Collar Checkup Boycott

[animusmods]

Characters: open to all
Setting: infirmary; around the Tower in general
Format: party-style all week; please note the date your post is taking place in the subject line
Summary: The results of the collar boycott slowly become clear...
Warnings: standard Tower warnings
Note: You may NPC your own retrieval units.

The results don't begin to become clear until Tuesday--Monday passes more or less without incident, except for the number of orange-collared residents who miss their checks. And on Tuesday, the retrieval units are out to search for them. It doesn't seem like they were meant to recover so many, though: a clever resident will be able to avoid their retrieval unit entirely. And so, some oranges continue to have escaped their collar checkup today.

It's worse on Wednesday. Retrieval units are out and about again, but this time to try and search for the yellow-collared residents who skipped the day before. No orange-collared residents are searched out at all, and even then there seems to be enough confusion in the programming of the retrieval units any boycotting yellows can run off and hide if they're careful about it.

By the time Thursday arrives, there's a general, obvious level of confusion in the retrieval units' retrieval programming. They were obviously not programmed to be searching for so many colors at once. Some residents may find themselves being dragged in for a second collar check this week, even if they went to theirs, and the infirmary seems to be working at double time. No one even bothers to search for the two wayward greens.

By Friday the retrieval units are out in a number that seems more fitting for a small militia than anything else. Still, they seem more intent on tracking down the greens--their programming still telling them to retrieve those who were missed the day before--but they don't seem to know which greens they're looking for. Anyone with a green collar may be dragged in for a collar check, possibly multiple times today.

Saturday is chaos in the infirmary. The retrieval units seem to have entirely lost sight of who they're actually searching for, and anyone brought into the checkup room will be able to see how messy and confused it looks, with no real time to clean it and orange through violet collar fluid all lined up at once where normally only the color of the day and of the day before would be out at all. Again people may be brought in for multiple checks while those intent on evading capture can remain elusive.

But Sunday--on Sunday the entire process breaks down. There's too much volume for the retrieval units to handle, and they scatter about in a strange catch and release program, dragging anyone they catch to random places around the Tower before letting them go. They don't seem to be entirely certain of what they're supposed to be doing.

Something else happens on Sunday, as well...

Comments

[warriorscribe]

So those who can move the containers quickly should remain up here. That is...Waver, Lucifel, Sertoria. The rest of us...

*Enoch watches a retrieval unit carrying someone else downstairs. His own hasn't caught up - has it gone off in pursuit of someone?*

Should we wait until the retrieval units are in better condition? It would be difficult to meet if any of us could be carried off at any point...

[doc_brown]

[ Doc looks obviously slightly dubious at the claim of a world based almost entirely on witchcraft but then look at Sertoria. ]

Unfortunately I no longer have it! The administrators didn't see fit to give it back to me following my stay at Hinoto-Ri!

[ Which is a shame because that stealth camouflage had been damn handy. He then turns to Enoch and Rick. ]

I believe waiting would be wiser. Meanwhile I will make a list of all the instruments I need-- I will do my best to limit the list to the strict necessary, but to study the liquid in depth will require many instruments, for the most part small and fragile. Yet a few like the microscope will be bigger and heavier!

If you do go to Jason's laboratory, you'll have to carry the instruments back here without breaking them and at the same time be capable to counter any security measures you meet! Needless to say we're going to need more help.

[bashfulshifter]

[Rick stares at the wall in quiet contemplation. He can do stealth--granted, being a cat on his world was less conspicuous than it would be in the tower, but there were still advantages to being a small, lightly-treading predator. The escape, though, would be less certain; none of Rick's forms have opposable thumbs, so he can't carry things himself. However...]

If, um...if someone br-brings a f-few bags, I could...carry a--a lot of, ah, s-stuff, and esc-escape quickly...It w-wouldn't be very, um, st-stealthy, though.

[He scratches the back of his head and looks more embarrassed than usual.]

...And...well...I-I don't know, um, how well..communication...well... [Rick flashes a sad smile. His usual speech impediment is obviously a problem--but worse, if he's shifted and working separate to the group, he definitely won't be able to talk then.]

...R-Right. M-More help w-w-would be...n-nice. Should we, ah... [More hand-flailing.] ...the n-network?

[fionnuisce]

I think it would be better not to call more attention to this than necessary. Assuming they're not monitoring us as we speak--which they likely are--speaking about this on the network would only draw the administrators' attention to us.

[warriorscribe]

Yes, the network is best used for general things, or to spread information we don't want them to erase. This is best asked about by word-of-mouth, quietly, and not in earshot of a retrieval or worker unit.

[doc_brown]

I agree, the network should be avoided to speak of such dangerous things! We have no idea who could see what we post, not only the administrators but some of the less well-intentioned residents!

[immortalia]

Do you think we have anyone around here that can broadcast a message en masse to people in the tower?