I got a totally different one! :o

With the first gift, I thought nothing of it, but once I saw the 2nd I thought it might be something linked to the previous event!

I've got a 3rd now with a password for a USB stick and a New York area code phone number. I'm tempted to text it to see what would happen!! But I don't want to in case it's just some random person lmao. Lmao Anon told me not to contact the number X,D

Yeah, I'm pretty confused as to where I'm actually supposed to be replying? But I also got the message with the usb stick, I was soo tempted to at least text the number. XD I didn't, though, I'm too shy for that.

I don't have any puzzle-solving skills. I'm thinking the answer has something to do with the letters that are capitalized in the password hints, but I'm not sure if it's just the ones that wouldn't ordinarily be capitalized, or if it's ALL the capital letters...

If the former: ONURAOGHIEES and if the latter HONOURAMONGTHIEVIES ....oh. ahem I guess it's the latter.

is that a vaild number?

Also, my puzzle skills are rusty XD

EDIT:

( It might be a valid number in the US, but DON'T contact it. :O

It's a small Easter egg I added, just like how the phone number in the first plot is an apartment rental number in Hokkaido. It's another number in an Asian country for something else that may or may not bear significance to later events in the plot. ;)

Someone almost figured it out in another thread, but not quite. :P ))

Looks like this new phone number is linked to someplace called Xavier University (is that you, X-men? lol jk), and has something to do with helping people with depression and other mental health problems. Ahh, specifically, I think it might be some kind of suicide prevention line in the Phillipines?

edit: Also, in the United States it appears to be someone's personal/home number linking to Manhattan, New York so I definitely wouldn't try calling it. lol

I got a different message and I'm not sure if it's part of this xD

Stepping away from the crowded dance floor, you make your way to the Libertine Lounge and prop yourself a stool close to the bar, resting your sore feet.

The barkeep is nowhere to be found. Perhaps he took a break to dance for a bit. You then notice a hand-written sign reading, "Self-service. Drinks are on me while I take a break." Glasses filled with a creamy, green liquor are lined up on the table.

You overhear someone whistle at your general direction. To your side is a woman with long, blonde hair swept against one of her shoulders.

You hear another whistle. The woman looks to her left, where a man with blonde hair, clad in black, had taken his seat on the previously empty stool next to hers. His cerulean eyes dart from side-to-side.

"Hey there, sexy. You got a date tonight?"

The woman ignores him. He then steps on an empty side of the counter and jumps into the bar pit, gliding towards the woman.

"You know, I can make better drinks than the barkeep over here. How about it?" He takes a cursory look at the shelf, taking a cocktail shaker from the bottom row, and a bottle of pistachio syrup from the counter.

"He knows some sensitive information about me. I mean, I'm human, you know? I make mistakes. Some of the things I did when I was younger are downright stupid, but they can cost me my career if he decides to publicise them." She looks to her sides, possibly checking if the man is still lurking nearby. "I know we just met, but do you think you can help me out? Please?" She gives you a puppy-eyed look, complete with a pout.

It is... that was the first installment of the continuation, I think. Did you just get that today? Cause I got it a couple days ago, followed by one with the USB stick (that is the continuation of the one you just posted) and I got a third one today where the reader tries the password. Some people's second gift was a conversation with the barkeep, and I'm not sure what the difference is... there's like three different gifting threads that are all part of this same story... I think...

And may I say, I would not eat a slice of cake randomly given to me by a stranger in an internet cafe. XD But... I am wondering how one dresses in Lower Ziara in order to better fit in...?

I got it a couple days ago but I wasn't sure if it was part of this or not so I was waiting to see what other people thought ^_^

next part I got:

"I'm Anjy Miles, just as I said earlier. This is my first Masquerade, and to be honest? That guy spoiled the mood for me. All I really wanted to do is dress up and dance." She extends her arm to shake hands with you, and you exchange introductions. "I can show you to some other place in Ziara, but I need to settle a few things, first."

She leans closer to you, and rests the side of her hand against your ear, to cover it as she whispers, "Do you know how to… hack a password-protected USB?" You feel your dance partner slide something in your pocket. As you palpate for it, you sense that the object is bulbous on one end.

"Hey, don't take it out while you're here. Just plug it to a computer, preferably something connected to a public network. Don't worry if you don't know anything about this. I have the hints, but I just can't remember the actual password for the life of me." Anjy cautiously glances to her sides, again. She hands over another object. You take a look at it, and find that it's a clawed mask.

"I'll be wearing that mask the next time we meet. I have to change my appearance a bit, with that guy on to me. Actually, I can hack that flash drive on my own. But if I do that, it'll be traced to me..." She asks you if she can borrow your phone, and texts something as quickly as she can muster.

You peer over the screen to see that she saved a message to your drafts. "The password hints are in your drafts. I don't really have much time, so I left my number there too. Thank you for the dance and the help, amigo." She then runs away and blows you a flying kiss, but not before sliding a few more trinkets to your pocket.

The lobby of the venue has an internet station, but considering the secrecy with which she gave you the flash drive, it might not be the best place to get cracking at that password. You take the flash drive out of your pocket, examining it more carefully. On one side, you see a sticker with "Property of Brandon Dorian" in small print.

Close to the Atebus Shop is a small internet café, a curious little place where you can order pastries and coffee while surfing the net or whittling away at a keyboard. The faint canned music playing from of centralised speakers is occasionally drowned out by the trashtalking of unruly youths who seem to be busy playing some new first-person shooter. You rent a semi-private terminal, located on one end of the room, where passersby are less likely to see what you're doing.

You plug the flash drive into one of the terminal's USB ports. An error screen immediately greets you.

You panic momentarily, until you see a notification to the side of the computer.

Clicking on the notification prompts you to enter the password.

It's time to work your magic, or rather, your puzzle-solving skills. Taking out your phone, you look for the draft Anjy saved in your messages:

I didn't realize it was the same at first either... did you get the bag of trinkets a day or so before Masq started? That was apparently Bella? And I didn't even realize. But when I got the one from the bar, I posted a new thread and was told that it was actually more elaborate than I even realized. XD This thread and the two that are (as I write this anyone) right below it are apparently all part of the same plot...

Quote

Items</p>
<p> and
This is your first time opening this, so these items are now in your inventory!</p>
<p>Message
Finished with your business in the bathroom, you notice that the backlighting on the corridors is now bathed in a blue hue contrasting the gold embellishments of the ballroom. You overhear another conversation. Now, it seems to be between two men.</p>
<p>&quot;I&;ve done everything you&;ve asked of me.&quot;
&quot;Excellent, Dorian. You never disappoint.&quot;
&quot;I&;m expecting you to hold up to your end of the deal.&quot;
&quot;Oh? Do remind me.&quot;
&quot;Don&;t lay a finger on Anjy. Don&;t even try to go near her.&quot;
&quot;Do you really think I&;m a man of my word? You&;re sorely mistaken.&quot;</p>
<p>You take a peek at the corner, trying to check if they&;re nearby. The conversation seems like it could be compromising if heard by the wrong people. Just then, you hear a loud thud coming from the other hallway. You hide and lean against a wall, in case you might end up as collateral damage in some fistfight.</p>
<p>&quot;I&;ve made Anjy hate me more than she should. I&;ve alienated a lot of people. I&;ve done so much for you--&quot;
&quot;You shall address me as &;Master&;, at all times.&quot;
&quot;Master.&quot; You can hear the contempt in his voice. &quot;I&;m beyond redemption. Nobody will forgive me. I know Anjy also has things she can use against me--&quot;
&quot;You&;re afraid of someone like her? You&;re more pathetic than I thought you were, Dorian.&quot;</p>
<p>You begin to hear footsteps reverberate against the walls of the mostly empty hallway, and move away from the general direction of the source of the sounds.</p>
<p>&quot;If I find out that you&;ve done something to her, anything, I will kill you with my own, dirty hands.&quot;</p>
<p>You hear a loud scoff. &quot;Do it. I dare you. The world will know you as a murderous bigot, and I will be the innocent psychometrist you killed.&quot;</p>
<p>The long and deafening silence that follows is broken by a series of more hollow footsteps. They seem to getting louder, as though someone were approaching you.
</p>
<p>His stoic expression changes to one of surprise after a few moments. Perhaps it took quite a while for it to sink into him that someone else was nearby.</p>
<p>&quot;If you heard anything earlier, just keep it to yourself. Forget what you heard. Please.&quot;</p>
<p>He breaks eye contact with you, and quickly walks past you, before you can even respond to him. You make your way back to the ballroom.</p>
<p>As you ascend the fire exit you passed by earlier, you find a dark red heel left behind on one of the steps. You don&;t pay much attention to it, until you find a crimson handbag close by. Was someone running away against resistance, or were they simply in a panicked hurry? It probably wouldn&;t hurt to take both objects and give them to the concierge so that they can locate the owner of the shoe and the bag.</p>
<p>Panting after going up that flight of stairs, you pause as soon as you feel the cool air coming from a nearby air-conditioning unit inside the ballroom. You feel a faint tap against your shoulder.</p>
<p></p>
<p>&quot;Excuse me. Have you seen a woman with long-blonde hair, dressed in crimson from head-to-toe? She has a bag that looks a lot like that one.&quot;

Outfit Not Found :bowtie:

Honestly just stumbled across this board, but that is actually so cool. Took me about an hour but caught up on reading all the posts!

I think you might be replying in the wrong thread? I'm not sure, but you're getting different messages than the rest of us. Someone in the "zombies and demons" (or whatever it is) thread mentioned there were people here that were in the wrong thread. I'm pretty sure I'm in the right place... but then again there are people in other threads with the same messages as me, so idek.

Anyway this newest message! Is letters.txt a ....dang I forgot the word for it. A... cryptogram? Yes, a cryptogram. I am terrible at those (though my mom is really good at them). And of course it's an image so I can't just cheat and paste the letters into a cryptogram solver. XD K = A or I? G = A or I U = O? ugh, see I am bad at these. brain explodes

"So you're the snitch who took my flash drive." You feel a slow, albeit strong force turning your chair towards the opposite direction.

"The password is 'omerta', in case you haven't figured that out yet."

He walks past you without saying anything else. The morose tone of voice seems uncharacteristic of Brandon. He doesn't even seem to be angry at you for having his flash drive.

This is the moment of truth. From the comfort of a place where you don't have to worry about any prying eyes watching you decrypt someone else's flash drive over your shoulder, you enter "omerta," just as Brandon instructed you.

Open "Anjy"

You click on the hidden folder that didn't escape your sight to find… Why would Anjy ask you to delete a folder filled with text files? You decide to look at each of them.

Aaah, 3 new gifts! I'm excited. ^_^ I left them alone for a while because I was a bit stressed, oops. >.>

1: Yay, free drinks! Yay, new (awesome-looking!) friend! Not yay, creepy dude. We can fix that. Don't interfere - I can always butt in later. She looks like she can say 'no'. Yes - hell yes, free date! Kidding. The dude is annoying and inappropriate. I'll always be happy to help. C:

2: Down to business! Things are getting exciting already. :D

/runs out the door before reading much/ I'll edit/continue this later!

Huh, Brandon Dorian again... he gets around, doesn't he? Yay, a puzzle! ponders a bit Honour among thieves? Somehow he doesn't seem even that honest to me. xD I guess we'll see when we open up his cache of info!

3. Oh no, only got halfway through the clue I guess. D: Oh well. Learning! Pursue him! He's definitely acting oddly.

/opens up the files Aww, so many are corrupted! That's just a shame. :c I kinda like his poetry though. 'reembodied mint pony'? <3 The one labeled 'experimental poetry' is a bit worrying though. :c Hope he's alright. I'm glad I can touch type! That would have been so annoying to set out otherwise. XD

I loved getting the SAI Morse Code Legend btw! It's one of my favourite items for no real reason and it makes me happy. C:

Hmm so this plot is definitely tied to the zombie/alienn/angel plot right? ahh its kind of confusing lol i see the messages that i've received being posted over there too. anyway just WOW at all the detail being put into this and the coded text files HMMM i'll have to spend some time on these ;o

Ahhhh what do these text files mean?? Obviously, the first one is just Brandon's cheesy poetry, but that last one seems less like a poem and more like some cryptic message? And that middle one is totally some kind of code, but I'm terrible at cracking codes.

Still totally gonna take a swing at it when I get the chance. lol

Just got back from a week away - had a few messages waiting.

1. Free drinks! Yes please! I didn't interfere & then said Yes :) ❤ the art!
2. Oh, Anjy you're winning my heart! Honour among thieves? Hmm...
3. I just had to ask if he was OK. Then I opened Anjy first but of course clicked on all of the others...

The files in Brandon's USB were intriguing, at best. While the document entitled "letters.txt" was relatively easy to decrypt, "readme.txt" proved to be a more daunting task.

Who is this Master? What is this about Lower Ziara? And what could the readme file really contain? These are questions whose answers you may or may not eventually know.

With word that the Masquerade was extended, along with the influx of Lower Ziaran fashions into the Menagerie, courtesy of Adriette, fills many people with anticipation of guests from the underbelly of the magnificent lunar city. It's an unfortunate truth that abject poverty and counter-culture can be romanticised by those who do not truly understand what it means to live among the scorched earth of a dystopia.

How is it that these people were not brought to the consciousness of Ziara City's inhabitants? Perhaps this is why they chose to put up a clinic in the moon...

Just then, a stranger invites you to a dance. She hands you a bag of trinkets, and places something in your pocket. She instructs you leave the ballroom immediately, and not to take out the object she gave you while you're still within the premises.

When you leave the ballroom premises, safe from the prying eyes of any nosy bystanders, you take out the object your dance partner placed in your pocket. It seems to be some kind of rod, wrapped in white paper. You unfurl the wrapper on one end to reveal a glow stick. There also seems to be writing on the paper itself:

"You're invited to a night of music and friendship. See the side of Ziara you've never seen before. Trade the metallic colours of elite balls for the neon lights of the Ziara's vibrant nightlife. Head over to Club PLURality and bring this glowstick with you. If you're initially denied entry, tell them Big Al sent you.

PS. You might not want to wear clothing of the Overworlders. I've left behind a few things that can help you blend in on that bag."

** Participating on the link is completely optional, although story hints may be dropped there from time to time. **

After asking people who seem not to fit in the usual dress of the "floating city" for directions to Lower Ziara, something apparently only given in hushed tones and guarded whispers, you make your way to what appears to be a run-down garage, with a busted signage reading "Club PLURality." It is dark by the time you reach Lower Ziara, but there is an eerie silence in this part of Atebus, even though it is bathed in neon lights and bright colours. It reminds you of the illumination of casinos, but not quite.

As you walk closer to the door of the establishment, you notice a "Sorry, we're CLOSED!" sign on the front door. However, a touch-screen terminal seems to have been activated on the door, for you to leave messages to the people inside. It has an interface much like an old chatroom.

You def make a good point about how lower ziara's being romanticized, and it's really interesting that you put that in there (though going off of the last plot it seems just like you to do so, Anon! ) Still not very good with discord and I need to leave for class soonish but looks like it could be fun!

I got the same message as a few days ago! I love all that's going on and it's so neat. Not going to lie though, I'm a little confused. Is this all related or are there multiple plots going around? Am I even posting in the right thread? If someone knows, tag me lol. Trying my best to follow along.

This is fun!

I've not posted here yet for the new plot going around, but I just have to say that I am really enjoying it once again. Anon you go through so much work to give us a fun little twist along with our regular festivities and I just really appreciate it. Thank you so much! <3 Can't wait to see where this goes!