ML

Straits of Steel (A South East Asian Cyberpunk Thriller)

looking forward to seeing this in motion chief

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

@ML

Whatever seems relevant at the time. If need be, I'd start writing short stories in the form of flashbacks from the golden years.

@Necroes

If you like, although I would aim toward a less is more aproach in that regard so we don't clutter things up too much. I'm sure it'll be fun to read

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

"My power seems to be limited by dirt," ET admitted. "I can probably fuck with the cameras, but if the sensors are buried more than a half dozen feet underground, I won't be able to hear them." He turned back to their sponsor. Despite their numerous differences, his lies, and her combativeness, ET was with Stardust on this one. He didn't have any alternative ideas--they had just come in from out of town, after all--but he couldn't help feeling like they were expendable. "I'm gonna need a little more reassurance than your word, Peterson."

The other man sighed, and pulled out his phone. "Janice Park is the chief operating officer of Carolex-Denver. She is currently on a business retreat, but this isn't known to the general public for obvious reasons. My man on the inside, a very reputable source, gave me that particular tidbit. Any more questions?"

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

Would it be considered in poor taste to start posting daily/bi-daily, regardless of how frequently others post?

@Necroes

What would you include in these posts?

Straits of Steel (A South East Asian Cyberpunk RP)

• In Straits of Steel, an emphasis will be placed on creating a closed sandbox environment for players to interact in within the confines of the narrative. To help accentuate this, interactive objects and NPCs in the environment will be highlighted with specific colored text.

@Bork Lazer

This is genius

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

Not a bad idea: hmu in the server and we can chat about it more.

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

---

CURRENT DATE -- 24/05/2047, ~9 PM
.// A Morning Cup //.

---

"The Walking Fortress project, eh?" Peterson nodded slowly, but his eyes held a glimmer of something unreadable. "I thought I knew all of the current Walking Fortress units. An older model, then?" His gaze tracked up and down the big man, then he shrugged. "Even an older model is a wrecking ball, and beggars can't be choosers."

The conversation lapsed into silence for a moment. Then another. After four more, ET broken. "Okay, so now you know. Subtlety isn't exactly our specialty."

Peterson waved a hand at him. "Between you and my man Void, I think we have all the subtlety we need. My plan has always been more about brute force, anyway. I needed a hacker, and I got one better. A couple bruisers to keep the hacker safe...well, you get the idea. With my man on the inside, we have all the bases we need covered.

The broker held up a hand, signifying that he was not to be disturbed. "You're going to drive in the front gate. With the right message from the right person--which you will be providing via your abilities, even Hell itself wouldn't be able to stop you from going in. That building could be on fire, and your message from Janice Park would have the security team throw themselves into the blaze."

"That's a fucking stupid plan," ET said. He hadn't meant to, but so it was. "It's a Friday night. What delivery could possibly come at ten P.M. on a Friday?"

The man paused, glared at ET, shrugged. "It's worked before, with less capable operatives. Void will be there to clean up any loose ends which cause problems." Seeing ET's unmoved expression, he sighed. "Look," Peterson said, "the front door is actually the best option. This is a fortress, you know. Snipers on each roof, state-of-the-art camera and threat neutralization systems. Going through a wall isn't an option, and going under would trip the complex's seismic sensors. If you have a better idea on how to get through that first wall, I am all ears."

ET cursed, looking away. It was still such a stupid, stupid plan, but he had never been great at strategy. Plus, the man must have been planning some kind of heist for weeks, if not months. They'd only been here for a few hours, and any time they wasted was time that whoever tried to kill them could do it again. "Anything?" he asked the others.

---

CURRENT DATE -- 24/05/2047, ~9 PM
.// Carolex Experimental, Room SW301 //.

---

"Thank you all for coming." Nawar herself stood at the front of the room, silencing the myriad of late-night conversations with her voice, despite it's volume remaining soft and casual. "It warms my heart to see so many people committed to our cause, no matter the time of day."

The woman smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "All of you are to return to your offices, lock down any and all files you are currently using, and go home." She held up a hand, stalling the sudden muttered confusion. "Security has informed me that an anonymous tip was just received. Some form of espionage is expected to take place tonight, and it's my job to protect you, your work, and the integrity of C.E.D.S. I am assured that we have all necessary precautions to handle an event like this, but only if there are no civilians around to muck things up."

She looked around the room, matching eyes with each individual. "Whatever work you have can wait. If there is a deadline coming, point the customer my way. You have an hour." Nawar unfolded her arms and smiled again, still coldly. "If this event happens, and you are still inside when it does, then Security protocol is to treat you as an equal offender to the invading party. That's all." She turned on her heel, slipping out of the room with preternatural, obviously-enhanced grace.

The Curse of Crestwood Hollow - A Hyperhuman Story [CLOSED]

Joshua Draper

INFO:

Josh P. Draper || Almost 18 || M

HYPERHUMANITY: Perfect Coordination

Josh's muscles are perfectly synced with his mind, and his mind is perfectly synced with the world. This manifests as enhanced reflexes, mental processing speed, reaction time, perfect aim, intuitive knowledge of his surroundings, and how he can affect them to his benefit. He can throw a coin into a vending machine from the other side of the cafeteria, shoot the wings off a fly, and—most impressively—do a flip.

Extended to the logical extreme, Joshua could feasibly set up complex chain-reactions to achieve events which seem impossible. Flipping a coin to cause an airplane crash, for example. Surviving a catastrophic car crash with only minor injuries. Breaking the record of the excellent 1983 arcade game Star Wars for the sixth month in a row. That sort of thing.

There are some caveats, of course. First, Josh is seventeen. His powers will not immediately manifest (and may never manifest) to such a degree as mentioned above. Second, his ability to perform degrades under pressure. This has actually worked to his benefit: struggling to show off his incredible power has the added benefit of keeping the G-men off his doorstep.

RELATIONSHIP TO VANESSA:

Josh didn't know Vanessa well, but he did know her older sister Amanda. They had an on-again, off-again relationship of near-mythic proportions, which recently came to a screeching halt due to the tragedy. He tries not to be bitter—it's not about him—but he can't help but wonder if there is some malicious higher power out there, yanking his chain and laughing about it.

Sure, he liked the girl. She'd always been close with Amy; Josh often found himself and Amy playing chaperone and chauffeur until the younger Bordeaux finally got her license. She'd been witty, sometimes even acerbic. And then she was gone, and Josh's chances with the girl he loved along with her.

PERSONALITY:

Josh tries to live his life by a few simple rules. First, treat someone with kindness until they fuck with you or your little brother. Second, it's better to dodge drama if you can. Three, if an answer can be determined using a coin flip or rock-paper-scissors, it should be. He smiles easily, enjoys being around people, and does what he can to help people when they ask. He likes to think of himself as funny, clever, and able to take a joke.

This is balanced by an unhealthy amount of selfishness. Like anyone, Joshua doesn't think of himself as self-centered, but he always manages to turn situations about others into situations about himself. He looks out for himself and his interests before anyone else's, that's all. It's not a bad thing, right? Nobody can hurt him that way. And besides, he cares about his little brother. He'd die for Daniel. He's not selfish, and fuck you for bringing it up.

Amy's brought it to his attention before, and he promises to work on it before eventually lapsing back into his old ways. Such is the power of routine, and cognitive dissonance. If Josh can come to terms with his flaws, and find a way to fix them, he might actually find himself improving. Growing as a person. But that would require a deep dive into the soul, something Josh does everything in his power to avoid.

HISTORY:

When Josh was twelve, his mother cheated on his father. An idyllic life of home-cooked meals and summer movies fell apart overnight, and suddenly Josh and his younger brother Daniel were thrust into a war not unlike the trenches of no man's land. Every narcissistic and self-serving impulse in humanity's millennia of evolution came to the forefront of the resulting divorce. Some twisted god turned his loving parents in raving husks of their former selves.

After two years, their godfather, Neil, saved them. After a fight of particular vitriol left Daniel unconscious on the floor, Josh called his godfather in tears. Neil was a lawyer of some renown, coincidentally. After exploding on Josh's father, Neil and his wife took custody of the two boys, bringing them four states over to Crestwood Hollow. Once they had recovered enough to smile, the boys nicknamed that period of their lives the "Terrible Two".

Josh entered high school knowing no one, still shell-shocked from the Terrible Two. A nervous new kid should have been prime target for bullies, but puberty saved him, in more ways than one. First, he got tall, and broad-shouldered. Handsome. People wanted to be around him for that.

Second, he was coordinated. His muscles did what he wanted them to, when he wanted them to. This talent paid off: he ended up on the Crestwood High Football team. After a few years, he'd become one of their star players. Over those years, he also got involved with Amanda Bordeaux, the girl who has captured his heart for two years now.

Daniel, two years behind him, took a slightly different path. He grew tall as well, but took after their slender mother. He wasn't so much into sports, and probably qualified as a nerd. Of course, everyone knew that if you messed with Dan in any way, Josh would come by to fuck you up six ways to Sunday.

Then, the murder. Despite his internal griping at how unfair the situation is for him, Josh instinctively told Amy that he'd do whatever he could to help her, and that he'd catch the son of a bitch who did it. Ignoring the fact that he is only slightly above-average in intelligence, Josh decided that he was Nancy Drew, and has been asking around Vanessa's friends and acquaintances for leads.

Yes, it has been as awkward and ham-fisted as it sounds.

The Curse of Crestwood Hollow - A Hyperhuman Story

ping

R E D U X .// 2047 //.

---

H I G H R I S K .// L O W R E W A R D
CURRENT DATE -- 24/05/2047, ~9 PM

---

"We're going to steal it, because I can't think of a better, less-stupid way of getting the info we need, in the time we have," ET said breezily, smiling wryly. "I think it's safe to say that someone is on our trail: someone tried to kill us. I'm willing to bet that whatever was in that bunker that so badly needed to be destroyed...well, it's worth learning about. And, given that our entire mission here started with a "Reality Bringer" anomaly, I am willing to bet that this is pretty important. Hex wasn't wrong often."

He stopped talking as Peterson eased up to them, taking the final chair. "Glad you're all here. Here is the plan. The three of you will enter the building, take down the defenses, and retrieve the drone. My man Void will assist you where necessary. There is another man on the inside who will also help. sound good?"

At ET's nonplussed stare, the man burst into self-satisfied chuckles. "Oh, I am hilarious, aren't I?" He pulled out his phone, tapped a few buttons, and a 2D holographic projection hit the table. "I'll send a partial map of the facility to your personal devices. The mission will start at twenty-two hundred hours, or in an hour."

"Is that secure?" ET asked. "We're sort of in public right now, yeah?"

Peterson smiled at him easily. "Do you think I haven't cleared the area? I have sixteen of my finest locking down the entire block. Besides, most of this is public knowledge to anyone who is from here."

The pretty waitress passed them again, and this time she glared at him, then winked and faked a blush, and then glared again. What the fuck? ET thought. Then she was gone again, serving a customer who was looking at them just a little too frequently. And he'd thought himself back to his suave old self.

"We start at that time because there it is the latest my inside man can stay in the building without raising security concerns. To form a true plan, I'll need to know your abilities. I think from what I've seen, we have quite the shot here, especially with the good Doctor on site."

ET froze. "I have a set of very advanced powered armor." Giving up his powers now would be...well, actually, it wouldn't matter too much. He'd already blown his cover that morning. "I have a way with machines," he admitted slowly. "Sort of an interpreter for them, and a commander, in the right circumstances. Technomancy, if you want to get technical." He hoped that would be enough vagueness.

Peterson nodded with approval. "Makes sense. That is a huge win for us." He and turned to the others expectantly.

---

---

The inside of Carolex Experimental's Defense Solutions Complex was filled with brightly lit office spaces, comfortable break rooms, well-stocked vending machines, and obscene layers of technological security.

To get in or out of any of the office spaces, an ocular scan, fingerprint, and ID card were required in parallel. Losing any one of these methods of identification was grounds for termination, except in extreme special cases. To get in and out of the test and storage facilities attached to the complex, an ocular scan, fingerprint, ID card, written order, and full-body cavity search were required, before changing into a set of special, pocket-less clothes, and descending ten feet into the warehouse.

At every point except this single point of entry, multifaceted layers of lethal security patrolled the grounds. In short, Carolex Experimental did not fuck around. These protection features represented the company's lowest level of operational security, for work which could be considered mildly confidential.

A soothing voice crackled over the office-space intercom. "This is Jasmin Nawar." The highest level manager of the Defense Solutions Complex. "To all C.E.D.S. Employees currently on site, please report to conference room three-zero-zero-one for an emergency briefing. This is non-negotiable. Those who ignore this announcement while being on site will be terminated immediately. Thank you!"