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

[warpstriking]

[Even if he didn't know - back home, red usually meant they were weak to ice, blue to lightning, and pale blue to fire. It was logic he used many times before, even though with flans... sometimes only light would do.

He does not have light, here - and he feels off about that. But the fact the color-coded elemental weaknesses remain a constant here? That he can deal with. He smirks behind his collar.]

Oh, don't worry. I was a mage back home, too.

[His entire line was. Though the way he used spells was different. could be stored in special-enchanted flasks for later use. This was far more like what his father and his Glaives used.

What he should have been able to use. Needless to say, a recast of Fire isn't withheld or delayed.]

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza almost turned toward the mage, and only rigorous training kept him from exposing his back to his enemy. He hungered for any mention of the Heroes...er...Interdimensional Travelers' home worlds.]

Really? Is it much the same?

[Probably not the best time for such a discussion, but Ramza wants so badly to know more.

The second spell is enough to burn the Elemental completely, and Ramza kneels to sift through the ash for the coins the creature dropped.]

This gil is yours by right.

[warpstriking]

[It's a good thing he doesn't. And while he doesn't mind combat banter (he loves it), getting distracted in midbattle? Never a good idea.

Only when the Ice Elemental is dead does he answer that question.]

Some of it is. The spell names, for one. My dad and I didn't need a medium to cast with, but I chose to turn mine into grenades so it would be easier for my friends.

>[He'll take some, but not all of it.] Keep some. You kept them off me.

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza pockets the remaining gil, even though protecting others is his duty, so he really does not need to get paid for it. He won't protest what the really cool Black Mage has declared his share, though.]

A magical grenade? Are you a mage-chemist, then? I did not think those jobs to be so compatible.

[warpstriking]

I guess that's how you guys would see it, huh.

[He rubs the back of his neck with is free hand, pocketing the gil with the other.]

Nah, it's just a way to let others who normally can't use magic to do so.

[He's not going to mention how half his powers were essentially nerfed before coming here and it's just easier to do things that way for himself, too, nope.]

[zodiac_brave]

'Can't do magic'? [Ramza frowns.] Do you mean Freelancers?

[There's pity in his voice. The freelancer's lot in life is not an easy one.]

It is good of you to help them so.

[warpstriking]

Something like that.

[He shrugs. Really, he doesn't pity normal people. Hell, for most of his life, part of him wished he could be on the same level. Not treated as something special.]

It's not a gift given freely. The people I shared my powers with... they were my bodyguards; my brothers.

[He corrects himself quickly.]

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza swallows the urge to ask how freelancers could be bodyguards, because obviously they are important to the mage, and he does not wish to cause insult.]

I understand. You gave aid to your brothers-in-arms, as true warriors do. [Magical power as Ramza knows it comes from within, so to share it with a stranger would be overly intimate. He does not blame the man for being selective with who he lends power.]

You said your father was a mage as well. Is that why you chose to study magic?

[warpstriking]

[Nah, it wouldn't be an insult. In fact he'd probably go into a lot more detail of how some in Eos have more aptitude than others and etc due to their place of birth.

That, however, would probably break Ramza's brain. That question, however... it gives him pause.]

...It was one of my sworn duties. [He frowns.] Magic only runs in two bloodlines back on Eos. Mine, and the Oracle's. My family's is more similar to black magic here, her's was similar to white. Both could call upon the gods like a summoner calls the eidolons.

[zodiac_brave]

There are only two families in the whole world who can do magic? [So much for sparing Ramza's brain. How could a world function without magic? Ramza cannot fathom it.]

That is a grave duty to bear. I cannot imagine.... Do your people rely solely on chemists for healing?

[warpstriking]

Yeah. Gotta say, it was pretty mind-blowing; seeing just how many magic Jobs there are here. [Just like Ramza couldn't fathom only two families being able to use magic, he couldn't have fathomed seeing how this world functioned.]

Sort of. We call them doctors back home, though there was one old woman out in the forest who I guess would fit the bill of chemist more accurately. Most everyone else who fights solely uses weapons, but no magical skills involved.

[zodiac_brave]

What do your warriors do when they face Elementals in battle? They must be amazing warriors to be able to compensate. I would love to see their fighting style.

[He is imagining an army of swordmasters, which sounds amazing. Just the coolest.]