Noid
Kim Kitsuragi
You
Shivers
Inland Empire
Esprit de Corps
Perception (Hearing)
Rhetoric
Interfacing
Logic
Savoir Faire
Physical InstrumentPerception (Sight)
Electrochemistry
Empathy
Endurance
Conceptualization
Coalition Warship Archer
Authority
Reaction Speed
Volition
Soona, the Programmer
Encyclopedia
Pain Threshold
Hand/Eye Coordination
Half Light
Composure
Drama
Suggestion"But you see, detective, that feeling is simply an illusion caused by distance. Whether you choose to see it or not, the reality does not change."
"Detective, each of us has our part to play in the world. My part is to solve crimes. I am under no illusion that my role isn't a minor one, in the scheme of things..."
"But I embrace it because it's my role, and it's yours too, detective, whether you accept it or not!"
The lieutenant's final words are nearly swallowed by the roar of the aerostatic's main rotors...
"Firewalker, this is Coalition Warship Archer. We have been instructed to inform you that the Laurel arrived at your position. Please acknowledge."
"Officer Sunset, this is Coalition Warship Archer. We have been instructed to inform you that the Laurel arrived at your position. Please acknowledge."
"Detective Costeau, this is Coalition Warship Archer. We have been instructed to inform you that the Laurel arrived at your position. Please acknowledge."
"Lieutenant Du Bois, this is Coalition Warship Archer. We have been instructed to inform you that the Laurel arrived at your position. Please acknowledge."
No shit! How are they supposed to hear your acknowledgement over the thundering of their own rotors?
"Acknowledged, Archer. This is Tequila Sunset."
"Acknowledged, Archer. This is Detective Costeau."
"Acknowledged, Archer. This is Lieutenant Du Bois."
"Thank you. The Committee of Responsibility for Revachol has authorised us to offer you an immediate extraction. Do you accept?"
"Marianne hat mir erzählt, dass Oskar nicht mehr derselbe ist, seit er auf einem Luftschiff... zurückgekommen ist..."
"We are far past that point, Firewalker. There is only one question now: Are you ready, or are you not?"
"We are far past that point, officer. There is only one question now: Are you ready, or are you not?"
"We are far past that point, detective. There is only one question now: Are you ready, or are you not?"
"We are far past that point, lieutenant. There is only one question now: Are you ready, or are you not?"
"Repeat that, Firewalker? What do you mean 'you can't'? Are you being impeded in some way?"
"Repeat that, officer? What do you mean 'you can't'? Are you being impeded in some way?"
"Repeat that, detective? What do you mean 'you can't'? Are you being impeded in some way?"
"Repeat that, lieutenant? What do you mean 'you can't'? Are you being impeded in some way?"
"We have to say, this is extremely disappointing to hear, officer..."
"We have to say, this is extremely disappointing to hear, detective..."
"We have to say, this is extremely disappointing to hear, lieutenant..."
"What the consequences will be for your refusal to accept responsibility, we cannot say. For your sake, we pray they are not more than we all can bear."
"And now, we are updating our frequencies. We will not speak again. This connection will be cleared in four... three..."
"I'm sorry, Elena."
"What the consequences will be for your refusal to accept responsibility, we cannot say. For your sake, we pray they are not more than we all can bear."
The roundabout, Martinaise North, daytime. Across the plaza, a pair of seagulls fight over the remains of a chicken wing.
The roundabout, Martinaise North, nightime. Somehow, the streetlights only make the scene more lonely. You can hear someone retching in a nearby courtyard.
It's the same plaza you've been looking at for days. What do you hope to see now that you haven't before?
The programmer eyes you curiously. She does not understand why you're hesitating.
Whatever her misgivings about the Coalition, the fact is that you've summoned an aerostatic with your voice. An achievement she never thought she'd witness...
The lieutenant looks up toward you. He starts to open his mouth, then appears to think better of it.
There is something, a whisper, circulating among the city's footnoted alleyways and along its electrical wires, but what it's saying, you can't tell. It seems to be a message meant for someone else...
The lieutenant isn't looking at you or at the massive aerostatic hovering less than 20 metres above him. He appears to be concentrating on the braid of cables running from the amplifier.
He's torn. There's nothing more soft core than the Coalition, according to his worldview, and yet, having summoned an aerostatic with your voice is one of the most hard core feats imaginable...
"You've got it backwards, Kim. Maybe it's only at a distance that you see things as they really are."
"I don't know where this case will lead us, detective, but in a sense that doesn't matter. Our job is to follow the evidence where it leads, consequences be damned..."
"Some days I feel like I'm trapped, trapped in some sick game that I can't possibly win, and I don't want to play it anymore, Kim!"
"Let me get this straight, detective: You're saying the only 'normal, reasonable' option available to you is to abandon your job and your life so you can fly away on a Moralintern warship?"
"I don't know your history, detective, but I can say with great certainty that whatever you're running from won't disappear simply because you've abandoned your former life..."