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[lightfromdark]

There's no shortage of surprises here, is there?

Comments

[windykind]

[Guess who almost bounced in his seat as soon as he saw this message on the network.]

rose!
is that you?

[lightfromdark]

[awww, John.]

Last time I checked.

[windykind]

i'm so glad you're here!
...well, okay, kind of not.
because this place sorta sucks.
but still, you're ok!

[lightfromdark]

I can't say this is where I expected to end up, that's for sure.
Tell me, what was the last event that transpired before your arrival here?

[windykind]

well, i was on the beat mesa.
and then jade appeared with a battleship, and a god tier outfit, and dog ears!
she picked me up.
that's the last i remember.

[lightfromdark]

I see. I suppose that works.
Have you been here for a long time?

[windykind]

um, a few months.
four or five, thereabouts?

[lightfromdark]

Understood. I suppose that helps me sort out what you do and do not know.
What about Dave? Do you know anything about his timeline?

[windykind]

dave got to god tier, and you did too, according to him.
did you get there yet?

[lightfromdark]

Yes, I did. Then we're on the same page. I suppose that makes things easier.

[windykind]

good! it sure does make things easier, yeah.
oh, let's meet in person sometime!
i want to see you in your god hoodie.

[restitchtime]

[OH FUCK PLEASE NO PLEASE PLEASE LET HER BE WRONG PLEASE]

There is, actually. Guess you missed the giant countdown board on the first floor. Good job ignoring something so fucking obvious.

[lightfromdark]

Or perhaps I was referring more to the residents of this tower.

[restitchtime]

Right, because obviously my comment is explicitly discounting the idiots stuck here. My god, how could I have missed such a blinding conclusion?

[lightfromdark]

Yes, but mine was explicitly discounting the place itself and referring directly to the residents.
I think it should go without saying that the place itself as a stand alone entity is surprising enough.

[restitchtime]

Ah, of course. How could I forget that the phrase 'surprised here' can only ever refer to actual people? This place must be eating away at my poor common sense.

You'd think that you can just let that shit go, but most of the people around here need it spelled out for them in bright plastic blocks. You're going to have to drop your expectations to the floor if you want to get anything done around here.

[lightfromdark]

Now you're catching on.
There's hope for you yet.

I see.
Are these words of advice or the harsh reality of our situation? Either way, I suppose I'll find out soon enough.

[restitchtime]

Hey now, don't get me excited like that. I might actually start thinking I could amount to something someday if you're not careful.

They're the words of someone who's had to bash her head against the brick wall of stupidity more times than should be legal. But don't feel like you have to listen to me; I'm sure you're the kind of person who loves frustratingly looped conversations.

[lightfromdark]

That's fine. You're allowed to have dreams before reality crushes them under its heel. That's how you learn.

Oh?
What ever gave you that wild idea?

[restitchtime]

The only shit I learn from being jerked around by paradox space is that fucking it up is a really great idea. Not exactly productive job material.

I had a flash of intuition when looking at the dregs of my coffee this morning.

[lightfromdark]

I can only imagine.

I thought it was tea leaves that were suppose to provide one with intuitional foresight.

[restitchtime]

I'd bet you can.

Tea leaves are for washed out hippies trying to fund their drug habit by fleecing tourists. Coffee drops the mystic bullshit and tells it to you straight.

[lightfromdark]

I will have to keep this in mind for the future should my tea leaves fail me. The advice is so very much appreciated.

[restitchtime]

Yeah, I'm sure you'll have it tattooed across your face at the next opportunity so you can always keep it close. Try not to overdo the gratitude, though, somebody might get jealous.

[lightfromdark]

Jealous, huh? Should I take a completely wild guess as to who that might be?

[restitchtime]

If you want to waste a perfectly good guess on something as stupid as that, sure. I'm not going to sit around and tell you how to spend them.

[guiltapalooza]

Kind of really isn't.

So you're a friend of John's? Sorry, I snooped.

[lightfromdark]

What am I to do with all these alternate universes is the rhetorical question of the day.

Yes, I am.

[guiltapalooza]

Sit down and have tea with them and gossip to your heart's content? There isn't really much else to do, I think.

My name's Willow, I made friends with John while he's been here.

[lightfromdark]

I think I'll pass for now.

Salutations, Willow. Is this the first time you've met me?

[guiltapalooza]

Can't say I blame you. I've had time to get used to it and it's still all a little weird sometimes.

Yup. You get a nice blank slate with which to make your own impression, how about that? Which, I'm sure it'll be a good impression, cause obviously you're a nice person if you're friends with John, so why would it be bad and I think I'm going to stop now.

[lightfromdark]

Have you met another version of yourself here yet?

Considering I was here before, I suppose that's a rarity. John also has the tendency to be overly trusting. You should keep that in mind.

[guiltapalooza]

No, but I have at home. It was an eerie experience and I don't mind getting to skip it here for as long as I can.

I'm not running out and asking you to babysit my first born, I'm just giving you the benefit of the doubt. Anyway, it's a little hard to be friends with someone if you don't trust their judgement. Just saying.

[fractus_animus]

I might have another one to throw at you: yourself from an alternate timeline has been here before.

And they helped me write a guide on this damnable place.

Which is still kind of a huge work in progress.

[lightfromdark]

Would it in turn surprise you that I am not unfamiliar with alternate timelines?
But I am intrigued by this guide you mentioned. I'm glad to know other versions of me were productive here.

[fractus_animus]

Actually, no. You're a pretty knowledgeable person, after all.

[ Here, Rose, let him just toss you the link to the thing. ]

We decided to store it in the Network here and put as much information in one place as we could.

A few things:

1) It's kind of been a huge task keeping this thing updated, what with all the dying I seem to be doing lately and their experiments.

2) They didn't seem too happy when I tried to make a condensed newbie's version and post it around on walls and things, but I haven't gotten in trouble yet for directing people to the Network when it isn't down or on the fritz, so I assume it's okay.

3) I left your parts intact and, you know, if at any point you feel you want to add something, I don't mind.

4) My name is Minato Arisato, by the way. Nice to re-make your acquaintance.

[lightfromdark]

Certainly an intriguing guide, to say the least. It has certainly answered some of my own questions.
This is truly a metaphor for something when I am educating myself through universes, but I digress.
It's nice to meet you again, Minato.
I would introduce myself but I feel that would be redundant.
I would have no qualms about further helping you with this guide, either.

[fractus_animus]

Glad to hear it.

I should mention that the floors in particular are what concern me, because it's hard to accurately tell what all of them do when one seems to be completely missing most of the time and you never are sure if the empty ones are safe or not.

I really hope you don't have to find out how dangerous this place is personally, since it seems to be a rite of passage to die horribly at least once in this Tower.

[beknightedheroine]

we've got a mountain of surprises! (⌒▽⌒)☆
and heaps of mysteries
and...

okay yeah I don't have the patience for that （´＿｀）☆
you couldn't have said anything more obvious i think
unless you were trying to be
if that's what you were going for then I'd say try 'water is wet' next time

[lightfromdark]

Or perhaps that was the point.

[beknightedheroine]

the point IS stating the obvious?
k
I guess it DID get you bites from the rest of the tower so i can't fault that

[lightfromdark]

Precisely, though I wonder why it is that the network here is so faulty.
Has no one tried fixing it?

[beknightedheroine]

fixing anything here isn't really that high on any priority lists ヽ（・＿・；)ノ
it's kind of a mutual 'you smash my feelings, i smash your keyboard' situation.

(plus i think a good half of the populace started out computer illiterate anyway)

[lightfromdark]

Nor is finding an exit, I presume, considering everyone is still here.
That's a shame but I suppose it can't be helped. I'll have to make use of it as I can.

[beknightedheroine]

that one's more of the 'try, try, and fail miserably' flavor.
..eventually, though, there's gotta be SOME way