OPEN PLAYER PLOT: OPERATION LOST BOYS

[forcevisions]

WHO: Anyone
WHERE: A research outpost not far from New Amsterdam proper
WHEN: November 28
WHAT: The Displaced arrive to save the captured Morningstar agents, including one of their own.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Violence, mentions of interrogation/torture, etc.

> DEPARTURE BY TRAIN Early in the day on November 28th, Prompto and Poe will conspire to get an out-of-service train car onto the same tracks where the Displaced were guided by Cassius earlier this month. By all measures, the train car doesn't look operational. There are telling dents in the side, and it does not appear to be powered on. Yet those involved in the rescue operation already assembled are climbing on board like they know that this is their ride. Inside, the train is fairly battered. Some of the seats on the far wall seem to have been damaged when the train collided with something during the EMP, and the rattling of the crash took out some of the internal handrails as well. Once everyone is settled, though, the car begins to move. At the front of the car, Poe uses his power to move the train car on the tracks and out of the city. As they hit a checkpoint, the car doesn't slow down to be inspected; instead, it accelerates and blows right through the barrier, which makes for a pronounced jolt for all the passengers inside. Once the train is rolling outside of the city limits, the Displaced can grab scrambler masks that have been provided by Morningstar for use in infiltrating the outpost when they arrive. It is imperative, El suggests, that they don't allow their identities to be compromised. They will also remind the Displaced to keep this project under wraps, lest Morningstar as a whole has its operations compromised. This is a good time to solidify any plans about what to do when the outpost is reached. The train ride won't be especially long, but long enough for some tension to settle over the car. > INFILTRATE THE OUTPOST The outpost they arrive at is a less grimy version of what the Displaced saw earlier in November. The interior is almost identical to what was present there, with some wings repurposed as jailing sites. There are bright, fluorescent lights with white walls and a sterile smell throughout. Even cleaned up, these labs do not recognize any of those that the Displaced may have seen in their dreams. The description below is borrowed from the arrival log for reference: The building is six stories tall. The first floor has a lobby/waiting area, a cafeteria, and some office spaces. The second floor is the dormitory floor, which is where the employees would usually sleep if they chose to stay at the facility while working rather than returning to the city in between shifts. This is where the new arrivals woke up. Floors three through five are dedicated to lab spaces, which is where the actual research work is usually done. Most of these laboratories are going to be locked, but that won't stop Displaced from breaking into them if they want. Some of the lab rooms also have exam rooms. Displaced will be able to swipe lab equipment and medical supplies, such as syringes, vials/beakers, first aid supplies, scalpels, bandages, multi-lens microscopes, etc. The top floor is dedicated to offices for higher-ranked scientists, so think of it as the C suite. All floors also have bathrooms, of course, and the dormitory wing also has showers. ✦ Notably, this outpost is also empty of scientists. However, stoic soldiers stand guard at every door. These well-armed warriors are with the UNA, who has taken over the outpost. These soldiers are not an easy fight. In the fights with UNA soldiers, PCs might die and need to be revived in New Prague by Morningstar. ✧ DISTRACTION: Some of the PCs may choose to deal with the UNA by attempting to distract them using wit, charm, or apparent helplessness. PCs may search for a way to draw attention away from some of these doors to let others sneak past. ✧ INFILTRATION: Those who sneak past will find the jailing areas similarly guarded, and eventually, stealth and quiet infiltration is no longer an option. Rey and the other Morningstar agents are being held in well-secured cells, and UNA soldiers must be engaged in order to get past them. ✦ Inside the jailing sites, they find the missing agents in terrible shape. These Morningstar operatives have gone through extreme interrogation, and if they can get persuaded to talk sense--or talk at all--they might impart on their rescuers that the subject of that interrogation was most recently about the blue technology. However, most are catatonic, seemingly unaware of who they are or where they are, and some react negatively and violently toward anyone who displays the blue glow in front of them as the result of a conditioned response. ✧ Agents from the September raids will explain that Rey's arrival worsened the interrogation. Some of these agents may admit to confessing that Morningstar started helping a new group that emerged. It was clear in their interrogation that the UNA was not involved in the June firefight because they only then put together that the Displaced were involved in it. They're only aware because they were tasked with cleaning up after it. ✧ Some of the agents taken during the raids will still be resentful of the Displaced, and this will help convince the UNA that the Displaced are separate from Morningstar. Once the agents are freed, the Displaced can make their way back to the exit of the outpost, where Poe Dameron waits in an armored truck liberated from the UNA. This flying truck is meant to transfer large numbers of UNA soldiers for load-outs, so despite the Displaced and rescued agents' numbers, it will be sufficiently spacious to fit them all. Though it flies, it's smarter to stay low in the interest of staying off trackers on their way to New Prague, where they can hopefully wait out the heat of pursuit by the UNA. > NEW PRAGUE When they arrived in New Prague, El contacts local Morningstar agents to escort them to a safehouse. Notably, El will warn the Displaced that no other parts of Morningstar know about zeir identity as an AI. El is hoping that the Displaced will keep their secret, but is more concerned with helping than with keeping them separate from the New Prague Morningstar chapter. These Morningstar agents will bring the Displaced to an abandoned chain convenience store at the edge of town, Zesco. The convenience store is located near the edge of the city, and it's meant to be a temporary stop. The upper part of the store is just an empty space, though there is a wall where it's clear that there were once icee machines. All of the Morningstar agents will be held under an abandoned convenience store. ✦ The inside of the safehouse is like most safehouses, but since it's meant to be temporary, there aren't any clothes or food in place to help someone out. There will be Morningstar agents who come in to supply these things throughout the stay, showing up about an hour in to help out. ✧ It will be apparent that this safehouse is not one of the ones that's typically used in New Prague, but instead one of the miscellaneous ones that they've had around. Unlike New Amsterdam, most of the safehouses in New Prague weren't compromised. Of course, there is a high likelihood that this safehouse will be decommissioned after all of this. ✧ Notably, the New Prague agents are all quite impressed that the missing New Amsterdam agents were able to be saved at all—previously, NPC Morningstar cells had believed rescue to be impossible. ✧ Anyone who kept their scrambler mask on during the infiltration of the outpost is allowed to leave the safehouse and explore New Prague. Anyone else … can do that if they want, but it's not a good idea! The safehouse won't be fun, but jail will be worse. Please reach out to the mods if you do this. ✦ Beyond the safehouse, New Prague is a large, beautiful city housing around 30 million people. Unlike many of its brethren, it pays homage to the "Old" Prague in a number of ways: there are impractical cobblestone streets, and the architecture adheres to an older, gothic style throughout the city. In fact, there are ordinances that demand the city continues to look as if it harkens to an older past and time. Above all else, New Prague is very green: there are trees everywhere. Throughout the city, there is a large, man-made river that cuts through to the underground, causing there to be beautiful falls underneath the main city itself. This river is called the New Vitava River, once again paying homage to the Prague of Old. The New Vitava River is maintained to the degree that there is no littering in it, and there are strict local rules about doing anything lewd in it. (That includes using it as a toilet. Don't do that!) There are bridges all over the city to easily cross from one side to another, and all public transit has been constructed to adhere to the river and also offer its citizens views of it on the regular. ✧ The weather here is just as extreme as it is in New Amsterdam, so anyone who's not been checking the news will find that the world really was screwed over by Cassius. ✧ Food throughout the city is just as eclectic as it is anywhere else. Visually, it looks like they want to remember Prague, but culturally, it's just as varied. This isn't an Eastern European city in anything but aesthetic. > THE RETURN The train ride back to New Amsterdam will resemble the ride to and from New Tokyo, but it is a considerably shorter trip. There is no stop for the train at New Amsterdam, so they will need to devise a way to get off the train without dying in the process - this will be difficult, but not impossible. This should not be too much of a surprise, as some of the New Prague Morningstar agents will join them on this train ride, and will explain the situation. Once they're outside the city, these agents will get them back into the city, as they've done this rodeo before. They can sneak in easily through the opening made by Cassius earlier in the month, which if it has been found, has not yet been addressed.

Comments

[gasping]

[ she doesn't need the help, per se, but that doesn't make the company unwanted. it might keep her out of her own head a little bit, too, which definitely wouldn't be a bad thing. ]

Sure. [ caroline holds up the bag she'd borrowed from the safehouse. ] I was going to try and hit up a market, maybe find something for a picnic. Do you want to come?

[lighthearted]

Of course I do!

[ That's why Sora had been asking, and since it doesn't seem like Caroline has any problem with the idea, he walks over to join her. ]

A whole new city... it's hard not to be curious, right?

[ He realizes that this is no vacation, but at this point he's been cooped up in this safehouse long enough that he needs to stretch his legs. And if he can catch up with Caroline at the same time, then even better. ]

[gasping]

At least it's not a blizzard.

[ new tokyo hadn't exactly had great weather going for it when they'd arrived. while the weather in new oslo was unpredictable, it was the same kind of unpredictable as new amsterdam. caroline was getting used to that. she could handle a little rain or a heatwave — after all, you could just go inside. ]

I didn't see you in the facility. [ but, obviously, he was there, since he's here now. ] Did everything go okay?

[ she'd mostly been focused on snapping necks and taking down una, but once that'd been done, caroline had carried anybody back who might need it. ]

[lighthearted]

Yeah, you can say that again.

[ Sora can handle extreme heat well enough (when he doesn't venture past the walls and end up passing out in the middle of the woods, anyway), but that kind of cold? Well, let's just say he'd been relieved when they hadn't spent too much time in New Tokyo.

He's quick on Caroline's heels as they leave the safehouse, doing his best to seem casual so they don't attract any unneeded attention. Not that he's very good at that kind of thing, but as two teens wandering around having a conversation, it seems unlikely that anyone will look twice at them. ]

Yeah, it was fine! I was working on distracting the soldiers with Riku, Prompto, and Daenerys.

[ Sora glances over, frowning a little as he studies Caroline for a few seconds. He would have never expected her to be the sort of person to get in so much trouble, or to raid a place like that with everyone else, but here she is. ]

How about you?

[gasping]

[ bubbly and blonde has a habit of hiding secrets. for caroline, it's a good thing. most people who look at her would never expect the fangs lurking just beneath the surface, or the guilt and fear and rage that spins and swirls underneath them. they want to see goodness, and so that's all they see.

it makes it easier, in times like this, to play along. she shrugs a bit, but her gaze lingers elsewhere, watching the scenery they pass with a bit more enthusiasm than she really feels. ]

I didn't really know what was happening. Everybody was going, so I figured I would help. I mostly just ran errands, I guess. Running stuff back and forth?

[ which is true. but her errands were snapping necks and carting bodies, proving her strength and her worth when those who knew what she'd gone through had thought her barely capable of walking. ]

[lighthearted]

I didn't really know either. I mean, I knew Rey was in trouble and that there were other people we needed to save.

[ That's all Sora had needed to hear to be on board, and he's glad that so many others had also volunteered to help. If there had been too few of them, the outcome may not have been as good. They might have lost, the way they had back at the Keyblade Graveyard, and there may not have been any way to reset this time.

Sora's also looking around as they walk over the cobbled streets, making notes of shops that look interesting and people-watching too. But he has to say something, and so eventually he turns his attention back to Caroline. ]

Prompto said you got taken, too. Are you okay after... whatever happened?

[gasping]

I think so.

[ physically, she's fine. she's fed, she's healed; her body has woven over whatever injuries might have come from bullet wounds and blood loss with fresh skin and closed gaps. it's not the physical injuries that linger.

it's the nightmares, the anxiety, the paranoia; it's the awareness that what happened once could happen again, and worse. it's the weight of guilt that lingers, the fear that going back to her old routine (the safehouse in particular) would put other people, innocent people, at risk. ]

I have to be.

[ she can't come rescue other people if she's still a mess, right? ]

[lighthearted]

[ She's okay, but she doesn't sound that sure about it. She's okay because there's no other option but to be okay, and that's not enough to set Sora's heart at ease.

He pauses in walking, almost reaching out to grab for Caroline's arm right then and there. But he isn't going to make use of his power without asking first. Even if it's meant to be something good, it's still not right to use it without permission. ]

I know what my power is now, and it might be able to help you feel better, at least for a little while.

[ After a pause, he holds his hand out toward Caroline, but she'll need to close the gap if she wants to. ]

[gasping]

[ there's a hesitation — but it's not for sora, or for his well-meaning and sincere offer. she's done something similar, using her power to warm and soothe where she could when someone needed it, but there had been a trade-off. exposure of her feelings, however intimate they might be; in touch, caroline's secrets had come through the empathy bond, all those heavy emotions of fear and guilt and hunger tangible even through the light.

sora is nice. more importantly, sora thinks caroline is nice. she's hesitant to shatter that illusion... but she also really does want to feel better. selfishness, as it turns out, is stronger than self-preservation. ]

Okay.

[ like it's that easy. it's not, but the gentle drape of caroline's palm over his might fool someone who isn't paying attention. ]

What's your power?

[lighthearted]

[ What neither of them realize is that Sora had used this power on Caroline once before, back during the dreams. He hadn't known what he was doing at the time, and now the memories are too fuzzy to really be sure.

Their hands touch, and the empathy bond opens up. From Sora's side comes concern for Caroline, relief that their mission to save Rey had succeeded, curiosity about this new city, and an undercurrent of uncertainty, something mainly hidden away. ]

When I touch someone, I can help them calm down and feel better, if they're upset.

[ He activates it, his chest glowing softly under his layers of clothing. Caroline will feels the effects soon after: a sense of calm, a knowledge that everything will be okay.

It may not last for long, but it's something. ]

[gasping]

[ the effects aren't permanent, but they're impactful all the same. the swirling vortex of guilt and worry and fear is stilled, if only for a moment, and in its wake caroline can only feel peace. her shoulders relax, the stiffness flooding out; her head stops pounding, just for a second, and she exhales. ]

Oh. Wow.

[ it's a pure, entirely selfless power — unlike her own, it seems. hers could have been, all warmth and reassurance and support, but she'd let her own nature corrupt it into something terrible.

but for now, for this moment, she stops feeling guilty. the pain is ebbed away, leaving behind only the certainty that what's happened has happened, and what will be will be. ]

I feel... [ normal? relieved? sane? ] Better. Thank you.

[lighthearted]

[ For Sora, it's a gift to see the physical effects of his power play out. Caroline loses so much of the tenseness that he hadn't even fully realized was there, and the serious expression on her face clears out into something neutral. Almost content.

Sora smiles at her, full and warm, and nods. As much as he may miss the Keyblade and all of his other abilities, at least he has this. ]

Any time.

[ He slowly draws his hand back, then turns to look ahead of them again. Always a way forward. ]

So, where do you want to go? We've got this whole city to check out.

[ And now maybe Caroline can do that with less of a weight on her chest. ]

[gasping]

[ with the clarity of mind that sora's ability gives her, caroline realizes she hadn't had much of a plan. going somewhere, anywhere, had been better than being cooped up in the makeshift safehouse — but now that she had to make a choice, she was quite honestly drawing a blank. ]

I guess I hadn't gotten that far. [ time to look a little sheepish. ] Where do you think?

[lighthearted]

[ So it had been less about the destination and more about the journey. Sora can understand that, and even now, all that really matters is that Caroline has a moment to get some fresh air and clear her mind. At least Sora's helped to jumpstart that process. ]

Uhhh, I don't know! We could see if they have an arcade here, or look for somewhere nice to eat... but I'm fine with whatever.

[ He'd mainly just wanted to offer her company, so it's her call. ]