keepsmehonest | 1st Tune

So, I've got to say, I feel a little silly doing this. Talking to a notebook isn't exactly commonplace where I come from. I've been told I can write into it too, but that almost makes it feel a little too personal. Like I'm writing in a journal instead of... broadcasting on the radio or making a phone call to group of people. I'm not exactly much of a writer, either. That'd be my brother, Christy.

[He laughs a little awkwardly before pausing. Yeah, he feels more than a little ridiculous talking to a book. It's part of the reason he's waited so long before addressing Luceti. Aside from taking the time to settle into the extra room in Jilly's studio. And searching the store for his fiddle.]

I'm Geordie Riddell. From Newford. New York. That's in North America. On Earth. [Then, muttered under his breath:] ...I can't believe I'm saying this. [He clears his throat and continues in a louder voice.] Uh, 1979.

I just arrived here a few days ago, but apparently my best friend has been here a lot longer. Some of you may know her. Jilly Coppercorn? Terminally cheerful artist that almost always has some paint stains on her person?

She's the one who suggested I use this... whatever it is... to try and locate my fiddle. It's an old Czech fiddle, manufactured around the turn of the century. Worn but well taken care of, recently restrung, and the initials G.R. are on the left part of the lower bout. The last time I saw it, it was in its case - scruffy, black with a picture of a blonde Victorian woman in her mid-twenties and a list of Irish drinking tunes inside.

They're very important to me - fiddle and case both - so if you've seen anything fitting the description, let me know?

Thanks.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I appreciate the suggestion. If I can't find a fiddle soon, I might have to see about this battle dome place.

Sure.

So how much about this place has she told you?

It depends on what aspects of Luceti you're talking about. She talked a lot about the people and the town itself.

Right. [Sounds like Jilly.] And about the experiments and the war?

Not much at all.

So what have you been told about them?

Nothing that really sounded all that credible. Or all that comfortable.

Sounds right on both counts.

General rule? Don't think that things can't happen here, because they probably can. That's especially true when it comes to the experiments.

Can you fight at all?

[That's not exactly a rule that sits well with Geordie, what being the resident skeptic in his group of friends and all. And it probably shows on his face.]

I can lay a punch on a man as well as the next guy.

[Which is to say, no. Not a fighter at all.]

[It does, and Amelia definitely gets it. She used to be the same way.]

You don't have to believe me now. But you will eventually.

[She shakes her head.]

So you might be better than Jilly. And if the next guy were coming at you with a knife?

[A knife attack is a lot different than punching a man. A lot different.]

Happily give him my wallet and whatever else he wanted.

[Except his fiddle. That was worth his life.]

He's going to want your life. The Third Party is out to kill everyone, and that's who you'll be facing if you get drafted.

I managed to avoid the draft back home.

[The words are said slowly and quietly. The war might have ended five years ago, but he lived through three years of eligibility. When it comes down to it, he got lucky. Three years with the threat of Vietnam and, somehow, neither he nor Christy were ever called to serve.

Luck, really. When it comes down to it.]

That's not how it works here. If they pick your name, you go. If you try and hide, they send their droids or whatever they after you, and they make you go.

[Luck doesn't apply in Luceti.]

Are droids another name for police or soldiers here?

[He hasn't exactly read the guide yet. Nor does he possess any familiarity with the genre of science fiction.]

They're machines. Really powerful robots that even the people with supernatural abilities can't beat.

[Ever the skeptic, he has to scoff a bit at that statement.] I don't exactly believe in the supernatural.

[But it's not said with as much conviction as it once might have been.]

Neither did I.

[Past tense. Amelia's seen it too many times now to not believe.]

Give me a little bit of time? Being here in Luceti is still a lot to take in.

Yeah, I know. [She's been there a good year and a half, and it's still too much for her sometimes.]

There's plenty of people willing to help teach you how to defend yourself, if you get interested. Just to let you know.

I'm not really the fighting type. [It helps with keeping that temper in check. But if what she says is true about the drafts and battles, it could be a good idea.] I'll let you know if I change my mind?

Sure. I already give Jilly lessons anyway.

Jilly? As in my Jilly?

Last I checked, she was her own person.

It was a turn of phrase. [Jilly is her own person. He'd be the first to argue such if that was ever questioned.] She's not exactly the kind of person I'd picture interested in self-defense.

[Even if she could probably benefit from the lessons.]

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thedicearecast - 2012-09-23 19:31 (UTC) - Expand

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