text | @need4speed

[fastpaced]

[ a public text, arriving sometime between three and four in the afternoon - in other words, peak boredom hours for your average road-tripping teenager, non-human ones included, apparently. ]

so any1 know how long this road trips gonna take?? im kinda new here

anywayz i have a complaint. driving around in these vans is sooooo slow. u would think if they can build a teleporter theyd make some faster transportation but i guess thats 2 much to ask. SHEESH

i even ran ahead to try scouting out any kaijus (ur welcome btw) and didnt find anything!

[ only more scraps of those who'd already passed on, and that wasn't fun - just sad. ]

Comments

[curingidiocy]

[ Sorry Sonic, Ratio is not the kind to linger on sentiment. ]

If possible, the locations of these items should be marked on a map. Perhaps there is a pattern or direction they are leading to. You may ignore anything that is light enough to be picked up by the wind. Their locations would not be useful for this purpose.

[fastpaced]

sure i can do that for u
u got a map? maybe one u can send to me via brain link or w/e?? or i can run over to whichever car ur in

[ the cars are driving at this very moment, but that doesn't deter him. ]

[curingidiocy]

[ Ratio sends over images of the map he has, which he has ensured are crisp and high quality. It took a little work to obtain the map, but he'd thought it better to be prepared in case the kaiju could interfere with electromagnetic devices and implants. ]

Would this suffice?

[fastpaced]

maybe this implants got some uses after all!

[ still not okay with it, though. give him a few seconds to figure out how to mentally annotate this map - a different process than the last digital map he had to mentally annotate, annoyingly enough. After a minute or two, he sends them back over with some red circles drawn in a few areas, large handwriting above them noting what he found there. A shoe; a necklace; a bag with moldy food. ]

there!
did that work

[curingidiocy]

I have received your annotations.

[ Hm. Not a lot out there—not nearly enough to form a pattern to direct their search. ]

Nothing useful. Either we are looking in the wrong place, or the missing individuals have been taken by something, or someone. It would not be possible for them to trek this far on foot without adequate preparation.

[ He wasn't under any illusions that they would still be living, but that didn't mean he couldn't try to find them. ]

Thank you for your assistance.

[fastpaced]

no prob

and yea somethings up. it doesnt make sense for sum1 2 abandon their food in the desert either. maybe our kaijus a kidnapper

[curingidiocy]

According to the beastiary, previously encountered kaiju have preyed upon humans for sustenance. It stands to reason that this kaiju is no different.

[ So, worse than just disappearing, they were probably eaten... but that wouldn't explain a total lack of evidence. No bones or leftover corpses. Perhaps Sonic is right in that the missing individuals are being taken to the kaiju's abode. There may be a cave or underground tunnels for it to hide in.

Or perhaps... ]

If you intend to continue scouting ahead of the vans, I implore you to be vigilant. No one will be able to come to your aid if you find yourself falling under the same influence as those who have gone missing.

[fastpaced]

dont worry theres no way id get caught!

[ "what's it going to do, blast me with hypnotizing beams?" - quote from man blasted with hypnotizing beams ]

wdym influence tho?
i thought u said it was snacking on ppl not inviting them over 4 tea

[curingidiocy]

[ What's with people underestimating the dangers of mind control... SIGHS. ]

As I'm sure you're aware, it has been luring people from the city into the desert through unknown means. Judging by the lack of rumours, it is likely that this ability is realized either through airborne particles causing hallucinations, or through incorporeal means, such as memory manipulation. You may consider it akin to mind control if that instills the level of caution you ought to be approaching the situation with.

[fastpaced]

hmmm idk about that... sounds like a guess to me
(not that i have any better ideas)

anyway dont worry i die hard
we r gonna have to get close 2 it eventually if we want 2 keep more ppl from getting hurt anyway
besides it might not affect me the way it affects u guys! different species n all

[curingidiocy]

[ Aeons, these damn fools. How many Outsiders enjoy gambling with their life??? ]

Do you at least have a plan should the worst become reality? It is hardly wise to take risks without planning for contingencies. Don't be a fool and gamble with your life when there is no need to.