ninth. voice (when the system's wrong, you gotta tear it down).

[torrefied]

[Mello is all business today - it's Door day, which means new arrivals are likely scanning the network looking for answers, and those who have been here may be looking for signs of those they know who have just arrived. No time like now to make his appeal to his fellow captives.]

We need better documentation. I know this isn't the first time I've said this, and it's maybe even more true now than before - the Null's recent contact with us and the information we've been able to glean from them makes a compelling argument for this, I think.

[He pauses, collecting the words for the rest of what he has to say.]

Frankly, we're not very well organized. We can do better than we have been. What I'm proposing is this: I want to assemble a team to collect and maintain information about our circumstances here - the entities responsible for bringing and keeping us here, their enemies, this war in which we've found ourselves caught in the crossfire. It's not an exaggeration to say that our survival could very well depend on these efforts. Now, I don't care if you have special qualifications or prior experience with this sort of thing - all I ask is that you agree to work as a team, and that if you say you'll do the work, you follow through reliably. If you're new here, familiarize yourselves with the introductory guide and the historical record. Ask questions. Bring us your ideas. If you uncover relevant information, you can contact me, Mello. I'm in the directory, under M.

Comments

[notimpervious]

That does not affect my experience and expertise. Doctorates may be meaningless in this underground interdimensional city, but I still possess all the knowledge gained through my training, fieldwork, and scholarly pursuits.

You should not take my critique personally. It is not meant as a personal attack. I am merely attempting to refine your work and make it at least satisfactory. I find it is often necessary for me to clarify this.

[torrefied]

If you find this need for clarification to be a pattern, perhaps you need to re-evaluate your approach. Surely I don't have to explain this to a scholar such as yourself.

[And it takes all of Mello's self-restraint to refrain from putting scholar in sarcastic quotes.]

sorry abour her omg

[notimpervious]

It is a pattern that you must correct, given it is your work we are discussing. My work is consistently praised by colleagues and scholars alike for its clarity and precision. Your writing is highly unscientific with a bent towards mass-market fiction. It is inappropriate for the subject at hand.

I must point out that scholarly writing is a secondary, sometimes tertiary facet to my work. Identification of victims of disaster, murder, et cetera is my primary focus.

[torrefied]

I couldn't care less about what your work entails.

[To be entirely blunt.]

My writing is unscientific on purpose, because this isn't an article up for peer review at a scientific journal. It's an informational document meant to orient new arrivals to the hazards that they're likely to face here, and if it's not to your liking, you're welcome to write your own. Best of luck on the independent research.

children pls

[notimpervious]

[Okay? She didn't ask him if he cared, but okay.]

I'm only trying to help you write more clearly. There is no need to be defensive. If you feel inclined to improve your work, I am reachable via the phones.

right. smh.

[torrefied]

Don't hold your breath waiting for me to call.