TEST DRIVE MEME

[eternitymods]

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. None of you know how you came to be here or where you are going, and the door to the cockpit is locked as the pilots focus on navigating the treacherous obstacles of the Dream Width. You might as well take this moment to introduce yourself to your fellow travelers. B. CURTI CENTER There’s an almost overwhelming aura of excitement in the tower as researchers rush to document this unprecedented number of interdimensional travelers. Over the commotion, the leaders of the Center struggle to explain, ‘Welcome to Vaikuntha. We don’t know why you’ve been brought here, but this is your new home.’ The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, provide maps and pamphlets about the world 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 under the circumstances. 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. WILD CARD Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Comments

Re: That sounds pretty cool!

[conniemaheswaran]

“Heartless?” Connie raises an eyebrow. “They, um, don’t sound very pleasant.”

[somebodyperfect]

"They aren't. They eat people's hearts, turning THEM into heartless, too." He's had a few personal encounters with them... And one of those he wasn't ready at all for. "They're creatures of darkness, and they bring down entire worlds."

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie grimaces. “They sound worse than Corrupted Gens, that’s for sure. At least all you have to worry about with then is getting killed.” She pauses, scrutinizing Lea. “Sounds like you have personal experience with these ‘Heartless’ things. Did one of them get your world, or... I mean, that’s certainly one way to wind up here.”

[somebodyperfect]

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago. I made it off." Sort of, but he's not going to tell the whole truth to some random stranger when he's not sure of it himself. "I'm not sure what I'm doing here, really."

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie grimaces. “...me neither, honestly. Last thing I remember was crashing in the Sun Incinerator after finally getting off that weird planet.”

[somebodyperfect]

"... Ok, what's a Sun Incinerator and why were you crashing in it?" That sounds EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. Not... that losing your world is any safer.

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie chuckles. “Oh, um, it’s just that, um, I’m sure you know this, but bad guys have this tendency to give everything over-the-top names. I mean, it is a top of the line Diamond Authority cruiser, but I’m fairly certain it can’t, um, actually incinerate stars. And, uh, I didn’t actually crash it. I meant sleeping. Yeah.”

[somebodyperfect]

"... Yeah, I definitely know that." CASTLE OBLIVION HIS (FLAT) ASS. "I was hoping you didn't mean like... crashing into the sun. Glad to know you didn't."

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie waits for a moment before saying, “But I did crash a fighter onto an alien moon with a hostile ecosystem.”

[somebodyperfect]

He pauses. "... How are you alive again?" Seriously. Girl, you need to rethink your life choices.

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie shrugs. “If it helps, it wasn’t technically me that took the hit that crashed our ship. It’s, um, a complicated situation. Very complicated.”

[somebodyperfect]

"Sounds it." Lea sighs, just a little. "So you have space adventures a lot, I take it?" That sounds interesting, admittedly. "Explains why you're so calm here."

[conniemaheswaran]

Laughing nervously, Connie says, “It’s not so much that I’m calm so much as I’m really good at compartmentalizing my panic. Trust me, I’m internally screaming about as much as I think you are right now. As for space adventures, believe it or not, that jungle moon mishap was my first. Well. In actual space, at least. I deal with aliens on a regular basis, but that’s not quite the same as, um, being in the stars.”

[somebodyperfect]

"... Yeah, that checks out." What part he's referring to he'll leave to her to decide; right now he's busy pressing his face into his hands and softly laughing. It's that or screaming. He finally pulls away to speak. "This whole situation is insane."

[conniemaheswaran]

"...you could say that again." Connie sighs, staring out into the stars with Lea. "As much as I want to have fun and explore the crazy stuff that's happening on Vaikuntha, I just... can't stop worrying about getting home."

[somebodyperfect]

"I guess I'm more ok with it... Don't really have a place to go." Or at least he doesn't think he does. "All my friends' worlds are overrun, my world too... There's Traverse Town I guess?"

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie winces. "It's really that bad where you're from? Yikes."

[somebodyperfect]

"Not BAD, just... Lots of lost worlds. It's pretty dangerous." He shrugs. "I want to keep my heart as safe as possible, you feel me?"

[conniemaheswaran]

"That sounds perfectly reasonable to me." Looking down at the world below, Connie shivers, lips pursed. "...I hope those Heartless things haven't made it here, then. If I have the rules of this world right, which I think I do, then, um, those 'Keyblades' would probably go up in smoke like the rest of peoples' powers if anybody with them came to Vaikuntha."

[somebodyperfect]

"I think they might be subject to the same rule. Since they're magic by nature, they might not be able to sustain themselves, or might turn into normal monsters, not magical ones... Then anyone could kill the most common ones, they're pretty weak." He shrugs. "Well. Weaker than a trained combatant, anyway."

[conniemaheswaran]

"Hopefully. I really don't want to deal with special super-powered zombies down there. That sounds like a bad time for everyone involved."

[somebodyperfect]

"They aren't quite zombies... In most cases, some look like ghosts. You got a pencil?" If she finds one, he'll take a pamphlet and sketch a Shadow on the back. If not, he'll describe it in detail.

[conniemaheswaran]

As a studious nerd, Connie always has at least three sharpened pencils, one highlighter, and two pens at all times. She hands one over to Lea, peering over his shoulder as he makes the sketch. "Huh. Those claws are nasty, but otherwise it looks kinda... cute, almost." She waves her hands in front of her face. "N-not that I don't believe you! Some of the Light Constructs were adorable too, and they were pretty lethal! But, um, I have to admit, that wasn't exactly what I was expecting."

[somebodyperfect]

"Now imagine this, but giant, buff, and throwing balls of darkness. That's how some of them look, too." He's never been expected to fight those often, thankfully, but he knows they're dangerous. "Or floating hourglasses with little witch-hats, or tiny soldiers... There are lots of kinds. This," he indicates the paper as he speaks, "... is just the most common and weakest, the ones that come first."

[conniemaheswaran]

"...oh." Connie frowns. "Y'know, compared to these guys, the stuff I've fought doesn't really, um, match up. In terms of threat. I mean, Homeworld's perfectly capable of turning planets into lifeless husks--at least that's what I've heard--but they don't, um. Turn people into more Gems. Or have a bunch of ominous shadowy-darknessy stuff going on with them."