❪ introlog: #6 ❫ city of secrets

[natha]

You've spent the last few days on Thesa Station, taking in the knowledge that your world is no more. Now, the time to put all your survival training into practice has arrived: El Nysa needs you, and you're here to help the planet thrive. Are you ready? THE DESCENT     All refugees on the station are called to the hangar, where a large-scale teleporter awaits. Simply step onto the space between the arrays and wait; everyone will be sent down to the planet together. Before they depart, all refugees will be given a cold weather survival kit with warm clothing, rations, and bedding. The arrays build into a brilliant wash of light, creating a column that travels all the way from Thesa Station to the surface of El Nysa, teleporting the refugees to the planet on an aurora. Once on the planet's surface, refugees receive one last message from Darma. It has been a long, perilous year for you, refugees. And yet we must ask you to brave further peril. Within Nadril are the secrets to how poor Ysverai's revival was hidden from our sight and how this disaster has come to our star. Find the first refugee from beyond this planet, a man named Magda. He will not speak to us, for much has come between us, but to you… If you prove yourselves, he may be willing to answer your questions. We beseech you, for there is a veil over Nadril that hides all within from us. There may yet be more untold dangers waiting to befall this planet. For the good of all who make this world home, we ask you to lend us your aid. There is yet one more favor we would ask of you. In warding off the Storm's encroachment, the physical aspect of ourselves that you call Thesa Station was damaged. We must remain to continue repairs to El Nysa and to deal with Ysverai, but there should be suitable technology within Nadril that could be used for spare parts. If you have the chance to find it and can return it to us, it would hasten— Darma's message crackles with static, another image overlaying hers — her broadcast is cut off and replaced with another. A more sullen and alien voice takes Darma’s place, overlapping on itself in an ominous reveal. It has been a long, perilous year for you, refugees. And yet you’ve only just arrived here. To say I’m not disappointed in your… generation would be to lie, and I am nothing if not an honest creature. But I suppose these have been unusual circumstances. You must ask yourself this — are you only here as Darma's lapdogs? I can assure you, it's not worth being on the Natha's leash. With time, that will be something you'll have to learn for yourself. If you're so determined to come find Nadril, then follow the path north, and you'll find the border. What awaits you is revelation, if you're up to the challenge. A FROZEN LAND     The refugees land on a literally frozen world, both in temperature and time. Curls of icy wind hold swirls of snow aloft and an uncanny silence is broken only by the crunch of hoarfrost underfoot. Only Darma's protection allows the refugees to move through this frozen world — and movement is very necessary. Bitter cold sneaks through even the thickest clothing and without warning, a snowstorm rises: unnaturally quickly, a wall of white howls directly in the refugee's path. Bizarrely, the way back is perfectly calm; it's obvious that this storm is no product of nature. Magda's challenge becomes clear: the only way to Nadril lies through this storm. Visibility within the storm is near zero, the whiteout hiding any landmarks from view and making navigation near impossible. The only guidance refugees have is a sporadic path of faint, greenish lights, easily lost in the raging storm. Refugees need all the survival skills they practiced on Thesa Station to survive, for getting lost alone is a death sentence. Luckily, those separated from the group can happen upon guiding lights Magda has planted throughout the tundra. These blue-white sparks cause frostbite if handled recklessly, but they also serve as directional anchors, turning into ghostly flames that lead lost souls back to the path to Nadril. The trek through the storm will be no mean feat and will last for the better part of three days. By the time the refugees reach Nadril's gate, most will find themselves exhausted and running on fumes. As the snowstorm dies away and a gap in the glittering forcefield around the city opens to usher the refugees inside, it's clear that Nadril is a different beast. A WARM(?) WELCOME     I. Despite the unforgiving journey, entering Nadril is painless. Once inside, characters will be greeted by their predecessors: the original refugees who made this advanced city. They'll immediately be offered medical attention, as well as warm cider and blankets. But it's obvious that the Nadril citizens prefer higher tech to fend off the weather: they also offer wristlets and ear cuffs that that double as mittens and earmuffs by creating warm bubbles of air. The earrings also feature a few quality of life programs, such as timed alarms and thought-to-speech messaging. However, both programs are in beta stages so it's not unusual for a stray thought to accidentally slip through or an alarm to accidentally ring at an inopportune time. II. Refugees are offered free lodging in a large, crystalline building crafted from ice. Despite the coarse building material, the ice is unmelting and surprisingly well-insulated, and the beds are as warm and cozy. The rooms are, however, small. The sleeping quarters house two people, and are some cross between an igloo and a capsule hotel. Though built for efficiency over comfort, all rooms are also outfitted with the latest Nadril AI, RoboAlfred, or Ralf for short. This helpful program is installed in practically all the furnishings: the closet tells guests to bundle up, the bathroom sink reminds them to brush their teeth, and the mirror offers helpful fashion tips. Ralf's personality matrix still needs polish, though: it may very well insult your clothes and passively-aggressively question your lifestyle choices for the entire stay. III. Though not as advanced as Thesa Station, the colony has technology far beyond the rest of the continent, such as rudimentary AIs and mechanical transportation. Nadril's skyline is a point of pride — refugees can take a (literal) lightrail that gives an aerial view of the colony, which is hewn almost entirely from ice and rock. Despite its tech, Nadril is much more sparsely populated than Olympia and Wyver, and its residents stay near a central hub: a Natha refugee drop ship, Central, which has crashed and long embedded itself into the earth. Central is similar to an older, smaller, grounded model of Thesa Station, in functional order with round-the-clock solar power. Within Central are lounges similar to ones on the Station, though many of the damaged areas have been converted. They include repair stations, different wings dedicated to science, botany, astrology, and mechanics, and a research and history facility, which has a smattering of technology from planets beyond El Nysa — including your own. The staff here don't mind if anything is sampled and studied, but objects cannot be taken from the labs. IV. On the outskirts of the central hub, many will find several curious looking bots with insect-like wings perched about high traffic walkways. Simply passing the bots will cause a dizzying flash before a series of photos print out. Upon closer inspection, people will find that these images reflect stills taken from their home worlds as they remember it. Unfortunately, these photos only last a couple of hours at best. At that time, they will revert back to regular pictures of the refugees. People will be encouraged to share these images of their worlds. The residents of Nadril comprehend the value of remembering one's origins, and will be pleased to see that people still hold memories of old homes close to them. RECREATION IN NADRIL     I. Small, mechanical creatures scampering through the city are a common sight. Ask anyone, and they’ll tell you that they come from a shop called Paws About Town. They’re very useful, as companions, gophers, and couriers (though the more mischievous will note that they’re just small enough to keep tabs on people without being noticed). Premade robotic pets are available on display inside the shop. They come in all shapes, but small sizes; one may be able to find robots that even look like miniature creatures from their homeworld. These are a part of a new, highly customizable line with programmable personalities. Customers have the chance to take pets for a one-day trial run. Those who don’t know how to program may want to enlist more knowledgeable aid, but the pets come with instructional pamphlets for basic personality traits such as obedience, helpfulness, playfulness, and bloodthirst. For returns, the switch to wipe the robot's personality to a blank slate is on the back of its neck, right between a switch to invert all traits, and a switch to have them learn by observing. Try not to press the wrong switch — you might wind up with a pet with a mind of its own! II. A. The Frosty Tap Cantina is a thriving hub of activity, but one of the major draws is the self-service bar: molecular mixology is wildly popular here. Playing with drink compositions can be a game in and of itself, and newcomers to the cantina will find that the bartender — a cheerful woman with lilac skin and three eyes — is always happy to give them a few tips on how to use the wide array of tools within reach of the barstools. All manner of drinks are possible — from glowing, layered cocktails, to clear drinks with colored, spherical bubbles and vividly-colored shots that give off their own smoke. There's a nightly contest in the cantina for the most creative drink created by a team — this may be as good a time as any to partner up with someone and see what can you come up with. Winner gets all their drinks for the night free! And, hey, even if you don't win, you get to drink whatever you make. The well-lubricated patrons of the bar are eager to challenge anyone nearby to a different sort of drinking game… Just how well can you hold your liquor? B. Holo-screens in the cantina are nearly always broadcasting some match or another of a game that looks very much like hockey, albeit played with sticks that light up and a puck that changes shape from time to time. Colonists here merely refer to the game as "the sport," and one of their favored pastimes is betting. However, they don't use currency — they wager dares. Nadril colonists are a tough, weathered lot, and they prefer to speak with actions over silver. Colonists will urge the refugees to take part as well. Common dares range from the ridiculous (lead a sing-a-long, attempt to make someone with a poker face smile) to the suggestive (kiss the person in the cantina you find most attractive, strip off a piece of clothing), to the outright reckless (venture out into the snow for a certain amount of time, and no one will judge if you find some company to keep warm). The colonists are unfazed by even the most insane or tawdry of dares — but you'll certainly be called a killjoy for refusing too often! Why not grab a friend and give it a whirl, or challenge a rival to a dare yourself? THE MISSION     I. On the outskirts of Nadril is the communications tower of the old refugees. This is where Magda resides, monitoring Nadril's technological protections, the extent of the Natha’s influence, and running his own personal projects for El Nysa’s technological advancement. It is isolated, filled with research labs and relics of the past refugees who have come to El Nysa — a living mausoleum of worlds swallowed up by the Storm whose peoples have refused to forget where they came from. Crew photos line the walls of the tower: pictures of alien families and friends, the refugees who came to Nadril before you. Each group of photos gradually becomes smaller in number, and the most recent of the pictures are from half a century ago. Magda's picture can be found among the first group of refugees, an unusually small cluster of photos dating back centuries in El Nysa's past. I have been on this planet for nearly two centuries. Life has come, evolved, and collided in an ever expanding culture. But Darma fears interference, and made this place a prison, with she our warden, stifling the growth of the creatures native to this world rather than encouraging them to flourish. She sent you here for answers in her stead because she knows I'll spurn her, and after seeing what that fool Raysc has wrought, I'll give you them — not for Darma's sake, but because I trust after all the Natha have done to you, you'll understand my decision. Mistakes were made, and I won't hide them. You've made it here so there's some mettle to you, and unlike the Orbiters, I'm not interested in hiding the secrets of the dangers we face. I gave Raysc what he needed to keep his actions hidden from Darma's eyes — what he needed to advance the primitive magics the Natha had doomed him to. It was old Natha tech, Darma's very own used against her. Hilarious, isn't it? Raysc learned of Nadril, and like you, braved the snow to find his way here. He proved his worth and his determination, and he spoke of a brighter future, El Nysa coming into its own, its people realizing their true potential, unhindered by the shackles that had been put upon them. I believed him. He had vision — or so I thought. In truth, he was a fool. A madman. He wasted the opportunity I gave him on his petty vengeance. But not everyone on this planet is such an idiot. Surely you lot aren't. The Natha are hiding things from us — about the Storm, about everything. And here in Nadril, we're going to find all those secrets. What's it going to be? Will you help us, or are you going to stay obedient dogs on Darma's leash? Magda isn't too talkative yet; after all, the new flock of refugees may just be here as eyes and ears for the Orbiters. But what he has said leaves you with plenty to talk about, and if you can earn his trust by helping out around Nadril, he doubtless has a great deal more to reveal. II. Central isn't the only Natha ship that made its way to El Nysa — another, crashed just outside Nadril's borders, is little more than a junk heap. It's here that you'll find the spare parts Darma asked you to retrieve for Thesa Station. What remains of the ship's hull serves as a windbreak, and snow has built up against it, turning the piles of old Natha tech inside into something of a snowy morass. Holes in the deck offer would-be scavengers passage to the ship's innards, barely illuminated with flickering lights — the tech is old, but hardy enough to withstand a crash landing, the severe weather, and the passage of centuries. Deep in the wreck are the remains of living quarters, research labs, VR arenas, mecha bays, cafeterias, and a host of other rooms, many of which may seem familiar from Thesa Station, albeit with a decidedly older feel to what remains of the smooth curves and sleek surfaces of the Natha architecture. Most of the ship's systems are damaged and the technology is nonfunctional, but that just means there's plenty of spare parts to be found. The wreck isn't in the best shape, its structural integrity damaged, and the drifting snow threatens to block off exit routes. Be careful while exploring and be sure to bring a partner. As it turns out, Darma isn't the only one interested in the wreck — Magda is also eager to get his hands on Natha technology. In his own way of taking some responsibility for Raysc, he's asking scavengers to bring him parts, muttering about seeing what he can do about Ysverai's curse. Bring him anything that looks useful, and he may have a chance to succeed, though whether he'll be more effective than the Natha Orbiters is up for debate... FINAL OOC NOTES     An AC-eligible thread with a new character as a participant for 2 NADRIL REP POINTS may be submitted from this log. SUBMIT THE THREAD HERE BY AUGUST 5TH, 11:59 PM EST. As always, feel free to create your own prompts and explore the Nadril location page! There are a variety of activities made available, including fishing and cave exploration! Please direct questions to the questions thread below! Thank you! QUICK NAV premise ● faq ● lore ● map ● npcs taken ● atp/emp ● application ● rep/acp calendar ● hiatus/drops ● modbox [ FULL NAVIGATION ] elnysa nysalogs nysaisles nysaooc elnyan

Comments

[stuns]

Who knows. Might be gone. Might not be gone. [ he presses his lips tightly. ] Magda said that the Natha are keeping secrets from us about all that. We'll just have to figure out what that means.

[ he starts flicking through the little pile of photos in his hands, tilting his head a little, eyes flicking over to the boy. ]

Think this one's yours... [ juno takes a glance over at the other photo's in the kid's hands before glancing down at his own. there's a clocktower that matches, so he picks it out and hands it over, shaking it a little so that it straightens out just a little. he taps one of the darker, neon-lit scenes with a corner of it. ]

Hyperion. It's on Mars.

[shikomizue]

[Understanding crosses her face - and that alone dampens everything she has to say. Takasugi wonders if she even believes what she's spouting, or if she's just shouting whatever quells the rage that burns in her chest.

He listens with the same smile as always.] So what will you do?

Fight to save everyone you can? Fight to save the ones who matter? [The later, what he'd done, though it'd ended in defeat.

He won't fight a battle like that again.

Now it's his turn to leave bodies and burnt homes.]

[sparsity]

I don't like being beaten.

[ If anyone was in doubt that Mikazuki Augus is a hugely stubborn asshole. Even if it's a drink to conquer and not like, a person, or an orbital army, or something.

He guesses there are worse things, when he picks up the glass and tilts it in the light from the bar, watching the colors catch. ]

Not often, much. More here than I did back home though.

[ Because this place is a handful that would drive anyone to need a drink. ]

My body's pretty tough, I guess.

[flask]

[She looks at his offered hand for a moment, fake smile of the doll mask plastered on her face just as the fake smile beneath it remains frozen in place -- it's called acting, after all -- and she decides against harming her chances further of getting out of this in one piece. She takes his hand with her four-fingered, black clawed and bandage-covered one, and uses it to get back up.

She brushes herself off, readjusting her cloak.]

Well, I guess it's just time to leave then! Sorry for the disturbance!

[She looks up at the man meaningfully.]

[flask]

[She starts counting on her clawed fingers.]

Well, there was that time we saved the village of Alfield by killing a manticore that was leading gnolls to kill villagers and feed them to its baby, and there was that time that we killed a giant white spider that was eating people in Zadash's sewers, and, oh! That time we solved the murder of two people at a circus performance that the Crownsguard were trying to say we did after we stopped more people from dying, rather than the devil toad man who it was clear to everyone actually did it! That was a great one.

[She shoots him a look of her own over her mask, still ready to challenge him further.]

[maipokerface]

[Her shoulders stiffen up.]

They all matter.

[Whether she likes it or not, this world is her home now. And everyone in those pods... well. No. They matter more still, yes, but...

Her voice is less angry. It's serious and tight, determined.]

I'm going to help stop Ysverai. And after that I'll do what it takes to keep that from happening again.

[Even if that means abandoning the Natha and maybe those still sleeping. It will tear her apart but it would tear her apart more to watch more death and destruction and keep her hands idle and clear in the distant hope one day someone else may wake up.

What kind of person would she be then? Using the residents of Nysa to save her family and friends?]

[rosebyanyother]

[Peter laughs at that face. It's a good attempt, at least.

But really, Jim. Your taste. Please.]

Hm. I hadn't thought that far ahead. [He swirls his glass around, watching as the colors inside twist around each other lazily.] Have any suggestions?

[nineteenfortyfive]

She's lucked out when it comes to aging. A few lines around the eyes, some gray hairs, some aches and pains on occasion. Nothing too bad. And to think she'd once been so worried about her appearance that she dyed those grays away. Not these days, though.

It doesn't mean she can't be flattered.

"Why, thank you. I think a lot of it is just luck of the draw, unfortunately. And sun screen."

She understands what he's getting at. Claire nods.

"More people to worry about. I would always look for them when people woke up, and I would be both heartbroken and relieved when they weren't among them. Terrible as it is to say."

[sweetwater]

Had? What happened? [ Cheryl knows she shouldn't ask prying questions, but knowing better has never stopped her before. ]

[flask]

[Nott stares after Caleb after he leaves, sulking a bit about the whole situation, but then promptly walks away from the mirror as well. They will probably have to pay damages, huh... That's fine. She'll take care of that. She started the whole property destruction angle anyway.]

I think they charge less for the size of the room and then more for the running commentary so it balances out, probably. There's barely any floor to fit Molly on.

[Saying this, though, she takes Molly's spot on the floor, used to being below eye level anyway. She curls up her legs close to her chest.]

[sparsity]

[ He hadn't meant it with such duality in mind, too simple for that, but maybe it's not a far stretch to say that it exists in him naturally — carry it with you, but don't look back. Mikazuki doesn't have to keep his eyes on her movement the whole time to see the all the signs leading to the photos on the ground, all exposed now that she's lifted herself away from them.

Leaning forward on his haunches, he shuffles them together to pick them up off the pavement, catching the motions and hues present on those little squares. ]

They're pretty.

[ He remarks in passing, more focused on them as they relate to his companion, rather than what he thinks of them. ]

You'd probably feel better if you could carry them yourself, so. Here.

[ Shoulders brushing, nearly equal at this height, he tugs the loop of his scarf from his neck, holding the edges out to equal the wide breadth of his arms. Bow your head, Ammy. He has an idea. ]

[sweetwater]

I would. [ Cheryl could sell shoes to a snake, or at least she would bully the snake until it gave in. ] I only worry that they'll see me as a child.

[flask]

[Caught red-handed, she folds her arms and pouts behind her mask.]

I don't know how old I am. I've never counted. But I'm not a child.

[sweetwater]

Praimfaya? What's that? [ she knows she won't like the answer but... here she is asking anyway. ]

1/2

[yelliot]

_{[What just happen-]}

[yelliot]

D-DON'T LICK MY NOSE YOU FREAK!

[atwo]

Perhaps, but when you've been burned already then you're less likely to give others a hand.

[yelliot]

_{[The purr he hears is like a choir of angels singing, as far as Elliot's concerned, as he continues to gently pet the furry creature before him. He's so engrossed in the task at hand that he doesn't notice being pawed at until the photograph falls from his pocket. Whoops.]}

Ah-

_{[Yeah, that's not something you need to see there kitty.]}

[garbagepilot]

[She's looking down at the card until he lifts it up like it's some kind of problem she intends to solve right now, frowning as she listens and trying to fit each thing he says into some happy little box that makes sense in the context that she has and he isn't privy to, but...

Well, after a moment she just sighs and gives it up. There isn't anything she can do here, from so far away, without the books in her possession or any real training of her own.

When he asks his question, she shakes her head.]

Not exactly. It's more like they gave up on something they didn't want and I have to figure out what's worth saving. [That frown comes back, and she taps her fingers restlessly on the top of the table like fidgeting a little might help.] It's like trying to fix something that's broken without all the parts and not knowing how it's supposed to look when it's finished, all while doing it blindfolded.

If that makes sense.

[She doesn't expect it to, because it doesn't make sense to her.]

[yelliot]

_{[Look, do you really think he's going to care about cooties when he had your tongue down his throat before?]}

I'm not sure I'd say I like it better but...chocolate in general is a luxury where I'm from. Sure, my family could afford it, but it wasn't something I had very often.

_{[There's a small shrug.]}

They're both good in different ways.

[flask]

Then is the power source magical...?

[She tries to get a better look at the explosive he's creating while still keeping a safe distance. Not from the bomb, of course, but from the raccoon guy.

Really, she just sees a bunch of wires are involved, and realizes she's in over her head here. It only makes about as much sense to her as the electronic locks on the station did back when she was trapped in that closet with Juno. Which is to say, it does a little, but only up to a point. She mutters her thoughts out loud.]

The wires connect the power source with the detonator... They're probably not communicating through the wire more than necessary. Huh.

[She watches him continue working, trying to identify what he's doing, but it's hard when the whole technology of it is far beyond her. She's smart enough to put together some basic aspects of it without full illustration on his part, but there's a definite disconnect. It's a little frustrating, but she kind of likes seeing his obvious comfort with the complicated materials he's using.]

[jesus_is_gundam]

[That's a disappointing response.]

I see.

[lancings]

[ Cordelia can sense she's getting on the poor girl's nerves, though she's trying hard not to seem so naive and out of touch. It's just difficult to wrap her mind around a lot of these advances and peculiarities, having never seen anything like them before. ]

If not a spirit, then what is it exactly?

[ She pokes the mirror experimentally only to get a terse response: 'Don't jab me with those unfiled nails!' ]

I had other concerns on my mind. I haven't had time to-!

[ She can't believe she's fighting with a mirror. Get it together, gurl. ]

My apologies. Perhaps, it would be better to simply go without one of these.

[thetaintedsorrow]

[Oh fuck his life. Of course the first person he comes across is the last person that will appreciate his help. This is what he gets for being a bleeding heart, honestly.

He makes a startled noise somewhere between a yelp and a curse when Dazai snatches the pin away from him, and of course he can’t just use his powers to take it back without falling flat on his face the second he touches Dazai’s bare skin.]

Fuck off!! That’s mine, you asshole!!

[Fuck it’s cold without the pin, even through all the layers Chuuya is wearing.]

Don’t take advantage of people’s kindness.

[For all his huffing and blustering he’s really not trying that hard to get the pin back, because as much as Dazai fucking annoys him he wouldn’t actually want the bastard to freeze to death.]

I’m not letting you have that. You’re giving it back the second I start freezing my ass off.

[sweetwater]

It is old-fashioned but she doesn't mind. Cheryl knows what it's like to have a brother, and she misses hers very much.

"That'll do." She rests her head against his shoulder for a moment. "Will you walk with me?"