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

[kuposcreed]

Bonnie looked down from her perch, studying the fluffy haired young man for a moment before offering a wave back. By the shape, out of the corner of her eye, she thought Cloud was here too, but this is an unfamiliar face. And an unfamiliar face to a moogle was a new mark friend!

"Kupo! My Hero, Mary, I woke up here and she wasn't here. Nobody's seen her, kupo. She'd probably be dressed like a pirate, kupo." Or maybe in one of those outfits that Saori's family had made for her. She looked really pretty in her eastern styled garb.

[warpstriking]

"A pirate, huh." And here he thought those were extinct... At least in his world. Anyway, he's just glad it's not all in Mooglespeak because he honestly has no idea what that all means. Thank the stars. "Anything else to tell her by? Hair? Eyes?"

Because look around; there's a lot of people dressed in all sorts of different ways. And what's a Hero; because he's pretty sure this moogle isn't talking about just some archetype.

[kuposcreed]

Wherever there's a hear that yearns for freedom...or for a good source of income preying upon undefended trade caravans, there will be pirates in one name or another. Of course Bonnie wasn't so read up on history, and only had Mary's stories to go by for Earth. And she was one of the "Good" pirates...sort of.

"Brown hair, and um, brown eyes too. But sometimes she dresses like a man. She calls herself James when she does that, kupo." She stops, frowning. Did she just make the search harder?

[warpstriking]

Fair enough. Perhaps he was simply lucky enough to never run into one, himself. That, ore just plain unlucky in every other which way. A crossdresser though, huh.

"Brown hair and eyes, sometimes calls herself James. Got it." It would be a little bit harder, but he's managed to find stranger people before. Some without meaning to. He turned to walk away, but paused as he looks up and over his shoulder at the fluffball. "Who should I say's looking for her?"

[kuposcreed]

Really his quick acceptance of her problem and his desire to help makes Bonnie's heart so much lighter. Maybe there IS a chance now that someone's helping.

"Ah, I'm Bonnie, kupo. I'm supposed to be her moogle. She helped save my world, so if I'm here, she must be here too, kupo." Such a devoted little squire.

[warpstriking]

That's just how he is, honestly. Even when he's breaking, helping others... It's something he can do when he can't handle other things.

"Uh, 'her moogle'?" he asks, eyebrow raised. Everything else, he can understand well. That level of devotion was familiar to him, and honestly? He could feel his heart ache. Even if his expression doesn't show it. "And I'm Noctis."

A name for a name.

[kuposcreed]

"Yes! On Crystallis some of us moogles were assigned to help support the Heroes who had come to save our world! I was her moogle and Mary was my Hero, kupo~" There's a rush of fangirlish joy that just runs under that little ramble.

She stops and then glances at the other moogles fluttering about. She feels like there's something there to all of this. Something she's not seeing just yet. Of course, if Mary WAS here then she's sure that everything would make sense then.