jigokucho | (post-mingle) text; un: UEHARA

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(post-mingle) text; un: UEHARA

Good morning, everyone. I hope you're well.

[read: he hopes that you're not too hungover and that none of you died out there last night.]

Despite the different clans to which we've been assigned, we all find ourselves in strange territory in Jigoku-cho. It may look close to what several of us recognize as Japan, but as you might've already discovered, familiarity does not guarantee similarity. The other day, I met a man who could have easily been from my world, perhaps even my continent or country-- only to discover he hailed from a completely different planet.

So, I'd like to begin gathering information. [He's no Sutoku, but this is important to all of them, and-- as he's been taught-- there are no shortcuts when it comes to investigation.] The more that we know about our fellow lost souls, the more we will have to work from as we learn more about this place and why we're here. We can start with something simple. If you would like, please share where, and when, you are from.

I'll start. I am from Tokyo's 25th Ward, in Japan, on Earth, in the year 2005.

(ooc: feel free to threadjack around! ✌️)

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my apologies for getting it wrong. [Even if she was just copying what Kamui said, she's still going to apologize, okay.] but it really is the first i've heard of what i assume is a nationality?

but hello! just LB is fine for me, really. but sure! again, french is not my best language, but i think i can communicate it well enough at least.

[After a few seconds, she switches from text to audio. Her French is at least understandable, though her native Norwegian accent perhaps makes it sound a little different than usual.]

So, this is what French sounds like, eheheh... can you understand me? Or do I indeed just sound like a fool?

Not at all. You had no way of knowing.

[ When they switch to audio, the voice that greets her is deep and soft-spoken -- and is indeed speaking what others would recognize as French. For those who are aware of such intricacies, his accent is more Belgium, but it's so small a distinction that only those fluent in the language would catch onto it. ]

Oh! Yes, I do. We would call this language Suresne, where I am from. It is not the language I use in my daily life, but most where I'm from are bilingual to a certain extent.

How odd, that they would be the same.

[ What are the chances? ]

[It's not until after she speaks that she realizes that there was no way he'd be able to respond to her if he didn't understand French. There's a few moments as LB feels anxious about it, but her relief is audible as Kim responds soon after.]

Haha! If what Uehara said is true, you're not even from Earth, correct? If so... that is pretty curious. I was always taught that English was the most useful language to learn, but perhaps I should have improved my French, if it's more or less, uh... ["Interplanetary" was a bit more complicated than she knew in the language, so she pauses before using a substitution.] between planets?

I'm curious, though. What's your native language?

It's more correct to say that both are my native language, in a sense. I was taught both as a small child. But for everyday use, most people use... actually, it would be easier to just speak it, wouldn't it? Everyone else can understand it.

[ With that, he switches into what is recognizably English, though true to Kamui's report, he has a pronounced French accent. It's not so thick to make anything he says difficult to understand, but it's apparent enough that it's likely the first thing people notice about him. ]

Can you still understand me, miss?

Yes, that makes sense. Since my native language is one that is only spoken by a small portion of the Earth, I was taught English pretty early on in my life.

[She's expecting his second language to be something she wouldn't be able to understand, so she's blown away as she has absolutely no trouble at all in understanding the spoken English in the least. As she responds, it's clear that English is her stronger language, as she somehow manages to speak in a perfect American accent.]

I do, haha! It seems like everyone was correct in assuming English was important after all. That's... really weird that there's at least two languages that are at least very close to identical in different worlds.

That is odd.

[ There's the faint sound of pen scratching against paper. He's got to make a note of this. ]

Maybe it's on purpose? It wouldn't do to bring us here to work together if we couldn't even communicate. [ He'll stick to English, then. Thick accent aside, it's the language he's more comfortable with anyway. ] What is your native language, then? Or... the name of your home country? Not that I'll be able to recognize it.

I suppose that makes sense? It seems as though we all know Japanese, even if many - including myself - didn't know it before. Ahaha... but perhaps the natives here speak other languages too?

[Of course, it was only a theory - so far the only native language she encountered here was Japanese, which she found in itself to be odd, as her limited knowledge of the Asian countries had lead her to believe that Mandarin was more widely spoken.]

Oh, um... my original country was Norway - ahaha - where the official language was Norwegian. But I assume since Revacholiere and French are quite the different words, you wouldn't know what I'm talking about.

[She thinks for a moment. She could try a sentence of Norwegian, but she wasn't even certain if Kim even knew any other language. Instead, she just tries to think of a word in the language that managed to remain unchanged in English, but she can only really think of one.]

Do you know what fjords are? That's originally a Norwegian word. I'm... not certain if languages are connected to geography in your world, but Norway has a lot of those, in the more northern part of the Earth.

Fjord... that word would be from somewhere on the Graadian isola, perhaps?

[ Unseen, Kim shakes his head. This is a bit above his paygrade. Above his education level too. ]

I'm afraid I'm not much help beyond a secondary school level understanding of geography. Truth be told, coming here is the first time I've so much as traveled outside of the city I was born in. [ He'd been intending to die there too. But it seems that perhaps he has. Check that one off the list! ]

Is it common to know so many languages where you're from?

Wouldn't be able to tell you, unfortunately. But again, Norwegian is such a relatively small language that I'd be surprised if it existed on another planet, heheh!

If it makes you feel any better though, I'm not that good at geography once it gets out of the continents I've been in. I hadn't really traveled around too much until I, well... found myself recruited into a company that required me to travel a lot.

I really didn't know anything about the Asian countries at all, but yet I find myself in what seems to be Japan. But, um... the hell version, I guess?

[Saying that still sounded weird to her, but from all that she had gathered so far, it seemed like it was the truth that she had to figure out how to adapt to.]

As far as languages go, I think it has more to do with what country you were born in? In Norway, people usually know about three or four different languages - if only because Norwegian is very close to a few other Scandinavian dialects. I think I've heard that Americans typically only know English, though. So, it really depends. I take it that two is the norm for you?

Oh, but I only know French because I had to learn it for my job. I sort of had a PMC based around me, for some reason? [She really didn't know why it had to be in France, thinking back on it now. Granted, she at least knew that the group's image was based more off her suit's octopus appearance more than it was actually her, but still.] So uh, sorry if I might have embarrassed myself with the French there.

The fact that this is some variation of Japan does seem to be the common consensus. It's new to me too.

[ As few of them as there are, Kim's glad that he's not alone in having a bit of culture shock. Someone as well-traveled as LB may be more used to experiencing this sort of thing, but it's a nice point of communal bewilderment. ]

No, no, don't apologize. Knowing more languages at all is impressive, and your accent was quite good. You should be proud. [ Frankly, Kim would fight anyone who tried to make her feel small over something like a foreign accent. ] What sort of job did you have, that had you travel so much? I don't know what a PMC is either.

At the very least, it's a little relieving to hear that there's at least one other person who is very new to, well... all of this.

[Because thinking back on it now, she's pretty sure that every other Lost Soul that she had met up to this point was originally from Japan. As someone who specifically specialized in adapting to her environments, it was all very disorienting!

Though unseen, LB smiles brightly at the compliment, rubbing at her cheek as she feels her face flush a little. She was used to comments on her appearance, but it wasn't often that heard feedback on her other talents.]

Oh, thank you! Heehee! I'm glad you were able to understand me, at least. I imagine it'll be hard to brush up on it here, but I'll still try to improve my French when I can.

[But right, she supposed to people outside of the industry, it would be a rather confusing term.] Oh, that'd be private military company. A military for hire, more or less. But, I failed my mission and now I'm here, heheh...

[Other people here described it as something akin to a mercenary, of which she wouldn't argue against.]

But what about you? What did you do before waking up here?

[ Oh -- a polite young woman like her? He can't help the quiet twinge in his gut as she admits her occupation to him. His experience with military contractors has been less than positive.

More to the point, he had killed, or had a hand in killing, four military contractors just this week. It's stuck with him. He kills infrequently enough that it keeps him up at night. He can only hope that this woman is the sort to do only sanctioned crimes. ]

Yes, I'm familiar with military contractors. Back home, I am a police officer -- a Lieutenant with the RCM, though I wasn't given the same assignment here. [ He pauses. ] When you say you failed your mission, do you mean to say...?

[ It's rude to ask if someone's dead. But she volunteered the information willingly, and they are supposedly in Hell, after all. ]

Ah, right, sorry. Ahah... I know it's not exactly the most reputable work out there, but it was a large industry back on my planet, so...

[LB just lets that part trail off, giving an unseen shrug. Thinking back on it now, she really wasn't all that suited to the work, but she really wasn't in a good state of mind back then.]

I... don't know what the RCM is either, but I assume the R is Revachol, yes? But a lieutenant? You were quite good, then! [She was about to say that it might be a good thing that he was assigned to something different, but LB holds that thought as she wasn't certain if he was as blase about his former occupation as she was.] I bet you have all sorts of interesting stories, don't you?

[Maybe most would bristle upon being asked about a possible death, but LB had far worse skeletons in her closet - in comparison, she really didn't mind talking about that aspect of her life at all.]

If I died? Eheheh? I'm... not actually certain? ~~[It's player-determinant, okay.]~~ I passed out after I lost the fight, you see. But either way... I'm not actually as bothered by the thought of dying, I suppose.

[ Again, her personality seems deeply unsuited for the work, though Kim knows better than to judge someone based on first impressions. But he thinks about the last contractors he'd met, the things they had bragged about --

She is not like them, he thinks. Their masks had been paper-thin. If this is a mask, then it's quite firmly affixed. ]

Yes, if you died. [ His voice takes on an apologetic tone. ] I know that's a forward question, but considering our circumstances... anyway. I hope for your sake that you're not, even if you're at peace with it. I know of someone else who assumed that they had died, but news from someone familiar with them confirmed that that wasn't the case.

[ It was him. He's the someone familiar. But it's not his story to tell. ]

[While LB did have many masks throughout her career, she was at least typically an honest person outside of her disguises. While she still wasn't especially fond of her work, though, she'd still much, much rather talk about that than the past that preceded that portion of her life.]

Oh, heheh... that's kind of you to say. [She thinks, at least. Probably in a normal circumstance, it would be the nice thing to say that one would hope that another wasn't dead.] But in all honesty? I've got no issue at all spending the rest of my time here, if I did indeed die.

[In other words, LB was actually sort of relieved to be dead if that's what decided that she had to stay here instead of have to return back to her world - she had nothing to return to, after all.

Though she's curious about the individual Kim mentions, she has no way of knowing that it was himself he was speaking of. Still, LB takes a warm approach with her response - if it was someone Kim cared enough to mention, that was a good thing, was it not?]

I'm glad to hear that your acquaintance is all right, though! Heehee! If they still had ties to their home world, I'd imagine that would be quite the relief indeed.

[ LB's answer just brings up more questions. But any of those would be getting far too personal with a stranger he had struck up a conversation with solely to discuss linguistic differences of their disparate worlds, like don't you have a home you'd miss? or do you really think you could be happy here? Kim doesn't think he could be, but nobody has ever accused him of being comfortable with change. And he knows, too, that military contractors are not people who are known for their happy childhoods. ]

Yes. It was a great relief. And if that's the case for you, then I hope you can find what you're looking for here. Would you rather stay? I'm sure it appeals to some as a fresh start. I can think of plenty who would be better off here than they were at home.

I suppose it's a little silly to say that I don't mind staying in what's supposed to be hell, isn't it? Heheh?

[And truth be told, LB wondered if she had even been here long enough to know whether or not Jigoku-cho was worse than what it seemed on the surface. But even if it turned out to be a nightmare? LB was still certain she was exactly where she deserved to be.]

For now, I think I'm just glad to get a little relief from all the wars going on.

[Even if it wasn't entirely peaceful here, it was still less chaotic than the war economy that ran rampant on her home planet. Granted, that wasn't the actual full reason for her preference either.]

Ah, but if it's your preference to return, I do hope there's some way for you to return eventually. Ahaha - even if I do imagine it'll be a while.

Thank you. It is my preference to return, yes. I know where I belong.

[ In Revachol, where he was born, where he intends to die. After that, he never considered the afterlife. He thought that he would simply disappear into the Pale, to be forgotten by all but those brave enough to sail through. Hell had been an unhappy surprise. ]

We all have preferences due to our circumstances. I can respect that. It seems... premature to say so, but perhaps there's a peaceful life to be had here.

I don't expect it to be entirely calm here - ahaha - we all have work to do here, after all.

[With the contract she was given, she could only assume that all the other Lost Souls here were similarly expected to put in the work for something they really wanted. At the very least, she's a little glad to expand her skill set in a different direction for at least a little while.]

But it's the best we can hope for in this situation, isn't it?

We can hope for something between peace and active warfare, [ Kim says dryly, though not unsympathetically. ] War is quite beyond me.

[ Or at least... an all-out war. Urban warfare is something he grew up around, as natural as breathing. But war of the likes a contractor is used to? Unthinkable. ]

I hope, for your sake, that it stays beyond you, heheh.

[And that much is genuine. She wished that she didn't ever have to know it at all, even if she supposed the experience and knowledge she gained from being a contractor would likely be a benefit to her not being eaten up completely by Jigoku-cho.]

I don't even know what I'd do with myself if it were completely peaceful here. [Which wasn't for a love of her job, rather that she hadn't known peace for at least the last decade or so of her life.] So yes, I suppose that would be the best outcome.

I think we could hope that for all of our sakes. Even those accustomed to such things tend not to prefer them -- not unless there are more serious issues at play.

[ Like the mercenaries he'd met, who relished in the violence. He chooses not to believe that of anyone unless they make it too present to be ignored. Why believe people to be monsters when he can believe them to be human? ]

If it were peaceful here, all that would be left would be to live. I'd recommend picking up a hobby.

[Though unseen, LB smiles wistfully. Even if a peaceful life was what she really desired, she wasn't certain if she deserved it.]

The sad thing is that it's been so long that I'm not even certain what I even enjoy anymore, heheh...

[Which even though it seemed innocuous enough that LB didn't feel like it was too much to unload on a relative stranger, it did reveal more than she intended to on just how sad her life really was. However, LB does at least realize that perhaps she should try to leave off on a lighter note.]

But, ah. I guess I have plenty of time to figure that much out, hmm?

[ Unseen, Kim only nods. What she says may sound bleak, but it doesn't come as a surprise to him; those who label themselves as war mercenaries rarely have what they would describe as happy lives, and he doubts that it leaves room for much beyond the job. Kim's a cop, not a soldier, and even he has precious little time for his hobbies, though he does have them. ]

Yes. My advice is to make a list -- though I rarely think a list is a bad idea. Somewhere down the line, you'll come across something you enjoy. [ Although... ] Some of the more expensive hobbies will have to wait, however. I think our paychecks are spoken for in acquiring the essentials first.

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(post-mingle) text; un: UEHARA

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