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

i promised a tag. :') also we'll do CRAU from his time in SB just for shenanigans, he had armor!Al.

[insubordination]

[ indeed, this isn't roy's first song and dance, either, though he definitely didn't wake up in a spaceship, last time. immediately, he wants to seek out riza, hughes, but before he can properly digest and absorb what's going on, amd mobilize into action . . . he hears the voice before he sees the boy -- hey, there. i'm al. are you doing okay?.

it takes some doing, sorting through the people, to spot alphonse -- and immediately, there's a crushing relief in his chest, because alphonse is how he should be. whole, not in the damn armor.

it figures. ]

Alphonse Elric.

[ roy's voice tends to carry even when he doesn't mean it to. authoritative, but fond, as always, when it comes to these two idiot brothers. and he waits, for alphonse to catch his attention, when he allows himself the tiniest of exasperated sighs. ]

I always seem to find you in the midst of madness.

[ CAN'T WE HAVE ONE NORMAL THING ]

[sonofgold]

[Al freezes when he hears the voice- familiar, but one he still hasn't heard in quite a long time. Years, perhaps. He politely ends his current conversation and slowly approaches Roy, a slow grin spreading across his face. The Colonel is here, he's real, and the fact that he's not blind tells Al he's either found a way to get back what was taken, or he's from an earlier point in time than that.

Either way, it doesn't matter.

He salutes his friend; he can't help but do so. It seems appropriate somehow.]

Colonel. That's how Brother and I tend to do things, isn't it?

[insubordination]

[ colonel. but alphonse has his body. roy has to backtrack a little bit, all-too familiar with how these timelines work. and once he (sort of) figures out where al must be, his shoulders relax a little bit, his lips tugging into a slight smile at the salute.

roy returns it, perhaps a little mockingly -- since when did the elrics ever salute him? -- and he soon steps up to meet alphonse where he's at. ]

Brigadier General. [ a mild correction, but judging from his tone, roy doesn't really seem to give half a damn. the elrics have always been the exception to the rule in terms of respecting rank. ] And I'd say so, though I would've hoped you'd retire by now.

[ he pauses. ]

It's good to see you, Alphonse. As you are.

[ he might've accidentally freaked out on the last alphonse he met in the coven. oops. ]

[sonofgold]

[Al has to chuckle at the correction, nodding along in agreement. This was the same old Mustang he knew, and it's good to have a conversation with someone from his world. It'd been so long since Ling had been in the fleet, even.]

It's good to see you, too, sir. And I was preparing to travel to Xing to learn alkahestry when I left home- does that count as retirement?