[Private to Kon & Kuchiha;]

Look, guys!

[Do you see this? It's Toki with a handful of dirt containing a tiny plant sprout -- he makes a face at it for a moment, and suddenly it grows, roots slithering across his hands and stem lengthening until a single white flower unfolds.]

I learned to do this! It's pretty cool, huh?

[And now he tries to untangle his fingers, only to end up dropping the whole plant. He yelps, jumps, then looks down with a clearly distressed face.]

Oh. I stepped on it.

[/private]

It's pretty cold, huh? I've been trying out my power, but it's hard to keep plants alive in the snow.

What kind of powers does everyone else have? I bet we could do some pretty cool things if we worked together!

[After a long morning of wandering the gray city, slipping from district to district, god-house to god-house to get an idea of the kind of place this really is - and nothing to indicate that there will be any sudden return trips to No.6, Nezumi settles onto a shadowed bench and pulls his cloak low enough to obscure his features further.

The technology was too much like that of No. 6's, which means that for all this talk of 'gods' there was a high probability that they contained some method of voice printing or tracing technology. Reason enough to be loathe to use it.

Even so, he wants answers. Needs to see how these jesters and fools, these elite, these soldier and self-deluded saviors would respond. And honestly... better to use that then have to actually put on a smile and act the part face-to-face with nameless strangers.

Which is why he pulls up the video and speaks rather abruptly, his voice flat, slightly clipped, the tone expertly altered to not sound distinctively male or female.]

So am I really the only one wondering when the platitudes of generosity will give way to demands and threat? Or will you all be content to sit there in your respective dens of iniquity and assume that the only thing they really want of us is to bring them the benign gifts of 'color' and 'life' to their precious Holy City?

[A beat.]

How long, do you suppose, before they start purging those voices of malcontent?

[ people in Freya may have noticed Kuranosuke wandering around without his wig on, but for the broadcast, he's back in what he arrived in. for publicity's sake. and he's looking pretty serious for probably the first time since he got here. ]

We're really not going to wake up from this, are we? This actually happened? I always imagined being kidnapped would go a lot differently than this, with a really big ransom too. If some gods are going to take the trouble of whisking me off to another world, there are a few things I'd like to come with me! My wardrobe for example. I can't just start back from scratch!! A lot of time and money went into that! [ and sometimes he likes to actually dress as his own gender. ] And what about my make-up? There's a lot of people who could stand to use a touch-up by now!

Furthermore, I was in the middle of a really important business deal! I'm not saying I'm the only one but how inconsiderate can you be! Those girls could have definitely run off by now...

Ah, speaking of which. I'm looking for someone too. Specifically, a group of otaku women. I'm afraid they have turned to stone somewhere and are in some serious trouble. One likes old guys and there's one with an afro, one in traditional Japanese clothes, one with a model's figure going on about Three Kingdoms, and Tsukimi of course — in a grey jogging suit... If you've seen any girls like that, please let me know!

[This is not the first time he's woken up in a strange place.

He's starting to thing that someone out there is just toying with him at this point, but at last last time he wasn't really missing anything. This time, the timing was downright awful, and he's angry and worried as well as disoriented.

Still, he's doing his best to look friendly and smile when he turns his video on from his room.]

Hey, everyone. Looks like this is new to all of us, huh? Does anyone use this network that isn't from another world? It seems kind of weird to set something up just for us.

Also, has anyone here heard of "heaven's net"?

I wonder what kind of "fate" they have here...



Oh, yeah -- I'm Tokidoki. It's nice to meet you all, I guess.

[The video clicks on to a shot of one of Asgard's maids. You've seen them. They've accosted all you poor, hapless souls who have been brought to this place. She's smiling at the bracelet's owner, wearing red and explaining how to reach Hel's house from the Palace. After she finishes, she looks to the camera and asks if there are any other questions. The bracelet is set down on the floor, and there's the sound of rustling paper as the owner consults their map]

Oh...uhm. Yes. What's in the library?

[The voice is feminine, quiet and polite albeit somewhat monotone. The maid begins explaining, and the bracelet is set back on the owner's wrist. For a moment, all is still before the bracelet's owner swings a steel pipe solidly at the maid's head. It connects with a loud THUNK. The maid doesn't seem to notice, and keeps talking. There's a perplexed noise from the owner and she swings again, only to get the same effect. After a moment, the post switches to text mode]

There is something off about this place. Most people seem to notice when they are struck over the head, but this woman doesn't even flinch. If one can believe her, we are here for an important purpose and we might not be in danger, but this--

[Back to video - another swing at the maid's head before text mode restarts]

--is suspicious. I'm not sure how to feel, being in a place where this--

[Another swing at the maid, then back to text]

--has no meaning. It's something to think about. I don't know how anyone else feels about this place, and I don't really care much. But if you were feeling comfortable with the situation, maybe you should reconsider. Something to keep in mind.