances]

☣ Dᴜᴅᴇ, ᴛʜɪs sʜɪᴛ ɴᴇᴇᴅs ᴛᴏ ǫᴜɪᴛ::

The world had ended. Everything that had once been known— the friendships, the fights to remain alive, the per-se aliens that both offered friendly helping hands, the endless nights of sitting awake, hoping, waiting, praying that someday, someone would bring a light forward to the darkness that had shamed the earth. It was all gone, thrown away out a door as if it never happened; or rather, as if it didn’t matter. All those wasted hours of effort. All those heart pounding moments of sheer fear. All those strives to take a stand and become a hero. Futile. Worthless. Forever tied away in the memories of what would only last around eighty to ninety years. Why had this happened? What had they done wrong? Had they been tricked? Had the trolls posing as guides to aiding their strive in saving the universe been a lie the whole time? Better yet, what had even happened? Who had managed to bring down four children full of hope so large that almost nothing had been able to get past them?

Four children. That was right. There had been four of them, not just one. There was Jake. The boy who would step forward and bring determination with just a breath of words. And Jane. The young girl who rose her voice of caution and skepticism. What about Roxy, who could forget about Roxy? She was the soul of the group, the one who would do anything to make her friends happy no matter how it affected her own feelings. But who was left? Who was the one who had made it through to the end?

The one that didn’t matter, that’s who. He was no Jake, he was no Jane, and he sure as hell was no Roxy- so why him? Why was he the one who had been able to keep himself connected with the world in those last moments? Why was he the one who had been given the weight of life? He couldn’t do much; at least not as much as he credited himself for. He couldn’t stand up to the world with a puffed chest and a prideful sneer or words of famous battle. He couldn’t do any of that! If anything, the most he could do was build dingy robots in his room and sit at his desk with his damned puppets  all night. So again, why him? He was no use to the world. He had nothing but silly jives and a mouthful of cuss words to offer. He was but a pawn, where as the rest of the group? They’d been the true knights, the true beings of hearts.

“…What the hell am I suppose to do?” Cry like normal people did when horrible things happened? No, he promised himself he wouldn’t do that the day he realized what sort of mess he had been getting himself into. Shedding tears? That was for the weak or the ones who couldn’t bare the pain of remembering their loved ones any longer. To cry mean to grieve, and to grieve meant you were giving up. As a Strider, Dirk wouldn’t give up, not now not ever. It just wasn’t possible for hi— wait a minute. Strider. Strider. /Strider/. /Dave/. Oh, jeez. His little per-se ‘spawn of Satan’. He hadn’t been created yet, had he? That wasn’t for another few years, right? Right? Granted, he was sure that the little runt hadn’t quite yet been made, but if the world had been destroyed while he, himself, was young and occupying it; did that mean the future had also been destroyed? Shit. Great. Wonderful. Not only had he lost his group, he’d lost the stupid shit that he’d like to refer to as his brother. Fantastic. Beautiful! What the fuck else could God ta—! ! ! ! 

Click. Clack. Click. Clack. Were those footsteps? Had someone managed to find his hideout behind the dumpster just right outside the main building where check in had taken place? Better yet, where they coming closer? Fuck. No. No. No. This wasn’t what he wanted or even what he needed. Why couldn’t he just be alone for a few moments to catch up with himself? Shit, he’d already listened to some stout man tell him about how he was suppose to help repopulate the world with some girl he didn’t know, nor care to know— so what else was there to be heard?  “Bock bock bock, cluck, cluck, cluck. Bock, bock, bock.”  And cue him trying to blend in by pretending to be a farm animal. That would scare them off, right? Who wanted to come behind a dumpster and run into a chicken? That was just awkward and absurd, not to mention just a tad dangerous with how they had the ability to claw people’s eyes out.  ”..Beck beck, bock, bock.” 

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Even with traipsing around this seemingly endless city as persistently as he had - there was still no sign of his friends and family - that some semblance of life back home had been dragged here along with himself. Well, great. Talk about a downer. As if learning the whole world itself outside this place was apparently nothing but ash and death wasn't depressing enough, there was the high possibility his chums and those important to him might not have been as lucky as him to escape.

  This sucked beyond all possibility, if it was true. Without Sharon - Henry - Hershel here: heck, even his favourite hobby of exploring unfamiliar places for ruins and possible archaeological artefacts wasn't fun any more. He did his best to look brave - and certainly, he was such, he wouldn't deny that - but they meant a lot to him, as much as he might try to wave off the subject at times when it was brought up. Not to mention exploring ruins of a destroyed world with nothing more than shattered memories of what could have been - possibly finding his friends as the next 'spooky skeletons': didn't appeal to him in the slightest.

  Hey, there was still a good chance they might have survived though, right? New people came to the city all the time, so it was too early to be feeling sorry for himself like a sad sack of potatoes just yet!! Sharon wouldn't want that, anyway - she and himself had been alike in being rather high-spirited at times. Even if the outside world was destroyed, 'every puzzle had an answer': so there had to be some hope of it being rebuilt somehow. Okay, everything that had been destroyed would never come back. Ever. That was terribly upsetting and saddening.

  So many things - and people - would have been lost. They should be respected, but would they really want the future to end so dismally so easily? No way. He'd search through the ruins of this sadness and find artefacts to help somehow build a better future, because being so mopey wasn't really his style when his friends could be 'sleeping' just as he was and not awake yet - and would they really want to wake up to such a miserable state of affairs? No way. They deserved better from him. At least that was what he thought, anyway. Even if this place was dumb and there didn't seem to be a lot of hope, he'd try to fight for better circumstances as best he could. (He still didn't bloody agree with this whole bollocks of an 'arranged marriage' thing the scientists had set up, of course, but who did agree to it?)

  Now, the most important thing about trying to make things better here was simple things first - he'd scope this city out some more, and then start trying his bloody best to change the depressing air, of course! After all, his old chums could have woken up right now and have wandered off any place. Besides, he wanted to explore like old times: to every possible area that nobody else would think of looking. Surely it would result in great results? If not that, than at least some kind of clue about the dumb place because he hadn't really gotten a lot of information so far.

  However, it turned out exploring without knowing anything about the surroundings had not been one of his better ideas. "Man, did I take a left turn at the last crossroads, or did I go straight?" Yup, he was pretty lost. He knew he was near that dumb main building which he really didn't want to go to again, but apart from that, he'd gone terribly off-path from where he originally was. Randall sighed. He should have taken notes about which way he was going - that way he could re-trace his steps if he got lost, but no point in doing that now.

  He was already LOST, not like things could get any worse. Maybe someone else had a map around here. With that thought, he sauntered off, footsteps sharply rapping against the path: but hearing an odd noise nearby was the last thing he expected to notice. Such was his curiosity he decided to head right towards the noise. A good explorer investigated anything suspicious going on, after all - and that was probably hands down the most suspicious noise he'd heard ever.

Who would let a chicken out behind the main building, after all? Maybe the scientists were doing some kind of top-secret thing they didn't want anything finding out?! However - the answer to this particular puzzle was nowhere near as exciting as expected. It was a person (with incredibly cool glasses - why couldn't he find cool glasses like that to help him see, huh?) making chicken noises, that was all.

Cue an incredibly bewildered expression from the ginger.

"Man, I've heard some pretty odd impressions while exploring, but this takes the cake."

What in the dickens was this guy even doing that for? ...Did he even really want to know? "I won't - uh - disturb your actually bloody good acting too long, don't worry. Just give me some kind of directions back to the apartments, and I'll be on me way."

Someone hiding out in the alleyways and NOT being lost like himself probably wasn't looking for a long discussion, after all. Hey, come to think of it. Maybe that was why he was making that noise in the first place. Wonderful prior planning there from himself, yet again.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A puzzling situation without an answer? (Intro/Open)

[snackooing-blog]

{ &her trip to her new apartment had been quickly interrupted by a quizzical voice from behind. ema stopped in her tracks, before turning to face the stranger. already a naturally miserable person, and having been told of her situation earlier in the day, she was not in the mood for any setbacks. or obstacles that could prevent her from taking a well-needed nap in her new residence. }

Of course not. Do I look like an information desk to you?

{ &her expression was as stormy as her temper. she proceeded to coldly stare at the poor male, her toe tapping upon the pavement, as if expecting an instant response to explain his actions. she knew it was best not to take out her anger and frustration on him but sometimes she couldn’t help but blurt a few words she would end up regretting and feeling guilty about over. breaking off her stare with an exasperated sigh, she folded her arms and ceased the tapping. } 

I’ve only just arrived this morning, so I’m looking for some answers too. Haven’t got a single one so far.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

The stranger he'd happened to determinedly tail and keep pace with had a curious long, white coat: huh, it was kinda odd to see someone wearing such a formal-looking thing. Maybe the lady was a scientist or something? He didn't know, and personally, that didn't really matter much in the scheme of things at this point of time. He just wanted to try and see if she knew anything!! Scientists were normally smart, so maybe he'd be lucky and she'd know a whole lot?

The strange lady then whirled and gave him a cold glare, bluntly asking if she looked like an information desk to her. However, Randall was not easily intimidated and no stranger to 'blunt' statements himself, so he just folded his arms and pointed out right back: "No, you look like someone who should be an assistant to  someone making a time machine or some other scientific stuff. Where's your death-ray?"

Wait, no. Now wasn't the time to be blunt, and that had been rather ungentlemanly there. Man, Hershel would have yelled if he'd heard that, if the stranger wasn't going to, so the slightly grumpy expression of the ginger was quick to flicker away, he rubbing a hand through his hair and sighing before exclaiming: "...Sorry. That was rude. Just 'cause this place sucks doesn't give me a reason to be ungentlemanly like that."

After all, even if he hated all that dumb 'formal' stuff his mother always nagged at him about, he should still try to do it!

"Nobody willing to give answers yet, huh? Well, that sucks, too. I'd be in a bad mood if some dumb puzzle didn't at least give a hint out, so I can understand that. Wish I could help out there." Despite his bluntness before, at least his forthright nature made it easy enough to tell he was being genuine with wishing he could HAVE such answers himself and give them to the stranger.

"Hey, wait...! I should introduce myself, otherwise that'd be  continuing my rudeness, right? Randall Ascad's the name. I was exploring some ruins with a friend of mine before I woke up to this dump of a situation...how'd things get to such a state, ugh?" That last part was mumbled mostly to himself, but hey, that was an introduction out of the way. In some small way, he could identify with the stranger - he'd be pretty 'blunt' too, if he was in such a bad mood as that!

[vengefuljustice-deactivated2012]

Introductions /open/

It was like all the effort from fighting to save the world before was for nothing. And it irritated him. Not that they hadn’t saved it, but that their leader had sacrificed himself for humankind before and just a while later this happens. How was this right in any way, shape or form!?

Anyone here right now should probably have been glad that they were even alive at this point, and Ken was not going to sulk about it, but damn it, it would be nice to have at least one friend from the dorm here. He was not sure that he was going to get along with the other kids in the Orphanage, just like with the kids back at school.

“Excuse me?” He called out, awaiting a response from the first person who heard it; letting go of the shocked and slightly irritated expression he had been wearing before and replacing it with a blank one. 

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

Now, though Randall was not a 'child' in the way of age (though he certainly acted like it a lot of the time) - because his 'wife' or whatever was too young for them to consider living together, he'd been stuck in the place just as she had. Hey, even though he'd be lying if he said he was entirely pleased with it all, it could be worse! At least they didn't have to worry about staying in a house and paying 'bills' or whatever.

In fact, this whole situation could be a lot worse. At least he wasn't a 'ghost' or anything and had to see people getting sad because of his death, right? Speaking of death...something about this whole situation didn't add up. If there'd been a bomb recently, where was all the newspapers about it? (Unless the folk who printed them got blown up somehow.) Surely some sort of coverage had to come from it?

Yet, there was nothing. The whole thing smelled of suspicion like a fish rotting in the open sun. So, he'd decided to borrow some library books and carry them to the orphanage so he could try and read up about this mysterious 'puzzle' in peace - but it didn't take long for him to be interrupted.

"Yeah? Need a hand with something?" Looking up from the book he was reading, he blinked at seeing the person who'd called him was a young brown-haired boy. Probably lived here too, logically. Thoughts aside, Randall didn't really mind being interrupted  Hey, this book seemed pretty thick anyway so he wasn't going to read it ALL right there.

[pantsoffseamstress-deactivated2]

The World Ends With Us || Open

Here we go again…

Well, at least this wasn’t the Reaper’s Game… and she didn’t die, so that was a positive. In actuality she was incredibly worried for her parents and friends, what happened to them? Neku, Eri, Rhyme… Beat? Well, Beat was too stubborn to die, so he was probably okay. Still…

This was all so sudden, being cast into this situation and all. Well, what could she do? She hadn’t even met her spouse yet, they were probably really nice, she was getting worked up nothing, and so she continued her way through.

Shiki looked at how the base was set out, it was odd, living underground and all, but she could probably get used to it. However, just as she turned the corner, she bumped into someone, suddenly snapping her out of her curiosity.

“Ah—?!”

The teenager fell backwards onto her behind on the ground, with her toy cat, Mr. Mew, not too far behind her. Picking up the toy again and rubbing her head, she looked up at the stranger she bumped into and fretted over apologising.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t looking where I was going!”

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

The archaeological enthusiast had wasted very little time in just standing around following strangers forever: as helpful as the folk he'd managed to chase down had been with things he didn't know about the place, for a better view of the area overall - the best thing was to explore it himself! Thus, he'd set off at his usual energetic pace. The fact he still had yet to find his friends here contributed to his speed, as well.

Come to think of it, he had yet to find whoever that scientist had 'married' him to, actually. Eh, he'd find her when he found her - sticking around that orphanage all the time? No way, he'd rather be out exploring, looking for his old chums! Okay, so there weren't any ruins here to explore (which sucked), but if this situation was viewed like a puzzle - odds were he'd stand more a chance running into her by wandering around the city than staying in one spot at the orphanage!

That was, if she was just as 'new' to the place as he himself was. It made perfect sense!! (At least to him.) However, being in such a excitable exploration-related hurry, though it came with the good point of covering a lot of ground quickly - also came with a downside - it was hard to stop once you got going, or see around corners. Thus the stranger suddenly veering around the same corner he was speeding around - and thus bumping into him took him by utter surprise, the contact making him fall as well.

While Randall blinked confusedly and blindly rummaged around for his glasses - which had fallen off in the collision - he heard an apology from the other, though he couldn't SEE them right now for...obvious reasons. "Hey, it's fine! I wasn't watching where I was going either, so I guess that makes two of us in a real kerfuffle of a rush, eh?" A chipper laugh from the ginger, there, before he felt his hand touch the familar hard frame of his glasses. Putting them on, he exclaimed, "Ah, that's better! Can actually see who I'm talking to, now! Sorry to...run into you like this, haha!"

...Okay, he admitted that was a bad joke there. A gentleman didn't just sit back and let a lady feel bad, though, even if they didn't know the lady in question! Hopefully the bad joke would at least help her feel a little less apologetic about the thing.

[gingerpuzzler-blog]

A puzzling situation without an answer? (Intro/Open)

Man, when he'd decided to take a bit of a rest in the middle of him and Hershel hiking to those ruins they were going to explore: Randall could safely say without a shadow of a doubt that this was the last thing he expected to wake up to. He still felt a bit groggy: he was not a morning person, even if it had apparently been quite some time since he'd last opened his eyes. (Good thing that scientist had found his glasses, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to see bloody anything.) Man, what kind of bollocks had gone on for a nuclear bomb to suddenly go off like that and apparently wipe out just about everything?

This was absurdly stupid. If he hadn't woken up in something that looked like some bad sci-fi movie, he would have scoffed and called a load of baloney on the matter. Sharon, Henry - Hershel - they got saved too, right? Sharon in particular was a strong-willed lady, so she would have brushed this off like it was nothing. Or was that just blind hope talking, there? Speaking of 'love'...man, why hadn't that scientist listened when he tried to explain?

He was already spoken for, so he shouldn't be marrying some stranger, as nice as they might be! This was going to be a real pain in the butt to explain to the person. To make matters more exasperating, now he was stuck in some orphanage despite having a family already. 

"...Man, if this is all some kinda prank by Hersh for all the times I played tricks on him, he really went all-out with it."

That bout of complaining aside, the ginger decided to follow a stranger passing by: no sense in moping around. If he wanted to get some more answers about this weird place and whether his chums had woken up or not, he had to ask, right?

"Hey! Hey, you! You wouldn't happen to know anything about this city, would ya? I'm not really used to the place."