On to Something

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*Arcadia, Town N°9*

Valvesteen and the lots are still clueless in their search of a purpose. However, the view has changed quite a bit!

"Hey… have you not noticed that more of them have come out of their houses?" Asked Marco curiously!

Leyla. "You're right! Though they aren't giving us any attention!?"

Nina. "I don't know why looking at them creeps me out, they're like zombies, the ones we used to play in video games long time ago remember?"

Valvesteen lets out a casual smile at that comparison. "Oh Nina! I haven't heard that word since I was a kid.

But I can see why you would make that contrast…"

"Fuck it! I had enough of this bullshit!! I'm going straight to ask them." Said Rosaleen as she recklessly went towards one of the walking citizens.

"WAIT!!" yells Valvesteen. "We'll all go together, in case something sudden happened."

And so, everybody walked at close distance, with Nina always holding tight to Grey's arm. The moment they got too close, the citizen stopped his slow walking and looked back at them. This look froze them at their tracks!

Valvesteen had enough time to describe this man's appearance in his mind. '…He's old, weary and unhealthy. His skin is almost like the ground's color, grey!! The clothes are in such bad shape, with no design whatsoever.

Nina is right, not just looking at them but even being near is so discomforting!'

As he was busy thinking, Rosaleen had enough courage to ask the question. "Hey, can you help us? We're trying to…"

But before she could even finish her sentence, the man suddenly points his finger ahead!!

Their natural reaction was to look that way, he pointed towards the end of the road where a different looking building was situated!

"…Are you telling us to go there?" She quickly said, but the man had already started walking away, resuming his ignorance to their existence.

Amare, looking puzzled. ��What's the meaning of this? He pointed there without even knowing what we want to know!!"

"How about asking someone else? If we got the same reaction twice, it means there is something there we should be checking." Proposes Daman.

Valvesteen. "You're right Mr. Daman.

Right there, that seems to be a female! You all stay here, I'll go ask."

He goes and stands up in her way, the whole time she was looking down at the ground, now she was forced to look up.

'…Almost the same remarks, though I can't really tell whether she's old or young! Her hair is very long, but in a very bad shape. These people seem to have no aggressive reaction however, which is good.' He then asks her…

"What are you called?"

She starred at him emotionlessly, with no answer…

The guys at the back were wondering what's going on there, as it took longer than with the old man!

"…It seems that she's not responding the same way." Said Rosaleen.

But right after she said so, she was proven wrong. The women pointed with her finger at the same direction!

Valvesteen walks back and without stopping he gives his orders. "Let's go, I think we're on to something important."

"Hmph!! Why are you acting that way. Tell us first what went on!" Rosaleen did not appreciate the way she keeps receiving orders from him.

Nina. "Yes Master, why did it take longer for her to point there?"

"That's because I haven't asked her about what we wanted, I asked about her name!" He responds.

"Her name!?" bizarrely reacts Danielo.

Nina. "And did she respond?"

Valvesteen. "…She did. Her name is Oumaima! That's all she uttered, or at least that's all I heard, her voice was distorted and low as if she had never spoken in her life before."

Rosaleen. "So they can speak!"

Valvesteen. "Apparently, but I have no explanation to their behavior. She did not respond to my other questions afterward."

"I mean, isn't it the same back in Babel? Beside the difference in looks, strangers do not talk to strangers, and they give similar scary looks too." Remarks Marco.

Amare. "Hmmm… that's actually right when you think about it! We were just expecting them to act the way we want."

Valvesteen does not share his thoughts on that, but he thought about it deeply in his mind. 'Indeed, that is the modern human… could these people be a representation of that? This is taking too many interesting and ambiguous turns already.'

*Couple of minutes later*

"We've arrived, this building in front of us looks quite different than the rest." Says Leyla, as everybody stood in front of it.

It wasn't that tall or large, but definitely bigger than the other houses. And quite better looking as well. Suddenly, the gates open on their own!

"Woah! Finally some technology!!" Says Danielo excitingly.

Amare. "Come on let's get inside." They hurry up to enter!

Valvesteen. "Wait!! Stop being careless and let's stay together closely."

However, Rosaleen did not listen and went ahead of the rest without them noticing. So they were forced to quickly follow in case a dangerous situation arose!

The moment they entered, they weren't sure how to react!

"This place…looks very ordinary!" Says Leyla, as their steps got slower and their eyes got bigger.

"At least it's a bit clean and things are properly placed…" Replies Nina.

Amare. "I wonder from what these brown things are made. Though it looks solid, it feels easy to break somehow…"

Nina. "Yeah right, nothing like what we have in Babel…"

It was one large hall room, with quite a few things scattered in different locations.

Suddenly, Rosaleen calls on the rest. "Hey! Come see this…"

When they got to where she's standing, her watch was already displaying this following message:

· Player: Rosaleen Elisabeth Dreitch

· Artistic tools: Pen, Colored pencils, Paper, canvas, eraser, geometrical tools etc

· Scan the tools using your watch to acquire them

· Stint location: north town, house N°89

"…What's this?" Obliviously asks Nina.

Valvesteen quickly looks at what Rosaleen is holding with her hand and connects the dots.

"..What you're holding there, are those the tools mentioned?"

Rosaleen. "I think so… I have never seen these things before, not heard about these tools!"

Valvesteen. "It clearly says they're yours, since your name is being mentioned. I think these are the tools you'll be using for the mission!"

Rosaleen puts her wrist near the tools, a green scanning light suddenly appears and magically absorbs them inside!! Then, she says. "That's about right. You lots have to find your own tools as well, they're somewhere here."

Right away they start searching. The second to find his was Leyla Kamar! Her tools were wrapped in a medium size case. The message appearing said that they're called "Traditional Make up tools + Traditional hair dressing tools " and her stint location is East town, House N°24.

She tried to open the case but she couldn't, and ended up scanning and acquiring them before informing the rest of what they are!

'..raditional Make up tools? What does traditional even mean… But at least it's make up, my field of expertise. Though the hair dressing was supposed to be Marco's! I'd rather hide that from them.'

Simultaneously, the rest have found their tools as well! All except two! Daman Harrachi and Danielo Berniari.

Valvesteen. "Who's left? Did everybody acquire his tools?"

"I haven't yet!" Replies Danielo while searching thoroughly.

"Me neither." Adds Daman.

"Hmmm! Where could they be then…we emptied the whole place of all items." Says Marco

Nina. "Yeah, nothing's here except these weird looking tables."

"Wait, there are stairs here!" Says Daman as he immediately climbs them up. The view up there was mesmerizing for the latter.

Daman finds himself looking at a plethora of musical instruments hanged on the wall, 7 of them that he had never seen the likes of which! It was only because of how one looked a bit similar to his Oud instrument, that he instinctively knew these are instruments, therefore his tools.

For some reason, he felt the need to absorb them before anyone could see.

When Danielo arrived upstairs, only one thing was left. "Did you find yours?" He asks, Daman nods with his face in agreement. "I think that thing over there is your tool."

Danielo goes and picks up a book thrown on the ground.

Titled *The Inevitable Fate*