@Innis I normally post after you, but if you need me to, I could go ahead and go before this round?
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- Last Seen: 6 yrs ago
- Old Guild Username: Mr.Mauve
- Joined: 11 yrs ago
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- Kiddo 11 yrs ago
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I've been trying to get a new PC up and running, and I have a new nephew, so I've been a little out of it. I will get a post up when my turn comes around, but if we want to timeskip that's also fine with me.
He was the one. Laneya watched a man leave the coffee shop with a conspicuous smile pasted on his lips. It screamed of lies and deceit, but moreso, it was just too early in the morning for someone to be smiling naturally. He had to be up to something, and given her situation, he was likely up to that. But was he alone? She surveyed the rest of the people in the station: a few kids listening to headphones, a tired-looking barrista who glared death at her when their eyes met, a couple laughing about something, and three out-of-placers, winded like she but milling about as if they didn't know why they were there. Just like she was.
The smiling man was doing a circuit of the room with his head, pointedly stopping at each of these three and finally at herself. So her instincts were right. She didn't know whether to be relieved that she wasn't alone in this, or more horrified that this "Employer" had that sort of power over many people. Her phone buzzed, and she made sure to contemplate all of the implications of the message before walking over. She wasn't that great a thinker on the spot, so it was important that she know exactly what to say ahead of time. One part of the message hopped out to her, and she spent a bit of extra time forming a question of her own, determining whether it would be wise to ask. She stood, still looking at the phone, and slung her backpack across her chest once more. She adjusted the strap so that it didn't look as odd, and then glanced back up at her target. Two of the milling individuals had already gone to him.
She walked over without any particular state of confidence, no bravado, but no fear in her steps. Her face was frozen in the same impassive bored neutrality as always, and she turned her head back and forth, taking in the circumstances again before committing to them. She paused, for her eye had caught something. That couple, they were watching them very closely. And wait, she recognized one of them... that woman, from somewhere. She was beautiful, even from this distance, though in a more robust, playful way than Laneya's pale, delicate features. Where did she recognize her? A modeling contest? That... could be, but she couldn't pinpoint yet who it was. They shared a stare across the floor and glass, and the other woman smiled a bit before half turning her attention back to the man with her, half to Laneya's continued, unaffected stare. And then she remembered where she was, what she was supposed to be doing, and that staring at people like that was considered creepy; she turned away, back to the small cluster of people in the center of the room.
"I am Laneya. 18. ME in Computer Engineering." She paused after having given what she was told to, and then continued as she had decided. "I am curious about the wording of this text. If the texts tell me to do something that you disagree with, which am I to disobey?" She held up her phone, one finger pointing at the last line of the text. It was important that she know the chain of command.
The smiling man was doing a circuit of the room with his head, pointedly stopping at each of these three and finally at herself. So her instincts were right. She didn't know whether to be relieved that she wasn't alone in this, or more horrified that this "Employer" had that sort of power over many people. Her phone buzzed, and she made sure to contemplate all of the implications of the message before walking over. She wasn't that great a thinker on the spot, so it was important that she know exactly what to say ahead of time. One part of the message hopped out to her, and she spent a bit of extra time forming a question of her own, determining whether it would be wise to ask. She stood, still looking at the phone, and slung her backpack across her chest once more. She adjusted the strap so that it didn't look as odd, and then glanced back up at her target. Two of the milling individuals had already gone to him.
She walked over without any particular state of confidence, no bravado, but no fear in her steps. Her face was frozen in the same impassive bored neutrality as always, and she turned her head back and forth, taking in the circumstances again before committing to them. She paused, for her eye had caught something. That couple, they were watching them very closely. And wait, she recognized one of them... that woman, from somewhere. She was beautiful, even from this distance, though in a more robust, playful way than Laneya's pale, delicate features. Where did she recognize her? A modeling contest? That... could be, but she couldn't pinpoint yet who it was. They shared a stare across the floor and glass, and the other woman smiled a bit before half turning her attention back to the man with her, half to Laneya's continued, unaffected stare. And then she remembered where she was, what she was supposed to be doing, and that staring at people like that was considered creepy; she turned away, back to the small cluster of people in the center of the room.
"I am Laneya. 18. ME in Computer Engineering." She paused after having given what she was told to, and then continued as she had decided. "I am curious about the wording of this text. If the texts tell me to do something that you disagree with, which am I to disobey?" She held up her phone, one finger pointing at the last line of the text. It was important that she know the chain of command.
@BingtheWing I think you're the last one before we can meet our wonderful benefactor!
30 minutes. The corners of her mouth tugged downward as Laneya calculated the time needed. She was already removing the few clothes she wore to bed, gathering what she would need in a circuit around the room. Two blouses. Two bras. A pause, and a sport bra, just in case. Pants, leggings, skirts, a pair of tougher jeans. Dresses didn’t really make sense. She tossed what she wasn’t putting on at the bed, in the general direction of her bag. Alright, clothes handled.
Shoes next, one pair for street, one pair of boots; once more, just in case. She didn’t have enough information to know what exactly she was supposed to bring, didn’t know what the right answer was. Better safe than sorry, though, it wasn’t like this many things would slow down her ride on the bus. 28 minutes. She grimaced further, her cold eyes narrowing at the clock. She slipped the tee over her head as she blindly walked toward the medicine cabinet and grabbed her little medicine holder. Thank goodness she’d taken the precaution to keep one handy after first contact. She paused, popping open a day’s worth of pills as she stared at the one thing she was unsure in bringing. Her other hand glided over the metal piece’s short barrel before she shook her head and closed the pantry door. Next time, perhaps. She swallowed the pills dry, tossed the holder onto the bed and grabbed her bag from by the door. Quickly, she slammed clothes into it, zipped it, flung the strap across her shoulders so that the backpack rested squarely against her back.
Out the door she flew, plucking sunglasses and a duck-billed hat from the peg as she passed. She issued the command from her phone for her flat to lock the door behind her, and sprinted down the stairs. One, two, three flights. Her watch said that it was 5:03. The bus would be at Grove Road just about now. She didn’t have time to wait 7 minutes for the next one. Curse the tight timing on this notification. She would have to take some of it herself.
There was not time for the proper safety procedures. She took a sharp turn to where her bike was tied, using her home automation system to unlock it as she approached. The engine revved happily to be woken so early in the morning, and in a cacophony of burning rubber and exhaust note, she woke half the neighbors and tore onto Old Ford Rd.
If they were only going to give her 30 minutes to get to the center of town, at least they were kind enough to do so early in the morning, when there would be no traffic. She ignored the word “SLOW” emblazoned on the lane as she careened down the little two-lane road at 100kmph. The rain made visibility low, and every turn was an exhilarating madness of skidding, sliding, and water spewing from a hard-driven back tire as she slopped from lane to lane, from road to road. She swerved from the obvious course, slowing to a more reasonable rate as buildings closed in on every side, desperately swiveling her head from side to side in search of parking. The station was close, but ah! That would do. Onto the curb she went, killing the engine and coasting along the sidewalk to stop at a small pole. Good enough. She tied up, and took off on foot. 5:08.
She hadn’t made it for the bus. Or, rather, there was no way the bus would make it there in time. But Bethnal Green was also a tube station. 5:11 as she charged down the stairs, racing the small waterfall that descended into the underground station. The screech of a Central line train leaving port left a dead feeling in her heart, and she paused at the bottom of the stairs to watch the last few cars pull away. The signs updated with the next train, and she read it with dead eyes before sighing in relief. Direct line to Liverpool Underground Station: Arrival time 5:22. She had made it. She spent the few minutes she had wringing out and brushing the water off of her apparel and out of her eyes.
It was bad to have those 11 minutes of lower stress between her descent at Bethnal and her ascent at Liverpool. It gave her time to reflect on this sudden change in her employer, in what power he, or she, or they were exerting over her life. “Met with consequences. Do not displease us.” She munched on a small breakfast from one of the vending machines, and contemplated her new existence as the walls of the underground rushed past. This sort of threat was new to her, something she hadn’t dealt with before. Sure, she’d been dragged into many things in the hopes to not displease others, but it didn’t have that expectation of external punishment attached. Disappointment had been enough of a deterrent for her for those people. After all, what sort of person was unaffected when a mother said you had failed her?
The brakes screeched and she stood, left the otherwise empty car. She could take the walk at a moderate pace, without fear of arriving late. She passed into the station at 5:27, double-checking her watch to make sure. Three minutes not late. There were few others there this early, but each could have been the one. Heck, they could have all been there as part of this entrapment. She selected a place where her back was against a wall, giving her good vision of every approach, and squatted, taking off her backpack. It was heavy enough to swing at someone if needed, and though it would probably be unwise to do that, the mere possibility helped to ease her.
Shoes next, one pair for street, one pair of boots; once more, just in case. She didn’t have enough information to know what exactly she was supposed to bring, didn’t know what the right answer was. Better safe than sorry, though, it wasn’t like this many things would slow down her ride on the bus. 28 minutes. She grimaced further, her cold eyes narrowing at the clock. She slipped the tee over her head as she blindly walked toward the medicine cabinet and grabbed her little medicine holder. Thank goodness she’d taken the precaution to keep one handy after first contact. She paused, popping open a day’s worth of pills as she stared at the one thing she was unsure in bringing. Her other hand glided over the metal piece’s short barrel before she shook her head and closed the pantry door. Next time, perhaps. She swallowed the pills dry, tossed the holder onto the bed and grabbed her bag from by the door. Quickly, she slammed clothes into it, zipped it, flung the strap across her shoulders so that the backpack rested squarely against her back.
Out the door she flew, plucking sunglasses and a duck-billed hat from the peg as she passed. She issued the command from her phone for her flat to lock the door behind her, and sprinted down the stairs. One, two, three flights. Her watch said that it was 5:03. The bus would be at Grove Road just about now. She didn’t have time to wait 7 minutes for the next one. Curse the tight timing on this notification. She would have to take some of it herself.
There was not time for the proper safety procedures. She took a sharp turn to where her bike was tied, using her home automation system to unlock it as she approached. The engine revved happily to be woken so early in the morning, and in a cacophony of burning rubber and exhaust note, she woke half the neighbors and tore onto Old Ford Rd.
If they were only going to give her 30 minutes to get to the center of town, at least they were kind enough to do so early in the morning, when there would be no traffic. She ignored the word “SLOW” emblazoned on the lane as she careened down the little two-lane road at 100kmph. The rain made visibility low, and every turn was an exhilarating madness of skidding, sliding, and water spewing from a hard-driven back tire as she slopped from lane to lane, from road to road. She swerved from the obvious course, slowing to a more reasonable rate as buildings closed in on every side, desperately swiveling her head from side to side in search of parking. The station was close, but ah! That would do. Onto the curb she went, killing the engine and coasting along the sidewalk to stop at a small pole. Good enough. She tied up, and took off on foot. 5:08.
She hadn’t made it for the bus. Or, rather, there was no way the bus would make it there in time. But Bethnal Green was also a tube station. 5:11 as she charged down the stairs, racing the small waterfall that descended into the underground station. The screech of a Central line train leaving port left a dead feeling in her heart, and she paused at the bottom of the stairs to watch the last few cars pull away. The signs updated with the next train, and she read it with dead eyes before sighing in relief. Direct line to Liverpool Underground Station: Arrival time 5:22. She had made it. She spent the few minutes she had wringing out and brushing the water off of her apparel and out of her eyes.
It was bad to have those 11 minutes of lower stress between her descent at Bethnal and her ascent at Liverpool. It gave her time to reflect on this sudden change in her employer, in what power he, or she, or they were exerting over her life. “Met with consequences. Do not displease us.” She munched on a small breakfast from one of the vending machines, and contemplated her new existence as the walls of the underground rushed past. This sort of threat was new to her, something she hadn’t dealt with before. Sure, she’d been dragged into many things in the hopes to not displease others, but it didn’t have that expectation of external punishment attached. Disappointment had been enough of a deterrent for her for those people. After all, what sort of person was unaffected when a mother said you had failed her?
The brakes screeched and she stood, left the otherwise empty car. She could take the walk at a moderate pace, without fear of arriving late. She passed into the station at 5:27, double-checking her watch to make sure. Three minutes not late. There were few others there this early, but each could have been the one. Heck, they could have all been there as part of this entrapment. She selected a place where her back was against a wall, giving her good vision of every approach, and squatted, taking off her backpack. It was heavy enough to swing at someone if needed, and though it would probably be unwise to do that, the mere possibility helped to ease her.
It's beautiful TT^TT
Also glad my character's not the only specifically pretty one!
Also glad my character's not the only specifically pretty one!
How did that final exam go? Think you crushed it?
Oh we got trouble, right here in London City.
SADLY didn't get around to a post this weekend, so as everyone else seems to be doing, I'll wait and see what crazy awesome opening post you have in mind :P
SADLY didn't get around to a post this weekend, so as everyone else seems to be doing, I'll wait and see what crazy awesome opening post you have in mind :P
I'm cool with starting soon.
Glad to be along for the ride!
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