THE LIES THAT BIND THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 9TH @ 12PM - 3PM CENTRAL TIME Emerson, Pennsylvania is a fast growing city; home to several wealthy families, established businesses and of course the occasional nutcase. It's a city like any other, but when skeletons come out - everyone has their story...
@Diana:
This is a modern "soap opera" style setting. We begin at the end of the funeral of a man all characters are connected to in some way. What secrets will we find out? What drama might happen?
Today at 10:32 AM
@Diana:
TYPE FAST AND KEEP IT BRIEF! We're paying in real time, so if you take too long you might miss out on the action. If you write too much, people miss details! Stick to 10 sentences or less.
Today at 10:33 AM
@Diana:
Put your character's name in the first sentence of each post so we know who is playing who. You can also make use of color bbcode to help differentiate your posts from others!
Today at 10:33 AM
@Diana:
Game Master posts appear in this bright bold yellow, so pay attention to those! They're giving you hints and directions for what to do next.
Today at 10:34 AM
@Diana:
My roleplays are always NEWBIE FRIENDLY! Don't worry about making mistakes or getting confused -- I am always in the main chat room to help answer questions or turn you in the right direction.
@Diana: The weather was a grim fog of grey; a suitable atmosphere for the funeral of Jeremiah Douglas. There wasn't a person in town that didn't know the man in one fashion or another. His reputation had been churning in the rumor mills for decades. The man's death had come as a huge shock to everyone -- and the circumstances were still under investigation. Once the speeches wrapped up and the casket lowered, people started making their way out of the cemetery back towards their parked cars. Few remained to pay their last respects as rain threatened to start pouring at any moment.
Today at 10:52 AM
@Zarko Straadi: Sofia turned the Starship around, careful to avoid wrecking the grass, and started to wheel toward Father's limousine, lost in thought. Death. Mr. Douglas had visited the Family house on several occasions, but Sofia couldn't say she knew him well. A week and a half ago, she'd seen him, a living, animated, conscious being. Now...his physicality at least, was reduced to an inanimate thing being lowered into the ground never to be seen again, except perhaps by archaeologists someday. Everyone else, it seemed, did know him well. During the sermon, she'd looked around a bit, noticing subtexts and nuances of expression and interaction among the others that were like a foreign language. "Sofia!" Olivia hissed under her breath, "Don't be in such a hurry!" Pulled from her thoughts, she noticed that the others seemed inclined to mingle, despite the looming threat of rain.
Today at 11:10 AM
@Diana: As soon as Sofia was alone (in at least that her family was consumed with interacting with other mourners) a tall figure in a hoodie, smelling heavily of cigarette smoke knelt down to her wheelchair. "I need you to give a message to Danae," he grumbled out as softly as he could. With the hood over his head, it was clear that he didn't want anyone to recognize who he was.
Today at 11:17 AM
@Zarko Straadi: Danae rolled her eyes at her sister's usual cluelessness, but kept her mouth shut. Connor tugged at her hand, which held his, hoping to pull free so he could round up some of the other kids close to his age and get some play going now that the boring grownup stuff was over. "Stay with mommy, dear," she said. "Who's that?" Danae asked, noticing the hooded figure crouched next to Sofia's wheelchair. Quinn and Olivia glanced over, noting the suspicious individual, but could not recognize him with his face shrouded. "Who wears a hoodie to a funeral?" Danae said with a hint of sneer in her voice.
Today at 11:20 AM
@Zarko Straadi: Sofia coughed softly in reaction to the unexpected smell. "Sorry," she said. "Deliver a message? Like a spy?" she said. Out of curiosity, she tried to lower her head to see under his hood.
Today at 11:24 AM
@Diana: All Sofia could really see was the shadow a scruffy face and a bit of a frown before he turned his head. "Yeah, sure. Like a spy. Tell he knows what she did. She'll know what that means."
Today at 11:27 AM
@Zarko Straadi:
"Do you...want something from her?" Sofia asked. The message sounded ominous. "Oh--and, who's 'he?' If I say 'He knows what you did' she might think 'he' is you, which would be inaccurate unless 'he' is you. And what do I do if she doesn't know what you mean?"
58 minutes ago
@Diana: He certainly wasn't prepared for this sort of questioning because he'd forgotten he was trying to keep a low profile and had turned to give her an incredulous stare. Now Sofia could see he was a young man, probably about the same age as Danae, but really didn't seem like the type that'd be her friend or run around in her usual social circles. He wasn't particularly handsome either, and his nose looked like it had been broken once or twice. "Just give her the message, alright? Spies don't need details."
54 minutes ago
@Zarko Straadi: Sofia gave him a quizzical look. "I am not able to generate a plausible mental model for the context of this situation. ...If she did something to hurt you, I'm sorry. I'll deliver your message," she said, then started to turn away. "Oh, uh--if you knew Mr. Douglas well, my condolences," she said, then rolled over to rejoin her family. "What was that about?" Danae asked. "Got a boyfriend?" "Wha? No. He wanted me to tell you, 'He knows what you did.'"
40 minutes ago
@Zarko Straadi: Danae's eyes flashed angrily at her sister. Did you have to say that right in front of Mom and Dad?! "Someone you know?" Quinn asked. Danae huffed. "No, just some creeper weirdo trying to start sh--stuff at a funeral, maybe he wants to film our reactions and put it on TikTok or something, I dunno," she said, casting a glance toward where she'd last seen Hoodie Man.
37 minutes ago
@Diana: Hoodie man hadn't left yet. In fact as predicted he was close enough nearby to get a good look at Danae's response. He himself lifted a hand and flipped her the middle finger. Something was definitely up with that!
34 minutes ago
@Diana: "I can't believe the man is dead," exclaimed a woman nearby. She was in one of Quinn's social clubs, but not a friend of the family. "I didn't even know he was a therapist. Imagine all the secrets he's died with." commented the lady she was speaking to. They both softly laughed - but discreetly. It was a funeral after all. "The police are still investigating. You know that means they suspect murder? Half of the people here must be his clients, do you think?"
30 minutes ago
@Zarko Straadi: Danae hiked her chin and turned away, signaling that she had far too much class to flip someone the bird in public, and at a funeral no less! "Dear, is this something we ought to have the police look into?" Quinn said. Danae shook her head. "He's probably just some loser I wouldn't go out with," she said. "Hmm. Well, if he becomes a problem," Quinn said, "let me know and I'll have him dealt with. One can never be too careful." He turned to look the young man over.
23 minutes ago
@Zarko Straadi: Murder?Sofia thought. And he was a therapist? Was Mother planning on having him...for me? she wondered. There had been talk between Mother and Father about having her see a therapist on account of...well, Sofia wasn't precisely sure, but probably something to do with the fact that she wasn't good at people. But Mother had leaned against the idea, concerned that if word got out it would...cause people-problems of some sort or other that Sofia couldn't suss out from half-overheard conversations. Sofia had been relieved at the time, but if Mother had been consulting with Mr. Douglas about therapy, it meant she was still at risk of facing assessment for failure to be normal. A mix of relief and guilt hit her. She wouldn't be having her mind dissected by Mr. Douglas either, not now.
THE LIES THAT BIND 2022-03-11T14:00:00-6 Emerson, Pennsylvania is a fast growing city; home to several wealthy families, established businesses and of course the occasional nutcase. It's a city like any other, but when skeletons come out - everyone has their story. Jeremiah Douglas has...
Diana:
This is a modern "soap opera" style setting. We begin at the wake after a funeral of a man all characters are connected to in some way. What secrets will we find out? What drama might happen?
Today at 12:34 PM
Diana: TYPE FAST AND KEEP IT BRIEF! We're paying in real time, so if you take too long you might miss out on the action. If you write too much, people miss details! Stick to 10 sentences or less.
Today at 12:35 PM
Diana:
Put your character's name in the first sentence of each post so we know who is playing who. You can also make use of color bbcode to help differentiate your posts from others!
Today at 12:35 PM
Diana:
Game Master posts appear in this bright bold yellow, so pay attention to those! They're giving you hints and directions for what to do next.
Today at 12:35 PM
Diana:
My roleplays are always NEWBIE FRIENDLY! Don't worry about making mistakes or getting confused -- I am always in the main chat room to help answer questions or turn you in the right direction.
Diana: Jeremiah's funeral went without incident, though there were so many strange faces there. Who knew the man knew so many people! Now all of the guests were at the wake - situated at Jeremiah's townhouse home in the city. There was a buffet with food and drinks. People mingled wearing their finest black attire to share there bereavement and passing of the man... Strange though that an investigative office also seemed to be mingling at the event.
Today at 12:56 PM
Zarko Straadi: Olivia and Quinn made the rounds among the important guests, Olivia exuding the air of a gracious, consoling friend while Quinn remained stoic, the pillar of strength. Danae had her hands full trying to keep a rein on Connor (who just wanted to be free from all the boring grownup stuff so he could go play), while subtly jockeying for position with the few other college-age people there, and keeping a wary eye out just in case that loser in the hoodie should happen to turn up. Sofia moved to the edge of the crowd. She didn't really know any of the adults, and the younger people--especially the ones her own age whom she did know--were best avoided. She wrestled with temptation to get out her tablet and read an e-book or maybe tinker with some of her designs in progress. But...this was a wake, and there were probably people here who cared for Mr. Douglas, so it would be rude to be fiddling with a device, even if there were a few other people with phones out. So when her mind wasn't wandering through various daydreams, she tried to unravel the mystery of Hoodie Guy, or the other potential mystery suggested by some of the snippets of conversation she'd heard that raised the possibility that Mr. Douglas had been murdered.
Today at 1:26 PM
Diana:
"Psssst." came a strange whisper from underneath a coffee table Sofia sat near. There was a rustling of the tablecloth, but otherwise no one else seemed to be around. "Psst, psst. Can you hear me?" It asked again, sounding like a young woman close to Sofia's age or younger. ...or hopefully. Who would even want to be under a table?
Today at 1:30 PM
Zarko Straadi: Sofia looked around for the source of the voice. No one nearby who seemed a likely candidate, but she saw a hint of movement from the tablecloth. I am noticing confusion. More Spy vs. Spy stuff? she thought, starting to roll over closer to the table. Or could it be someone who wants to pull a prank on me? she thought, stopping in her tracks. Prior probabilities? After a moment of consideration... My background knowledge contains insufficient data to estimate the statistical likelihood of pranks at wakes. If this was Winslow Prep, my prior would be over 80 percent. It is more probable that the girl under the table would be someone I knew there than a stranger. Prior probability of, maybe 60 percent? Multiply that by the approximate 80 percent prior for a prank...for a 48 percent prior probability that she wants to prank me. So: data. She has given herself an advantage of stealth, so if she wanted to do something like...pour whiskey on me to make me out to be a drunk? Or...I dunno...but if I lifted the tablecloth and made a noise to draw attention, she'd be caught, so should that count as evidence for ~h? Her mental gears seized up, as often happened in cases like this. It was hard to assess numbers for Bayes' Theorem when it came to people, especially mean people, who seemed to be quite inventive when it came to finding ways to hurt and humiliate her.
Today at 1:56 PM
Zarko Straadi: But she could also just be...maybe Hoodie Guy's sister, wanting me to pass on another message? Curiosity! Trepidation! FIGHT! As was usually the case for Sofia, Curiosity won, so she cautiously rolled up the rest of the way to the table. Maybe it's not even me she wants to talk to? I should test that hypothesis... "Yes, I can hear you," she whispered.
Today at 1:58 PM
Diana:
The voice seemed to get frustrated in waiting for a reply. Up went the tablecloth to reveal a girl, dressed in black - though certainly not a formal funeral style - with brown hair and clipped in braids in rainbow colors. She looked relieved when Sofia did finally reply, but she had to drop the table cloth before anyone else did. "Okay cool! Um, you seemed kind of safe to talk to. I have been under here spying forever and I'm starving! Are there any shrimp puffs left?"
Today at 2:01 PM
Zarko Straadi:
Catching a glimpse of the girl, Sofia felt relief: 1) She didn't know the girl. 2) Her rainbow braids--which Sofie found to be adorable--were not the sort of thing any Winslow Prep girl would be caught dead in. 3) Her clothes did not look ridiculously expensive. Or at least they weren't formal, though that didn't rule out the possibility that they were ridiculously expensive. So all of that had to count as evidence for ~h, the counter-hypothesis to h--that she was there to do something mean. And I've already had one encounter with a 'covert operative' today, so... "I can go see," she whispered. "Is there anything else you'd like? And...maybe I could help you spy...depending on who you're spying on and why?"
Today at 2:12 PM
Diana:
The girl peeped out from under the clothe again, looking more than excited to reply. "Oh I am spying on everyone." she confessed. "Did you know him? The man that died? He gave a bunch of people at my school tutoring lessons, and they think he was murdered. ...is it true? Do you know?"
Today at 2:18 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"So...he was also a tutor?" Sofia replied, keeping her voice low. The other girl's spycraft was...maybe not the best? But why not play along? It beat the heck out of being bored to death. "I didn't know him very well. I thought he was just a therapist. I don't have enough data to assess the probability of a murder hypothesis. I don't even know the cause of death. Were you one of his students? Oh--I'm Sofia."
Today at 2:24 PM
Diana:
"I'm Violet! Oop," she vanished back under the table when someone approached too close. Her voice went back down to a conspiratorial whisper. "I wasn't myself, but I know a bunch of kids that did. Good kids, y'know? After though, they were just kind of... weird. Not right. But no one wants to talk about it. There's totally something super weird about it, and I have to find out what it is. Like one of those active investigative reporters, you know? I have a blog!"
Today at 2:28 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Violet Oop?" That seemed to be an unusual name, but then 'Sofia Sevin' was in the same category, if she was to be fair. "I did overhear one of the women at the funeral propose the hypothesis that he could have been murdered, and she asserted that approximately fifty percent of the people at the funeral would have been his clients. She said the police were still investigating, and took that as evidence that they suspected murder. But I don't know her, or what sources she was getting her information from, so I can't offer any assessments of evidentiary validity that would be useful in Bayesian terms. Do you think...he did something to the students? What's your blog called?" she said, turning around to reach into the satchel mounted on the back of the Starship to retrieve her tablet.
Today at 2:41 PM
Diana:
"Oh wow, you are like super indepth with details aren't you," she remarked with some surprise. Once she was certain no one was looking their way anymore, she peered out again. "My blog is called Emerson Underground and I like to write about real stuff happening here in town. Interesting real stuff. I'm not sure what's going on yet, but I definitely want to find out. Do you like mysteries too?"
Today at 2:45 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"That's a great name," Sofia said as she woke her tablet and entered it into Google. "I do like mysteries--but I'm better suited to the scientific and mystical sort. Maths and empirical data don't lie and they're never cruel, and while direct inner experience has its epistemic limits, it's not deliberately deceptive unless experiences of potentially conscious entities are involved. But...I still think I relate better to Machine Elves than people, especially the sort of people who might kill somebody...so...I don't evaluate myself as especially good at the sort of mystery that involves detectives and suspects."
Today at 3:00 PM
Diana:
"Oh you would be so surprised at how important math and science and statistics are in a good investigation!" she exclaimed with excitement, seeming to forget she was supposed to be out of sight. "You've heard about forensic science, right? And accounting science! If you want a good investigation you have to have a whole team of people with different skills to really get to the absolute truly." Violet nodded seriously.
Today at 3:04 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Who are you talking to?" Danae said. Connor had pulled her over, and was now trying to reach for the tablecloth and pull it up. "If it's that freak in the hoodie, I swear to God..."
54 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi:
"It's not," Sofia said. "Her name is..." Sofia scrambled for an alias, until Ada Lovelace, the world's first computer programmer (she developed programs for Charles Babbage's early mechanical computer) came to mind. "...Ada, and she...lost an earring under the table?"
51 minutes ago
Diana:
"oop..." Violet backed out from under the table and stayed crouched behind it, at least until Sofia offered the perfect excuse. Violet popped up to her feet, holding one of her dangling Dorito earrings. Again not quite funeral approved attired... but she was a teen, what could anyone expect? "I - yeah. I found it it! Thanks Sofia." Now that she was out from under the table, though... Violet squinted at Danae. "...you look familiar."
49 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi: Danae gave her a cross look; Sofia was complete rubbish at lying. "Listen, you creep," she said to the table, "you had your fun flipping me off at the funeral, so why don't you just fuck--oh my God," she said as the girl emerged with the earring. "You don't know me, because I don't hang out with circus people. Come on, Connor," she said, starting to pull her son away as he giggled at the girl with the rainbow braids. "You too, Sofie."
44 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi:
"Wait--you're in a circus?" Sofia said to Violet. That had to be low-probability, didn't it? And Danae claiming not to know her, but somehow knowing her profession--ooooooohhh. "It's alright, Danae. As long as you're not seen with us, you'll be fine," she said, making no move to follow.
42 minutes ago
Diana:
Violet wrinkled up her nose at Danae, but didn't bother to respond to the insult. "I hope we can talk again, Sofia! You know where to find me now. I'd love to hear from you and talk about stuff." She waved quickly, making her exit across the room before Danae got any ideas to drag Sofia away or spit out more insults.
40 minutes ago
Diana: Strange then that when Violet weaved her way across the room without worry of who saw her anymore, the one she did stop by had a very familiar face to Sofia. Though now he was dressed in appropriate attire for a wake in a black vest over a white shirt and slacks, his dark hair and his eyes were that of the hoodie guy she'd spoken to earlier. Whether Danae would recognize him was another thing altogether.
38 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi:
"Oh--wait--" Sofia said, but if the girl wanted to get away from her, she didn't want to chase her down. Except, she said she wanted to talk some more...but did she really? There were the mean people, but then there were the people who tried to be nice about not wanting to be seen with her. In a way, they were almost worse than the mean ones, because more often than not Sofia would fail to get the hint until after their friends savaged them and forced them to be more blunt about it, leaving Sofia feeling guilty about causing their humiliation. "I'll just...stay here," she said, following neither Danae nor Violet. She turned her attention to the tablet to have a look at Emerson Underground, so as not to draw Danae's eyes toward Hoodie Guy and cause a scene.
29 minutes ago
Diana: As Violet browsed the site she got a quick overview of the types of stories featured on the blog. Most seemed to be adjacent to one of the public High Schools, though there were a few interesting stories about the downtown business, and even some gossip column styled pieces. In most cases, they all seemed to be timed to crime in the area. On the About page Sofia found Violet's picture and a small bio. Her name was Violet Stilwell, 16, and she loved murder mysterious and cats. Even more shocking was the bio next to hers. Duncan Stilwell, 24, editor and graphics designer. Addicted to podcasts.
24 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi: She's his sister? Sofia thought. If he hates Danae, does that mean she hates me? Or that she's trying to use me somehow on his behalf? Sofia thought, feeling disappointment wash over her. While she could have enjoyed joining Violet in a quest to solve the 'murder mystery,' the gossip angle of Emerson Underground gave her pause. Being attacked on social media was the worst. Danae gave a huff, following the departure of Weirdo Girl with her eyes--then her expression turned cold. She turned back and tugged Connor over to Sofia. "You realize those two aren't your friends, and don't want to be, right?" "What is it with you and that guy?" Sofia asked. "It's nothing. Just stay away from them, alright? They just want to use you."
7 minutes ago
Diana: What is hoodie guy's - Duncan Stilwell's - connection to Danae? Is Violet a new friend or a conniving foe? What does all of this have to do with Jeremiah Douglas? FIND OUT NEXT TIME AS THE SANDS WEAVE THROUGH THE HOUR GLASS IN.... THE LIES THAT BIND.
THE LIES THAT BIND 2022-09-15T14:00:00-5 Emerson, Pennsylvania is a fast growing city; home to several wealthy families, established businesses and of course the occasional nutcase. It's a city like any other, but when skeletons come out - everyone has their story. Jeremiah Douglas has...
Diana:
This is a modern "soap opera" style setting. We begin at a charity ball in honor of the deceased man everyone seems to be connected to. What secrets will we find out? What drama might happen?
Today at 11:33 AM
Diana: TYPE FAST AND KEEP IT BRIEF! We're paying in real time, so if you take too long you might miss out on the action. If you write too much, people miss details! Stick to 10 sentences or less.
Today at 11:34 AM
Diana:
Put your character's name in the first sentence of each post so we know who is playing who. You can also make use of color bbcode to help differentiate your posts from others!
Today at 11:34 AM
Diana:
Game Master posts appear in this bright bold yellow, so pay attention to those! They're giving you hints and directions for what to do next.
Today at 11:35 AM
Diana:
My roleplays are always NEWBIE FRIENDLY! Don't worry about making mistakes or getting confused -- I am always in the main chat room to help answer questions or turn you in the right direction.
Diana: Our story continues at the beautiful city manor of Jerimiah Douglas where a CHARITY BALL FOR ORPHANED CHILDREN is being held in his honor. The decor is a gorgeous display warm reds and golds. Wine is flowering, the catering is... to die for.
Today at 12:32 PM
Zarko Straadi: Om mane padme hum....om mane padme hum... Sofia thought, willing herself not to fidget, nibble at her hair, let her mind wander off somewhere, or otherwise...fail...while her family made their entrance. Her mother Olivia flowed with graciousness as she offered condolences to the hosts, while her father Quinn was an icon of stoic dignity. Her elder sister Danae was beautiful as always, while her adorable yet willful son Connor, didn't quite manage the 'no fidgeting' part.
Today at 1:10 PM
Zarko Straadi:
Finally, the grand entrance was over, and the Sevins glided into the house. Sofia looked around, feeling a little odd about attending a party at a dead man's house. She rolled up to the oversized portrait of Jeremiah Douglas and contemplated it for a moment. "Hey Sofie, try not to attract a freak show this time?" Danae whispered to her. "Creepy, huh," she said, taking in the portrait.
Today at 1:17 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"I don't know...more like...weird?" Sofia replied. "Did you ever talk to him?"
Today at 1:18 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Oh God no," Danae replied. "Anyway, this is supposed to be a ball, so maybe there'll be danci--sorry," she muttered, but she was inching away from the portrait.
Today at 1:19 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"It's for kids, isn't it? Are there any actual kids here?" Connor said, looking around for any indication that he might be able to find someone to play with, and escape another interminable scene of Adult Stuff Boredom.
Today at 1:21 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Let's go look around," Danae said, glad for any excuse to get away from the portrait of the deceased man.
Today at 1:22 PM
Diana:
Speaking of standing out like a sore thumb... Violet Stilwell was there - and not alone! The entire Stilwell Family had made an appearance, which meant somewhere around here was also the strange and mysterious Duncan. Violet, though, in her awkwardly fitting dress was already trying to get Sofia's attention from across the room without looking like a crazy person.
Today at 1:23 PM
Zarko Straadi: Sofia noticed that her parents were mingling with the other movers-and-shakers, doing their thing. Then she spotted the girl she'd met at the wake, making odd gestures. ...Violet! she thought. Should I...oh...she's trying to signal me, isn't she? A quick look over her shoulder to check, just in case there was someone behind her Violet might be signaling to. Finding no one, she debated whether or not she ought to go over. Danae wouldn't want me to...but Violet hasn't been mean or anything...so... She gave the Starship's wheels a couple gentle pushes to turn and roll over to the girl. "Hello," she said.
Today at 1:28 PM
littlekreen:
Every IT team had the one guy that went to the event in case something needed percussive maintenance. Especially if it was particularly important and James was that guy as the only one that worked out something on the regular. He still got paid for being on duty but quietly meandered about the fringes near the other maintenance folks largely here for the same. A pale thirty something with a large brown beard wore the dress pants he kept pressed in the closet. Climbing around computers all day wasn't something you used fancy slacks for. Most of the rest of the guys were in shorts or hoodies elsewhere.
Today at 1:29 PM
Diana:
"I didn't think I would see you here!" whispered the sixteen year old blog writer. She had her cellphone in hand and has seemed to spent her time so far at the charity party writing down people she recognized and snapping quick pictures. "This is his house! How strange it is that they opened it up so fast to a public party, don't you think?"
Today at 1:34 PM
Diana: Was a good thing to have a full IT team there are the event? Perhaps. There seemed to be issues with the Security Cameras set up all in the manor. Strange that even within a private home there were so many cameras though!
Today at 1:37 PM
Zarko Straadi: Sofia tilted her head quizzically. "You didn't? Why not?" she asked. "I subjectively experience it as strange, but...this is the first event of this particular type I have attended, so I can't assess the degree of intersubjective strangeness...do you know where he died?" she said, spotting one CCTV camera, then another. "Huh..."
Today at 1:41 PM
Diana:
"Well, I mean, my parents don't tend to like bringing me to these sorts of things so I just assumed..." she said with embarrassment. It didn't last long as the subject of her obsession was way more interesting. "They say he died here in the house, on one of the upper floors. Or at least that's where they found him him. I bet we would sneak onto the service elevator and snoop around!"
Today at 1:51 PM
littlekreen:
Most people never look up. James noticed Sophia looking at the cameras. He had a lot of time to kill but nobody ever noticed IT until something went wrong. He opened the app and flipped through camera views seeing what one she was looking at. They'd all dropped so much damn cable to get the things wired up since if you had to power it you might as well run data.
Today at 2:03 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Oh," Sofia said. "Mine don't either, but...I think there are society paper types here, so my absence would be noticed. Probably yours too? We could look around a bit maybe...but this house appears to have universal securecam coverage. I wonder why...I don't think I would like to be on camera all the time...if there was anything unusual...like intruders or anything...the cameras should have picked them up."
Today at 2:05 PM
Zarko Straadi:
Then she noticed a man using his phone. That might not have seemed unusual, except that he seemed more...focused maybe?...than someone scrolling through Twitter. "Do you know who that bearded man is?"
Today at 2:08 PM
Diana:
"Unless they were tampered with," suggestion Violet. Pointing the direction they needed to go, Violet led the way, shooing people so Sofia had plenty of space to move. "See, that is what I mean! Those guys are like computer tech. They're getting something fixed, so I definitely bet something went wrong with the system!"
Today at 2:10 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Should we go talk to him?" Sofia asked. "Do you know if Mr. Douglas lived alone?" Her memory flashed back to the funeral, where she'd overheard some women speculating about all the secrets he might have had, as he was a therapist with numerous clients among Emerson's elite. So are the cameras there for security, because he was worried about somebody coming after him for whatever 'secrets' he had, or were they for recording everything his clients did and said here?
Today at 2:18 PM
Diana:
Violet paused long enough to give this some thought. "...maybe that's a good idea. I bet an IT guy might have some interesting clues for us. You're pretty good at this investigating thing, Sofia!"
Today at 2:21 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Thank you!" Sofia said, giving a momentary look of surprise at the compliment. Danae's words from the last time she'd seen Violet came back to her, but after a moment's introspection, she decided she liked Violet anyway. With the other girl at her side, she changed course and headed toward the man. As they drew nearer, she didn't see anything that contradicted Violet's hypothesis about him. He was wearing slacks, nicely creased, but they were not the perfectly-tailored, high thread-count type of pants Father and the men he associated with would wear. She looked to Violet to break the ice. The other girl was the 'investigative blogger' after all, so she probably had some actual practice at this sort of thing.
Today at 2:31 PM
Diana:
"Exzcuse me sir," started Violet on cue, using her very best posh voice. "If you are one of the computer technicians, we have a few questions for you... about the setup in the house!"
Today at 2:32 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"If that's alright," Sofia added. "We could come back later if you're busy."
Today at 2:39 PM
Diana: Was it coincidence? Was it a observer from on high? Who knows! But at that precise moment all the lights and power in the manor house went out, leaving behind nothing but the few candles that had decorated the downstairs floor for ambiance. There was a hushed round of "Oh!" but startled people, but one of the hosts stepped out and loudly announced. "Nothing to worry about ladies and gentlemen! It seems there is a power surge throwing things off on the street? Never fear, there is plenty of candlelight here in the main areas. Thank goodness we chose to book a live band for music tonight, eh?" Much laughter and relief filled the party guests.
Today at 2:47 PM
Zarko Straadi:
To her relief, Danae was able to find other children for Connor to play with. In fact, they had a 'day care' of sorts set up, with toys, snacks, and electronics, and even somebody to watch over the children. That freed her up to check out the actual Ball. Maybe there'd even be hot guys there. Ugh... she thought, spotting Sofia with the rainbow-haired weirdo she'd found under a table at the wake. And they were pestering the help. She hesitated for a moment. Why not let her do her thing? she thought, continuing on her way. "Wha?" she stammered, when the lights suddenly went out. The host stepped up and said the right sort of reassuring words. But...the big, dead man's house, now lit only by candlelight...was a little creepy. That only made her want to be where the band, the dancing, and the people would be even more.
Today at 2:52 PM
Zarko Straadi:
The IT person, if that's who he was, did indeed seem to be busy, especially when the lights went out. "Sorry to bother you sir," Sofia said. "So, uh...what now?" she asked Violet. "The elevator probably won't be working, if the power's out. Unless it's connected to a backup generator. But even if it is, its reliability would be in doubt, like if Mr. Douglas didn't keep its fuel tank topped off."
Today at 2:55 PM
Zarko Straadi: Sofia turned back to the IT guy, trying to determine if she and Violet would be rude to leave, or to stay.
Today at 3:02 PM
littlekreen:
James looked over as the UPS sent him an email, "well hello there, sorry a bit distracted. The first thing i can tell you is the camera system is on backup power so security will have plenty of time to lock things down."
Today at 3:05 PM
Diana:
"So say someone was planning a murder... how might they go about messing up the security system?" she asked... although she did seem completely spooked by the lack of lights. Even with all the pretty candles, the place was kind of eerie like this!
Today at 3:09 PM
Diana:
Meanwhile in the ballroom... a certain Duncan Stilwell stepped up next to Danae. "We need to talk."
Today at 3:09 PM
littlekreen:
He looked at Sofia with a smile, "Well if someone was planning a murder we should go see if someone with maintenance keys is in. I don't know all the electrical layout for this place, and the old buildings have fuse boxes everywhere. The rack only has about 45 minutes of backup power in the UPS but it can eat the surge just fine."
Today at 3:11 PM
Zarko Straadi:
"Uh..." Sofia stammered. Somehow that seemed to be the wrong question to ask. "If it's OK to ask...were you on staff here when Mr. Douglas...was here? Were there...any interruptions in the security camera system when he...you know...?"
Today at 3:13 PM
littlekreen:
He adds thinking of the timeline, "Hmm. The camera servers will start shutting down at about 15 minutes remaining and I'll lose the network."
59 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi: Danae jumped at the sudden voice, sucking in a gasp of air. "What do you want? If it's blackmail you're after, don't even try it," she hissed.
58 minutes ago
littlekreen:
"Well in any old building like this there's a lot of power issues you have to build out for. We have a dozen routers throughout the building that need power to move camera feeds around."
58 minutes ago
littlekreen:
"I'm fairly new to this contract, sorry, I heard the post-mortem for security but as far as I know the interruptions were either planned, hardware failure, or cleaning staff unplugging power warts."
57 minutes ago
Diana:
"I wouldn't have to blackmail you if you'd just tell everyone the truth," Duncan hissed back to Danae. "You've ruined peoples lives. You know that don't you?"
54 minutes ago
Diana:
"Hmph," grumped Violet, turning this information over in her head. "Sounds like someone would have to be pretty savvy to figure out all that stuff. Not just the technical side, but the right timing of it all too, if they were to do a murder."
52 minutes ago
littlekreen:
"It's an old building though, we don't have backup power on all the sections just the network by the server room. They'd have to avoid that area until the servers shut down before they run out of power. The diesel generator is probably for the whole house, not the server room. If it hasn't started by now it probably won't."
47 minutes ago
littlekreen:
He got a few text messages and blipped responses saying the failover failed.
47 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi:
"I don't know what you're talking about," Danae said, but as the words came out, she saw Dimitri Yanukovich shoving Sofia off the bridge in her mind's eye. She turned away from Duncan. Then there was the time she'd tried driving home from a party a little too drunk and a little too high, and hit that minivan... Daddy made the problem go away, and he'd never told her what happened to the people in the minivan. All he'd said was 'NRPI'--No Real People Involved. "So you think I ruined your life?! I don't even know you!"
39 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi:
"So...it seems like, if it was a murder, it would have had to be an 'inside job.' Somebody who knew when the scheduled outages and cleaning stuff were going to happen? Or like Violet said, know enough to cause a 'hardware outage' at the right time... But isn't it a little odd that there's only 45 minutes of backup power, if this building has a lot of power outages? Even municipal outages can last longer than that. Why set up a really elaborate security system like this, and not have independent battery backup for each camera and sensor suite? Oh--are there microphones too, or just the cameras?"
35 minutes ago
Diana:
"Someone I care about is dead because of you," he replied, barely keeping the venom out of his voice. "Going to tell me you don't know about that either? Tell every what you did. Or I'm going to make sure you never show your face anywhere ever again." Duncan didn't wait for another reply from Danae. He just gave her a rough bump into the shoulder before mingling back into the party.
35 minutes ago
littlekreen:
He nods, "It's 45 minutes of power for every racks and network equipment in the server room and the cameras around it, it draws a lot more power than your laptop and we have a huge storage grid to store all the feeds. The deisel is supposed to have an auto-failover when power cuts out. It's the usual setup unless you're federal since most of the outages aren't longer than 45 minutes. You have to replace most of the batteries every three to five years and that's really expensive. Older cameras might not have mics though some of them do like elevators and such."
28 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi: So, what, he wants me to go on YouTube and make a tell-all confession-time video?Danae thought. As if I'd be able to show my face anywhere after that anyway! I need to talk to Daddy...but not here, he'll be watching. But...what if...that can't be true, can it? He has to be lying...right? But...but he didn't even ask for money...
24 minutes ago
littlekreen:
James looked down the hall, "Speaking of which I need to get to the racks and make sure everything shuts down when it's supposed to if power doesn't come on. Sudden power drops or brown outs kill racks. I'll shut down a few things and buy time on the UPS."
22 minutes ago
Zarko Straadi: Sofia nodded. The IT man's explanation seemed to make sense. "OK," she said. "Thank you, sir!" She turned back to Violet. "Do you know of any evidence that it was a murder? I don't even know the cause of death. Do you?"
20 minutes ago
Diana:
"They didn't publish the cause of death in the paper... they just said it was suspicious..." confessed Violet. "I've got a gut feeling, though! With everything I've heard about him!"
18 minutes ago
littlekreen:
He shook his head, "No problem, miss. The police come with suopenas all the time for camrea footage but It's handled by the lawyers and other guys with clearance that handle the backups. You'd probably have to ask the family lawyer since he'd know."
littlekreen:
He put up a hand, "I can't comment on security footage, just best practices, but if there was anything on the footage it's hundreds of hours across all the cameras. You'd have see who looked over the footage to give to the cops. The lawyers would have to elect somebody for chain of custody."
14 minutes ago
Diana: Suddenly there was a shrill scream from upstairs and a loud THUD! In all of the commotion a guest came running down the grand staircase shrieking. "It's blood! It's blood all over the walls...!" When others went upstairs to investigate there was indeed something all over one of the hallway walls. Scrawled in dark bloody red: I kNoW wHaT yOU DId.
13 minutes ago
Diana: Who vandalized the home of Jerimiah Douglas boldly in the middle of a charity party? Was the message about him? Or was the message for someone else! Will a couple of strange girls stumble into a mystery that is over their heads? FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON THE LIES THAT BIND.
