meadowlarklogs | ARRIVAL LOG 22

ARRIVAL LOG 22

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: May 7 - 11
WHAT: The twenty-second arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, references to rebellion and world upheaval. Further notes at the end of log.

> ARRIVAL LOG #022

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 two people in front of you: one dressed in a thick set of armor, while the other wears medical garb. Out the windshield in front, there are many tall buildings—all reaching up beyond a normal city skyline, all entirely too close to the vehicle itself. But more than that, many of those buildings are covered in green.

You realize there are others next to you: all dressed the same way as you, you'll come to realize: in overalls of varying colors, all with heavy-duty gloves on. To your left there's an armored interior door, two more people visible, and 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 eventually lowers to the ground and turns off with a low whirr. 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 the air outside feels full of moisture. Soon enough, you realize it's lightly raining. The guard says nothing, head bowed as he lines you up with the rest. The nurse helps the others out, checking over each passenger one by one.

The main guard turns to address your entire group, and something about her bearing makes it clear she's done this before. "I'll be quick. Listen up." Your body will come to attention, immediately homing in on the words that follow, as if compelled to hang on every word. "You see those tents set up over there? You're going to head over there and help out with the work they're doing. Don't hurt anyone, don't look for any assistance from any police officers, and don't run off. Wait until people come and find you, and when they do, ask them to show you the glow."

The guard will hop back into the van, which will rise off of the ground and head back the way it came, turning the corner of a building that you now realize is covered in winding plants and vines. Once it's gone, you'll find your legs moving almost without your permission, guiding you to follow the steps the guard laid out.

Once you get to the tents, you'll see that there is a congregation of people, all dressed in clothes that they're ready to work in. Many of them are covered in grass stains, their faces bearing that sheen that comes with manual labor. The ones that are under the shade of the tents seem to be taking a break, but many others are in the area, hard to work. They assume that you're here to help pitch in with cutting back the sheer number of plants that have overgrown and consumed the city, and they hand you a pair of shears and a bucket so that you can get to work. Time to get pruning!

◉ 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 – and that includes the message passed on from the mysterious patron.

> HEDGE-CLIPPING

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.

Here we go again. We've got another batch of newbies, who've been dropped off at one of the landscaping work stations for getting all these plants under control. Follow the coordinates and you should find them in that general area. They're wearing overalls, if that narrows it down. I don't think many people wear overalls in 2512.

The coordinates will lead the current Displaced to the heart of New Amsterdam, near to one of the many green spaces in the city. Unsurprisingly, this is an area where the overabundance of plants growing at a massive rate has caused the most issue. Businesses, especially smaller ones like restaurants and boutiques, have been impacted by the plants. It's not just the outsides of buildings that are overgrown, either; inside, plumbing is completely clogged up as the foliage spills out of sinks, toilets, and anywhere else it can find a way in.

Green Thumbs, which is a local landscaping company that's seen an influx of business in the last six months thanks to the strange overgrowth of plant life in the city, has stepped up to help with this problem and has recruited the newly arrived Displaced to their cause, if unwittingly. Anyone who comes by one of their stations (including the veteran Displaced coming to collect the newbies) is likely to get roped into helping, as this is quite the undertaking and they need all the hands they can get. Don't worry—as long as you have a registered ID, you can get paid today.

The work itself isn't too complicated. Cut away plants, yank them out of drains, and put all everything that's harvested into buckets to return to the tents to drop off for later use in composting. While most of what's growing are flowers and weeds, there are areas where vegetables have sprouted too. Those will obviously want to be saved, and there will be crates set out to collect all of it. At the tents they'll also be offering some snacks and plenty of water to keep people energized and hydrated during the work. Everything from parks to bakeries to gift shops are going to need help here, and while the amount of work feels like it's neverending, it is important. Life can't return to normal until this is done.

While there will be time for both new arrivals and the rest of the Displaced to pitch in, eventually the newcomers will be escorted back to the safehouse for processing.

> AROUND THE CITY

MEDIA COVERAGE AND ONLINE CHATTER
New Amsterdam has come to life again following Judas' simulation, but the energy of the city has changed. After so many tragedies and disasters, it’s as though everyone is half-expecting the next one to strike while still reeling from the last. Some are dealing with this by throwing themselves into charity work or laying low, but others have been radicalized into thoughts of taking down the United Nations altogether. Morningstar is garnering more and more support, and though it’s technically illegal, their symbol is being grafitti’d and pasted all over town. The overworked police can’t manage to keep up, so some of them stay, a clear sign of the shifting opinions of the people.

The focus of every nearly source of news, from serious mainstream media to pop culture commentary, is still the simulation that recently overtook New Amsterdam. New characters won’t be able to access this information until their IDs are set up, but once they can, it’s a deluge of news reports, opinion pieces, and conspiracy theory websites.

There are solemn specials memorializing those who died in the simulation, or pieces discussing the long term effects on survivors and the city as a whole, focusing on New Amsterdam’s charity efforts. Talking heads, from pundits to scientists to various authority figures, are brought on panels to discuss and sometimes heatedly debate what happened and why it all seemed to go so wrong. Of particular focus and concern is New Amsterdam Governor Lydia Gill-Jade's choice to step down, electoral candidate Jovavich’s death, and the upcoming emergency election. Now that so many UNA soldiers have been decommissioned and weapons contracts dropped, economic concerns are rearing their head, too.

It might be a breath of fresh air for some citizens when they realize that this time, the mainstream media’s reaction to the United Nations' involvement is decidedly negative. There isn’t so much undue praise, and both interviewers and interviewees are starting to ask hard questions about how, exactly, the United Nations screwed this up so badly. More than a few are blaming the current situation on the United Nations completely.

And, of course, the AI Judas is still missing. The fear over this is palpable, and no news channel or website is going to let anyone forget it, or go long without mentioning it. It’s clear the United Nations is in the middle of a damage control campaign, sending their most media-ready members to explain why they didn’t do more and why their hands were tied. It’s all very polished and precise.

On social media, the shift towards criticizing the United Nations is much more open and less measured. It isn’t hard to find discussions tearing apart the UN’s excuses and even mocking them. With UNA soldiers returning home, there are more than a few stories of friends or family members noticing a huge shift in the former soldiers’ personalities, and their clear struggle to reintegrate into a civilian lifestyle. People are getting angry, and admitting you still support the United Nations is a great way to start a very long argument.

As for Morningstar, now that they’re in the odd position of being considered by most to be a political party opposing the UNA, they’re getting more media attention than ever before. The shift is clear—Morningstar’s opinions and ideas have value now, and they aren’t shy about challenging the United Nations' official position on what happened in New Amsterdam.

Another source of constant gossip is the Displaced. Now that they’ve been partially outed, everyone is trying to figure out just what their deal is. Some people clearly view them as heroes, while others aren’t so sure. Are they rogue UNA experiments? Dimension hoppers? Superheroes? Aliens? No one knows the truth, and so theories abound, some of them utterly ridiculous. There are more measured articles and reports too, but the tabloids are the ones running the scoops that are more out there (and, honestly, more fun).

MEDIA COMMUNITY RESPONSE
While talk is all well and good following such a widespread event as the simulation, taking action is far more important. While efforts to handle the overgrowth of plant life continues, there are other needs that need to be met too. Everyone came out of the simulation feeling malnourished, so all throughout the city food drives are being set up to make sure that the less fortunate and destitute get the sustenance they need to get back on their feet.

On top of that, there will also be an emphasis on redistributing all of the food which grew in excess while everyone was in the sim, to make sure that it's spread around to everyone who needs it.

Displaced will be encouraged to participate and help out with this (whether it's through cooking, plating/serving food, etc.) by the people they know through their community -- whether it's coworkers, members of Morningstar (including Gaby), or any other non-Displaced acquaintances that they have.

As public opinion toward the UNA is souring, there is a belief that people need to learn how to be self-sufficient, which is something that Morningstar in particular decides to capitalize on. If they can't rely on the UNA or on the corporations which are known to be corrupt and incetuous, and if the upcoming emergency election is likely to just give everyone more of the same, then they'll just have to figure things out on their own.

Therefore, Morningstar heads up a number of community events, classes, and drives to move toward this goal. This is a less direct form of rebellion than targeting the UNA or any of the big corporations directly, and while Morningstar has plans for that in the works too, they have always been a group that knows how to engage with the common people and make them feel seen and heard. Want to know how to grow and cook your own food? Have you heard what composting is, but don't really know what it's about? There's classes for all that, and more, including how to give haircuts and mend your own clothing. Those who are practiced in these things will also be offering these services to anyone who needs them.

Whether the Displaced are curious to learn, want to offer a class of their own (or at least help teach one), or want to take advantage of any of the services being offered, they'll be welcome. Morningstar agents will find them at the safehouse or Red Wings and encourage them to participate.

> SAFEHOUSE

Located under an abandoned hover-bike garage, access to the safehouse is a hatch in the floor beside a rusted set of metal shelves that used to hold tools and supplies. The immediate area is similarly abandoned: full of rundown and dilapidated warehouses and forgotten businesses, where numerous people squat in hopes of having some stability because they can't afford a place themselves. Gaby will be around, ready to greet as many of the new arrivals as she can and get them settled in. Brusque and no-nonsense, she'll be open to questions, but will advise the newcomers to ask the people who brought them in for the beginning bits of information. Newbies can also contact El through zeir inbox, if needed.

The safehouse is a large space with multiple rooms for storage, with the largest of the rooms filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large number 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. For anyone in need of them, Gaby will offer up partitions that will come out of storage. Tucked away in a corner is a VR system, though newcomers won't be able to access this until their ID has been set up. Even with the newly erected partitions in the sleeping areas, 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.

◉ There is a mini-bar set up in the kitchen. The quality of the alcohol inside is akin to what someone might get from the well at a bar, but it's well-stocked.

◉ While the kitchen has basic foods and necessities, anyone looking for a jolt of caffeine from coffee or tea will find themselves sorely lacking. The only tea present is herbal in nature, and caffeine appears to be almost nonexistent in most of the beverages lying around.

◉ Gaby will make it clear to all new arrivals that if they have any requests or queries, they should contact her or El. Either she or El will explain that they've been given a modest stipend of credits to help them get by until they can find a job. This will be enough to cover their living expenses for about a month while they hang out in the safehouse, if they're careful with budgeting.

◉ 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 do not have access to the internet until their ID is setup. They only have limited access because they're present in the safehouse, but they can't surf the rest of the internet, check out Cooltalk, or watch the equivalent of Netflix until their ID is made.

◉ New characters cannot leave the safehouse at this time. The hatch is locked tight for them, making it impossible for them to get out for the next four days while they're locked inside. There won't be any immediately obvious ways to cut their way out through turning off the power.

◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until MAY 11 (JUNE 21). 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.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

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 MAY 11 (JUNE 21). 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 June calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods.

AC remains halved this month due to the state of the world right now. New players will only need to provide at least five comments across two-four (2-4) threads, while older players will only need to provide ten comments across two-four (2-4) threads. Please let us know if you have any questions about this!

> NAVIGATION

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

> a cut below l hedge clipping

( William fruitlessly follows El's coordinates, just in case somebody he does know shoes up in this time. His sister, maybe. But, this time, like every other, it's nobody he recognizes. But, he's been here, too. Only a month or so before. So, anything he can do to help, whether that be answering questions he can try to answer, taking anyone to the safe house, or even causing a distraction, he's ready.

Or, he was, before he'd been convinced to join the cause. He's not a man of manual labor, but it isn't moving big beams or anything taxing. What's a few hours' work for some much needed funds? Despite the work, he still keeps his short sleeve button down completely buttoned up thanks to his chest plate. And he trades his usual pair of gloves for the garden variety, literally.

He takes several breaks to get water, and approaches anyone new if he can. )

Crazy how the environment can just turn on us, right?

( It's baiting, yes. Usually it's them, the people who ravage the planet. The corrupt people. But, nobody had been here to keep any of the vegetation from getting out of control. )

> a cut above l fighting

( He makes the wrong decision to visit the fighting arena.

After two stiff drinks, his confidence mounts. Being cooped up in the simulation, under their conditions, surrounded by people and ciphers makes him bolder. He doesn't outright try and recognize anyone from inside the simulation. But, if someone approaches, he'll commiserate, lift his glass. Give them a wide-eyed, that did happen, right?

Days with Ilya didn't suddenly make him his sister or Oliver Queen, and his ass is handed to him the minute he tries to lowest weight class. He should stick to betting.

He gets back into the safe house late one night, quietly trying to open the fridge and collect ice into a bag. Yeah. Moving to the makeshift bar, he pours himself one more, not that he needs it, but, it cools the sting of his cheek off. )

> cut it out l safe housing

( The lack of movement in the simulation, and lack of any action on William's part only bums him out enough to get him to be more active. He uses a gym around the corner daily, and goes running in the neighborhood. He has his eye on still training and knows there's one thing he needs to practice more. And perfect.

So, several times a week after showering off for the day, he approaches someone new inside the safe house. )

Hey, this is going to sound like a line, but being without our ... power inside the simulation, it's reminded me I should actually practice mine. And you, can too. I'll show you mine?

>cut to the chase l red wings

( he's gone from the guy who 'doesn't really drink' to accepting that he does now. most nights he posts up at Red Wings. he's busy using the neural interface if nobody is nearby, poking around and seeing just how far into a backdoor he can get. he is far from the hacker he's ever been in this year but trying to pull apart code and html, he at least feels that will help.

he keeps to vodka most of the time, usually moving through a glass over the course of an arrow. not anything crazy.

later in the night, he might challenge someone to a game of darts. )

My dad would probably laugh, and my sister, that the dart I can handle is in a bar and not with a quiver.

( If he has his eye on anyone, he tries playing it close to the vest. He knows the Displaced end up here most nights so if he's looking around interested, he must be, right? Maybe he's waiting for someone. Of course, he should reach out to someone he'd be waiting for. Shouldn't he? That's how it works?

Sucks that he sucks at that, doesn't it. )

( //or, choose your own adventure and surprise me. if you have an idea or have a question, hit me up at

manipulative )

Edited 2020-06-15 04:36 (UTC)

[ The thing about the simulation and their time in it - no pictures. No photos swapped over the network. He's got no idea what William looks like, what he sounds like, who he is. It's only been a day or two since the sim ended (as it turns out, literally single-handed on Ian's part, thank you very much) and he's still recovering from the fight it took to get into the bunker.

He's got a massive patch on his shoulder covering up a monster gash, one that sticks out a little under his shirt sleeve. He's got the air of a guy who's coming down from a bad hangover. Despite all that, his countenance is pleasant and his expression seems friendly. Approachable.

Approachable enough for a "stranger", it seems. His eyebrows lift with intense and immediate curiosity - the power stuff, it gets him every time. ]

Sure, I'll show you mine after you show me yours first.

[ As the saying goes. Wry, drawled out, amused. ]

Let's see it, what can you do?

( Ian's patch and injury matches up with a cheek cut and a purple and blue bruise right below William's eye.

It's the kinship in injuries and that there aren't many up this late at night in the safe house. William is always a night owl. Whether it be tinkering with something or generally not being able to sleep. Most of his exes would call him preoccupied, perpetually somewhere else except when it did count. But, here and now, he has one intention. A goal he can actually meet. He can't crack into the network, doesn't understand it, and is failing at actually learning anything about it aside from observations made.

So, this, this is in his current wheel house. He's used it very little, mostly in the arena to be VIP for ten minutes or however long it takes the staff to notice.

So. He approaches Ian. Not knowing it's Ian. Not knowing they already have an inside joke between the two of them and promised tequila.

He smiles, inhaling. )

Okay. So. You see me. Here. Now. I'm me. Now, I'm going to tell you someone I'm not. ( He meets Ian's eyes, locking on. ) Hi, I'm Oliver Queen, former mayor of Star City. It's a pleasure to meet you. And. Blink.

( Ian blinks and in that blink of his eye, William is now his father, Oliver Queen, taller, more muscular, with a passing resemblance.

He uncharacteristically looks pretty proud of himself, eyebrows raised. ) Right? It's still me. The me who asked.

[ Throughout the instructions, Ian's got that patient and vaguely amused yeah I'm following you go on expression. Humoring him good-naturedly in a way that seems more funny that it is condescending.

And then he blinks, and-- you know what? He is suitably impressed. That's pretty fucking cool, actually. Eyebrows go up, lips part, and he actually takes the time to stand up off of his stool to do a little 360 around William. ]

Wow.

[ And you know what's so fucking annoying is how it's still way cooler than Ian's power fucking really-- ]

Is it tangible, does it-

[ And he's just gonna invade some personal space here before he even gets permission. Do a little tentative shoulder touching to see if it goes through or if it's solid. ]

( He just nods, takes the touching also in stride. He's showing off now. He thinks of it as practice, but isn't it cool? Not being able to do this in the simulation, weirdly not cool.

His lips draw together. )

Completely tangible.

( And to show Ian, WilliOliver circles him. )

It's still me. I can move, be touched, touch. You just believe I'm my father, now. Anyone else awake would think I looked like me.

Huh.

[ Escapes Ian's mouth in a little puff, more like a sound than any kind of articulate word. ]

So you're essentially manipulating a target brain into believing what you want it to believe. Hey- do you smell like him right now? Is that a weird question?

[ That's definitely a weird question, he just... gets curious about weird shit, and it's interesting. It'd be even weirder to lean in and sniff for himself, and it's not like he'd have any fucking clue.

Hey, you never know, maybe there'll be like a really specific werewolf situation in the future. Smell test is an important part. ]

William Clayton-Queen / OTA

cut it out;

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a cut above

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> a cut above l fighting

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safe housing

rude

he's the rude robin

rly tho love it

Re: rly tho love it

safehousing;

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