Intro Log || This Keeps Happening

[melodiesmods]

Characters: All the "Heroes of Light" (only new characters can start threads).
Where: Aqures Ixen.
When: The 5th of January. The new Heroes of Light will awaken early in the morning.
Summary: The new Heroes of Light awaken in Aqures Ixen and are informed by their assigned Moogles of what the situation and what their destinies are. This a log for them to react to the situation, meet each other and be welcomed by the former batches of Heroes of Light.
Warning: Snow. Also some leftover decorations from Christmas.

Where you were or what you were doing— It does not really matter. Not any more. Within an instant, the world around you collapses. Reality twists and shatters... Or maybe you are the one who is collapsing and shattering away from reality as you knew it. No matter what the answer is, it will only take a few seconds for you to find yourself sinking into a void, your world vanishing into the distance. There is nothing but darkness as far as the eye can see. Even you feel different: all the powers you might once have had, are now gone. It is silent, cold and it feels as though life itself is slipping out of you.

At this moment, when it looks as though nothing but a never-ending void awaits you, a red Crystal forms before you. In this void, its warmth compels you to grab it. Upon doing so, you can hear a soft, soothing voice speaking:


"Wake up."

Soon, the void itself vanishes and is replaced by distant noises of engines. Had it all been nothing more than a dream? The soothing voice repeats its call one more time, but is soon replaced with a much less graceful "Wake up Kupo." Hand clutched on your Crystal, the call of the Moogle may finally wake you up. But you are no longer in your world, nor in the void. You are before the Crystal of Fire, in the third district of a city called Aqures Ixen. At this point, you may realize the engine noise actually originates from an Airship flying low over the city and headed to dock beneath the castle. As if it wasn't strange enough, your clothes have changed as well. They are now a reflection of the Jobs you are wielding. Last but not least, you are surrounded by Moogles, small and fluffy creatures who are more than happy to tell you about everything you want to know, about your 'destiny' as a Hero of Light, about what awaits you.

Or at least, they will tell you everything they do know, which isn't much in the end.

The only people around you are like you-- There are quite a few of them, all clothed in their Job garbs and most likely wondering what is happening. If somehow you do not realize it, the Moogle who woke you up will be more than happy to inform you there are others like you around. In fact, there are other Heroes who have arrived in the course of the past year and they will come soon! Like you, they have Jobs and a Crystal.

If asked, the Moogles will mention that the Heroes of Light - that is to say you - are fighting against time to save Crystallis from the Calamity that is about to awaken to devour the entire world. Sounds terrible? Welcome to Crystallis.


The Other Heroes
— Shortly Thereafter —
Thanks to the efficiency of Mognet, it does not take long for the other Heroes to come around: those who arrived in this world within the past year. You may have imagined heroic and charismatic figures when your Moogle told you that there were other Heroes of Light in this city. You may have imagined persons with fearsome powers when they told you about how they managed to push back the Empire and defeat gigantic beasts in the past. And more importantly, you may have imagined them as people who would have all the answers to your, doubtlessly, numerous questions.

If so, you may be up for a tragic disappointment. Still, for the most part they know more than you on the situation and may be more than happy to fill you in, especially if your Moogle didn't tell you much.


The City of Aqures Ixen
— Anytime —
With Christmas being barely over, there are still Christmas Decoration in the streets, and while the reconstruction are nearly over, there are still traces of the attack the Empire led against the city six months ago. A few buildings are being worked on.

And besides the decorations and reconstructions, there are a lot of things to do in the city for newcomers. A few groups of Triple Triad players are playing before Mognet Office in the ninth district, and a Blitzball Match is set to start at 20:00 in the stadium! Characters are also free to visit the city-- Mognet Office just behind the Triple Triad games is filled with Moogles, most of them discussing about the election for the future director of Mognet. They can also visit Airship Port in the twelfth district from where characters can board for free Airships from Shoopuf Airline.

Or maybe you could visit your new house in the 11th District, and get to know your new neighbors and housemate. Hopefully your neighbors are people you will get along with.


The Laboratory
— Anytime —
A location where a lot of Heroes of Light seem to be gathering is Palitutu's Laboratory. It is a place where employed characters can research into various topics. However, most importantly, characters can see a file with their name...

Should your character decide to go there and peek at their file, there are two possibilities. Either the file is corrupted and they cannot access it: too bad for them, but at least their life will remain a mystery. Or should you decide the file isn't corrupted, they will find a summary of their lives up to their canon point, as if written by a third-person omniscient narrator. On the column left to the text, to the top there is a portrait of them, and beneath it there is a 3D model of them. Said portrait and model can be switched to any year of their life. At the bottom there is a percentage, indicating 0%. On the right column, there are various links, most of which are grayed out. The clickable links lead to their Homeworld History and their future post-canon point history (corrupted file for unfinished canons).

At least, they can lock this file away if they don't want anyone to see it.

The Hospital
— Anytime —
Characters who have already been in Crystallis before do not wake up by the Crystal of Fire like everyone else. Instead, they will wake up in the Hospital of Aqures Ixen, in a room where there are over a hundred of other Heroes of Light like them-- Maybe even some familiar faces... Except they're all in Crystal Stasis.

A couple Moogles and a few nurses will be waiting by the room, and they will welcome all characters waking up. Upon exiting the room, they will also meet a lot of guards, and they all have for order to shoot anyone that comes out of this room without a Moogle. Hopefully you won't try running out without waiting for your Moogle. As for why the guards are so on edge, it might be a good idea to ask the other Heroes of Light about what happened a couple months ago.


Close Encounters of the Third(?) Kind
— 15:00 —
Characters venturing by between the city's outskirts and the Chocobo Farm at this specific time will be able to see a most peculiar sight: a flying saucer seemingly abducting a Chocobo before flying away and disappearing into the sky without leaving any traces of its presence. If your character do see it, hopefully there will be someone with them. Otherwise, nobody will believe their story.

Was it an UFO or just a hallucination? Previous sightings of such a thing have happened. It might be a good idea to investigate this sometimes...

Comments

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

Waking Up

Erika had gotten up off the ground with Coffret laying next to her in a daze. She sat up, rubbing her head. "Geez, what was that all about?" she groused as she picked up the dizzy Coffret. "What was all of that huh?"

"Like I have any idea," moaned Coffret, looking a little green in the face from the sudden arrival.

"Kupo, you two are pretty new here huh," said the moogle next to them. "Don't worry, I'll give you a grand tour of the area!"

"AH! It talked!" Exclaimed Erika, pointing at the moogle as Coffret took flight to look at him.

"Hey, what are you trying to pull? Erika's MY partner!"

"It's just how this place works, kupo. We need more partners!" Exclaimed Kuplo Kopp.

"Yeah well... Erika doesn't need another partner, she has me!" Protested Coffret.

"Hold on you two, stop getting so upset at one another. There's a more important thing to discuss." said Erika as the pair looked at her curiously. "What happened to my CLOTHING?!"

"Oh..." the pair chorused.


The City
"This place is a lot more damaged than I expected," said Erika, carrying Coffret and walking around with Kuplo Kopp floating behind her. "I wonder if they have clothing stores?"

"They should, because this is a city where people live in kupo," said Kuplo Kopp.

"Yeah well I coulda told you that," grumbled Coffret from Erika's arms.


Close Encounters
GASP.

That UFO was taking those giant birds!

"THIS WILL NOT STAND!" Exclaimed Erika, posing as she had been told to go get herself a chocobo for her job. "Coffret!"

"HAI DESU PRECURE SEED GO!"

...

"I SAID PRECURE SEED GOOOOO!"

.......

"Well this sucks. Which means there's only one thing to do!"

Erika took a hold of Kuplo Kopp in one hand and Coffret in the other. And reared back.

"ERIKA DOUBLE BOMBER!"

And she hurled the pair bodily at the UFO.

Waking up

[bag_has_snapped]

Tsubomi couldn't explain why she decided to come visit the Temple of Fire, more or less bring Chypre with her. Yet, she did and she went to investigate who was all there. Something of a small group this time, but she came to a stop as she heard a familiar screech. Her heart stopped at that.

"It... It couldn't..." Tsubomi uttered before turning to see the source of the screech.

"E... Erika?"

Re: Waking up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

Erika knew the timid voice anywhere and she turned towards Tsubomi with a relieved smile on her face. "Tsubomi! There you are!"

She paused at her friends appearance. "Looking good!"

Re: Waking up

[bag_has_snapped]

Erika, it may be a short while since you saw Tsubomi last, but for Tsubomi, it's been eight months. Once Erika gets close, Tsubomi lets out a choked sob as she throws her arms around her. "ERIKA!"

Re: Waking up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"Whoa! Tsubomi...!" Erika was surprised but she hugged her all the same.

"Geez, Tsubomi, you're such a crybaby." Teased Erika as she let the still taller girl cling to her.

"Her partner," clarified Coffret to the Moogle. "Chypre!"

Re: Waking up

[bag_has_snapped]

"Coffret-desu!" The fairy chirped out, glomping her companion.

"I-I'm sorry, Erika. It's just... Y-you're the first person from home I've seen in months!" Tsubomi said, pulling back and sniffing as she did, a wobbly smile forming on her face.

Re: Waking up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"Months? Is this some kind of time dilation trap or something?" asked Erika with a bewildered expression on her face.

"Well don't you worry, I'm here now and I'll make sure you're happy!"

Close Encounters!

[neverfirstclass]

"Damnit not again!" The shout came from behind Erika, accompanied by the sound of something large running. Cloud ran up alongside her on a yellow chocobo, tugging on the reins to pull it to a halt.

The UFO was already vanishing into the night sky. If he was on Zack, Cloud was sure he'd be able to catch it this time but not with Comet.

"And they're taking Chocobos now!"

Re: Close Encounters!

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"This kind of shenanigans are common around here?" demanded Erika, turning towards Cloud. Her moogle and fairy, sufficiently ruffled, floated down next to her. "Hey you two, why did you stop chasing it?"

"We can't move that fast," chorused Kuplo Kopp and Coffret, seconds before Coffret realized he was talking in front of another Hero and he assumed doll stance, dropping to the snowy ground instantly.

Erika picked him up quickly and asked, "What do you mean NOW? Were they abducting maidens or something?"

Re: Close Encounters!

[neverfirstclass]

"No. I've seen them before. They grabbed some cows that time. Now they're after Chocobos." The blonde narrowed his eyes, glaring off into the distance. He seemed far more upset about the taken birds than any other detail of the story. At least his distraction kept him from noticing Coffret. As far as he was concerned it must have been the moogle.

A moogle which he only just now noticed. "Oh...you're one of the new Heroes, right? I'm Cloud."

Re: Close Encounters!

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"Huh, it's like those old stories of abducting aliens then," grumbled Erika, scowling deeply for a moment.

"Oh? Yeah, I'm Erika Kurumi. Nice to meet you Cloud."

Re: Close Encounters!

[neverfirstclass]

"Erika, nice to meet you. Sorry you've been pulled from your old world but this one isn't so bad...most of the time. So these abducting aliens are something from your world too?"

Re: Close Encounters!

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"Eeeh not exactly? Like there's always been stories of aliens abducting things and people and stuff... but I've never seen it for myself," admitted Erika. "If you believe in all of that."

Waking Up

[scriptrix]

[Levy had come out to greet the new Heroes, but for the moment all she can do is watch as this argument plays out in front of her. After a time, though, she slowly steps forward, raising a hand sheepishly.]

Ah... am I interrupting something? I can come back if you'd like.

Re: Waking Up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

Just a little argument...! [Exclaimed Erika for a moment before Coffret realized he had a human audience and he dropped to the ground like a doll.

Scooping him up, she grinned a little.] Hi, what's up?

Re: Waking Up

[scriptrix]

An argument. With your... doll?

[Levy eyes that suspiciously.]

Re: Waking Up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

Uh, yeah, totally a doll!

[Kuplo Kopp sighed deeply as Coffret tried to keep a straight face.]

So uh, I'm Erika Kurumi.

Re: Waking Up

[scriptrix]

[This face at Coffret. But only for a moment.]

Levy McGarden. You're new here, right?

Re: Waking Up

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

[Coffret's face tried not to make a face back at her.]

Yeah, I just woke up a while ago. The moogle told me about this place but it's really weird.

Close Encounters

[theendiswherewestartfrom]

Deep down, Jack hates flying saucers. It is the most common cliche, and most common false report of a spaceship sighting that, nonetheless, Jack always had to chase down and investigate, no matter how ridiculous the rumor was, because the most dangerous species in all of time and space just happened to build their war ships in the shape of saucers.

But once he's actually caught sight of this one, and seen that is is not, in fact, a Dalek battleship, he is doing something even stranger than Erika and trying to flag it down.

"Hey! He-ey! Down! Here!" Completely futile, as the saucer flies off with one stolen chocobo. Jack pulls up short just as he comes even with Erika. He half-bends over and braces his hands on his knees as he tries to breathe. "Darn it."

Re: Close Encounters

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"Sucks, doesn't it?" groused Erika as her Moogle and Fairy returned, and she plucked Coffret out of the air as he assumed Doll Stance, weird face and all.

"I can't believe those things took the bird thing!"

Re: Close Encounters

[theendiswherewestartfrom]

"Chocobo," Jack automatically supplies. "Why would they want a chocobo?" Jack takes a few more breaths before he stands up fully again. "Well. Maybe, why wouldn't they want a chocobo. They're awfully nice." A smile between red cheeks.

He takes a look at a leather strap around his wrist. Not a watch, it's far too complicated. It shows him nothing, though. Either they're too far away, or there's no dimensional energy left by that ship.

Jack seems to finally take a closer look at Erika and realize he doesn't know her. "Ah- I'm Jack. Captain Jack Harkness. Sorry, flying saucer. Usually not this rude."

Re: Close Encounters

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"No problem. I'm Erika Kurumi. I'm new here obviously. I just got in this morning, and came out here to check out the chocobo things."

Looking up into the sky, she muttered, "At least it isn't Dune. The last thing we need is the Desert Apostles coming around to ruin everyone's day."

Re: Close Encounters

[theendiswherewestartfrom]

"Oh! Well, I guess, welcome to Crystallis, Erika Kurumi." Jack laughs a little and holds out a hand. "I knew today was the day new people were set to arrive." Jack gestures for her to follow the rest of the way towards the Chocobo Farm. "You've got to see the birds, they're one of the best parts about being here." His whole face lights up just from talking about going up there.

"Dune," Jack muses. Sadly, Jack is unfamiliar with the works of Herbert. "Do you have aliens back in your world at home?"

Re: Close Encounters

[stupid_erika_shenanigans]

"They are pretty awesome," admitted Erika. "The things I could do designing an outfit based on them!"

At the second question, she nodded. "Yeah, our world has a, I wouldn't say habit but it's got a lot of out of this world attackers. Fortunately there's always the Pretty Cure to defend the world from evil."