to: everyone

[assembles]

Hey there, everyone. My name is Steve Rogers and I'm one of the people most recently summoned to the Free Cities. I'm also a good friend of Sam Wilson's — we've worked together for a number of years. I know he's made quite the name for himself here.

I've only been here for a little over a month, but in that time I've noticed a sudden increase in military activity within Cadens. There's increased drills and training exercises, equipment moving in and out, that kind of thing. I went by Fort Wilbridge and tried to ask some questions, but all they really had to say was that they were acting out of an abundance of caution. Almost like they're expecting something.

It seems suspicious, so I was wondering if anyone else has noticed a change in how the factions are behaving, whether it's something I haven't picked up on in Cadens or something going on in Thorne or Solvunn. I figure it might be a good idea to compare notes so we won't be completely blindsided if something else is coming our way.

That's all I've got for now, but it's nice to meet you all. In a manner of speaking, anyway.

Comments

[ordinar]

Won't you get in trouble for telling the other factions about this?

[assembles]

While it's possible that the factions might figure out a way to hack into these conversations, there hasn't been any proof so far that they can. I think it's a risk we have to take to make sure that we all stay up to date with what's going on across borders.

[ordinar]

I guess they'd have to connect with the Singularity and the Horizon and all that, right? And that's supposed to be just an "us" thing.

[assembles]

That's the assumption we're working under, yeah. If it does turn out that they know things they shouldn't, we'll at least learn that we need to encode the things we talk about like this.

[ordinar]

Sounds like a headache.

[Get it...because the network is all mental... Anyway, he's fresh out of useful things to contribute, so...]

Um. This might be weird, but do you mind if I ask a personal question?

[assembles]

Go for it.

[ Steve isn't great with addressing personal questions, but he'll do his best. ]

[ordinar]

[So...in the flurry of messages he may have missed half of the context, but...]

Someone said you're married...?

[Which, completely out of the blue like this, is a weird thing to ask. But it's the least awkward way he could think of to ask what he's actually curious about.]

[assembles]

[ Oh. Oh no. ]

Oh, no, that was

Sorry, that was a friend of mine trying to be funny.

[ He's going to murder Thor. ]

[ordinar]

[There's a lot of oh no-ing happening over here too. (Though, he also has no idea what he was going to say next if Steve did confirm it?)]

Sorry. I shouldn't have asked.

I didn't mean anything by it.

[assembles]

You don't have to apologize. No offense taken, really.

Is there a reason you were asking?

[ordinar]

Oh, um.

Not really. It's just that...it's better to ask directly than believe rumors.

[assembles]

Well, you're not wrong about that. Sorry for all the confusion.

There's a lot of people from my world here, and they got a little carried away.

[ordinar]

It's okay.

It sounds nice, though, having some familiar faces around. Even if they're being annoying.

[assembles]

You're the only one here from your home?

private to steve

[princessvegas]

So I take it Sam ain't told you about Goro?

Oh. Sorry. I'm Julie. I live upstairs with Nadine.

∞ private forever

[assembles]

Nice to meet you, Julie. I'm guessing we've seen each other around the inn in passing, then.

He mentioned Goro, said he was someone he was keeping an eye on, but we didn't get to talk about it in more detail than that. There was a lot to cover.

I actually met him at the barracks, but it was a very brief conversation.

[princessvegas]

I'm not hard to find. I have pink hair.

Goro is a psycho who wants to jumpstart a war just so he can fight in it. He's been cozying up to the Cities' government since Eifstide, trying to instigate them into fighting with Solvunn, but he showed his hand before that ever happened. When I accidentally started this whole mind text thing weeks before Eifstide, he answered back. He had just got here, so I gave him a crash course. Told him that no one here wants to fight him, that I think we should stay outta their war if they start one.

His answer was that people who choose not to fight will die.

Then Eifstide happened and he started pushing for war against Solvunn, that they did it on purpose. Started harping on magic being dangerous and that Cadens should destroy the Singularity. Which would probably, I don't know, explode the universe or some shit. Anyway, he started getting followers and people to bankroll him, started talking to people in the government. They let him go with them on some kinda diplomatic visit to Solvunn. From what I heard, he just marched around one of their settlements for a week, being a dick, then came back.

Anything he sees on this brain network is far game to be handed over to the prime minister and the military. And if you ask me, the system here is a million times worse than anything they have going on in Thorne or Solvunn. More dangerous. They find out we're planning or collecting intel or whatever? I'm sure they got more than their fair share of black sites out in the desert.

[assembles]

[ Steve's definitely seen her around, then. But he's quickly distracted by everything else she sends.

Goro sounds like a lot of people Steve has opposed in the past. Getting right down to it? He sounds like a bully. Simple as that. ]

If that was his idea of a diplomatic visit, we can at least hope that he isn't nearly as politically savvy as he thinks he is. He sounds like a loose cannon, so there's a chance that the Free Cities government isn't going to trust him too much. And if he tries to share anything we talk about here, they'll have nothing to take him at but his word.

[ These messages are ephemeral, disappearing almost as soon as they're read, so Goro wouldn't have any physical evidence, thankfully. ]

I understand your point, though, that we can't trust everyone who's able to read this stuff. I'm a little surprised he hasn't chimed in. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Either way, I appreciate the heads up.

[princessvegas]

Uh yeah, I haven't asked Sam how our worlds line up when it comes to niggly political details, but I can tell you for a fact that being a bully who doesn't think about consequences can get you pretty fucking far. He's already got money and people who're into what he's saying. That's all it takes to get the power he wants. There's an election this year. Goro can't run, but he's got a pet follower with lots of cash that he's backing. That guy wins, then it won't matter if he has proof.

[ Julie does not claim to be an expert on the politics or military of this world -- hell, she only had a basic understanding of them back home. But she went through the rise of terror-driven populism and extremism. Twice. She has survived the end of the world at the hands of its leaders. Twice. And this city's general atmosphere and attitude scares her. So yeah, she's taken to reading the newspapers and their coverage of the government. ]

He probably ain't speaking up because he doesn't see anyone he can sway. Usually when he chimes in, everyone just dogpiles on him, so he's pretty careful about when he opens his mouth.

This network is an echo chamber, 'cause most of us are on the same page. But there's only like, fifty of us in the whole world. In this city, there's probably a hundred Goros on any given block.

For real info, it's safer to meet private in the Horizon.

[assembles]

[ While it's hard to imagine that an outsider, especially one like Goro, could step in and possess enough charisma and clout to sway minds to his candidate, Steve isn't going to just assume it won't happen. He's seen how a single man has the ability to alter lives and nations, and the destruction that can come of it. ]

Well, it's at least good to hear that most of the Summoned aren't interested in what he's selling.

Are the citizens here that eager to go to war, that they'd rally behind a guy like him? I'll talk to Sam, he was planning to go over this with me anyway, there's just been a lot going on. But if anyone can speak to the populace and make them understand that this Goro guy doesn't care who has to get hurt for him to get what he wants, maybe they'll see reason.

[princessvegas]

Mm, I don't know it's that they want war, exactly. I think they're mostly just more scared of magic and anyone else being able to control the Singularity than they are about war. This place is... real into the military, as I'm sure you've noticed. And since you and Sam are from the same world, then I know y'all have an America.

You can probably connect those dots on your own. When all you got's a hammer, then every problem's a nail, right?

[ Steve can probably infer that Julie has had some not so great experiences with the United States military. Kind of hard to be chill with the institution that caused the effective end of humanity, especially when you survived it. ]

[assembles]

We definitely do.

[ Steve's not going to get into his own role in the war now. Even back then, being used as a propaganda tool was something he'd endured as a means to an end. ]

Wait, are you saying you're from there too?

And yeah, if the general feeling in the Free Cities is that the Singularity should be destroyed, then it stands to reason they'd be threatened by anything that Thorne tries to do with it. It's also been acting up more than usual lately, from what I understand, so that probably has everyone on edge too.

[princessvegas]

Born and raised in the heartland. Kansas. There's a couple of us who come from worlds that are pretty close, at least in the big details. My world didn't have magic or superpowers or monsters, and there were different... modern events. Different little details. But same basic history, countries, pop culture, at least as far as we can tell.

[ Sometimes, it's extremely comforting to be able to make a reference that she knows will be understood. To not have to explain basic building blocks of culture -- holidays, religions, historical events. It's never-ending, so even a brief reprieve is nice. ]

Honestly, I don't know why they're surprised it's acting up. They're summoning like crazy, and they use the Singularity to do it. Of course it's gonna start being weird.

[assembles]

So, an alternate Earth? [ Traveling back in time for their heist had risked the creation of multiple timelines, so this isn't really the strangest concept to Steve anymore. Because that's just where his life is at this point. ] Still, it's nice to have some common ground. What year is it where you're from?

You would think they'd have known that summoning people from a variety of different worlds would have consequences, yeah. I wonder if they'll put a pause on it now, but if nothing's stopped them yet...

[princessvegas]

I guess you could put it that way. Kinda makes us sound like a B-team, but. [ Hmm, yeah, on reflection, her Earth was definitely a B-team Earth. ] I'm from the year 2020. Not a great year.

Of course they won't. Cadens gets an unlimited supply of special weapons, Solvunn gets their gods. Thorne gets -- ask Sam about Relena. But even if that was a one-off, they're still building their ranks with people they think have better magic than most normal folks.