natha: (Default)
ɴᴀᴛʜᴀ orbiters ❰ mod collective ❱ ([personal profile] natha) wrote in [community profile] nysalogs2018-07-16 04:47 pm
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❪ introlog: #6 ❫ city of secrets

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!

lancings: (✪ 003。)

[personal profile] lancings 2018-08-06 01:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ She'd gotten so distracted by disembodied voices that she's falling late to her currently assigned mission, and she was going to try and get some supplies for herself and the others as well. She really can't let those insults get the better of her and destroy her focus, though she's still aiming to try and figure out what's wrong with her manner of dress. It's not as though she's heading out to a royal ball or wedding. ]

We were sent to gather items that may be of use. Did you receive the same commands? I am not sure what can be used to repair the Thesa Station, but perhaps you can be my guide.

[ Assuming he even knows much about ship repair. It's far beyond her current station and area of expertise, but she doesn't want to sit around being useless while others do all the work. It's bad enough she's running late behind the first wave of scavengers headed to explore the Nadril. ]

Come on, let's talk while we walk. I want to get further away from... that. I'll worry about him or-it when I return.

[ She motions to the boy to follow while pulling the fabric of her coat tighter around herself. ]

I'm Cordelia, by the way. Cordelia of Ylisse. My apologies, I didn't get to introduce myself through all the ruckus.

[ How improper of her. She fears she may have already left a bad impression on him from all the commotion. ]
thetaintedsorrow: (Ew)

[personal profile] thetaintedsorrow 2018-08-06 01:47 am (UTC)(link)
No. That sounds ridiculous.

[His power isn’t far off though. In a sense...]

You want a demonstration?
illuminating: (icons credited to rightful makers.) (Default)

[personal profile] illuminating 2018-08-06 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
thetaintedsorrow: (You’re gonna die)

[personal profile] thetaintedsorrow 2018-08-06 02:02 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah? There were a few mountains where I’m from, but I never really got to see them.

[Link is so cute what the heck...]

Maybe once we get somewhere warm we can stick together. You know, for safety reasons.

[Casually flirts while they’re all close like this, no big deal.]
thetaintedsorrow: (Ribbon)

[personal profile] thetaintedsorrow 2018-08-06 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
Of course I did.

[Of course he’s going to blush even more when Keaton points out how red he is.]

I guess I’m just surprised.

[He glances away. What a tsun.]

...it was nice.
illuminating: (icons credited to rightful makers.) (Default)

[personal profile] illuminating 2018-08-06 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
kikoku: (jokes on you bitch I'm a protagonist now)

[personal profile] kikoku 2018-08-06 02:33 am (UTC)(link)
[Law has SO many thoughts about the title of "King of Conquerors." Not only is his track record with authorities pretty damn neagtive, he literally just got finished completing a 13 year revenge mission on some large man who called himself a king. And then... Conquerors... He has to assume haki isn't a universal concept, but it's fitting in the worst sort of way that this guy seems to have the presence of someone who'd be able to use Conqueror's Haki, isn't it. Still, maybe he can use his experience with anti-establishment rebellion to his advantage.]
Is it? Even if I tell you I'm a pirate captain?

[He walks across the room, mostly to go head over to inspect the equipment in the corner, but also partly for a dramatic pause before he turns his head back at Iskandar.]
Trafalgar Law, Captain of the Heart Pirates. The last bounty I had before I ended up here was 500 million. Should a king really associate with a notorious criminal?
[He's got a dark sort of smirk on his face, now. It's vaguely ominous, but mostly he's just SURE that this'll finally put the guy off. It's not like he can actually be arrested here, so it's fine to flaunt his Bad Boy Street Cred.]
almaredemptoris: (Default)

[personal profile] almaredemptoris 2018-08-06 02:38 am (UTC)(link)
[Her words imply that back home she had no such chance to calm what storms may have stirred between her and her mother, and he wonders why that is so. But the why is perhaps not so important.]

I know your mother is overjoyed to have you here with her. And I hope that the answers you seek as you find your place amongst your family will soon reveal themselves to you, mademoiselle.
lancings: all by <user name="lancings"> | please do not take (✪ 028。)

[personal profile] lancings 2018-08-06 02:39 am (UTC)(link)
[ That is ...a rather comically short boy. Then again, she's rather comically short next to him as well. ]

He sounds ...quite charming. In his own way. And there's no sense in discrediting someone with passion.

[ Better to have too much than not enough. ]

I hope I'll get to meet him when we return, and should you both need extra protection, do not hesitate to ask. My own liege is currently sleeping still, so there's not as many to look after here as I'm used to.

[ And for someone used to fussing over everyone else, she finds herself without anyone to really fuss over outside of poor Olivia. And to an extent, Henry. ]
thetaintedsorrow: (Mehehe)

[personal profile] thetaintedsorrow 2018-08-06 02:39 am (UTC)(link)
Fair enough. It was your first time being drunk.

[He chuckles.]

Among other things.
kikoku: (uH)

[personal profile] kikoku 2018-08-06 02:41 am (UTC)(link)
[Really, Law didn't come over here expecting to relate to this raccoon man this much, but well, here we are.]

Ah, I can understand that. With a ship, you can solve a lot of problems just by changing where you are. When that's what you're used to, it's easy to feel stagnated when you'd stuck in one place.
[Of course, for him it's a sailing ship and islands instead of planets, but still. It's the same concept.]
america: (271)

[personal profile] america 2018-08-06 02:54 am (UTC)(link)
"Probably a lot that has to be said behind closed doors and fairly robust soundproofing," Steve says blase. "But I'll accept that they probably had little choice in the matter. We couldn't have stayed up on the station forever."

Not with the power reserves on the fritz. And not with the newly awake passengers, adding to more mouths to feed and bodies to house.

(Not that Steve's complaining at all about the latter. He's got his best friend back again, and that's something he won't take for granted.)

But yeah, he's been a little skeptical since day one of this crazy post-world life even with the gratitude he has for the Natha scooping them out of a destroyed universe and bringing them here, even if he still can't understand why.
conqueredhearts: (Plane!  I Want A Plane!)

[personal profile] conqueredhearts 2018-08-06 02:58 am (UTC)(link)
[The man tells him that he's a pirate captain and his red eyes go wide. For a time he really doesn't say anything at all, just stares at him with those wide eyes. It's hard to figure out what is going on there but then he reaches out and he puts a hand on Law's shoulder as he leans in close.]

You are a pirate captain? And you have a bounty?

[Suddenly he's laughing and then he actually plops his ass down right there as he leans forward like an excited overgrown child about to be told an amazing story.]

Tell me more! Did you create that name? What inspired it? What did you do to get your bounty? Tell me everything, my friend!
america: (253)

[personal profile] america 2018-08-06 03:06 am (UTC)(link)
[ He'd been giving her a moment to catch her breath and feel a little bit of warmth back into her hands and feet, all the while surveying their location from here - and maybe trying to make a very loose estimate of how much longer they've got to go, when -

Well.

Steve's eyebrows go up at the question, his mouth quirked into something like amusement. He's not sure if Claire filled her daughter in on her friends, but then - she hadn't known who he was when they'd first met anyway. And here he thought her world didn't have a Captain America at all.

He pulls his hood down to breathe a little, and maybe to brush the snow out of his scruff. ]


You could say that. So you've heard of him?
thetaintedsorrow: (Look down)

[personal profile] thetaintedsorrow 2018-08-06 03:08 am (UTC)(link)
Not anymore.

[He’s come too far and changed too much to ever be the man he once was.]

Even if the Mafia still existed I’m not sure I could serve the man that I called my Boss after everything I’ve learned.

[But of course Mikazuki won’t have any idea what he’s talking about, so.]

But I do miss Olympia.
luxoraculi: (pic#11039031)

[personal profile] luxoraculi 2018-08-06 03:08 am (UTC)(link)
Indeed they were...

[ It's a very strange thing to think about, really. This could be them, too, someday. Maybe. She just hopes that they are able to stay on their good side. ]

Thank you kindly, I am very much in your debt. I would not want to push any more silly questions on you, though I am extremely appreciative for your understanding and willingness to share this information with me, X'rhun.
luxoraculi: (pic#11039035)

oh god we've hit captchta

[personal profile] luxoraculi 2018-08-06 03:12 am (UTC)(link)
It was a rather treacherous journey. Where I am from... we have snow in the winters, but nothing like this.

[ And if it WAS that bad, they were always inside, thanks very much. She swirls the cider in her cup for a moment, humming thoughtfully. ]

I must admit, it's been quite some time since I have been this chilled to the bone.
luxoraculi: (pic#11039035)

[personal profile] luxoraculi 2018-08-06 03:15 am (UTC)(link)
For awakening.

[ It's as simple as that, really. She's not going to go into detail, naturally. But she's just happy to feel the cold, to hear snow crunching under her feet. To be able to feel the wind that had whipped as they journeyed on... it was both miserable and invigorating. ]

It is good to be among friendly faces... I am extremely grateful for that.

[ The pup wags his tail slowly as the girls talk, his glowing eyes moving back and forth between the two of them. Luna smiles at the little squirrel too. ]

Have you given your new friend a name?
america: (231)

[personal profile] america 2018-08-06 03:21 am (UTC)(link)
[ Too right you are, 76. People like them do tend to hold things about themselves close to the chest, and while Steve's been getting a whole lot better about sharing ... he still finds it easier to keep to general topics of conversation at best.

It's not exactly how you make close friends, but Steve had lost a lot of his close friends in the war. And then the end of the world. And then to stasis.

He appreciates 76 for trying though. He nods. ]


Something not unlike what we do now. Step into emergencies, put out fires. I was a soldier in the war a long, long time ago.

And yourself?
almaredemptoris: (Default)

[personal profile] almaredemptoris 2018-08-06 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
[He takes his seat beside her. Despite the chill that grips the city, their seats at the stall are warm, enveloped as they are in the heat radiating from the nearby grill. He finishes the bite he presently chews before answering her question.]

It is not quite what I expected.

[Richer, battered and seasoned as they are. The taste is, as anticipated, foreign, and oddly like a sweeter version of Earthen vegetables.]

But that is all right.
kikoku: (I've made a huge mistake)

[personal profile] kikoku 2018-08-06 03:32 am (UTC)(link)
....
[That's it. This is hell, isn't it? He's actually died and this is hell? Nothing makes sense and everything he tries to do backfires immediately? And worst of all, he's being asked to talk about himself?

Law turns back around, away from the other man, to focus his attention on this nice ventilator that looks to be in working condition. This is easier. The ventilator doesn't ask questions or force him into unplanned social situations. It just helps people breathe. With a small gesture of his hand, he pulls up a small Room around the machine and himself, the gauzy circular boundary of which should be obviously visible to anyone in the vicinity,]


I named my crew, yes. I got my bounty by breaking the law on numerous ocassions. I'm not telling you about any of it.
[He presses his thumbs against the machine, applying a small electric shock. With the suddenly jolt of power, the display screen lights up. Why Law thinks demonstrating magic powers in front of a man who's suddenly deeply interested in his life is a good idea is beyond explanation.]
personalwar: face; pixiv id: 5610304 (old habits die hard)

[personal profile] personalwar 2018-08-06 03:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ If there's one thing that 76 likes about Cain, it's that he will always make the effort to think something through further, rather than simply taking it at face value. As a strategist, it makes sense that his mind would work in that way, and it tends to put them on the same wavelength.

Frustrating as 76 finds this all to be, examining why it happens is a more productive use of his time. ]


In Nadril, I'd say it makes more sense. People want to remember their homes, because there's nothing left of them.

[ That's why all the tech in Central had been displayed and guarded like items in a museum. That's literally what they were, historical relics of worlds that have been lost to the Storm. ]

As for the rest of El Nysa, though... [ He pauses and shakes his head. He has no idea what the fixation is about. ]