❪ test drive: #2 ❫ THE OVERFLOW

[natha]

ORIGINAL POST

THE PROLOGUE     Many people in stasis seem to be medically sound enough to wake up, brother. Are the preparations ready to go? Yes, I've long prepared myself for this. Watching them everyday has been truly rewarding. ... Right. Yeah. Okay, let's get them ready to wake up. We should keep their minds active to ease the transition into consciousness. A simple VR program should do the trick, I think. I will boot one immediately. There! All systems are green. Their consciousnesses are linked. However, their minds appear to be too active... They may be over-stimulated, brother. Huh? How can that be...? Can we pull them out safely? Not from my end, no. This may be too large for us to fix alone. Do you think...? Yes, I think so... It will have to be done organically. Can you send out a message to our refugees? Of course, brother. I will send one swiftly. We must be sure to fix this before Darma returns. There is urgency in the Orbiters' request. Refugees currently in El Nysa are asked via mass message to please return to Thesa Station virtual reality area immediately. Zasere tells them that the next set of Refugees are scheduled to wake, but there's been an issue. On Thesa, refugees will find that the people in stasis are still apparently trapped in slumber. Most of them are complete strangers, but there's a chance you may recognize a familiar face or two. Normally, these people would wake up from their pods without issue, but due to a malfunction caused by the unforeseen force during The Descent, they have to go through extra measures to make this possible. Those in slumber require extra stimulation, something to keep their minds active. What better than a simulation of an area of El Nysa? Keeping their minds active requires an extremely involved simulation. Those subjected to the VR (prospective characters) will find themselves completely immersed in their new environment, believing themselves to be native Olympians. To wake up from the simulation, characters must work together to accomplish a certain objective(s) in the icy tundra. Characters in-game will be aware that this is a simulation, but this is good practice for properly interacting with El Nysa natives, isn't it? An AC-length log thread on this TDM may be submitted for Two (2) Natha REP points HERE. Please read the OOC note at the bottom of this post for the terms. PROMPT: WINTER CAME     The wind in the icy wasteland is bitter and frigid. You are wrapped up in a winter coat, but even still, the cold bites at your skin and leaves you yearning for a warm fire. Perhaps you're a merchant from the city, here to make a delivery, or you're a royal guard, sent to patrol the area. Who are you? The sky is the limit. One thing is certain — you won't snap out of your new identity until you finish a task. 1. Due to the vast diversity of the creatures on El Nysa and the fact that new ones are constantly being discovered, an important objective is to carefully chronicle different species. Unfortunately, to research these new species, they happen to need more than just a visual. More than just fleeting glances in over a snowy hill. Researchers are constantly looking for ways to secure... You guessed it! Blood and stool samples. The supplies for the former will be given. Supplies are offered in a small box; one per person. In this box is a small dart that will automatically procure a small touch of blood, and easily shaken off so the creature will be able to securely escape. As for the latter— well, they'll give you a plastic bag if that counts. Look, sometimes to get a job done, you have to get your hands dirty. Specifically, they seek samples from a newly recorded rare beast known as a Klep. Kleps spend much of their time hidden in caves, so hitting them with the darts will be tricky. They are also nocturnal, but you may be able to lure them out of the cave with fish as bait. When struck with a dart, you must grab the dart and escape immediately, as they will charge you, and killing such an endangered species is illegal. As for stool samples, well... Once you find a pile, you will have plenty of sample to work with. 2. It's cold, to say the least. Too cold to continue forward. Whatever you were doing, you must stop and seek shelter. Looks like your goal is clear, at least. Get warm. Not finding a way to sustain heat, whether it be seeking shelter, building a fire, cuddling up, or all of the above, will likely end in serious consequences. 3. You are stuck in a dilemma. On one hand, you are set to work for Olympia. One the other, you're not completely sure what is really expected of you, or who the man who gave you this mission truly is. You and your partner are meant to protect precious trade cargo for them. You were told that these were essential supplies for one of the outer colonies. They assured you it was mostly food. In loading the cargo onto the supplied wagon with your partner, however, you noticed something inherently off about it. The weight and even the sounds of some of the contents inside definitely don't sound like food. Moreover, some boxes are more obviously more concealed— draped in black sheets and reinforced on all sides. You've also caught wind of rumors that you are potentially being utilized to supply advanced weapons and other contraband to Wyver terrorists in the colonies. But what do you do? Refuse to make the delivery, and people in the colony will surely starve. Try to remove the weapons and only deliver the food, and you will be killed on sight for being too suspicious. Make the delivery as-is, and not only will Olympians die at the hands of terrorists in the future, but you will betray your country. Decide quickly... 4. There are many dangers associated with traveling in such an isolated, harsh environment. You must help each other to survive. Perhaps someone has fallen on thin ice, and requires a rescue. Maybe someone is on the brink of starvation, and you must share what provisions you have. When you come to, you will awaken in Thesa Station. All will be explained to you by Zasere or Sael via telepathic link. Your world is no more. The Storm has consumed it. We offer proof in the Observation Deck if you desire it, but it won't be an easy thing to stomach. We offer you a new life, in our planet of El Nysa. We just ask for your help in maintaining the vitality of El Nysa. What can we offer you in exchange for your help? PROMPT: STASIS UNIT     You have found the massive section of Thesa known as the Stasis Unit. There’s no special access required to access this part of Thesa Station, but refugees are warned that it may not be for the faint of heart. Here, in large pods that nearly cover every square inch of the space, are all of the people the Orbiters have managed to rescue. Your loved ones, your greatest enemy, your next door neighbor— you might find them here. These people are in a state of deep cryosleep. Due to the damaging effects of The Storm, their bodies are not yet ready to be awoken. PROMPT: GET REKT     The Orbiters have noticed that some of the refugees really miss their video games. The technology in El Nysa could be much worse, but it definitely leaves much to be desired. Which is why, after expressing relief that everyone awoke safely, the Orbiters have decided to provide a little fun in the form of video game competitions. Anything from old-timey arcade machines to state-of-the-art computers, consoles, and VR headsets (though you may be a little tired of VR right now...) is available, and yes, they have your favorite games! Enjoy PAC-MAN, Starcraft 2, or perhaps Dance Dance Revolution! Teach a friend how to play. Get unnecessarily angry and competitive. Most importantly, have fun. Keep fourthwalling to a minimum, please. Recommended playing: QWOP PROMPT: OMAGE     Upon receiving your mobile phone, you will be asked to set a username. Voila, you can now access the network! You can choose to send a message to the entire network, specific usernames, or you can try out the Orbiters’ service, Omage, which connects you to a random user. They thought this might be a good way for their new guests to make friends with each other... Connecting to server... Looking for someone you can chat with... You’re now chatting with [username]... Say hi! PROMPT: WILDCARD     You are welcome to write any scenarios in Thesa Station! Characters have been granted temporary access to the Observation Room, and are encouraged to study it carefully. FINAL OOC NOTE     Please give toplevel priority to prospective characters! Current characters wishing to thread these scenarios with other current characters are encouraged to create separate logs. However, threads between 2 current characters are not eligible for Natha Orbiter REP. 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! A TDM thread of AC length may be submitted HERE for 2 NATHA ORBITER REPUTATION POINTS. Current players may submit their thread at any time, and prospective players may submit a thread after acceptance. Please note that threads must contain at least five (5) log comments from your character. A toplevel counts as a comment. Network threads are not eligible. QUICK NAV premise ● faq ● world ● map ● reputation ● npcs taken ● reserves ● application calendar ● hiatus/drops ● modbox [ FULL NAVIGATION ] elnysa nysalogs nysaisles nysaooc elnyan

Comments

misa amane | death note

[lifespanned]

stasis unit

[ You can catch this tiny girl checking each cryo-pod meticulously down the way - however, her short stature is causing her to have to tilt up on the tips of her toes slightly to peer into each pod's glass. It's obvious from a mile away that she's looking for someone in particular, somewhat frantically - but this franticness burns her out quickly; after a while, she sits down a few feet away from the pods themselves to give her aching feet a break. ]

This is taking forever!! Misa's never going to find him at this rate...

[ This wing is just too big for her to check on her own - or at least, it seems that way to her in the moment. Her eyes are tearing up and it would appear that she's a few seconds away from bursting into tears right on the floor of the stasis pod wing. She knows she could endure this entire bizarre situation as long as she can confirm that Light is here, but it's scary to think about seeing Light frozen in a pod like these; it's even scarier to consider that maybe he's not in here at all. The thought alone is enough to make her despair, eyes welling up even more and threatening to spill over. ]

thesa station

Ugh, this taste...

[ Upon sight, it is way too obvious that she's barely capable of forcing herself to swallow the green slop in front of her, immediately going for a napkin to dab at her lips - can't have this weird green stuff smudging her 24-hour-no-budge lipstick. Not on her watch. ]

I don't even know what this is, but I can totally tell it's really no good for me... [ It's got that unmistakable oily taste that she's used to steering clear of. Who knew alien food could be so fattening? She pushes her tray a little bit across the table to whomever is sitting in front of her, tilting her head with a doe-eyed look. ] Hey -

Why don't we switch? What you're having doesn't look so bad!

omage

Connecting to server...
Looking for someone you can chat with...
You’re now chatting with misamisa ... Say hi!

Helloooooo?
What's with the complicated random chat roulette? I don't get it...this isn't something weird or fetishy right??
Misa seriously can't handle that on top of everything that's happening!!!!!!

thesa

[crushingly]

[Here he is, enjoying his time sitting across from a decidedly pretty girl (though you wouldn't know he was being lowkey particular about the seating arrangement here, surprisingly), scant any comment as he enjoys (more like tolerates...consumes) his lukewarm stew.

He only bothers looking over the edge of his bowl (he ain't usin' a spoon) when she offers her own slop over -- proposes a trade. He frowns a bit, settling the dish down to look between her and it.]

Didn't you just say that isn't good for you?

[He looks so unamused. Why are you trying to poison him....]

[lifespanned]

[ Oh. She hadn't thought of how that might come across, so she just purses her lips, eyes wide. ]

Not good for me but maybe for you! Misa has to be careful about what she eats. [ That's the life of a model for you. She doesn't care if her modelling career is over on her home planet, there's probably work somewhere for her - and if that's the case, then she must keep her image up. At least the color of the other's bowl of slop is more appealing. ] It even matches your hair!

[ Just by glancing at the other's head, she can recognize that this person is non-human through the lack of name and lifespan floating above, but she has resolve to keep her abilities under wraps. Instead, she makes no effort to stop her sudden curiosity about the hairstyle itself, and gestures to it. ]

Which, by the way, looks pretty hard to dye and style. So cool!

[crushingly]

[Huh, okay. It still sounds like she's trying to sabotage him. Maybe in a less-threatening way than initially thought, but still.]

You really want this?

[He jiggles the bowl, pinching the rim between his thumb and forefinger. He's had his mouth in it...

It's probably fine. Especially considering how not-fixated she is on his germs and cross-contamination and just how fixated she is on his appearance. His hair, specifically. He's consistent in regarding her with a deadpan expression, fascinating as she may be.]

It's not like I do either of those things, try to pay attention.

[lifespanned]

Um, well... [ On second thought, it doesn't look that great, but? Her brows furrow. ] It's worth seeing if it's any better than this.

[ She hadn't exactly thought that far ahead when she mentioned the trade, but if she eats the other's meal, isn't it like....an indirect kiss? Scandalous!! Those are only reserved for her (kind of) boyfriend. Though, his comment about her attention span makes her huff out a small breath, thinking about whether or not she was supposed to be able to tell that the other wouldn't partake in such activities. ]

Then...it just grows like that naturally? I'm paying attention!

[crushingly]

[Maybe he should have just sacrificed his slop from the beginning. She's forcing him to answer complicated questions about his hair, of all things...]

Doesn't yours? [He is, in fact, sliding his soupy thing over.] Maybe you're secretly bald...

[lifespanned]

Uh, no, my hair is dyed...and Misa is not bald!!

[ Despite her pout, she just takes the soup, pushing over her own bowl in return. She almost shudders at just the thought of being bald. Not to be dramatic, but her life would be over. With a grimace, she picks her spoon through her new bowl of """"food"", choosing to look at it rather than the other. ]

I've never met anyone with naturally green hair before, that's all.

[crushingly]

[They do have WIGS...that was the whole implication, but it's better to leave her traumatized for the time being. Is this flirting???

He's just gonna stare at her judgmentally, without exchanging words or even acknowledging that she's traded food with him.]

[lifespanned]

[ This is most definitely not flirting???

Two can play that game though; she stays silent, at least until she takes a (very small) spoonful of her new bowl, grimacing immediately upon taste but wanting to protect her pride by not spitting it out. She swallows the food, but not without making a very unpleasant face and shuddering. ]

Don't they have any normal food... How can you just drink this?

[ As hard as it may be to believe, this is her version of ""trying""" not to be overdramatic. ]

Thesa

[kaleorbekaled]

[Kale's sense of smell is quite good. Superhuman, in fact. That being said, the stuff the other girl is eating doesn't smell so bad to her. But then, she's not someone who worries about things like caloric intake. Her appetite and metabolism are superhuman as well, and she can eat an astonishing amount of food.

She looks down at her tray, filled with different food items. The other girl's food might not smell bad to her, but what she has is definitely more to her preferences.]

Um...maybe you can ask them for something else if you really don't like it?

[She hesitantly offers the suggestion, because no, she doesn't really want to switch, but she doesn't want to be mean about it either.]

[lifespanned]

Aww, I guess you're right...

[ She pouts a little, but there's no real irritation coming from her - just a change in her posture as she comes to rest her chin on her palm and use her other hand to pick at the bowl in front of her. Misa supposes she can't really expect someone to just fork over their stuff for her's, but it was worth a shot considering her charms have tended to go a long way. ]

You have a lot of different stuff though! Maybe you could tell me which of these tastes okay so I know what to ask for?

[ Her voice's tone rises a bit cutely at the end of her question out of natural habit, definitely wanting a response so she wouldn't have to eat through a bunch of things to find something suitable. ]

[kaleorbekaled]

[Kale smiles at that much more reasonable suggestion. Although the only problem is that she has no idea what the other girl likes, and everyone likes different things.]

M-maybe I can put a tiny bit of each thing on your tray and you can see what you like?

[There's enough on her tray that a little of each thing would at least satisfy the appetite of a normal human girl Misa's size, if not be somewhat filling, but Kale has never sat down for a meal with humans before. She doesn't have a good point of reference for what's normal for them.]

[lifespanned]

Yay! That'd be great!

[ She brightens up almost immediately, bubbly at the other's agreement. While it isn't ideal to have to share with others, Misa supposes that it's better that she try to retain her cheerful personality in this weird circumstance, grinning almost childishly in return to the other's smile. She takes the bowl of green slop off her tray and carelessly slides it farther down the table, not wanting it anywhere near something she'd actually consume. ]

Don't worry, Misa doesn't need much!

[kaleorbekaled]

[That's probably easier than trying to guess what the other girl might like. As far as Kale's concerned, everything on her tray tastes fine. Though she has some standards for what food she'll consume, she's definitely not a picky eater. She has far too big of an appetite to be picky, and she doesn't like to cause trouble and upset people, either.

At least the other girl is being nice and showing a willingness to compromise. It's much appreciated. Kale doesn't deal with social conflict well. She'd rather get in a physical fight than be yelled at and berated.

She carefully passes over a spoonful (or cuts a spoon sized piece off where appropriate) of each thing she has, with the exception of the fruit juice she's drinking.]

Let me know which of those you like, and I'll tell you what it is.

[lifespanned]

[ She responds by giving a peppy nod, picking up her fork and immediately going for something that vaguely resembled dragonfruit (fruit's healthy and tastes good, the perfect model diet). However, upon eating it, she instantly makes a face, nearly dropping her fork out of disgust and childishly waving her hand as if to fan her face. ]

Bleh, this is so sour!!! [ Don't mind her while she complains loudly for everyone to hear. ] How can you eat something like this? I don't think this is good for you either!!

[kaleorbekaled]

[That's a much stronger reaction than Kale expected to a simple piece of fruit. And instantly, she apologizes. Because somehow in her mind, this is her fault. After all, she shared her food with the girl, and now look how that turned out.]

I'm sorry you don't like it. I-it's a type of fruit from my world. It's actually very healthy. A lot of warriors eat it.

[lifespanned]

What? Really?

[ She looks shocked, a hand coming to cover her mouth for added effect. Her knee-jerk reaction to the sourness of the fruit seems to have subsided in favor of interest in this topic. ]

I don't think we have this fruit on Earth...are you not from Earth?

thesa....

[fatgun]

[There's not one but two picky eaters dissing the alien food in this cafeteria right now, almost in stereo - or, coincidentally, the moment Misa offers to trade her food is the exact moment Joshua looks down at his and frowns, more than a little grossed out.

It looks almost like the same weird green slop she has, only a little more... pudding-esque? And it's neon orange.]

Nnno, no thank you. [This is for the orange pudding, which he pushes away only to knock his tray right into hers. Oh. Hm. God that looks terrible.]

...Sure, why not. Nothing says post-apocalyptic vacation like trading food with strangers.

[lifespanned]

[ At least with the other's, she can pretend it's mango pudding or something? She absolutely cannot with this green soup, it's disgusting. His response does elicit a positive reaction out of this petite model; she winks and points a finger at the other in a 'gotcha' motion. ]

Misa knew asking you was the right choice! [ And just like that, she delicately moves her bowl to the other's tray, taking his without a moment lost. ] Though, I really wish there was something normal to eat around here... I mean, you don't think this stuff is poisonous to us, do you?

[ Now that she's been struck by this thought, she's a little more apprehensive to just dig in... ]

[fatgun]

[Oh! How enthusiastic! He's surprised for a moment, blinking at her, but then his little smile returns like pointing and winking is all it takes to endear him. It's a start.]

Hmm... They wouldn't save us and serve us something toxic, would they? Don't be so distrusting.

[And like that, he will help himself to this green waste. It's definitely mostly grease... He makes a face around his spoon.]

...Mmm. Well, I don't think it's trying to kill me.

[lifespanned]

[ She only feels slightly bad that she'd pawned off that terrible slop to this guy, but only until she takes a mouthful of her new food. It's not much better, but it isn't as greasy...maybe she could bear it. ]

If they saved us, shouldn't they have also saved things that are okay for us to eat? [ Why be sad about your world getting destroyed when you can be concerned about not being able to eat strawberries anymore... ] It's common sense! There should be Earth food here too.

[ Which feels weird to say, thinking that there are people from places that aren't Earth. ]

Maybe if I just couldn't see or smell it...

[fatgun]

[He wants to dump, like, a metric ton of salt into this grease pool, then he'll feel better about it. That's close enough to soup, isn't it? Thick... soup.

Well, he's eating it.]

Someone in the kitchen must be playing us both the universe's tiniest violin. I don't disagree, but it looks like their charity doesn't extend that far.

[Terrible, frankly. Let's just pull the plug on the whole space station moon base operation.]

Are you going to pinch your nose through every meal?

[lifespanned]

[ As if in response to his question, she pinches her nose and closes her eyes for her next bite, eating it with only slightly more ease. ]

If Misa has to, she will. [ She has to keep surviving, at least until a special someone wakes up. ] I guess I should be thankful that they saved us at all, but that doesn't mean I have to like everything here. One person can only handle so much change at once.

[ Big sigh. Maybe they sound melodramatic, but the only way to not feel any true despair about the planet being destroyed was to get caught up in the little things. ]

If I could just be having food from home, I wouldn't feel as much like I'm in a bad space movie...

[fatgun]

Hee hee, this is like a bad movie, isn't it? Unfortunately, I don't think we're at all close to being the main characters.

[He completely relates to this melodrama about the little things - this is the first time he's been out of the same city for who knows how many years, what else is he expected to do but harp on the differences?

Oh, but...] Actually, tell me something. Did someone talk to you before you woke up here? Someone making all kinds of promises? Personally, I was promised ramen, and I haven't seen even a single noodle.

[lifespanned]

[ Her? Not be the main character of a film? No thanks!! ]

Ramen sounds good right now... [ She should've asked for that too, in addition to the cosmetics. ] They said they'd keep my boyfriend safe and everything, but I haven't even seen him since I woke up here. We were supposed to move in together...

[ She sighs again, her lower lip coming to a pout as her posture becomes more and more gloomy. ]

Did they say you'd get it right when you woke up?