Realistic or Modern RED EYES TAKE WARNING: a modern day sandbox project [IC]

[TheUltimateMage]

Through the city you see the faces of many people, many whom you pass without a glance.

You lower your eyes and pull down your hood.

A beggar motions to you to come closer and drop a few coins into his cup. Like everyone else, you train your gaze ahead and pretend not to see him as you make your way to nowhere in particular.

Anonymous.

Intimidating glass towers reflect the clouds gathering above and everything seems grey, grey, grey, from the dark grey of the asphalt to the sky and the concrete. Even the people look grey and weary, in their faces, their posture, their fashion. They seem to know where they are heading, but not where they are going.

It is here where you are in plain sight and yet invisible to the world. People pass by without acknowledgement, their presence fading away among the sea of passerby. Everyone is the same, pattering to and fro like a disorganized herd of dark-jacketed sheep.

But you're not one of them, are you? You're different.

Among the millions living in the city, you begin to witness some of the same people again and again. Some of the same eyes in the faceless crowds. People like you. Exceptional, powerful people with all eyes on them -- although unlike them, you don't think you're exceptional in any aspect at all. But that look you saw in their eyes when they met for an instant -- you thought you recognized it, or at least, caught a glimpse of yourself reflected in them.

You train your gaze to the ground again and continue to walk forward, resisting the urge to look back.

⛯ ⛯ ⛯ ​

 

[TheUltimateMage]

[???]

“I’m scared.”

Two women in an apartment. The one who spoke pulled close to herself the white sheets on the bed. The old carpet and the unchanged decor, heavy telephone and coffee machine imply a modest hotel room. The closed curtains did little to muffle the torrential rain outside.

“I wish, for once, that I could believe that you’re lying.” The other woman, sitting on the edge of the same bed. She looked to the side, brown eyes briefly red, avoiding even having the other in her field of view.

“Seers in history have always held a great burden. I also. Prophets have been subject to great sacrifice—”

“Don’t you dare talk about self sacrifice right now. You are my druid, my trustee, my adviser. Every ruler needs their source of wisdom. I refuse to believe in divine fate as much as I refuse to believe in divinity itself.”

The woman on the edge of the bed stood up, taking her wet umbrella from where it leaned against the door. “Even if it means betraying Chance, reducing our number to two. I will not let her destroy our vision. The Three Blind Men moniker was never meant to be accurate, anyway.”

Saturday April 14
Weather: Sunny
Time: 1:30 PM
Location: Mirage Tea and Coffee

"Good afternoon, City S! If you're just tuning in, you're listening to Lumi Nation 75.6, playing classic hits from the 80s, 90s, 2000s and beyond. I'm your host, Reys Martin, on this beautiful Saturday. It's right around 2pm and the weather's still looking great outside, sunshine and distant clouds, with a chance of light showers later in the evening..."

Brooke leaned along the back of the coffee bar, listening to the radio drone on softly. The morning was busy, but by now things had calmed down enough for her to relax. With her best but nevertheless clumsy attempt at being stealthy, she slipped her phone out from her apron more out of habit than to check any messages. Once upon a time, three or four months ago, she might have followed the discussions on doubleBlind silently and quite closely. Nowadays, she realized that the added stress of quietly reading conversations just wasn’t worth getting involved in. No more looking at that cursed chatroom. Live in the present!

Mr. Darshan really had made the place his own with the warm wooden decor and the edison bulbs hanging from the ceiling reflecting his eccentric aesthetic. Some might have called the lights ‘catering to the hipster crowd who frequented coffee shops’, but Brooke thought they were quite charming. The cakes looked as tasty as ever under the glass display. The young couple she had served earlier had reminded her that dessert places were a pretty popular date spot. Sure, there were a fair amount of people who got their orders to go, but the place just felt like somewhere to linger (and she didn’t think the feeling was due to any meddling red-eyes… hopefully?).

Brooke lifted her eyes at the sound of the bell at the door, hurriedly dropping her phone back into a pocket. Her strange power activated out of habit-- but she blinked a couple of times to will it away as Jocelyn shuffled in. The power to calm people down might have worked to dispel the anxiety of that boy on a first date. Jocelyn, on the other hand, was already so calm that any use of her powers would have just attracted another condescending laugh from him.

Well, that, and they had an unspoken agreement over the use of these psychic abilities.

Nevertheless, Brooke put on a civil smile as he swaggered towards the counter, smelling faintly of artificial bubble gum. “The usual?”

“The sky is weirdly clear today,” Jocelyn remarked. A strange non-sequitur. “I’ll try something different. Surprise me.”

With those instructions, he dropped a handful of coins onto the counter for Brooke to count, then moved to take his usual spot near the window. Brooke felt more infuriated than she cared to admit. And, knowing Jocelyn’s general habits, he would probably end up finding something he dislikes about it no matter what she chose to serve him.

She hadn’t chosen a drink yet, but absently washing her hands was a start. Maybe something sweet, since he was feeling different? She could only really hope that Mr. Darshan would materialize to convince this man that a Birthday Cake Frappuccino (or something along those lines) really is the next greatest fad and that he should absolutely want one right now.

 

[Dethrix]

[class=base] background:white; width:90%; margin:10px auto; padding:10px; //Forward slashes are comments and do no show up in the final design,// //these are to help you find everything easily and explain some code as well. // //These comments put be with in a class or script tags in order to be hidden, from what I know. // //Long URls are images// //# followed by letter and numbers are Hex codes or color codes// //the only color named by its name is White// //this is the white background// //or the base of the design// [/class] [class=hidden] display: none; //this allows all the content I don't want to be seen until clicked to be hidden, or not on display until I code otherwise// [/class] [class=Img] border:2px solid #000000; line-height:0px; margin-left:5px; pointer-events:none; //the border around the Image// [/class] [class=ImagButton] background:#AA0101; border-radius:5px; margin:0px Auto;margin-right:5px; padding:5px; float:left; Width:70%; text-align:center; float:left; font-family:Book Antiqua; color:White; //The red buttons above the Images// [/class] [class name=ImagButton state=hover] cursor:pointer; Background-color:#48107E; color:red; //what the Imagebutton looks like// // when a cursor hovers over it// [/class] [class=ImagButtonClick] background:#330B5A; border-radius:5px; margin:10px Auto; margin-right:5px; padding:5px; float:left; Width:70%; color:white; //what the image button looks like when clicked on// [/class] [script class=ImagButton on=click] removeClass ImagButtonClick ImagButton addClass ImagButtonClick //above allows the user to toggle between a clicked and non-clicked colored button// set link (getText) //above sets the link to what ever text I put on the button within a div// if (eq "${link}" "Currently") (hide Head) if (eq "${link}" "Currently") (show Tags) if (eq "${link}" "Currently") (show Image) if (eq "${link}" "Currently") (hide Current) if (eq "${link}" "Image") (show Head) if (eq "${link}" "Image") (hide Tags) if (eq "${link}" "Image") (show Current) if (eq "${link}" "Image") (hide Image) // So this more or less translates to// //if the div has the text "Currently" in it it's set as a link and when clicked it will hide the Head class (my image) and show the Tags class and the class named Image (the new button)// //oh and below
means to put a break in the code, like pressing the enter button. it's necessary since the beginning means no breaks unless other wise told with that br code// //for anyone who doesn't know// [/script]

[div class="Desktop base" style="color:black;"]

[div class="Current ImagButton" style="Margin-left:15px;"]Currently

[div class="Image ImagButton hidden" style="Margin-left:15px;"]Image[/div]

[div class="Img Head"][/div] [div class="Tags hidden" style="margin-left:5px;"]Interacting: Nobody
Mentioned: TheUltimateMage
Located: Mirage Tea & Coffee
[/div]

JAVIER CROFT

Javier sat alone in the shop, sequestered away in a booth backed far into the corner of the establishment. From the day the Mirage opened, this had been his spot. A lonely corner where he could observe, and be undisturbed. Of course, the young man was all too aware of how cliche it looked. In fact, at every moment he recognized that he reeked of angst and rebellion. But those were attributes he wore with pride, even into his later twenties. Very little could change him after all that he'd gone through, and Javi liked that about himself. His unshakeable nature made him who he was, and he was a man that loved the Birthday Cake Frappuccino. Honestly, it was a staple of the place that he couldn’t get away from no matter how hard he tried. It was the one folly to his heavily regulated diet and his main source of sugary goodness. Everyone had their exceptions, and overly sweet coffee was where he allowed himself to cheat. Of course, unless he was out at the bar but that was a rare occasion. Frankly, he wasn’t a fan of a certain bartender at the location. Javier disliked the haze that came with the man, simply because he didn’t enjoy moments where he felt sluggish or lacking in control. Yet like clockwork, Jocelyn had entered the Mirage not a second after his train of thought had drifted to such distastes. Ironically, he truly had no ill will against the fellow patron of the shop, Javi simply didn’t like his powers. Though, that was an issue he held with virtually every red eye he encountered. Powers that posed a threat instantly turned him off in terms of a friendly relationship, though with kids he put such grievances aside. Years had passed, but he still thought in terms of combat when posed with any sort of rival. A bad habit for sure, and one he’d been working at during his years of retirement. Even being here, regularly amongst people had been a change of pace that he’d included after his brokered deal. With a huff, Javier subconsciously switched his gaze from the front door to scan the room in its entirety. No matter where he was, his paranoia controlled his instinctual actions even when at relative ease. Shaking himself from his watchdog antics, he instead took a big gulp of the large sweet drink in his possession to distract his mind once more. The rush of sugary sweetness that swarmed his tastebuds was just enough to subdue his militant mind, if only for a moment. After sliding the drink back to the table, he turned his attention to the window just next to his booth and peered outwards and the sky and the city. The beauty of such sprawling architecture never ceased to amaze him and brought memories of skyscraper views he’d witnessed in his youth when traversing the rooftops of the metropolis. Both Jocelyn and Reys Martin had been correct, it was a beautiful day with a startlingly clear sky. Days like this always put him on edge, but then again so did everything. Bad things happened on even the best of days, a thought that caused him to reactively scan the room again. He sighed, annoyed with his own survival habits. With another gulp of his frap, Javier stood to order something else to continue his distraction.

[/div] Code by @AgWordSmith[/div]

 

[Fenris]

✠ Nicholas Rhodes ✠
Mirage Tea & Coffee​

Nicholas glanced at his watch before reviewing his office arrangements. A discretely placed set of pens, the ornate type awarded after 3 years of City S branch membership, would serve as reminder of his past loyalty. He had also arranged an 'important' call to be placed to his office during the interview with the express purpose of putting it on hold. It would demonstrate his undivided attention and cater to the auditors sense of self importance. With any luck these preparations would be enough to forestall any further questioning about the missing stock, allowing it all to be labeled as a simple clerical error. In the future Nick would certainly reconsider covering his debt with company goods; who knew a few odds and ends would be missed.

With everything in place for tomorrows meeting there wasn't much keeping him in the office especially considering it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Tan coat in one hand he casually strolled down the stairs and out of the building to rejoin the aimlessly meandering masses who were making the most of the fair spring weather.

By pure chance a glimpse of bright fabric wrapped around a familiar figures neck caught his eye from across the street, drawing his attention the shop Jocelyn had just entered. The location gave Nicholas pause as he tried to recall its significance. In the past he'd brokered a deal for one of the city's shadier organizations regarding the location, but it had looked different then. Succumbing to his curiosity he followed the unkempt figure of Jocelyn into the Mirage Tea & Coffee.

At first glance the Cafe appeared a tad exotic but inviting none the less, keeping Nick from second guessing his impromptu decision too much. Upon spotting his acquaintance near a window he intoned, “Glad it was actually you...” while searching for a place to hang his coat. “There's a number of guys out and about today who've decided to spruce up their outfit with red bandannas, you might be setting a trend. Anyhow, talk about coincidence. I was just looking for a place to rest my legs for a minute, may I?” Nicholas said, indicating a seat across from Jocelyn. Too preoccupied to take note of the other patrons immediately, despite the mans impressive size and striking hair color.

 

[ArchAngelLexi]

Sabrina Prince
The blind Right hand

Sabrina walked down the sidewalk of the early afternoon. She was dressed in her usual business casual attire, mirrored sunglasses, and her long hair kept up in a ponytail. Even now, when she was out for leisure, her gun was concealed under her pant's waist line. Though she likely had no use for it at this time, it was more of a safe guard. Along side her was her companion, Aela, her loyal and now senior German Shepard.
As she walked along the side walk she neared 'Mirage Tea and Coffee'. Seeing to as she had not eaten lunch yet she decided to come in for a bite and a drink. It certainly wouldn't hurt.
"Aela, sit," she instructed as she reached the door. Obediently Aela sat herself outside the door to await her owners return. Stepping in Sabrina immediately noticed Jocelyn from her own gang as well as Nicholas. There was a regular as well tucked away in the corner, but she had never bothered to figure out who it was, nor did she plan on changing that. Unless of course they were to find them self with the displeasure of being her prey. With a sigh she pulled off her sunglasses, hanging them off the front of her blouse which now revealed more of her cleavage from the added weight. Not bothering to speak with any of them yet she approached the counter.

Arron Davis

With it being Arron's day off from school he had planned to lock himself in his home as he usually does but he had just finished all his recently rented books from the library. He was lucky that the home was owned out right by his late parents. It was a small home. Doing 'work' online was the only way he could afford to keep everything on though. Surveys, small coding things, or other online easy money activities. Anything to avoid going outside. Right now though there was no more he could do today. He'd have to go get more books. Grabbing his back pack he dumped his school supplies onto the table and replaced the contents with 3 different library books.
With his backpack thrown over his right shoulder he made his way outside to walk to the library. Keeping his eyes trained on the ground he watched people's feet to make sure he didn't bump into anyone. With the unusually sunny day the light was reflecting off of the sidewalk and into his eye, causing him to squint. With his now extremely limited vision he bumped shoulders with some one walking the opposite direction.
"Sorry," he apologized meekly. As he looked up he accidentally locked eyes with the man he collided with. He saw a glimpse of a restaurant scene, possible a date, before he looked back down at the ground.
"Watch where you're going kid," The man responded grumpily before continuing down the side walk.
With a sigh Arron continued down the path trying to be more careful of his surroundings.

 

[StaidFoal]

Drystan Wright​

"Nine dollars?" Rys muttered through gritted teeth. He held the crumpled paper in front of him, cursing himself for thinking the crooked pawnbroker would be so lenient as to correctly examine his grandfather's pocket watch. That trinket survived decades of events, and all it was worth to that old hag was nine dollars? "I suppose it is normal for someone so utterly dense to spite those superior in every way." It was truly unfair, he felt, that someone such as himself to be cast into "borderline" poverty. He leaned against the wall outside if the pawnshop, waiting for nothing in particular.

Just how did his peers, who were all "inferior" to him, get by? Rys put a hand on his chin, coming up with an answer to those he knew of. Rys never spoke to any of them before, but he's heard of and saw them more than once. The idol, Reina, has to put up a miserable facade for strangers that lie to themselves that they "adore" her, and her agency must be squeezing every penny out of her, most certainly! Then there was Jocelyn, that man who always reeked of vape—a damned waste of money, if you asked Rys—that did God knows what to get by. The most normal out of those he recounted, according to today's standards, was Brooke. But as a barista, that surely meant another false act for the sake of others! Putting a smile for everyday customers... the thought made Rys slap his forehead. There must've been a way to live a life without appeasing strangers or scratching the bellies of worthless scum! "To act out of conduct for the sake of survival is an absurd thought! May as well be tainting your name and face for no good reason!" Rys said to himself.

"Ah, damn that old hag!" shouted another man, stomping out the pawnshop. With a red face and uneasy breath, he approached another person in wait. "Does she always think she's better than everyone? I bet she was so proud after stealing her father's business."

The man he spoke with rolled his eyes in response. "Do you know what she puts her younger sister through? After she inherited the business, that pawnbroker forces her around like a slave!"

"Aye. I met her, once. She's kind; pretty. Her only flaw is that she's too submissive. So, how do you..."

The pair's chatter grew quiet as they walked away. Two pieces of her life out in the open? Awfully convenient, but Rys didn't mind. He shut his eyes, and was now back in the pawnshop, this time behind the desk. All was mostly clear, but everything had a slight, red tinge. Rys opened his eyes, and he was outside. Nobody would miss that woman, he began to think. Rys solemnly glared at the floor, an unthinkable thought having entered his mind. The war zone of ideas and bitterness ended when he shook his head with a smirk. "There are better things to do think than that," he muttered.

And Rys was off again. Returning to his apartment, a shabby, almost derelict building with a rock-like bed and a poor excuse of living conditions. However, his return trip was cut short when he took a shortcut. On the side of this shortcut was a neat little cafe named Mirage Tea and Coffee. Must've been nice to be a customer, enjoying a flavorful sip of coffee in a lovable life. When was the last time he had a cup of coffee? Rys pondered on that for a while before giving in, and entered the cafe. To no avail, he tried to pay no heed to those around him, like the aforementioned Jocelyn who sat with another odd man, or the woman who repulsively left her cleavage out for all to see. In one booth, a muscular, red-haired man scanned the room as if driven from paranoia. Rys noticed the red-haired man's red bandana, recalling the gang of misfits that was associated with it. He stared at Javier for a while with the same glare of pity, contempt, and a hint of curiosity he gave everyone else in the establishment.

With a glance at the menu, then at the familiar woman behind the counter, Rys went in line. At the counter, he ordered, "One frappuccino."

TheUltimateMage