Siren's Pull

[Heeere's Washu, beaming at everyone.] So I think by now, we should start to see a downswing in Newcomer arrival. Hopefully, everyone's getting settled riiight in. Now, for those of you who just got here or just came back, hi! My name is Washu- professor Washu if you're one of my students and Little Washu if you're anyone else- and I'm one of the local geniuses here in Siren's Port, if not the most brilliant one. Which is relevant, because I'm hosting the first 'meeting of the minds' at the Newcomer Community Center at the end of the month. Anyone who thinks they have a few ideas to toss around or discuss with a bunch of likeminded individuals can feel free to attend- and I especially extend this invitation to any new arrivals. You might just learn something, y'know? [Grin. There's movement offscreen and Washu looks in that direction, frowning and then lowering her voice.] Hold that thought.

[A woman with a baby sits down next to her on the bench she's currently sitting on. The baby goes wide-eyed at the sight of Washu and Washu uncomfortably tries to scoot to the edge of the bench, but too late. The baby has already grabbed a large wad of her rather impressive hair and yanked. Hard. Washu lets out a squeal and the mother gasps, prying her child's fingers away from its stranglehold on Washu's head.]

Oh, I'm so sorry. He didn't hurt you, did he?

[Washu's voice goes up a few notches higher than normal, doing a perfect imitation of an embarrassed young girl.] Oh no, it's all right. He didn't hurt me at all.

Good. [The woman gasps again, attention diverted elsewhere.] Oh, look. There's Daddy. Hey, sweetie. We're over here.

[Washu seems to have completely forgotten her NV is still recording, so for a moment, everyone gets to see just the slightest look of vulnerability and pain on her face, before she shakes it off and turns back to the computer, all annoyance.] Good riddance. The nerve of that kid...

[Oh right. She was saying something. Funny how that can distract you, especially today of all days. It's a human custom- a whole day to honoring moms. And more than that, it dredges up a lot of grown-up feelings Washu doesn't want to deal with. Stupid holiday.

.... She stares at the NV for awhile, her train of thought very clearly derailed. She covers it up sheepishly and rubs the back of her head.] Uh. Right. So yeah, think tank meeting at the end of the month. Don't miss it, 'kay?

[And here's Washu, once again typing away at her computer. Instead of the comforts of her lab- which is really where she would like to be, because it has most of her research, but it is not really conductive to getting decent data readings on the area- she's out in a park, kneeling on a bench. No one really seems to notice or care that a preteen-looking girl is bent over a holographic laptop like she's trying to cure cancer... Or beat Minesweeper.]

Well, the data's inconclusive, but I can tell you two things- it's definitely only us newcomers who can tell that anything's been going wrong and the Core's probably responsible. Of course, anyone with any sense could've guessed the first one and the second one's a given, anyway, although I had to eliminate the possibility of someone with time-space manipulation abilities affecting the entire city. It does seem a little too easy to blame the Core for everything, but it does give off the highest energy signatures in the city and is our most unstable variable.

[She pauses and rubs her forehead, brushing hair out of her face.]

Now the last scheduled Core flux was at the beginning of the month when the latest batch of new arrivals turned up at the Diamond. Since then, the energy output from the field hasn't stabilized the way it normally has. Either something went wrong with that last flux or the Core's malfunctioning. Whatever the cause, it's affecting the time-space of the entire city, like some kind of an feedback loop repeating the same iteration over and over. But why? It doesn't take a genius to know the Core's unstable, but for it to react this specifically... Something is either acting from within it or acting on it.

So here's the question. Did anyone who showed up here in the last month have abilities connected to time or come from a world with an unusual timestream? There could be a chance the Core didn't wholly recover from that Pull and it's trying to find a sense of equilibrium and putting us in a loop, while it sorts itself out. That's the best case scenario. I'll get back to you on the other scenarios.

[A sigh. And then... Slightly, more cheerfully.]

So... what's everyone else found- scientifically, anyway?