Castles of Steel - Lesbians Good, Imperialism Bad

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Lieutenant Arisukawa Haruna

Balance Stats
❁ • ❁ Work / Life ❁ • ❁
❁ • ❁ Warrior / Princess ❁ • ❁
❁ • ❁ Radical / Respectable ❁ • ❁

Tactical Stats
Gunnery 0, Navigation +2, Command +2, Technology -4, Personal -2, Strategy +3

Stress: 3​


Click here for the winter version!

PLEASE READ THE QUEST RULES BELOW

You collectively vote on the actions of Arisukawa Haruna, the first woman to serve openly in the Imperial Akitsukuni Navy.

This quest is set in a universe which is much like our own circa 1910, but with different politics, cultural norms, and ideas about gender and sexuality, as well as some unusual and advanced technology in places.

We are using this quest to explore themes like breaking the glass ceiling, divergent outlooks on gender and sexuality, colonialism and imperialism, and the place of royalty.

Content Warning
This quest goes some dark places.

There is violence, often explicit, often unfair, often against undeserving targets.

There are not always good options forward. The protagonist is not necessarily a good person.

There is implied content and discussion of sexual harassment and assault.

This is a world where people are often racist, sexist, queerphobic bigots. Sometimes, even the PC and the people they are friends with.

Voting Rules

We will tell you if write-in votes are allowed. If we do not say that write-ins are allowed, they are not. This is to prevent people from unrealistically hedging their bets.

You may proposal other options in a non-vote format, subject to approval, on non write-in votes.

We will tell you when a vote allows approved voting. If we don't say the answer is no, pick an option. We like making people commit.

Discussions makes the GM feel fuzzy.

Game Rules
When we ask you for a roll, roll 3d6. You are aiming to roll equal or under the value of your stat. If you succeed, Haruna gets through the situation with no real difficulties. If you roll above the target value, Haruna will still succeed, but this success will cost her something or add a complication.

Whenever Haruna loses something or faces hardship from a botched roll, she takes Stress. The more Stress Haruna has, the more the job and the circumstances she's in will get to her, and it'll be reflected in the narrative. Haruna must be kept under 10 Stress: if she reaches 10 Stress, she will suffer a breakdown and the results will not be great for her.

Haruna loses stress by taking time for herself, by making meaningful progress on her dreams, and by kissing tall, beautiful women.

Meta Rules
Author commentary is in italics so you know it's not story stuff.

Please don't complain about the system or the fact we have to roll dice. We've heard it before, we've heard it a thousand times across multiple quests. We're not going to change it, and it wears at our fucking souls.

Just going "oh noooo" or "Fish RNGesus Why!" is fun and fine. Complaining at length because you didn't get what you want less so.

If you have a question, tag both @open_sketchbook and @Artificial Girl. If you only tag one of us, you will be ignored. Seriously, we both write this quest.

And yes this is an alt-history type setting with openly gay and trans people, ahistoric medicine, and weird politics. Just... deal, please?

This quest employs a special system called Snippet Votes. Please read this post for more information.
 
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Changing votes
[X] You still had some of those primers on electricity, the ones you picked up so that you could understand what Aiko was studying. Maybe make a real effort on those? (+1 Technical)
[X] You weren't staying on top of your fitness when you were out of it. Time to do something about that and get back into shape proper. Aiko did say she thought you looked good in the photo! (+1 to the next roll involving physical prowess, buff Haruna.)
 
18scsc said:
Also felt that some praise should be thrown your way for writing such an emotionally difficult scene so well.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Seconding this strongly. I can empathize a lot with the way you describe the weird awkwardness of remembering stuff like this pre-transition. Solid writing, tons of respect for the emotional lifting.

[X] Hey, you've done a lot of reading since the days of the minisub. Maybe you should find an excuse to hang out with Ota, practice your Joseon, and talk about the world.
[X] You weren't staying on top of your fitness when you were out of it. Time to do something about that and get back into shape proper. Aiko did say she thought you looked good in the photo! (+1 to the next roll involving physical prowess, buff Haruna.)

And, because I like the letter to Aiko and wouldn't mind seeing it win-

[X][Snippet] Draw some landscapes for Aiko, even if they are monochrome because we can only find pencils.
 
[X] Get those baseball teams organized. It'll be a nice way of keeping your mind something that's not exactly work and it'll keep the men from being too bored. (+1 forward to the next roll involving crew discipline)
[X] You let active drills slip while you were out of it. Get the ship running again and take her out. Drill the crew and make sure they're at the top of their game. Make sure all the new crew feel integrated and welcome, while you're at it. (+1 forward to your next roll with the crew in combat)
 
[X] Try to socialize with your fellow officers on your terms this time. There's still a bit of a sore spot there and you should patch it up. (+1 ongoing forward to Diplomacy with the port officers.)
[X] You let active drills slip while you were out of it. Get the ship running again and take her out. Drill the crew and make sure they're at the top of their game. Make sure all the new crew feel integrated and welcome, while you're at it. (+1 forward to your next roll with the crew in combat.)
 
A1-1: AIKOQUEST 2535
  • Threadmarks
    • Your name is Kishimoto Aiko.

    You're a student at one of the most prestigious universities in the country. You've been attending for a little over a year, and surprisingly you really don't miss summer from back home. Sure, the winters up here are awful and freezing but the lack of awful humidity and semi-tropical heat is a plus, as far as you're concerned.

    That said, it's still hot. You sprawled on the engawa, the outdoor corridor-slash-porch of your boarding house trying to catch a breeze and occasionally waft yourself with a cheap paper fan with a patriotic wartime slogan printed on it. The place you'd landed after moving out of the dormitories had previously belonged to some samurai or other bigshot back before the restoration and even though the current owners had turned the little walled estate into a boarding house for refined young women, they had kept the interior garden space.

    One benefit of the oppressive summer heat was hey, summer holidays. You had another two weeks before classes started up again and you desperately wanted to enjoy all the downtime you could. On the other hand, being out of classes meant you had a lot more time to worry about your brother and about your girlfriend. Both of them in the Navy, neither of them could tell you where they were or what they were doing.

    So you worried.

    The street outside, just visible (and audible) through the open gate, was crowded with workers scurrying off to their jobs. Bicycles, pedestrians, and wagons shuffled past each other in a confusing mass, and you could see the top of a blue flag waving through the crowd as a man lead a motor truck, presumably filled with something war-y, through the streets, beckoning people to clear the way lest the brakes fail. You could hear the police officer down at the end of the street directing traffic with shrill blasts of her whistle. There were more women police officers around these days, thanks to the war.

    Fortunately, you didn't work for a few more hours yet, so you could avoid the chaos outside. Say, where were you working again?

    Part Time Jobs​
    [ ] You're helping sort paperwork for a small local factory. They make buttons for uniforms. It's very important and extremely boring. The overabundance of patriotic posters telling you how important the work you're doing is for the war effort doesn't help.​
    [ ] You've been working at the school over the summer, assisting a grad student assisting a professor. You were hoping to do science stuff, but all you do is carry things and make tea. You're doing your best to please the professor because he'll be teaching you soon, but the grad student is a bit… he's not good with boundaries. You're glad you're so much taller than him.​
    [ ] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.​
    [ ] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.​
    ​
    None of the jobs are fun or pay well, but they will all carry unique challenges.​

    "Aiiiiikooooo--" Someone was yelling from inside. One of the other young women you shared the place with. Most were students, a few worked full time. This one was Isami, a full-time worker at one of the local munitions factories. Obsessed with keeping up with the latest fashions, even on her meager budget. You let out a low groan before rolling yourself over to peer inside. "Aiko where did you put my issue of the Illustrated Women's Gazette? There was an article I wanted to show Yuki."

    "I didn't touch it!" You called back, but you didn't get a response, so with a sigh you pushed yourself to your feet and headed inside. It was probably your roommate, if it was anyone. You were trying to work on your habit of going through other people's stuff, but you wouldn't touch a rag like that if somebody paid you.

    Well… actually, depends on the pay.

    Still, if anyone had it, it would be…

    [ ] Yada Azami, a nice older lady who is out here living on her own for the first time ever. You don't know why, but you think her husband died or something, and you're not sure where her kids are, or if she even has any. She's been doing work as a seamstress, and has filled her side of the room with materials to sew uniforms even after her shift.​
    [ ] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.​
    [ ] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.​
    ​
    Who is sharing this disaster with you?​

    You almost tripped over all the stuff cluttering your shared room as you went hunting for the magazine. The place would be cramped enough as it was (6 tatami wasn't much for two people), but the government was insisting that everyone put in at least two hours work at some war-vital work to supplement the factories, and none of you would shirk from that duty. The result was that everyone's rooms were part workshop now, and it was common while walking the street to see women on doorsteps stitching uniforms, or old men bending crude metal pieces for handles, water canisters, and tripods.

    You were no exception, and with what you'd learned so far you could even do a little more, so you were…

    [ ] Doing something easy, painting helmets. Every few days you picked up a box of two-dozen from a nearby factory, mixed the dull blue paint with some sawdust, and slathered it on. You usually did about six a day: they had to dry, and you didn't have much room. After five days, you took your box back and started the whole thing over again.​
    [ ] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time.​
    [ ] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.​
    ​
    The more Aiko contributes, the more people will overlook her being pushy, but the less free time she'll have to dedicate to other activities. Balance is important!​

    ---

    Our brains our made of cotton candy and we can't seem to get into the headspace of our princess right now, so we're shifting gears a bit to help us recharge. It's already working: we wrote more in the last hour than we have in all the days since the last update.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • [X] You've been working at the school over the summer, assisting a grad student assisting a professor. You were hoping to do science stuff, but all you do is carry things and make tea. You're doing your best to please the professor because he'll be teaching you soon, but the grad student is a bit… he's not good with boundaries. You're glad you're so much taller than him.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.

    I really loved the movie scenes in ADC

    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.

    You got me at communist.


    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time.
     
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    Yay!

    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things.

    I like the implied smash-cut between "I'm getting out of here Dad, I'm going to be an engineer!" and stocking shelves in a hardware store that looks identical apart from trim colour.

    [X] Watanuki Mai

    Chizu is exactly our type and given that we always seem to end up with votes as to whether or not we cheat on our partner I'd rather try to remove temptation where I can.

    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do.

    This isn't work, it's fun! It's like a puzzle game with electricity! And maybe Haruna will get one of our torches.
     
    Yeah yeah yeah this is great.

    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.

    Get a communist roommate, do an importantish job so they overlook your communist roommate, its perfectly balanced.

    I was torn between hardware store and movie theatre but the implied smash cut is appealing so yeah I'll back it
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time.

    Retail hell drudgery where she won't want to look at people afterwords paired with work that isn't toooo hard that lets her turn her brain off and also that she won't be killed doing when classes start and get even more time crunched. And Mai seems like there could be some interesting hooks there from my perspective.
     
    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.

    Ah, retail hell, never changes.

    Do not taunt happy fun communist roommate. (I'll lay even odds that she's some sort of Syndicalist, and loathes communism. After all, the true enemy of the People's Popular Front of Akitsukuni is the Akitsukuni Popular People's Front.)

    Yey electronics bench assembling lights from base components. Please tell me we don't have to make and wrap our own piles, because that's going to suck and the lead acid is going to get everywhere...
     
    Convinced by smash-cut and Commie Roomie, but want enough free time for ~shenanigans~

    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time.
     
    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.

    This sounds fun, and it'd be a shame to waste Aiko's smarts on stuff that doesn't even begin to require it.
     
    Damnit. Trans or commie isn't a fair choice! :V

    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.

    Because after dealing with the hell that is customer service, handling Haruna's relatives will seem refreshingly easy by comparison.

    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.

    Another step on the road to the Red Princess.

    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.

    Because this is something that uses Aiko's skills while also being something she knows will eventually help Haruna rather than just being generically useful to the war effort.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a cashier job at a hardware store, of all things. At least you have relevant experience, but sometimes it honestly feels like you're still stuck at home working for your dad. You feel trapped there. And they make you change all the lightbulbs because you're tall and you 'know electricity'.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Inaba Chizu, a fellow student, though she's a third year at Tokei U studying economics. She seems really patriotic, but you're pretty sure she just really hates the Caspians, because you think she might be a communist. You try not to look too closely in case it gets you in trouble. She's got a sanding bench out back for woodworking: like a lot of women from rural areas, she's carving stuff for the Army. In her case, handles for ammunition boxes.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time
     
    [X] Yada Azami, a nice older lady who is out here living on her own for the first time ever. You don't know why, but you think her husband died or something, and you're not sure where her kids are, or if she even has any. She's been doing work as a seamstress, and has filled her side of the room with materials to sew uniforms even after her shift.

    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.

    [X] Something a bit more time consuming, packing rifle cleaning kits. Oh, it was easy work, you just grabbed one of everything from the boxes and putting them in a little cheap canvas bag (probably sewn by another girl just like you somewhere else), then throwing them in the last box. The problem was you needed to do a hundred and fifty a day, or they'd give the boxes to somebody else. With a dozen fiddly little bits each, none of which you understood, that took time
     
    [X] You have a job at a movie theater selling tickets, helping people find their seats, and dealing with complaining patrons with the biggest forced smile you can muster. Last week someone complained that the ghost story film scared their three year old and you wanted to ask them why the hell they brought a three year old to see a horror picture.
    [X] Watanuki Mai, a single girl in a bit of a complicated spot. She's a late bloomer who was midway through figuring herself out when the conscription papers landed in her mailbox, and the Army left her in Tokei by the time it was all said and done. She has a job working for the trolley lines, and has some modest little boxes of leather scraps she uses to make straps for helmets and boots.
    [X] Something really complicated that only you could do. The Navy wanted these little pocket torches for night use, but the only factory that made small lights are making signal lights now, so you had to put together the components yourself. You assembled, tested, and approved each one, but half the time the parts you got didn't work so you had to bend, file, and adjust each piece until it did. They wanted six a day, and you could barely manage it.
     
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