SERGEANT NPC CONTACT

[cartesio]

The Lodge is located on the hills near the town, large and strange. It contrasts a lot when compared to the rest of the town -- its gray and white walls are quite the change from the vibrant and colorful Cartesio, the plants and bushes that are planted on the lower levels of the Lodge only make the contrast more obvious. There are many windows, but no matter how much you look you don't see anyone passing behind them. If you didn't know better you'd think it was completely empty.

But it isn't empty. The Sergeant is there.

You won't get too far into the Lodge before you encounter the Sergeant. There he is in the lobby, standing in front of a door that leads deeper into the building. No matter at what time you come or what you do, he'll always be there, reading self-help books, or with a mirror, practicing his next speech/confrontation. When he's not facing all of you at once, he seems to be easier to talk with.

Want to bother him?

Comments

[robitussin]

What have you been doing for the past seventeen months, then? Just getting ready for this?

[cartesio]

[The Sergeant pauses. He has to think back]

Preparations, prototypes about plans and that kind of thing...some stuff happened... [Stuff he doesn't seem to want to talk about] ...and then I arrived here. Spent six months doing observation and checking all I could about this town.

[robitussin]

Prototypes. Right, like the one you did last, the one Sakura and Millium were in.

[A pause.]

What made you pick this town?

[cartesio]

I didn't choose it, and I don't know why exactly this town of all. It doesn't have any particular traits, its people are bland, and the weather is inconsistent.

[...]

But if I had to guess, I'd think it's because it's a town. We needed a small community. I suppose any random town from any part of the world would have worked.

[robitussin]

Why’d it need to be small? Less people paying attention?

[cartesio]

When you want to start something complicated, you start with a small sample.

[You get it, Natalie? Like for example, before there were 22 people in the group, now this is being done with 30. It's just a slight increase, but it is an increase]

[robitussin]

...So this one is just a test run, too?

[cartesio]

Pretty much.

[What do you think, Natalie? Is it a good or a bad thing?]

[robitussin]

[Well, judging from how Concerned she looks...]

And... You want it to be bigger, next time? Bring more people in?

[cartesio]

Possibly. It's still early to say such a thing, though. It depends on how things go until the end of May.

[robitussin]

And... When you're done with the test run and move on to the real thing, is that going to be a one time thing, or do you want to organize a bunch of official ones?

[cartesio]

IF the results are what we're aiming for, I'll organize another one. And then another. And another. Until it's not useful anymore.

[Definitely not good]

[robitussin]

And... This is useful because we're ruining this town, or because some of us are getting killed, or...?

[cartesio]

[The Sergeant lifts his finger to where his mouth would be.

Confidential, Natalie. Extremely important and confidential]

[robitussin]

...Fair enough.

[She sighs, though, frowning.]

So... Do you have something against all of us, or is this an ends justify the means kind of thing?

[cartesio]

Of course not! If I had to define how I feel, it'd be admiration. [...] Towards most of you. [...] And that's only sometimes. The rest of the time all of you are awful.

[robitussin]

...No, I'm calling bullshit. If you really admired us, you wouldn't have brought us here so we could get killed.

[She's been trying hard to keep herself calm, but... Her voice rises as she says that regardless.]

[cartesio]

Believe what you want.

[He knows he's an ass and he doesn't mind]

[robitussin]

Yeah, thanks, I will!

[#maturity]