Okuu Quest Subsequently - A Z-Machine Adventure

[DracoOmega]

>"She's... quite a character, I'll give her that. I actually found her kind of amusing, although I can understand a person wanting to throttle her if you had to put up with that day in and day out. She really is the star of her own little show, isn't she?"
>"I... never realized you were a prof, Nitori. How'd you end up doing this kind of stuff for a living?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"She's... quite a character, I'll give her that. I actually found her kind of amusing, although I can understand a person wanting to throttle her if you had to put up with that day in and day out. She really is the star of her own little show, isn't she?"
>"I... never realized you were a prof, Nitori. How'd you end up doing this kind of stuff for a living?"

>"You're putting it way too nicely," says Nitori.
>"Oh goddamnit, she told you that? I'll give you the quick version: I didn't care for one of the new projects there and quit. How'd I get into this? Wasn't enough people around doing it, and it's good honest work for good money."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Plus, no more Yumemi, which I'm sure is an excellent career perk."
>"What was that project about, anyway? What about it didn't you like?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Plus, no more Yumemi, which I'm sure is an excellent career perk."
>"What was that project about, anyway? What about it didn't you like?"

>"Oh god, yes. You have no idea how many times better you are to work with than she is."
>"Not supposed to talk about it," Nitori says. "But I can say it was something done with the military, and it didn't sit right with me. Didn't get into the work to help out that kind of thing. Yumemi, of course, didn't care. She never cares about the end result, just solving the puzzle. That was years ago, though. They probably finished the damn thing a while back."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Not allowed to talk about it, even now? You say it's been years, and you don't even work for them, anymore."
>"Looks like there's still plenty of things going on in there that people aren't supposed to talk about, though. Fancy sealed doors that Yumemi almost tried to pretend did not exist. Evidently research projects even most of the facility staff aren't allowed to know about. Wouldn't even drop a hint when I tried to give her a chance to show off how brilliant she is."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Not allowed to talk about it, even now? You say it's been years, and you don't even work for them, anymore."
>"Looks like there's still plenty of things going on in there that people aren't supposed to talk about, though. Fancy sealed doors that Yumemi almost tried to pretend did not exist. Evidently research projects even most of the facility staff aren't allowed to know about. Wouldn't even drop a hint when I tried to give her a chance to show off how brilliant she is."

>"Yeah, they said they'll tell me when it's not longer classified," says Nitori. "And doesn't matter if I still work for them, I'm legally bound to keep it on the lowdown."
>"We're not allowed to talk about those, no," says Nitori. "I can't see any of that being declassified anytime soon."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Sigh... it's kind of frustrating. Are all the secret projects there associated with the military? Is that why they're secret?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Sigh... it's kind of frustrating. Are all the secret projects there associated with the military? Is that why they're secret?"

>She ponders for a moment. "Seems like a loophole. No, not all of them. A lot of front room stuff is independently pursued. As for the stuff behind, I'd...rather not risk playing loopholes. I'll say they have a hand in it and leave it at that." She puts particular emphasis on "a hand".

>_

[Kasu]

> "Well I suppose its fine as long we aren't assaulted by rogue super-soldiers."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Well I suppose its fine as long we aren't assaulted by rogue super-soldiers."

>"You shouldn't be," says Nitori. "Although non-rogue soldiers might be a problem if you started leaking things should you be selected to get in there."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Selected to get in there? How does that work, anyway?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Selected to get in there? How does that work, anyway?"

>"Most of the people up front are grad students and researchers," says Nitori. "They're just under usual non-disclosure stuff. Though some of it can get pretty involved, like with military projects. The people in back, well, they get selected from those who show the right combination of promise and discretion. So, essentially, you do your best and if they like you, you're in."
>She pauses for a moment, then adds, "Don't ask me about the custodians and stuff. I don't know how they're recruited. Probably the same way the military does with the people who clean up their top secret locations."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"And you were one of the lucky few, then?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"And you were one of the lucky few, then?"

>"Yep," she says. "I suppose it won't hurt to say not everyone there is local. They recruit all over the world. Don't ask how, because I couldn't tell you even if I did know."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"I don't know... black projects give me the creeps. And even if you're only working in the up front areas, I think it would be unnerving knowing that god-knows-what is being developed down the hall from you. I don't even know what they do, and I think I already sympathize for you wanting out."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I don't know... black projects give me the creeps. And even if you're only working in the up front areas, I think it would be unnerving knowing that god-knows-what is being developed down the hall from you. I don't even know what they do, and I think I already sympathize for you wanting out."

>She ponders for a moment. "Well, I suppose I can tell you this much. What sent me away? It was an up front project. The stuff in back is...well, they know what they're doing. It's nothing to worry about."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Up front? Really? I thought they weren't classified, though? At least, nothing serious-like."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Up front? Really? I thought they weren't classified, though? At least, nothing serious-like."

>"Some of the things up front are pretty heavily classified on their own," says Nitori. "It's kinda a layer between the basics and the back. The back, well...only certain things happen there."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Only certain things? Sounds pretty specific."

[Blitzer]

>"Why do you think they keep these things from the general public?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Only certain things? Sounds pretty specific."

>She nods. "Yeah. I'm not gonna go into any more detail about."

>"Why do you think they keep these things from the general public?"

>"They got their reasons," say Nitori.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Sorry, I'm not meaning to pry. Just can't help being curious, especially with all the rumors you hear coming out of that place."
>"...as strange as this might sound, I don't suppose any of what they do in there really does have any connection with what regular people might call... paranormal?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Sorry, I'm not meaning to pry. Just can't help being curious, especially with all the rumors you hear coming out of that place."
>"...as strange as this might sound, I don't suppose any of what they do in there really does have any connection with what regular people might call... paranormal?"

>"I can't answer that," Nitori says. "Sorry. Really, I would if I could, but I can't. It's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I don't trust who you might tell. And, I know you're going to say you won't tell a soul, but I said the same thing, and if I break it, you might too."

>_

[Seian Verian]

> Ponder if it might be a good idea to hint that we have something weird going on even if we don't actually say what it is or imply that it's paranormal

[Hello Purvis]

> Ponder if it might be a good idea to hint that we have something weird going on even if we don't actually say what it is or imply that it's paranormal

>You're not sure. Nitori's always been a scientific, rational sort. She might dismiss you outright. Or, given these connections you seem to have, she might get you into a different kind of trouble altogether...
>In the end, it comes down to how much you trust her.

>_

[Blitzer]

>Decide it's a bad idea to even give Nitori a hint of...your predicament.
>Get back to work.

[Hello Purvis]

>Decide it's a bad idea to even give Nitori a hint of...your predicament.
>Get back to work.

>You get back to work.
>As you assessed, the first unit isn't that hard to fix. You get to work on the second one, and find it as lot more intricate work to be done. Oh well.
>While you labor away, Nitori works on a third unit, which is apparently being troublesome from some of the imprecations she is muttering. All in all, a typical day. Save for the fact you have Stargazer still peering over your shoulder, wondering at what you are doing. This isn't really a problem, until she starts to poke at a screwdriver, despite her unseen state, and moves it around.

>_

[Kasu]

> It should be fine as long as she doesn't do anything too large-scale.
> "So when do you have to start the house calls?"

[Hello Purvis]

> It should be fine as long as she doesn't do anything too large-scale.
> "So when do you have to start the house calls?"

>It doesn't seem like she's doing anything hugely noticabl-wait she just picked up the screwdriver. She's proud of herself!
>"In a little bit," says Nitori. "How's the new girlfriend?"

>_

[Kasu]

> Convey to Stargazer that Nitori may notice her if she doesn't put the screwdriver down.
> "She's doing good.  Why do you ask?"