ximilian: (Default)
ximilia mods ([personal profile] ximilian) wrote in [community profile] ximilialog2021-06-08 08:11 pm

LOG.01

L O G . 0 1

// PART I. summer cleaning  


The more days that pass on the station, one thing becomes increasingly apparent: the station is woefully unprepared for so many people arriving there at once. While the materials found in the lab or the armory are lacking, and characters don’t have many sets of clothes to change into, the most glaring problem is food: after days and days of nothing but dried jerky and canned beans, things may start to seem a little… well, dire.

But one morning, those who completed the tasks in the training room with the promise of a boon will wake up to a message on the network:

Congratulations! You have earned one (1) boon of your choice. Please enter your desired item here.

After they have entered whatever item they wish to get — well, at first nothing seems to happen. But after some minutes, those who are either in the living quarters or the kitchen area can hear the unmistakable whir of power turning on… and clatter. Lots of clatter.

1.0   Congratulations, it seems that the teleportation devices have finally stored enough power to send in a variety of items! On the platform near the living quarters, there is everything one might imagine from different planets: piles and piles of clothes in different styles, books, tools… oh, look, a headband and a comb! And that sure is a yoga mat. Best go sort through the pile and get what appeals to you, before someone else does.


2.0   For those characters who requested an item as their boon, the good news is that whatever they requested is there in the pile! The bad news is… it’s there in the pile, so good luck finding it — and convincing others it’s really yours, so give it back, please!


3.0   It’s not just the platform near the living quarters that is functional, now: it’s also the one near the kitchen. And that one is brimming with produce: fresh fruit, coffee beans, bread, different cuts of meat, cartons of milk and juice… there’s even some ice cream, though best get that to a freezer quickly! Enjoy the variety in your dishes, for now.

TOP


// PART II. lights out  


Two weeks before their first mission is supposed to start, in the middle of the day, everyone’s earpieces start to crackle with static. It starts faint, a sound barely there, but it grows into a persistent buzz that nothing seems to help — not attempts to contact someone else, mute the sounds, nothing.

Just as you’re about to go crazy and chuck the earpiece as far away from you as can be, the static suddenly stops.

And all the lights on the station suddenly go out, leaving nothing but darkness behind.

The static starts again, and finally, Viveca’s voice filters through.

// VIVECA.AI
It’s no good, the platforms took too much power, we need ——. I’ve tried fixing it, but it’s not enough. I —— the backup ——.

The characters may try to answer, but their comms aren’t connecting — it’s as if they’ve tuned into a radio channel they’re not supposed to be hearing. And perhaps more surprisingly, the next voice they hear is not Viveca at all.

// ?̴̳̥̱͎͓̼͇͖̫̄̉̐̇̄̋̇?̸͙̼͎̙̙̳͖͈͆̓̈̓̊͆́̂͗̆́͠?̴̛͓̬̮̏̈́̃̍̍̌͗̈́͘̚̚͠?̸͙̼͎̙̙̳͖͈͆̓̈̓̊͆́̂͗̆́͠?̴̛͓̬̮̏̈́̃̍̍̌͗̈́͘̚̚͠
Sorry, —— will have to keep ——————. Try to ——... emergency mode?

The crackle keeps getting louder and louder.

// VIVECA.AI
I’ll —— but —— help! They have to ————

With that, the earpieces go silent… and even if characters attempt to contact Viveca, they will receive no answer.

4.0   Left in the darkness, minutes stretch into hours without a flicker of light. The hallways are eerily quiet, with only the faint hum of machinery assuring you that the station itself is still functional and not dead. Of course, you may stay where you are and hope that the lights miraculously return… or you can navigate your way through the hallways and rooms with nothing but your memory to help you. It may be a good idea to get someone to go with you so you’re not bumbling around in the dark on your own.


5.0   Those optimistic about the lights returning will have to be disappointed. After several hours and nothing but radio silence on Viveca’s end, it seems clear that this is a problem she can’t fix on her own. If you don’t want to be left in the dark (literally) forever, it’s best to try and do something about it.

If you’re technologically inclined, the lab is the place to be: you may be able to connect to the station’s system, at least enough to figure out what’s wrong and try to fix it. But perhaps you have other abilities, those of more magical origin… with those, you may be of assistance in helping to replenish the station’s diminished power supply.

TOP


// PART III. mad world  


Eventually, everyone’s efforts will pay off and the station seems to regain some of its power back — at least enough for the lights to flicker back on, first in the living quarters, and then around the rest of the station. The resurgence of power also affects the simulation room as well, quiet and unassuming at first … but something seems a little off, the longer you remain in the space. For one thing, it flickers colour and light in a way that isn’t worrying, exactly, but doesn’t feel all that stable. And just when you think you should probably head back out, the doors close and a world builds up around you in meticulous detail — is it something you recognize or is it something altogether unfamiliar?

6.0   Creature Comforts: The simulation room picks up on the cues of its inhabitants, snatches of memory and knowledge of worlds that it isn’t wholly familiar with but seem to fit within the parameters of its code. Whatever world you’ve come from, you might note the familiarities, might even feel a little homesick. And so, the world around you might resemble a historical time period befitting of swords and gunpowder and large dresses with too much frill. Or maybe the simulation goes back even further than that: lush jungles and prickling heat, the sharp buzzing of hard-shelled insects hidden in foliage and the hiss of something else that seems a little ominous. Maybe the simulation slowly materializes into the place you’ve just come from before waking up here — all the way down to that coffee shop you like so much, the one with the really perfect latte.


7.0   A Fish Out of Water: It’s hard to say whether the simulation room has a sense of humour of its own, or if the power outage has made it a little unpredictable. Either way, the space around you fills up with images entirely unfamiliar to you, putting you completely out of your element. If you’re from a small town or a place where life’s a little simpler— castles, large stretches of field and open sky, say: what you see will be futuristic skyscrapers with all the lights on, and colourful bright screens everywhere. Is that a flying car? Geez, you’ve never seen one of those things before (not that you can reach it from that height). Or maybe you’re from a Dystopian wasteland: if so, welcome to experiencing an idyllic paradise with just the right amount of density, the right amount of kumbaya to fill in the questions you might have had of what life was like before you were born. The simulation room is here to put you out of your natural element without you realizing it.


8.0   101 Ways To Break Out (J/K, it’s 1): Of course you’re not stuck in this room. There’s always a way out, a lock to pick, the slight shimmer in the air that guides you to the seam that unravels the whole thing and lets you out. Depending on the setting your character happens to be delicately trapped in, it might take a bit of doing to find the One Thing Slightly Off anchoring you back to reality— a totem if you will. Find that thing, find the shimmer in the air and stick your hand through it, and you’ll find the room going dark around you, but in a ‘Hey, You’ve Completed this Simulation! Congrats!’ kind of way. The doors will slide open and you’ll be free to go, maybe on slightly shakier legs but in one piece nevertheless.

The TL;DR: Due to the power outage aboard the station, the simulation room is temporarily on the fritz. Here you’re free to choose the manner of simulation you want your character to stumble into, all the way down to the most minute detail. Go crazy! Remember whatever happens in this simulation stays only within this simulation and the room; it cannot and will not affect the rest of the ship. Simulations may have the possibility of changing halfway through, and depending on how many people enter the room after you, could end up changing more than once. The constant will be to find the exit trigger once you’ve been locked in.

TOP


F Y I

The events in this log span the month of June.

No one will be able to contact Viveca after Part II, even after the lights come back and the station’s power supply has been replenished. If your character wants to talk to her before Part II, feel free to use the Ask the AI page.

For Part I, those who completed the tasks in the TDM will be able to ask for one thing they want to receive here. It can be an item from their home, or something else they’d like to have. If they ask for something living (like a dog, for example), they’ll receive a plushie of said living thing instead. Note that you can handwave completing the tasks on the TDM — we're not going to demand links to threads or anything!

For Part II, those who want to try and connect to the station’s system can ask questions and suggest what they’d like to try to do here. How your attempt goes is up to chance, as the mods are rolling the results. Note that this is not mandatory and the mods are fine with handwaving what exactly gets the power to come back, and it can (and likely will) be a combined effort of many characters. There is no one right thing to do, but if you’d like to ask questions of what your characters would be able to do or find out when connecting to the system, feel free!

Throughout the month, remember that all the locations in the two wings and the center of the station are available to use, even if they’re not detailed in the prompts in this log. So feel free to make your own wildcard prompts using the training room, the armory, the living quarters, the infirmary, the sunlight room etc.

For those who didn’t get to play out their character’s arrival on the TDM, you can read more about what the characters see upon arrival here. Feel free to make your own prompts for that!

NAV

retributioning: (10)

[personal profile] retributioning 2021-06-24 06:52 pm (UTC)(link)
She laughs a little at his words, and somehow manages to even sound genuine.

"Trust me, I couldn't explain half the things happening here." Then, her lips quirking, "Maybe they didn't want you bumping your head all the time."

Which is a hilarious comment in hindsight, as he starts walking away and promptly falls down. Renfri blinks... and holds in her laughter.

"Are you okay?" She doesn't sound overly concerned, though.
retributioning: (11)

sorry for the delay, heatwave kicked my butt for a while there!

[personal profile] retributioning 2021-06-24 06:56 pm (UTC)(link)
[ she seems to relax slightly when his choice of a table is away from most of the people and with a clear sight to the door — she, too, takes a seat so that she can see it.

placing the drinks on the table, she smiles at him — far sharper, this time. real, in a way she hadn't been just moments ago... known to him, only, of course.
]

What? A girl's got to know a few tricks to survive in the world. I figured buying drinks must be universal.
retributioning: (11)

sorry for the delay, heatwave kicked my butt for a while there!

[personal profile] retributioning 2021-06-24 07:01 pm (UTC)(link)
Why not.

[ she sounds less like she's doing it to be altruistic and more because she... has nothing else to do, but motivation, schmotivation, right? ]

Should be fun, to bump into walls together. [ of course natasha can't see it, but she's definitely grinning. ]

Do you think the lights will be out for long? Where I come from, we have torches and candles, not mechanics. More reliable, it seems.
retributioning: (05)

sorry for the delay, heatwave kicked my butt for a while there!

[personal profile] retributioning 2021-06-24 07:11 pm (UTC)(link)
[ despite herself, his utter anger at the simple piece of technology... is incredibly amusing. she bites the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. ]

I think whoever is behind all of us being here begs to differ.

[ oh, she's not happy about the implications, either. but what is there to do about it? ]

Maybe we should look around, [ she suggests, airily. ] We might find something useful. If you know this ship, then you'll spot if something's wrong.
starer: (Default)

[personal profile] starer 2021-06-24 09:01 pm (UTC)(link)
Completely forgot to do this. Bucky's just to ask for something to pass the time with. But really I just want to be a troll and ask for some version of this game to turn up. :|b
callada: (se siente bien estar aquí)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-25 01:41 am (UTC)(link)
"Not most, but enough," he says with a shrug. "Over half are around the height of everyone here, but plenty are taller than I am, too. And that goes for most of the other races. I'm just used to more variation than what I'm seeing around this place."

But if there's a reason why most here are human and short, he can't guess at it. All he can do is shrug, and glance down at ... Oh, hell.

"Sorry," he chuckles awkwardly. "Never introduced myself. I'm Rosinante." And he extends a hand down to shake, in case that's as universal a gesture as he hopes it is.
coordination: (resembles : a bear in heat)

♥♥♥!! heatwaves are WACK AF

[personal profile] coordination 2021-06-25 01:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ There's plenty to do in Yzak's mind. Like, for example, FIGHT SOMEONE ABOUT IT. Or keep complaining and yelling about it if he can't. Invasions of privacy like that hit him where he's sensitive the most - in feeling a severe lack of control. Nothing drives him more mad than that.

And really, all it takes sometimes is a minor inconvenience to get this guy grumpy about it. ]


I'd beg to not be so invasive if they expect someone like me to work with them!

[ But he still takes the initiative to look around the ship, despite his mouth. Aside from the bridge and the view from it, the rest of the ship doesn't have too much more to offer. The hallways, sleeping quarters and mess hall are rather uniform looking. Nothing stands out, which is unsurprising as it's a battleship. No real point to add too much of a flair for something that could be sunk tomorrow.

What is definitely more standout about it is the hangar, which houses six huge, humanoid-shaped robots about 20 meters high. Four of them are green, while the other two are dark grey and white respectively. ]
callada: (just the usual heroics)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-25 01:48 am (UTC)(link)
Sounds versatile. If this place was picking us for skills, you're an obvious choice. I know they pitched it as us undoing our regrets, but I figure they're getting something out of it too, and they need us for that.

[He has Doubts about the whole undoing regrets thing, anyway. Sure, people are here from all different times and worlds, but that's still not the same as actually making changes to a personal timeline for new results.

Not that he doesn't want to do it, though.]
coordination: (Do you like bacon? Wana strip?)

[personal profile] coordination 2021-06-25 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
A chance, yes.

[ Yzak does so very appreciate Kirigan's faith in his skills, and it's really easy to stroke his ego (but just as easily to bruise it, alas) so that's all it takes to give him a nice boost of self confidence about this whole thing.

He can be heard shifting in the dark a bit as he speaks - as he grouses, to ensure they can stick close without running into each other. ]


Wish we didn't have to grope around in the fucking dark to find our way there, though!!
callada: (dress best in boldly-striped sweaters)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-25 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
"Been worse," he grunts as he pushes himself back up and rubs at a scrape on his chin. It's not bleeding too much, it'll be fine, it'll be fine.

"Suppose I'd thank them for thinking of my comfort, if that's the case, but I don't think it makes that much difference when half the time I bump into things sideways," he sighs. Admitting he's hopelessly clumsy has never been too hard, and sometimes it even keeps people from trying to hold his hand and babysit him as much as they might otherwise.

A few more accident-free steps, and the dock gives way to a cobblestone path that winds its way toward the town - a town that has quite a lot more trees growing in its corners and along its roadsides than it did a few minutes ago. It would be nice if the speed of that change wasn't so unsettling.
coordination: (I'd love to take you to Olive Garden)

[personal profile] coordination 2021-06-25 06:09 pm (UTC)(link)
I better not be considered as missing because that would be a big problem!

[ He has rank! Positions he fills! Important ones!

But after that complaint, he shifts gears. ]


Your promise?
chrysology: (Thorns in)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-06-26 03:33 am (UTC)(link)
For skills? I guess so. Alchemy can do a lot of things. It's still limited by things like the conservation of mass and such, some things that are forbidden but, generally. As long as you have the ingredients to work with.

[Most things are simple enough at least. As long as Ed doesn't bust his arm and not have something to draw with on his person. He's trying to remain hopeful on that working out though even if he knows he should try prepare just in case his arm breaks. Ed gives a shrug, unsure on what to make of this whole thing just yet exactly.]

They must need these orbs for some reason, I guess. But yeah. Equivalent Exchange. They have to get something out of this too, from the orbs. For them to bring us here to collect them. Even if for our own reasons in cooperating with them, our regrets....
callada: (beware the silent observer)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-26 04:14 am (UTC)(link)
I figure it must be the orbs directly. Sure would be interesting to know what they really are, once we finally see them. Maybe a power source, or some sort of weapon.

[Since, sadly, that's what most people seem interested in, most of the time, and his voice betrays the fact that he knows it. It's tiring. All he's ever fought for was the safety and equality of the people who don't have those things, but even if many other Marines fought for those same things, there were others who were in it for the feeling of power, just like the pirates and dictators and others he tried to push back against.

He tilts his head toward Ed.]


Think that's something your alchemy could do? Maybe if we know what the orbs are made of, we'd have a clue about what they're really supposed to be used for.
chrysology: (It's through your)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-06-26 04:21 am (UTC)(link)
I guess we'll find out. But -- my alchemy? I mean, assuming I could figure what it was made from, the orbs. And if I had the materials to work with I could make more if that's what you mean?

[Ed isn't sure either, on what to expect. What the orbs are or do. He figures that would come up later once they get the orbs and learn more about them then, probably. Ed's still focused on adjusting to things here in the space station yet. And being apart from Al. That's enough to be figuring for the moment here and now at least.]
chronosynthesis: (❖ Psychic Force)

[personal profile] chronosynthesis 2021-06-26 06:00 am (UTC)(link)
Viveca and someone she was talking to. [A voice he certainly didn't recognize. Perhaps that's what make it him uneasy, the involvement of someone--or something--else.]

Ah--right. [Syrlya doesn't have amazing night vision, but he can follow a voice well enough. He can't help but keep one hand close to his sword, just in case something is still going to jump out at them.

But he follows, glancing around despite what little good it does as if he'll spot the vaugest hints of light.]
I am Syrlya, by the way.
chronosynthesis: (❖ Chronophantasma)

[personal profile] chronosynthesis 2021-06-26 06:38 am (UTC)(link)
For a moment he imagines Rosinante, but stretched out. Which is a little odd to consider humans stretching vertically but not horizontally. No, they probably get thicker, too.

Syrlya pauses before he takes Rosinante's hand to shake it with a brief smile. "Syrlya. Well met."
cruelyethuman: (How about I--)

[personal profile] cruelyethuman 2021-06-26 05:56 pm (UTC)(link)
[And while the darkling wants the same thing; to stop walking in the dark. Mostly because he hasn't walked here enough to tell the dangers from the harmless things, it's also because everything here is wrong. The buttons, the weapons, even the people.

But no one promised that undoing a mistake (a terrible, wondrous mistake) would be easy. He walks a little faster, one hand one the wall until he finds a corner.]


I'm willing to help where I can, to give you that chance. I want to say 'follow', but I don't know where we need to go.
cruelyethuman: (Oh)

It's okay, I will backtag forever

[personal profile] cruelyethuman 2021-06-26 07:14 pm (UTC)(link)
I wouldn't know. [he states drolly, watching the people who might not even be people mill around, doing strange things like talking to tiny black squares or just in to the air like idiots.] I've never been a little girl.

[The drink smells- not bad. Like something sugary and coffee, and not at all like anything he's ever seen or smelled before in his life.]

And you happen to know how to get beverages out of people. Clever. All of this aside, there's something wrong. This isn't were I thought I would be.
callada: (se siente bien estar aquí)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-27 12:10 am (UTC)(link)
That's an interesting idea. No, I just meant finding out what they're made of in the first place.

[That was the impression he'd gotten from Ed's explanation earlier, after all. Finding out the composition of material, how it all fits together. He's still mostly picturing someone taking an object into a lab and smashing it to bits for samples, doing some things with chemicals maybe. Or is that just chemistry?

But if they could make more orbs and use them as a bartering chip...]
callada: (lurk moar)

[personal profile] callada 2021-06-27 12:19 am (UTC)(link)
"Syrlya. Well, glad you're here. I've seen what happens when humans get too comfortable thinking they're the only people around."

Which he says casually enough, hoping to keep the conversation relatively pleasant, but he means it. Just because his world has a variety of sapient races doesn't mean they all get along, and those societies that shut others out and declare themselves above all the rest are rife with cruelty and ignorance. If they're all going to have to work together, they'll need to be sympathetic toward each other and their differences.

Of course, if everyone on board were human maybe it wouldn't matter, but personal experience makes that idea pretty distasteful.
chrysology: (To hide)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-06-27 02:55 am (UTC)(link)
I might be regardless, back home. I just hope Al and Winry aren't too worried.

[Just. Going off of what he last recalls. The mine collapsing and all. Still, he can't do anything about all that from here. So he just has to try and focus on what he can do. On what he can do from here at least, in preparing for these missions and such. He glances to the chain of his pocket watch at his pants, giving a brief nod.]

A promise I made to my brother. I intend to keep it. Even if I have to keep figuring a different way to go about it.

[They refuse to use the stone after hearing about how those were made. So Ed just has to figure some alternative. Like these orbs.]
coordination: (is there a single cute boy left on earth)

[personal profile] coordination 2021-06-27 04:06 am (UTC)(link)
Probably to where all the tech and laboratory equipment is.

Ugh ... it's closer to the other end of the station, but at least we can get there.

[ These halls aren't as bad to navigate, and Yzak hopes they don't run into anybody else on the way. But he begins to move and make his way eastbound. ]
chronosynthesis: (❖ Continuum Split)

[personal profile] chronosynthesis 2021-06-28 02:35 am (UTC)(link)
"Do you?" He quirks a brow as he draws his hand back. That's awfully specific. "I suppose any culture can be hostile based on their differences. But every human here is not even of the same world, are you?"

Page 8 of 11