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meadowlarklogs2019-02-09 11:25 am
- !arrival log,
- castlevania: alucard,
- darker than black: hei,
- dc comics: dick grayson,
- dogs b&c: giovanni rammsteiner,
- dogs b&c: nill,
- ffxiv: arya gastaurknan,
- ffxv: noctis lucis caelum,
- ffxv: prompto argentum,
- game of thrones: sansa stark,
- gangsta: alex benedetto,
- starfighter: cain,
- starfighter: deimos
ARRIVAL LOG 007
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: Night of September 20 to night of September 23
WHAT: The seventh arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy. Further notes at end of log.
Awareness comes to you in blurred snatches, cloudy fragments of sound and light, color, sensation. Hazy and difficult to grasp on to, but slowly aligning into focus. A series of regular, rhythmic beeps. A medicinal, astringent smell. The sensation of movement, a low hum and accompanying vibration under you. Your eyes are heavy, hard to keep open, but in the glimpses between slow, dark blinks you see four people in black body armor seated opposite you, as well as a man in dark gray scrubs.
You realize there are others next to you. All of you are dressed differently: each in a cheap, clunky bodysuit of different colors. Red, blue, yellow, green, black, pink, purple, teal. It's as if you were put into a costume, the blurry shades of the outfits moving in and out with your hazy recognition. Your hair has been recently cut, and is at various stages of growth, and you're restrained across your arms, chests, and feet, left firmly attached to the softly cushioned seat beneath you. To your left, an armored interior door, two more people visible, the movement of streets passing through a windshield. You try to open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your tongue is coated in tar, and you manage nothing more than an empty parting of lips.
The vehicle stops. The guard opposite you stands and comes to unbuckle you from the bench, helping you to your feet. Your limbs feel wooden and heavy, slow to move. One guard opens the back of the vehicle, and there is a clutter of sounds and lights outside, children and adults milling about, with giddy cheerful music accompanying the pitter patter of sounds. The warm air is dry but cooling, and you'll likely wish you weren't in whatever overwrought attire you were dressed in for the occasion. Before you're let out, the nurse moves to check each passenger, releasing them from their restraints just before they're helped out of the vehicle. The nurse doesn't follow, instead moving to sit as the last passenger is unloaded.
The guards keep their heads down. Their actions are quick and firm, but not unkind. Once the passengers are out, the guards place a mask in each of their hands that matches the color of their clothing, and from it hangs a metal card that will grant everyone entrance to the party up ahead. Then the guards climb back into the vehicle and close the doors. The engine powers up again, and then the bus is gone.
You're left alone at the large entrance of a festival of some kind, with many people milling about in costumes while loud music plays from speakers. The festival itself undoubtedly looks like some kind of costume party, though you'll come to notice that your costumes aren't unique.
Though entirely capable of independent action and thought, new characters will find themselves completely, unquestioningly compliant to any verbal statement which could be taken as a command or request.
The message from El comes the same as usual: insistent, not waiting for any active attempt to open it. Scrolling within your vision as if being written while you're reading it.
Wow, I have to say – the guys behind this? They're getting creative. I'm sure some of you are already aware, but Anime Naex is on, and arrival #7 is there waiting for you in some rather unfortunate getups. Make sure you look up the Vestica pilots on the way so you can pick them out. Have fun and pick me up something there, will you? I never get to go.
Animation Naexpo – which is more coloquially known as Anime Naex – is a popular annual convention, born out of a subculture of video game and animation fans around the city. Since our time, animation has become a world-wide sensation, and is distributed out of numerous megacities, with each one specializing in their own flavor and genre. There are many smaller conventions that are held every year in New Amsterdam, but this is the largest of them all, complete with the most competitive cosplay competitions, as well as the most popular guests who travel from other megacities around the world to meet and interact with their fans. It also has the hottest venue: set in the tallest hotel in the center of the financial district, it's a place that many of the con attendees could never dream of entering without having the convention as their annual ticket inside.
The streets leading up to the hotel are lined with booths, all trying to sell handmade wares. These booths act as the artist's alley for the convention, allowing people to set up within rented spaces. Many of the artists craft their own supplies – T-shirts, shoes, and other articles of clothing – while also having a code that will allow someone to access their digital gallery if someone might want to commission anyone on their way inside. There won't be anything like the ubiquitous keychains, prints or stickers of today, but there are many an enamel pin for someone to show off their particular allegiances.
Just above these booths and on the way inside, there are numerous AR displays paid for by multiple streaming companies. Any of the new arrivals won't get a read on these displays because their implants aren't registered yet, but the previous arrivals will be able to see targeted advertisements featuring a wide array of different cartoons and animation programs meant for all different types of audiences. These advertisements are often fairly generic, inviting someone inside so they can learn more.
Once inside, it seems that there's a lot to do. Anime Naex is a three day event, and everyone there working the event is dressed up in the same dark blue period costumes, celebrating the biggest show at the moment: a moody noir show that's set in the late 1990s. Each of them have a different pair of gaudy sunglasses, and their pants have numerous pockets, signifying the long-forgotten cargo pants of the past. While these workers are dressed up, they are the hotel employees, and they won't be happy to be there. Try to treat them kindly?
The program for the event is full of a great deal of things, so try to have fun.
> CURRENT HITS
The two top shows that are getting the most attention are Hot Case and Vestica: Aeon. Hot Case is the aforementioned noir anime set in the late 1990s, involving a snarky, too smart for his own good detective as he tries to solve the unsolved mysteries of the previous centuries. He's a cynic who often believes he's chasing urban legends down blind alleys. Vestica: Aeon is the most recent addition to the popular mecha franchise that's been around for well over a century. This particular addition has been running for five years with no end in sight, featuring a rotating cast and different mechs tied to various animal and nature spirits. Otherwise, the current trends vary a lot: many are historical in nature (set in the 20th or 21st centuries, often with an emphasis on traveling to prevent this future from happening), while others are high fantasy and worlds that could never be, free of the constraints of technology and filled with magic and great wonders. There are also plenty of aliens, ready to intervene and keep humanity from destroying itself further. Some shows are more generic than others, and they're typically meant for varying ages rather than genders, with a lot of the modern-day fanservice and tropes left behind as society evolved. But don't worry: there are still magical girls.
> COSTUMES
Much like today, there are a few of the lazy people who haphazardly put together a costume at the last minute or buy it online. But then there's everyone else. Anime Naex is the convention to show off someone's hard work and ingenuity when it comes to the costuming scene. Many of these costumes are high tech in nature – and many involve various inspirational spins on classics, showing the creativity behind the design. Some of the more committed cosplayers have cybernetics to help enable their costumes, helping them replace certain aspects so that it can best suit their appearance for the event the following year. The goal for these cosplayers is always the same: win the big prize at the show, which is a hefty amount of credits and an internship with a top costume designer who's worked on some of the world's biggest blockbusters.
> EVENTS
The three day schedule for Anime Naex is jam packed, with certain panels running around the clock. No matter what, there will always be a steampunk or traditional tea ceremony of some time going on – albeit with leaves that leave a lot to be desired, grown in gardens around the city (don't expect much). Otherwise, there are lots of panels led by guests or con attendees hoping to convince someone to watch their favorite show, or to discuss some of the more involved pieces of subtext. Yes, there are still awkward shipping panels with involved, AR powerpoint displays and clips often taken wildly out of context to prove what they have to say. These panels can get rather heated, often bringing people who discuss and debate online into the same room once a year. There are also many game rooms and amateur gaming competitions.
> THE DEALERS
Like with many different events around New Amsterdam, Anime Naex acts as a hot spot for consumerism. There are numerous booths set up throughout the many floors of the hotel, selling different wares, including various pillows, stuffed creatures, and – while often more expensive – robotic versions of mascots from the shows. These robots lack any artificial intelligence, but function and work rather similarly to appear as if they've come right out of everyone's favorite shows. For anyone who's lacking a stellar costume, there are numerous booths set up to help people buff up what they want.
> THE BALL
There is, of course, a ball. Titled the Dawn Ball, it's held on the Saturday of the event, providing numerous con-goers an opportunity to wear a fancy version of their costume to dance. These balls are opportunities for people to show off their cosplay partner and relationships, and even show a different kind of ingenuity, as they maintain their character in question while wearing formal wear. Admission does require formal wear, and most of the people who go are on the younger side.
> MISCELLANY
Like any convention, there are always those people who stroll up to stay in a hotel without knowing what they're getting in to, and that'll happen here. Unaware of why so many rooms weren't available, there will be the occasional individual who doesn't know what's even happening. Life outside of the hub of the convention will go on as normal … but with a lot more strangely costumed people walking the streets as they go out to get food or head home after the day's events. Many of the restaurants nearby will have restaurant week deals with special menus designed for con goers. Prove you have a badge to get another discount – and try out your favorite Vestica pilot's favorite snack!
Access to the safehouse is a hatch hidden behind stacks of empty storage shelves in the back of an abandoned supermarket in an outer district of the city. The immediate area is similarly abandoned, empty stores, flanked by several blocks of dive bars and clubs which cater to more niche tastes. A place where people can come and go unseen, or, if seen, not spoken of. A dark haired woman called Gaby is ready to greet the new arrivals and get them settled in, brusque and no-nonsense – she'll be open for in depth questions later, but will advise everyone to ask the people who brought them in for the beginning bits of information.
◉ The safe house is a large open space, filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large amount of people. Basic, but outfitted with everything necessary for daily life. A few doors lead to back rooms for storage, medical care and a large communal bathroom, and past the long rows of cots there is a communal kitchen, fully stocked, and an eating area. Privacy is at a minimum.
There is a sign of some things being in disarray, with numerous metal containers meant to help stock things, as well as be moved out. There will be Morningstar agents moving in and out of the safehouse, helping prepare for the next step for their lives.
◉ New characters will be asked to pick their beds, and provided with a change of (second-hand, mismatched and somewhat threadbare) clothes and basic toiletries.
◉ While there were previously also NPC occupants of the safehouse, natives to New Amsterdam, these people have now been moved on to somewhere safer. A few of their belongings remain, discarded or accidentally abandoned.
◉ Gaby will make it clear to all new arrivals that if they have any requests or queries, they should contact her or El.
◉ The drugs making new characters compliant will remain in their systems for a few hours after their arrival at the safehouse before finally beginning to fade. They will be gone entirely after a night's rest. In the meantime, they may want to be careful of what others say to them.
◉ New characters will be given rudimentary access to the network on arrival in the safehouse, but will not have their ID set up yet. They will be able to make posts and replies, but their messages will be anonymous and they do not have inboxes yet.
◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until SEPTEMBER 24. These 4 days are for them to adjust, learn about the world they've arrived in from their fellows, and for El to speak with them and work on setting up their IDs.
Welcome to Meadowlark, newbies! You're now free to post to the network and logs comms. To reiterate, your characters will have no IDs or inboxes, nor be allowed out of the safehouse until September 24 (February 17). At that point it's expected they'll have gotten a good idea of their new situation from their fellow characters, and will have discussed their background and job potentials with El in order for their false IDs to be set up.
If you have any questions or ideas about how you'd like to get your character involved in the world, please head over to the plot engagement post and drop us a comment! For questions specific to this log, there is a thread below.
Please check out our February calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods. We made a couple of revisions/corrections to the calendar since it was first posted, so please have another look at it!
As a reminder, AC for new characters accepted in February will be 10 comments across 2-4 threads, while current characters will need to provide the full AC of 20 comments across 2-4 threads. AC will be posted on March 1 and close on March 7. If you do not reply to AC, you will be considered idled and dropped from the game. We will not post a warning list.
no subject
The group gives a nervous look at the two women before they hand over the mask without complaint, mumbling something about "being a killjoy" and "just wanted to look." The mask is in Clarke's hand but Alex hesitates to take it back without permission. ]
Thank you. I thought I'd get in trouble if I lost it.
[ When someone kidnaps you and gives you certain items it feels important to keep them. No one goes through that much trouble to give something useless. Even if it seems extremely unlikely she will never see the people in the bus ever again. ]
no subject
The fact that she was worried about that hits a nerve that Clarke didn't realize could be hit. So many of them have been brave, willing to stand up for themselves and handle everything that's coming their way—she hasn't seen anyone as daunted or unaware of what's going on. It softens her externally, but inwardly hardens her, angering her because of what this woman has had to deal with in a very short amount of time.]
No, I think whoever left you here just wanted you to fit in. [Clarke offers the mask back just the same. In a scenario like this, Clarke can imagine that someone wants to hide their face.]
I think I know how you got here. My name is Clarke, and I'm here to help. Would you like to get out of here?
no subject
I see, that makes sense. They went through a lot of trouble for this.
[ It makes no sense to her. It isn't logical but the garish and rude atmosphere of where ever they are doesn't either. But Alex's eyes flick up at the mention of some sort of explanation. A little clearer and more keen. She nods. She wants to leave. ]
Will there be another truck?
no subject
Here, she'll be a leader when needed, but she knows their group is more likely to look toward someone like Markus.
So, here she is. Playing the medic for someone who's scared.]
I recommend the walk. You'll be aware of everything by time we get to our final destination. We can't really talk about what's happening if we have an unfamiliar driver. There aren't exactly a lot of us around.
Sorry for the wait!
But Clarke has given her something to focus on and she tries her best to think it through, the best course of action. ]
I see. A walk would be nice.
[ And much safer than a car. People who got in cars with strangers very rarely ever came back. At least if anything goes wrong she’ll have a fighting chance to get away. But she doubts it will come to that. The look that Clarke is giving her, full of empathy and sensibility and action, Alex feels like she’s in good hands. ]
Am… I not suppose to be here? Who are ‘we’?
no worries! the weekends happen
[Clarke lets that sit as she leads the two of them out of the convention, away from the clutter of sounds. The night air is warm, but cooler than it had been earlier in the day. At least this convention is held during the time when they can exit out into the night. Outside, New Amsterdam is active, almost seeming to contradict the hour at hand. Cars fly overhead, heading in various different directions, and numerous businesses are active. They're in a busy part of town.
If she knew about Alex's anxiety, about the missing medication, she might be of more assistance. Unfortunately, the reach for the nonexistent medicine escapes her attention.]
We were all brought here against our wills. From different worlds. I wouldn't have believed it at first. But we're not supposed to be here. I think some of us might have come willingly, but we were never given the choice.
no subject
The cars flying over head do a good job of driving Clarke's point home. Her eyes are wide and she stops mid step. ]
I don't think I had a choice.
[ But would it have mattered? She has no where to go. Here is good as any place. Still, she can feel sweat building up under her slipshod costume.
And very suddenly: ]
Can I ask something of you? Before we go to our destination, can we go to a lookout? Anywhere high.
[ Not that she expects that that exists. The buildings are so towering, she can't imagine seeing anything over the tops. But just to see a portion of the city. She just wants to see. ]
no subject
After her brow furrows, she looks at Alex.]
We have to go inside, but as long as we head straight for the elevators, it shouldn't be as bad. [As someone who's had to think about strategy, or even just trying to know a new place, she can see where Alex is getting at.] We go all the way up. Even if we can't hit the roof, we should be able to use a window. [That's what she's assuming. It feels like a safe assumption.]
Before we go ... one more thing. I'm Clarke.
no subject
Alex turns back to Clarke, expression set, she’s determined. ]
That’s fine. I can do it.
[ She even manages to wrangle up a tiny small. ]
Thank you, Clarke. I’m Alex.
[ Alex takes a large breath and squares her shoulders. She follows Clarke closely as they start walking back inside, posture defensive but eyes locked on anything that could possible be an elevator. ]
no subject
It's a good thing she'd been in this world for a while. All the people would suffocate her and overwhelm her. It had her first night here. Clarke had been direct and moved with purpose, all until she took in her surroundings and realized where she was. What kind of place it was.
Once they reach the elevator, they have to stand in line. ... And then it's time to head up. Clarke leads Alex in, and they're followed in by a few others. Her fingers on the top button for the building catches some eyes, but it doesn't keep them from being able to head there.
Most of the con goers empty out long before they reach that floor. Or rather: all of them. As she has through most of this, Clarke steps out onto the top-most floor, and turns toward a large plate of glass nearby. The view of the city at this hour is phenomenal. Bright lights, neon and otherwise, with hundreds of people down below. There are cars that swing by just overhead, and the city is alive. Given that it's nighttime, even Clarke's a little at awe of it. In fact, she just places a single hand on the glass, looking outward.]
no subject
The elevator is unpleasant, Alex is reminded of sheep in a pen, all of them packed together elbow to elbow. But it’s all worth it as soon as they arrive at the window. Alex looks out past her own ghostly reflection to the city spread out before them. It’s breathtaking.
As far as the eye can see, buildings rising out of the darkness, an ocean of concrete and lights. It’s dazzling and suffocating. ]
It’s so big. And so peaceful.
[ Or at least to her it seems that way, despite what conflict the Displaced had to deal with before her arrival. Still, it seems to have order, not run by mobs or terrorists or anything like that. People look like they live in the lap of luxury. ]
People aren’t afraid here, are they? It looks nothing like Ergastulum.
no subject
Everything about this world—New Amsterdam and beyond—seems like an ugly piece of art painted to look like something else. They aren't afraid, but that's because they've told themselves that they don't need to be. Because anyone who says otherwise is erased, scrubbed away.
Should Clarke tell her the truth? And how does one define that truth?
She decides to choose her words carefully.]
There's no war here. And no need for anyone to fear anything similar. [Clarke knows that when she speaks of war, people think of loud explosions, weapons, and more. She sees it as inevitable even if two groups are small and opposed to one another.]
But no world is truly peaceful. [That's what it comes down to. Clarke doesn't leave off on that. It would be a poor ending.] Is Ergastulum where you come from? Is it a city like this one?
srry this is so late. log writing brain crapped out there for a while
It's not similar. It's a city that... it's so simple, not like this at all. The buildings are small and people stay low.
[ There is one important fact about Ergastulum that occurs to Alex to finally mention. ]
It's a quarantine zone. I didn't think I'd be able to leave. It's strange, isn't it? I heard that cities around the world aren't like Ergastulum but I didn't think they'd be like this.
[ Alex finally turns to look at Clarke, with some reluctance. Being bewitched by the city is much easier than coming back into her own body. ]
It's different from where you're from as well?
no subject
My world is nothing like this one. ["From here, you'd see nothingness." Those words don't come out.] Most of the cities were gone by time I really got to experience it. I grew up in space, and it wasn't easy there. On the ground, there are hundreds of trees. Life is more nature, and it's managed to find itself again.
[Managed, and then was lost. Failsafes can only go so far. Clarke stands by her choice to lie to new people about the ugliness of her world.]
What was the quarantine for? Or—I guess, do you think things got worse where you were because of it?
no subject
Space? Like an astronaut? But it must have been so dangerous.
[ Just the thought of free falling, no ground or sky overhead. Alex can vividly imagine the feel of being suspended forever in the dark. The returned questions takes her a moment to digest. ]
The quarantines were because of the Twilights. Everyone called them monsters-- [ the one who killed her mother, the one that had assaulted her, the ones that performed all sorts of violence for a small sum of money. The one who gave her a handkerchief to wipe her bloodied nose and held her hands steady because he knew she needed him. ] but they’re not. They are just humans and the world treated them unfairly. I don’t know if it was like that everywhere. I think just our city.
[ And then a small smile. ]
But if I’m honest, I think the sight of a large forest would be just as shocking as this city.
no subject
She doesn't remark further on the Twilights. It sounds like a familiar dilemma. What makes a monster? And what happens when someone comes across a monster? Do they reject it, or accept that it is what it is?
It's hard for her to tell.]
It was like that when I first hit the ground. Space wasn't ... dangerous in the way that you'd think, and it's where I was born, so I didn't have any special skills. [Only those who came before did. Life changed a lot for humanity after they had to make lives for themselves up there.] There were limited resources. If you lived in a quarantine, that might be familiar. Did you have rations there? Because I lived on them my entire life.