Not with a Bang Start and Ongoing

[voidtreckermods]

"Good Morning passengers. Today is day seven of the month of Imagination." The voice echoes through the train as passengers wake up in their beds. Not long afterwards their SCA’s glow with the colour of the void and a holographic image will appear.

Preperation

They have about an hour to prepare, a little less than usual but perhaps expected, given the urgency of the task.

The cupboards in the dressing room are open to reveal rows of tents, in all four team colours as well as some basic camp cooking equipment. They are in bags that should be easy enough to carry.

"Shortly arriving on System #6416. All passengers get ready to disembark. Next stop world 6416. Exit from void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one." The train rocks and lurches, bright colours of the void filling the space and then fading as they fly downwards towards a very green landscape.

Arrival and Initial Task

The train lands in a clearing, curving round in an attempt to fit. Once everyone who wishes to disembark has done it flies back into the air, vanishing from sight.

The air is heavy and humid, though it is not currently raining. The clearing is open to the sky and looking up will reveal a worrying sight. The sky is an angry red colour, colours shifting as if the clouds themselves were on fire. It's an unnerving sight.

Their SCA's show three points, one Orange, One purple and one that is half blue and half red. The three control centres. Each are a few hours treck through the jungle and it certainly feels like there is no time to waste.

Those that don't want to treck through the forest can start setting up camp, though the darkening sky might be a little distracting. As time goes on flecks of fire drift down, though they extinguish before hitting the forest floor.

Orange are to travel to the north, Purple to the south and Blue and Red must travel together to the west. Each route takes them through thick and unrelenting jungle. Flying is difficult here unless you can get up past the canopy layer, which means vision of the ground is severely hampered.

The control stations themselves are half buried in vines and require cutting into. If voidtreckers are unlucky they will meet their first security robots here, firing on the intruders. They might even meet their first giant Armadillos, the creatures are curious and may wish to investigate. They are not helpful or constructive to trying to power up the stations and prevent the destruction of the planet.

The control stations are simple enough to operate, but there's quite a lot that needs to be done in way of repairs and clearing. It will take a team effort to get it in working enough order to activate the shield.

The shield itself, when it is activated, is mostly invisible but there is a loud humming sound. The meteor, which has gotten more visible throughout the five hours, hits the shield and splinters, fire enveloping the whole sky. It is visibly terrifying, but no fire falls to earth, no rocks get through, the planet is safe.

Ongoing

Once the planet is safe the voidtreckers deserve a rest. But once the next morning dawns it is time to start with their next tasks, to make sure that this planet stays safe from future threats.

Red

The robots at the control stations are not the only malfunctioning security robots around. They roam the jungle, or are more often stranded in the jungle, powering up only when faced with a new threat.

Some are benign, terraforming machines whose only crime is using up precious power. These need to be dismantled so that power can be saved for the shield system. Others are security robots that will attack the intruders to the planet.

Though the machines are scattered they are often obvious, emitting warning alarms or flashing lights. Their SCA's will show some areas where there are larger clusters but machines can be found anywhere.

Purple

Their SCA's are filled with hundreds of purple dots, each a solar stations that needs cleared and brought back online. It's not the most glamourous job, the stations are deep in the jungle, the treck is difficult and most of the work needed is weed clearing.

But once the weeds have been cut away they will need to patch up the station, doing basic maintenance to get it back online. In some cases wires need to be patched back together but it shouldn't take any great feats of engineering to get the stations up and running.

They may run into some of the security automatons, needing to fight their way into the stations before they can begin the clean up operations.

Orange

Like the red team their SCA will show areas where there are clusters of the small insectoid automatons that need to be rescued and restored. However they can be found anywhere throughout the jungle, they are not too suited for the terrain outside of the stations and so they have gotten tangled in vines. They can be found powered down, stranded and in dire need of maintenance.

Tools and spare parts can be found in many of the solar stations that purple team have been locating. Actually repairing the robots takes some engineering knowledge but once they are restored they will go about their tasks in the stations. They will need help getting to the further flung stations as well as the main control centres.

They are very basic in design and follow pre programmed instructions rather than being able to hear and listen to orders. But once in the correct place they are very effective at their job.

Blue

Once the shield is up there is a faint humming that can be heard throughout the jungle if they listen closely and find it among the sound of rain and insects. But once they hear it, it is obvious where it is louder and more prominent.

Their SCA will pin point some of the larger control boxes but there are truthfully too many to show on a map. Not all of them have attracted Violet Pandas, but many of them have.

They are curious creatures, both of the power boxes and the voidtreckers. They are protective of each other but not so much of territory and therefore it is not difficult to move them on. Keeping them away is another matter, the power humming is interesting and they will unearth wires and chew through them. It doesn't seem to do them much harm, there is clearly safety stops in the system for such eventualities. It does however cut power off to entire solar stations and require a lot of patch work.

Good luck voidtreckers!

Comments

inigo | ota + purple

[flatteries]

(arrival, ota)

[ The moment they get off the train, Inigo stops.

It's not like he didn't expect something like this, considering both the visions and then the mission description. But hearing about it and thinking about it are entirely different as opposed to actually seeing it.

It's just.. a bit too much. It hits just a little too close to home, and he can't help but freeze up at the sight of the sky like that. It's as if that huge, dark dragon could descend from it any minute now, destroy everything and everyone Inigo cares about.

This does mean, however, that he's in the middle of the way for other people trying to leave the train. Maybe you should try to gently move him aside. Or maybe you're bumping into him as you're trying to leave. Sorry about that, pal. ]

(ongoing, purple)

[ This task isn't too bad. Go through the jungle, find stations, clear them out, job done. Easy peasy.

Except Inigo happened upon the first station that seemed to require a little bit more work than that to get going again. He's found the problem at least, the whole cluster of wires that needs to be rewired, but.. even though it may be possible for people without much experience with rewiring, it's a whole different story for someone who is used to medieval technology.

So if you happened to be working on the station with Inigo, he'll glance over to you with a smile. ]

I... think we may have a tiiiny problem.

(ongoing, camping)

[ Rest. Hah, what is rest.

There are so many stations to be cleared out that Inigo feels like resting is more optional than anything else. Sure, he does go back to camp when he feels utterly exhausted, but he instantly feels guilty the moment he sits down there to actually rest.

He can't. There's too much left to do.

So anyone in camp may spot the comical sight of Inigo walking over, sitting down.. only to get right back up and try to walk back out into the jungle again.

If he notices anyone watching him do it, he's quick to give them a smile, hiding all signs of his actual exhaustion. ]

Sorry, sorry! I just-- ah, I forgot something out there! I'll be right back! [ Just from the hasty way he talks, it's obvious that he won't be right back. Someone might want to stop him. ]

Ongoing, Camping

[unfavorableinstigation]

[It may sound trite, but Nita knows exactly how he feels.

A planet at stake, so much to do and so little time to do it in - everything counts, and she can't sit still either.

Some of those jitters come through as she walks over to Inigo, flashing him a tight smile in return.]

Inigo... if I promise to come with you, can you wait a while?

I think we both need it.

[flatteries]

[ Darnit, Nita just manages to hit one of his weak spots right away, doesn't she?

Because it'd be easy to go off on his own after making some excuse. Even if he's tired, he can just keep on going, bite through it until the end of the mission when he can finally crash for a while. But when Nita isn't just saying it's for his sake, but for her sake too - that makes it harder.

Inigo would gladly exhaust himself, after all, but not a friend. Never a friend. ]

.. It's okay.

[ Not that he isn't still going to try and wriggle his way out of this with a smile on his face. But he at least has to try and let her rest. ]

You can rest up ahead of me, I don't mind. I'm-- I'm really fine for a bit more, I'm sure.

[10billionpercent]

[ He knows that expression. He's seen a mirror. He should be resting, but if Gen's got his back turned...

Well no reason he shouldn't get up and follow after Inigo. ]

What're you looking for?

[ He'll ask the question, and hopefully catch up to him, he can offer company anyway. ]

[flatteries]

[ Clearly Inigo hadn't thought this far ahead in his plan. Especially since the plan was really just to sneak right off after saying that without giving anyone time to ask any follow up questions.

So his jaw drops as he frantically tries to think of something. ]

Ah, well...

[ He's so obviously just thinking up an excuse now. Anyone could tell. ]

I.. I saw one of those animals a little while back, and I kind of wanted to take it along to here so the blue team can take care of it! [ Does that work. He's sure he can go back and run into some animal if he has to prove it, since they're all over the place... ]

< arrival >

[adregem]

[ Oh this scene, this scene he knows. And Roland knows that Inigo knows. It's a lot of the same thought running around his mind the moment the tinges of red meet his gaze. When it's all but confirmed that what was seen in vision is actually what has come to pass in reality.

So when he walks off and disembarks, it's fate that he bumps into Inigo first. Instinctively, he takes him by the hand and leads him further out until they're no longer by anyone's way. Really getting into it, breathing in the air, seeing the sky unnaturally aflame. Angry.

The end. For both of them. Roland doesn't let his hand go, even as he joins in to watch above. ]

...Was it like this for you too?

[flatteries]

[ It will take absolutely no effort to lead Inigo around by the hand like that. Partially since he's so dazed by this whole situation, but also just since Inigo would always follow Roland of all people if the other would take his hand. Instinctively.

So even though Inigo's gaze is still cast upwards, looking at the sky, he walks after Roland obediently, all the way until they stop again.

And he doesn't let go either. Even when they stop. Even if Roland had let go, Inigo would probably have tried to grab the hand all over again - but thankfully the connection remains unbroken. Thankfully he doesn't even have to grab it again.

It's only those words that snap Inigo out of his thoughts, finally lowering his gaze enough to look over at Roland instead.

.. right. Too. Inigo isn't the only one who watched the destruction of a world.

That realisation makes his hold on the man's hand tighten even a bit more. ]

Kind.. Kind of. [ He's slow to answer, hesitant. It's not a fun topic, but he promised. He'd be open with Roland. They're out of the way, so he can share it privately like this. ] It feels like Grima could show up in the sky any moment now.

[ He remembers. That enormous dragon lowering itself, his sister standing in front of it, looking so very tiny.

Your mother and father are dead, tiny one.

Inigo can't let that happen again. Not again. He can't let this place have Roland, no matter what happens. Never. ]

< ongoing ; purple >

[adregem]

[ Roland's keeping to the task of lookout here, surveying what he can and allowing Bambosh to clear out overgrowths in controlled bursts of fire - we're not trying to burn down Nion here. He glances up from where he's crouched, dead panels and all sorts of ferns and things when Inigo pipes up from the main task. ]

Hm? [ He stands up straight. ] What's wrong? Did something happen?

[ DOES HE NEED TO CALL FOR HELP sdlgkhsdfg you know this is a stressful time for both dad and son! He's alert, more than ever, especially when the act of fixing panels is nowhere near what he knows what to do. ]

[flatteries]

[ Maybe Inigo should treat this a bit more seriously. It's something he realises the moment Roland immediately pipes up like that in response - making Inigo feel guilty at how serious the other guy sounds. The last thing he wants to do right now is make Roland worry, and Inigo's head slowly pops up over the edge of the door to the cabinet with wires he was sitting behind. ]

Ah, nothing-- nothing serious!

[ Nothing too serious, anyway. Hopefully this time they shouldn't get struct by a meteor right away if he doesn't finish this wires puzzle in five minutes.. ]

I just.. have no idea how to deal with these things. [ He sadly holds up two different coloured wires. And that's not even the only ones here! Dad, please help. You're the responsible adult here. ]

< ongoing ; camping >

[adregem]

[ He's camped out in Jema'grethy - and many more times before then, back when he was growing up - so even in the thick of the apocalypse of Nion, Roland's got the set up pretty well adjusted.

Not that he was setting up his own tent, mind you. He's been working on setting up other people's tents so that the work could go faster. It's only happenstance that his serious face glances upon Inigo trying to sneak out when he's practically stumbling in his steps. Oh no. This act, he knows is not an act at all. This is 100% Inigo, since the day he met him.

So Roland closes his eyes briefly, knocks a peg down on the ground, and walks over to him, hand on shoulder immediately. A more authoritative voice, on. ]

Oh yeah? What'd you forget in the middle of the jungle, pup? [ An eyebrow is raised not in challenge, but interest in what Inigo's going to say. Call him a hypocrite if he'd probably be in the same position. ]

[flatteries]

[ Oh no.

Inigo knows he's been caught. Somewhere between that tone Roland is using and that hand on his shoulder, Inigo can't escape.

But of course he's still going to try. Look, he knows he promised to try and be honest with Roland, but this is just.. necessary. He's sure Roland will understand, being the team leader and all. They have so many stations to clear out, and it doesn't feel like nearly enough people to do so. How can he just sit around and do nothing? ]

I.. [ He starts, carefully, knowing he's walking on very thin ice here. ] I'm missing some food from my Arms Band.. I was eating while walking around earlier, so maybe I accidentally dropped some! I can't just let it go to waste, right?

[ To Inigo's credit, even though the whole situation makes it obvious as hell that that's not the case, his words do sound convincing enough.

It's not his first time lying to a father, after all. ]

ongoing, purple

[theturksway]

Unfortunately for Inigo whoever had been helping him out with this particular station had wandered off, distracted by something else that needed work probably, and didn't hear him speak up. Meanwhile, Reno hadn't meant to run into anyone out in the jungle on purpose--especially not Inigo or any of his friends--but he had followed the SCA map to this indicator without checking in to see if anyone else had already hit it up first. He paused as he saw Inigo fiddling with some wires of the station and was close to leaving without a word when he noticed the kid's trouble. He turned back to watch.

His thoughts were scattered, unfocused, as he stared at Inigo from afar but he recognized the clueless tinkering for what it was and at least he was smart enough to know how to fix a few detached wires. He wasn't electronically or mechanically inclined like Rude but he knew enough about modern tech to get some jobs done on such things. He waited a moment to see if Inigo figured it out or someone else came by to help the kid but he didn't have the best of patience even on a good day.

He made plenty of noise as he stomped through the jungle and towards the overgrown station--on purpose, deliberately making his approach noticeable. He stopped next to Inigo and idly tapped his baton on his shoulder twice. He probably should have put it away but he wasn't thinking that clearly and he had been fighting more than repairing lately. The gesture was actually just a thoughtful one today, something he did out of habit. He was still debating how to handle the kid even while he was already engaging with him.

"Hey, kid." He spoke softly when he tried to get Inigo's attention. "You know what you're doing?" he asked despite clearly seeing that Inigo obviously did not.

[flatteries]

This was about the last thing Inigo expected to hear in response to what he was saying.

The initial lack of response had him just return to try and work on these wires by himself, even with how little knowledge he has about them. He has to at least try something, right? They can't just completely abandon this station if this place is going to need them all to be fully up and running!

And even as he hears someone approach, Inigo doesn't look up at first. He just assumes that whoever was helping him earlier came back, or maybe it's a different member of the purple team having spotted this dot on their map, having come over to help. It's a relief, really, since Inigo can use the help.

But then again, he never expected this particular member of the purple team to be here. His face snaps up, at attention, the moment he hears the voice, even though the voice is relatively soft.

Of course the baton being out is the first thing he spots, and - remembering his last unfortunate encounter with it well enough - he quickly drops the wires he was working on, scooting backwards to create some distance between him and Reno.

He doesn't pull out his sword yet though. Maybe it's since he has an Arms Band now and would only need a second to have it in his hand. Mentally he half expects Reno to fight him again now the two of them are alone, away from everyone else, and he goes over everything he's prepared in his head. He can grab his sword and shield from the Arms Band in an instant. And then there's his new fight moves-- ugh, he hasn't nearly practiced well enough yet to be able to pull those off.

But even with all those thoughts racing through his head, Inigo's gaze doesn't leave Reno's. Not even for a moment. He doesn't trust the other enough to do so.

"No," he admits. Honestly, but with his tone having a bit of an edge to it. A 'what's it to you' kind of tone. "Why are you here?"

Of course he immediately gets defensive, like a cornered animal.

arrival

[longforgottenpromise]

Inigo? [Taiki is sticking close to Lord Gyousou obviously but he has spotted Inigo who has stopped still in the door way.

Taiki reached out to touch his hand and looked out into the world and followed his eyes up into the sky.]

Oh... [That was a very terrible sight.]

[flatteries]

[ Something about Taiki's voice seems to snap Inigo out of his own thoughts. Out of his frozen stare at the sky.

It's probably protectiveness above all. Yes, the sky looking like this terrifies Inigo, because it reminds him of too many bad things. But the last thing he wants to do is pass any fear or worry on to Taiki.

So he sucks in a deep breath before he quickly forces himself to smile. ]

It looks pretty bad, huh? Don't worry though, we'll all together take care of it before it can get any worse, I'm sure.

camping

[longforgottenpromise]

You did? [Taiki blinked at him and stood up.] I'll come with you...

[This world might not be quite as dangerous as the others they have been to, but they still shouldn't be wandering off into the jungle alone.

On top of that something about Inigo seems odd, he sounds too hurried...]

[flatteries]

[ Something about Inigo seeming odd? Hah, surely you jest! S.. Surely. Clearly there is nothing off about the way Inigo seems very insistent on getting away from here as quickly as possible with that half-awkward smile on his face..

But then Taiki just says that, and it stops Inigo clean in his tracks. ]

Ah-- N-No, really, it's fine! I want you to rest, Taiki. You've been working hard too, you deserve it!

[ Overworking himself is fine, but he'd never ever forgive himself for overworking Taiki. ]

ongoing

[blitzcheer]

.................


Roland?

[ Look. Neither of them know balls about tech, not at the heart of it: if the wiring was to be considered the heart. So Tidus just names the first responsible name they both know, even if his brain isn't actually thinking 'would he know anything about wiring either?'

Or maybe Tidus is doubting himself by not getting any closer to the wires to really check them out.

But also nah he'll pass. ]

[flatteries]

[ Wow, bro. You think you can hoist this task off onto someone else? Think you can just pretend to be a crewmate that way? No way, you're not abandoning Inigo here with this technological mess all by himself! ]

Tidus.

[ He sounds so stern.

Or just about as stern as Inigo can sound, really. Which is not too much. ]

Get over here.

[ DON'T ABANDON HIM NOW, BRO. ]

Ongoing: Camping

[hotheadwarmheart]

[See this face, Inigo? It's the face of someone who doesn't believe you when you say you'll be right back.]

I'll get it for you; just let me know what it is and where you left it. You can stay here and take a breather.

[See, he can be subtle! Sometimes.]

[flatteries]

[ Lea, please!!

Inigo doesn't even realise the other is onto him. He figures Lea is probably just.. trying to be helpful or something by offering this.. But it's a hard thing to reply to when Inigo hasn't really accidentally left anything behind in the jungle. Which means he has to think really hard of another excuse now. ]

No, it's fine!

[ He smiles. So hard. As if his smile might make up for how potentially unbelievable he may sound. ]

I'm not that tired, really. I'll just quickly go and be back, it's not a problem for me at all. You don't have to bother.

Ongoing - Purple

[adropofsunlight]

[Rapunzel paused at the sight that was in front of her, not really knowing what or even how to solve this issue.]

I think it's more than a tiny problem.

[flatteries]

[ Talk about the worst possible people gathering to do this sort of thing, huh.

And it's not even that Rapunzel is incompetent. Inigo knows she isn't! It's just.. they're both not really at the technological level required to solve this.

But the fact that it is just the two of them in this station right now means that Inigo knows they will have to make do somehow. They can't be sure some other, more technologically capable purple team member will arrive in time to take it over, after all.

So he smiles. ]

It is, huh? But.. we've got to sort it out!

[ He pats the spot on the ground next to him, as if inviting her to come sit with him and somehow solve this together. ]

It can't be that hard, right? We just.. All we have to do is sort out these.. multi-coloured ropes? [ Wires, Inigo. ]

arrival

[fionnuisce]

What's wr--

[Dumb question, he realized the second he looked up. He'd seen a sky a little too much like this one once or twice, and the sight now made the color drain from Waver's face almost instantly.]

[Forcing himself back to ground level, he lightly tugged on Inigo's arm with his left hand--the other gripping his cane just a little too tightly.]

...Come on. Standing around won't help anyone--we do what we came here for and it'll be alright.

(ongoing, camping)

[consider8]

[Eight rolls her shoulders as she let her limbs unwind from a busy day of work. She's looking over her makeshift machete that took the brunt of the hard work, and is in the process of cleaning and straightening it.]

[Only for Inigo to come walking past a tent, catching her attention. She looks up with a curious tilt, wondering what was it he was planning to do.]

[The answer hardly satisfied.]

Can't it wait?