Well, trying to go upside isn't actually legal, so they're usually keeping to themselves... But it's not like the cops come around here in the slums. Maybe you can find them if you ask around? I heard they have some kind of obvious sign too... but I've never met them. [ (·•᷄_•᷅ ) ] Wanting to go outside like that scares me.
[ he has apparently forgotten they said they wanted to go themselves. good job, robot. but he'll wave them goodbye now that they have finished
and then get hit in the face with a paint can when he turns back for letting his friend take the fall for making a mess for the past twenty minutes. this only causes a bigger paint mess. Good Job, Robots. ]
The bar is tucked away in a basement, small and cramped. There's a neon sign that announces it's the duffer bar once inside and a robot bartender cleaning a glass with a cloth (always...), but other than the counter with its two barstool and a sad jukebox machine next to a one person table, there's practically no space in here. The walls are lined with pictures that seem to have been taken directly from postcards. The WISH YOU WERE HERE is still visible at the bottom corner. The TV behind the bar is only displaying static.
Other than the bartender, there's a robot slumped over the counter and holding an empty glass. It's wearing work overalls, and there's a lanyard sticking out of its pants pocket. The other presence is a second robot, wearing a more casual outfit that includes a poncho for some reason. It's fiddling with the signal on a portable radio on the lone table. ]
[ The robot with the poncho is very occupied with its radio and doesn't pay attention to Maomao approaching... seemingly. Its face turns into (╹-╹)? despite it not saying anything.
meanwhile, the robot at the bar counter stays slumped face first in its arms. neverah's method of flirting don't seem to be working... though it's the bartender that says: ]
Passed out.
[ curtly. now that neverah is closer, she can see that the robot seems to be dispensing glasses of oil. the bottles behind him all look like fancy bottles of wine and champagne, but the sticker truly advertises ALL NATURAL FOSSIL FUEL.
this means nothing to either of the girls probably, but the question of how a robot drinks remains. ]
[not this ko'd robot!! after a moment, she looks towards the bartender.]
May I have a glass instead, then?
[if they turn their back to get it for her, she's going to carefully try to take the lanyard from this passed out robot. theft is okay if you have a reason for it.]
[ There are snippets of a song that plays, along with various robot sounds. None of these seem to be what the robot is looking for.
( • ᴖ • 。) ]
I'm trying... to find my friends.
[ on the radio? sure.
The bartender does nod at Neverah's request and turns to get her a drink. The robot she's stealing from is completely passed out, so she has no issue casually becoming A THIEF.
New inventory: one lanyard! Attached to the lanyard there's a keycard for some door somewhere, alongside the robot's work ID stating they are a maintenance worker. Convenient!! She might want to hide her treasure before the bartender turns back, though, seeing as it is giving her a glass of delicious, delicious oil. It looks thick and dark.
[does not actually drink the oil because that's gross even if she's a robot now, but she does take the cup as if she's going to. this is after tucking the lanyard carefully into her pocket which i decided her dress has for this purpose.
to the bartender:]
Do you know what made them pass out...? Did they just drink too much? Not that I can blame them if that's the case. It must be terrible working in there, having to worry about the malfunctions.
Yes. In a secret signal... If they made it... [ ( ˶°ㅁ°)!! ] Ah, I shouldn't have said that...
[ The bartender is looking at Neve a little suspiciously... ( •̀ - • ) but they seem willing to talk for now ]
They're always passed out. [ it's said curtly, and now they're moving back to wipe this one specific glass that can never be fully wiped out. ] They don't talk much. No one who works in there does.
Um... I'm worried... But... They were going outside. They were going to send a signal back... if they made it far enough... [ looking down ] I can't know for sure... unless I check inside the tower... But I don't have the resources...
[ the robot's words are getting softer and softer the more this goes on.
The bartender meanwhile shrugs. (`−ㅿ−´) ]
Reckon that's something you could only know by seeing it for yourself. It's not a job I'd volunteer for. All wind up like that or worse.
[ shaking his head. and also watching neverah waiting for her to drink her oil. :/ ]
[SHE DOESN'T HAVE A MOUTH also she would not do it anyways]
I suppose we'll just have to be glad that we don't have the same kind of—
[tries to think of a way to avoid having to do this that doesn't seem deeply suspicious and ends up punctuating this sentence by placing an elbow down on the table and leaning forward slightly as if she's interested in what this bartender is seeing. does this in such a way that she accidentally elbows the cup over and tries to make it look natural. this is fine.]
—How clumsy. My apologies, I'll clean it up - can I see your rag? I really am sorry.
Yes! But... I got too scared so I didn't go with them... So they said they'd give me a message when they got far enough... but...
[ (╥﹏╥)
the bartender meanwhile does NOT look amused or endeared by this show of ya protagonist clumsiness!!! ]
It's. Fine. It happens. [ (¬⤙¬ ) he does not sound like he thinks it's fine, but such is the customer service job. he turns around to grab some cleaning supplies, not bothering to give neve the rag. He is going to aggressively try to wipe down the mess now... Messy... ] Maybe you've already had too much to drink.
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[ ( ´ᆺ´ )? ]
There could be another entrance or they get up there a different way...
[ curious and curiouser ]
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[she doesn't have any other questions, so she'll wait for them to answer maomao's last one before pulling her aside to talk about what to do.]
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[ (ᵕ—ᴗ—) ]
Well, trying to go upside isn't actually legal, so they're usually keeping to themselves... But it's not like the cops come around here in the slums. Maybe you can find them if you ask around? I heard they have some kind of obvious sign too... but I've never met them. [ (·•᷄_•᷅ ) ] Wanting to go outside like that scares me.
[ he has apparently forgotten they said they wanted to go themselves. good job, robot. but he'll wave them goodbye now that they have finished
and then get hit in the face with a paint can when he turns back for letting his friend take the fall for making a mess for the past twenty minutes. this only causes a bigger paint mess. Good Job, Robots. ]
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she will go with neve to the side ]
There was something about the maintenance staff at the bar, correct? We may be able to hear something about the Outsiders there as well.
[ maybe two birds one stone? ]
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I agree. I'd like to see if they know any more about these malfunctions, too. Since we're both in agreement...
[to the bar!]
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The bar is tucked away in a basement, small and cramped. There's a neon sign that announces it's the duffer bar once inside and a robot bartender cleaning a glass with a cloth (always...), but other than the counter with its two barstool and a sad jukebox machine next to a one person table, there's practically no space in here. The walls are lined with pictures that seem to have been taken directly from postcards. The WISH YOU WERE HERE is still visible at the bottom corner. The TV behind the bar is only displaying static.
Other than the bartender, there's a robot slumped over the counter and holding an empty glass. It's wearing work overalls, and there's a lanyard sticking out of its pants pocket. The other presence is a second robot, wearing a more casual outfit that includes a poncho for some reason. It's fiddling with the signal on a portable radio on the lone table. ]
the way i didn't get this notif
I'll talk to that one if you want to take first one.
[ let's be like scooby doo and split up gang. ]
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Do you want another?
[attempts to befriend this robot by getting them a drink with her nonexistent money]
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meanwhile, the robot at the bar counter stays slumped face first in its arms. neverah's method of flirting don't seem to be working... though it's the bartender that says: ]
Passed out.
[ curtly. now that neverah is closer, she can see that the robot seems to be dispensing glasses of oil. the bottles behind him all look like fancy bottles of wine and champagne, but the sticker truly advertises ALL NATURAL FOSSIL FUEL.
this means nothing to either of the girls probably, but the question of how a robot drinks remains. ]
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Greetings. Are you trying to listen to something?
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May I have a glass instead, then?
[if they turn their back to get it for her, she's going to carefully try to take the lanyard from this passed out robot. theft is okay if you have a reason for it.]
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( • ᴖ • 。) ]
I'm trying... to find my friends.
[ on the radio? sure.
The bartender does nod at Neverah's request and turns to get her a drink. The robot she's stealing from is completely passed out, so she has no issue casually becoming A THIEF.
New inventory: one lanyard! Attached to the lanyard there's a keycard for some door somewhere, alongside the robot's work ID stating they are a maintenance worker. Convenient!! She might want to hide her treasure before the bartender turns back, though, seeing as it is giving her a glass of delicious, delicious oil. It looks thick and dark.
Yummy. ]
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Are they going to send you a message?
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[does not actually drink the oil because that's gross even if she's a robot now, but she does take the cup as if she's going to. this is after tucking the lanyard carefully into her pocket which i decided her dress has for this purpose.
to the bartender:]
Do you know what made them pass out...? Did they just drink too much? Not that I can blame them if that's the case. It must be terrible working in there, having to worry about the malfunctions.
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Yes. In a secret signal... If they made it... [ ( ˶°ㅁ°)!! ] Ah, I shouldn't have said that...
[ The bartender is looking at Neve a little suspiciously... ( •̀ - • ) but they seem willing to talk for now ]
They're always passed out. [ it's said curtly, and now they're moving back to wipe this one specific glass that can never be fully wiped out. ] They don't talk much. No one who works in there does.
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[ Detective Maomao can be on the case ]
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Why do you think that is?
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Um... I'm worried... But... They were going outside. They were going to send a signal back... if they made it far enough... [ looking down ] I can't know for sure... unless I check inside the tower... But I don't have the resources...
[ the robot's words are getting softer and softer the more this goes on.
The bartender meanwhile shrugs. (`−ㅿ−´) ]
Reckon that's something you could only know by seeing it for yourself. It's not a job I'd volunteer for. All wind up like that or worse.
[ shaking his head. and also watching neverah waiting for her to drink her oil. :/ ]
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she is going to lower her voice ]
Ah. We were thinking of trying to get outside as well. Would you happen to know how your friend managed to go to the tower?
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I suppose we'll just have to be glad that we don't have the same kind of—
[tries to think of a way to avoid having to do this that doesn't seem deeply suspicious and ends up punctuating this sentence by placing an elbow down on the table and leaning forward slightly as if she's interested in what this bartender is seeing. does this in such a way that she accidentally elbows the cup over and tries to make it look natural. this is fine.]
—How clumsy. My apologies, I'll clean it up - can I see your rag? I really am sorry.
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Yes! But... I got too scared so I didn't go with them... So they said they'd give me a message when they got far enough... but...
[ (╥﹏╥)
the bartender meanwhile does NOT look amused or endeared by this show of ya protagonist clumsiness!!! ]
It's. Fine. It happens. [ (¬⤙¬ ) he does not sound like he thinks it's fine, but such is the customer service job. he turns around to grab some cleaning supplies, not bothering to give neve the rag. He is going to aggressively try to wipe down the mess now... Messy... ] Maybe you've already had too much to drink.
[ sternly. ]
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it would probably be bad to say their friend is likely dead ]
Could it be possible they dropped their device?
[ a look over at neve ]
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[an apologetic laugh. standing up carefully as she catches that look and taking a step back.]
Perhaps it's about time for me to take my leave, anyways. My apologies.
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I don't know... Maybe? Or the signal is jammed...
[ they are a sad, distressed robot. the bartender. Is Not. (¬`‸´¬) ]
You still need to pay for your drink. [ even if you spilled PERFECTLY GOOD OIL...
The bar is very small. It would be easy to run. Just saying. ]
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[ how do you jam a signal? she doesn't know technology.
maomao is weighing if it'll be troublesome to bring this robot with them. maybe part way wouldn't be bad? ]
Would you like to walk with me to the building? Maybe your friend is on their way back.
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