01 | the answers agency presents...

[elevelvetor]

Elizabeth Velveteen and Goro Akechi of the newly-formed The Answers Agency would like to announce that, after multiple days of investigation, we have found that a member of Retrospec's userbase is actually an incredibly kind person.

Silver Bells, known on the app as Gintaro Suzukaze, has done wonderful things such as:

* sprayed water on people on a very hot day
* helped newcomers adjust to retrospec
* had his nails painted a bright assortment of colors that was sure to clash with his hair to help out with someone’s bingo square
* promo’d his brother for bingo and because he obviously loves him
* rescues cats from trees on a biweekly basis
* befriends friendless losers
* lends his aid without asking for anything in return

(citation for at least two of these)

We thank you for reading and ask that you spread the good word about Silver, and perhaps share stories of your own of his kindness!

also, i (The Answers Agency president, Elizabeth) will be holding a show everyone is free to come to in Recollé Square on the 15th, at 5pm. you’ll have to bring your own snacks, but other refreshments will be provided.
additionally, those with a serious interest in becoming a detective or making their way in the investigative world should contact either myself or Akechi for more information about The Answers Agency!
we will also take cases, big or small, missing pets or stolen items, so feel free to contact about that as well.

[ ooc: replies will come from both Elizabeth and Goro (twostringsonebow)! ...and Silver, probably, damage control at its finest. ]

Comments

[matchbreaker]

Oh yeah, that's something I remembered a while back.

[twostringsonebow]

... I'm still not entirely sure I understand the concept, but it's intriguing.

[Fallen angels. Bat tornadoes. What's he got? Pancakes.]

[matchbreaker]

I don't get it either. But hey, if you're smart what do you know about bats?

i'm sorry

[twostringsonebow]

They're not actually blind, they just have poor eyesight. Most of them don't actually feed on blood; that's just the vampire bat itself, most bats tend to eat fruits and insects. Some of them can get surprisingly big.

[... That's all like, standard knowledge, and here comes the nerdy bit.]

In many myths, they're connected specifically with vampires and vampirism due to people misunderstanding how they transfer diseases. You see, they're one of the only mammals that can transfer them via aerosolization of different secretions from their body, including salvia. Oh, aerosolization simply means that it's light enough for it to be carried in the air, by the way.

In simpler words, a bat can infect a whole airplane just by exhaling.

When people come in contact with bats, whether they realize it or not, diseases quickly spread; there are even some that that are specifically born in bats themselves and most people who are infected die horribly painful, completely untreatable deaths. People infected with these diseases, which can be transferred via the air and other methods, would be in the company of others and spread it without knowing it. It was similar to the vampire's bite of legend and caused blood-related deaths as well.

[..................]

Ah, um. They swarm, but do not funnel themselves into tornadoes.

[feistytrader]

They also have lots of rabies, so don't get bit unless you want a really fun vaccination round.

[twostringsonebow]

Yes, Silver. That as well.

[feistytrader]

Look, I find our flying mammalian friends as cool as the next person, but let's be practical here.

[elevelvetor]

you certainly know a lot about bats.
does your crush have an interest in them?

[twostringsonebow]

No.
Not bats.

[elevelvetor]

oh...
well,
you certainly know a lot about them regardless. are they your interest?

[twostringsonebow]

For at least one of my night, yes.
Have you ever had a Wikiwalk, Miss Velveteen?

[elevelvetor]

not on Wikipedia proper, not in a long time...
oh! i see.
where did your Wikiwalk take you and how did it begin?

[twostringsonebow]

I don't remember where it began, honestly, but before I knew it I found myself learning about anaerobic digestion.

[elevelvetor]

do you believe humans could ever evolve to utilize anaerobic digestion?

[twostringsonebow]

[... Hm.]

Perhaps if we were forced to live in a world that required it.
But no, it's more likely that the bacteria already capable of performing those tasks will one day grow into something sentient, whether it's humanoid or not.
Again, though: if the world changed harshly enough to require it.

[elevelvetor]

what are the chances of such a thing occurring?

[matchbreaker]

Does that mean bats are just a problem, if they're spreading diseases like that all the time? And vampires came out of that, the idea of diseases.

[twostringsonebow]

1. Not necessarily. Bats help to keep the population of bugs in check, and they help pollinate as well.
2. Essentially. Despite the different origin legends surrounding vampires, they do all tend to come from areas that have bat populations... and Silver's right in that they have a high chance in carrying rabies, which was one of the diseases that perpetuated the traits of light sensitivity, nocturnal tendencies due to irregularities in the sleep schedule, etc.

[... Goro needs to rethink his life choices, maybe. Find a new hobby.]

[matchbreaker]

So Europe and the like, right?

[twostringsonebow]

That's correct, Miss Marker.

[She's a Mom. She gets a miss.]

[matchbreaker]

Oh, I thought so!

I mean there's also those chinese ones but that seems like a different thing, no bats there.

[twostringsonebow]

That's because they're more alike to zombies than true vampires, corpses brought back to life by others rather than the people themselves simply being undead. Japan doesn't have any native legends about them either, I always heard about the ones told here.

[matchbreaker]

So Japan doesn't have its own vampires huh?

[twostringsonebow]

You could say they immigrated there on the ships of the Europeans that came for trade.

[matchbreaker]

[ On boats, huh... ]

Yeah, if they really existed.

... Also wait a minute you're on retrospec?