audio; un: spartan

[melnik]

[ It has been a couple of weeks now since the successful reset of the terminals. Now, the same voice that was heard trying to rally them all to that task, tired and thick with a Slavic accent, has come to speak over the network once again. ]

Greetings, my friends. Miller here. First of all, I wanted to thank everyone who assisted in our efforts to restore this place to its former self. If it was not for all your cooperation, I am certain things would have gone very differently. It is thanks to all of you that we are still alive.

[ He's proud, really. The change from when he first arrived in this place has been immense. ]

Which is why it is my hope that we can keep this spirit of camaraderie going. There has already been a lively discussion of the visions we encountered at the terminals. Now that it has become clear that there is truly no safe space to hide from the prying eyes of the "Council," I wish to propose a forum for us all to continue sharing information.

[ The creation of the Dark Web was an innovation, to say the least... but can one even really call that secure when the entire world they live in is simulated? Where he's concerned, it's time to be forthright. ]

Allow me to begin with this. I was summoned to the courtroom. Yes – the courtroom. I only recall the inside of the building, but I presume it's one and the same as the new structure in the city center. I have been part of this experiment for eight months now and it is my first time seeing this Jerry face to face. But I can't be the only one who, up until now, seemed to have forgotten that he even existed? So, please... I would like to hear all of your thoughts.

I don't know about all of you, but I didn't try to save that artificial intelligence because I wanted to go back to putting my head in the sand!

( ooc: so long as it's cool with both parties, feel free to threadjack to discuss amongst yourselves! )

Comments

voice; un:curtaincall

[endcaller]

What makes you say we are not safe from the Council's eyes?

I do not doubt your claim, mind you, but I wonder why you speak with such certainty.

[melnik]

Let's be clear about one thing first. I have never seen any "Council."

And I am no technology expert, but if we assume that they do exist, then they are part of this simulation alongside us. Bits of code that were programmed in to fulfill a certain role, given administrator access. It is hard to imagine any of our actions can be hidden when we live in this place.

voice; un: principal

[nuraridouman]

"It is thanks to all of you that we are still alive." - Is that really the case?

[melnik]

We were able to successfully reset all the terminals at once, so if there was any interference, it did not get through.

Unless you wish to confess something.

voice;

[skelters]

Hello, Miller! I'm glad to see you are well!

[ will he stop being so cheerful ... ]

It really is strange that all of our memories can be manipulated like that ... Did they say anything to you when you were summoned?

[melnik]

Same to you, Vash.

[ Although this returned sentiment is far less cheery on his part. The inflection is more that of resignment. Same old, huh? ]

They finally pulled the trigger on sentencing me to the "crime" I was accused of when I first arrived here! But the worst part is that they've finetuned it so that it's not even possible to raise an objection. All of this happened in what felt like a dream.

text | un: plantogetit

[traumaticus]

you too, my friend?

[melnik]

It happened to you as well? How preposterous. For us to go through all this effort to restore this place and then be met with this.

What do you plan to do?

audio, un: user010102

[computation]

We should be thanking you. I was a little too preoccupied to be coordinating teams, and we made it through.

[ Root sounds somewhat subdued, though, not victorious like one expect. ]

We got the backup, we just... can't hit restore yet. I'm willing to share what else I found out, but not where the backup is. We can't risk someone messing with her.

[ That's an abandoned child in there and Root feels keenly responsible for her. She's also deliberately implying there's only one to hopefully throw off anyone who might want to sabotage it. ]

[melnik]

Everyone really pitched in. It was a team effort.

[ Or in other words, he appreciates the acknowledgment, but they definitely couldn't have done it without the technical side's help. Anyway, ]

I understand. So long as the backup is in safe hands, there is no need for me to become involved. What you have learned is all that concerns me. I want to hear everything. But first, I was meaning to ask... when did you decide the AI was a "her?"

audio, un: crusher

[fieldtrip]

[ Okay, all that's nice and all about their successful mission, but it's kind of old news. Toph woke up and things were back to as normal as they got. Miller being summoned to the courtroom, though... ]

They brought you in for sentencing?! Are you okay? What are they having you do?

[ Toph has no direct experience with sentencing herself, and part of her always imagines it like getting taken to Lake Laogai. That's probably not what happens, but in her mind, getting taken in by authorities is an ominous phrase. ]

[melnik]

[ Right, it figures that Toph would jump straight ahead to that. Not that he can blame her. After all of this time wondering what happened in that City Hall from the outside, he'd be intent to ask the same. ]

I'm fine, I'm fine. It's just a big joke! What kind of courtroom passes out a sentencing without even hearing the defense? And after everything we've just been through!

To be honest, it's hard to remember all of the details. I'm sure that was intended. The whole experience came to me almost like it was a dream... [ and this part he sounds particularly disgusted by ] but I was told I need to find "peace." Pick up a hobby.

text; un: mrmurasaki

[depressionnap]

not all of us made it

[melnik]

I heard that, but I didn't want to jump to any conclusions. Do you know what happened?

Voice | un: levi

[solitarysoul]

You just showed up there? That's new. When I was called in they sent me a message and made me go to city hall to meet Jerry. I think he'd go get people who didn't show up...I guess this is easier on them.

[melnik]

It figures. They don't believe we can be trusted not to interfere with the process in some way. As though this concept of trial here could get any more ridiculous!

audio; un: cupcake

[bulleting]

I see sentencing has begun again. After it was skipped during the previous monthly rotation, I wondered what might happen going forward. Seems the reset put everything back into motion.

[It had been a consistent pattern for so long!! It worried her when the pattern was altered, and she had been right to worry. Getting mindfucked again, the AI failing, as well as the reset? A lot happened afterwards.]

This isn't the first time minds have been messed with here, and I doubt it will be the last. What was interesting was I had notes about Jerry and the Council that still exist, but it was like I couldn't read them in that period where we all forgot about them. It's very unnerving, what they can do to us here.

[melnik]

[ Yeah, he supposes they should have known that was coming when doing a literal "reset"... but it seems incredibly anticlimactic. And expected as their inclinations to alter their memories may be, he finds it hard not to get incensed by this extra bit of info she's offered. ]

What the hell? They really went to great lengths. And what was the purpose behind it, I wonder? Did it further the AI's goal in some way to make us forget about the Council? It would seem they have the ability to make us think whatever they want, and yet time and time again, we're given the opportunity to come to our senses again. I don't get it.

[ Actually, he's not even sure which "they" he's talking about anymore. ]

text; un: goo

[mightymorphin]

[There's a lot of this they don't want to touch - there's only one important question here.]

so the AI's safe? there hasn't been any communication from it since the reset, right?

[melnik]

It is in good hands, and yes, that is my understanding.

They are still trying to find a way to access it.

audio; un: grimreaper666

[rebellions]

[ That's a lot of words Ragna doesn't care for, so he tunes most of it out and gets straight to the point. ]

Lemme guess ─ your first time with Phenomena Intervention?

[melnik]

I have no idea what that means.

[ So, yes. He guesses correctly. ]

text; un: Superlips (private)

[southernchere]

I got called in to the courtroom too.

private;

[melnik]

You too? What happened?

UN:Sora - Audio

[valiantarms]

[It was tragic, he couldn't see her little salute]

Glad to see you're okay mister. [Then the cheer was lowered.] I don't know what happened when we got there, it all seems fuzzy.

[melnik]

Yes, you as well, but... what do you mean? Did something happen at the terminal?

[ Well, aside from the obvious at least. He knows it was not a walk in the park for anybody. ]

voice;

[laserguy]

They've resumed sentencing and everything, huh? Jerry's officially back... it felt like he was gone for a while.

[It feels a little crappy that the 'reset' might've fixed something like that. It's still better than the world breaking apart and everything, right?]

So, you got sentenced, Miller? Will you be okay?

[melnik]

[ It did feel like that... it's just weird that he only just remembered to feel that way. After all the build up to meeting him though, it was painfully anticlimactic. ]

Thanks for checking in. I'll be fine. I hate to say that we need to ride this out until we can figure out what to do next, but... that may be the situation we're in.

audio; un: deadboydetective

[incorrigibles]

Hey, mate.

[ charles' voice responds with no small amount of relief — after losing caitlyn and ekko, and then peter and shinji just disappearing... well. it's not a guarantee that everyone who was around before the reset is around after it, and he can't help but feel glad to hear from miller. ]

Good to hear from you. Less good about the whole courtroom thing — you okay?

[melnik]

You too, son.

[ It doesn't matter that he probably couldn't have been in physical danger. The way people are just disappearing without documentation really extends to everyone. ]

I'm fine. As far as I know, nothing that serious comes of it so long as we do as we're told. I'm not sure refusing to cooperate even poses that much of a threat.

un: tangofoxtrot

[fleetcaptain]

Do you remember what happened while you were inside?

[melnik]

Somewhat. It happened as if it were just a dream. Jerry was standing at the judge's bench as he passed out a sentencing to me, but I was unable to respond.

As far as I could tell, there was no one else in the room.

voice; un: ushiromiya

[entreats]

[ The courtroom, huh. That's news to Ange, and she's sure to file it away - but it's not like she's only aiming to take information here without providing anything in return. ]

It seems like that is the main power this place has over, right? Altering things. Changing the town hall into a courthouse, changing our appearance, changing our memories.. All of us as people are subject to the very same hold that this place has on our environment.

[ Ange speaks of it rather calmly, but even though she isn't expressing her emotions in tone, there's a little bit of it in the content of her words as she adds: ]

It's kind of scary if you start thinking about it too much. [ N-Not that she's been scared! Or anything!! Nuh-uh!! ] But it's why I was assuming the reset would entail a little bit more than it did.

[melnik]

[ The same logical approach he would expect from her... although there is a looming awareness that he's come to recognize as well in there. The awareness that their actions may all be futile given their position in this place. ]

Yes, I don't blame you. I figured there was a decent possibility that we'd also forget... that we'd go back to the way we were when this whole thing started. I am glad that isn't the case this time.

But as for our next move, we are nearly back to square one.

audio; un: cornfed

[finalfrontiersman]

Miller, this is Jim Kirk. We didn't have much of a chance to talk before, but I wanted to extend my congratulations on a mission well-run.

[ Even with the people they lost along the way, no one can deny it was a success. Whatever that cost might end up being. ]

I was also pulled for Sentencing. I don't recall how I got there or how I left, just the proceedings - if you can even call them that and not complete farce - as they happened. I think the breakdown of the system leading up to the reset started to affect whatever it is that's holding our collective consciousness. We're probably lucky we were able to reset it when we did.

[ It doesn't actually put them any closer to busting out of here, but it sure as hell beats dying. ]

audio;

[melnik]

You have my thanks, Jim. We would not have been able to perform the reset without the coordination from your team. [ And, in fact, ] Your efforts in working towards an equitable solution in this matter cannot be stated enough.

[ They may not have gotten the chance to speak much up until this point, but as a participant in previous exercises of theirs, he's been all too aware of the efforts that he and Spock have both put in to making sense of this world. It's especially admirable in light of the less than thoughtful breakout attempts of others... ]

Damn. So there's no mistaking that we're back to the old status quo... but at least our minds are intact to face it. What do you make of the fact that the reset didn't include our memories? The city, too... It has gone through changes and not all of them were reverted back.