5th (lack of sleep note) one's very own black tape. Audio at first.

[11calls]

[This post is audio, and it's coming from Alex's office and she sounds a little... forced amused.]

Okay, so I know this is way later than we thought it'd be happening, but you know given the whole half the population coming down with the virus that was released in May, and then half of us getting kidnapped in June, it makes sense that it would be. But yeah, Pokemon Go is finally a go. Go out and play it! Go Team Red! That is a lot of "goes" in one statement! [There's a little laugh, but it's not full on Alex's. As for the team, it's not Alex has biases, it's just that she's Team Red, guys.]

On a more serious note, I'm hoping that some of our really techy people will take a look at this video and tell me if there's any sign of like CGI or whatever beyond something that we would be able to use back home. [There's no CGI or anything, it's real.] I already know that it's not been used if it's from my time or whatever. Even if you can't, I'm hoping that there's a way that this thing is like IP stamped or something by who sent it to me back home, so I can prove it's them. [Because fuck Thomas Warren.]

I'm not filtering the video away from anyone, but I should warn you that it's a bit... [Alex is just going to flounder here for the right word which isn't very Alex.] Creepy. It's creepy and sort of...demonic. But I promise it's not a jumpscare video, and it was taken back home and it just showed up on my device here. [Which is why Alex is at her office making copies of it, because she knows that it's going to be a thing.]

But I really do appreciate any help you guys can give me with it. [Please ignore the slightly desperate tone in her voice, she may have watched this multiple times already today.]



[Alex has cut the part of the video that's just a minute of what seems like nanny cam footage with nothing happening. So, when the video starts on the network, it's got some sort of night vision filter, so it's easy to see in the darkness of the bedroom. There's a bed pushed against the window and a person sleeping in the bed. The camera lingers in on a shot of a foot out from beneath the sheets, before it starts to pan up the leg of the person in the bed.

Then it stops, and the camera moves instead to the corner of the room. There, in the shadows of it, there appears to be something moving. It's large, overly so, even though it's stooping down. It's a mass of black that's darker than the shadows, and there's long, spidery arms that stretch down to the floor and shake. The camera lingers on the demon for a minute, and it's also clearly watching the person in the bed. If anyone makes the effort to lighten the footage (Alex hasn't yet, because she's creeped out enough already she doesn't want to do anything that might jeopardize what data they find) they'd see much more detail on the demon: how it looks like a gnarled tree, the large and hungriness of its eyes, and the twisting length of it's fingers and the crazed over-sized smile.

The camera looks away from the demon and then back to the person in the bed, the camera slowly moving up her body until it lingers on her face. Because yep, that's Alex's bedroom at home, and that's Alex. The video stops after you can see her face, and then Alex switches it to video in her office so she can be seen, even if she looks a little pale in the bright light of her office.]

I'm fine. It happened back home months ago now. Other things happened, a lot of other things happened. so I couldn't fully investigate it at the time, but now that I've got it, and I've got you guys I figure no time like the present right? But yeah, that's actually my apartment back in Seattle, a day or so before I ended up here. Well, got my memories from home anyway. I am just seriously hoping that you guys can help.

[And a muttered:] Someone owes me a million dollars if you can't.

Comments

un: ambiguity, audio

[interconnectedness]

Is this really your best idea, Alex?

audio un:pnwsalex

[11calls]

What's wrong with it? People here have the resources we don't have at home, Simon.

[Look, she'd really like this to be fake, okay? It was in her bedroom.]

[interconnectedness]

You can't always trust everyone.

[11calls]

I don't, but I don't think anyone here is going to hurt me with this, Simon.

[It's not like she hasn't put things out on her show that would hurt her way worse.]

[Private and a while later.]
I want to ask you to look at something, but I don't want to upset you.

private

[interconnectedness]

What is it, Alex?

private

[11calls]

Will you come to my office? Please?

action because ...simon

[interconnectedness]

[ Really, she didn't need to say please. It's not much longer before he's bilocated himself into her office.

It's not creepy if she asked him to come, right? ]

Hello, Alex.

[11calls]

[Alex was on edge because of everything, so she almost jumped when he was just... there. Which of course, she should have suspected because Simon but.. yeah.]

Simon.

[Alex takes a deep breath, and then a sip of coffee, before she looks at her computer again. Where she has been staring at the screencaps since Skye sent them to her.]

[interconnectedness]

[ Simon knew he had startled her but she recovered quickly enough that he didn't really feel all that guilty for it. He's still concerned but he's also uneasy. ]

What do you want to ask me, Alex?

[11calls]

A friend of mine, she managed to lighten the video.

[Because that was one of the things that Alex was hoping would happen, and she just frowns.]

Would it be okay if I showed you the photos? I don't want to upset you or anything.

[interconnectedness]

Why do you think it would upset me?

[ He's not that easy to upset... What's the worst that can happen he start slamming his head into something solid?

He doesn't like this, though, but he doesn't say as much and simply nods. ]

[11calls]

Because it's creepy and might be triggering and I don't want to do something that would hurt you, Simon. Because these are definitely creepy.

[A beat, and she makes herself say it.]

The demon in my bedroom is creepy.

[interconnectedness]

[ Simon doesn't let much come into his expression but it's an effort to school it. He has any number of reasons to hide things from Alex, especially about demons and her room. ]

I think, I am the litmus test for creepy, Alex. Don't worry about me. [ He doesn't matter, she does. ]

[11calls]

[Alex just frowns at him, because of course she's going to worry about him. She's not going to stop worrying about him.]

Simon.

[Alex leans closer to look him in the eyes, but she doesn't try to touch him as she might someone else. But it sort of looks like Alex has been crying recently. Alex doesn't normally cry.]

Are you sure?

[interconnectedness]

[ Simon nods. ]

Yes, Alex.

[ He's still far more concerned about Alex than himself. That'll probably never change but he knows he's dispensable and the only reason he cares is that he wants to keep her safe and he wants to make sure the world gets saved. ]

[11calls]

I just want to know if the demons you see or well, saw I guess, are the same as the one in the video.

[Alex's voice is soft and she's unsure of this.]

[interconnectedness]

[ Simon doesn't answer right away but he's not upset, really.

He sighs. ]

Why do you want to know that, Alex?

[ There's another sigh. ]

Not everyone looks the same.

[11calls]

[Alex just sighs for a minute and rubs her forehead.]

It looks the same as what Cheryl described her and Richard seeing when they were kids, is all.

[interconnectedness]

Were you hoping that I would tell you that it is not a demon?

[11calls]

No. I was hoping that you'd tell me that there's just two types. The Tall Pauls like this that Cheryl and Richard and Sebastian and Katie saw. And then the Helvetian, the thing in my dream and in that Black Tape of Richard's.

[interconnectedness]

There are far more than just two types of demons, Alex.

[ Hopefully she didn't expect him to sugar coat it. ]

[11calls]

[Alex is just going to let out a groan. She didn't expect him to sugar coat it because he's him, but she was trying to be hopeful.]

Damn it.

[interconnectedness]

Did you really think that there was any other possible answer?

[11calls]

[Sighs softly.]

I was hopeful, I guess?

[interconnectedness]

and that’s one of the reasons you’re so special but...

[ Simon shrugs, looking vaguely uncomfortable. ]

It’s one thing there’s no sense in being hopeful about.