text, un: daylight.

[sunborne]

[ in the mid-afternoon, after trying and failing to get in contact with the others and with suspicions growing by the hour, daylight finally sends out a message to the network at large: ]

It looks like people are going missing.

Two of my friends, Okuyasu and Kiara, haven't been responding to any of my messages or calls since yesterday.

I've gone around th town to see if I can get a glimpse of them and nothing. Nada. Zip. Jackshit.

Coupled with other faces not being seen around town anymore - Have you guys noticed anyone else not popping up? Or noticed your friends not responding to messages?

Let me know so we can keep a track of everyone's status.

Comments

[13thcommander]

[Terrible, terrible things...]

[This look--one of loss, one of apology--doesn't suit Daylight, who is usually so cheerful and sunny. Erwin can tell just by his face that it's bad news.]

Yes, we should make a list. No one else is watching out for us, so we'll have to do it ourselves.

[Erwin nods when Daylight asks about a request.]

Of course, what do you need?

[Does it involve some kind of insane, suicidal gamble? Because Erwin is an expert at those!]

[sunborne]

[ alas but, at the same time, he thankfully doesn’t have such a thing at hand.

instead what daylight has is a surprisingly succinct and serious request: ]

We need medical supplies. We need improvised armour or fighting weapons. We need a base or two for people to recover and to congregate if they want to share information or plan how to respond to that.

We need a lot of things, honestly, and getting a hand in any of that will be a big help. I'll try to shore up medical items and I'll convert some rooms in my and Agatha's house for people to recuperate if they need it.

Now- I'll list down we'll need to provide medical aid and the names of those missing so far. We can hash out the details while doing that. [ he marches towards the closest surface he can start scribbling stuff down, pulling out a pen he grabbed from... somewhere. ] I bet you've gone to the police too, huh?

[ and they've done jackshit? ]

[13thcommander]

No.

[Erwin follows Daylight and watches over his shoulder as he starts writing.]

The police here aren't going to help us. We're on our own.

[Erwin has, in general, a low opinion of police forces. He's been left out in the cold too many times to even consider calling them for help.]

I have an idea of where we can start looking.

[sunborne]

[ he knows where’s to start looking?

that immediately gets daylight’s attention. gone is the mild sluggishness of him trying to rack ideas or suggestions of what to do next— he’s on high alert, looking back at erwin with clear urgency in his eyes and in his voice: ]

Really? Where? [ inwardly, he can’t help but hope it’s not the police station because, oh wow, is wrathion going to be pissed at him for keeping him away from there then, huh. ]

[13thcommander]

The school.

[No, not the police station, Daylight was right in keeping the angry dragon man away from there. Erwin pulls a small notebook from his cardigan pocket; he'd offer it to Daylight to see, but it's written in Eldian, and he's not sure his friend would be able to read it.]

This is Falco's. He's been watching for changes, and odd things, and he wrote about his school.

[Erwin flips through the pages to find the one he's looking for.]

He wrote about rooms the teachers wouldn't let the children into, and odd marks on the walls where the paint has faded, and other things.

[Does Erwin feel bad about reading his pseudo-son's diary? Not in the least, since Falco would have shared all this with him later anyway. Any little doodles that may or may not involve the name Gabi he will consciously ignore.]

[sunborne]

[ oh thank the stars it’s not the police station.

besides the issue of angry dragon man, the logistics of breaking into the station is a nightmare from just thinking about it. if it’s a school, it should be easier to get in there, right? ]

—Wait. [ hang on there. ] Wrote about it? He didn’t just tell you?

[ ... well. reluctant as he is to let it go, daylight reminds himself that they can tackle the moral conundrum of possibly invading someone’s personal privacy later. much as that hits certain buttons of his, daylight knows that isn’t the focus.

getting the others back is what they need to focus on. ]

So we go into the school, look for clues, and alert the others the second we sense something is up— That sounds like a good gameplan to have. Better than the 'nothing' we have for directly addressing the clusterfuck we’re in.