FABULA NOVA CRYSTALLIS || INTRODUCTION LOG

[eternitymods]

Who: All characters (New Arrivals and Native OCs) When: April 11th Where: The Dream Width (Airship), the Curti Center, and the Housing District What: For the first time in 10 years, outworlders have been found the Dream Width. This unprecedented number of new arrivals are rescued and brought to Vaikuntha, and must now try to start adjusting to their new home. Warnings/Notes: All players can put up a toplevel. Please post to the NPC toplevel if you have an IC question for them. ARRIVAL [ You wake from your dreams, from your memories, on a narrow cot. There are fleeting impressions- recycled air, humming machinery, movement, strangers waking around you. The room you wake in is lined with cots, with barely enough space between them to walk to the door. The makeshift infirmary is becoming uncomfortably warm, packed to its capacity with people. Stepping out, there is a lobby space that bears the signs of having once held some furniture, now cleared away to make space. Even with the sparse accommodations, the space quickly fills to standing-room only. As the automatic door slides shut on the infirmary, a light flashes on the far side of the room. A flickering holographic projection of a man’s face and gloved hand appears projected in the space above the arrivals’ heads. He backs up so his upper body is in frame for the recording. An arm, covered in the same orange flightsuit sleeve, hands him a tablet. The man begins to read. A written version of the message scrolls along the bottom of the projection as he speaks. ] ’Welcome travelers’… That’s way too formal. Hey everyone. Hi! [ The second man leans into the frame to add his greeting. ] Don’t panic. You were floating out there, but we pulled you in and rescued you. Yeah, we’re heroic AND handsome. And also the only ones crazy enough to come out here to get you. [ A woman’s voice calls from out of frame. ] Can you two be serious for ONE moment and stick to your scripts? [ The two men give each other a conspiratorial eyeroll. This does not appear to be their first take. ] Anyways, no need to panic. Seriously, don’t do anything reckless. We got our fill of that with Skywalker. [A huff is heard offscreen, and the men finally spare the tablet another glance.] ‘Your pilots will be navigating treacherous environs as this message plays…’ Claire, seriously? Nobody talks like this! [ The tablet is tossed to the side and lands with a thunk offscreen. ] We’re gonna wing it. Look, everyone, we’re workin’ hard to get you planetside safely, and it’s gonna take some tricky flying to do it. So the door to the cockpit is locked so we can focus on not getting us all killed. Don’t try to open it, unless you want to be stardust. We promise you’ll get answers about what’s going on once we land. But for now, please trust us. Right now, we’re your only hope. [ The second man leans forward, close to the recording device, and presses a button. The projection freezes for a moment, and then the message starts to play again. ] ’Welcome travelers’… CURTI CENTER [ Finally after hours of flight, you arrive at the Curti Center. The other NPCs await you along with the Native OCs. Cid gives a short and to the point welcome speech, explaining what the situation is: you were lost in a space called the Dream Width. You are now on a planet called Vaikuntha: for ages, the people of this world have used Airships to rescue people lost in the Dream Width, with one person being found roughly every ten years. No one knows why this happens, but this has been a mutually beneficial exchange, with the people from Vaikutha rescuing people lost in the Dream Width and the rescued ones sharing their wisdom with the people of Vaikuntha. Ten years ago, something unusual happened: two people were found at once, Biggs and Wedge. But that was nothing compared to what happened today. Indeed, here you are. No one knows why such a large number of people has been found at once, but the Curti Center is a place dedicated to piercing the Dream Width's secrets. Cid also introduces the other ones: his assistant Jessie, Claire, the woman looking at the group in horror upon being pointe out as the bookkeeper, Kupoto and Mogaruru, their Mognet representatives and finally the Native OCs: those brave and kind souls who have accepted to help you all on a daily basis. After Cid finishes (and Claire despairs at the pile of paperwork she must complete by the end of the week), the Native OCs provide a tour of the facility and help the newcomers navigate their future lives. Now is the time to ask questions and look over pamphlets regarding locations, Jobs, life in Vaikuntha... ] [ If you want to contact an NPC specifically during this introduction, please respond to the toplevel with the name of the NPC in the subject header. The mods will try to reply at least once a day for each NPC. ] A BALL OF FLUFF NAMED MOOGLE [ It has been a long day, perhaps now you would like to find your way to a place to sleep? Or perhaps you'd like to get some answers, but you can't be bothered to go seek people out? And lo, just as despair begins settles in, a Moogle slams into you! Or stops by your side if their aim is decent... It's the Moogle Cid mentioned in his speech earlier! And they'll be informing you that now, they will stick to you like your shadow and help you in anyway they can! They're also giving you your iMog Slate- Now you can get onto Mognet! Isn't it great? ] A QUICK CHECK-UP [ Whether it's your Moogle, Native OCs or NPCs, all will urge you to stop by the hospital wing for a basic check-up. You may disagree, but listen. You've just been thrown into a space between worlds, rescued, and brought to another world. For your own sake, that's a good idea. Should you give in and go (or should you be dragged by your Moogle or a Native OC), you will find yourself in the cold and white space very reminiscent of an hospital. For characters with specific medical conditions necessitating help, this is where they will receive it if asked. The doctors and nurses are all White Mages or Chemists, with various levels into their Job as well as medical knowledge. Don't mind the confused looks if you look like nothing they've ever seen before... It's hard for a doctor to be unable to give a proper diagnosis to a patient! For everyone else though, they'll be let go with smiles and be given a candy as they leave. No one likes medical check-ups, but it's a very quick and basic one: testing reflexes, taking your temperature and the likes. On the bright side, while you're grumpily sitting on a bed with a thermometer on your forehead or in your mouth, it might be a good time to socialize with your fellow new arrival who's having lights flashed into their eyes by a doctor. Misery loves company, after all. ] A BAD OMEN [ Wandering around, you may stumble upon an old and tired-looking moogle wearing what can only be described as a decrepit fortune-teller attire. Upon seeing you, or any of the new arrivals for that matter, he will slowly approach and tell you all the exact same speech. ] If you stay here, you're doomed. She will find you and make you suffer hell. [At which point his eyes will grow exorbitant.] This world is cursed. You will die and never be free. [And finally he'll fly right into your face.] Never! [ Then he will leave and go say his speech to someone else, without doing anything but repeating different variations of his warning if asked for details. Should you ask your assigned Moogle, Biggs or Wedge, they will mention this crazy moogle can't be reasoned with and sometimes stick around the center, even though he's always chased away. He never says anything besides doomsday predictions. For unknown reasons, he's always been particularly nasty with Biggs and Wedge... And with you as well now, it seems. ] PRETTY SIGHTS [ There's plenty of rooms to wander about in, with several points of interest apart from the offices. The Airship Hangar is where the airships are kept and the first room you entered. Workers keep guard to prevent the outworlders from getting too close to the vehicles. Airships are expensive and they don't want you messing with them, after all. Venturing into the Research Section, you can walk through public exhibitions on astronomy, airship design, and asterisk studies. A good place to get used to the basic science of this world. The laboratories lie behind a thick locked door with a sign reading "EMPLOYEES ONLY". No going there, for now anyway. Not too far from there are the Employee Quarters - work stations, apartments, and lounge areas. The latter are available to the public, whereas the rest is locked to Native OCs. But if you get them to be friends with you, perhaps they'll let you visit? Also open to all is a Cafeteria - a standard food court with stalls serving all types of Vaikunthan cuisine. The Chef is a very jovial and absent-minded Hypello. Beware of long lines and crowded tables. Should you prefer open spaces, then the gardens are for you! There are different sections in the gardens around the center. One boasts a wide array of blooming flowers, another more practical with herbs commonly used in Vaikunthan cooking. One had been cultivated for butterflies and hummingbirds to visit. Paths have been laid through so that visitors can safely navigate, and moogles will swoop down and shout at anyone who strays into the flower beds. Or perhaps, you want to wait till the sunset. Dusk on a new world, but a beginning of a new life... The sea shines bright in the orange light. A good moment for quiet contemplation. ] HOUSING [The housing accommodations are the best the Curti staff could provide, given the sudden and unexpected number of arrivals from the Dream Width. The keys have been entrusted to the moogles who will be guiding the new arrivals. The new arrivals can stop by the Curti Center storage room to collect some essential supplies that have been donated by charity organizations from around the world (there are boxes of toothbrushes and whitening toothpaste sent from the Zora, hair brushes from the Elezen, quick-drying towels from the Hypello, among the various donations of clothes, toiletries, and blankets), before heading to their temporary homes. The people of Vaikuntha have done their best to provide for their new neighbors and help them get on their feet. Still, things will be a little cramped until the off-worlders can find employment and move into better housing. The staff hopes they can get along with one another until alternate arrangements can be made. You can survive living with roommates for a few months, right?]

Comments

[red_planet_blues]

[Whoa now. That's new. This is definitely not the same Dylas from Crystallis. Sparks gives a start, blinking in surprise.]

Uh, no, I... Ya just look a whole lot like someone I knew. Kinda. It's weird. Everything's weird.

[sullenstallion]

There's no way you have.

[Dylas stares incredulously, his glare replaced with a look of confusion. He looks down at himself, just...who else would look as strange and mismatched as he does right now?]

Is this some kind of scam? Because I'm not falling for it.

[red_planet_blues]

Well, okay, maybe not-- [Sparks waves a hand towards the snake parts.] But more in the-- [He circles a finger around his own face to indicate Dylas's.] Y'know, face 'n hair 'n stuff. Look, in my experience, the universe is a small place and stuff like this happens way more than it probably show. Reckon ya don't gotta believe me as I got no proof, but it is what it is.

[sullenstallion]

[Ah, yes. The snake parts. Basically 70% of his mass by this point. He feels a little offended, and he's not sure why.]

So, you've seen my face before. Where? That might be proof, because I'm not entirely convinced you aren't trying to sign me up for something.

[He's lived in Ryslig long enough to know what scams are, bless his snake heart.]

[red_planet_blues]

[Sparks throws his hands up, both in frustration and to show he's got nothing on him.]

What'm I gonna be signing ya up for? Unless yer the kind to give handouts to new guys on the planet who just got plucked outta space and dropped off here.

[sullenstallion]

How the hell would I know? I've never fallen for a scam, so I don't know how they work.

[But that's. Actually sound logic. Dylas is taking everything he hears here with a grain of salt; someone has to know more than they're letting on. But this guy doesn't seem involved.]

Fine. You're...not using a line on me. I get it.

[red_planet_blues]

Yeah. Okay. It's just like, sometimes people look like other people. Reckon I probably got someone here who looks like me somewhere.

[It was probability, but also this place has been full of coincidences aplenty. There's a city with his name in it!]

It ain't a bad idea to stay on yer toes - metaphorically speaking - when ya get dropped on a new planet. But if ya go around accusin' everyone of scams, ya sure ain't gonna make any friends.

[sullenstallion]

They've got people who look like you everywhere.

[Just a small correction. He's actually not trying to be rude, but...]

You can save the advice. I've done this before. The only thing different is the guy who came up to me with vague knowledge of me pretending to be helpful.

[red_planet_blues]

I-- Okay, I get what yer sayin'. I meant, like, super specifically.

[Wait, Dylas has done this before too?]

Hold on -- you've done this whole thing before too? The whole gettin' sucked into a void and wakin' up on a foreign planet thing? Can I ask where ya were before this?

[sullenstallion]

...I was in a city called Bavan. I don't know the name of the planet, but the area was called 'Ryslig.'

[He doesn't know a lot about how planets work, actually, so.]

I can tell just from looking at you that you've never heard of it.

[That's not the body of a monster in front of him, after all.]

[red_planet_blues]

[Nope, just a plain ol' vanilla human here. Sparks gives him a nod in agreement.]

Yep, yer right. Doesn't ring a bell. I figured the chances were slim anyway. So whattaya think of this place so far? I'd rather be home, but the tech here is like, leaps 'n bounds above the other place I got dragged to, so that's a plus.

[Maybe, just maybe he can catch a ship home here. On Crystallis that would have never happened.]

[sullenstallion]

It's a bit too soon to tell. It seems 'happy' enough here, but for all we know this world is filled with a thousand problems they aren't telling us about yet.

It's better than the last one I was on, though. I think.

[red_planet_blues]

Oh, yeah, totally. I'm sure we're gonna be savin' this world from, I dunno, planet-eating robots or somethin'. Just gotta give it time. Least it's a job I got a lotta experience in now. I'll just swoop in, save the day, and get the heck back to Mars.

[sullenstallion]

Huh. You're a pretty surprising guy. You look pretty old, but you're naive, too.

[It starts out sounding like Dylas is impressed, but it turns out to be an observation, if not an insult.]

For all we know, we're here to start a war. Or something worse.

[red_planet_blues]

[Sparks seems unphased by Dylas's remark.]

Took three years last time, but I managed it. Anyway, I ain't gonna speculate til I know for sure. First off, gotta deal with, like, gettin' a job and meeting my roommates. [He frowns at that last thought.]