entranceway | ninth galaxy [video, backdated to 9/17]

[Those who've been here for a while might remember the last time Shepard addressed Wonderland in the Citadel, all smiles and lackadaisical jokes. However, today, she's addressing the Mansion at large like a commander- her shoulders are flat, back straight, expression serious.]

Alright. So if I'm correct from the network, a lot of us received items with the same cryptic note and a lot of weird stuff. Some of 'em don't seem to do anything. Some of them, apparently, are eyeballs.

[She brings her right hand into view, holding a broken half of a compact mirror; the mirror inside is shattered beyond repair.]

I got this- but it wasn't broken when I got it. It went to the Queen of Hearts. And because I don't believe in bullshitting anyone here, we should talk about the fact that what's going on right now is purposeful, and we need to be a hell of a lot more careful.

[She proceeds to upload a picture of red writing on the compact from the day before.]

First, Hearts doesn't know how this stuff got away from her. She accused me, and I faked what the note said- I don't know about the lore of this place, but I'm betting the Q in RQ is a sister we're missing.

[Next, another picture of the same scrawled writing.]

This is what she lost personally. Don't know if this is relevant other than to be on the lookout for it, and know she might put a target on your head for it being gone.

[Next, another message though admittedly slightly out of context.]

I started pressing for information about her informants. For those of you who were here last year, you might remember Alex Kralie making a post about their being a spy in our midst- a mole for the Queen. He was right. This compact was theirs, and she addressed me by their name at the start. This was her response when I asked what happened after five deaths. She visits, and you serve her. That's it. No going back. I feel like I've said this damn well enough before by now, but don't die-- and I have a better reason for it, too.

[And one more upload- the final message. Shepard looks more serious now than she has the entire message so far.]

There's been discussion about what the Core is made of- if it's memories, how we get them back when we leave Wonderland forever. It's not memories, or at least not all of it. It's souls. It's the physical parts you lose when you die, when everyone who's come before us has died, when people who have died five times and lost themselves entirely. The Core is our fallen, and the Queen confirmed it.

[She takes a second to breathe, measured, and steady.]

So. First off, someone's stealing from the Queen, and I'm willing to bet more than just those items she listed are important. Check what you got, be careful with it, don't go alone. Second, don't fucking die five times, and anyone who does and comes back needs to be detained. Immediately. And third, if anyone has more information about potential other queens in this place before I was here, or anything that you think relates to them, I need to know. We're not gonna have a lot of time before the Queen of Hearts figures this out before us.

[She gives one last curt nod to the camera, all business.]

Shepard out.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

If not purposefully, then at least symbiotically. She's absolutely got something to gain, even if she pretends to be doing us a favor by getting us out.

[This place wouldn't sustain if there was nothing for the Core to feed on, anyway.]

I wish we knew more about what Hearts' actual plans are, though. It's not enough to just have manpower. You've gotta be able to put them to work, and she's already got an army. So... what does she want?

Well, if her reasoning is like anything else in this world, it probably won't make any sense. We can't expect normal sorts of motivations here.

I mean, I couldn't surmise how to rationalize kidnapping a bunch of people to be used as living batteries on my home world, either.

[Like... who DOES that.]

Whatever it is, at least we have a lead now. Kind of. 'Ss more than we had before.

[Sometimes robots in the Matrix do it? But that wasn't exactly kidnapping.]

And what do we do with it? Try to destroy the Core? We can't get to it, it's on the mirror's side.

I dunno. I'd say we start by fortifying our defenses. Making sure people die less in a more reliable manner. Once we're as safe as we can manage, we start working on offense. Not like the Core's going anywhere, at least.

[Or like, she hopes not.]

Besides, there are ways to get to the Mirror side. We'd just have to be sure to wait for an opening.

But that's the rub. How do we fortify anything against these random fucking events? Like that zombie even that happened this summer-- most people lost their weapons. No one had any food. All our preparation went to shit.

Not reliably, unfortunately. Mostly, I'm thinking getting documentation about the kind of enemies that could be coming from people's worlds, or stuff we've already dealt with, and make that information available so we're not scrambling as much from not knowing our enemy.

With all the people that come and go, that could end up being someone's full time job. And it depends on cooperation too. There are plenty of assholes around here.

It's a hell of a project. Can't say it won't take a while. But I'm not doing much. Could use some help, if you're offering.

[She raises an eyebrow as she asks, a quick up and down look on him. He's young, but he asks the right questions. Wouldn't be the first kid that leant her a hand.]

There's no way I could do it alone. [He sees that up-and-down, and he has an idea of what she's thinking.] Nobody could do it alone. Sometimes people can be gone for days without anyone noticing. Sometimes they're totally silent about arriving. And sometimes people leave for a week or a month and then come back. Even keeping something as simple as a census would be nearly impossible.

Yeah, I understand.

[She pauses to consider something, suddenly having an idea.]

You know, I bet we could use the network to do it. Everyone here has a device and a login. I don't think you can hide from that. If we could pull out that data, we'd have clear numbers.

Then you'll definitely need someone else to help you. I'm terrible with this thing. There's nothing even a little bit like it back in my world.

You don't have to work on this. If you want to help, I'll take your name down. Once we get more structure there's going to be a ton of stuff that needs doing. I won't turn down people who want to do good.

If you're willing to try and round people up into some kind of force, I'm not going to be the one to stop you. We could use the leadership. And if you find something you think I could help with, just give me a call. The name's Jean Kirstein.

Nice to meet you, Jean. I'll keep your name on file.

[At least leading soldiers is something she's good at.]

Thanks for the vote of confidence, too.

ninth galaxy [video, backdated to 9/17]

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