Intro Log || Melodies of Eternity

[melodiesmods]

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.

Comments

[gomu_ningen]

[He'd never seen Ramza harp so much about his condition before, to the point where Luffy cannot help but feel slightly worried about what is ticking inside of Ramza's head.]

I'm fine! There's no need for me to rest!

[Luffy stumbles over to the set aside tray of food, picking it up and hastily spooning the much-needed nutrition into his mouth.]

It wasn't like this was planned or anything, my leaving, I mean. D'ya' miss me that much? So what's been going on since I was asleep? We know where the Queen is? Is that big iceberg still covering things up down South?

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza is silent for a moment while Luffy devours the food he'd brought. He is pretty sure there is a need for Luffy to rest. Giving him updates here will at least ensure he does not wander outside of the hospital to find out the news.]

The Queen is still missing. The Calamity continues to thread. The Heran Empire was taken. We thought the people of the Empire lost... but a new ally spoke to a group of us. She revealed that our visit during the Starlight Festival allowed more than half of their population to escape to safety. They are moving into the Village of Santa soon.

[It was still hard to speak of that meeting. It made his chest constrict and his voice color with emotion. It felt like after a lifetime of failure after mistake, he had finally done something right. It was a baffling feeling. He coughed, and moved on.

More Heroes arrived just this week. Some of them had been hidden on Crystallis for months, and some arrived in the usual way. There will be many new faces for you to meet, once you have rested enough to leave here.

[Luffy may not have realized how many people cared about him, how many had missed him, but Ramza was not about to lose him again. He wanted assurance that the captain was hale before he stepped foot out of the hospital ward.]

[gomu_ningen]

[What may have just been fabricated memories had done their part in helping the dream-driven pirate to mature (if even just a little bit), aiding in digesting the information Ramza presents as opposed to it flying untethered in one ear and out the other. A slow nod of his head sways as he continues to eat, mulling over the different points in news that he'd previously dismissed as unimportant business.]

More heroes. No rush to see them. I'd rather make sure the Bloom, Pakku, and the others are doing okay.

[He looks at his hands with a dissatisfied gaze, chewing to one side of his lips as his eyes narrow in remorse.]

Times like this I wish I knew how to write better, or knew where Pakku was.

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza frowned over that.]

Pakku has not come to you? Do you not have a mog-flute to summon him? If he is not responding, I can send Simon out to search for him.

[gomu_ningen]

[Again, Luffy looks to his friend with a puzzled picture painted on his face.]

Mog.. flute?

[He gives his head a scratch, making a low humming noise as if trying to start the engine inside of his noggin to start thinking.]

Nah. Haven't seen 'im. I'd have thought he'd been here but maybe he's spending time with Bloom?

[zodiac_brave]

[Oh, Luffy. Sometimes, Ramza wondered if the pirate had somehow skipped out on the basic explanation of their role here that all the other Heroes had gotten from their moogles when they arrived.]

It allows you to summon your moogle to your side, no matter where you are. Did you never receive one? I am sure Bloom is glad for the company, but your moogle really should be at your side when you wake up like this.

[gomu_ningen]

[Luffy thinks back to the day he first arrived in the strange world he now called "home".

Pakku: Mister Luffy! What are you doing?!
Luffy: //sipping food through the Moogle Flute with little success

Ah, memories.]

Nope. Never got one. I bet he's just stuffing his face with Bloom's cooking.

[Before Luffy can finish his sentence, the young pirate's mouth begins to water like a coursing river.]

[zodiac_brave]

[Ramza watches Luffy's reaction with bewildered fascination. He just fed Luffy, but it seems that the pirate's stomach is a bottomless pit. He is guessing that nothing but Bloom's cooking will truly satisfy him right now.]

I shall call my moogle, then. Simon can carry a message to Pakku and call him here. If he is eating with Bloom, they can both come. [And perhaps bring snacks for Luffy.]

[gomu_ningen]

[A short time had passed since the message had gone out. Across town, the notice arrived at Luffy's old address and found the aforementioned moogle safe and sound.

Even more time passed before Pakku finally arrived at the hospital. Groggy, beady eyes focused as best they could beyond the leg of meat now held up in front of the moogle's muzzle. Lazily, the pudgy creature pattered into the small room he'd been directed to, holding up a single paw to push the door open to see both Ramza and his Captain in attendance.

The moogle's head slowly turns, as if pulled by an invisible string, matching eyes with Luffy as he chews on the meat.

Silence. Seconds pass before either realizes who they're looking at.

Pakku pulls the meat away from his mouth, raising the free paw up in greeting.]

.. Yo.

"YO"?!

[Luffy leaps from the bed and tackles the creature with what strength he can summon. Teeth find their way into the moogle's skull, biting down with the only weapon he had on hand since his fists and legs won't work as desired.]

AHHH!! HE'S BITING ME!! CAPTAIN! STOP THAT!

[The leg of meat flies free, rolling along the floor as Luffy lets go of his insubordinate subordinate, reaching out with futility as months of not having his Devil Fruit powers still seems to be a forgotten consequence of his being here.]

I can-.. Hnngh! Almost reach it!

[Meanwhile, the moogle holds his head in pain, rolling on the ground like a fish flopping out of water.

All the while Ramza is left to witness the summation of what little intelligence and tact exists between a moogle and his hero.]

[zodiac_brave]

[During this whole exchange, Ramza and Simon just look at one another. They give each other a silent nod, a 'thanks for being sane' acknowledgement.]

Ummm...it seems you have some catching up to do... [He and Simon inched for the door, giving the pair room for their less-than-tender reunion.]