natha: (Default)
ɴᴀᴛʜᴀ orbiters ❰ mod collective ❱ ([personal profile] natha) wrote in [community profile] elnyan2018-08-26 01:27 pm
Entry tags:

❪ test drive #7 ❫

YOUR STORY BEGINS    

The Storm came. You remember darkness, but you don't remember much after that.

You don't know how long you slept, but the dreams were short. You remember the expanse of stars and galaxies in your direct view. Every world and solar system ever known to man was present in your dreams in careful, pristine detail. You also witnessed the Storm, which has devoured a fair portion of these galaxies. Your Earth and similar planets were assimilated by the Storm. Somehow, you knew it would be the last you'd see of your world. That was when she told you what happened. You knew that you'd be living somewhere new. The details weren't clear, but you knew it was a part of a deal with the entity known as Darma - once, you might have been able to speak to her, but now you are only met with silence.

When you awake, you will find yourself in Thesa Station. Your body is still cold, you're hungry, and the halls seem frighteningly bare somehow.

EMPTY HALLS    

Despite the absence of Darma and the rest of the Natha Orbiters, the station is still managing to sustain itself. Those that dig within the station’s log will find that it’s currently in some sort of Energy Saving Mode. While Thesa isn’t at risk of failing any time soon, people will notice that the ship will appear more dim and desolate. Malfunctions will be common, and while none seem to be life-threatening (yet), they are notably inconvenient. Fortunately, it seems the Orbiters were prepared for the worst, and in a potential response to these concerning turn of events, they've prepared some help.

Hi! My name is Yppilc, I will be your assistant on the station! It looks like you just woke up. Did you need help?


The virtual assistant takes a wide variety of shapes, from adorable animals to metal paper clips with googly eyes. Regardless of what form they take, their mission is clear: to help in any way they can. It’s unfortunate, however, that they just haven’t been calibrated properly. Hence, they will appear at the strangest times— in the middle of dinner or an important conversation— sometimes they won’t even offer anything useful. Apparently they were designed after a program that existed once, but who really knows....

However, while they may seem like nothing but trouble at first, there are many occasions in which they can actually help. They are equipped with a whole wealth of information on how to keep the station operational. They can offer tutorials and step-by-step instructions on how to fix various aspects of the station and beyond. Their knowledge is extensive, and if they believe the refugee they're assigned to needs a different kind of help (a lesson in smiling or how to have adequate small talk being some of the many topics they're equipped to teach), well ... they're not against supplying it. Expect some invasive teaching.

The virtual assistants are also all synced together. Meaning, if there’s a big enough problem, they can ping one another and assign refugees to help with certain parts of the ship. The only problem is that prioritizing may not be their strong suit. What seems like a simple issue could be exacerbated into a huge ordeal. What someone thinks is a fire in the main hatch could actually be a plumbing issue near the Mess Hall. They also seem to assign people arbitrarily. One can only hope all the refugees get along.

SEND HELP    

While no specific parts of the station are necessarily offline, a lot of the tasks the station would normally complete on its own will need to be handled manually. Fortunately, the main functions of the station are more than accounted for, however everything else will be up to the refugees. As there is no telling when the Natha Orbiters will return, perhaps it’d be wise to take this opportunity to learn to be a little more self-sufficient on Thesa Station.

1. There are some areas the Station can’t automatically clean without exiting its current emergency protocols. Each of these areas will be marked off on the map provided by Thesa's very own virtual assistant, Yppilc. According to Yppilc, one of the key places that would benefit from a good wash down is the airlock. As a fair amount of foreign matter travels through these doors, special suits will be provided for those cleaning the area. The suits will have a built-in communications system and will also include its own oxygen tank. A helpful feature to have, just in case someone may be swept out into space. Which happens more often than one would think! Cleaning too close to the controls can trigger the doors to open… they’re sensitive. The oxygen tank isn’t equipped to last very long, so you can only help comes soon.

On the bright side, in the event that someone is stuck outside and running low on oxygen, rescuers can easily share some of their air with them. The suits are built to be able to connect to one another like an adhesive. To activate this oxygen-sharing mode, refugees will be required to follow several steps. Hand on one another's shoulders, eye contact, helmets pressed against each other— each suit follows a slightly different set of steps, but they’re probably not any less awkward. While it looks a little absurd and while maneuverability might be a bit of an issue, at least everyone is breathing!

2. Space is unpredictable at times. It isn’t uncommon for the station or its pods to occasionally brush against meteors or asteroids. While Thesa is well-fortified, it doesn’t mean that these asteroids don’t need closer inspection. A lot of rare materials can be mined from them, and while this domain would normally be handled by the Natha, it’s now the job of the refugees to procure pieces of it. You never know when this alternate source of energy and fuel could come in handy, after all! Refugees will be provided two-person pods to go and retrieve these materials. While they can physically descend from the pod once they get out there, they can also control the pods to drill and pick up these materials. Though, the controls are a bit difficult.

3. Without the Orbiters to operate the the kitchen, the Mess Hall will also experience a steep shortage of food. All the ingredients used in the cafeteria were actually conjured up by the Natha, hence without them— people will discover that there isn’t enough food for the new refugees. Old refugees will be pinged prior to their arrival at Thesa Station and the message is clear: bring and cook food for the new refugees. With the errors on the ship, it seems that many of them woke up hungry. For those that lack confidence in their culinary skills&Mdash; they say food tastes better when you’re starving.

GIFTS FROM THESA    

The Natha have bequeathed their will unto the refugees, the burden of watching over their dear planet not given without a token of trust. Everyone, those newly awakened and those already settled, will receive periodic urging from Yppilc to visit the VR facilities. These messages will grow more frequent, more frantic, the longer they go ignored - for the sake of sleep, it’s best to indulge the request.

Load into the simulation, and the scene is mired by the confusion of battle. You and another stand on a low hanging precipice, overlooking a failing front line. The location and conditions of the fight vary, drawn from the memories and fears of the participants themselves. Olympia and Wyver, locked in a caustic war - and your new home is succumbing. Or your homeland, entrenched in conflict from the past, or from a dreaded future. While the scene laid out before you is chaotic, one thing stands clear; your allies are fighting a losing battle. Comrades fall, innocents flee, and the wounded cry out for help. The program has determined what could best spur you and your comrade to intervene, though the more stubborn refugees may need additional goading from their partners.

Your next action determines more than the outcome of the fight before you. Choose wisely - this message is conveyed mentally in a garbled voice that sounds familiar and ethereal all at once. Jump into action and fight. Save an ally - perhaps even your partner in this simulation - from certain death. Or help those who cannot help themselves. Act, and you will find yourself imbued with a new power. Use it, and the scene will soon come to a close. Despite returning to the reality of Thesa Station, you’ll find this newfound power still within your grasp. A gift from Darma, to aid in the battles to come.

OOC Note: Feel free to give your character any one power that would be classified as a ‘major spell’ on the ACP rewards table. These powers can fall under any category (Unaffiliated, Natha, Olympia, or Wyver), and must be reported by existing characters and new applicants here under the most appropriate header no later than September 8th 11:59PM EST. Please include a brief description of the power you’ve chosen. You will receive a response within 48 hours if there are any modifications required.

SOCIAL-LINKED(in)   
By some miracle, there are still some quieter parts of the hall. This may be an appropriate time to check out your smartphone. Aside from the expected "Omage" app, there seems to be a new one called Social-Linked. There, you may find a profile waiting to be posted. The app allows for the user to fill it in, but there is also an auto-function! upon pressing it, it will generate a shockingly-honest answer based on the Natha's observation of your history. Roman will be your only friend in this app, with his very own profile:

●●●●○ THESA
ROMAN
@romannoodles (∞), Thesa

I WAS A: Butler! I still am, and I'm happy to serve all of the new arrivals!

I'M SKILLED IN: Cooking, cleaning, anything that involves making your life better!

I'M LOOKING FOR: Consistency!

ALSO, I'M: Not entirely certain if the "auto" profile function is to your liking. Feel free to edit if it is not to taste!

So, have you decided on making your own profile? Perhaps you used the "auto" function on accident? Regardless, once your profile is out there, it's out there. And like the Omage app, it will match you with someone. NOTE: Please use the form below to fill out a profile! Whether it's auto-generated or filled by the character is up to you!

PROBLEMS IN STASIS    

1. The ship’s malfunctions have reached the stasis chamber, a long feared outcome finally dawning on sleeping friends and families. Yppilc will be quick to notify all refugees aboard that the pods will need close monitoring. Whether you’re visiting to keep an eye on things, or simply there to see the face of someone dear, be careful. Bumping a control panel, or drawing a hand along the glass could trigger an emergency ejection. Lights blink and a mechanism hisses, and then the pod is gone. With the pod thrust into space, you’ll be left with nothing but a small screen displaying the chamber’s position. There are ways to retrieve it— such as climbing into a suit from the airlock or following Yppilc’s instructions. Regardless of approach, it’s imperative that you stay calm. One error, and you could eject another pod or cut off the view screen entirely.

2. The newly awakened won’t find a moment of respite. The errors that pervade over the rest of the station have altered the contingencies for resuscitation in a majority of the pods. Some may awaken with gaps in their memory, or an old injury yet unhealed. Some may be afflicted with new ailments, such as loss of a sense or severe nausea. Anything could happen, with the computer systems processing so inconsistently. Interfacing with Thesa in any way, from entering the VR simulator to accessing the medical facilities, can cause the same range of side effects, so even established refugees should take caution.

FINAL OOC NOTES    
As always, feel free to wildcard prompts within Thesa Station!

These threads may be carried over as game canon if players choose. Players are encouraged to submit TDM threads as application samples, but they are not required. Please direct any OOC questions to the questions thread below.

Players may submit an AC-length thread HERE from this TDM for 2 Natha REP. The due date for submission is September 16 11:59 PM EST.

For this application cycle, there will be a cap of 60 and no reserves. Applications will be open on September 2 12:01 AM EST and end on September 4 11:59 PM EST. Thank you!

particlebarrier: (shy smiles)

[personal profile] particlebarrier 2018-09-08 05:34 am (UTC)(link)
[Perhaps one day he'll go back to sleep and wake up from a nice canon update!

But for now, Allura's hand is on his shoulder and her smile is warm and all too easily nudges his unvoiced interpretation of the issue aside. Lance misses a beat as he looks her in the eye and smiles right back in earnest. Despite everything, it's so much easier to talk to Allura than it had been to talk to Keith, and he's content in the feeling that at least this reunion is a mutually pleasant one.
]

Dunno if Keith's physically capable of being overjoyed. [He laughs.] But thanks, Allura. I hope you're feeling better after.. whatever it is that happened.

[...Which he's said already in so many words, but it's the sincerity that counts, right?]

Think a party might lighten the mood?
spideys: (200 ❖ i remember you. ( spidey ))

[personal profile] spideys 2018-09-08 05:51 am (UTC)(link)
Hey, for you - any time. [ It's an easy line, a flimsy one even, but Spidey offers her a comradely salute before he's being - rather immediately - attacked by someone who clearly doesn't think Spider-Man's on his side.

And he's not really ... on account of Spidey not being on anyone's side right now. But the guy has a big sword and the pointy side is definitely being aimed in his direction, and blades really aren't Spider-Man's thing. ]


Whoa, whoa, whoa - hey! Chill out, man! [ Spidey makes an attempt to block the guy, or dodge the strike, when something very, very strange happens. The moment he raises his arm in defense, a wall of rock is extruded from the earth as though out of thin air. It blocks the blade, all right, to the point where the metal shatters into small shiny bits. ]

Did - [ Wait, what? ] - did you just see that?
sweetwater: (025)

[personal profile] sweetwater 2018-09-08 06:27 am (UTC)(link)
[ that could have been bad - really bad. Cheryl's not expecting the wall, but she's glad when it comes from presumably nowhere. the attacker looks as surprised as she feels. ]

Can you not normally do that? [ huh. kinda weird. unfortunately not a great time to try and figure that all out, cause now they're really in the middle of things. a second man, dressed similarly to the first, comes at the from a different angle. ]

Stop or I'll shoot.[ she doesn't have to, though, because as soon as the words are out of her mouth a shimmering blue force-field materializes around Cheryl and her sidekick companion. the attacker swings his own sword at the forcefield and it bounces right off.

that is absolutely new. Cheryl smirks. ]
My power's better.
personalwar: visor (pic#12083065)

[personal profile] personalwar 2018-09-08 06:31 am (UTC)(link)
[ While 76 might want to protest Moira's claim that she'll get information from him simply by agreeing to work with him, he knows that would be futile. Even if he keeps what he says to her at a minimum, there are certain conclusions that she'll be able to draw simply from observing him and how he works. Again, he would just unplug from the sim and walk away from this if he didn't also want to get a read on her.

If nothing else, at least he'll be getting something out of this too. He just has to take care to not give too much away in the process.

All the same, he's reluctant in how he follows her, continuing to maintain a healthy distance between them. He watches as she manifests an orb of biotic healing from her backpack, frowning as he watches it drift ahead of them. Watching her work is enough to make him uncomfortable. She may as well be the antithesis to everything Angela stands for.

There's a sort of snideness to her question that rubs him the wrong way, but that goes for just about everything that Moira does. Before he can answer, there's the sound of gunfire and screaming coming from nearby. He goes tense, and then moves toward the commotion, quickly passing her. ]


See for yourself.
spideys: (157 ❖ bravest kid. ( spidey ))

[personal profile] spideys 2018-09-08 06:43 am (UTC)(link)
Hey, wow, you never told me you had powers.

[ Also, yeah. She definitely got an awesome power. But to her original question, Spidey shakes his head. ]

It's not exactly a spider power? It's a ... honestly, I don't know what that was, but it was pretty handy in a tight spot. I didn't even think that was me. [ Even if it very clearly was, somehow. He quickly drops his arm back to his side and the moment he does, the wall crumbles into sand.

Okay, that was also pretty cool. ]
Bad bad guy, next time don't try to slice up your local do-gooders, huh?
spideys: (149 ❖ talk some sense. ( spidey ))

[personal profile] spideys 2018-09-08 06:58 am (UTC)(link)
-- wait, did you just -

[ Did he just hear a voice in his head and that voice sounded a lot like his look-alike? Is this simulation getting weirder with every passing second or what?

Spidey drops down to where the formerly-yelling man is currently lying on his back, eyes closed, quietly moaning in agony but not doing a whole lot of yelling anymore. Crap. Yeah, he's ... he's gonna need a doctor, but he's not sure that's a possibility out here. ]


You wouldn't happen to have some healing powers to go with whatever you just did, would you?
spideys: (144 ❖ no really what is this.)

[personal profile] spideys 2018-09-08 07:00 am (UTC)(link)
whoa

whoa wait

you saw your mom?
jesus_is_gundam: ([Helmet] Resolute)

3

[personal profile] jesus_is_gundam 2018-09-08 09:28 am (UTC)(link)
[Setsuna has largely been camping out by the airlock. Given the frequency of the malfunctions, he's had to retrieve more than a few pods already. And when he spots another frantic person rushing towards the airlock he lets out a quiet, almost resigned breath.]

Another one.

[Before Lance can head enter the airlock, Setsuna stops him by standing in his way.]

You'll need this.

[He holds out his hand, offering a tether Lance can use to help haul the pod back to the station.]
gekkajuu: commissioned, please do not steal (虚ろに空いた胸の隙間から)

[personal profile] gekkajuu 2018-09-08 09:40 am (UTC)(link)
Yes... A year and a little bit.

[He's very serious indeed.]

I was among the first people to wake up, or... that's what we thought. There were actually a lot of people who came here before us.
gekkajuu: commissioned, please do not steal (何処に向かうか)

[personal profile] gekkajuu 2018-09-08 09:46 am (UTC)(link)
No. It's not.

[Life is rarely, if ever, fair. Atsushi knows that better than most.]

But being lonely for all eternity seems at least as painful.
sparke: (🌩 104)

[personal profile] sparke 2018-09-08 10:41 am (UTC)(link)
i did
asleep but alive
inaurare: (Startled/Guilty)

[personal profile] inaurare 2018-09-08 11:12 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, that wasn’t...

[He hasn’t even made the connection that that was anything he did - because that’s not him; not the world he came from. It was just a fluke; a very lucky dodge.]

I just ran.

[and threw himself down here. That’s it.

His gaze settling on the fallen foes behind her-]


Are they...?
reinerouge: (pic#7641129)

[personal profile] reinerouge 2018-09-08 11:47 am (UTC)(link)
Easy for you to say. [ Your mind is in the gutter, Diva. Save it pls. ]

I just... can’t get used to using him that way. I still feel bad for what happened, I guess. [ Which is actually her sisters fault that it happened in the first place.

THNX SIS. ]
sparke: (011)

[personal profile] sparke 2018-09-08 03:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[ thor thinks on it for a moment before he nods. ]

I would not say no.

[ he doesn't know this man, but he feels - not kinship, precisely, but some connection. talk of family does that, sometimes, doesn't it? family means a lot to thor. ]

I am Thor, by the way.
emblazes: (pic#11719340)

STOP LOOKING AT HIM AND TOUCHING HIM

[personal profile] emblazes 2018-09-08 05:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[Well.

That'd be kind of nice, if only their stay weren't so fleeting/questionable/etc. Then again, that's just how life is to begin with.

Consenting, being pleasant about anything would be to whiplashy, so he'll just mutely agree to the idea of a Small Celebration should the rest of the team wake. Similarly, Lance's nosiness goes unacknowledged just on principle. Lance being Lance. He's got every right to be curious, investigative of everything. It's all new.

He won't pipe up until asked; he's in the midst of stepping along and ultimately ahead of Lance as he ducks into the VR room--]


It's a virtual simulation area.

[Indifferently, more or less. He will follow in tow, per order.]

Anyone can use it. It's kind of like what we had back at the Garrison.
semblant: (pic#12079225)

[personal profile] semblant 2018-09-08 06:08 pm (UTC)(link)
[He's not going to mention Diva's bags of blood. He's not so considerate. If worst came to worst, of course he'd donate one to Keep Saya Alive 2k18, but in the moment, teasing her is fine.]

Pose a problem to other humans, that's what you mean.

[Hint hint.]
deadthenred: (❄️  pic#13873836)

[personal profile] deadthenred 2018-09-08 06:25 pm (UTC)(link)
Like the god?

[ Bucky offers his hand— the one that isn't fake. ]

Bucky.
doubledoctornocitrus: Rodney McKay is appalled (weh excuse you)

[personal profile] doubledoctornocitrus 2018-09-08 06:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Rodney has room to run, yes, but now that the monster is actually heading his direction it's, um, faster than previously anticipated. His original plan had been 'distract it from John so John can attack,' which is going swimmingly despite John's objections. That plan, however, had also included running.

"Yaugh!" he shouts at the monster, backing up as fast and he can and regretting his terrible, terrible plan. Like a slow-motion train wreck, he can see the incoming shadow-claws or whatever they are aimed for his torso. He has a moment to think of the nasty blow John had taken and wonder if it'll hurt him equally as bad, what with him being real, when the swipe shears through his computer and slams him hard into the wall. Green light radiates from the kinetic impact points and the corridor fills with the scent of burnt plastic.
particlebarrier: (tricky situations)

/AGGRESSIVE HAIR RUFFLES

[personal profile] particlebarrier 2018-09-08 06:48 pm (UTC)(link)
[It's true. Anything other than continued low key (or high key) griping would've absolutely received more raised eyebrows and potentially more Discussions that Keith just loves having and either way the message is received (ironically) loud and clear -- they're having a party. Lance wins the day.

Unable to help himself, he grins as Keith steps ahead and then makes his way over to the control area to take a closer look at the equipment.
]

So these are... flight simulators? Battle simulators?

[There are some troubling questions to be asked about why the Natha want the refugees trained in these areas. The implication hasn't gone completely over Lance's head there, but rather than playing twenty questions with Keith he thinks it'd be easier to just... go for it. Keith did say they were for anyone to use so it's not like he's going to break something, right. He experimentally hits a button and the room immediately goes dark.

And stays dark for a couple of uncomfortably long seconds.
]

...Uh. Is that supposed to happen...?

[Mercifully, the system boots up after and the two of them find themselves standing on the precipice of a cliff looking down at... what might be Plaht City, but the scene is grim. A Galra cruiser hovers above the decimated city, and soldiers march on the ground taking any human survivors captive. A guerilla force of civilians and Garrison members armed with primitive weapons rush out to make one last attempt to drive out the invaders or die trying.

Lance goes tense as he watches this, hands curling into fists at his sides. It's just a simulation, it's not real -- but that's when he hears a voice speaking in his head. Choose wisely it implores. Startled by the disembodied, vaguely familiar voice, he turns to Keith.
]

Hey, did you hear that too?
smithsonian: (Default)

[personal profile] smithsonian 2018-09-08 06:54 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm learning that.

It was 2012 for me.
america: (256)

[personal profile] america 2018-09-08 07:41 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm counting on it.

[ The stories, that is.

Bucky's a whole lot different than Steve remembers, even when only a few months at most had passed since he'd last seen him. Whatever science that happens in the stasis pods is beyond his understanding but time had never been a singular, straight line for him to begin with anyway. He can't help but parallel the time spent in stasis is similar to his own experience, sleeping for 75 years under ice.

And now some of these pods are being ejected into space with no real rhyme or reason. The stasis room had always been the most secure spaces on the ship, and now - this. ]


Some of the controls must be faulty - but maybe we can manually keep the doors from opening.
emblazes: (pic#10446149)

>:T

[personal profile] emblazes 2018-09-08 11:00 pm (UTC)(link)
They're -- it depends.

[Not exactly flight simulators, he wanted to say, but that isn't entirely true. It depends, really. VR is always changing. Most of the time, the two things are one in the same. Battling, flying...

His eyes shift here and there as the space darkens. He'll step nearer to Lance -- not creating anything intimate. He's standing where you'd normally stand to partake in normal conversation, like a normal person.]


When you activate it...

[No, he's not angry, just slightly exasperated. He wasn't in the mood to experience some weird VR bullshit right then and there, but he can't rightly leave Lance here. Even if it's fake, sometimes it can be...a mindfucky experience. Plus, Lance would just end up being lost afterwards?! He doesn't need his phone blowing up, the subsequent lecture.

The cliff forms beneath him, the sight isn't anything pleasant.]


Huh?

[He hadn't heard anything specific; no words, distant noises. It's a simulation, but he'd still like not to have his ass handed to him....]

What did you hear?

[He'll toss a glance over his shoulder; nothing out of the ordinary. Some boulders, but nobody lurking about. Instinctively, he's reaching for his knife. VR-Keith doesn't have one, real life Keith, however, certainly does.

Maybe he should have kept some space between them....]
spideys: (162 ❖ definitely strange.)

[personal profile] spideys 2018-09-08 11:47 pm (UTC)(link)
man

you know

i don't even think i'd recognize my mom if i ever walked past her pod

i haven't seen her since i was a kid
smithandwesson: (I'll take you with me. Since I don't see)

[personal profile] smithandwesson 2018-09-09 12:37 am (UTC)(link)
"I doubt you being there would have changed much. No one had really held much of an effect against that monstrosity of a creature," Dragon was such a loose term for it. Although it flew and held the shape of an over-sized lizard, the sheer power and dark magic that exuded from the creature was overwhelming.

No mortal man could stand against that sort of power by themselves.

He once more looked up towards Davos as the second question had been asked. His eyes stern yet vacant, as if he were looking back upon what had happened that time merely a month back.

"They retaliated. After two weeks of darkness, a bright light parted the skies just as the great dragon was preparing an attack devastating enough to ruin the world it was aiming itself towards. And with that everything stopped. Pretty literally.

Dharma had somehow managed to freeze every being and even the planet itself mid-motion. Everything save for us refugees and those Dharma had brought to this world hundreds of years before us, whose ancestors all resided in a village far to the north of the rest of El Nysa, by the name of Nadril."

Which was quite the surprise for Sanzo as he had assumed his batch of refugees were the first ones to wake.

"I suppose she was trying to give us time to retaliate. Shame none of us were really able to accomplish much from it"
romancekiller: (pic#8605715)

[personal profile] romancekiller 2018-09-09 12:57 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they were. I've been here for a while but I still don't entirely believe much of what we're being told.