Risus, freeform Town of Noth IC

[Kaworu]

- Allow me - said kindly Albert, bringing everybody - including the journalist - one cinnamon roll each and paying upfront.

[herastor]

Shera still grabbed her chocolate cookie from one of the jars in addition to taking Albert's offered pastry. A little indulgence only hurt some people. From the sound of the task that Connie laid out, it sounded like she should get a little touch of joy now. Before things got really weird or complicated; as they always did.

"I don't know if it counts as a 'skill,' but I've seen a lot of the strange and been tasked to clean up after it. Usually. Mostly I just hit my problems with an axe to solve them," Shera shrugged, "As it happens, most of the time that's the right call."

[JNAProductions]

Connie's cinnamon roll goes uneaten (by her, at least) as she gazes at her crystalline device. "Feedback's gonna be rough... But that's tolerable. Usetime... Thirty seconds? Potentially longer, but don't want to burn out the matrices of the focus..." She moves back out towards the rain, but stops a moment. "Thank you Miss Barista Lady! Have a good one!" she calls back real quick.

Out on the sidewalk, she plugs the wires back in. Her newly violet eyes scan back and forth, up and down, rapidly moving to scan as much as she can before the feedback jolts her. She looks up, and pauses a moment, head tilted back. She unplugs the crystal, and asks "Anyone know how long it's been raining for? I didn't see anything on the street, but up above is some faint distortion. Nothing major-I think-but there's some kind of resonance that's not normal for weather. Not sure if I can get any more details from down here."

[herastor]

"Over a week," Shera answered, peering up into that gloomy sky and seeing nothing, "Not that weird for Noth from what I heard. Just illusory rain. Annoying, but no big deal. What's on you're mind snake girl? You want to climb one of these towers to take a closer look?"

[JNAProductions]

"Hrm... What are the towers for anyway?" she asks.

[Kaworu]

- Scusa - said Albert, after finishing his coffee and cinnamon roll to the young journalist that was following him. He checked his belt with guns, and went into the rain.

Something told him the people he was eating with just a moment ago were... up to no good, apparently? Or at least up to something dangerous. And maybe, just maybe, he should have helped them.

Just in case, he was trying to follow sneakily enough - he totally didn't want to follow them out of curiosity or anything, but also, he understood that pretty easily he could be called "creeper" has they been aware.

[herastor]

Shera was not aware of the tagalong, not yet anyway. If she was, she would've had him to the explanation to Connie.

"Living, working. Walked into one of these in a similar city. Fully armed girl from the sticks that didn't know any better. Had to fight my way back out through security. A lot of the exterior walls are glass. That was a mess..."

After trailing off, Shera started looking for a visitor's center or a magazine stand. That was the kind of place that usually had guide books for travelers. She said as much as she walked. Once she found her prize, she compared the map to the tallest local landmarks.

"Take you're pick. A lot of these are tourist traps that give tours. We take the tour and get to a roof. You can take over from there, when we're closer to the sky anomaly you found."

[JNAProductions]

Connie nods, and falls into pace besides Shera as she looks for the info hub. After she's looked it over, Connie asks "Can I take a peek?"

The brochure is full of fun little tidbits about Noth, from its founding date (written in a date system Connie is unfamiliar with) to its prodigious sewer network to handle its rainfall. Connie flips back to the map, and finds the centermost tower giving tours. "Okay, we're at Maple and Violet... We need to get onto 51st, which looks like it's a few intersections over..."

In time, the group reaches the tower on 51st, the Billard Tower. "Named for William 'Bill' Ardman, apparently. Built in... Uh... The past, and one of the widest skyscrapers on the continent of Themsy," Connie reads from the brochure. "Open to the public from 8 AM to 10 PM." She strides into the building's open doors, and looks around. There's a small food court, an elevator, a help desk, a fountain in the center, stairs in an out-of-the-way corner, and some people minding their own business. Moving to the help desk, Connie taps the bell set on it to alert the employees of Billard that someone is in need of assistance.

[herastor]

Shera's tail betrayed a hint of agitation and she crossed the threshold into the lobby. That really had been a bad experience last time. Especially the community service she had to do afterwards. Nothing like cleaning a road while motorists hurl insults and trash. Spying a candy dish, she grabbed a wrapped caramel and freed it, waiting for the others to join them.

[drack]

Of the tallest structures in town, the Billard Tower ranks third, but is commonly accepted as the tallest due to its central placement and habitability. The second tallest only by technicality is a radio antenna which is mounted to reach high above an industrial water tower. The third, out in the swamp, is a lighthouse to warn of the nearby shallow waters. While it had become obsolete with the advent of GPS, the shattering forced it back into service again.

A thin middle aged man looks up from the book his face was hidden within several paces down the counter. Without getting up he asks "Yes, how may I help you?" He's neatly dressed with a clean colorful checkered shirt and deep maroon sweater vest, but his eyes have dark pockets and the grey scruff on his face looks somewhat neglected.

[JNAProductions]

"Yes, hello! We need to get high," Connie says.

[drack]

The man seems poised for an angry rebuke, but the joke seems to click before he lets it out, causing him to deflate and mutter to himself. Helplessly he gestures towards an elevator off to the side. "Top floor has a viewing area around the perimeter for visitors, don't wander around elsewhere and interfere with people's business. In the bigger cities there'd be a charge, but frankly nobody would come if we did and it makes better marketing this way. You're expected to be down by sunset unless you're renting with us."

Spoiler

Show

The elevator seems to have a keyhole, without the key only the top, ground, second, and third floor buttons light up.

[Kaworu]

Albert du Croft followed the party till they went into the tower. He was hesitant to follow inside, as it would be hard to explain as "just a coincidence". He then just stayed outside, deciding to wait a little longer. He did not know how "little" exactly, but he surmised that "just a little bit" would be enough.

Maybe...?

[JNAProductions]

"Thank you!" Connie tells the deskman. She slithers off to the elevator, and looks at the key system. Deciding against trying to pick it, she just selects the top floor.