@junpei | video

[coolerjunpei]

[Good day city-zens, it's User Name Junpei here with another paranoid rant about god only knows what. Just kidding, he's laser focused his paranoia these days, so, ahem:]

Hi, uh, I'm Junpei, if you didn't know. [A brief pause, while he internally laments that he will never get his goddamn codename, but okay. He's made peace with it. He holds up two fingers.] Two things.

[He leans forward and his head and shoulders go out of frame for a moment, while the rustling of papers can be heard somewhere beyond the camera. Should he have gathered his materials beforehand? Yes, for sure, but such is life. Enjoy this view of his t-shirt while he swears and drops something back there...

When he leans back into frame he doesn't hold anything up just yet.]

First, since it looks like people are going missing now, do you guys think we should have... I don't know, a system? To keep track of each other? I don't mean something like the buddy system— [Although he doesn't NOT mean the buddy system, always investigate mysterious liminal cities with a friend!!--] —But... something. Besides running around looking for signs every time. We need to figure out where they're going.

[He's convinced they're still in the city but Taken Somewhere, you see. Where, though... mmm. Workshopping that. He sits there looking grim for a beat, then sighs himself out of it and lifts up one of his papers.

It has beautiful birds drawn on it. Some people may recall his canary symbol idea from Setsuna's meeting, ahem...]

Second is... this. Somebody out there's gotta be better at drawing a bird than me. If you see these hung up anywhere... be careful of whatever's around. [Another beat.] And, uh, if anyone wants to contribute to the cause, I'll pay you in beer and gummies? Normal gummies.

[sorry, he has no edibles. also never mind that one can get beer and gummies without joining his danger birds cause. sign up for art club!!!]

Comments

[gradenine]

Why nine people... [ what a specific number. ] But yeah, 'cause you know how we weren't the first ones in this City, judging from how some rooms in certain buildings looked like people just suddenly dipped? I initially thought that everyone who came here before us just poofed all at the same time. But I guess now we can just disappear one by one to Wings-know-where...

[ groans. why now. why this. this really is no different from where he's from, and roland isn't sure if he should be relieved from feeling that familiar kind of dread, or be horrified by how much he missed feeling that way. ]

I guess anyone else who rolls into the City might have their own keys if they'll be staying here a while like us. But at the same time, this place need to account for the number of incoming citizens. That bank wasn't exactly big, I think?

[coolerjunpei]

It was nine the last couple times, [anyway don't worry about that. We're skipping past that.]

And uh, I don't really know how big banks are supposed to be. I'm not from a big city back home. But speaking of the people before us, we're probably reusing their bank boxes like we're reusing everything else, right? If they keep taking us away to make room, then...

[well. then!!!]

[gradenine]

Jeez. The guy who kidnapped you must really like the number nine, then.

[ it's such a suspish number WHY NOT JUST ROUND IT UP TO TEN, DAMN... ]

But yeah, you got a point. Which begs the question of how they even got our items in the first place. I don't remember putting anything in a safe, much less coming to a place like this before in the first place. Do you?

[coolerjunpei]

Something like that.

[They'd have to change the name, too?? But this isn't the time to unpack that, so moving right along-]

And nope, not at all. But Don doesn't remember getting whacked, [which he can even talk about without cringing now, call that growth,] so who's to say we all didn't get our memories wiped before we woke up on the train?

1/2

[gradenine]

...Right. Shit.

[ what do you MEAN he went through another amnestic procedure before coming here. that's fucked up. this is fucked up. at the same time, the wings back home could easily pull something like this off to anyone they'd pluck off the streets for their experiments too, so-- ]

[gradenine]

[ okay, no time to have a meltdown here, roland. he huffs out a long sigh in fill in the momentary dead air on his end. ]

That's all speculation right now, anyway. Might jot that down the next time we gather for yet another one of those meetings. Those proved to be useful, at the very least.

[ let's see, what else. ]

The birds look cute. Reminds me of some Abnormalities I encountered from my work, too.

[coolerjunpei]

[Try gitting gud Roland, having your memories erased repeatedly is just a normal thing that happens to people.]

You didn't think of that already? It's up there with the simulation theory, if you ask me. [so he's not going to jot it down, He Knows,]

Can't believe I'm going to ask this, but what's an Abnormality?

[gradenine]

It just... slipped my mind, is all. I'm just tired of theories and speculation at this point.

[ and tbf it only happened to him once. ONCE! yet it was so bad that he still has ptsd despite not remembering what he had seen that day. so a topic change is more than welcome right now. ]

Uhh, it's hard to explain. I think Don and the others can explain them better? But they're these monsters of the mind, and this one Wing - er, that's what we call a megacorp - uses them to extract this one thing from their brains to generate energy for the entire City. Pretty bizarre stuff.

[ bizarre, deadly stuff. ]

The Abnormality in question is this cute little thing called Punishing Bird. Gimme a sec.

[ roland's no artist, but luckily that seemingly harmless abnormality is easy enough to draw. ta-da! ]

[coolerjunpei]

I heard about the Wings. [from kromer... skipping that,] Do you know what's with the whole bird theme? You know, since you're a fan of cute birds and all.

[Anyway, what a terrifying monster. The fucked up evil bug Don drew was way scarier, but if Roland insists this cute little birdie is a Mind Monster... sure.]

What's the punishment?

[gradenine]

Hmm. It's kinda complicated, but that's just how the Head likes it. Twenty-six Wings to support the Head, the Eye, and the Claw -- those three are basically our form of government, by the way. Sounds nifty, right?

[ no it isn't. it's terrifying to imagine some multi-winged bird that rules an entire city like that. ]

I read somewhere that Punishing Bird would breach containment and start pecking on employees the more it's been ignored in favor of other Abnormalities. Oh, and the red belly is its actual mouth, by the way.

[coolerjunpei]

Sounds like a kid came up with it, if I'm being honest.

[so edgy... junpei is Edgy now, he'd know!! anyway what the fuck, let him take a closer look at this bird--]

Did I ever mention your city is a nightmare just to hear about? Because it absolutely is.

[gradenine]

[ he stifles a chuckle at that. it's unimaginable that a complete nobody like junpei can just say that about the head, but the guy went and did it anyway. ]

You're not wrong on both counts. What, does your world not have birds that peck you to death?

[coolerjunpei]

Not with mouths in their stomachs, unless National Geographic is keeping that for a fun surprise later.

[but aliens are real, apparently!!!!! so who can say.]

You want to help draw birds for this thing? Don's coming, at least.

[he assumes... y'all are homies...]

[gradenine]

[ he pauses as he thinks about it. well, he did show up at that meeting the first time, so... ]

Yeah, sure, why not. We could come up with other birds while we're at it. I still haven't shown ya Apocalypse Bird yet, even.

[ binah isn't here so he's free to doodle her birds as much as he likes, ok ]

[coolerjunpei]

What. [why.......] On a scale from your cute bird to the evil bugs Don drew, how much worse is Apocalypse Bird?

[it's gotta be, like, the worst thing ever, surely?? nothing could be worse than that. surely.]

[gradenine]

Junpei.

It's called Apocalypse Bird.

[ IDK WHAT YOU EXPECTED ]

[coolerjunpei]

Punishing Bird looked like a Beanie Baby! The megacorps are bird-themed! I don't know what to think anymore.

[MAYBE apocalypse bird is just an ostrich with a spike collar on!!!!!]

[gradenine]

The hell's a Beanie Baby...

[ now who's speaking in tongues here ]

Look, don't make me draw that one. My artistic prowess aren't on that level yet. Just use your imagination.

[coolerjunpei]

Hold on. [he is Doodling,] I only had, like, one of these? It had a soccer ball on it—here, look.

[Doot doot he holds up a Beanie Baby... enjoy it.]]

So uh, that's a Beanie Baby. Juuust like that little bird. [....,] I'll imagine a really evil bird, I guess?

[gradenine]

[ this is way too cute... junpei you are too good for don's stupid little drawings ]

This looks like a plushie. Punishing Bird is a real ass bird, if you can believe it. But yeah, just think about the most evil bird you know with multiple eyes all over.

[coolerjunpei]

It is a plushie. [Admire it...,] It's supposed to be green, but I've got about two markers over here.

[anyway,] Eyes, huh... Yeah, that's creepy.

[gradenine]

[ so junpei keeps plushies... cute....

but moving on: ]

I mean it's perfect, right? Everything about our circumstances right now is creepy, so we may as well draw it like it is.

[coolerjunpei]

[his childhood bear... if only he had it now. for crying on.]

Well, not if we're looking to convey a quick visual message. Maybe if you want to make "creepiest bird ever" t-shirts, or something.

[gradenine]

You want to make merch now?

[ bestie they just started... ]

[coolerjunpei]

What? No, I was critiquing your eyeball bird. It's way too complicated to use for the danger signs.

[he hasn't even seen it for real...... in his imagination it's too complicated.]