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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Krile Baldesion | FFXIV
Well this feels enough like home.
[Somehow she did not expect saying it aloud would leave her aching so. But the wild of it, the sense of fury in wait, the sound of waves that can't accomplish anything...it is as though she never really left, and soon she will have to do something else or risk more than enough melancholy for a lifetime. Something besides talking to herself.
There are fires to enjoy, inasmuch as she can; Krile finds herself taking slow steps through the crowd, observing the bustle of those that have come before and the way the whole thing is set up for making camp. Big bonfires, enough food to sate them all conceivably for the night...]
Could they not have waited until morning to send us forth?
[There is no small amount of dry disbelief in the question. Neither does she anticipate an answer. After all, she asked no one, hand to her chin while the other cradles her elbow. Honestly, though! Would it not have been more of a courtesy to all involved if they'd come in the full light of day, rather than this?
So she wonders - privately for now - whether there isn't more to it after all.
Like it or not, she can't deny that she is both hungry and thirsty, which are conveniently louder than the gloom of reality setting in. She sits without fanfare a safe distance from the nearest bonfire where food is visible, contemplating her choices, intentionally heedless of whomever she happened to sit beside.]
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ii. conspiracy weather
[Comforting as it was to have familiar faces about her during all of this arrival, Krile finds herself kept to herself the next day on their journey to...wherever. Presumably, wherever includes lodgings and other comforts already handled by her friends- ah. Gods. She's getting a headache, suddenly, and in that moment she takes the necessary breath to mutter "not now."
The very next moment sees her sailing through the air, the victim of an impromptu cyclone springing up beneath her feet. She doesn't even have time to shout, and the surprise of the wind steals any further exclamation of shock right out of her breath. What might blow another person over in place has a solid fling effect on an unaware scholar of her stature...
...and, very soon, she is going to land. Sooner than she has time to think about, actually. Her options are few, and she can't control any of them: strike someone? Hit open ground, or worse?
Pray a kind soul nearby notices and can manage to ease her landing?]
--
iii. forgetting might be better
[Without intending it, she has wandered through three strangers' memories already, and while she is quite familiar with the concept and even the inability to dictate where the damn things start and end, to go through so many and different ones in a short stretch...really ought to be more tiring than this. But no headache, no unsteadiness, not even the fringes of unease touch her consciousness, nor does she 'remember' these events as though she is their primary subject, as it were. It is as though she yet walks onward to their real, physical destination.
Plenty of unlikely things have happened to Krile. This world is doing its best to outdo all of them in one fell stroke.
There is a blessed twenty minutes of plain old wild island foliage. A sudden rain.
Krile steps into the next memory with her hood still dripping. Is it one of hers or one of yours? Either way, she's developed a healthy sense of dread all around at the scenery change; most of the things she has seen already are not pleasant.]
--
iv. wildcard!
[Would you prefer something else? Idle conversation as they walk? A bit of different angry weather? Discussion on the merits of where to live? Wildcard me up!!]
iii!!! gimme whatever memory your heart desires
Krile?
[ And he moves over to where she is, looking her over for any signs of injury. Luckily for him, it's not one of his memories they're in, but one of hers — whether that's good for her or not remains to be seen, of course. ]
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Then again, water isn't exactly a close friend of his.
Where they are, right now, is a place of darkness. Krile herself does not recognize it from any other darkness until, slowly, blinking red lights come into focus. Said lights illuminate solid, warm-stone walls just barely, and the memory itself seems unstable at the edges. As though it did not form fully, perhaps, or its initial occurrence was not received with clarity.
Krile, the real Krile, halfway through responding with Alphinaud's name in return, stares at one such dim blinking light while the sounds freeze in her throat.]
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He's ... kind of weirded out by their surroundings, though. It doesn't feel particularly safe? And he's not familiar with them, himself. Which only makes them that much more strange and suspicious.
He focuses on a red light for a moment, before looking back at Krile and noticing how she seems a bit off. ]
Are you familiar with this place?
[ It's worth a shot to ask. ]
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[It takes a particular degree of poise, of discipline, to keep herself from drawing nearer to Alphinaud's side. This is not the first time she has traversed a memory, in this world or any other...but it is the first to be hers.]
I...ought to be somewhere nearby. [When she looks up at him she is glad for the darkness, for the hood that partially obscures her face.] Though I doubt I am aware of myself at the moment. This is where I was imprisoned.
[Her voice is steady. Perhaps it is too dark for him to see her fingertips tremble.]
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I — I trust it needs not be said, but I shall hold no judgement toward you should you choose to avert your eyes here. [ He would have no desire to see himself in such a state, and he can only imagine she feels similarly. He doesn't even want to see her like that.
For all that he's gone through, and all the maturity he tends to carry himself with, he's still a boy inside. Seeing his friend like that would upset him beyond words. ]
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campfire!!
besides, far be it for her to miss greeting a new band of refugees. you never know who might show up..
.. or sit down beside you. that flash of familiar yellow catches her eye immediately, and alisaie breaks into a fond smile, her heart tightening with relief. she is not wont to be overly affectionate, but it's still so good to see her fellow scions. nearly a year she has been here on el nysa, yet it seems like far, far longer. ]
Might I recommend the roasted popotos? One can never go wrong, there.
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Not the best idea to run about the wilds on a lasting injury?
[Yes, it is meant to sound as though she should have known it an ill-advised venture.]
You haven't risked your health for our account, I hope. [Or you're as bad as your brother!] Roasted popotoes, then? I've not tried anything yet.
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My health is perfectly fine. Enjoy the popotoes.
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They can do this the hard way or the easy way.]
Will you object to a few spells? I may not be able to do as much as I had hoped, given the age of your injury, but doing nothing at all would be folly on both sides.
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If you insist.
[ she draws up her leg, and it's clear that the damage was.. extensive, the burn extending the full length of her leg from ankle to hip. it has more or less fully healed, however - the skin has knitted, the open wounds have closed, the scar tissue left behind still red and fresh, twisted and unsightly. but she's made her peace with the fact that her leg is going to look like overcooked pizza for the rest of her life. ]
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i
Well, well. Our paths cross again. It’s nice to see you have made the journey from the station safely.
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[She had the impression that it would not be done if it could not be done safely.]
If they are prone to endangering us for the sake of some manner of public display I would prefer to know about it now.
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[ He shrugs a bit. ]
Tensions are high, and I don't think the Natha realized how... unpredictable the people can be.
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Excellent.
Krile's hard frown is now matched only by the severity with which she crosses her arms and draws her brows together.]
How likely are we to find ourselves in immediate danger among all this grandiose welcome?
[Granted, she hasn't felt anything, but in an unknown world that might never happen.]
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[ He frowns, casting about. ]
No more so than one would expect when traveling through the wilds, I suppose. In the long-term, I would not call either nation wholly safe, however.
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i!
[ Because that is what this is all about, obviously. And no, Prompto doesn't really believe that, and it would have been a lot more convenient if they had met up with the new refugees the next morning instead (read: one more night's sleep in an actual bed instead of a sleeping bag).
Prompto, for his part, is assembling a 'smore, because of course he is. He glances over at the - precocious young child??? - next to him, wholly uncertain of what to make of her. ]
New in town, huh?
[ It's easy enough to guess. ]
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[There are a lot of tents, and far too many people are enjoying themselves in proportion to what she expects they should feel about the state of things. Krile looks this boy up and down without bothering to mask her appraisal.]
You are, then, a seasoned and decorated member of the welcome caravan?
[Obviously he is not new.
But the rest of it is the sarcasm of defense.]
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It's hard for him to not draw attention to it right away, but he's not one to pry and she seems a little guarded as it is. Better to not weird her out - more than he might through his usual manner, anyway. ]
Ohhh, you could say that! Fell from the sky with the first batch of 'em, actually. Gotta say, comin' down on the teleporters? You guys got it way better.
[ They didn't wake up in an escape pod to find they'd been ejected from the Station. She's very lucky! ]
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So this is not the traditional manner of transport to the surface? [This frown turns a bit sour.] Why do I have twice the feeling that we are here to be made an example of?
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What makes you say that?
[ Sure, there is something a little...unsettling about the whole situation, but he tries to give the Natha the benefit of the doubt. ]
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the chocobros as the spice boys would be perfect
wouldn't they?
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ii.
Oh, my!
[ That certainly is a flying... child? Clair rushes over to put herself into the girl's aerial pathway, and it all happens too quickly for her to come up with any other plan except cushioning her fall. With her body. Sure, Clair tries to catch the girl, but she's hurtling through the air so fast that they just sort of collide and fall to the ground.
Clair ends up on her back, but all her attention is on making sure the girl is unharmed. ]
Goodness me! Are you all right?
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Oh. It was another person.
She stands, slowly, and considers her savior.]
I seem to be in one piece. Were you hurt?
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[ She smiles kindly and shifts so that she's kneeling in front of the girl (she thinks... Krile is a child, I'm sorry), her eyes giving her a once-over just to make sure that everything is in order. ]
My, that was certainly very strange, was it not? [ What funny weather they're having... in any case, Clair is very concerned that this girl has been separated from... her parents... being a child and all. ]
Come! Let us return you to your parents. Surely they are just up ahead.
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My parents? [Now it's her turn to look Clair up and down.] Really?
[Is this conversation actually about to happen?]
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