Pocket System
- Thread starter theaceoffire
- Start date
- Crossover Fantasy
- Location
- Paradise, Hawaii
So, what happens when townsfolk rumors twist Doe's Dough to be a home that sells products from Hansel & Grettle?
Kids 'Disappearing' while the Dough place sells lots of Innocent products that taste unbelievably good?
Buy the surrounding block, make it a Safe neighborhood, can you stretch the Home protections that far if you build a magic pit too? Like drilling for water?
Kids 'Disappearing' while the Dough place sells lots of Innocent products that taste unbelievably good?
Buy the surrounding block, make it a Safe neighborhood, can you stretch the Home protections that far if you build a magic pit too? Like drilling for water?
I think the Home protections would get bound by boundary lines, regardless. Meanwhile, having similar protections might well work. Since people usually Believe that they are safe while shopping... Most of the time. At the very least, not regularly expect to get mugged in the store. The Mayor would likely have the police at least cut down on that kind of thing during Daylight hours.
Something to consider is that it's a 'monsters go away' field, not a 'get rid of monsters' field. So interesting side effects will end up happening because of the push out of what is probably a more dense territory, since it's the 'bad' area of town. So probably some initial conflict among the various vampires and other demons being pushed out and where they end up trying to move into. Not discounting some of them getting poofed away, if they get trapped/stuck. Because although theoretically they should be fine as it stops spawning, it's already been shown that at least part of the setup is an aversion. Some of the other Torch Essence effects could well be akin to sunlight on vampires, and something that they get the 'feeling' of. Either directly, or just because of the aversion effect it has on them. I mean, it's not like John witnessed the exact specifics of having any kind of monster in the area/what happens if a monster tries to enter.
The area around the new bakery will likely also end up looking much nicer, much like Sarah noticed before entering their Home. But then, that's kind of been a trend, hasn't it? Systems set up to automatically repair the area/make it look nicer. To the confusion of people that might not know the rather powerful being that doesn't quite think the same as a regular Human.
-
As an aside, would a bakery treat designed to help treat insomnia be something like Doe's Doze Donuts? Sold in a Baker's Dozen dose-package.
And a general cure-all in an Everything Bagel. Also Pancake Panaceas. Pick-me ups, for the morning commute. Though they might end up being the same thing, just depending on what the customer wanted when they ordered.
Maybe 'Essence of Breakfast'. John has been Experimenting. Like maybe Steve bought one of the 'Gacha' type mods. Something like the Lucky Blocks. I think there was as Christmas Cracker item in some mod? Vaguely recall something like that. There's bound to be at least one item that can turn into one of several options in a category. Of course, he'd have to figure out how to have it still work when he leaves. Which might just end up being the setup he leaves behind handles it akin to ordering food like Star Trek's Replicator. Just... more broad in possible recipes, and not having to specify ahead of time. So no having to specify the type of tea/how it is served. Just order Tea.
Which actually brings to mind one thing: I'm not sure if that setup would allow someone to try a new type of whatever category of item the Essence is of. Like someone who never had snickerdoodles, would never be able to get one from the Cookie Essence. If they've never had it, then how can they consider it to be the most 'cookie' cookie? Even if they've been told about it.
Something to consider is that it's a 'monsters go away' field, not a 'get rid of monsters' field. So interesting side effects will end up happening because of the push out of what is probably a more dense territory, since it's the 'bad' area of town. So probably some initial conflict among the various vampires and other demons being pushed out and where they end up trying to move into. Not discounting some of them getting poofed away, if they get trapped/stuck. Because although theoretically they should be fine as it stops spawning, it's already been shown that at least part of the setup is an aversion. Some of the other Torch Essence effects could well be akin to sunlight on vampires, and something that they get the 'feeling' of. Either directly, or just because of the aversion effect it has on them. I mean, it's not like John witnessed the exact specifics of having any kind of monster in the area/what happens if a monster tries to enter.
The area around the new bakery will likely also end up looking much nicer, much like Sarah noticed before entering their Home. But then, that's kind of been a trend, hasn't it? Systems set up to automatically repair the area/make it look nicer. To the confusion of people that might not know the rather powerful being that doesn't quite think the same as a regular Human.
-
As an aside, would a bakery treat designed to help treat insomnia be something like Doe's Doze Donuts? Sold in a Baker's Dozen dose-package.
And a general cure-all in an Everything Bagel. Also Pancake Panaceas. Pick-me ups, for the morning commute. Though they might end up being the same thing, just depending on what the customer wanted when they ordered.
Maybe 'Essence of Breakfast'. John has been Experimenting. Like maybe Steve bought one of the 'Gacha' type mods. Something like the Lucky Blocks. I think there was as Christmas Cracker item in some mod? Vaguely recall something like that. There's bound to be at least one item that can turn into one of several options in a category. Of course, he'd have to figure out how to have it still work when he leaves. Which might just end up being the setup he leaves behind handles it akin to ordering food like Star Trek's Replicator. Just... more broad in possible recipes, and not having to specify ahead of time. So no having to specify the type of tea/how it is served. Just order Tea.
Which actually brings to mind one thing: I'm not sure if that setup would allow someone to try a new type of whatever category of item the Essence is of. Like someone who never had snickerdoodles, would never be able to get one from the Cookie Essence. If they've never had it, then how can they consider it to be the most 'cookie' cookie? Even if they've been told about it.
- Location
- Paradise, Hawaii
Will we see a ref or cameo of Xander uncle Rory?
buffy.fandom.com
Who worked at the CRD building.
Calax Research & Development has a lot of unowned property that awaits redevelopment.
Rory Harris
“My Uncle Rory was the stodgiest taxidermist you ever met -- by day -- by night it was booze and whores and fur flying” ―Xander discusses his uncle's double life[src] Rory Harris was the brother of Anthony Harris and uncle of Xander. He was a taxidermist who had a weakness for young women who...
buffy.fandom.com
Who worked at the CRD building.
Calax Research & Development has a lot of unowned property that awaits redevelopment.
- Location
- Earth, Sol System, Virgo Supercluster, Earth-1218
I'm not surprised that the Torches are essentially a super concentrated Holy Symbol in Buffy... which means that they actually would burn Bills by being placed in their presence.
Three fourth baked plans and feature creep.
- Location
- Here
John grinned! "This place is perfect! And so much space… We could afford this place without needing more lost grandparents?"
Jessica was watching the many MANY too dark alleys and hidden paths on all sides for some reason. "Yep." Something moved in the dark. "Apparently, properties in this part of town go cheap."
They both noticed something scratch as it got crunched in the dark, but it didn't seem to be an urgent issue.
Still! John was already walking back and forth in front of the storefront. "Needs a bit of work, but the location is actually on a fairly accessible road, ALL the back allies in this part of town are shockingly accessible… What about power and sewage? We don't need water access, since we won't be using the local stuff."
Jessica was looking skeptical as she carefully walked through the glass from all the broken windows towards the entrance. "I wouldn't trust ANY of the sewers in this town. From what I can tell, half of them are just escape tunnels and invasion vectors, corpse smuggling paths and hunting shortcuts. Power should be good though, the Mayor seems to really crack down on anyone or anything that attempts to mess with general utilities from what the locals say."
John casually wandered into HIS new bakery, ignoring the shredded scraps of door and the debris from the assaulted building. "Most of this will have to go, unfortunately. The holes through the floor and roof have let a LOT of water into the structure, and considering the mold and the things that are crawling into the basement… Yeah. best start from scratch. I'll need more floors than this anyway."
Still kind of strange how EVERY building and residence had a basement though. Most connected in some way, obvious or not, to the sewers.
Meh, more space for the BEST BAKERY EVERY! "Right, where are the exact property lines? What space do I have to work with?"
Jessica shrugged. "I bought this block."
He hummed as he moved past the old blood smears and heavily damaged side rooms. According to his Scans, no one had actually died here for over a year or so, and some of these horrific visual concerns were more or less spawned by reality because people Believed the various stories about this place.
Except those over there, someone actually died there a month ago. Gross.
Wait. "Block? What do you mean you bought this block?"
She kicked a brick fragment out of the way. "Like I said, properties anywhere CLOSE to this part of town go cheap. Dirt cheap. We own all the bankrupted and condemned businesses and properties on this side of the street. From that intersection to this one, it's ours."
John felt his pulse quicken. This whole side of the street? "...And I get to do what I want to these places?"
His sister nodded. "Yep."
Oh FUCK yeah! "Can I start now!? Do we need to evict monsters or homeless people or prior owners or squatters or something?"
System, scan EVERYTHING and give me schematics to work with.
[[Confirmed.]]
Jessica glanced outside at the far too dark and oppressive neighborhood. "No, this is… This is very VERY much the bad side of town. I haven't seen activity from anything larger than a dog since we got close to the place."
John blinked. So people were avoiding this area… Wonder why?
Meh, whatever. Time to get started! "Let's stand in the street out front, so we won't be in the way. Haven't seen any cars except for ours since we got here anyway."
Frankly it was shocking that all the stoplights worked.
Moments later, the two were standing and READY TO GO! "I'm going to build ALL the things!"
His eyes glowed.
"[[Pocket!]]"
Take it A͕̣͎̟̣̟͍̞̖̰͜L͇̟͙̪̫̜̗͢L̮̘̦̪̱̜̪͚̝͇̩͜!̧̰̦͕̖̦̠͚̰̘
.
Deeper and deeper. All the tunnels, all the pipes, all the wirings, all the foundations, all the buildings. For an instant, a pit yawned deep and hungry before the siblings.
"[[Fill!]]"
SO far down below, a layer of Bedrock. Not truly unbreakable in this place, not like back in Steve's world, but close to it.
Layers after layers of Smooth Stone, then a layer of Gravel, layers of Dirt, top it with Grass.
The suddenly appearing bright green lawn replaced the now empty street side for a moment even as John's focus intensified.
Carve paths and Craft materials to allow electrical wires to cross this property, along with new pipes for sewage and runoff water… Far more basic and utilitarian rather than the wasteful monstrosities of underground passageways this Town normally constructs.
After all, John and Jessica didn't need all underground tunnels to be large enough for 8 foot tall creatures to move about. They just wanted to ensure proper drainage, thank you very much.
Reinforcing the wiring with Gold Block Essence and the pipes with Iron, John began reviewing the Scanned schematics collected from what USED to be his side of the street.
…Uh. These were bad. REALLY bad. "Half of these buildings were just randomly constructed with crap materials… Or were they damaged and rebuilt so often that nothing of the original stuff remained? No related style or theme in the design work either, not that you could tell considering most of the stuff was falling apart."
Meh, whatever. He could do better than this anyway. "Let's see here…"
The Bakery would be in the middle, the center of the safety zone. Each building would pretty much take up the entirety of the property if he followed the original layout, meaning most of this Grass would get covered up… So let's change that too.
A series of sidewalks with customized Stone Brick paths, leading to a series of small buildings in the center of the now exposed property, Grass on all sides. Each building would have stairs, ramps, and elevators down into the actual businesses below.
He frowned even as the buildings went up… This DID expose the dirty and trash filled back alley behind this place though. And moving... Things. Gross.
"[[Pocket.]]"
There, send ALL of that mess into recycling. Along with those massive not-dogs and not-rats that had been hunting/hiding/breeding back there too. And all the bugs and stuff.
Not like anyone was collecting the filth from the dumpsters back there ANYWAY… Or, to be fair, anyone who tried had probably died by that point long ago.
As John rebuilt that street and the massive mess below it, he then quickly made a decision. "Sis, stand on the grass for a second." Might as well do the other three streets touching ḫ͈͜i̦͉̮͜ş̱̦̬̲ property in one go.
He blinked at the lack of response. "Sis?"
Jessica was still stunned, staring at the small colorful buildings now placed on a massive and immaculate grass covered property. "...I'm sorry, what were you saying John?"
Tugging her arm, he walked forward. "If I'm going to fix up that crap back alley, I want to fix up ALL the streets around here. At least the ones touching my stuff. Just stand on the grass for a second."
With only a mild amount of prodding she allowed him to guide her off the work space…
"[[Pocket.]]"
Damn, that wasn't a street. That was a series of potholes that had started a social commune.
"[[Fill.]]"
He stared at the edge of his newly formed streets where they rejoined with the local travesty to roadwork. "...Yeah, I'm probably going to have to fix at least a few roads on our way home from here. I had noticed how bumpy it was getting on the way in but seriously…"
Jessica winced. "Yeah, that was the BEST route to get here. Some of the other options were… Like this. There is a reason why we got out and walked the last two blocks."
Fair enough. "Right, I'll handle that on our way out. I'll fix up the road to our car, you can drive slowly around our store, and we'll be good."
Not to mention all those roads would now have NORMAL sized pipes and enhanced wiring and stuff, creating a natural series of barriers to anything and anyone trying to travel around down there. Barriers that would require a lot of effort and time to drill through if someone will ill intentions came along, considering how durable enhanced materials turned out to be.
But for now! "Doe's Dough will be right here, that spot will be the 'Safe Harbor' and I can set it up to sell seafood and maybe a big indoor swimming area, which will use up a LOT of the space on that side of the property, and this last bit will will have the 'Relaxing Retreat' and 'Fleeless Market'!
His sister gave him a look and he ignored it. "Water Source blocks will make sure all four places are supplied with clean water, which will save a LOT of money for pool costs, Relaxing Retreat can be a hotel that DOESN'T serve up guests as snacks, and the Fleeless Market will let people set up stalls and stuff and trade things without… You know, the whole being eaten thing."
Jessica looked at her brother… Then back at the property, new signs already Crafted and placed on each of the new buildings. "You want tons of people coming here?"
John grinned! "Yep!"
She hummed. "Then I better buy the other side of the street."
Wait, what? "Why?"
She gestured at the abandoned section of town with a bright and impossible park now within it. "Because people need to park. It's one thing to drive up and buy some bread before going home, it's a totally different issue when you are attempting to set up some sort of community center thing."
John blinked at that… Oh. "Yeah, uh… That makes sense."
Maybe he had gone a bit overboard? He hadn't even fully formed the underground facilities yet, after all. "Couldn't they use those parking lots over there?"
Jessica shook her head. "Only one of the shops on your side of the street even had a parking lot to begin with, before you replaced everything with grass. You'll need a LOT more parking, SAFE parking, if you want to set up…" She gestured at the four new buildings. "...All of that."
Damn it. "Will we have enough money for that? We still need to set up deliveries and stuff for the equipment I plan to make. They need raw materials to make Bread and stuff without me being involved."
She snorted. "When I said properties here were cheap, I mean DIRT cheap. Most only require you to pay off various fines and stuff and the bank would THROW the deeds at us. We won't need to have any more unfortunate grandparent incidents just yet."
Oh thank goodness! "Then that's fine. I'll finish up this side of the street, you try to get the buildings and stuff on the other side of our back alley, and I'll convert that entire area into a parking garage or something."
Maybe set up a cargo elevator and unloading dock over there too, so incoming purchases wouldn't get in everyone's way when resupplying the facilities he was setting up. Yeah, that would work just great!
Jessica hummed. "It will take me an hour or so to safely get my car out of the area we left it without messing up the wheels or something. Probably a better idea for us to leave together so you can fix the road on the way out, saving us both a lot of time and annoyance."
Fair enough. "I'll make sure to fix up any routes the local buses are supposed to take too… I mean, there HAD been a bus stop on my street but uh..." Yeah, this area had been VERY abandoned. "Anyway, could you please stand right over here? Perfect, thank you."
It would probably be best to line the edges of the property with some flower beds with some useful plants in them, considering how powerful Belief is here in this world too. Any suggestions?
[[Supernaturally significant plants can be found from local sources. Review them for approval?]]
Well yeah, please. Smaller than a bush, since it would be going in the flower bed.
[[Pennyroyal. Herb in the mint family. Historically used to protect against 'the evil eye' and according to superstition can smooth the way for fair business deals, while promoting peace, compromise, and help prevent fighting. Note: Pennyroyal is an extremely toxic herb that has caused multiorgan failure and death in several people.]]
He blinked… Uh. No thank you?
Seriously, that sounded perfect right up until you got to the multiorgan failure and death bit. If John planted that stuff, his sister would throw a fit!
[[...Chamomile. The daisy-like flower is considered one of nature's most powerful prosperity herbs. Rumored to attract money when the hands are washed in a chamomile infusion, and small bouquets of chamomile or chamomile sachets are believed to attract money to a place of business. Chamomile also aids sleep and relaxation when used as tea and is safe to consume and is considered delicious. Note: Harvest the blossoms at their peak and dry them quickly to store for tea. Chamomile spreads easily, but it's a pleasant-smelling addition to a wilder landscape.]]
Yeah, suggest more stuff like THAT, please and thank you. No more organ rotting plants, por favor.
[[Confirmed.]]
Shesh, was his System TRYING to get him in trouble? "Right, it will be easy enough to set up Redstone Lamps for light within the stuff underground, which will hopefully have the same purification and protection effect as Torches while still letting people turn them on and off with light switches…"
He hummed. "But even though some will be eternally lit in the public areas, it only prevents the CREATION of 'hostile mobs'. Technically. If someone is trying to escape and they come to our new place, a determined enough monster or creature or person could theoretically ignore their instincts and logic and keep chasing them down."
Jessica narrowed her eyes. "Does our [[Home]] have the same issues?"
John waved that off. "Nah, our [[Home]] keeps out intruders and stuff FAR more aggressively, to the point of being able to take lethal measures against anything hostile enough that tries to invade it. But this place doesn't COUNT as a home! And since businesses and hotels don't get the same kind of innate protection that a home gets, we need an alternative defensive strategy."
His sister considered the issue while he continued construction underground, reinforcing materials along the way while modifying the layout of the underground electrical grid and piping network, as he allowed his System to drone on in the background suggesting plants for various parts of the new facilities.
She eventually nodded, but seemed hesitant. "Alright, so we need something to keep our future business and customers safe. What are you suggesting? For a 'defensive strategy' I mean."
John pulled out a pumpkin, carving it by Collecting the excess material and the insides! "Steve told me about these things called Iron Golems! They are these big old softies that hand out flowers to people and protect a village from hostile monsters!"
She blinked at the pumpkin, confused, but moved on ignoring it. "How dangerous are they?"
He shrugged. "From what Steve says, they just toss bad guys away. No biting or whatever, no poison or anything. Just a good toss! Plus they sort of run on magic, so they don't need to eat or poop or anything. I figure a few dozen of those could just wander around or stand watch up here and keep an eye out, you know?"
His sister gave him a Look. A suspicious one. "And they won't be influenced by being near a literal portal to hell? No golem uprising or them going on an insane rampage or something?"
John scoffed! "Nah, their Essence is too pure for that and they can resist the effects of the Nether easily enough. It's why Steve used Iron Blocks to block out the thing that was chasing us back when…" Oops, she was looking angry again.
Backtrack! "Anyway, if we make the Iron Golem ourselves, they will NEVER throw us! Just hostile mobs. Only the ones that Spawn naturally while defending a Village would consider fighting against people like us, and even THEN we have to do some bad stuff first to really piss the Villagers off first and…"
He paused his rambling as Jessica held up a hand.
She took a calming breath. "Will they attack Bills and monsters like those non-dog things that had been hunting us earlier?"
John nodded. Uh, though technically? "Not ALL Bills and Billettes and demons and dog sized creatures and abominations and layers and whatever… Just the ones that are Hostile. To us, the location they protect, or the non-Hostile people within."
After all, the golems were anti-hostility, not racist. Or specist. Demonist? Whatever.
Besides: If you were a local demon or a Bill or whatever and you could avoid being a bitch, just come right on in! Buy some Bread and some Cookies, your money's always good here!
…Although for a newly born Bill or Billette, being non-Hostile was very unlikely. After all, most new vampires would be born hungry and surrounded by bad influences and 'prey' and stuff according to what his System had researched.
And after you were born eating a bunch of victims and innocents, it was highly improbable that you would eventually become a decent person. Not impossible, but uh… Yeah.
Jessica was looking exasperated. "Focus, John. If I let you make Iron Golems, can they protect this place without becoming a bigger problem than what we are trying to fix?"
Hmm? "Yeah, it should be fine. And I've got lots of pumpkins, so we're good there."
She blinked, looking at the newly carved Pumpkin in his hands. "Pumpkins?"
John nodded as he put it away and got a fresh Pumpkin to work with. "Yep! Put some carved pumpkins on some iron and BAM! One Iron Golem crafted, job done! Super quick and easy."
Jessica watched him 'carve' the new gourd and hesitated. "Well… It shouldn't be TOO hard to squish a pumpkin if they get out of hand… Fine. You can make some Iron Golems. Just keep an eye on them, okay?"
Sweet! "Alright, I should have most of the overall work done in another half hour or so. Then we can fix the nearby streets, get back to the car, and repair some roads until we get back and buy the area over there for setting up a parking garage.
It should be pretty easy, for some reason John had some VERY complicated schematics for parking available already thanks to the System.
…Wonder how many Iron Golems he could fit inside of one if they were put into 'Standby and Guard' mode? Hmm.
Jessica was watching the many MANY too dark alleys and hidden paths on all sides for some reason. "Yep." Something moved in the dark. "Apparently, properties in this part of town go cheap."
They both noticed something scratch as it got crunched in the dark, but it didn't seem to be an urgent issue.
Still! John was already walking back and forth in front of the storefront. "Needs a bit of work, but the location is actually on a fairly accessible road, ALL the back allies in this part of town are shockingly accessible… What about power and sewage? We don't need water access, since we won't be using the local stuff."
Jessica was looking skeptical as she carefully walked through the glass from all the broken windows towards the entrance. "I wouldn't trust ANY of the sewers in this town. From what I can tell, half of them are just escape tunnels and invasion vectors, corpse smuggling paths and hunting shortcuts. Power should be good though, the Mayor seems to really crack down on anyone or anything that attempts to mess with general utilities from what the locals say."
John casually wandered into HIS new bakery, ignoring the shredded scraps of door and the debris from the assaulted building. "Most of this will have to go, unfortunately. The holes through the floor and roof have let a LOT of water into the structure, and considering the mold and the things that are crawling into the basement… Yeah. best start from scratch. I'll need more floors than this anyway."
Still kind of strange how EVERY building and residence had a basement though. Most connected in some way, obvious or not, to the sewers.
Meh, more space for the BEST BAKERY EVERY! "Right, where are the exact property lines? What space do I have to work with?"
Jessica shrugged. "I bought this block."
He hummed as he moved past the old blood smears and heavily damaged side rooms. According to his Scans, no one had actually died here for over a year or so, and some of these horrific visual concerns were more or less spawned by reality because people Believed the various stories about this place.
Except those over there, someone actually died there a month ago. Gross.
Wait. "Block? What do you mean you bought this block?"
She kicked a brick fragment out of the way. "Like I said, properties anywhere CLOSE to this part of town go cheap. Dirt cheap. We own all the bankrupted and condemned businesses and properties on this side of the street. From that intersection to this one, it's ours."
John felt his pulse quicken. This whole side of the street? "...And I get to do what I want to these places?"
His sister nodded. "Yep."
Oh FUCK yeah! "Can I start now!? Do we need to evict monsters or homeless people or prior owners or squatters or something?"
System, scan EVERYTHING and give me schematics to work with.
[[Confirmed.]]
Jessica glanced outside at the far too dark and oppressive neighborhood. "No, this is… This is very VERY much the bad side of town. I haven't seen activity from anything larger than a dog since we got close to the place."
John blinked. So people were avoiding this area… Wonder why?
Meh, whatever. Time to get started! "Let's stand in the street out front, so we won't be in the way. Haven't seen any cars except for ours since we got here anyway."
Frankly it was shocking that all the stoplights worked.
Moments later, the two were standing and READY TO GO! "I'm going to build ALL the things!"
His eyes glowed.
"[[Pocket!]]"
Take it A͕̣͎̟̣̟͍̞̖̰͜L͇̟͙̪̫̜̗͢L̮̘̦̪̱̜̪͚̝͇̩͜!̧̰̦͕̖̦̠͚̰̘
.
Deeper and deeper. All the tunnels, all the pipes, all the wirings, all the foundations, all the buildings. For an instant, a pit yawned deep and hungry before the siblings.
"[[Fill!]]"
SO far down below, a layer of Bedrock. Not truly unbreakable in this place, not like back in Steve's world, but close to it.
Layers after layers of Smooth Stone, then a layer of Gravel, layers of Dirt, top it with Grass.
The suddenly appearing bright green lawn replaced the now empty street side for a moment even as John's focus intensified.
Carve paths and Craft materials to allow electrical wires to cross this property, along with new pipes for sewage and runoff water… Far more basic and utilitarian rather than the wasteful monstrosities of underground passageways this Town normally constructs.
After all, John and Jessica didn't need all underground tunnels to be large enough for 8 foot tall creatures to move about. They just wanted to ensure proper drainage, thank you very much.
Reinforcing the wiring with Gold Block Essence and the pipes with Iron, John began reviewing the Scanned schematics collected from what USED to be his side of the street.
…Uh. These were bad. REALLY bad. "Half of these buildings were just randomly constructed with crap materials… Or were they damaged and rebuilt so often that nothing of the original stuff remained? No related style or theme in the design work either, not that you could tell considering most of the stuff was falling apart."
Meh, whatever. He could do better than this anyway. "Let's see here…"
The Bakery would be in the middle, the center of the safety zone. Each building would pretty much take up the entirety of the property if he followed the original layout, meaning most of this Grass would get covered up… So let's change that too.
A series of sidewalks with customized Stone Brick paths, leading to a series of small buildings in the center of the now exposed property, Grass on all sides. Each building would have stairs, ramps, and elevators down into the actual businesses below.
He frowned even as the buildings went up… This DID expose the dirty and trash filled back alley behind this place though. And moving... Things. Gross.
"[[Pocket.]]"
There, send ALL of that mess into recycling. Along with those massive not-dogs and not-rats that had been hunting/hiding/breeding back there too. And all the bugs and stuff.
Not like anyone was collecting the filth from the dumpsters back there ANYWAY… Or, to be fair, anyone who tried had probably died by that point long ago.
As John rebuilt that street and the massive mess below it, he then quickly made a decision. "Sis, stand on the grass for a second." Might as well do the other three streets touching ḫ͈͜i̦͉̮͜ş̱̦̬̲ property in one go.
He blinked at the lack of response. "Sis?"
Jessica was still stunned, staring at the small colorful buildings now placed on a massive and immaculate grass covered property. "...I'm sorry, what were you saying John?"
Tugging her arm, he walked forward. "If I'm going to fix up that crap back alley, I want to fix up ALL the streets around here. At least the ones touching my stuff. Just stand on the grass for a second."
With only a mild amount of prodding she allowed him to guide her off the work space…
"[[Pocket.]]"
Damn, that wasn't a street. That was a series of potholes that had started a social commune.
"[[Fill.]]"
He stared at the edge of his newly formed streets where they rejoined with the local travesty to roadwork. "...Yeah, I'm probably going to have to fix at least a few roads on our way home from here. I had noticed how bumpy it was getting on the way in but seriously…"
Jessica winced. "Yeah, that was the BEST route to get here. Some of the other options were… Like this. There is a reason why we got out and walked the last two blocks."
Fair enough. "Right, I'll handle that on our way out. I'll fix up the road to our car, you can drive slowly around our store, and we'll be good."
Not to mention all those roads would now have NORMAL sized pipes and enhanced wiring and stuff, creating a natural series of barriers to anything and anyone trying to travel around down there. Barriers that would require a lot of effort and time to drill through if someone will ill intentions came along, considering how durable enhanced materials turned out to be.
But for now! "Doe's Dough will be right here, that spot will be the 'Safe Harbor' and I can set it up to sell seafood and maybe a big indoor swimming area, which will use up a LOT of the space on that side of the property, and this last bit will will have the 'Relaxing Retreat' and 'Fleeless Market'!
His sister gave him a look and he ignored it. "Water Source blocks will make sure all four places are supplied with clean water, which will save a LOT of money for pool costs, Relaxing Retreat can be a hotel that DOESN'T serve up guests as snacks, and the Fleeless Market will let people set up stalls and stuff and trade things without… You know, the whole being eaten thing."
Jessica looked at her brother… Then back at the property, new signs already Crafted and placed on each of the new buildings. "You want tons of people coming here?"
John grinned! "Yep!"
She hummed. "Then I better buy the other side of the street."
Wait, what? "Why?"
She gestured at the abandoned section of town with a bright and impossible park now within it. "Because people need to park. It's one thing to drive up and buy some bread before going home, it's a totally different issue when you are attempting to set up some sort of community center thing."
John blinked at that… Oh. "Yeah, uh… That makes sense."
Maybe he had gone a bit overboard? He hadn't even fully formed the underground facilities yet, after all. "Couldn't they use those parking lots over there?"
Jessica shook her head. "Only one of the shops on your side of the street even had a parking lot to begin with, before you replaced everything with grass. You'll need a LOT more parking, SAFE parking, if you want to set up…" She gestured at the four new buildings. "...All of that."
Damn it. "Will we have enough money for that? We still need to set up deliveries and stuff for the equipment I plan to make. They need raw materials to make Bread and stuff without me being involved."
She snorted. "When I said properties here were cheap, I mean DIRT cheap. Most only require you to pay off various fines and stuff and the bank would THROW the deeds at us. We won't need to have any more unfortunate grandparent incidents just yet."
Oh thank goodness! "Then that's fine. I'll finish up this side of the street, you try to get the buildings and stuff on the other side of our back alley, and I'll convert that entire area into a parking garage or something."
Maybe set up a cargo elevator and unloading dock over there too, so incoming purchases wouldn't get in everyone's way when resupplying the facilities he was setting up. Yeah, that would work just great!
Jessica hummed. "It will take me an hour or so to safely get my car out of the area we left it without messing up the wheels or something. Probably a better idea for us to leave together so you can fix the road on the way out, saving us both a lot of time and annoyance."
Fair enough. "I'll make sure to fix up any routes the local buses are supposed to take too… I mean, there HAD been a bus stop on my street but uh..." Yeah, this area had been VERY abandoned. "Anyway, could you please stand right over here? Perfect, thank you."
It would probably be best to line the edges of the property with some flower beds with some useful plants in them, considering how powerful Belief is here in this world too. Any suggestions?
[[Supernaturally significant plants can be found from local sources. Review them for approval?]]
Well yeah, please. Smaller than a bush, since it would be going in the flower bed.
[[Pennyroyal. Herb in the mint family. Historically used to protect against 'the evil eye' and according to superstition can smooth the way for fair business deals, while promoting peace, compromise, and help prevent fighting. Note: Pennyroyal is an extremely toxic herb that has caused multiorgan failure and death in several people.]]
He blinked… Uh. No thank you?
Seriously, that sounded perfect right up until you got to the multiorgan failure and death bit. If John planted that stuff, his sister would throw a fit!
[[...Chamomile. The daisy-like flower is considered one of nature's most powerful prosperity herbs. Rumored to attract money when the hands are washed in a chamomile infusion, and small bouquets of chamomile or chamomile sachets are believed to attract money to a place of business. Chamomile also aids sleep and relaxation when used as tea and is safe to consume and is considered delicious. Note: Harvest the blossoms at their peak and dry them quickly to store for tea. Chamomile spreads easily, but it's a pleasant-smelling addition to a wilder landscape.]]
Yeah, suggest more stuff like THAT, please and thank you. No more organ rotting plants, por favor.
[[Confirmed.]]
Shesh, was his System TRYING to get him in trouble? "Right, it will be easy enough to set up Redstone Lamps for light within the stuff underground, which will hopefully have the same purification and protection effect as Torches while still letting people turn them on and off with light switches…"
He hummed. "But even though some will be eternally lit in the public areas, it only prevents the CREATION of 'hostile mobs'. Technically. If someone is trying to escape and they come to our new place, a determined enough monster or creature or person could theoretically ignore their instincts and logic and keep chasing them down."
Jessica narrowed her eyes. "Does our [[Home]] have the same issues?"
John waved that off. "Nah, our [[Home]] keeps out intruders and stuff FAR more aggressively, to the point of being able to take lethal measures against anything hostile enough that tries to invade it. But this place doesn't COUNT as a home! And since businesses and hotels don't get the same kind of innate protection that a home gets, we need an alternative defensive strategy."
His sister considered the issue while he continued construction underground, reinforcing materials along the way while modifying the layout of the underground electrical grid and piping network, as he allowed his System to drone on in the background suggesting plants for various parts of the new facilities.
She eventually nodded, but seemed hesitant. "Alright, so we need something to keep our future business and customers safe. What are you suggesting? For a 'defensive strategy' I mean."
John pulled out a pumpkin, carving it by Collecting the excess material and the insides! "Steve told me about these things called Iron Golems! They are these big old softies that hand out flowers to people and protect a village from hostile monsters!"
She blinked at the pumpkin, confused, but moved on ignoring it. "How dangerous are they?"
He shrugged. "From what Steve says, they just toss bad guys away. No biting or whatever, no poison or anything. Just a good toss! Plus they sort of run on magic, so they don't need to eat or poop or anything. I figure a few dozen of those could just wander around or stand watch up here and keep an eye out, you know?"
His sister gave him a Look. A suspicious one. "And they won't be influenced by being near a literal portal to hell? No golem uprising or them going on an insane rampage or something?"
John scoffed! "Nah, their Essence is too pure for that and they can resist the effects of the Nether easily enough. It's why Steve used Iron Blocks to block out the thing that was chasing us back when…" Oops, she was looking angry again.
Backtrack! "Anyway, if we make the Iron Golem ourselves, they will NEVER throw us! Just hostile mobs. Only the ones that Spawn naturally while defending a Village would consider fighting against people like us, and even THEN we have to do some bad stuff first to really piss the Villagers off first and…"
He paused his rambling as Jessica held up a hand.
She took a calming breath. "Will they attack Bills and monsters like those non-dog things that had been hunting us earlier?"
John nodded. Uh, though technically? "Not ALL Bills and Billettes and demons and dog sized creatures and abominations and layers and whatever… Just the ones that are Hostile. To us, the location they protect, or the non-Hostile people within."
After all, the golems were anti-hostility, not racist. Or specist. Demonist? Whatever.
Besides: If you were a local demon or a Bill or whatever and you could avoid being a bitch, just come right on in! Buy some Bread and some Cookies, your money's always good here!
…Although for a newly born Bill or Billette, being non-Hostile was very unlikely. After all, most new vampires would be born hungry and surrounded by bad influences and 'prey' and stuff according to what his System had researched.
And after you were born eating a bunch of victims and innocents, it was highly improbable that you would eventually become a decent person. Not impossible, but uh… Yeah.
Jessica was looking exasperated. "Focus, John. If I let you make Iron Golems, can they protect this place without becoming a bigger problem than what we are trying to fix?"
Hmm? "Yeah, it should be fine. And I've got lots of pumpkins, so we're good there."
She blinked, looking at the newly carved Pumpkin in his hands. "Pumpkins?"
John nodded as he put it away and got a fresh Pumpkin to work with. "Yep! Put some carved pumpkins on some iron and BAM! One Iron Golem crafted, job done! Super quick and easy."
Jessica watched him 'carve' the new gourd and hesitated. "Well… It shouldn't be TOO hard to squish a pumpkin if they get out of hand… Fine. You can make some Iron Golems. Just keep an eye on them, okay?"
Sweet! "Alright, I should have most of the overall work done in another half hour or so. Then we can fix the nearby streets, get back to the car, and repair some roads until we get back and buy the area over there for setting up a parking garage.
It should be pretty easy, for some reason John had some VERY complicated schematics for parking available already thanks to the System.
…Wonder how many Iron Golems he could fit inside of one if they were put into 'Standby and Guard' mode? Hmm.
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- Location
- Earth U.S.
- Location
- United States
She has given up trying to stop him. She focuses on nudging his direction and calls that a victory.
Hidden One
Not the Boss, possibly a Playa
- Location
- Sol;Terra;EU;D;NRW
Now I kind of wish that the golems here can sing.
There is a very appropriate song after all considering the location.
There is a very appropriate song after all considering the location.
- Location
- US
Hahahahaha <gasp> ahem. Sorry, let's continue.
HahahahahahaHahahahahaHahahahaha...
And so on.
- Location
- France
Iron Golem being basically just robots, what are the chances that, even if their "programming" isn't altered by the hellmouth, their forms take on the appearance of Ted the Robot Stepdad (from this setting), various Terminators, or any other "well known" robot because of the Belief that, of course, robots would look like that?
We Just Write
Blatantly Plural
- Location
- New England
- Pronouns
- Plural
G: Nah, you'd get sued by Studio Ghibli.
I imagine that there's quite a few people that used those underground routes that are no longer accessible. More than just a block that is just entirely blocked off. (Which, would, at the very least, block off a direct path through the area.)
Considering the streets are being fixed up, John is, at a minimum, isolating entire blocks. Depending on how the 'official' bus routes go, and the ones that are actually used, changing when certain stops got abandoned due to danger, possibly multiple times. And John just going to fix all the routes that were made.
Along with the routes to Home. Given that Jessica is going to be driving John around the area to fix up the roads, I'd imagine that all road sections near the area they now own are fixed up. Presumably at least to the areas of town where there's only occasional potholes in the roads. And that, only if it ends up taking too long and they go for handling it later.
Something else that comes to mind in what was said in the chapter, is that how would putting the Torch essence in the various Graveyards work? Given that it's more an area thing in the Buffyverse's conversion, rather than 'in the light' ala Minecraft... Replacing any existing lighting with the Essence should easily work (rather than doing something silly like dropping stadium lighting down, not that John would do that in this case). Replacing the nearby streetlights to the graveyards could drastically cut down at least some of it, even if it's not enough to cover the whole property. There is the compounding effect of having multiple of them, though it's not clear if just replacing the streetlights would have even remotely close to the Pit's effect. Might end up 'connecting' to it, given that it'd be an effect going from Doe owned property, to Doe owned property.
The Iron Golems 'just' throwing hostiles seems like it'd be a problem. Sure, it's not a problem in the Minecraft world, but Jessica probably doesn't grok the scale there. But then, this would usually be against Hostiles, so generally stuff like Vampires or other demons. Not to mention there's probably going to be something similar to how the Torches got converted. Might end up with them becoming 'bouncers', who 'toss out' troublemakers. Perhaps literally, perhaps not.
Considering the streets are being fixed up, John is, at a minimum, isolating entire blocks. Depending on how the 'official' bus routes go, and the ones that are actually used, changing when certain stops got abandoned due to danger, possibly multiple times. And John just going to fix all the routes that were made.
Along with the routes to Home. Given that Jessica is going to be driving John around the area to fix up the roads, I'd imagine that all road sections near the area they now own are fixed up. Presumably at least to the areas of town where there's only occasional potholes in the roads. And that, only if it ends up taking too long and they go for handling it later.
Something else that comes to mind in what was said in the chapter, is that how would putting the Torch essence in the various Graveyards work? Given that it's more an area thing in the Buffyverse's conversion, rather than 'in the light' ala Minecraft... Replacing any existing lighting with the Essence should easily work (rather than doing something silly like dropping stadium lighting down, not that John would do that in this case). Replacing the nearby streetlights to the graveyards could drastically cut down at least some of it, even if it's not enough to cover the whole property. There is the compounding effect of having multiple of them, though it's not clear if just replacing the streetlights would have even remotely close to the Pit's effect. Might end up 'connecting' to it, given that it'd be an effect going from Doe owned property, to Doe owned property.
The Iron Golems 'just' throwing hostiles seems like it'd be a problem. Sure, it's not a problem in the Minecraft world, but Jessica probably doesn't grok the scale there. But then, this would usually be against Hostiles, so generally stuff like Vampires or other demons. Not to mention there's probably going to be something similar to how the Torches got converted. Might end up with them becoming 'bouncers', who 'toss out' troublemakers. Perhaps literally, perhaps not.
- Location
- Paradise, Hawaii
Is this where he finds the reskin for Weeping Angel statues?
If the area is redone to the bedrock, would underground baddies try to dig or is entry limited to sewers & streets? Are graveyards the only place they dig underground?
How well known will the rest stop become to tourists? Will residents want to move in preference?
If the area is redone to the bedrock, would underground baddies try to dig or is entry limited to sewers & streets? Are graveyards the only place they dig underground?
How well known will the rest stop become to tourists? Will residents want to move in preference?
Not sure about the other questions, but I think they would try to dig into John's changes, because he pretty much cut into a rather large chunk of area. Of course, this is presuming that they don't notice the effect of the Torch Essence/strong enough to ignore it. But I expect that there would be at least attempts regardless. If only because some of them would be cut off in their paths, depending on how/where John reworked the underground sections.
As for 'only place they dig underground', I suppose that depends on who created all the underground tunnels in the first place. At a guess, the Mayor set up at the very least the first bits. And then maybe outsource it to various supernatural forces, following a rough standard. Where as long as it doesn't collapse what it is under, it's fine.
Though part of that might explain why the buildings are in such rough shape in the areas John Pocket Processed; it was done solely for speed and ability to stand for 'long enough'. With the workers having a mentality similar to: don't bother matching any 'style', just whatever gets you out fast enough, and last long enough so you're not the one who has to rework it. Or at least, not any time soon. What with the 'sewer' access hidden in every building. With the 'good areas' getting Mayor protection so they can get it done 'right'.
verycoolname
Not actually cool
I'm reminded of Detritus the troll from Discworld. Before he became a watchman, he worked as a Splatter at the Mended Drum. (A Splatter is like a Bouncer, only they use more force.)
Vampires Bills may be stronger and faster than normal humans, but most aren't that much tougher. I'm betting the streets surrounding John's little protected zone are going to have a lot of small, oddly dusty craters.
Going to blame traces of Adam for this one. Or maybe Jessica's subconscious influence.
- Location
- Here
For the record, while John KNOWS about puberty, he hasn't actually experienced it. Not in any of his bodies.
And ALSO for the record, I'm not sure the Minecraft body counts as a body. More like a walking wheat farm.
Point is, he does understand if men or women are attractive... He is just really strongly in the 'Meh' stage right now.
And ALSO for the record, I'm not sure the Minecraft body counts as a body. More like a walking wheat farm.
Point is, he does understand if men or women are attractive... He is just really strongly in the 'Meh' stage right now.
Well, that's not ominous, no siree, none at all.
{edit} Also, I think you've got the time framing a little warped. First you're saying that it's after season 4, and The Initiative. What with them keeping the base around, but still before the end of season 7 (no narrower than that). Then this update you infer that Richy is still alive and kicking and doing his eternal Mayor bit, as though it's before the end of season 3. Now I get that this can be an Ace familiar background special... but uh... I'mma gonna ask for some crystal clarity here. How 'dat work?
{edit} Also, I think you've got the time framing a little warped. First you're saying that it's after season 4, and The Initiative. What with them keeping the base around, but still before the end of season 7 (no narrower than that). Then this update you infer that Richy is still alive and kicking and doing his eternal Mayor bit, as though it's before the end of season 3. Now I get that this can be an Ace familiar background special... but uh... I'mma gonna ask for some crystal clarity here. How 'dat work?
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Timeline queries!
- Location
- Here
Nope, haven't officially declared that. Only very STRONGLY suggested it. What IS confirmed is that the Initiative is not currently operating in Sunnydale, that the base is being kept 'operational' for financial reasons, and that messing with certain things drastically increases the potential for demonic vampiric cyborgs.
Yeah, he is. Or something calling itself him is 'alive' and potentially kicking.
Nope! We can't know crap until THEY know what is going on, and John and Jessica are very VERY distracted. Even MORE distracted than the rest of you guys realize, considering the upcoming situation. The Iron Golem bit went a bit stranger than expected. More so than I originally feared, actually.
I'm still eager to see how the Mayor is going to deal with this, but right now he seems to just be keeping an eye on things. I'll update when he gets around to acting on any of it, although certain suggestions from Jessica have actually kept him from doing something obvious just yet.
verycoolname
Not actually cool
I like the Mayor. Really, the only reason he's a 'bad guy' is because you can't make yourself into a giant snake demon without eating a few teenagers and because Buffy hurt Faith. He might be evil, but it's not personal and he's pretty charismatic.
As far as I know, John and Jessica haven't started planning anything that is a major detriment to his long term goal of giant-snake-demon-ness, and their plans are going to be good for the city, so he'll probably let them do their thing and/or quietly support them.
Jordisk
<Unverified N00B>
- Location
- Blind Eternities
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
I mean, just because it isn't personal doesn't make him sacrificing babies to demons any less abhorrent. "I am sorry, ma'am, It wasn't that I was sacrificing YOUR baby, it was that I had to use A baby and yours was the closest" is not any less evil.
BtVS really had an issue with "all males are useless or evil" as well as "all witches/wizards are useless or evil". The mayor just managed to hit both of those and reach levels of evil only matched by entire organizations (the Watchers Council, Wolfram & Hart, etc).
A powerful wizard that has some sort of ritual were the more and better his "citizens" are/feel, the more powerful he becomes, so he makes basically the ideal "small town less than a day from a city" for maximum power-to-effort? That would be awesome. Unfortunately he hit those two "useless or evil" rules.