ARRIVAL LOG 008

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: Night of October 5 to night of October 8
WHAT: The eighth arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, alcohol usage. Further notes at end of log.

> ARRIVAL LOG #008

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 in blue short sleeve shirts and ill-fitting jeans, hair recently cut but at various stages of growth, restrained by straps across your chests, arms, feet, holding you to the bench under 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 false, colored light, illuminating the streets in the distance will first alert your senses of being somewhere else, combined with warm air that's only cooled with the setting of the sun. The nurse moves to stand at the back, checking each passenger over one by one just before they're helped out of the vehicle, quick and methodical. He doesn't climb out after you, moving to sit as the last passenger is unloaded.

The guards keep their heads down. Their actions are quick, firm, but not entirely unkind. Once all the passengers are out, they climb back into the vehicle and close the doors. The engine powers up again, and then the bus is gone.

You're left alone in an alley, with no idea of where you are or why you've been brought here.

Around the corner of the alley, there is the smell of beer and a weird yodel-like sound – no, wait. That is definitely yodeling and beer. Further movement forward will lead to you finding yourself in a busy area filled with multiple people carrying reusable cups full of liquid. You've just shown up at a party with a bunch of people wearing nearly identical clothing. The good thing is that everyone is probably too drunk to notice.

◉ 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.

> OKTOBERFEST

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.

I'm starting to think that the arrests last month mean that our friendly delivery men have had to change up what they're doing. Either way - the group waiting for you this time is huge. The get up? Blue shirts, all around. Let's see how long that lasts. Anyway. Arrival #8. You know the deal, don't you? I bet you're all already out there having a good time.

Although New Amsterdam is a mish-mash of world cultures, there are certain traditions that took root in the city as it began to form its identity. Yes, one was Anime Naexpo. Another? Oktoberfest. Hoping to capitalize on the heritage of the region, businesses throughout New Amsterdam pushed for the continued celebration of Oktoberfest. In fact, the only time it wasn't celebrated was during the Xelkoven War, as the fight between humans and AI meant that any celebrations were put by the wayside.

Perhaps even more so than having to work during an anime convention, Oktoberfest is not a fun time for customer service workers. All around, various different cashiers, food truck chefs and drivers, rickshawers, couriers and more find that they don't have a choice but to dress up in Dutch costumes recalling times of the past. These costumes are typically pulled out of some back closest and generally assigned to the employees, so some of them won't fit all that well. The problem is that it isn't cool enough to be dressed in these as the days cool off, and the only saving grace is that they get to work at night rather than the day. The early parts of their shifts are miserably hot, and things don't get better from there. If your character is a customer service employee, they can expect some uncomfortable days ahead.

Somehow, the discomfort of the various workers doesn't come in the way of the loud and festive activities. All around New Amsterdam, various tents go up selling a lot of different wares, many of which are probably second hand junk that people are trying to sell off for a few credits. This is the time when the Black Market stops working underground, instead opening temporary store fronts in tents that are far too nice for the wares they're providing (but at least they're trying to be a less obvious money laundering front). If someone's looking to get in good with the underground or get a sense of how to find these places for some actually illegal goods, Oktoberfest is a prime place to start.

Otherwise? Oktoberfest is likely full of what anyone would expect: a lot of beer, funny looking Bavarian clothing, a lot of live music, and a lot of opportunities for drunken folk to put on a good show. If your character is the type to look for an opening to grab some attention, this is the place to do it.

◉ There will be a lot of beers available in pretty much every single tent. The drinking age in New Amsterdam is 18, but it's equally unlikely that anyone will be checking implants with how busy everything will be. The most popular beer this year? "We're Lucky We're Not Cyborgs," an extremely hoppy IPA made by the most popular brewery in New Amsterdam. All of the beers are available in bottles that you can return for more, as businesses no longer sell alcohol by the can. Think of growlers – but in a far more manageable size! Feel free to come up with the cyberpunk name of your dreams for the beer. Or people can just drink the New Amsterdam River – which is the name of the beer with a picture of the man-made river on it. It's cheap, but reliable. Oh, and for those of you that don't like the taste of beer, there's cider and mead on tap at most places as well.

◉ There will be various stages all over for acts to perform, but the schedules will not be full. Before long, the characters will know that Oktoberfest is where some people plan to get discovered. And … it's also a place where some people become social media sensations, in either good or bad ways. Need to propose to someone? Need to show off your abs? These stages are the place to be. If someone's not up there, take the chance and make it your time to shine. Or … go down in infamy.

◉ Most of the food throughout the festival will harken back to its German heritage, albeit without a whole lot of success. There are sausages, but much like the hot dogs of today, it's likely better that you don't ask what's in them. A safe bet is the large array of potato dishes around. These are delicious – and cheap!

◉ There are some competitions, too! Virtual fencing – albeit in a very, very amateurish way – and virtual crossbow competitions happen throughout the three-day event. And then there's yodeling. One of the stages will be dedicated to this the entire time. Yes, people practice to win big, but that doesn't mean that everyone has to practice.

◉ Like with Oktoberfest of the past, celebrities will have their own VIP tent right in the heart of the financial district. If you have a favorite music, film, or movie star and they have a penchant for partying, this is the place to be. Sneaking in will be hard – but not impossible. Though some will find that they might have to work this tent. These celebrities can't go without their coffee or beer, after all.

> SAFEHOUSE

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.

◉ 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.

◉ There will be shifts when Gaby isn't present in the safehouse because she's shorthanded following the UNA attacks in our January event. New characters will find that if they try to open the hatch to leave during this time, it'll be sealed shut for anyone without a registered implant.

◉ 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 OCTOBER 9. 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.

> WHAT DREAMS MAY COME

As everyone goes to sleep, a familiar stomp vibrates through New Tokyo on the other side of the world. The wall outside of the city is stable at first, holding up, but the vibrations continue. The creature this time is twice as large as the one that hit New Amsterdam – 800m high, yet not seen until right around when the vibrations began. It should have been, by all rights: New Tokyo is no less secure than the other cities around the world, with constant surveillance and a dedication toward maintaining an idyllic life for its citizens. Its behavior is similar: it slams its tail against the outer wall of the city before it gives way, the destruction nearly absolute. In a panic, New Tokyo's UNA forces and police force move into action to try to bring down the monster and protect its citizens.

At the same time, whether they're still awake or already asleep, something stirs inside of the displaced. Their chests will glow without anything to bring it about – no power drawn on, either innate or new, and no skin touching. This glow seems to fatigue any of them if they're still awake, and will send anyone already asleep into a deeper one. Once they're under, the stirring within will give way to unrest that foments dreams and visions for many of the displaced. If they had a dream while they slept, characters will wake up with a burning sensation in their chest.

As for New Tokyo: it will be left in ruins by the time the UNA soldiers there manage to take down the monster. Several sections of the city remain intact – almost out of luck – and the governor of New Tokyo reports that they believe this monster came from outside of the city, having been given life by the unsafe conditions outside of the megacity. Within a few hours, this statement will be revised, with the governor admitting that he doesn't know what the monster was or where it came from, only that their surveillance saw that it came from outside.

The three dreams below are what each character will experience, though you can feel free to assume they managed to jar themselves awake before the dream finished. To get a dream, please comment below to get an RNGed number for the dream that they'll be having. Since these are unnatural dreams, you can feel free to have your character remember it in its entirety – or not, if that's what you'd prefer.

If you have multiple characters, we suggest you only have one experience a dream, but it's ultimately up to you!

> DREAM 001

A blue glow illuminates the site – offering light on a foggy morning, with everyone having completed their journey to this final destination. A sense of fatigue and relief that washes over everyone there, but also an inner warmth that seems to radiate from the site itself. Huge rocks rise up on either side of the site, acting as shielding barriers for these followers and what lies ahead of them. Despite the lack of natural light cast through the thick fog, there's still a distant glow, leading them forward.

You find yourself among these people, well aware of the many miles you walked to get here, most of it on an incline. Around you, the clothes that people wear are worn, tattered, made from wool that's begun to wear down. How long have you all been traveling? It's hard to say – hard to guess, only that you know that you were all drawn here. No single story is the same. Some saw symbols: triangles that glowed when they saw them in the periphery, as well as bits of circles coming together. The tree of life. Perfect like nature in its finest form. Others could never put the words to what they experienced.

Each of you feel the draw now. It resonates within you, fills you up. Just ahead, there are structures that seem to float in space, and when you draw closer, a clear, light blue bridge appears. The walk forward requires a leap of faith – and there are some unwilling to take it. Afraid. They wonder if they've wasted their time.

But you haven't. You walk forward, and the bridge carries you forward. You can't tell if you're walking or literally carried, but eventually you come to an alcove where a strange circular structure stands. As you step closer, it comes to life, a mixture of lights and – no, not sounds. But the same resonating warmth.

You walk into it and –

– you find yourself somewhere else. Somewhere new.

> DREAM 002

– this is not where you belong where you've chosen to live – this is not it this is not it this is not it –

Your fingers spread, wrapping around the nearest metal instrument to drag it close. You test the edge against your skin, drawing out a sharp pain. You never asked for this particular experience. But every day, you feel it.

It's time to take back what you can. The walls around you are white, pristine. Somehow, you know that they weren't a day ago. One of the others you know got sick, doubled over after a bad interaction with a medication. You see them now, dark rings under their eyes, a shaved head. How do you know this? Your mind doesn't answer you. You just react. Someone in a coat as white as the room draws closer. Checking your vital signs. Your breathing picks up – your lungs hurt. You lash out with the instrument, cutting deep. A bright red spreads. A sick smile creeps over your lips. You know that color, deep within you. You know it.

And then there's nothing.

And then life moves on (your life moves on). Has time passed? The room is different. The person with the red splotch of color on their lab coat is gone, and your build is different. More gangly, uncontrolled. Deep down, you feel an unabiding frustration. You hear a shout: "Put them down!" It's too late. A fire erupts. The doors seal.

> DREAM 003

You recognize the walls. The building. But there's some barrier between you and it, a constant, subdued fog that lies between you and your surroundings. The lights are bright. Everyone moves in a single file, dressed in the same white scrubs. You're among them. The workers walk alongside you, occasionally checking your vital signs. Sometimes they make you grab each other's hands, noting the shift in reactions or responses.

The air here is cool. Stale. Your head is cold, recently shaven. Like everyone else, sans a few. It looks like it's been a while since they had a haircut. You don't recognize them, not like the others. You're certain that you recognize the others.

Thought is difficult to process. There's an IV into your arm. You try to make out more of your surroundings, but the fog encroaches and takes over. You're missing your chance. Your chance to know where you are – were? Who did this to you?

Distantly, you see a marking on a wall. Letters. P - R - O - PROJECT. You're certain of it. What else is there? Nothing. No. Something, but not another word. It's a symbol of some kind, or – an animal? There's a splotch of yellow, bright and prominent on its breast, with a dark V that cuts down. The fog obscures the rest.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

This arrival log is a little different, as it doubles as a prologue for our monthly event! Everyone's character can have one of the dreams, and it'll hit them anytime within a day of the attack on New Tokyo. This does include anyone new to the game! So, please go ahead and comment below to have your dreaming character assigned a number. All assignments will be random on our part!

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 OCTOBER 9 (MARCH 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.

All arrival logs act as mingles, so older players can please feel free to top level for the festivities described!

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 March calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods.

As a reminder, AC for new characters accepted in March 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 April 1 and close on April 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.

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[evasives]

[ four days. okay, not so bad. at the very least he can use that time to keep scrolling through information and interrogating people before the outside world exists again. ] Where do we go, when we get out?

[ he blinks. ] We had blocks. I do not know what lego is. But what I am getting is you are not particularly limited.

[evite]

[ he's not going to like her answer. ]

Out, I guess. [ a shrug ] El will set you up with an ID, and they'll help you figure out a job if you want to get one. Once you do that, you just... go explore, really. Some people stay here longer, some people save up money and move out right away. It just depends on what you do.

[ in daisy's case, she got a 9-5 job and an apartment with her buddies. how normal. ]

As far as the LEGO master building? Yeah, it's — I'm getting better at it, now that I've practiced.

[evasives]

[ listen, he's just glad there isn't another set location. cassian is used to finding his own way. lack of money is not necessarily an issue, especially if he's allowed to continue using this as a base. the issue is not being allowed to leave, until he gets this ID. he wishes he could just forge up his own, but he's still too unfamiliar with this planet's technology. ] I was only able to see that Oktoberfest and parts of the city in getting to this safehouse. I am sure there is plenty to explore.

[ stop talking about legos! what are they!! ]

You have lost me. Practiced building what? Model toys? [ he is just assuming she's a crafty woman! ]

[evite]

Yeah, there is. [ it's actually pretty incredible how much there is to see and do within the city's walls. more than daisy ever expected when she first arrived. ] Hot as fuck, though. But it'll be nicer when it cools down, I hope.

[ thank god the time flip is going back to normal. walking around in what should be the middle of the night had been weird.

her attention shifts, though, as he holds up the toy to question her. ]

No, not — they're not models. I mean, they are, or that one is. [ hoverbikes are a thing ] I don't just make models, though. I mostly do weapons. Tools. I just practice with stuff like that when we get new faces.

[ she watches the future equivalent of the price is right and practices making little models only to tear them apart and do it again, she's very grandma-practicing-crochet about it. ]

[evasives]

[ he lived on yavin 4 (lived, when he wasn't off planet on a mission); the humidity of new amsterdam isn't his biggest complaint even if it is super annoying. weather does not faze him as much. ] Is the hot weather unusual here? Does it change?

[ listen! some planets keep the same climate! fest was overall very snowy, scarif was tropical, tatooine a desert. ]

[ SHE SAID WEAPONS THOUGH. force does he want! a weapon!! that isn't a knife he stole from the kitchen. time to get on her good side. ] You make them? A specialty skill? Usually they are simply manufactured on a factory line.

[evite]

So far, just hot and hotter. But it's getting cooler, so I'm guessing seasons are a thing here.

[ she hasn't been here long enough to know for sure. in theory, she could future google it. but she is lazy, so she does not. cassian can do that for himself if he really wants to ]

Yeah, I make them. I mean, if you don't want the bike, I can show you. [ she doesn't have any more spare parts with her, so it's either dismantle the bike or try and explain. and explaining is not really her forte. ] Or you can come to one of the classes when you get out. Up to you.

[evasives]

[ weather is not that important compared to other things she's talking about, and he doesn't care enough to keep asking. ]

[ he still doesn't quite know what to make of her (or anyone here) being so open, and it leaves him wary about believing it all, but it doesn't mean he won't let them talk away. the more stories he hears, the more first hand accounts, the more evidence. ]

Show me. [ cassian hands over the toy. attached to it, he was not. ] Classes for what?

[evite]

Abilities. [ and then, by way of explanation: ] I teach the classes. Most of them, anyway. Kaldur helps with the others when I can't make it.

[ dates and times, locations, all that's information that happens to be listed in the newbie guide. but she's not sure if he's gotten a copy. daisy's favorite move is to casually airdrop the document right into their neural desktop, plunking it down in front of their face without so much as a word.

she'll give him opportunity to look it over, if he wants; she needs a minute, anyway, to let her hands get to work over the toy. though she drops it in her lap, it doesn't take more than a few moments for a familiar (to her, anyway) blue glow to splay out over the space. it seems to come from within her chest, though it's not clear as to how or why it's so bright; as her hands gently rotate around the toy, it begins to hover, pieces slowly but surely dislodging from the build and resting in orbit around the center.

it takes most of her concentration, so daisy doesn't talk much while she works. instead, her attentions are clearly focused, brow knitting as she tilts her head from side to side, observing and guiding and carefully manipulating until the toy is completely undone, a few dozen small parts floating above her lap.

he's new, so he doesn't get a weapon. (sorry, cassian. if you're creative, maybe you can still use it as one.) instead, she gets to work aligning the pieces, mentally nudging them across an invisible workspace as they lay out in the shape of a small shield, the forks aligned as spokes around a central point. ]

Like I said. Take stuff apart, put it back together.

[evasives]

[ goddamn these people sure love to just THROW INFORMATION. cassian is not complaining, it's so much easier when they do that, but it's baffling for a man who usually has to work so hard to get anything. he quickly skims over the guide, but he'll save the more detailed reading (and second and third readings) for later when he can properly digest it all. ]

[ he has more pressing matters, like the actual pressing of the toy like a puzzle into a shield. it reminds him of the force, the stories he heard of how the jedi would use their powers with objects. he watches both daisy and the pieces shift around keenly. ]

[ it is very impressive, but cassian doesn't gape or anything of the sort. he lets himself look interested, curious. he reaches out to take the shield once she's done, giving it a glance over and recognizing shapes from the former little bike. ]

And this power is something you have gotten only by coming here? [ it's useful. if he has one (he knows he does, but he's still thinking only in maybes), he hopes it proves similarly useful. a shield can most definitely be a weapon when you are cassian andor. ]

If people have different abilities, how do the classes help? Are they summoned or used through the same sort of channels regardless of what they do?

[evite]

Yeah, [ a shrug, wiping her hands off on her lap as he collects the shield from her. ] It's new. Part of the whole glowcube initiative, I guess.

[ is that a shield thing? calling things initiatives? maybe. it's not intentional, but the parallel is there. not that cassian will appreciate it. ]

It's not so much training people on how to use their abilities. That takes practice, mostly, and maybe a little zen. It's about … helping people learn to control their impulses. A lot of people, their abilities come from their emotions. Fear, anger, sadness — if they can't control their emotions, they can't control their ability.

[ she doesn't mention that, for some people, the classes are the closest thing to therapy they're ever going to get. ]

Mine was anger. I woke up one morning furious at my roommate's alarm clock. All I wanted to do was rip it apart ... and then it just started to come apart in my hands.

[evasives]

[ this is the best thing he's heard!! if they can control their emotions, they can control the ability. cassian is in complete control, it's going! to be fine! there's nothing to worry about, he never avoids confronting his emotions! he is super chill all the time!! :) ]

[ he suddenly feels more at ease about whatever manifests for him, even though he probably shouldn't be. it's going to be a disaster. ]

[ he quickly skims through the guide again before continuing on, wanting only to expound on what might already be there. ] Is it more like you have to be angry to use it, or the anger is simply what ties it to you? It seems counterproductive to have it rely on a single emotion to use.

[evite]

At first, I had to feel something. I had to be angry or afraid — there had to be some kind of motivation, I guess. Now, I can use it when I want to.

[ control isn't easily won. there had been practice, hours of it, before daisy could control the summoning and dismissal of her abilities, before casual waves of her hands replaced intricate motions and careful twitches of fingertips. it's like learning a language, really. each syllable carefully spoken until shorthand and slang become more natural. ]

But it varies for everybody. I know someone who gets stronger when he's angry. Like, super strong, break a guy's back with one hand kind of thing. I don't think he can access that kind of power if he's not angry.

[ but she doesn't know! because somebody! refuses to train! ]

[evasives]

[ she seems to know what she's talking about it, and she already demonstrated her ability to keep control over it. cassian files her away as someone seemingly knowledgeable about these powers and and willing to help. ]

You would think they might want to learn to access it any time, rather than just when they are angry. [ it's like your own personal power suppressor. ] How did you learn to harness it outside of that? What kind of practice?

[evite]

[ when and if he reads over the guide she's sent, he'll see her name there too, along with information on the classes she hosts and recommendations for training methods. there's a whole dang chapter on it. ]

Honestly? [ she shrugs a bit ] I sat on the couch for hours and played with broken pieces of things I picked up at junk yards. Once I knew what my power was, it was just a matter of putting the hours in.

[evasives]

[ he will read it. he's been skimming it in bits and pieces, not wanting to ask any obvious questions that he might already have easy access to now. ]

Time and effort, like most things. [ that's reasonable, even if the idea of suddenly having a power is not. ] And how long have you been here to practice?

[ he already knows there's been a series of eight transports, but he likes knowing how long the people he speaks to have been living in this city. ]

[evite]

A couple months. [ feels like longer, but then again, there's been a mild if not outright crisis every other week, so time is a weird thing. plus, she disappeared for a few days in there, so. you know, it happens. ] I got dropped in the second batch. Early July.

[ july 4th. how american. ]

It took me a few weeks to realize what my abilities were, but there's not an exact science for that part, unfortunately. No easy tests.

[evasives]

And it is... October now, correct? I do not know these months. [ but he's learning! someone sent him a calendar too! which he quickly flips through to figure out exactly how many months she's been here. it's a significant amount of weeks. ]

I have seen no hints what my own might be yet. [ even if he had, he might have lied about it. so many people are so honest here, but he can't imagine himself being the same way. he just wants to see what she says about that!! ] But I suppose if there is no one way for powers to manifest, any kind of test would be difficult.

[evite]

Right. [ congratulations, you learned how to read a calendar. ] October. The fifth, specifically.

[ it's not really that interesting a topic, so she doesn't linger on it. ]

It's fine if you haven't. Most people don't figure it out within a few hours of getting dropped off, so it's not like you're behind the ball or anything. The whole 'new place in the future' and 'fun compulsion drugs' thing usually keeps people's attention for a while.

[evasives]

[ no he's an overachiever who needs to know everything!! what do you mean he won't discover it right away! but on the other hand, at least there doesn't seem to be anything usual about his not manifesting at all yet. ]

It is not very futuristic to me, even if Earth is not a planet I have heard of before, and I would much prefer avoiding a repeat of the drugs. We do not have to worry about that part happening again, do we?

[evite]

No, [ an easy reassurance. ] You don't have to worry about a repeat of the world's worst party high.

[ a small mercy, isn't it? you might have to worry about monster attacks or the sudden arrival and subsequent disappearance of people you begin to care about, but you don't have to worry about being shot up with obedience drugs and dropped off in strange places anymore. ]

And that'll wear off, by the way. Usually takes a couple hours, but nothing a shower and a good night's sleep won't fix.

[evasives]

[ definitely a small mercy. drugs like these... the worst. he'll take a monster attack over the forced compliance. his priorities might be skewed. ] I suppose that tells us something about the longevity of whatever the drug is.

Is there anything else pressing about these powers I should know? I assume it is for the best to keep them quiet.