You have spent the last few days on Thesa Station, taking in the knowledge that your world is no more. Perhaps you've made some friends (or maybe an enemy or two). Either way, you aren't expected to spend all of your time on the Station. El Nysa needs you, after all, and you promised you'd help the planet thrive. Are you ready?
Submit an AC-eligible thread with a new character as a participant for 2 OLYMPIA REP POINTS OR 2 WYVER REP POINTS, respectively, HERE or HERE. THESA STATION
All refugees on the station are called to the hangar where a large-scale teleporter has been set up; everyone will be sent to the planet together. Simply step onto the space between the arrays and wait. Before they depart, all new refugees will be given a starter kit!
 You may have heard about earlier technical difficulties, but don't worry. I promise everything is in perfect working order this time. I'd say I tested it myself, but since that's not exactly possible, you'll just have to trust me! (Please.)
The older refugees will also be there to guide you to ensure no one is left confused... or behind. Make sure you wait for them — I've been detecting something odd so I'll be having them meet you at the landing site. Good luck, refugees! Not that you'll be needing it or anything...
The arrays begin to hum and glow, quickly building into a brilliant wash of light. It creates a column that travels all the way from Thesa Station to the surface of El Nysa. With the night sky as a canvas, the beam can be seen all the way from Olympia and Wyver — a view that has the natives whispering of blessings.
As a sudden but beautiful aurora splays across the sky, the refugees down on the planet receive a message asking them to travel to the landing site — and warning them to prepare for what may come of the strange readings Zasere's gotten from the teleport itself.
Traveling through the light leaves the impression of blinding starlight, a strange sense of weightlessness, and a disorienting moment of total sensory deprivation. The radiance of your teleport hangs bright in the sky above you, a shimmering aurora that reflects off the calm waters below, visible for miles all around.
You've landed on a peninsula to the east of the South Outpost. There's little here — scattered trees on spring-barren plains, with a few overgrown, dilapidated structures poking out of the brush. All is quiet save for the keening of animals and the gentle lapping of waves against the shore. This lonely desolation is hardly the bustling cities and vibrant cultures you were promised back on the station...
BY CAMPFIRE'S GLOW. But waiting for you is a group of your predecessors, and with them, a veritable tent city, with portable stoves, coolers of food and drink, comfortable bedrolls, and cheerful rings of bonfires — all that you need to make merry of the night, courtesy of Overseer Voss, who has, thanks to his interest in blessed meteorological phenomena and refugees, decided to make a holy expedition of the affair.
Settle in, meet new comrades, and enjoy yourself, for you've safely completed your journey. But don't wander too far from the fires — the dark is closing in, and there's a strange, electric feeling in the air, the scent of ozone drifting on the breeze. And what were those odd readings Zasere mentioned?
A SHEPHERD OVER THE FLOCK. The spring sun dawns on a grey morning, already burning away the fog rolling in off the sea. It quickly becomes apparent that Voss and his entourage of acolytes have been up for hours, hard at work. They've set up a brightly-draped stage and a travel pulpit, magically enchanted to amplify his voice, and as the sun breaks over the horizon, Voss is all set to do what he does best: proselytize.
 As our Goddess has sent Her blessing once before to herald the coming of those touched by Her light, so She has done once again! Here you see them, those surrounded by the light of our Goddess, each of them bearing the mark upon their skin of Her holiest of hands! Do you not see? Do none among you bear witness to the righteousness of Her message? Perhaps this is why our people have shamed themselves in front of our Goddess—
[ He continues for another 15 minutes... ]
Nevertheless. See you them before us now! See them as they are, coming to our gates with Her reminder, that these people must be treated with the utmost respect and care. Thesa's divinity is not to be treated with such flagrant disregard! Those who She chooses are not ours to use as mindless fodder, to hurt, to torture — shame upon those who allowed such deeds to shame us under Her watchful gaze!
To those of you who have just arrived here on our doorstep, be not afraid! The Temples of Thesa welcome you to our home with hearts and minds open! Should you ever find yourself in need of solace, seek out the Temples, as there are no greater allies to you than those of us within the Temple walls. You are welcome all to Olympia!
As he steps away from the enchanted podium, he can be heard saying aside to an acolyte, "How was that? Heavy on the shame, but I think it went well!" While he will not leave the area immediately, his acolytes will politely turn away attempts to speak with him and remind anyone interested that they can leave a message at the Temples.
Despite going off without hitch, the new refugees' arrival isn't entirely without incident. It seems that the "blessed" beam of light that brought the refugees down to El Nysa brought something else along with it — a sliver of the Storm. At least the beam was short enough that only a small fraction managed to squeeze through.
But it's enough to wreak a little havoc around the landing site and along the road back toward Olympia and Wyver — and even, for a few days, in the cities themselves.
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE. The Storm is an undeniably destructive force, and that's proven with this small sliver's effect as it ripples across the continent. While there's no visible sign of its presence, strange phenomena soon begin to appear, corresponding with Zasere's odd readings.
They're innocuous little things at first. A sudden silence, animals going quiet, insects stilling. All technology, no matter how advanced, ceases working. You discover when you check with a friend, the clock on your phone is twelve minutes slow even though you'd swear only a minute had passed — time missing. Walking through the woods takes longer than it should when brushing past one bush leads to brushing past that same bush again — and again, and again, the area looping on itself. It keeps you trapped, going in circles for minutes, even hours, before finally releasing you in a random direction.
Or perhaps you'll feel a sense of deja vu, like you've walked down this road, taken this turn, seen that bird fly from this branch before. This is the second time that cat has crossed your path. The person you're meeting, you already know their name; you're certain you've already met.
WE GOT COWS. The Storm sliver also ushers in sudden, localized weather anomalies — heavy storms, blizzards, strong winds, and more. Affected areas range from just a few feet wide to nearly half a mile. One minute, the sky may be sunny and clear, but the next dark storm clouds roll in, unleashing torrential rain. Small tornadoes surge along the road, kicking up winds strong enough to knock people over and carry objects away. Hail hurtles down from the sky, but only in a ten foot radius. Temperatures fluctuate wildly between one extreme and the next, from heat waves to cold snaps. Soupy fog blankets the area, thick enough that you can barely see your hand in front of your face. Good luck finding your way!
FORGETTING IS SO LONG. The visions come on suddenly and with very little warning. One second, you're carrying on as normal — but the next, you blink and find yourself (and anyone near you) somewhere else completely. You may recognize this place as a moment from the past, one that you lived through. It's a memory, your memory, and it now replays around you in exceptional detail, unnervingly lifelike. Or you may not recognize it at all. It might belong to the person next to you, or to someone else entirely — a memory that the Storm has swallowed up.
Either way, the scene plays out just as it once did, and there's nothing you can do to stop it — or escape it. The memory surrounds you to no end: every door you open leads nowhere, every hallway you turn down continues on forever, every horizon you flee toward hangs just out of reach. And linger too long or turn the wrong corner, and you may find yourself abruptly stuck in a completely different memory. It's almost tempting, then, to give up, to let the past sweep you away...
But this isn't the full might of the Storm. Look closely, and you can see that in the walls of this trap, there are minute, hairline cracks, a facade of fractured glass. Imperfections in the memory where the real world is breaking through. It seems the only way to escape these memories is to find those cracks and break through them — by force, by will, or by some other method entirely.
The time is coming to make a choice — perhaps not a permanent choice, but unless you want to spend the rest of your nights out under the stars, you'll need to pick which city you will initially spend your time in. On the horizon, you will see that people have arrived to help you make that decision...
A FORK IN THE ROAD. Refugees and the hyper-religious wishing to hear Voss speak are not the only ones out and about under the light of the aurora. Citizens of both Olympia and Wyver have flocked to a point on the road midway between the cities and where the refugees have appeared, and they all have the same goal in mind: convincing the newcomers who have just descended in the blessed light of Thesa to come to their city and not the other.
They've come with bribes — that is, examples of what their cities have to offer. If you spent much time at the exhibition up on Thesa Station, you might recognize some of what's being shown off, though the offerings here are markedly more tangible, and shown off by hawkers wearing substantially fewer clothes.
A herd of pegasi accompanies the Olympians, while a line of flying serpents is stabled at a tent bearing Wyver colors. Refugees are given the chance to experience solo flights and are told that if they prove their loyalty, they may have the privilege of owning such fine beasts one day themselves. The Olympians have also brought couture clothing, jewelry, and makeup to offer a taste of Olympian splendor, while the Wyver delegation has brought along fine weapons, sense-enhancing jungle plants, and small vials of diluted dragon’s blood (drinking confers a temporary boost in strength) to demonstrate their might. The Olympians speak proudly of the glory of the Temples of Thesa; the Wyverns speak of the Volkkran Pact and inform newcomers that they can make a pilgrimage to the summit of Namarak Mountain at the next full moon.
This is as good a time as any to compare your plans with others around you and exchange contact information before going your separate ways with people who are going to the city you are not. When you’re ready to go, don’t worry about safe passage — the natives of each city will gladly escort you there in luxury.
OF WHITE AND GOLD. The people of Olympia are ecstatic that you’ve come to join them... So much so that they’ve prepared a grand tour of the city for the new arrivals. You will be introduced to the major businesses in the city, including businesses that they are proud to point out were founded by refugees.
Refugees who have been here for some time already are encouraged to pair up with newcomers to introduce them to the parts of the city they like best. To facilitate this, they’ve made arrangements with many of the business owners: new refugees who visit their shops (and older refugees who escort them) are given discounts!
Just a few examples of many: the Wyvernest offers free desserts to first time visitors with the purchase of a drink, refugees who visit the Silk Wyrms can have one custom (though not exceedingly expensive) outfit made for them for free, and visitors to Shades Darker are offered a half-hour session with one of the prostitutes at half price… or access to a private room, if they seem to have taken a shine to one of their companions on the tour.
Lastly, tour guides will point out that over the course of the next week, the train to Flona Cove will allow new refugees to board for free so that they can experience the seaside for themselves. With the weather finally starting to warm, this is as good a time as any for a visit to the beach, isn’t it?
OF RED AND BLACK. Life in Wyver is typically a sink-or-swim sort of experience — but in light of the valor recently displayed by their predecessors, the natives are now more willing to assist in getting newcomers settled. The entire journey here they have been talking up the virtues of their city… and now is the time to show everything that's on offer.
The well-known businesses in the city are prepared for the influx of newcomers. Some are giving out discounted samples of their products while others are offering a more hands-on experience: in exchange for working a few hours, they will give training in whatever task is being performed.
At the Forged, newcomers can learn the basics of crafting simple weapons (and take one of their successes home), while visitors to spas near the lagoons are trained in the art of massage. Those who wander to Falmi’s Ring can learn the art of pugilism or how to keep (and fix) books if they're more inclined to the gambling that goes on. Newcomers interested in Wyver's dragons can get hands-on experience at the Fields of the Exalted's nursery. While they walk from place to place, a guide may point out a job posting from Highwind Hires, noting that refugees can make a name for themselves outside official channels.
The last stop on the tour is the Undergrowth. The guides speak of the jungle in reverent tones and caution new refugees not to wander too far in. They warn never to explore alone, but also urge refugees to take time to familiarize themselves with it; after all, the jungle is an important part of life in Wyver, and those who are going to be living here should understand it as well as they do.
You've chosen your path, refugee, but that doesn't necessarily make it a permanent one. Watch out for the strange effects of the Storm, which linger still in the two cities and everywhere in between for the next few days before dissipating just as mysteriously as they came, but otherwise enjoy the welcome and make yourself at home — after all, this is home now.
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no subject
That... that looks like a...
[A Gundam.]
But...
[The surprise and confusion are as evident in his face as they are through the link they share. By all accounts, Setsuna should not know what that machine. He's never laid eyes on it before, it's technology is unfamiliar; it doesn't have anything resembling a GN drive chassis, and what few pieces or armor and armoraments it has that haven't been stripped aren't anything that's known to him.
But even so.
That aesthetic. That color scheme. That V-fin, warped as it is. The way it stillnsomehow pulls at his soul. There was no denying it.
It's a Gundam.
But...]
How?
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[ Truthful and low, succinct. ]
It was buried once. [ Like Flauros. Like Hashmal — there's something to be said for a hunter and its prey to be buried alongside one another, left to annals of a history that tended to forget or reject where it came from. There's something to be said, but Mikazuki doesn't know what it is. ] Until it became the power source for this place.
[ This place that has also been buried. But much like Mikazuki, it had never known when to stay down. ]
Until we realized what it could do.
[ Orga and him. ]
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He doesn't ask those questions, though. Not because he's afraid of the answers, but because he's not sure Mika would even have them. So rather than ask about the machine's past prior to that point, he focuses on its future.]
We? [He needs that bit of context.]
What did you do with it? [If not "eradicate war", then what?]
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[ If this was before he and that machine had been hunted down and destroyed like animals, Mikazuki's answer might have been different. They changed their futures with this machine, no matter how immediate the future was, for kids like them.
Always one foot in front of the other, with this Gundam paving the way. ]
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Without any real background or context, Setsuna obviously can't say for sure. But he wonders.
He makes a thoughtful noise as he looks at Mika, then turns his attention back to the Gundam.]
Did you succeed in the end? Or... [Did he still lose?]
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In the end... [ He repeats, deliberately. ] I carried out my orders.
[ In that same motion, if either of them blink, the Gundam will be gone from its platform, nothing left but shadows and coppery dust.
Above ground, there's a vast silence, and then — a noise that pierces the sky, rumbling, and the sound of a destruction so vast that it rattles bones all the way down to the marrow. But that isn't for them to see from here, and the scene fades as smoke and rubble plumes up around them.
Somewhere else? ]
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He isn't able to think about it for long, not before the silence between them is shattered by the sound of destruction. Before Setsuna can even begin to figure out what's happen, the two of them are swept up in a massive cloud of dust and debris. Its deafening and blinding, but suddenly as it hit, it sweeps itself away.
When the dust clears, they aren't in that cave anymore. In fact, they aren't on land at all. Setsuna knows where they are, though; he recognizes this part of Ptolemy instantly, in the strategic briefing room. Currently, the whole team is gathered there, watching a video of the UN forces in their newly acquired GN-X machines take on the Throne Gundams. As a conversation starts among them, Setsuna starts to speak.]
Ian Vashti. [He begins, identifying each speaker as they talk.] Miss Sumeragi Lee Noriega. Allelujah Haptism. Tieria Erde. Lockon... [Even for a guy like Setsuna, its still hard for him to hide that bit of melancholy in his voice. This was the last time he got to see Lockon alive, after all.]
Lockon Stratos. Lasse Aeon.
Celestial Being. [He doesn't add any context to that statement, having waited until the end of the conversation to say it. But if Mika were paying attention to the others were talking about, he should be able to figure it out.]
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He ventures, picking out the most important bit he can from this. ]
Your group?
[ It's not hesitation, but he doesn't mention the real word that comes to mind. ]
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[Its not that Mika is wrong is his guess, but...
As Lockon walks by, Setsuna can't help but try to reach out to him. He knows its useless to try to change the past, Lockon himself told him as much. But every part of Setsuna wants to tell him to not make the mistake he's about to make, to stay in the damn Gundam. Don't end up lonely. But before Setsuna can make contact, he stops.
He lets Lockon walk by, followed by Tieria, Alelujah, and the others.]
They're more than that.
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So he does what he does best, and replies honestly. ]
Family.
[ It's a word that sounds better coming from Orga than it does him. But much like the man that walks past Setsuna's reach, he's not here. ]
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[Again, Mika isn't on the wrong track, but this is the first time Setsuna has ever had to verbalize what these people mean to him. Something about the word 'family' sounds insufficient to him, lacking in some way. He loves them, sure, but more than that, he's connected to them in a way time, space, or even death can't weaken or sever. They're part of him; the reason that he was able to change to begin with. Seeing them before him like this, he's now painfully aware of the pieces of himself that are missing, the parts of himself that he's been keeping at a distance as he struggles to understand his reformation and innovation.
He can't help the pang of guilt at that realization, but... hadn't they respected his quiet? They all gave him the space he needed to sort himself out, never pushed him unless the situation called for him.
They understood.
Even when he couldn't understand himself, they understood him. Because they're not merely family, they're...]
Gundam. [There's no other word he could use at this point.]
They are Gundam.
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They look like people to me.
[ On an instinctual level, he's gathered that Setsuna's bond with his Gundam is different from his own with Barbatos.
But it's too big a concept for him to really let permeate him, insular as he is. ]
But as long as their lives are important to you.
[ That much he understands. ]
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They are...
[Though they may be stuck only in the past now. But as Lockon once told him, there is only one thing about the past that can change, and that is how it makes you feel about things in the present. Something in him has changed from being here and seeing them all again, but as they've all left the room, its time for him and Mika to go as well.]
You have people like that, don't you?
[He asks his question as he opens the door to the briefing room, and no sooner than he does than Storm kicks up, an unnatural gust of wind hitting them, ready to send them elsewhere and elsewhen.]