Arc III Arrival Log

[savmods]

Who: Everyone
When: October 1
Where: Avagi
What: The dust settles.
Warnings: None at present - label your headers if necessary!

Arrival

There's the sensation of falling, but in no particular direction. Anyone who opens their eyes will see very little, but it isn't blackness—it's every color at the same time, every place that's ever been, and time seems to be stretching out and snapping back together all at once. And suddenly the travelers are here. Where 'here' is has not yet been determined, but all at once there is a sense of solidness in place and time as the journey they were on comes to an abrupt stop. Those with quick reactions may be able to brace themselves enough to stay on their feet; those without it may find themselves sprawled across a solid metal deck. They are in a large room with a ceiling that is not smooth, but jagged with patchwork repairs. Standing before them is a massive metal slab, twisted and scorched but clearly once part of some unknown machine. But the piece has been cleaned, polished and place upon a pedestal, a focal point for the comfortable seating arranged in an opposing semi-circle across the room. Someone had a use for this room once, but now, the space is silent. The new arrivals may remain for however long they choose. No one, it seems, has detected their sudden arrival, much less come to investigate. When they venture out of this quiet room, they may have an inkling why. The corridors outside and the laboratories, workshops and other places they lead to are well made, but strangely dusty and show no recent signs of maintenance. No one will come to harm them or greet them because, it seems, no one is here. The layout of the halls may seem strangely familiar, though it will take some searching to discover why. Few windows can be found, and those that exist are solidly reinforced with thick transparent material, revealing little more than the swirling of familiar storms outside. There are no doors to the outside, only to more corridors or interior locations. Any traveler who accesses the systems of this facility through their own abilities or through a computer workstation or control panel will learn the reason: this is a space station, and so cannot open to the outside. The system will reveal one other truth. This is not just a space station. This was the Ingress Complex, and the date is 300 years in the future. Welcome to Thisavrou.

Avagi

The station is not as they remember it. Once a place of transit and scientific research, a place of rest but not truly home to most who lived there, it now shows clear signs of being a lived-in space for more than just a working crew. While records and outdated maps in the system make its former identity clear, more recent references to the station use a different name: Avagi. A common word to multiple old Savrii dialects, the word roughly translates to "dawn". Many locations on the complex have changed, and others put to entirely new use. But whoever made these changes are nowhere to be found; the only 'living' creatures anyone encounters are low-level AI taskbots, small robots that scuttle throughout the complex executing simple maintenance subroutines. And there is a limit to the exploration that can be done. The accessible areas of Avagi compose only a fraction of the former complex, and attempting to breach the seal on the main exit will set off an alarm, notifying anyone in the vicinity that the bordering compartment has been compromised, and if they continue, they will allow storm energy into the area they are in now. Entry to a few other corridors is simply too badly damaged to get through, although whether the damage was caused in the initial blast or later is unknown. Short of self-created hazards, no danger will present itself in the next few weeks. During the early days of their arrival, several newcomers arrive, stumbling through pockets of glowing, warped reality that seem to lead somewhere else before disappearing just as fast. With nowhere else to go for the moment, everyone is free to explore Avagi's current confines—but certain points of interest might be worth devoting attention to first: The Residential Block: Whoever lived here left little behind in the converted studios and apartments—so they won't mind if someone moves in, will they? People need to sleep somewhere. The Library: Exploring the collected knowledge here might yield more information on what has happened here, but the computer lab will need some work first. Labs & Engineering: The space and resources that can be found here offer the best opportunity to fix things up around here. Note that while a network transmitter is embedded in the region, the differing technology levels means that communication will be garbled at first. Text messages will be corrupted, and video/audio communication will cut out regularly every few seconds. Happily, there are a plethora of comm devices on hand that could adapt the TABS to Avagi's systems. Hybridizing the devices with old and new technology also allows the tech-inclined to customize their own data security. The Greenery: Nutrition blocks are all well and good, but getting this garden in order would make meals a lot more enjoyable. Who knows what you might be able to grow?

[ooc: For more information and options to explore, please check out the locations page and ooc post!]

Comments

something something walk into a bar

[lavelly]

[Lavellan isn't going to say anything about that godawful joke. Instead he just turns his head to look at Sans with the mildest and most detached of interests.

He's never seen a mobile skeleton before. If it surprises him, he doesn't show it. He's past being affected by any new experience here. Instead he just looks, blankly.]

Is that even doing anything for you? [You know, since it's spilling all over the floor.]

[skelepun]

[It doesn't take much, to follow Lavellan's point. It's the same point every stranger makes when he runs across them in a bar. It's too bad he didn't have a handful of confetti to throw.]

You concerned about my liver, pal? [His grin widens. Somehow. Magic skeletons are weird.] That's sweet.

[lavelly]

[Lavellan snorts. Funny. Too bad he's not in the mood for it.]

Can you even get drunk? [Or are you wasting perfectly good booze.]

[skelepun]

[Yeah, that seems to be the general consensus around here lately.]

Are you taking a survey? [He leans forward with a grin, jaw cradled in his hand as he lazily points towards two strangers at the other end of the bar.] There're some guys over there you could ask. Or is this a skeleton-only inquisition?

[lavelly]

[He jerks in surprise, almost comically, at the question. But then his brain catches up, and he manages to settle.]

Forgive me any rudeness. I've never met a skeleton before.

[So, yes, this is a skeleton-only inquisition.]

[skelepun]

[Well, that was weird. That joke wasn't even one of his good ones.]

S'alright, man. [He winks, leaning back in his chair. If there was any less-than-pleasant intentions in his voice before, they've all been wiped away again. His smile appears genuine, at least. Then again, it's fixed. So who's to say?] Nothing I haven't heard before. What's your name?

[lavelly]

[He just snorts, and takes a strong pull from the bottle he's holding. He hasn't even bothered with glasses.]

Lavellan.

[It'll either tell Sans everything or it won't; he's stopped caring, at this point. (It doesn't occur to him that Sans is a newcomer of sorts. It hasn't even occurred to him that such a thing is still possible.)

He very pointedly doesn't ask Sans's name. He's in full rude mode.]

[skelepun]

Nice to meetcha.

[He wouldn't be the first Rude Boy (tm) Sans ran afoul of in a bar. At least this one was putting on a decently entertaining show of it. After a stretch of silence -- interspersed with a few more sips of the vinegary brown liquor -- Sans pipes up again.]

I gotta lavell with you buddy, your conversational skills could use work.

[lavelly]

[Lavellan just stares at Sans for a long moment.

Then he almost, but not quite, succeeds in not cracking a smile.]

That was... unbelievably awful.

[And yet, he has to respect that.]

Fine. What should I call you, then?

[skelepun]

[Respect he can work with. It's not as good as a laugh, but Sans seems pleased all the same.]

Sans. [He extends a hand. Best way to greet a new pal, after all.] The Skeleton.

[lavelly]

I'd gathered that much on my own.

[He wonders if he was supposed to introduce himself as "the elf." He doesn't think he would be able to do that with a straight face.

But he does take Sans's hand. It's as bony as it looks.]

I confess I've never met a skeleton before.

[skelepun]

[All the cool kids do it, get with the times old man.]

Really? No kidding. Y'know with all that tact from before, I thought you were an old hand with this stuff. [He shakes, winking. Get it? Hands? That one's kind of a reach.] There used to be like three, back on the Moira. Guess we've thinned out.

Hope I'm living up to the hype.

[lavelly]

[He thinks he caught all the puns in that--three? He counted three--and feels dumber for the effort. Is this how Cassandra feels all the time? It would explain a lot.]

I've never heard of you, actually. [Sans's namedropping the Moira doesn't register as odd; there are plenty of other people who had been on Thisavrou for that long. He just assumes they've never run into each other before now.]

Strange. You'd think someone would have mentioned a diminutive skeleton walking around.

[skelepun]

You really would.

[Though maybe not for the reasons Lavellan was thinking.]

Don't let appearances fool ya though, pal. I may be short, but I'm big where it counts.

[lavelly]

[Lavellan gives him a very unimpressed once-over.]

Wouldn't you need flesh for that?

[skelepun]

Easy there, slugger, I'm talking about this winning smile. [He puts a finger to his cheekbone, twisting for emphasis.] And my big heart.

[lavelly]

[Yeah. Sure.]

Ah. My mistake. [He takes another good pull, not sounding contrite in the least.] I certainly seem to be making a fool of myself.

[skelepun]

I hope not, that's my job. Whaddya think I've got so many awesome jokes for? [It wasn't for picking up sullen bar elves, that's for sure.] You ever heard the one about the termite?

[lavelly]

[He is starting to regret engaging this person in conversation.]

I don't think I want to hear the one about the termite.

[skelepun]

That's too bad, it's hilarious.

[Sans takes another drink, phalanges drumming thoughtfully against the bartop.]

Gotta tell ya, if this is you drunk, I can't imagine how fun you are sober.

[lavelly]

[Lavellan's expression darkens, just for a moment. Even he doesn't fully know why that stung, just that he's tired of people asking why he's miserable almost as much as he's tired of being miserable. If he knew how to quit being such a fuckup, he would.

Of course, he doesn't say any of that to someone he's only just met.]

You don't really expect anyone here to be in a good mood, do you?

[skelepun]

Not really, no. [He lifts his glass in a silent toast.] Why d'ya think I'm out here telling jokes, my health?

[... Well, it was, in a way. But the specifics of monster anatomy weren't on the table here, fleshy allusions aside.]

Alcohol's enough of a depressant on its own, dontcha think?

[lavelly]

Is it? [He really isn't bothering to even feign curiosity anymore. He's just responding in the same flat tone.]

I've always found it just makes me not give so much of a shit.

[skelepun]

[Well see, giving a shit to begin with is your first mistake.

Not that Sans says it aloud. It's not exactly the kind of rhetoric he likes spreading, no matter how often it keeps proving itself so.]

Well, far be it from me to keep you from it. [He winks, companionable more than teasing this time.] But I'll be here if you wanna hear that termite joke.

[lavelly]

[Lavellan doesn't respond at first, letting the not uncomfortable silence stretch. But after a few moments, he realizes that Sans's chatter actually was good at helping keep him distracted.

How sad is that?]

You're not really here to tell jokes, are you? I'm sure you could easily find a more receptive audience.