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

chrysology: (Does the pain)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-07-06 09:06 am (UTC)(link)
I mean. Most people drink it straight like that. Some have it with their cooking and stuff. I don't mind it in stew. But it isn't something I like the taste of on its own. Like I said, most people don't mind it though and like drinking it. You should at least have a try, I guess. If you didn't have it back home on that ark.

[He hates milk so much. But she doesn't know if she necessarily likes it or not yet in not having had it back home, so. He can at least offer her this to try. It isn't like he's going to use it. So she may as well possibly get some instead.]

Not sure if I want to ask how that food tasted.
romancekiller: (pic#8640840)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-07-11 06:02 am (UTC)(link)
[she gives a slight nod taking the offered drink in hand] Well honestly, it's not like I've known anything different so I wouldn't say it's terrible but I'm assuming there'd definitely be a noticeable difference with the real thing.
chrysology: (It's through your)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-07-12 09:09 am (UTC)(link)
Probably. Only way to find out is to try it yourself.

[He offers her a glass, so she can pour herself some and see how she likes it for herself or not. Ed's just never understood how Al and most everyone else could just straight up drink the stuff. But then, people have different tastes. He's never liked milk but others did. Maybe Clarke would. Maybe she won't. But she won't know unless she tries.]
romancekiller: (pic#8640833)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-07-24 05:50 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah that's true enough. [she gives a slight nod as she looks cautiously at the milk] Maybe it's out of habit but it feels a bit weird to be taking any of this food or drink here.
chrysology: (Kindness)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-07-27 09:05 am (UTC)(link)
Because of the rationing? It's here to be eaten. As long as you don't pig out and go for all of it for yourself, it's fine. We all need to eat to survive. It's part of life.

[That was what he had learned, on the Island during his training. That he was alive because he ate the fish or the fruits or whatever. He was alive at the expense of those and the cycle continued on and on.]
romancekiller: (pic#8605715)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-07-29 07:06 am (UTC)(link)
[clarke knows that much but that wasn't what she meant either] More that I feel like there's a catch to it. [not to mention it seems too good to be true and because the last place she was offered food was in mount weather which didn't turn out so well]
chrysology: (The pride)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-07-31 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
A catch? Like what? I mean, I guess we should be mindful and not pig out if we need to check how long before we get more food and all but.

[The only time Ed went without food wise was on the Island while he and Al were figuring out how to hunt and fish to fend for themselves. For all that Trisha had some rough times in caring for them by herself, she'd always ensured they were fed, that he and Al had enough to eat. But of course he's oblivious about Mount Weather on Clarke's end to be aware of that and the obvious consequential wariness.]
romancekiller: (pic#8640878)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-08-15 07:18 am (UTC)(link)
[clarke just gives a slight shrug] I don't know, I figured the food might be tampered with in some way or something.
chrysology: (Your faith)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-08-15 07:46 am (UTC)(link)
Why would they do that? We can't go off on missions for those orbs for them if they poison or kill us or something. Makes more sense for them to be looking out for us.

[Not that he has tried anything yet with them being in the middle of sorting through everything but. Still. He didn't suspect something like that when he heard they got a lot of food and such. Ed glances between her and the milk, aware she might have some issues to work through in trusting people given whatever went down back home but still.]
romancekiller: (pic#8640878)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-08-17 07:11 am (UTC)(link)
[she frowns slightly because while she knows how it makes her sound paranoid, she still prefers to remain cautious] Yeah sure but don't you think that most of this is too good to be true?
chrysology: (Breaks the spirit)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-08-19 05:10 am (UTC)(link)
Believe me. I'm sure there's a catch somewhere. Probably, more likely, the missions will be tough. Getting the orbs won't be easy. But they probably don't want to do anything to us before that at least, in between missions. Would be my guess.

[He gets and appreciates the caution. Given what he's been told thus far on Clarke's life prior and all anyway. But Ed doesn't see reason why the food or drink would have been tampered with.]
romancekiller: (pic#8640878)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2021-08-29 06:49 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, maybe. I guess I'm just a bit wary based on a similar situation I'd been through back home. [she lets out a sigh and just glances back towards the milk in her hand] Thank you for this though.
chrysology: (The pride)

[personal profile] chrysology 2021-08-29 08:15 am (UTC)(link)
You're welcome to it. Not like I'd be drinking it. Someone ought get use out of it.

[Ed says with a shrug as he focuses on separating out the cold or frozens to be dealt with first before they would spoil if left out too long. He takes a note on what they have and how much as he goes.]