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

[waterstrikes]

I. Waking Up

It could have been worse. Tidus jolted up, and after he realized that none of the Moogles looked really dangerous, and as weird as this was, it didn’t look like a dream, he started to relax. Actually, he rolled his eyes like he was annoyed.

The Moogles explained everything, making it pretty easy to understand for someone who wasn’t familiar with this world. Normally, Tidus might have interrupted with his own questions, but instead when they finished, he placed his hands behind his head, glancing up at the Crystal. Pretty.

“Maybe you should start asking people whether they want to be your Warriors of Light or whatever before bringing them here against their will?”

“But your return was prophesized, kupo! And the world of Crystallis desperately needs you.” one of the Moogles spoke up. Tidus glanced at him. The Moogle had been floating closer to him than any of the others and it was starting to bother him a little.

“Yeah. Okay.” Tidus scoffed and rolled his eyes, beginning to walk away. He scrubbed at his eyes. His head swam and this was all hard to process. Him? Some kind of hero? Sure, he tried to do the right thing, but this was…

He actually wanted to scream.

At least in Spira, he had kind of sort of had a choice as to where he went. Or the illusion of one. He had to get back there. He still had to confront someone, and he had to make sure Yuna didn’t sacrifice herself at all.

“Where are you going, kupo?” The moogle asked, still floating after him. He was persistent. Tidus didn’t stop walking, but he did answer him. “I don’t know. Why are you following me?”

“I’ve been assigned to you! My name is Mogtide, kupo.”

That wasn’t the weirdest thing about today. Tidus nodded, and decided to look for any of these other Heroes of Light.

II. The City

Tidus wasn’t sure where he was heading to in the city. The logical answer would have been where he was assigned to live, but he still found the whole situation too surreal to not wander around and stare at everything. He was glad to at least not to be surrounded by Moogles anymore. There were still Moogles, but not as many. That wasn’t the worst way to wake up, but there had been too many in a small vicinity. And cute or not, he wasn’t sure if he trusted them.

At least his memories were intact. As far as he knew, anyway.

“Mogtide?”

“What is it, kupo?”

Tidus stopped walking. “Is it true that Blitzball is a thing here?”

“That’s right! A match is about to start pretty soon. If you run, you might even manage to find a seat, kupo! Have you heard of Blitzball before? Did you want to go see it?”

“No, I mean, it’s fine. Not right now.” But did that mean Crystallis had a connection to his world deeper than simply summoning him here to what? Save the world? There was no way. He might have been Yuna’s guardian, but that hadn’t seem to matter to Chaos.

But if they were connected somehow, maybe...

Tidus broke into a run, ignoring (or just oblivious to) Mogtide’s sounds of protests as he floated after him. He had just been summoned here, so maybe there had been others too that he had somehow missed. The Warriors of Cosmos, one of the other guardians, or even...

He had to find out. He had to look everywhere and ask everyone, and he wouldn’t give up until he was certain.

[grandsummon]

( continued & shoe-horned in... )

She was the one that was supposed to have an old hand in the apology game. Funny, she didn't think there was any reason for him to say those words either... and maybe, just for now at least... it was better not to think about it any more.

There was an enthusiastic shake of her head at that. Even if she had plans she was supposed to attend to, it all seemed hardly important compared to this. To his finally being here...

"Why don't I show you more of the city?" if he'd just arrived, there was a chance that he was still getting used to things, and everyone knew Yuna had a penchant for helping. Memories of dragging him all around the stadium in Luca surfaced from the corners of her mind, thoughts, happy moments she had been denying herself... for fear that they'd remain phantoms forever.

But there was no need for it now, and as she looked at him, she couldn't help but feel a brightness, a warmth radiating from him... just like the sun.

[waterstrikes]

If Yuna wanted to not think about what happened, he was fine with playing around. Distracting people (and himself) was his specialty.

"Sure, I'd like that." He smiled softly. He would have understood if she had other things to do, but he was glad she didn't. Now that she had found him, he didn't want to leave her side any time soon. If he were being honest, though, he probably would have tagged along with her if she was busy. He was her Guardian. It wasn't an excuse, not at all.

He poked his head back in the locker room to yell a quick and mindless goodbye, ignoring whatever his teammates said, or just not paying attention in the first place.

"Where to first?"

[grandsummon]

"Come on, this way!" she couldn't help it, riding the high that she felt in that moment. Without even realizing it she had reached for his hand and moved to take a hold of it, rushing excitedly out of the locker room area and out into the open city's sky. Taking a moment to look up at the bright sun, although the winter's cold had long since set in, she had never felt warmer. A cozy, familiar feeling. It was... ... nice.

"Well... you already know about the stadium now, which was really the most surprising thing about Crystallis," it had been for her at least, upon her own arrival. "But since it's close by, I'll show you Mognet Central!" With that, she was off again, feeling lighter than she had in a long time, and leading the way to the Ninth District.

"You know," Yuna started, slowing her pace just a little and lowering her head sheepishly, "before this, and before the war... I thought that moogles were... just sort of like mythical creatures, but..." as she approached the building, which seemed to be brimming with white-fluffed excitement and activity, "just like the helped us during the Conflict, here in this world they're really something! Mognet Central is where they sort and send all of our letters, delivering them by hand-- er, paw," she chuckled just a little at her own expense.

[idleskypirate]

Vaan had been wandering, a bit aimlessly, in the Ninth District with Montblanc in tow. He chewed absently on a candied apple he'd filched, Montblanc keeping silent this time about his thieving habits. Why lecture when Vaan was clearly depressed still about his friend's crystallization? But Vaan suddenly perked up, mid-bite, as he watched Yuna pull a blond young man that he was pretty sure he'd seen before to MogNet Central. Wasn't that the guy...?

The sky pirate followed along, silently for now, as he listened in on their chatter. It was Yuna's little joke that broke their silence, with Montblanc snorting. "You can say hand, kupo, we wouldn't be offended."

"Be nice, Mont." Well, that was certainly a switch, Vaan chastising his Moogle?

[waterstrikes]

Tidus laughed. He felt warm from seeing her so happy, and he ran with her, his eyes fixated on the hand that grasped his. There were still a lot of things he wanted to say, but right now he was just enjoying the moment.

"Mognet Central?" Maybe he should have been paying more attention. He found himself looking around. Some of what he saw was familiar, other stuff was new, especially when they approached the Ninth District.

"I thought moogles were just stuffed animals. When I first got to Spira," He had learned that wasn't the case, at least not everywhere, during the war. He found himself smiling without realizing he was at her little chuckle. "So we're going to their--"

He turned his head when he heard the moogle. A moogle, especially this close to Mognet Central, wasn't that surprising. When he saw Vaan though, he stopped. He felt a little awkward at first, but he wasn't sure if Vaan recognized him.

"Hey! It's you!" Because that explained everything.

City

[neverfirstclass]

Speaking of Warriors of Cosmos, a familiar tuft of spikey blond hair rounded a corner and onto the main street. The blonde teen just barely had enough time to spin out of the way, clutching onto a lamppost to keep his balance, a large sword at his back swaying and threatening to pull him down.

"Woah! Hey watch it!" The voice was the same. And the face was almost there, though about five years younger and a lot more emotive than the Cloud of World B. A bespectacled moogle fluttered out of the alleyway to his side.

"Is everything alright, kupo?"

[waterstrikes]

Tidus was so intent on locating anyone he knew or at least knew of, that he almost ignored Cloud until he realized he recognized his voice. If his shoes could screech, they would have when he stopped himself and turned around, hoping he wasn't just imagining things.

"Cloud?!"

It was Cloud! But he looked...

Tidus frowned, leaning forward, as if that somehow made any difference while he tried to get a better look at him. "Did you shrink?"

There was a loud voice following him that he realized belonged to the moogle who insisted on following him. "I can't float that fast, kupo!"

[neverfirstclass]

Another one?! It'd been a long time but ANOTHER person who knew him that he didn't know? He searched his fuzzy memories of that one dream but it wasn't someone from his future on Gaia. Still, there was something familiar about him. Some description he'd heard from someone before.

"I, uh, yeah, I'm Cloud. I'm sorry but...who are you? I...might not be the Cloud you remember. This isn't the first time this has happened." Cloud looked somewhere between embarrassed and just a touch upset at the situation. The arrival of the moogle made his eyes light up in understanding. "You're one of the new Heroes." At least he wasn't being mistaken from his doppelganger.

[waterstrikes]

Cloud didn't remember him? Sure, they hadn't talked much, but it still caught him by surprise. Understanding started to dawn on him as he listened to his explanation.

"I'm not sure I fully understand. But that explains why you look younger. I'm Tidus, by the way. We fought on the same side." He was still glad to see him. He shrugged absently. "Apparently. So are you." It was still weird to think about in too much depth.

I. Waking Up: Awkward

[whereishe]

Yuna heard the familiar voice before she even saw who it belonged too. She had felt awkward going to meet the new heroes but that didn't stop her and now she was at a loss. Seeing Tidus made her pause as if he was a piece of a dream that had faded. As far as she knew he was gone.

How many years had it been? He wouldn't even recognize her.

"Tidus?" Her voice sounded so strange to her and then she tried to remember the last time she called his name. "Is it really you?"

It wasn't a dream, it wasn't Shuyin.

Pain gripped at Yuna's heart and she felt herself take a step away from him. There was another Yuna here, more likely this wasn't the Tidus she knew.

[waterstrikes]

Maybe Tidus should have had an easier time accepting things by now when it came to being pulled into a different world. Just because he was here, didn't mean anyone else would be. Still, giving up wasn't something he wanted to do at this point. Besides, Yuna would have made a better Warrior of Light. Many of the people he knew would have. It just...made sense to him.

None of that stopped him from practically jumping when he heard her voice. He probably shouldn't have been so shocked. She had clearly been brought with him.

"Yuna!" He beamed, actually looking at her now.

"Did you cut your hair? It looks good! Wait, when did you have time to cut your hair? I just woke up... Did you wake up before me or something?" He knitted his eyebrows together, confused. And he didn't miss that step away. He suddenly felt cold, and he didn't step forward out of guilt. Was she upset over what had happened before?

[whereishe]

There was far too much to explain to put into a single sentence but Yuna was determined to try. She closed her eyes inhaling the cold air and feeling its sting along her lungs.

"I've been here since November of last year." Her voice was calm and her expression was stoic. "And before that another world." It wasn't a world that Tidus would remember either. The only person from home there she had seen was Baralia.

Her fingers moved in front of her, thin digits lacing nervously together as her mind tumbled and pulled through every thought. There were so many things she wanted to say but the words just slipped away. She felt tears sting her eyes but pushed those away as she stood to face Tidus. "It's been a very long time...Tidus" Saying his name made this feel far too real for comfort.

"It's been 4 years since..." Yuna froze realizing that she wasn't able to tell him. She's gone this long without the other Yuna finding out her future. She's kept everything inside, even knowing Tidus's fate she can't bring herself to say anything.

[waterstrikes]

Something was wrong. Tidus was more sure as to what when Yuna mentioned how long she had been here. She had been alone, or that was what he assumed. A wave of empathy washed over him. He didn't know the details, but he could understand why she was acting so guarded.

"Was the other world where we were fighting eachother? I remember now, Yuna. But I can understand if you...I'm sorry." The apology felt weak, but he didn't know what else to say. He scratched the back of his neck, glancing up in time to see her eyes become suspiciously shiny.

He found himself taking a step forward, only to freeze in his tracks. It felt like the air had been sucked out of him. Four years?! How was that even possible? But even if he couldn't wrap his head around it, he knew Yuna was telling the truth. He finally was able to stop staring, and he glanced down. He hadn't kept his promise as a guardian. He felt terrible about it.

Finally, he forced himself to smile, glancing at her.

"It looks like we have some catching up to do."

The City

[pole_position]

Ah! Excuse me...!

[After overhearing the brief conversation about blitzball, it looks like Tidus has attracted the attention of a certain redhead. She jogs after him and his moogle, waving her hand in the air.]

[waterstrikes]

[He kept running, but when he saw Pyrrha in his line of sight, he began to slow down. Who was she talking to? When no one else reacted, Tidus realized it might have been him. He stopped and waved back, resting his hands behind his head in a lazy motion until she caught up. Mogtide seemed grateful about that.]

Uh...hi!

[pole_position]

Hello!

[She gives a friendly wave, followed by a several second awkward pause.]

...I overheard you and your moogle talking about blitzball. I've just joined the team recently, and it sounds like you've played it before.

[waterstrikes]

[He finds himself slowly smiling.]

Yeah. Star Player of the Zanarkand Abes!

[He gestures to himself, even pretend-kicking an imaginary blitzball. Nevermind that she probably has no idea which team that was. He has no sense of embarrassment. Maybe he had been missing this.]

Did you need someone on your team?

The City

[victorix]

Rikku had been idling on a rooftop, shadowing her eyes while she scouted for pockets to pick. Instead the sight of the blond streaking like a much hated lightning bolt below had the girl burst to her feet.

The next moment the Ninja appears a short way before Tidus - lest he run her over, in a fanfare of black curling clouds using her Smoke Bomb ability. Much to the chagrin of those near her as they startle away.

There’s a large grin on her face – part of the fun of her job is arriving in style. The Al Bhed is overtaken by the enthusiasm of seeing her friend and fellow guardian and jumps up and down, waving her hands widely above her head in greeting.

[waterstrikes]

Immediately, Tidus jumps back, unsure of whether the smoke was prelude to an attack. Mogtide exclaims and flies beside him. He shifts into a defensive stance, Brotherhood held close to him, and is ready to fight...

Until Rikku jumps down, and he nearly drops his sword, stunned, before beaming and running over to her.

"Rikku! You're here too!"

[victorix]

It’s only when Tidus startles like the rest of the townsfolk and readies himself that Rikku realizes her folly. She’d been so happy to see him that the thought hadn’t occurred it might be his doppelganger. His poor moogle had not even caught up yet when she’d jumped down so she had no proof he was a newly arrived hero – she’d simply assumed, one hundred percent, it had to be him.

Eh heh heh. Whoopsie! That could have been super awkward.

The smile his appearance brought stays on her lips, she has the urge to smack him to make sure he's really there, which causes a light giggle before she chides playfully, "Course I am. You sure took your time getting here, slowpoke.”

[waterstrikes]

Tidus is ecstatic to see Rikku. He hadn’t anticipated running into anyone he knew so soon, and Rikku, with her upbeat personality, makes this whole place seem less unfamiliar and overwhelming.

“Are you going to do this every time I end up somewhere different? Throw some kind of bomb to greet me?” He scoffs playfully, folding his arms. “Not all of us can be as fast as you. If you think I’m so slow, how about we race and find out for sure?”

While he challenges Rikku, Mogtide finally manages to catch up. “No racing, I just got here.”

“Oh...sorry," his apology is awkward, and not entirely sincere. He had been so focused, he had forgotten about the moogle. There’s a brief twinge of guilt, but at the same time, he’s known Rikku for a while and had no idea up to that point if he would even see her again. “But we could still race!” He turns his attention back on Rikku. “How long have you been here, anyway?”

[vonspielburg]

Ellie hadn't planned on being here at all, but her Moogle had made a good point: there could very well be others here, possibly even Toro or Yorick. She wouldn't have minded seeing either of them again. But even if no one showed up that she could trust, or find to be of use, it didn't hurt to at least establish good public relations with other Heroes.

It wasn't really easy for her, but some found the blunt Germanic woman to be pleasant company, if a little strict and no-nonsense.

She moved through the small assortment, her dark eyes lingering on each person's face long enough to memorize it and be more aware of who was new, and who had come in hopes of finding a known friend. Finally she came to Tidus, and she regarded him coolly for a few moments. Young, about her age. Fit. A warrior, perhaps? But...no, perhaps not the kind she needed. She would just make his acquaintance, then.

"Hello. You are new here, yes?" she spoke in her heavily accented voice. "I am called Ellie. I suppose a welcome is in order.

[waterstrikes]

Why was she staring? He could separate himself from it when it was a crowd, but when someone actually took the time to pay attention, he found himself shifting on his feet awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck. He tried to act casual though, nodding when she finally spoke.

"Yeah! Just got here. I guess looking confused and shocked kind of makes that obvious. Oh, thanks." He didn't particularly care about feeling welcome, but he could appreciate the gesture. "So how long have you been here?"

[vonspielburg]

"Two months, as of today," she replied, slanting a glance at the Crystal of Fire glinting warmly nearby. "New arrivals seem to appear at a regular rate in the same place. This was not always the case, but for the past half a year, it has been so." His confusion did make things a tiny bit obvious, but there was nothing wrong with this. It was preferable to making unreasonable demands about being sent back, or breaking down and complaining or crying. That he remained aware and calm spoke of his mental fortitude, and she approved of this.

"You have heard the basics from your Moogle, yes? I do not need to clarify anything, I should hope." Ellie didn't really have the time for that. "What is your name?"