Restock 2
Restock 2
[X]Backlog, first half
[X]An introduction to climbing
'The usurpation of Southern Africa began with a terrorist attack on a the parliamentary building, which killed the Prime Minister. Several other important politicians and leaders died in subsequent attacks during the ensuing riots.'
This is the best thing. You will print it out and hang it on your bedroom door, so you can start every day with a laugh.
You didn't get it on your first read. You were halfway through the book until you realised that this was in fact supposed to be an account of the Unification Wars. It took another read to understand that the above must have been referring to operation Glorious Dawn. In your defense, the fighting had already gone on for more than a year, so setting it as the starting point is just silly.
That does nothing to decrease the sheer satisfaction. You've never seen Christina called anything less than a shining beacon of rightful revengous retribution and wholly holy goodness in public before. Not even Lucy could get away with that.
You'd love to call Christina a 'terrorist' to her face. She'd try to kill you, but that's pretty much an inevitability these days. Maybe you can get a package to Lucy and the other Blacks? They'd get a kick out of it. Mark as well, he never really bought into the hype.
You'd have to talk to Lucas. Though it probably gets a bit to close to the non-interference clause. If Christina found out, she'd seize any excuse, the stuck-up bitch. Maybe you should just try to point Lucy in the right direction, and let her do the rest.
Ohh, this is another good one. 'The third special army group was finally cornered at the Umgeni river, and not even their relentless savagery would have saved them, if not for the sudden technical failure of the command gunship'. The ungrateful lot never thanked you either.
You wish the rest of the backlog was as entertaining as this.
----------------------
You enter Marmuk's ten minutes before closing. Tall Girl is sweeping the floor. Weird. Maybe they're old fashioned.
You're not sure what you're supposed to do now. Hasn't she noticed you yet? Should you say something? Would that be rude? Would it be rude not to say anything?
You fidget a bit, before you make the decision to just stand there as conspicuously has possible. Then you fidget some more.
She's humming. So maybe she can't hear you over her music. That makes sense, she's not ignoring you, she just hasn't noticed. Would it be rude to say something? You don't want to interrupt her.
You'll just wait.
"Oh hey, when'd you come in?"
Uhm. Just now.
"Right, I guess I can close the shop now. The center is just around the corner. "
She leans the broom against the wall, grabs a duffel bag and strides out the door. You do your best to follow. She's got a long stride. She doesn't even look back to lock the doors, just hits the transponder.
At her pace, it doesn't take long to get to the climbing hall. The receptionist smiles when she sees her.
"Hi Lisa. You've got simulator two for today. Kinda surprised you're splurging on that."
"The girl bought a whole load of new gear. I'm showing her the works."
"I can see that. You must be stronger than you look, Miss…?"
Stella. Stella Reed. And it's not that heavy.
You sign in and head for the Simulator.
---------------
"Well, you're actually pretty good. More practice to get it automated, but a lot better than average. You've done this before?"
Yeah. A few times as a child. Most of it free climbing. The safety rules weren't very strict.
"It shows. Be careful, you'll run out of luck eventually."
You mumble a vague agreement, then there's pause in the conversation. It grows. What are you supposed to say? Are you supposed to say something? You probably shouldn't stare like this. But what are you supposed to look at instead?
Your bag. Yes! You have a whole lot of other climbing stuff in there, and that means it's perfectly sensible to look at that instead.
"Ah, right. You bought a whole load of gear. Well, I don't really the time to go through all of it, but let me give you a few tips: The 7A series gives a great grip, but you have to oil them after every use. Brandon ropes are great, but the grip is really high. That can lead to problems on some harnesses. Be careful of stick'n'slide. When you're using a preexisting piton, do a full drop test. They get looser over time, and I've heard of people loosening them on purpose. On that note: That grappling gun stake driver thing? Don't use it. When you inevitably do use it because it's cool and expensive, make at least two extra lines, and test all of them carefully. And don't get caught, because that thing is loud, and the stone damage is illegal pretty much everywhere I'd care to climb."
At that point she actually has to take a breath, but such base urges don't hold her back for long. It's nice to see her so excited to talk to you. Or at you.
"The Ainar G-echo is useful when you're hitting a new wall without a guide. Sidenote, don't hit new walls without a guide. Takes a bit of experience to actually interpret, so I recommend you use it a few times on a wall you already know. Some people get snobby about it, which I can sorta understand, but it's much better than turning around halfway there because your line just ended. And for finding new interesting lines, but you should really just climb the standards first and then hit the simulator to train some of the advanced techniques before you try that. Watch Haymall for the advanced moves, he really knows his stuff. Seymore is also good, but I never got his overhand double grip thing. And he makes the same mistake as everybody else with the 48er. Like, no, don't go in that way. You need a secondary loop. It doesn't bend right otherwise. If you want do that, use a 5-series. That's what it's for! I swear, even the trainers here don't get it!"
She's interrupted in her lecture by a firm knock, and then two black suited men walking in. She's not to happy about it.
"What is it?"
"Apologies, Miss. There have been some movements, and with the recent tensions, I'm afraid you will have to adjust your schedule."
She's seems to be fighting herself for a moment. The tone is polite and deferential, but they're obviously not taking no for an answer. The answer is calm, if strained.
"Right. What about her?"
"Well, it would be polite to offer transport to her home. "
The drive home is silent. Lisa doesn't say another word until you're dropped off at one of your safe houses (because you don't give your home address to polite suited men. You know all about polite suited men.)
You're left wondering what a 48er is.
You have 8 Evilness points, and 6 Sniperness points.
Choose two actions for the next week.
[]Kick puppies some more
Fiona invited you, and it's a great idea. Except it doesn't feel all that Evil if the authorities tell you to. Maybe you should keep her waiting some more. That would be evil, right?
Rewards: +1 Evilness.Play with kick puppies again.
[]Spent vast amounts of money for... professional reasons
Buying another rifle is something you totally need. For your work.
Rewards: Inner emptiness filled. For a moment.
[]Lazy days in the sun
Cats, reptiles and Blan all enjoy lying motionless. Cats and reptiles prefer doing it under the sun. Maybe Blan will like it too? You can buy some sunning lamps and find out.
Rewards: Blan continues what he's already doing, just slightly more comfortable? Maybe.
[]Go to school some more
You have not found education to be a very pleasant thing. But you're not willing to give up so easily.
Rewards: Education. Social torment.
[]Backlog, second half
You've finished of a big part of the pile. It wasn't worse than expected. Some of it was even entertaining. You doubt the same will be true for this pile, but you were surprised the last time.
Rewards: Miss Mere doesn't hate you. Learn useless things. Maybe something entertaining?
[]Read Propaganda
As it turns out, reading history books is both hilarious and therapeutic. Maybe you'll start a collection.
Rewards: Hilarity. Might even learn something.
AN: I have mixed feelings about the climbing part, but it's already delayed, so here it is.
[X]Backlog, first half
[X]An introduction to climbing
'The usurpation of Southern Africa began with a terrorist attack on a the parliamentary building, which killed the Prime Minister. Several other important politicians and leaders died in subsequent attacks during the ensuing riots.'
This is the best thing. You will print it out and hang it on your bedroom door, so you can start every day with a laugh.
You didn't get it on your first read. You were halfway through the book until you realised that this was in fact supposed to be an account of the Unification Wars. It took another read to understand that the above must have been referring to operation Glorious Dawn. In your defense, the fighting had already gone on for more than a year, so setting it as the starting point is just silly.
That does nothing to decrease the sheer satisfaction. You've never seen Christina called anything less than a shining beacon of rightful revengous retribution and wholly holy goodness in public before. Not even Lucy could get away with that.
You'd love to call Christina a 'terrorist' to her face. She'd try to kill you, but that's pretty much an inevitability these days. Maybe you can get a package to Lucy and the other Blacks? They'd get a kick out of it. Mark as well, he never really bought into the hype.
You'd have to talk to Lucas. Though it probably gets a bit to close to the non-interference clause. If Christina found out, she'd seize any excuse, the stuck-up bitch. Maybe you should just try to point Lucy in the right direction, and let her do the rest.
Ohh, this is another good one. 'The third special army group was finally cornered at the Umgeni river, and not even their relentless savagery would have saved them, if not for the sudden technical failure of the command gunship'. The ungrateful lot never thanked you either.
You wish the rest of the backlog was as entertaining as this.
----------------------
You enter Marmuk's ten minutes before closing. Tall Girl is sweeping the floor. Weird. Maybe they're old fashioned.
You're not sure what you're supposed to do now. Hasn't she noticed you yet? Should you say something? Would that be rude? Would it be rude not to say anything?
You fidget a bit, before you make the decision to just stand there as conspicuously has possible. Then you fidget some more.
She's humming. So maybe she can't hear you over her music. That makes sense, she's not ignoring you, she just hasn't noticed. Would it be rude to say something? You don't want to interrupt her.
You'll just wait.
"Oh hey, when'd you come in?"
Uhm. Just now.
"Right, I guess I can close the shop now. The center is just around the corner. "
She leans the broom against the wall, grabs a duffel bag and strides out the door. You do your best to follow. She's got a long stride. She doesn't even look back to lock the doors, just hits the transponder.
At her pace, it doesn't take long to get to the climbing hall. The receptionist smiles when she sees her.
"Hi Lisa. You've got simulator two for today. Kinda surprised you're splurging on that."
"The girl bought a whole load of new gear. I'm showing her the works."
"I can see that. You must be stronger than you look, Miss…?"
Stella. Stella Reed. And it's not that heavy.
You sign in and head for the Simulator.
---------------
"Well, you're actually pretty good. More practice to get it automated, but a lot better than average. You've done this before?"
Yeah. A few times as a child. Most of it free climbing. The safety rules weren't very strict.
"It shows. Be careful, you'll run out of luck eventually."
You mumble a vague agreement, then there's pause in the conversation. It grows. What are you supposed to say? Are you supposed to say something? You probably shouldn't stare like this. But what are you supposed to look at instead?
Your bag. Yes! You have a whole lot of other climbing stuff in there, and that means it's perfectly sensible to look at that instead.
"Ah, right. You bought a whole load of gear. Well, I don't really the time to go through all of it, but let me give you a few tips: The 7A series gives a great grip, but you have to oil them after every use. Brandon ropes are great, but the grip is really high. That can lead to problems on some harnesses. Be careful of stick'n'slide. When you're using a preexisting piton, do a full drop test. They get looser over time, and I've heard of people loosening them on purpose. On that note: That grappling gun stake driver thing? Don't use it. When you inevitably do use it because it's cool and expensive, make at least two extra lines, and test all of them carefully. And don't get caught, because that thing is loud, and the stone damage is illegal pretty much everywhere I'd care to climb."
At that point she actually has to take a breath, but such base urges don't hold her back for long. It's nice to see her so excited to talk to you. Or at you.
"The Ainar G-echo is useful when you're hitting a new wall without a guide. Sidenote, don't hit new walls without a guide. Takes a bit of experience to actually interpret, so I recommend you use it a few times on a wall you already know. Some people get snobby about it, which I can sorta understand, but it's much better than turning around halfway there because your line just ended. And for finding new interesting lines, but you should really just climb the standards first and then hit the simulator to train some of the advanced techniques before you try that. Watch Haymall for the advanced moves, he really knows his stuff. Seymore is also good, but I never got his overhand double grip thing. And he makes the same mistake as everybody else with the 48er. Like, no, don't go in that way. You need a secondary loop. It doesn't bend right otherwise. If you want do that, use a 5-series. That's what it's for! I swear, even the trainers here don't get it!"
She's interrupted in her lecture by a firm knock, and then two black suited men walking in. She's not to happy about it.
"What is it?"
"Apologies, Miss. There have been some movements, and with the recent tensions, I'm afraid you will have to adjust your schedule."
She's seems to be fighting herself for a moment. The tone is polite and deferential, but they're obviously not taking no for an answer. The answer is calm, if strained.
"Right. What about her?"
"Well, it would be polite to offer transport to her home. "
The drive home is silent. Lisa doesn't say another word until you're dropped off at one of your safe houses (because you don't give your home address to polite suited men. You know all about polite suited men.)
You're left wondering what a 48er is.
You have 8 Evilness points, and 6 Sniperness points.
Choose two actions for the next week.
[]Kick puppies some more
Fiona invited you, and it's a great idea. Except it doesn't feel all that Evil if the authorities tell you to. Maybe you should keep her waiting some more. That would be evil, right?
Rewards: +1 Evilness.
[]Spent vast amounts of money for... professional reasons
Buying another rifle is something you totally need. For your work.
Rewards: Inner emptiness filled. For a moment.
[]Lazy days in the sun
Cats, reptiles and Blan all enjoy lying motionless. Cats and reptiles prefer doing it under the sun. Maybe Blan will like it too? You can buy some sunning lamps and find out.
Rewards: Blan continues what he's already doing, just slightly more comfortable? Maybe.
[]Go to school some more
You have not found education to be a very pleasant thing. But you're not willing to give up so easily.
Rewards: Education. Social torment.
[]Backlog, second half
You've finished of a big part of the pile. It wasn't worse than expected. Some of it was even entertaining. You doubt the same will be true for this pile, but you were surprised the last time.
Rewards: Miss Mere doesn't hate you. Learn useless things. Maybe something entertaining?
[]Read Propaganda
As it turns out, reading history books is both hilarious and therapeutic. Maybe you'll start a collection.
Rewards: Hilarity. Might even learn something.
AN: I have mixed feelings about the climbing part, but it's already delayed, so here it is.