Near | Nate River (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
solvethepuzzle) wrote2015-11-19 01:21 pm
solvethepuzzle) wrote2015-11-19 01:21 pm
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hadriel
PLAYER
Player name: Misty
Contact:![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
cloudyskies
Characters currently in-game: N/A
CHARACTER
Character Name: Nate River (but goes by the alias of "Near", and technically also "L" at his canon point)
Character Age: 19 (previous game time included)
Canon: Death Note (Manga)
Canon Point: Between Chapters 107 and 108 (after the main conflict is resolved, but before the epilogue chapter), and approximately a year and a half in Synodiporia
History: Here
Personality:
Near often comes off as borderline robotic, a creature of pure logic and no feeling. This, however, is not quite true. It isn't addressed in-series, but in the "How to Read" encyclopedia volume, it's implied that Near shut himself off from the world because he was too sensitive. He went about systematically crushing emotion out of himself simply because he decided it was the best way for him to function. What we see is the result of this decision. No, he isn't still deeply sensitive under a cold exterior; he truly does feel very little anymore. And he's fine with that, viewing emotion as a detriment, a prime contributor to stupid decisions. Even whatever emotion he does retain is typically displayed in very controlled fashion; happiness or satisfaction is expressed with a smile, anger with a scowl and cold, quiet pronouncements. He doesn't let his feelings interfere with rational thought. That's what yields the best results, after all.
And results are what he wants. Near has no compunctions about using unfriendly methods to achieve his ends if he deems it necessary. It's about priorities, really. What's worse? Invading someone's privacy to find the evidence of their wrong-doing, or, say, letting a mass-murderer continue with their work because you got caught too caught up in legal niceties to investigate them thoroughly? But at the same time, Near does nothing without a purpose. For all of his callous attitudes, he takes no pleasure in human suffering and will not resort to methods like torture.
What he does take pleasure in is making accurate deductions. He was raised to be a brilliant detective, a problem-solving machine, and whenever he knows he's right about something, an outright grin will break out on his face. This is what he was made for, and doing it well is so satisfying.
Near is the methodical, cautious sort, not given to taking big risks. He instead prefers to observe and engineer prime opportunities to strike while taking as little personal risk as he can. He will take chances if he has to, but he feels far more comfortable with a carefully laid-out plan with as many angles as possible factored into it. Sudden changes can throw him if he hasn't previously accounted for them; he's smart and even-keeled enough that he can eventually roll with it, come up with alternate plans, but he needs time to step back and take stock of the new situation first. He is far more a creature of thought than action.
He isn't the most trusting of people; it isn't necessarily individuals themselves he ever comes to trust so much as his own understanding of these individuals. But at the same time, he realizes that his strengths are in a very narrow field and that he needs the support of others. So despite being raised in a competitive environment, Near is very open to working with people . . . so long as he finds them useful in some way.
But even with his co-operative bent, Near is bad with people. He has a tendency toward bluntness; if he has a negative opinion, he's not shy about expressing it whether he's succinctly shooting something down or explaining in detail why it's stupid. This is not exactly endearing. Those personal risks he's loath to take? He has no issue with getting others to take them in his place. If he needs to manipulate somebody, tell a huge lie to encourage people to share his suspicions? Yeah, he'll do that. Once the manipulations and lies have been successful, he does plainly admit to what he's done, explain why he did it -- but he rarely actually apologizes. That's inconsiderate? Oh well; he got what he wanted and that's the thing that matters. Near doesn't go out of his way to get at people unless he's deemed them an enemy or target, but his methods of dealing with them leave a lot to be desired.
While he's poor socially and has little consideration for others' feelings, Near is capable of caring for another person; he simply does not form emotional bonds easily or often, and even with the one person he has a human connection with . . . it isn't at all healthy. He enjoys the presence of his childhood rival, Mello. And enjoys it so subtly that nobody seems to realize that he does -- especially Mello himself, who has always deeply resented him for being ahead all the time. And he does treat Mello rather poorly, using him without shame to further his investigation, but the hints that he's fond of him do exist. He keeps the only existing photograph of Mello, speaks of him in positive terms, and protects his identity even after Mello has many of his investigators killed. And in the aftermath of Mello's death, the normally articulate Near stumbles over his words when speaking of his contributions. This display of emotion stuns even the remaining members of his investigative team -- people who have worked closely with him for almost a year.
Inventory: An old worn satchel in which he has his four old toy robots and a few decks of tarot cards that he uses just for building stuff.
Abilities: Straight from canon, Near has no supernatural abilities whatsoever, and is even lacking physically as a mundane human. However, he is trained and very skilled in crime scene and forensic analysis, computer hacking, and multiple languages. He speaks English, and presumably Japanese, as he's seen interacting with the Kira Task Force with no translator. While it's never stated anywhere, he can assumed to have great proficiency in widely-spoken languages such as Mandarin, Russian, German, French, and Spanish at the very least due to the international nature of his work. His memory is exceptional. And while his interpersonal skills are very poor, Near is quite good at reading people.
Over his time in Synodiporia, Near has acquired a grab-bag of abilities. Many of these, due to their source, will not transfer over, but the ones that have become innate to him are as follows. (A permissions post will be provided for powers that can affect other characters.)
Perfect Timing: Peak human reaction time.
Interface: The ability to physically link to a computer program, function, or algorithm, determining its abilities and function, and uploading or downloading data it has archived. Any intelligent system may resist this link. Can also link to another person, but the data exchange will tire both the Interfacer and the Interfacee out considerably, and it will give summary information rather than a deep review, unless the Interface lasts much longer, tiring them out even more.
Interrogate: Once per week, ask one humanoid subject one question and compel an honest answer. The subject must speak, and must not make any untrue statement, but may lie by omission or implication, or speculate on the unknown, if the question is insufficiently specific.
Superhuman Computation: The ability to do computer-like calculations, mathematics, and measurements as quick mental math.
Cantrips: Minor magical spells, "colourless". His specific spells are:
Indigo Magic: Colour magic, based on themes including knowledge, wisdom, intuition, balance, loyalty, and the study of magic itself. His specific spells are:
Eldritch Defense: Knowledge of the signs and gestures used to ward off eldritch threats.
Flaws: Near, while passive -- which is in itself a flaw, given how extreme his passivity tends to be -- and not approving of things like mass murder for a better society, isn't precisely a wonderful person. He lies, he manipulates, and will resort to borderline illegal methods to get the results he wants. Things such as ordering the detainment of Misa Amane and Kanzo Mogi on flimsy grounds, which basically amounts to kidnapping. This is despite working in law enforcement. He has very little honest concern for the feelings of others. Even if he genuinely likes you, he's not above manipulation. When he takes a case, it's not out of any moral obligation; the case has to catch his interest or he sees no reason to bother. Your average murders and such? Meh. Those are boring and too easy to solve -- a waste of his time, really. He's also a rather dependent person, unused to doing things for himself; despite being an adult, he felt incapable of making his own travel arrangements and making a trip by himself. (Though this particular flaw is slightly less pronounced due to previous game development.)
CR AU
Previous Game and Time: Synodiporia, December 2014 - May 2016.
Previous Development: Near is a person that is typically slow to adapt, but it does happen. Especially in the case of Synodiporia, where the characters are dumped into a new world every few weeks; adaptation became a necessary skill and after a year and a half of this routine, he's gotten better at it. He is able to come to terms with sudden changes more quickly now.
At home, Near was able to send out agents to do the potentially dangerous legwork for him, but that is a luxury he has not had in these past months; his circumstances have forced him to become more self-sufficient. Gradually, he has ventured out to do more of his own fieldwork. Even in his first Jaunt -- a stint in another world -- where there were no real threats present, he stayed on the sidelines. That was how things had always worked. But when this began to hamper his effectiveness, he realized that he was going to have to go out himself sometimes if he expected to get anything done. He is still careful about where he goes, but he's gone from hanging back completely to information-gathering in a bar on the borders of Hell, to actually travelling through a land of ninjas descending into civil war. It isn't pleasant for him, he doesn't like it, but he'll do it.
And through the magic of Infiltrating (being AU-ed into one of the Jaunt worlds) and some emotional bleed-over from that, Near actually acquired the only genuine friend he's ever had in his life. He still lied to her and got her to do things for him under the guise of not caring, but they both knew better. And he tried in his own strange ways to make sure she stayed safe and even happy -- or "appeased" as he preferred to phrase it in his head. (Said ways included saying he expected uselessness from her after she apologized for being unhelpful. He was really bad at this.) After she disappeared, he even missed her. And still vaguely does on occasion if the thinks of her. This demonstration that he's capable of feeling in such a way has confused, unsettled, and annoyed him. He recognizes it as fact because he can't deny it to himself, but he does not share it with anyone else. Nor does he actively seek to form that kind of bond again. That kind of thing is dangerous and weak, not something he should be allowing.
Having been unable to isolate himself as completely as he did at home, Near has more experience with people in general now. He's slightly more able to have semi-normal conversations, or at least ones where he doesn't aggravate the other party too much. It isn't that he's become good with people. He's just . . . not quite as bad. Most of the time.
SAMPLES
Action Log Sample:
It takes Near a moment to register his location. Colosseum? Ah, he's back, then. Lovely.
Or it could conceivably have been so were it not for the animated ball of flame he catches out of the corner of his vision. That is not lovely at all. For the moment, at least, Near has seemed to escape its notice in return. But to count on that continuing would be foolish, as currently he has no shelter. Will the creature pass by without seeing him if he remains still? Or would it be best for him to move and put in as much distance as possible?
His mind rapidly but calmly weighs all the options, leaving no room for anything less than purely rational thought. Keeping a clear head is important, and not a difficult task for him. All the while, he surveys the grounds, cataloging the locations of the exits. If he is going to move, it will not be blindly.
Finally, he tenses his legs underneath him . . . but does not move. The less physical effort he has to exercise, the better. Head still clearing, he calls to mind a few spells that may be helpful in assisting a defense. No offense. He doesn't even bother looking for a weapon. It would be meaningless.
Closer, closer . . . and then what Near assumes to be the creature's eyes land on him. So much for that. Damn. His face tightens briefly -- but only briefly, because that is when the shower of sparks comes.
Near hurries backward tossing off a Dispel Magic as a counter only to find that the attack is not magical in nature; the spell does nothing to help him. Fortunately, however, he is mostly out of the way and only a few sparks land on his sleeve.
Which rapidly escalates in heat and a small thread of alarm slides through his mind as he realizes it will catch fire if he does nothing about it. Instinctively, he slaps his opposite hand down onto the sleeve and whispers a quick cantrip to cool the fabric. The once imminent fire fizzles out, leaving a black singe against the white material and a trail of smoke curling up from his arm.
Near might have sighed in relief, but he hasn't the time and he knows it. The creature shoots off another cloud of sparks, and this time he is more prepared, managing to evade it completely.
But he cannot keep this up. It needs to end.
A third wave of sparks, and this time, he mutters another spell under his breath while he scrambles back yet again. A deep, immense roar suddenly reverberates from the opposite side of the arena. The creature turns toward it.
And Near? He turns from the creature, bolts for the closest exit once it's distracted by the phantom noise. It isn't a long distance, but it feels like one to him; his thin, frail frame remains unused to this level of exertion.
He slams the door behind him, then slumps against the wall, breathing hard from the effort. That had been more difficult than it had needed to be, surely. How inconvenient that he hadn't sighted anyone else whose assistance he could have enlisted. Some part of him is wistful for the days when he had people for this sort of endeavour.
Gradually, Near calms his breathing. People. Right. Mello and L . . . are they still around? How long has it been since he's been here? The latter question is something he will have to learn by speaking with others, and it is secondary, besides. First, re-establish contact if possible, get to a secure area. If contact is impossible, he will have to make arrangements on his own.
Without the distraction of imminent danger, Near finally notes the weight in his pocket, and he reaches a pale hand down to pluck the phone out of it. Finding out whether Mello and L are still here is as simple as looking at the contact lists.
Ah. There they are. He sags a little in relief. Yes, this is preferable to having to start all over again. And . . . hm. Another name he hasn't seen in a while. How about that? Well, that's fine. It can be quite a reunion, then.
It requires no conscious thought as to who among the three Near decides to contact first, who commands the most attention in his eyes. He inputs Mello's number.
Player name: Misty
Contact:
Characters currently in-game: N/A
CHARACTER
Character Name: Nate River (but goes by the alias of "Near", and technically also "L" at his canon point)
Character Age: 19 (previous game time included)
Canon: Death Note (Manga)
Canon Point: Between Chapters 107 and 108 (after the main conflict is resolved, but before the epilogue chapter), and approximately a year and a half in Synodiporia
History: Here
Personality:
Near often comes off as borderline robotic, a creature of pure logic and no feeling. This, however, is not quite true. It isn't addressed in-series, but in the "How to Read" encyclopedia volume, it's implied that Near shut himself off from the world because he was too sensitive. He went about systematically crushing emotion out of himself simply because he decided it was the best way for him to function. What we see is the result of this decision. No, he isn't still deeply sensitive under a cold exterior; he truly does feel very little anymore. And he's fine with that, viewing emotion as a detriment, a prime contributor to stupid decisions. Even whatever emotion he does retain is typically displayed in very controlled fashion; happiness or satisfaction is expressed with a smile, anger with a scowl and cold, quiet pronouncements. He doesn't let his feelings interfere with rational thought. That's what yields the best results, after all.
And results are what he wants. Near has no compunctions about using unfriendly methods to achieve his ends if he deems it necessary. It's about priorities, really. What's worse? Invading someone's privacy to find the evidence of their wrong-doing, or, say, letting a mass-murderer continue with their work because you got caught too caught up in legal niceties to investigate them thoroughly? But at the same time, Near does nothing without a purpose. For all of his callous attitudes, he takes no pleasure in human suffering and will not resort to methods like torture.
What he does take pleasure in is making accurate deductions. He was raised to be a brilliant detective, a problem-solving machine, and whenever he knows he's right about something, an outright grin will break out on his face. This is what he was made for, and doing it well is so satisfying.
Near is the methodical, cautious sort, not given to taking big risks. He instead prefers to observe and engineer prime opportunities to strike while taking as little personal risk as he can. He will take chances if he has to, but he feels far more comfortable with a carefully laid-out plan with as many angles as possible factored into it. Sudden changes can throw him if he hasn't previously accounted for them; he's smart and even-keeled enough that he can eventually roll with it, come up with alternate plans, but he needs time to step back and take stock of the new situation first. He is far more a creature of thought than action.
He isn't the most trusting of people; it isn't necessarily individuals themselves he ever comes to trust so much as his own understanding of these individuals. But at the same time, he realizes that his strengths are in a very narrow field and that he needs the support of others. So despite being raised in a competitive environment, Near is very open to working with people . . . so long as he finds them useful in some way.
But even with his co-operative bent, Near is bad with people. He has a tendency toward bluntness; if he has a negative opinion, he's not shy about expressing it whether he's succinctly shooting something down or explaining in detail why it's stupid. This is not exactly endearing. Those personal risks he's loath to take? He has no issue with getting others to take them in his place. If he needs to manipulate somebody, tell a huge lie to encourage people to share his suspicions? Yeah, he'll do that. Once the manipulations and lies have been successful, he does plainly admit to what he's done, explain why he did it -- but he rarely actually apologizes. That's inconsiderate? Oh well; he got what he wanted and that's the thing that matters. Near doesn't go out of his way to get at people unless he's deemed them an enemy or target, but his methods of dealing with them leave a lot to be desired.
While he's poor socially and has little consideration for others' feelings, Near is capable of caring for another person; he simply does not form emotional bonds easily or often, and even with the one person he has a human connection with . . . it isn't at all healthy. He enjoys the presence of his childhood rival, Mello. And enjoys it so subtly that nobody seems to realize that he does -- especially Mello himself, who has always deeply resented him for being ahead all the time. And he does treat Mello rather poorly, using him without shame to further his investigation, but the hints that he's fond of him do exist. He keeps the only existing photograph of Mello, speaks of him in positive terms, and protects his identity even after Mello has many of his investigators killed. And in the aftermath of Mello's death, the normally articulate Near stumbles over his words when speaking of his contributions. This display of emotion stuns even the remaining members of his investigative team -- people who have worked closely with him for almost a year.
Inventory: An old worn satchel in which he has his four old toy robots and a few decks of tarot cards that he uses just for building stuff.
Abilities: Straight from canon, Near has no supernatural abilities whatsoever, and is even lacking physically as a mundane human. However, he is trained and very skilled in crime scene and forensic analysis, computer hacking, and multiple languages. He speaks English, and presumably Japanese, as he's seen interacting with the Kira Task Force with no translator. While it's never stated anywhere, he can assumed to have great proficiency in widely-spoken languages such as Mandarin, Russian, German, French, and Spanish at the very least due to the international nature of his work. His memory is exceptional. And while his interpersonal skills are very poor, Near is quite good at reading people.
Over his time in Synodiporia, Near has acquired a grab-bag of abilities. Many of these, due to their source, will not transfer over, but the ones that have become innate to him are as follows. (A permissions post will be provided for powers that can affect other characters.)
Perfect Timing: Peak human reaction time.
Interface: The ability to physically link to a computer program, function, or algorithm, determining its abilities and function, and uploading or downloading data it has archived. Any intelligent system may resist this link. Can also link to another person, but the data exchange will tire both the Interfacer and the Interfacee out considerably, and it will give summary information rather than a deep review, unless the Interface lasts much longer, tiring them out even more.
Interrogate: Once per week, ask one humanoid subject one question and compel an honest answer. The subject must speak, and must not make any untrue statement, but may lie by omission or implication, or speculate on the unknown, if the question is insufficiently specific.
Superhuman Computation: The ability to do computer-like calculations, mathematics, and measurements as quick mental math.
Cantrips: Minor magical spells, "colourless". His specific spells are:
Prestidigitation: Perform minor tricks, such as changing something's colour, or making one food taste like something else, etc.
Light: Makes a touched object shine like a torch, casting a clear light within 20 feet and dim light up to 20 feet beyond that.
Read Magic: Grants the ability to read scrolls and spellbooks, even if they're not in a language you know.
Detect Magic: Detects spells and magic items within 60 feet.
Detect Poison: Detects the presence of poison in one creature or object. (Alcohol counts as poison.)
Ghost Sound: Creates figment sounds nearby.
Indigo Magic: Colour magic, based on themes including knowledge, wisdom, intuition, balance, loyalty, and the study of magic itself. His specific spells are:
Identify: Determines all magic properties of a single magic item, including how to activate those functions (if appropriate) and how many charges are left (if any).
Hold Portal: Magically holds shut a door, gate, window, or shutter of wood. The magic affects the portal just as if it were securely closed and normally locked. A knock or successful dispel magic spell can negate a hold portal spell.
Erase: Removes writings of magical or mundane nature from a scroll or one or two pages of paper, parchment, or similar surfaces.
Tactical Precision: Calling your allies to arms, you grant five people greater insight into each others actions, allowing them to co-ordinate attacks and deal more damage.
Dispel Magic: End ongoing spells that have been cast on a creature or object, temporarily suppress the magical abilities of a magic item, end ongoing spells (or at least their effects) within an area, or counter another spellcaster’s spell. You choose to use dispel magic in one of three ways: a targeted dispel, an area dispel, or a counterspell. Targets and counters affect only one object/creature/spellcaster. Area dispel potentially affects any magic within a 20-foot radius.
Eldritch Defense: Knowledge of the signs and gestures used to ward off eldritch threats.
Flaws: Near, while passive -- which is in itself a flaw, given how extreme his passivity tends to be -- and not approving of things like mass murder for a better society, isn't precisely a wonderful person. He lies, he manipulates, and will resort to borderline illegal methods to get the results he wants. Things such as ordering the detainment of Misa Amane and Kanzo Mogi on flimsy grounds, which basically amounts to kidnapping. This is despite working in law enforcement. He has very little honest concern for the feelings of others. Even if he genuinely likes you, he's not above manipulation. When he takes a case, it's not out of any moral obligation; the case has to catch his interest or he sees no reason to bother. Your average murders and such? Meh. Those are boring and too easy to solve -- a waste of his time, really. He's also a rather dependent person, unused to doing things for himself; despite being an adult, he felt incapable of making his own travel arrangements and making a trip by himself. (Though this particular flaw is slightly less pronounced due to previous game development.)
CR AU
Previous Game and Time: Synodiporia, December 2014 - May 2016.
Previous Development: Near is a person that is typically slow to adapt, but it does happen. Especially in the case of Synodiporia, where the characters are dumped into a new world every few weeks; adaptation became a necessary skill and after a year and a half of this routine, he's gotten better at it. He is able to come to terms with sudden changes more quickly now.
At home, Near was able to send out agents to do the potentially dangerous legwork for him, but that is a luxury he has not had in these past months; his circumstances have forced him to become more self-sufficient. Gradually, he has ventured out to do more of his own fieldwork. Even in his first Jaunt -- a stint in another world -- where there were no real threats present, he stayed on the sidelines. That was how things had always worked. But when this began to hamper his effectiveness, he realized that he was going to have to go out himself sometimes if he expected to get anything done. He is still careful about where he goes, but he's gone from hanging back completely to information-gathering in a bar on the borders of Hell, to actually travelling through a land of ninjas descending into civil war. It isn't pleasant for him, he doesn't like it, but he'll do it.
And through the magic of Infiltrating (being AU-ed into one of the Jaunt worlds) and some emotional bleed-over from that, Near actually acquired the only genuine friend he's ever had in his life. He still lied to her and got her to do things for him under the guise of not caring, but they both knew better. And he tried in his own strange ways to make sure she stayed safe and even happy -- or "appeased" as he preferred to phrase it in his head. (Said ways included saying he expected uselessness from her after she apologized for being unhelpful. He was really bad at this.) After she disappeared, he even missed her. And still vaguely does on occasion if the thinks of her. This demonstration that he's capable of feeling in such a way has confused, unsettled, and annoyed him. He recognizes it as fact because he can't deny it to himself, but he does not share it with anyone else. Nor does he actively seek to form that kind of bond again. That kind of thing is dangerous and weak, not something he should be allowing.
Having been unable to isolate himself as completely as he did at home, Near has more experience with people in general now. He's slightly more able to have semi-normal conversations, or at least ones where he doesn't aggravate the other party too much. It isn't that he's become good with people. He's just . . . not quite as bad. Most of the time.
SAMPLES
Action Log Sample:
It takes Near a moment to register his location. Colosseum? Ah, he's back, then. Lovely.
Or it could conceivably have been so were it not for the animated ball of flame he catches out of the corner of his vision. That is not lovely at all. For the moment, at least, Near has seemed to escape its notice in return. But to count on that continuing would be foolish, as currently he has no shelter. Will the creature pass by without seeing him if he remains still? Or would it be best for him to move and put in as much distance as possible?
His mind rapidly but calmly weighs all the options, leaving no room for anything less than purely rational thought. Keeping a clear head is important, and not a difficult task for him. All the while, he surveys the grounds, cataloging the locations of the exits. If he is going to move, it will not be blindly.
Finally, he tenses his legs underneath him . . . but does not move. The less physical effort he has to exercise, the better. Head still clearing, he calls to mind a few spells that may be helpful in assisting a defense. No offense. He doesn't even bother looking for a weapon. It would be meaningless.
Closer, closer . . . and then what Near assumes to be the creature's eyes land on him. So much for that. Damn. His face tightens briefly -- but only briefly, because that is when the shower of sparks comes.
Near hurries backward tossing off a Dispel Magic as a counter only to find that the attack is not magical in nature; the spell does nothing to help him. Fortunately, however, he is mostly out of the way and only a few sparks land on his sleeve.
Which rapidly escalates in heat and a small thread of alarm slides through his mind as he realizes it will catch fire if he does nothing about it. Instinctively, he slaps his opposite hand down onto the sleeve and whispers a quick cantrip to cool the fabric. The once imminent fire fizzles out, leaving a black singe against the white material and a trail of smoke curling up from his arm.
Near might have sighed in relief, but he hasn't the time and he knows it. The creature shoots off another cloud of sparks, and this time he is more prepared, managing to evade it completely.
But he cannot keep this up. It needs to end.
A third wave of sparks, and this time, he mutters another spell under his breath while he scrambles back yet again. A deep, immense roar suddenly reverberates from the opposite side of the arena. The creature turns toward it.
And Near? He turns from the creature, bolts for the closest exit once it's distracted by the phantom noise. It isn't a long distance, but it feels like one to him; his thin, frail frame remains unused to this level of exertion.
He slams the door behind him, then slumps against the wall, breathing hard from the effort. That had been more difficult than it had needed to be, surely. How inconvenient that he hadn't sighted anyone else whose assistance he could have enlisted. Some part of him is wistful for the days when he had people for this sort of endeavour.
Gradually, Near calms his breathing. People. Right. Mello and L . . . are they still around? How long has it been since he's been here? The latter question is something he will have to learn by speaking with others, and it is secondary, besides. First, re-establish contact if possible, get to a secure area. If contact is impossible, he will have to make arrangements on his own.
Without the distraction of imminent danger, Near finally notes the weight in his pocket, and he reaches a pale hand down to pluck the phone out of it. Finding out whether Mello and L are still here is as simple as looking at the contact lists.
Ah. There they are. He sags a little in relief. Yes, this is preferable to having to start all over again. And . . . hm. Another name he hasn't seen in a while. How about that? Well, that's fine. It can be quite a reunion, then.
It requires no conscious thought as to who among the three Near decides to contact first, who commands the most attention in his eyes. He inputs Mello's number.