melodiesoflife | Intro Log || Melodies of Eternity

Intro Log || Melodies of Eternity

Characters: All the "Heroes of Light" (only new characters can start threads).
Where: Aqures Ixen.
When: The 5th of March. 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: Lots of distressed and depressed Heroes of Light.

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. Well, that is if you don't die or crystallize first. A couple days ago, a lot of Heroes of Light crystallized or died out of the blue without any warning! 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 Choco Egg day nearing, there are a lot fo Hypello working on the upcoming competitions and on making chocolates! Want to eat some? Too bad, the Moogles will hit you with the stick they use to make the chocolate if you try to eat them!

And besides the chocolates, there are a lot of things to do in the city for newcomers. Moogles are working hard in Mognet Office of the ninth district following the election of their new director, and while there are no Blitzball Matches today, a lot of Triple Triad players are gathered at the stadium. Why? Because they are working on the early preparations for the Triple Triad World Championship that will happen in May! Characters are also free to visit the city-- They can 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 few Moogles and nurses will be waiting by the room, and they will welcome all characters waking up. However...

Upon exiting the room, they will find the Hospital is very busy. Nurses and healers can be seen moving corpses around on stretchers, and overall a very dark and tense atmosphere reigns over the Hospital. In closed rooms, some of the most skilled healers are trying to analyze the corpses and find out what happened. And these dead people? They are of the Heroes of Light who died on the 29th of February.

Melodies of Eternity
— Anytime —
If you are a Hero of Light who survived that accursed day, your crystal will shine at the very same moment the new Heroes appear before the Crystal of Fire. That means your character is now linked to the Crystal of Fire and will come back to life after a week if killed.

They will also receive their Moogle and their housing in the 11th or 14th District. But that probably isn't enough for the pain to go away.

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Something else was troubling the Remnant, but he remained silent for sometime, unable to put words to his thoughts. He didn't know how to explain himself to this very helpful person, but he knew Madoka would frown on his being mean to her simply because he was confused.

After a moment, he crossed his arms and looked over to Zelda. "How are you supposed to know when you find what you're looking for if you don't know what it is?"

Zelda smiled though the expression didn't reach her eyes. "You're not going to like my answer to that because I think it's different for everyone. You just know."

She shook her head slightly, her hands coming to rest on her heart.

"You don't know when and it might be frustrating but you'll find it."

Kadaj frowned at her answer. She was right about that, certainly. He didn't like it. It wasn't so much the existence of the answer, though. It simply didn't make any sense to him. She was right about another point, too. It was frustrating.

"That sounds stupid." And fallible.

“I know.”

She wished that she could explain it better to him however words held little meaning when you were searching for something so important. Zelda looked up at Kadaj, a light smile teasing her lips while her eyes reflected a motherly sort of affection.

“It isn’t an answer or anything but you’re welcome to stop by the old observatory. There is information about this world and I always make sweetbreads and tea for those who come by. I think you’d enjoy the visit.” Nothing helps evaporate tension like Zelda’s sweetbreads. They aren’t overly sweet and arguably the most delicious thing in Crystallis.

He looked over to her then, a look of confusion in his emerald eyes. Madoka always offered him food when he was troubled, too, and somehow, it served to comfort him. He still didn't understand why. Maybe it was the simple act of kindness, but that sort of thing was usually lost on him at the best of times.

He could allow himself to accept this simple comfort, though, and eventually, he nodded. "I will." He paused before saying more, a reminder flitting through his mind. "Thank you."

Zelda's lips curled into a kind smile. "I'll show you the way."

She could tell that Kadaj was trying and that was enough for her. She didn't want him to lose hope even if this were intangible. As they walked towards the old observatory she let silence fall between them. It was an easy silence, not pressing for either to speak but welcoming any comment or question that Kadaj might have.

When they arrive at the old observatory she'll hold the door open for Kadaj.

Even after all this time away from Gaia, Kadaj's head spun with all the new and often conflicting bits of information to be learned about this place. Mostly, though it was unknown to him, he was confused, lost without a guiding light. He'd watched it die on the streets of this very city with no reason whatsoever.

The more time he spent in her presence, the more Zelda was reminding Kadaj of Madoka, though he didn't think he could ever replace her. Nor did he feel she deserved to be replaced. Normally he would have spoken on their journey, but there were too many thoughts in his mind to facilitate conversation.

Once they arrived he looked up from his thoughts as though surprised they'd arrived so quickly, regardless of how long it actually took. The structure was impressive, and even Kadaj could take not of it.

"Oh. We're here..." He stepped through the threshold she'd opened for him.

Zelda smiled stepping into the old observatory behind him. The entrance was sparsely decorated, with a few chairs, a long desk and a pixel painting above the main door of Aqures. There was a moogle behind the desk dressed in green with a pointed hat. He jumped up after seeing Zelda, a smiled across his lips.

”Zelda! Who’s this? A hero? Can I get anything for you? I have some things that need your attention.” Zelda smiled at Kopula.

“Kopula this is Kadaj.” She turned towards Kadaj while making introductions. “I’ll address everything later and no I don’t need anything. I’m making tea though, would you like some?” The moogle nodded ringing his hands together before fluttering off towards the desk to man his post. He took it far too seriously but Zelda had learned that telling Kopula to relax was pointless.

“This way.” She had to suppress her laughter as she led Kadaj to one of the small rooms positioned off to the left of the main entrance. This one was more homely with a couch and a small table. A few others bites of furniture lined the room as well. “I’ll go get us tea and snacks. I’ll be right back.”

Kadaj followed Zelda dutifully, not nodding to the moogle as he was introduced, his eyes simply moving around to take in all that he could see of the place. If the few places on Gaia he'd visited, he'd never seen anything like this. The lands here already effected by the Calamity were terrible to behold, destroyed, crystallized. Here though, it was almost possible to forget all that.

On Gaia, the near destruction of the planet was impossible to ignore. Zelda might well have been, next to Madoka, the kindest person he'd ever met. Once they were in the parlor, he nodded, taking a seat but still looking around at all the sights he never seen before.

When she returns, she'll find him looking around all the decor, sparce though it is, it's more comfort than he'd grown accustomed to.

“Is everything alright?”

Zelda asked as she placed down the tray, her lips posed into a light smile. She took a seat on the couch and began to poor them tea as well as set out the snacks she had collected from the kitchen. Most consisted of sweet breads, cookies and a few others baked goods. Zelda baked almost every day, it was one of the few things she did simply because she enjoyed it.

“I’ve set up this building for any hero to use, you’re always welcome here. There are even spar beds should you feel uncomfortable in your home.”

It was mostly for disasters but Zelda knew some heroes to have housing conflicts.

Kadaj blinked when she entered, looking over to her then to the tray she'd brought. It was then that he realized he was hungry. Over the past seven months, he'd grown accustomed to the feeling, but he was still having trouble paying attention to it without Madoka around to remind him to eat.

It was yet another reason he missed her so much. He blinked again, Emerald eyes shining at the prospect of food, and nodded. "Yeah. This place is just different from what I'm used to."

A thought occurred to him, and he tilted his head to the side as he came over. "Have you seen what the Calamity has done to this world?"

Zelda's bright blue eyes look down towards the ground. The truth was that Zelda spent most of her time at the old observatory. She worked hard on paper work for the city and support for those who needed it. She made sure that people were feed and that no one in the city was forgotten. Which meant that she didn't get out much.

"I haven't." She finally admitted in a regretful voice. "I saw it in a vision once. The world completely encased, those who still live terrified and counting the hours until the crystal reached them too..."

Zelda closed her eyes trying to fight back the sadness, she had to remain strong. "You, I'm sure, have seen more than I have."

"I've been there." At first, he'd found it difficult to care, but something about being pulled here had given him something he'd been missing in his own world. He'd been subjected to emotions he didn't understand. Sometimes it made knowing what to do difficult.

"There's nothing there to love. I don't understand love, not really, but I know it gives people hope. There's nothing to hope for there." He swallowed, turning away from her, looking off into the middle distance. "I don't want this world to die." It's a vague feeling, a desire, that he can't describe. "And I don't know why."

Zelda’s expression softened at Kadji’s admission. “It is because you care about this world.” Or something similar. Zelda can’t say for sure but she’s happy to hear that he didn’t want this world to meet its ruin. She knew that some heroes didn’t care.

“It’s alright to care.” She assured him in a warm motherly voice.

"I get that I care." His own emotions frustrated him to no end, the very existence of them in some circumstances. "I just don't know why."

“Maybe…” Zelda offered in a kind voice. “…because you are a nice person.”

It was a rather vague reason but it would be up to Kadaj. Did he feel like a nice person? Or perhaps Zelda was simply grasping at straws? She sounded sure of herself.

After a moment she offered Kadaj another plate of snacks. It wasn’t hard to tell that he was hungry and now she wished she had brought him something that was more substantial. She has some food in the kitchen though it was mostly bread and cured meats.

His eyes narrowed at her comment. He didn't feel like a nice person. Most people annoyed him, simply because they wasted his time. He didn't have anything pressing to use it for, but that didn't mean he didn't get annoyed with them and their prattling.

"I don't think I am." He nods, accepting her offer for more snacks. "You're a nice person."

"Thank you."

Zelda smiled at the compliment.

"Well, at the very least I don't think you're a bad person." It was really just her opinion though. "Is there anything else you might want to know or anything you need?" She did need to get back to work but he was welcome to stay here and explore.

There's something he's noticed since arriving to more civilized lands, something he's been wondering about but had no one to ask. As she's so graciously offered, though, he nods, silver hair bobbing.

"Yes. Where do I get money?"

The place runs on it. It's not something he's ever had to worry about before, and the concept fairly eludes him. He realizes he probably needs a job or something equally mundane, but he has no idea where to start.

"There are jobs posted on the board but you can also get money by fighting monsters. I have some spare gil set aside if you need something for now. The moogles are also here to get basic things for you."

Like basic clothing and weapons, if he wants anything fancy he'll have to purchase it.

"Money for hunting monsters." That was good to know. He was good at that, killing, at least. He thinks over going to the board for a time, to see what other jobs might be available, but looks to his kind hostess first with a nod.

"Thank you."

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Intro Log || Melodies of Eternity

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