natha: (Default)
ɴᴀᴛʜᴀ orbiters ❰ mod collective ❱ ([personal profile] natha) wrote in [community profile] elnyan2018-01-26 12:27 pm
Entry tags:

❪ test drive #4 ❫

YOUR STORY BEGINS    

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

All you know, perhaps, is that it was cold. You don't know for how long you slept, but the dreams were short, at least. You remember the expanse of stars and the universe that came in view. Every world and solar system ever known was displayed in your dreams in careful, pristine detail. You have also witnessed The Storm, which has devoured a fair portion of these galaxies. It was a dark, thick smog — ominous in appearance and ever foreboding.

Your Earth and similar planets were immersed in The Storm. Somehow, you knew it would be the last you'd see of it. That was when she told you what happened, and how you could help. You knew that you'd be living somewhere new, even though you never asked for it. The details here weren't clear, but you knew you'd made a deal with Darma.

Not long after, you'll wake at Thesa Station — your body is still cold.

It all felt like a dream, but somehow, you knew it wasn't — now, will you keep that promise you made to Darma?
PROMPT: THE STORM    

CW: death
You were awake on Thesa Station. But at some point you, like many other new arrivals before you, wandered into the Observation Deck. Ordinarily, this is where images of The Storm are replayed to remind Refugees of the fate they have escaped.

The Natha Orbiters' technology has evolved. They are aware of your gaps in memory. You may have doubts of The Storm even existing, or of your world's destruction. Though they do not wish reliving those last moments on anyone, they have created an experience that will do just that. Before entering the Observation Deck, you are warned that what follows will not be for the weak of heart. As soon as you step in, you will find that the walls around you begin to transform and expand.

Welcome to the Planet Cespi, in the Circinus Galaxy. Unfortunately, we were not able to save this world from The Storm's Consumption. These are its last memories.

You are surrounded by blue, grassy hills as far as the eye can see and a pleasant breeze. The atmosphere is thick with a sickly sweet smell. Before you lays the scene of a quiet village, with its residents going about their everyday lives. You aren't alone, either, with an equally confused stranger (or perhaps you know each other?) surveying the scene.

Then the world grows completely silent for a full minute. You and your partner are unable to make a sound, verbal or otherwise. Without warning, a deafening roar fills your ears and forces you to double over in pain. The villagers run out of their homes in a panic, finding themselves in just as much pain and confusion as you do. Where there was no sound before, now there is too much for a normal human body to process.

Look up. An expanding mass of energy is swallowing everything you can see. It consumes the earth, the atmosphere, the depths of space — and it is getting closer.

Your only hope is to outrun it, if you can. The people in the village certainly try to, racing past you. Their fear is very real. Their bodies are very real. You may be able to run from it for a time, only able to catch glimpses of this dark and sinister force swallowing everything and everyone. The earth rumbles and separates beneath you. Electricity surges through the sky, and then through your very body.

You fought hard, but it is impossible to outrun the Storm forever. You too will be consumed. Your death is quick, but not painless. What were you thinking, before you took your last breath?

You awaken back in the Observation Deck, next to your new friend.
PROMPT: TRAINING MODULES    

While it’s all nice and well to familiarize oneself with Thesa Station, it is most advised that new arrivals venture out a bit. Not physically. No one is quite prepared for that yet. However, there will be several virtual reality training programs set for those who dare to be adventurous. For those who aren’t and don’t dare, well — good luck, all the same. Once seated and appropriately strapped in, the system will automatically whir to life.

1. When you enter the Natha's newest program, at first nothing loads. You might think this is an error as you look around in apparent total darkness, only able to see your own virtual body if you look down, but soon enough a voice comes to life as if speakers have turned on somewhere.

Long ago, the lands of El Nysa were dominated by the ancestors of the dragons who now live among the people, tamed. It was pretty dangerous! How about a little history lesson?
And then the simulation comes to life—

a. The lush lands that blossom to life around you all at once are real enough to make you forget you're in a simulation — at least for a moment. Those refugees who have been to the planet in reality before will find themselves in territory as unfamiliar as those who are brand new, as this simulation takes place far back in history. Instead of sprawling cities and civilizations, the most you'll find is scattered villages, many of them no more than nomadic campsites at best. You've been outfitted to blend in with the natives and these simulated people won't react to you as a newcomer, but as a member of their village. Are you a doctor, or perhaps a warrior? Maybe you're even in charge! But they want your help, and they want it quickly: a dragon is coming.

The dragon is larger than the mount-sized breeds that exist on El Nysa today — much larger. It's a good six stories in height, bestial, and angry. Maybe it's then that you notice the lands that surround you are littered with scars of scorched earth, some of them several yards across, and there's a reason these people don't live in one place for very long. But don't linger too long on the makeshift grave markers sticking out of the burnt countryside — the dragon is coming.



b. If you're looking for something a little less violent, perhaps another area of the historic simulation will be up your alley. This one finds you on a cliffside, waiting among other villagers for an event the people are talking about in hushed whispers, some of which you can identify as prayer. When the white dragon raises its head up from the depths of the ravine, towering impossibly high over you and the others on the cliffside, it's no wonder most of the natives fall to their knees in awe and wonder. This dragon doesn't attack, only looks at the people on land with an ancient and strange wisdom.

Then it speaks. Not in words, but the low rumbling sound that starts in its throat and becomes a full trumpeting bellow to the sky seems to have meaning, and somehow, you can understand its cry as it entreats the people to praise and worship. The natives around you are already starting to give offerings with their prayers, food and carvings and — blood? Is that someone's arm being offered up?

That's different.



2. Let us now travel forward in time, shall we?

a. The Olympian settlement around you is quiet — until the screaming starts.

Guerilla fighters from Wyver flood the streets, knocking civilians aside and breaking down doors and windows when they find their way barred. They move methodically, advancing toward the nicer parts of town where the politicians reside and leaving terror in their wake.

They're here for the politicians, people say. They're here to punish the people who made the decision to advance into Wyver in the first place. Blood for blood, as the saying goes. Where they'll be taking them once they have them is anyone's guess. A soldier emerges from a building, dragging someone in elegant clothing out by the hair. Looks like they've found one.

Will you rescue them? Make a run for it yourself, lest you be mistaken for one of their targets? Or maybe they've already caught you and some other unfortunate Refugee who's been dropped into this simulation, and the two of you need to figure out a way to escape.

b. CW: branding
You find yourself in the midst of a bustling crowd gathered at the Temple of Thesa. Robed acolytes stoke fires on either side of the altar at the front of the temple, where miserable-looking people who seem to be from a village in Wyver await, bound in ropes.

The priest, at the front of the crowd, picks up a metal brand from the altar and gestures for another acolyte to bring a prisoner forward. The crowd watches with interest as the prisoner is forced to kneel in front of the altar, their arm laid out flat on the marble surface.

Another cry — "For the glory of Olympia!" — and the crest of the city is burned into the prisoner's arm.

The crowd cheers, deafening the cries of pain. The priest ushers forward another prisoner, and then another. Is that a familiar face you see in the lineup, thrust into this bit of history by the simulation's whims? You have to do something. Or are you unlucky enough to find yourself bound? ...Well, hopefully someone else in the crowd has more scruples than this priest.
3. And now, the present.



After all those enlightening scenes, the simulation finally brings you to a more quiet area of Olympia. You are deposited out somewhere in The Outlook, a place the very first group of refugees had to trudge through before they found their homes. You've arrived in the early evening — but sunlight is waning, and soon you'll be under a sky full of stars. Luckily, their old campsites aren't too overgrown.

The intention here is to get you familiar with some of the local flora and fauna. What sorts of plants will you encounter? Do you find yourself under a Verillum Tree, suddenly compelled to be painfully honest and truthful in conversation with a complete stranger? Find yourself behaving erratically in the presence of Whistleweed? Or perhaps you'll have to break the spell of being trapped in a Vena Amoris' vines... with a kiss.

PROMPT: STASIS UNIT    

You have found the massive section of Thesa known as the Stasis Unit. There’s no special access required to enter 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: 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    
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! An AC-length thread may be submitted for 2 NATHA ORBITER REPUTATION POINTS after acceptance here. Please submit by February 18th.

We will no longer be providing overflow posts. In an event where the post hits CAPTCHA, players are advised to move threads to an overflow post on their character journals or create their own catch-all post. These threads remain eligible for REP.

There will be an application cap of 60, and no reserves. Please read here for more information.

cajolery: (114)

[personal profile] cajolery 2018-01-29 01:04 am (UTC)(link)
[ At the stranger's shout, she turns just in time to watch him take down a soldier preparing to attack her from behind. How—how very craven! It just fuels her determination to cut these soldiers down for their utter lack of honor and integrity. They have no business fighting under any banner!

She also gets to watch as another soldier takes the opening her new friend left behind to stab him through the thigh, and on instinct, she cries out in alarm. ]


Ah—!

[ There's no time to ask if he's all right. Another Wyvern soldier moves in to attack him, and she leans forward with her lance to sweep the soldier's feet out from underneath him before driving it through his leg, keeping him down. More soldiers surround them—one catches her across her ribs with his sword before she can dispatch him. Another goes for the family that they're trying to protect, forcing Clair to leave her companion's side to stop him.

As she pulls back, she shouts to Fred: ]


Hold them!
colorature: (Default)

[personal profile] colorature 2018-01-29 01:05 am (UTC)(link)
[Clearly not.]

Oh. [That sounds...unpleasant. She rocks back onto her heels, still staring at him.] The sun doesn't bother me or my Chevaliers. I like garlic and can eat things other than humans. I do need to drink their blood, however...can you really not consume anything other than blood?
poolhall_killer: (shoot him down)

[personal profile] poolhall_killer 2018-01-29 01:06 am (UTC)(link)
[On the other end, Venom draws his cue, summoning billiard balls as he rushes the dragon. The other's swordplay is admirable. It sort of reminds him of the High King, wielding a large blade rather effortlessly.]

If we deal heavy damage quickly, it won't be able to take flight. Be careful, good sir.

[And he sends out even more balls, knocking them around.]
dendarii: (honest help)

[personal profile] dendarii 2018-01-29 01:11 am (UTC)(link)
[ There were definitely some Star Wars style battles in there. But mostly it resembled Endor. Guerrilla warfare against an opponent with a massive technological advantage. ]

Oh, yes. Pushed them back and invaded a few planets of our own, in fact. The Barrayaran Imperium has three planets in it now.
dontgiveabuckland: (will be the one that you defy)

[personal profile] dontgiveabuckland 2018-01-29 01:17 am (UTC)(link)
[Yikes. That got dark really quickly. Silence stretches between them. Cam takes a deep breath.]

Well! You know what they say: A watched pot doesn't burn. [Cam reaches out, wrapping an arm around his new friend's shoulders and tries to gently lead him away from his daughter's space casket. He could continue his own search for Mirela later.]

Your daughter wouldn't want to see you like this, yeah?
tzaraisen: (86)

I

[personal profile] tzaraisen 2018-01-29 01:18 am (UTC)(link)
[ Reinhardtzar's is a face he's seen before, but knows very little about. Whatever he was going to ask will have to wait until the simulation ends, because this requires immediate attention. This is a bigger dragon, a much more destructive one, than any of the ones he's seen in Wyver. Although he knows deep down that this is nothing more than a very realistic re-imagining of events, injuries in the simulation still hurt like a bitch, and he isn't keen to fail. ]

And let you return and claim all of the credit? I think not.

[ He has already drawn Lohengrin and conjured the flames around his blade. There's really no best way to try taking on a six-story dragon, so the direct approach may be best. They have only a few more moments if Rein wants to try another idea.

Actually he doesn't wait that long, already making his way towards the beast. ]
adisaster: (pic#9918668)

[personal profile] adisaster 2018-01-29 01:20 am (UTC)(link)
[ He waves his hand, at Reinhardt's statement, seemingly casual about even visiting the planet below. It's not as if he'll need to truly worry about food or drink, in terms of being able to survive. They're something he enjoys indulging in, yes, but he only really needs mana to survive -- and even then ... he can survive for quite some time without it, due to his class. It's more a concern if he keeps using his Gate. He'll need to find a Master sooner or later if he hopes to fight.

But he doesn't feel the need to get into that with Reinhardt.
]

I shall do well enough for myself, with or without your assistance. But your welcome is appreciated. I am relieved to have found someone worth my time.

[ But there's something that needs to be corrected here. Gilgamesh hadn't argued before, when Reinhardt had called him his "friend", as it wasn't quite fitting to start challenging him on calling him that while they were in the middle of a battle. But going forward... Gilgamesh didn't want Reinhardt to get the wrong idea. ]

As charming as you have been, forever ... I will let you know now. I do not consider you my "friend". I have only ever considered one person to be my equal, and that has not changed since I met them.

[ It's not said with any cruelty, his tone more implying this was simply the way of things. ]
vorrutyer: (loving hating you)

[personal profile] vorrutyer 2018-01-29 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
Vorrutyers have always been loyal to the Camp Stool. Not a traitor among us.
thequitecontrary: (eyes closed)

[personal profile] thequitecontrary 2018-01-29 01:28 am (UTC)(link)
I'm sorry. [It's an automatic response, but she is. She knows what it's like to lose the love of her life, the only good thing that the world ever gave her.] Are you looking for someone in here?

[Honestly, Mary is torn between wanting to run from this place and wanting to stay here and stare at Matthew all day. That is kind of stupid though. He isn't going to wake up yet and she has no control over it whatever. She could sit for an eternity and nothing would change.]
dendarii: (exercise)

[personal profile] dendarii 2018-01-29 01:28 am (UTC)(link)
[ Ah, well. Miles has no heart to argue with that statement. Hell, he's pretty sure it's true. He just deflates a bit, turning back towards Gregor. ]

Nor among the Vorkosigans.
phykios: (♆ mmmokay.)

[personal profile] phykios 2018-01-29 01:30 am (UTC)(link)
[ he's not quite sure what to say to that. congratulations?? good for you?? how did the people on those planets feel about being invaded?? because he sorta doubts they were just chilling out, like, you know what we need? a good CONQUERING, that's what!

instead, he says, ]
Okay, three planets. Whoever invaded you. Earth. That's, like, five inhabited planets. Are there...more, with people on them?
underwhelms: (stranger danger eh)

[personal profile] underwhelms 2018-01-29 01:30 am (UTC)(link)
[ A lot of things have happened since JJ arrived in El Nysa. A lot of... weird things. And while he has been teleported from the planet to the Station a few times now, there's something different about whatever it is that Cam had done. It feels a little less clinical to say the least, though it's still disorienting when the scenery around JJ changes midstep.

They're lucky he doesn't just stumble and fall flat on his face when they relocate.

Cam is obviously accustomed to it, and when he starts shouting orders—JJ obeys. They only have a precious few seconds while the mob is just as confused as JJ, and he doesn't waste any time in resuming their unprofessional escape. It doesn't help that JJ has no idea where they're going, but when he spots an alley way, he doesn't waste any time in ducking in. ]


I'll see if there's anything to untie you with. [ He offers while they catch their breath, though he does spare a moment to look up. ] Do you think you'll be able to climb?

[ Up the side of the building and onto a roof. ]
dendarii: (pls)

[personal profile] dendarii 2018-01-29 01:32 am (UTC)(link)
[ Miles is kind of from an evil space empire. It's okay to call him out on that. (At least Sergyar was unoccupied and Komarr - Komarr deserved what they got, let's be real here.) ]

Oh yes, of course. The Cetagandan Empire is eight planets. There's about forty total in the Nexus.
rightfully: (pic#11648311)

[personal profile] rightfully 2018-01-29 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
[ It takes her a few moments, but she eventually finds it and presses it. ]

...

[ Silence. ]

Hello?

[ Back to that again! ]
diamondize: (Sometimes the most spiritual thing)

[personal profile] diamondize 2018-01-29 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
[It's curious how that seems to almost relax him, though the words mean little to Diamond. They mull the words over though, finding them curious--who was this mysterious Lord that was going to apparently help them? Someone waiting with shelter or something? ...They may be taking it a little too literally.

Their steps are careful, concentrating on not getting caught in any of the foliage as they make their way down
]

I can't say I understand, but... Are you from the station too then? Caught up in these...simulation things? [There's a soft little laugh of relief.] I'm a little relieved, I was starting to wonder if I'd gone crazy and imagined it all. But that explains why you weren't in a frenzy with the rest of them, I suppose.

[It seems safe enough to talk now, at least, the noise of the crowd and the temple behind them starting to fade the further away they get]
thequitecontrary: (smile - tight)

[personal profile] thequitecontrary 2018-01-29 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
Mary. Thank you. What is your name?

[He's right about the knife though, and she nods. This little jaunt in the woods has been enough to show her that she can't trust anything here and that she needs to be able to protect herself. The only sort of gun she knows how to use is a hunting rifle, and even that she has not fired in a while. A knife would be much easier to conceal.

Mary steps far away from the vines, standing in the middle of the path so that they might talk at a distance from them.]
nineteenfortyfive: (MIRROR)

[personal profile] nineteenfortyfive 2018-01-29 01:37 am (UTC)(link)
[She has manners. Claire nods in acknowledgement, though she's not about to wax poetic about Frank Randall. It's unfair to the man and his memory.]

Not particularly. I come in here, sometimes, to talk to them. [A vague gesture at the pods. Not strangers, of course, but the ones she knows.] I don't think they can hear us, but it feels awful to leave them all alone. At least for long stretches of time.
phykios: (♆ cool cool cool cool.)

[personal profile] phykios 2018-01-29 01:38 am (UTC)(link)
Holy Hephaestus.

[ forty inhabited planets. empires made up of multiple planets. it's enough to make percy's head spin. just one planet has enough trouble to keep anyone busy for a lifetime.

which leads to another thought: the gods, if they exist in miles's world at all, are probably on some alien planet right now. talk about a big move. ]


That's crazy.
thequitecontrary: (hello)

[personal profile] thequitecontrary 2018-01-29 01:38 am (UTC)(link)
Oh. [He eyes instinctively travel upward, following his hand, though there are no stars to see. Just the canopy of trees and daylight filtering through them.] You know, I might tell you that you're quite mad to think I would believe that, but I saw a dragon today, so clearly nothing is impossible.
thequitecontrary: (listening)

[personal profile] thequitecontrary 2018-01-29 01:40 am (UTC)(link)
A video? Would that mean I could see whom I was talking to?

You have me curious now about what stranger things there are.
dendarii: (honest help)

[personal profile] dendarii 2018-01-29 01:42 am (UTC)(link)
[ Scattered, relocated, or duplicated, a la their Roman counterparts. Maybe there's a Barrayar-specific version of the Greek gods that Miles would theoretically be the son of. Not that any of that is real for him, of course.

He perks a bit at he mention of Hephaestus, amused by that turn of phrase. ]


Is it? I suppose. But there just wouldn't be enough room for all of us on Earth any more. I suppose you've no humans living on other worlds where you come from?
rightfully: (pic#7535322)

[personal profile] rightfully 2018-01-29 01:43 am (UTC)(link)
[ Lucina doesn't "take it one thing at a time" - she bulldozes through like a... like a bulldozing thing! SHE COMES IN LIKE A WRECKING BALL. ]

Yes, only shortly ago.

[ And now, here she is. Texting. ]

My home is entirely different from this.
thequitecontrary: (over the shoulder)

[personal profile] thequitecontrary 2018-01-29 01:46 am (UTC)(link)
I think you may be right.

[When not fighting against them, the vines place the two of them together, their bodies touching if not for the vines wrapped around them. Mary has her head leaned back so that it's not resting on his chest. At this close of a range, not only does the other man look good, but he smells good too. She briefly wonders what sort of aftershave he uses.]

You probably ought to tell me your name at least. [Her voice is quiet. No need to shout when his ear is about six inches from her mouth.]
tzaraisen: (pic#11751949)

stasis unit

[personal profile] tzaraisen 2018-01-29 01:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ It's funny— the exact person Percival was intending to see is the one he finds, but considerably more awake than he'd expected. It's been a while since Siegfried returned to stasis, and for the first time since then, Percival has worked up the mental fortitude to seek him out. He walks briskly through the corridors, exactly where Siegfried's pod should be, and finds... an empty pod.

Turning the corner is where he finds the other's familiar form, standing just before Vyrn. He's startled enough to nearly jump ]


Siegfried—! [ Immediately, he rushes to his former commander's side. ] When did you awaken?! How are your vitals?!
tutorb: (Arguing with a phantom)

[personal profile] tutorb 2018-01-29 01:52 am (UTC)(link)
[ Good to know that still works, even in a fictional world such as this. Thankfully, the man doesn't fall into shock along with the rest of them and manages to weasel his way off the stage. She senses his approach and lunges out to meet him, fisting her hand into the sleeve of his shirt. ]

Really, I thought we ought to stay and be sure the lovely man makes a safe return! Lead on!

[ Seriously, lead on, her eyes are still quite shut, even at this distance. She may have incredible spatial awareness and can make a calculated aura shot based on sound alone, but in a chaotic crowd of individuals she cannot sense the presence or intention of, ready to buffet and hammer them once they collectively realize what is happening, she's at a bit of a disadvantage. ]