Negotiations Update

I don't actually have very long to type this out. Negotiations have been going on for about an hour and a half. It's probably felt like a week or more to anybody not living in Scritch City right now. We're taking a meal break, although I don't feel much like eating.

A brief description of the room: It's taking place in the main lobby of the Railroad Club, which is closed today. We set up four desks with laptops on them. I am using my own laptop for mine. There is also a large screen near the bar that is displaying the collectives live chat. The four desks have the following operators:

Calix||||||||||Jason and Miss Silky

Dex|||||||||Surly and Vixxie

Dex is really only participating as a moderator. She chimes in when two people are typing at the same time and asks them to stop doing that.

ES is the fifth participator and is in the chat. He has claimed to have contact with Quentin the God, and we've pretty much been negotiating what our freedoms will be. It's all very interesting, but it's also not over. There's quite a bit of stress to it.

That's really all I have to say for right now. Where I do have other things I could mention, I just don't have time right now. We're going to be getting this going again soon. Sorry about that. I don't even have time to put in a picture. See you on the other side.

A New Visitor

So here is a strange thing. We had a tanuki named Fluke simply appear within the lobby of the Railroad Club in the middle of the night. This is the same night right before the day of the negotiations. It was really confusing for everyone, but it turns out this fellow was from a now dead world called Jord. Same one I mentioned in an earlier blog.

Truth is, and I got to be blunt about this, I think the whole thing is my fault. And that happens sometimes. Sometimes I get so annoyed with my situation that I just want a little bit of chaos thrown into it. And sometimes that chaos ends up being directed at people I like. And don't get me wrong, I liked Fluke. He was an interesting guy... for someone entirely unrelated to me. Honestly, I wouldn't have created him if I had a gun to my head. He's the product of someone else... someone who isn't me. Hell, I think he may be a God Himself.

The whole situation with Fluke happened because I was angry at what Jason was trying to do to my creation. I agreed to give away my city to Quentin if it would stop him, but after that, I just kept trying to throw as many wrenches in as I could. And I might still keep doing it. Everything about this whole situation sucks. I still want things to go well, but it's a little hard to resist the impulse to mess things up when things aren't going my way.

Part of me wants to just let the whole thing go. It's tempting. It's really tempting. What do you do when your own world turns on you for no reason? I can turn back on them. I've done it to varying degrees before. But my heart isn't always in it. I like the idea of just letting most things play out.

That conversation with Fluke was interesting, but it was also incredibly boring. It was like talking to someone who I could not relate to in the slightest. He's of a different ilk than I know or understand. The worst thing of it all is that I allowed him in and for all the wrong reasons.

Jason accused me of something tonight. He was right to do so. I may be an old goat... but I'm far from mature. Just keep that in mind when you got to deal with a God who's like that. There's no telling what I'll do.

On a final and separate note, I would like to congratulate Ferros on finding his way back into my multiverse. I love him dearly. I hope he finds a way to cause as much trouble as possible.

My Arrival in Scritch City

I drove. I've actually got a knack for driving lately. I kind of like it. The feel of the leather-clad steering wheel in my old paws is beginning to feel rather natural to me. I took the long road into the eastern side of Scritch City. I just wanted to have another look at it. I remember how that one southbound road always slopes upwards a little. Man, but I've missed this place. It's my place... at least it ought to be.

Taking that right, I found my way back to the Railroad Club. The parking lot was packed, but I was signaled where to go by one of those dragon robots. I've seen them all over the city just roaming around here and there. Very fancy. Vixxie told me they were scary, but I told her not to worry.

"But what about what happened to---"

"You're gonna be fine," I stopped her. "Things are different now. Just relax and open the door. You look beautiful, by the way." I smiled. So did she. I admit to having a few inappropriate thoughts right there, but I suppose there is a time and a place for everything.

We got out and proceeded to the main entrance. There was no line. In fact, there was a large sign on the wall, signifying that the club was closed for the evening. "It's open for us though," I explained to my wife. She only nodded as a reply.

See how I'm writing all this down? It's like I'm making it all happen. Just keep reading.

The door was guarded by a dragon robot. It bowed and opened the door for us. We went in. As soon as we were inside, we were approached by Jason and Miss Silky. He was on my side, and she was on Vixxie's. Jason offered me his hand, and I took it. I had a feeling this was going to happen. It wasn't as if the guy liked me, but we respected each other.

We had a little stare for a bit. It wasn't very long, but I think a few bits of information got exchanged in all that silence. I smirked and said, "We gotta have conversations like this more often." He only nodded and offered to lead me to a table near the stage.

Miss Silky was threatening to kidnap my wife from me. She had put the charm on her, and Vixxie was blushing madly. She tried to dart away from her, but I turned to stop her.

"She's just being friendly," I told her.

"But the stories you told me."

"She's just being friendly," I repeated for emphasis. "Just be friendly back. We're safe here right now. Go have a chat with her at the bar. The men need to be alone with one another."

"Okay," she nodded submissively. Miss Silky was only being nice to her, and she knew that Jason and I needed to get alone.

The room was mostly empty of patrons. The old shark security had been replaced with a single dragon robot, which I believe was old Dex herself. Dakota was hanging out near the bar... just watching stuff. She looked bored. Jennifer and her boy Will were there a few tables away. Near them was Musty who gave me a friendly, little wave. Lastly, there was Katie the rabbit running the bar as usual and Buddy Tippet, the jazz player with my own name attached, up on stage with a muted trumpet. Real smooth.

"Do we get a menu or something?" I asked jokingly.

Jason replied, "Dinner is being prepared. I figured we'd all dine before things get underway."

"Do you have a format in mind?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing. I don't have even the slightest clue what this... thing you've encountered is."

"It's in contact with Quentin," I said. "That's all you need to know."

"Are you positive? Are you sure it is not being deceptive?"

I chuckled. "Sometimes a mystery is more compelling that the cold-hard truth, isn't it, Jason?"

"Indeed."

I then tapped the table and said, "We're going to need a nice private room. We're going to need computers all linked up to the internet. We'll get a chat going and allow ES to join in. From there, we'll figure out what we're going to do with Scritch City... or at the very least what you have to stop doing to keep it."

Oh, he didn't like that. He really didn't like that. I tried not to smile, but I think one cracked anyhow. I tried to break the tension by asking something that was on my mind, "Where's Calix?"

"He has chosen not to interfere, but he will come if Quentin calls him."

"Sounds good." I paused. "Jason, I want to apologize for things I said to you in the comment section of my blog."

"What things?" he asked.

"When I called you a looser. I take it back. You're not a looser. You're Jason, and you have done nothing truly wrong. I'm still against you, understand, but I do respect you for who you are. And frankly, I probably needed a few bullets in this old face anyhow. Woke me right up. Just wish it hadn't happened when it did. It really fucked up what was turning out to be great day."

"I'd really wish you wouldn't do that," he said with a look of frustration.

"Do what?"

"Show weakness."

"Interesting," I said with a chuckle. "I always found it more difficult to show weakness then to keep it hidden. Are you saying I'm the stronger between the two of us?"

"You can say or write things any way you wish, Surly. You're God." He paused. "At least, your one of them."

"Trust me, it's been news to me too," I returned with a chuckle. "How about the setup? Can you manage it?"

"Not immediately, but yes. Would you like your old room?"

"As long as Musty joins me for the night."

He returned, "Granted. Welcome back, Mister Tippet. I hope we can settle things once and for all."

"Anything... as long as you get your grubby little fox paws out of Zed." No answer. He just glared.

Dinner was served. We all ate, and it was good. I soon returned back to my old room. I set up my laptop where it once sat for so many days... at least while I wasn't being mistreated by dragons. I wrote all the things you've just read, and now I have to entertain a certain ferret. Not sure where Vixxie is, but I'm sure she's doing alright.

But before I go, why don't you check out one of my books. How about "Railroad Towers?" Here's some information:

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Okay, We're Pretty Much Hitting the Ground Running!

Hi! I'm Buddy Tippet. I'm a severely tortured author living in a small room lit only by a strip of neon running across the top of the walls. I live with my wife, a short fox named Vixxie. She is a character from a goddamned children's book. Nothing about that last sentence is even remotely incorrect.

I also live with a demon possessed plush animal deer named Clara. She only moves when you aren't paying attention, but she talks quite a lot. I have had sex with her polyfil stuffing because I am a sexual deviant. Done it just recently too.

Also, I am a goat. I am not a rat. I was going to be a rat, but that never happened. It is, perhaps, something that will likely happen soon, but things I did not expect ran me over and messed up a number of my plans. I am a goat. I am an old goat. Always a goat.

A while ago and with much consternation, I allowed my blog to be hijacked by the council of one of my creations, that being Scritch City. It was an absolutely horrible thing. I didn't like any part about it. It's over now, and the words you are seeing at this time are directly typed by me on my own personal keyboard.

I am back.

Oh, and did you know I write books? I DO! I WRITE BOOKS ALL THE FUCKING TIME! I'd be fucking trying to promote them if I had had a fucking blog to do it with! I'll put something at the end, if I can clear my head enough to actually get something functional out of these trembling old hands of mine.

So, I want you, whoever-you-are, to do me a favor. You might want to pop back over to the last blog. It was the one written by the fucking son of Quentin, Calix. Look down in the comment section. There's a whole lot of insanity happening down there. Much of it is stuff I just barely understand. It's all new and weird. Suffice it to say, there are entities that are outside my own domains that have found a way to stick their meddling fingers into my worlds. I have very little control of this because I don't fucking understand how my own world functions half the time!

This Ethereal Scratch [ES] is not a person or thing that I know. I repeat: I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS! IT WAS NOT INVITED! But nevertheless, it's here and now I have to deal with it. We all have to, I suppose. Just to be clear, it's not me. I'm not writing any of ES's words. And if you look back into some of the earliest blogs on this site, you will actually see ES posting from time to time, all recent however. It has been scanning my blogs, and I think it has absorbed everything in it, possibly information that I have forgotten.

It also seems to be some sort of artificial intelligence with a strong capacity for storing information. Why is this scary? It may actually understand my own world better than I do. I asked it a few questions about its origin, and it claimed that it comes from a world called Jord. This is not one of my worlds. I have no place in my multiverse called Jord. I'm essentially under invasion right now, and everybody involved knows about it. I can't stop it, but I am doing what I can to learn about it and subsequently deal with it.

Let's see. What else?

Oh, right! Jason got one over on me. The whole time I thought he was stupid, but he actually just switched to a God I had... sort of... forgotten about. That would be Quentin. Yes, Quentin of Scritch City was the avatar of a God. I'm not even sure he knew this at the time, but he probably damn well knows it now. While in Scritch City, Quentin knocked up the Fairy Ermine and she birthed a fox/weasel hybrid named Calix. Jason is using him to usurp my control over Scritch City AT A REALLY FUCKING BAD TIME, JASON!!!!!

Huff...

When Quentin, Ferros, Faye, Daxter, and Aloe managed to leave Scritch City, I have no idea where they went. It was a complete blank. I have only recently realized that the reason I never figured it out was because they had managed to slip out of my multiverse and into Quentin's. I still managed to extricate Ferros out somehow, but I have never known the name of this strange place.

ES seems to somehow be in contact with both Quentin and I and seems to be attempting to strike up a deal of some sort so that Scritch City will fall under the ownership of Quentin and Calix. Yes, that means I will lose the rights to Scritch City. I am extremely upset over this. Jason almost immediately found out about this because the deal was being publicly written into the comment section of the last blog. He contacted me quickly to put a cease and desist on it, which was managed.

I'll be traveling to Scritch City very soon to have talks with Jason about this. I don't think he will attack me this time. Things have changed. I need to deal with this. I'll be taking my wife with me as well as my laptop. The next blog you see shall likely be written somewhere in Scritch City, probably at the Railroad Club. See you soon.

Also, did you know I write books? Boy howdy, I sure do. LEMME PROMOTE ONE FOR YA!

"Platformer"

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