eleven ✤ voice

[lingeringhope]

I appreciate the vote of confidence, though I do understand that it was more for Sorrow than for myself. Nevertheless, we will be undertaking an investigation shortly. Our main goal is to uncover any allies the Null have in the city - this should be no surprise.

However, I will admit that we have not conducted an investigation such as this before. Our kind never had any need to. As such, we would appreciate any constructive input you would like to give, as well as any assistance you may wish to offer. We have discussed this and decided on a course of action already, but Sorrow and I have agreed that some of you may have more experience with this sort of thing. It would be foolish of us to ignore that. We are listening to your suggestions.

However, please note that I said constructive input.

Comments

[claritatis]

[A soft exhale can be heard, directed away from the mic but still audible.]

Thank you. [He's read over his notes time and again, with his conversation with Chris easily being the most useful. Everything is all but memorised by this point.]

I will admit that I have no fondness for your people and what you do, nor the reason we are here, but... if it is a matter of choosing the better of two difficult choices, this 'Null' would not be my first decision. If a side must be taken... I will place myself at yours.

[Ignis had thought this over and made a choice, for the time that one needs to be made. But, the questions.]

... How is it that the Null follow you? What are they tracking?

[lingeringhope]

That's a wise choice. To the Null, you are no more than an obstacle to be destroyed or a tool to be used. They will look for allies, but turn on them in an instant if they believe it necessary.

[Which, unfortunately, Hope has personal experience with.]

We don't know how they found us. They've only gotten close enough to attack once since we begin moving. We... have our suspicions about how that was done, but we can't be sure. It could merely have been luck.

However, they know in general where we are. Fear's powers can only take us so far, so we're confined to a large but not limitless area. That's why we are forced to keep moving, again and again, so that they will have less chance of finding us by chance.

[claritatis]

I imagined that would be the case. [He says this dryly, in no doubt that the 'gods' are the wiser choice only because the Null have no reason to help them.

The young man quiets for a moment, frowning to himself.]

Might they be following the door? A.. unique signature of some kind that it gives off due to its nature.

[lingeringhope]

It's possible. If we are being honest, even Sorrow does not know everything about the Door, though he knows far more than the rest of us. I would consider it unlikely, though - the Null weren't aware of the Door's existence.

[Though he supposes they are now.]

[claritatis]

Knowledge of the Door itself would be entirely unnecessary.

[Perhaps he's on to something, here? The communication falls silent another moment and there's the faintest sound of pen on paper. He's noting this down.]

All that they would need to do is recognise its signature energy, should it have such a thing, and follow it. They need not even know that this signature belongs to the Door.

[lingeringhope]

I would expect them to have found us more often, and more quickly, if that were the case. But you're correct, it's entirely possible - perhaps their equipment is not advanced enough to find us quickly. That idea is better than some of the alternatives.

[Alternatives which might be more possible, but which Hope would rather not be true.]

[claritatis]

If they have limited knowledge of precisely what they are tracking that keeps leading them to you, it may take them longer to narrow down your position.

[As a theory, it isn't a bad one. The Door is only one of many things that might be unique to Hadriel, however...]

Can I enquire what your 'alternatives' might be?

[lingeringhope]

Perhaps. I will admit that technology is not an area we are strong in. I don't know what they might or might not have.

They could have planted some sort of tracker here when they came before. They could have somehow laid a trap for us, trusting that we would arrive where we did eventually. They could have contacted someone here and gotten information from them. There are a number of possibilities.

[claritatis]

A tracker placed by them would allow them to locate you far more quickly than following a signal that they don't know the source of.

[Ignis would have expected them to be found more often, and more quickly with the possibilities that Hope suggests.]

And I do not believe that anyone here save yourself and your comrades knows where we are at any given moment, unless I'm mistaken.

[lingeringhope]

Unless there's some sort of interference, yes.

You are correct in that as well. Obviously we would not communicate our location to them - but it's possible that one of you has managed to do so secretly. I do not wish to eliminate any possibilities completely, not yet. Still - I think your initial theory is the most likely.