DAY :027

[onemind]

[A day after the new arrivals show up and before anyone has really had a chance to settle in, every member of the nest gets an Extranet message at the exact same time from an untraceable source. It doesn't show up in your inbox; instead it opens in another window - don’t mistake it for a pop-up because if you close it, then you won’t be able to respond in line. The chat window's cursor blinks at you as the words scroll across, line by line; the message is accompanied by an unblinking blue eyeball avatar:]

XSome kind of brain trust you areX.

XWe've seen you sticking your noses where they don't belongX.

XOf course, they're not really your noses, are theyX?

XRemind us again: what it is that you think you’re trying to doX?



((ooc: feel free to use this post to respond in-line to EXTRAAA, as well as chat with other hosts via the mental-link or personal interactions. please be aware that this post has a time limit and all responses from extraaa will cease end of day 8/19; this doesn't mean you can't continue to tag this post afterward, just that extraaa will likely have gone silent by that point))

Comments

[adamance]

We're trying to set things right.

How that is defined varies by the individual.

You can understand why we might be skittish about revealing our goals, given that we just lost one of our own.

[onemind]

XThat's the problemX.

XWe can't know for sure what you think is rightX.

XWe've got a pretty good guess, but that's not enoughX.

[adamance]

[Lexa is beginning to have suspicions as to who is precisely contacting her. Or them, right now. Her language had to be less subtle in order to line things up before.]

We're hardly fond of violent action or fear to bring about an end. At least without a declaration of war. It seems both sides of this arrangement don't want to do that. It would make it easier for us, wouldn't it? Right now, too many fingers can be pointed in so many directions.

But we aren't fond of the escalation of anti-synthetic sentiment. Wouldn't you say that it's happened rather quickly?

[onemind]

XThat's a lot of wordsX.

XIt's always been there, but it has gotten a lot louderX.

XAnd a lot more directedX.

[adamance]

The "directed" part is something we've yet to uncover.

But we have reason to believe that someone has assisted them. They know the weak point.

[onemind]

XNo kiddingX.

[adamance]

I was personally hoping to meet with someone sympathetic to our cause.

Were you alerted to this?

[Time to be blunt, after some lack of clarity.]

[onemind]

XHow'd that work out for you?X

[adamance]

You didn't answer my question.

[onemind]

XNo one told us about it if that's what you mean. But thanks for the confirmationX.

XSo?X

[adamance]

You still haven't offered us anything in return. I believe that you're willing to work with us, but we need something tangible before we provide our leads.

I'm willing to speak. We all may be.

So, tell me. What do you think of the Mind Life Foundation?

[onemind]

XWe've offered you plenty just by contacting you at allX.

XMind Life is admirable but gutless. Too tangled up in red tape and being legitimate to do what really needs doingX.

[adamance]

By alerting us to what we should have already known. Telling us that we've been drawing attention is nothing new.

[And at least they aren't asking whether they are aliens or have superpowers. Of course, what Lexa assumed would be the case is still something she had to point out to Ilde, so eh.]

I believe they can be used, but they aren't the only resource. I intend to use them when they do contact us.

Otherwise, our goal is to find out what is the catalyst. It has always been here. Yes. But what brought the change in sentiment so quickly? And to what ends? We believe that someone is hoping to prevent the future here from coming about as it naturally should have.

As I said, someone is hitting a weak point. But why is that particular weak point so unstable? They planned for the fallout to appear as it does.

[A beat.]

Was that too many words for you?

[onemind]

XIt kind of sounds like a crazy conspiracy theoryX.

XBut thanks for the infodumpX.

[adamance]

Isn't all of this a crazy conspiracy? There have been bombings.

[onemind]

XWe noticedX.

[adamance]

What answer are you seeking from us?

[onemind]

XIf we told you that it would be cheatingX.

XAnyway, we're getting answersX.

[adamance]

You're hoping to gather the most information from the greatest amount of people without giving anything in return.

I'll advise you of one thing.

Do not turn yourself into an enemy.

[onemind]

XSame to youX.

XThat's friendly advice, for the recordX.

[And the window closes of it's own according, the blue eye avatar blinking shut.]