memesofeternity | Test Drive Meme III

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Test Drive Meme III

A. RETRIEVAL

Dreams fade slowly, and awareness returns in increments. The hum of machinery, the smell of recycled air, the murmurs of others waking up around you.

The interior of the ship has been outfitted with cots for those Biggs and Wedge retrieve from the Dream Width. Outside of the makeshift infirmary, windows set into the walls of the worn lounge area offer a view of space.

It’s time to meet your fellow new arrivals who have been brought together on Biggs and Wedge’s airship. The other newly-awakened people have no idea how they came to be here, but now's a good time as ever to introduce yourself to the others on the airship and glean what information you can.

B. CURTI CENTER

The researchers at the Curti Center are not quite so unprepared as last time, but it is still obvious that they are struggling to understand the sudden influx of interdimensional travelers from the Dream Width. "Please step into the lobby for a quick survey. Perhaps there is some common thread we haven't discovered yet..."

The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, write down all proffered information they can about the arrivals' homeworlds, provide maps and pamphlets about Vaikuntha and the destinations within it, and even guide the arrivals to a neighborhood where housing has been provided for you. Yes, due to the strange influx of arrivals, you’ll be expected to share, but the Curti staff are doing the best they can, considering they are still housing the previous arrivals here on the island.

Experiences like these bring people together. Perhaps you are the only one here from your world, but at least you are not alone in this experience. Others are right beside you, learning the same information, planning trips to visit the same new cities, checking out these Job things, and settling in to their new (temporary) homes.

C. UP IN THE SKY

There’s a whole new world to explore. It’s almost enough to distract from the fact that there’s one place you can’t go- home.

You are on an Airship, the main mode of transportation between the major cities of Vaikuntha. While the majority are owned by airlines, perhaps you hitched a ride with a friend that has their own. You can go anywhere in a matter of hours — One can only hope you don’t have motion sickness.

D. GUILDS

Proud representatives of the Guild are lined up, ready to demonstrate their skills for the new initiates. Make sure to stay behind the designated line, this might get dangerous.

So you want a new Job? You'll have to first travel to the Guilds, sign the papers, go through the orientation and introductory lectures, and get basic training. Afterwards, you can freely chat and practice with your fellow members, celebrating your new powers, and checking out your new wardrobe.

E. LET'S BE ADVENTURERS

Separated from all of your material possessions, connections, and everything you know, and really, what you’re left with is time. Better try to make the most of it.

Enough expository banter. It's explorin' time. Maybe instead of spending every day in your room, you'd rather spend it living it up in the city of Lavode, or betting on Chocobo Races in Sparks Goldsaucia. Or maybe you'd rather go and explore the caves and ruins near Arito. With Airships and Chocobos at your disposal, you can go nearly anywhere!

F. SIDEQUESTS

Maybe you’re telling yourself, ‘I didn’t sign up for this.’ But wait, you did. At least it pays.

It all started when you checked the Quest Board. All you wanted was a few gil to spend, and here you are in the wild, hunting for a Malboro Vine. Or maybe you are in some ancient and decrepit ruins looking for an artifact. Or you could be asked to be janitor for a week. Consider yourself lucky though, at least you don't have to do that alone.

G. GET A JOB (THE OTHER KIND)

You’ve got a Job, but Claire keeps sighing and muttering about layabout space-people not earning their keep, so it might be time to seek out Employment as well.

There are plenty of opportunities to earn some gil in Vaikuntha, no matter where you choose to settle down. Your iMog slate includes listing for employment opportunities. Hopefully you can find something you can live with so that you can start saving up for an airship or the security payment for your permanent housing.

H. MOGNET

*Ding!* You’ve got Mog-Mail!

Thankfully, you can instantaneously chat with your friends around the world thanks to you iMog Slate. And unlike old-fashioned Moogle Letters, you can even send messages to everyone in a blink of an eye! However, despite the change in technology, the old tradition of Mognet Strikes have never gone away. Nobody knows any more whether the Moogles have legitimate reasons to go on strike or if they are just lazy. But today, Mognet is down, and to get information you have no choice but going to the public boards or risk message corruption and mishandling.

I. RANDOM ENCOUNTER

The ground trembles, and out of nowhere, something hostile appears! ~~Is that battle music playing?~~

You were minding your own business walking around, and suddenly monsters attacked you! Time to put to use the skills you've learned with your Jobs! Will you try to fight on your own or seek help? And remember, you die in random battle, you die FOR REAL. There’s no shame from running from enemies that are a higher level than you!

J. SUMMER SUN

[insert Sheryl Crow track here]

Vaikuntha offers opportunities for many summer activities. Only some of the beaches hold the risk of being attacked by aquatic monsters, the others are a perfect destination for a day trip on a sunny day. Take a hike up the mountains and relax in some hot springs at the top. Go camping in the woods ~~just not on Friday the 13th~~. Enjoy a refreshing sea salt ice cream bar. Just because you’re here, it doesn’t mean you’re not entitled to a vacation.

K. WILD CARD

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[His eyes widen and his eyebrows climb up. He can count on his fingers how often Keith formed a name like it meant something to him. Belatedly he notes the hope and he reaches to pull Keith into a tight hug.]

It has been just us. I'm sorry, Keith. I'll keep a watch for her. Can you give me a description?

['I left you once. I'm not leaving you again.' Yet he had. He left her with Coran and their wolf to save Shiro. It nearly cost her and their teams' lives twice in one day.

He hugs back, steeling himself before he answers.]

Galra. Between our height. One mark identical to my scar on both cheeks. She's a fellow Blade. Also, she's my mother. [He pauses.] Romelle's an Altean we met on a mission. Shorter, blond hair, green markings.

['Also, she's my mother.' The words echo in his head as he tightens his hold on Keith. There's no need to say anything to that. But, the later hit him like a bullet's impact and he jerks back to look at Keith with widened eyes.]

There are survivors? Does Allura know?

[She and Coran aren't the last of her people.]

[Keith's grateful he doesn't focus on it. This is something they can talk about later, in private. He briefly tightens his grip before loosening it to let Shiro pull back.]

She knows. Brought Rumelle with us when I came back. [Yes. Us. His mother is helping them too, now.] Didn't get to tell her the full story, but Coran does. We have a lot of catching up to do.

[Both here and back home.]

We do. There’s so much I want to show you here. And...a lot we have to talk about. [Private talk. For now he just relaxes with a smile on his face.]

There is a ship I want you to see the plans for later. They’re called Manacutters. One person manned ships that use the energy of a crystal and the wind to stay in the air.

...and dragoons. You have to see them, Keith. [There’s a longing in his voice just like when he spoke about space in that hanger all that time ago.] They’re beautiful. They borrow the magic of dragons to leap up into the sky.

It’s what made me decide to join them. I know you’ll love it if you pick it up. We can’t fly like we normally do but being a dragoon? It’s so close, Keith.

[Keith eases into about as relaxed as he ever gets in a strange place. Though he immediately latches onto the idea of the ship mentioned. Manacutters.]

Did the plans say anything about a max altitude? It's velocity?

[What are the systems like? He has to know. Not even the exhaustion from three major battles in a row is stopping his curiosity, now. Especially when he catches that tone Shiro uses for dragoons. He knows it far too well not to recognize it. His eyes light up at the prospect of a combat style that's meant to do jumps like that.]

You say it just as I stopped with the costly jumps in combat back home. [It's a slight tease, but also a way to say how far he's come since the last time Shiro's seen him fight hand-to-hand. He has a teleporting wolf now instead, but that's something to share later.

He's interested. And it's likely obvious for the one who scouted him into the Garrison in the first place. Interested, and maybe lowkey concerned like he always is. And, like always, never voices it.]

Well, now your jumps won't cost you. [His eyes spark with good humor. Keith is caught and he's more than happy to pull him in to share the wide world he's discovered with him.]

Dragoons use spears to make use of their max speed and help us when we come down. I can show you how your response time is factored by speed, wind direction, and the magic itself when we get back to our house. [He reaches back into his belt pouch and produces his iMog. He swipes across it and holds it out with pictures of the Mana cutter blueprints on the display screen.]

I've got a practice course set up for perfecting skills. We go pretty fast...but keep in mind your defense will be lower because of that speed and power. I compensate with the defense from my main job. In turn, Dragoon makes me a faster Paladin.

That kind of synergy is vital here. And there, in my iMog are all the airship plans I took pictures of. My notes on their velocity and max altitude will be on the right in each shot.

[Yeah, he's more than sold already. A two-handed weapon such as the spear would be different but interesting to master, and the thought of talking shop with Shiro again was too great to pass up.]

Can't wait. [He says, before becoming engrossed in the blueprints on the small screen. The gears are turning in his head already at the different plans, making a mental note of each as he looks through them.

And Keith might already be thinking of how to compensate differently for the loss in defense. Oh dear.]

Interesting. [He hands back the device.] So, any surprises I should be aware of before we land?

[Tell him about Gourmand, Shiro. You know you ~~don't~~ want to~]

Uh, yeah there's one you should be warned about.

[He pockets his iMog. He could draw up pictures or so. But this is better just told straight. Shiro puts his hands on his thighs and says, carefully.]

There's one job that...if you take it up. I will not judge you for taking it. There's a lot of benefit from it. But I won't make the mistake with you that I made with Hunk.

It's called Gourmand. [He glances to the side and looks back at Keith.] Hunk missed the guild demonstration and picked it up. I was a little rattled at the time or I would have talked to him about it.

...

Keith, they eat their opponents to gain their power. Alive. We fought a sea god recently and Hunk bit her.

[Keith is about to ask why Shiro won't judge him for one job in particular but the moment Hunk is mentioned he already has a feeling of dread. Oh, no. What did their motion sickness-challenged friend get themselves into?]

["Gourmand" "missed the guild demonstration" "picked it up". There are only question marks, and if they could be said aloud? That would be helpful right about now.]

...

[Hunk... bit a sea god.]

...

Okay, I can't even be disgusted by that because I spent the last two years eating giant space bugs and whatever we found on the back of a giant space creature that was edible.

[Wait for it...] But a sea god?

It was an accident. He slipped on our old roommate's blood and tripped and, [He makes a chop motion with his hand.]

I'm not sure who was more surprised - Leviathan, us, or Hunk. He got some scales from her. I think he kept them.

[Shiro sighs, pauses and holds up a finger. Right, he should warn about Dark Knight. He could just see Keith pick it up and get surprised.] Baiken uses Dark Knight. That job sacrifices of themselves in exchange for power.

Her wounds reopened as a price and...

[He spreads his hands.]

...Quiznak. [He brings a hand to his brow again.] Sounds like it was quite the mess.

[He grunts in agreement and leans into Keith, blowing out a breath a second later.]

That's about all the surprises I can think of off the top of my head. [When his head is full of things like 'so there's a clone of you'. 'You called out to me'. But no mention of what happened to him.

He has a solid lump of dread in his stomach at what the answer might be. He's not an idiot. If he wasn't inside the cockpit and had vanished. But...

He drops his head into his hand and shuts the door on those thoughts. Not yet.]

...Keith. Have you gotten any rest at all other than that nap in the cot?

[He knows that they have a lot to talk about. In private. Especially the brief hints he's given so far, but... he's tired. Not quite to the point of collapsing again, but, he leans back.]

No. [Unless we're counting losing consciousness because it was briefly pulled into Black?] Three or four battles in a row. Didn't have time to stop.

[Especially when the others were in danger. They needed him and he stepped up despite nearly...]

[He stares at him with open concern. Four battles in a row. Shiro touches his shoulder and gets up off the couch.] I'll be right back.

[He doesn't give Keith time to tell him yes or no. He walks away, disappearing through the door. He returns a few minutes later having nipped into the infirmary to grab a blanket.]

I want you to sleep for a few hours. I couldn't find any spare pillows but you're more than welcome to lean on me.

[Shiro holds out the blanket to him.] I'll be right here when you wake.

[Look, at least it wasn't nearly two days of nonstop fighting this time?] Shi-

[He was going to say he's fine, that he'd rather talk and could sleep later, but by the time he starts to say it, Shiro's already disappearing through the door. He sighs, leaning back against the couch they were sitting on. His mind trying to wrap itself around what was being said earlier. It's a lot to take in even without including his current state.

In the end, he takes the blanket and drapes it over his legs. He nods numbly.] Wake me up an hour before we land. [If the others moving about doesn't wake him, first.]

[He leans back against the couch to make himself a more comfortable pillow and nods. An hour gives Keith time to prepare and get some food into him. He needs that for the paperwork, processing, and the trip to another airship.] Of course. You'll need to eat before we land.

You're going to be a little busy when we get there. [If he's got the read on Keith's changes he'll be smart and get some shut-eye.]

[Which is exactly why he asked specifically for that amount of time. He trusts Shiro more than enough to keep watch even if it isn't necessary.]

Great. [Just what he needs. More to do. He'd ask what it is he'll be busy with but that can wait until he wakes up. He's out before his head even grazes his best friend's shoulder.]

[He spends the time Keith is asleep to update his notes and check in with his friends. It paints a picture of who he can expect and if the house sound get additions. Or purchasing the nearest house. So far they’ll all fit just fine. He saves his altered notes and notices the time.

Keith’s warm weight and soft breathing has been a gentle counterpoint to his thoughts. He had let himself feel frustrated and helpless while Keith was out. Now his churning emotions have settled. As he had planned.

Shiro turns his head slightly and calls out in a normal tone.]

Keith. Keith, it’s time. Once you’re up I’ll pour you some coffee and you need to eat a few sandwiches.

[It's probably for the best that he doesn't stir, then. He must have been really out of it if the others or the messages replaying in the background hadn't done it.

Yet all he dreams of is a black expanse lit up by a sea of stars. A low rumble of a growl and a sun in the distance.

Keith stirs the moment Shiro says his name; blinks as everything comes into focus and he sits up. Better, but his body is screaming for more. Which he'll likely get after whatever it is he has to do planetside first.]

Alright, I'm up. [His body doesn't want to be, but his mind's already starting to override that.] ...You doing okay?

[He knows he left a lot of bits and pieces out in the open with very little to connect them save the scar.]

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I apologize in advance for your inbox (1/?)

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fin

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Iiiit's Return of the Spoiler Hinting, oh boy...!

OH BOY

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