VoidTrecker Express Mods ([personal profile] voidtreckermods) wrote in [community profile] middleofsomewhere2021-01-11 05:58 am

Fierce New World- Mission Start!

"Good Morning passengers. Today is day six of the month of Jelly." 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.

Preparation and Arrival

They have a short time to prepare for their mission, enough time to read their briefs, make decisions, meet in their teams and gather anything they may need.

A few hours later there is another announcement. "Shortly arriving on System #2207385. All passengers get ready to disembark. Next stop world #2207385. Exit from void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."

The train judders as it leaves the void, the colours from the windows turn into the blackness of space but quickly white as the train descends into the entrance of the biosphere.

The doors of the train open and passengers can enter the large white-walled holding bay. Currently, they are the only vehicle inside. There are four large doors around the bay each labelled with where they lead. Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

The doors open easily, and their SCA’s show a basic route, though the non-linear nature of the sectors mean that obstacles will need to be navigated. While they are in a closed world, there is a day and night cycle: the panels far up above are designed to make it seem like there is a natural sky, brightening and dimming every ten hours.

Red/Summer

Empty Streets

Wide streets divide sealed-off factories and manufacturing pods that tower up towards the ‘sky’. It is hot here, though the fumes from the factories are vented out, leaving the air breathable if overly warm.

Sometimes the pods are not yet finished, empty shells that can be sheltered in. There are also stations for living, with plumbing and basic amenities scattered through the sector. Places to rest as they move towards the center and the Great-Summer that they seek.

Helpmates

Where factories are still being built they will find Helpmates, operating machinery or moving materials.

They will not pause in their tasks for long but are programmed to answer questions so can be drawn into a conversation. Or, if the Voidtreckers are unfortunate, they will find those that are malfunctioning turning on them as they approach.

They aren’t too difficult to fight, but can do some damage with the machinery if they manage to take a Voidtrecker by surprise. They can be fought with weapons or magic, or for those that think to use the panels they can be shut down outright.

Wild Weather

Though warm, the corridors remain a constant temperature that is not too unpleasant for people. For the most part. Unfortunately, due to the malfunctioning state of things routes may become impassable. Boiling air, freezing blasts, electricity crackling across a pathway.

Their SCA’s do a good job of warning them, allowing them to change direction or shelter in nearby buildings.

Purple/Autumn

Exploring

The Autumn sector is the least complete of the sectors, with shells of habitation pods and not much else. No one is expected to live here until nearing the end of construction, and so the pods are unfurnished, many missing doors, some missing internal walls.

Outside the streets are wide and clearly made to be pleasant to walk on; it is airy, bright and spacious, if a bit eerie due to the quiet.

There are panels on the walls, to call Helpmates to appear. Here they are primarily for helping citizens, giving directions and offering aid.

Malfunctions

Since there are more helpmates there is more risk of them malfunctioning. They attack with or without weapons, using any tools they can pick up to attack. They can be fought with weapons or magic, or for those that think to use the panels they can be shut down.

They won’t chase people into the houses, their privacy programming preventing them from doing so.

Turned Around

The roads seem simple, built in a grid pattern around the houses. However, whatever is going wrong here is affecting the very streets themselves. Sometimes there will be a wall where there wasn’t before or roads go in circles. Sometimes they find themselves at a dead end, trapped until structures shift again.

Their SCA’s do their best to keep up but it can take a while for them to reroute and by the time they do, that path might be blocked too!

Blue/Spring

Patchwork Forest

The Spring sector houses the hydroponics and pastoral sections. It alternates between grazing land and more heavily forested areas with rows of pine-like trees in a checkerboard pattern, with empty plots interspersed. Walkways divide each square, but all squares appear able to move about as required, as though on a conveyor system.

There are clear walkways to avoid stepping on any newly growing plants. In the grazing land live flocks of camelid creatures resembling alpacas with blueish wool, on average a metre and a half tall at the shoulders. Helpmates appear here as if on a timer to feed the animals and tend to plants.

Destruction


If the Helpmates here malfunction they attack anyone nearby, cause havoc to any farming equipment and frightening the animals.

They can be fought with weapons or magic, or for those that think to use the panels they can be shut down. The panels here are less obvious than they are in the more urban sectors, low to the ground, looking almost like energy panels. But once they know what to look for they will be able to use them to shut down the Helpmates.

Stampede

Frightened animals are likely to flee and unfortunately in this case it means rampaging across the grazing land to the newly growing trees.

They will need to be calmed, returned to their grazing lands and the plants restored. Or it might be that the Voidtreckers can stop the Helpmates before the creatures get too spooked.

Orange/Winter

Exploring

The Winter sector’s primary concern is life support. Huge banks of air scrubbers form artificial cliffs, while other sections are tanks filled with water in varying stages of processing or recycling.

The paths here are a lot narrower than they are in other areas, sometimes requiring moving between pipes or scrambling over layers of railing.

There doesn’t seem to be any easy or straightforward path through the sector, their SCA takes them on wild winding routes through the machinery.

Help or Hindrance

The fluctuating temperatures here are causing problems with many of the pipes, several sections are flooded, others are in danger of being so.

There are patch kits in easily opened panels, designed to be used by the helpmates and indeed there are many helpmates out.

But some are less helpful, those that are malfunctioning are more likely to cause more damage than they are there to fix. They will attack any one who tries to interfere with them. They can be fought with weapons or magic, or for those that think to use the panels they can be shut down.

Patch Job

Once the malfunctioning Helpmates are dealt with the pipes still need to be fixed. The patch kits do not have any instructions but are simple enough that anyone with a basic knowledge of how to fix things should be able to figure them out- though the more knowledge and expertise they have the better the fix!

For those that don’t, many of the jobs will need more than one person and so for those that don’t mind taking instructions they will find an extra pair of hands is always welcome.
happyends: (lies in the palm)

[personal profile] happyends 2021-02-02 10:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Look at them. They're like spies. Spy kids. Going to stealthily follow this Helpmate back towards where it's heading to see if they can somehow get some of the food.

Except maybe they're not the most stealthy here, considering they both have hair that.. well, rather stands out. Thankfully the Helpmate doesn't seem to pay any attention to them whatsoever. It just keeps on moving, until it reaches some sort of small, dome-sized structure, where a panel in the wall lights up before the Helpmate's holographic form just blips out of existence.

"Oh.. Do you think that could be the place?"
happyends: (through even darkness)

[personal profile] happyends 2021-02-02 10:59 pm (UTC)(link)
Madoka does realise what's happening through the sound, considering she can actually hear it - but the problem is that the sound isn't there much until it's already too late. In fact, it's the connecting hit that finally gets through to her, making her turn her head with a worried gaze.

She will at least leave Yoite to deal with it himself, but she's definitely going to ask if he's okay once the battle is over. These Helpmates don't seem as strong as other things they've fought in the past, but that doesn't mean they can't hurt!

So while he's busy handling the one that snuck up behind them, Madoka instead fires her arrow at one that's ahead of them, but still a bit further away. Just to make sure it stays back, so they won't get too overwhelmed with having too many around them all at once.
happyends: (better than the rest)

[personal profile] happyends 2021-02-02 11:00 pm (UTC)(link)
!!!

Look how excited the Klefki is that Lea is giving it a chance. It has no idea yet how impossible this whole thing is, despite the other's warnings. And it's obvious too, since Klefki seems so utterly enthusiastic as it latches its thin metal body onto the handle...

... Only to immediately drop to the floor because of the weight. Lea sure was right - that Keyblade is much too big of a key for this tiny, tiny creature.

Madoka is still entirely unaware of these antics, but at least the Helpmate finally disappears after a few more button presses! The moment Madoka looks over in Lea's direction and notices as much, she smiles and quickly runs back over.

And then.. just.. stares at the Klefki on the floor. Looking like it practically knocked itself out from all this effort.

"Um.. What happened here..?" Does she want to know.
comefadeaway: (A Threat)

[personal profile] comefadeaway 2021-02-02 11:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Fortunately, with the room to move around and fend off the helpmate he was doing just fine. He wasn't a bad fighter and now that he was prepared, these little robot things weren't going to stand a chance.

He knocked it away and stabbed it with his kunai.

Yoite trusted Madoka to keep others off of him at least for now.
light_of_willpower: (long hair profile talking)

[personal profile] light_of_willpower 2021-02-03 12:10 am (UTC)(link)
"Now you're just fishing for reassurance." Trunks teased him, reaching out to lightly punch his shoulder. Very very lightly. "I'm glad I can help. Be safe out there, alright?"
melodiouspacifist: (Aw We Do Too Have Hearts)

[personal profile] melodiouspacifist 2021-02-03 12:19 am (UTC)(link)
"Both of them are equally creepy. It reminds me of Halloween Town." Demyx complained a little bit. He hated that place.
light_of_willpower: (long hair profile talking)

Go to wrap?

[personal profile] light_of_willpower 2021-02-03 12:19 am (UTC)(link)
"Then lead the way. I'll stick with you for a bit."
melodiouspacifist: (Nort Yeah yeah I'm on it)

[personal profile] melodiouspacifist 2021-02-03 12:20 am (UTC)(link)
"I guess we're all in the same situation then. Oh well. Maybe next time I'll try my mission but I got kinda turned around and.." He waved his hand a little. He wasn't afraid of admitting he'd gotten lost.
achickenformylove: (mdzs 40)

[personal profile] achickenformylove 2021-02-03 12:57 am (UTC)(link)
He is perfectly fine with that, her sticking with him. She is young. It makes sense to him that she would much rather someone else make decisions for her especially when it came to something like the missions.

He smiled faintly at her enthusiasm. "Yes, let us see if we can find more of them while we are looking."

He has priorities too... and the animals were part of them.
gentle_jim: (doubt)

[personal profile] gentle_jim 2021-02-03 01:07 am (UTC)(link)
"Rude? I wasn't being rude," he insists, eye twitching a little as he watches the helpmate scoot around. It was starting to remind him of another stupid little robot that he hated with a passion...

"You know what- yeah," Jack says, picking up the helpmate. He looks up and puts a hand to his mouth.

"Hey! Catch!" He yells, lobbing it up at Persephone.
springforth: (438)

[personal profile] springforth 2021-02-03 01:46 am (UTC)(link)
"Calling me Pr--Wait--Hey!"

Persephone scrambled to catch it midair, tumbling head over heels and only righting herself a few feet above the ground.

"What are you doing?!" She sets down the helpmate and floats right over to him in a manner that seems like it should have much more stomping.
gentle_jim: (god I look good)

[personal profile] gentle_jim 2021-02-03 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
"Nice catch!"

He grins at her, looking completely unapologetic. "You can use it to plug the hole. Genius, right?"
springforth: (428)

[personal profile] springforth 2021-02-03 02:16 am (UTC)(link)
"Are you really--"

Deep breathes. DEEP BREATHES. She crosses her arms, wet hair falling in her face and the glare fading a little. But--you know what--fine. He's going to be an ass, she doesn't have to deal with it. She raises a finger and beneath him, vines crawl up his legs, twisting and curling tight to root him to the spot. There's something more to her for a second, something bigger, darker.

"I have a name, it's Persephone. And you can fix the pipe yourself now."
gentle_jim: (worried)

[personal profile] gentle_jim 2021-02-03 02:29 am (UTC)(link)
He just crosses his arms and smirks -- that is until he feels something start to curl around his ankle.

"What the-?" He tries to lift his foot away from the suddenly rampant growth, but it's too late. Looking back up at her, he's startled by the change in her presence, as if she was suddenly taking up more space.

It's gone before he can understand it though, leaving him to gape in bewilderment.

"Right. Got it," he says in a somewhat rattled tone of voice. "Uh, I actually...kinda can't now... With the vines."
gentle_jim: (hey kids handsome jack here)

[personal profile] gentle_jim 2021-02-03 02:49 am (UTC)(link)
"You bet I could," Jack responds, confident despite lacking any real knowledge about the thing's capabilities.

"Then you and me will take everyone home. Like heroes," he adds, his grin broad and full of shiny teeth.
springforth: (491)

[personal profile] springforth 2021-02-03 03:31 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh--hmn." It's kind of tempting to leave him there, rooted to the spot, until someone else comes along to free him. But she's wet and tired and annoyed and stupid pipes will not fix themselves. Without the air of divinity around her, she just looks like a grumpy small twenty year old who got caught in the rain, pink skin aside. She pushes her hair back from her face and starts walking away, silent, but the vines around his legs slowly untwist, curling back down along the floor.

"I'll leave you to it then. I need to change."
myblueskies: (of course!)

Re: Arrival

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-03 05:02 am (UTC)(link)
"Or if we do I hope they are more well behaved than those pandas!"

He shook his head fondly. "They were really naughty!"

Surely any other animals would be better than the pandas that liked eating wires!
myblueskies: (of course!)

wrap?

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-03 05:04 am (UTC)(link)
So many fluffy creatures!

This is the real mission, Romeo grinned at Jonouchi as he moved to the other alpacas, reaching out to pet them and herd them towards the fields where they were supposed to live!
goingthroughaphase: (pic#13971678)

[personal profile] goingthroughaphase 2021-02-03 09:02 am (UTC)(link)
[ The smile she gives him this time is a little more genuine. ] Thanks. Not everyone is like that, of course. Just...the people who are tend to be the ones protesting our existence the most.

[ But honestly, it helps to know that there are people like Inigo in the world - or the universe - who are more open-minded. ]

We're doing our best to turn things around...show people what we're really like and teach them more about us so they won't be so afraid. But it's...slow going.
goingthroughaphase: (pic#13971957)

[personal profile] goingthroughaphase 2021-02-03 09:04 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, generally. I've only been on a few missions myself, though, so I can't say how it's been every time.

[ Glancing around as well, she nods. ]

Right. Not much else we can do at the moment, until we find something.
goingthroughaphase: (pic#13971809)

[personal profile] goingthroughaphase 2021-02-03 09:07 am (UTC)(link)
Kitty nodded. "Good to know." At the very least, she didn't seem to think Raven was all that creepy. In fact, Raven kind of reminded her of Rogue in some ways, which was kind of nice.
happyends: (through even darkness)

[personal profile] happyends 2021-02-03 09:07 am (UTC)(link)
Thankfully things seem to be going well enough for now. It'd be a problem if Madoka had less arrows, but since people made more for her, it's not as much of a problem holding these things off - she can just grab her arrows again later, once they're done dealing with the threat.

The only problem is.. well, it kind of feels like only more and more of them keep appearing. Like they keep taking care of a few, only for more new ones to take their place. It's worrying, and after firing off another arrow, Madoka tries to move so Yoite can actually see her and realise she's talking.

"Yoite-san-- I think we'll have to try getting rid of them with the panel after all..!" It seems to be the only way to permanently get rid of these things.

Even though that didn't go so well last time around.
goingthroughaphase: (pic#13971652)

[personal profile] goingthroughaphase 2021-02-03 09:09 am (UTC)(link)
[ Studying it for a moment herself, Kitty ran her hand along the wall to feel for any opening. Then she phased her hand through to feel around for any kind of latch inside, and eventually found something she was able to pop open. ]

Here we go.
blitzcheer: (ur not me mam)

[personal profile] blitzcheer 2021-02-03 11:57 am (UTC)(link)
You can miss a higgledy just hanging out in your heart? is what Tidus thinks, some conceding on the fact (well, maybe he forgets about Gibbs being in there sometimes too...) that doesn't really go anywhere as he listens to Roland. Whatever the case was with this Rannygazoo guy (Rannygazoo? What a name), something in particular sure happened when they found him. A story for another time.

"What do we do?" Tidus asks, a way of approval. He looks from Roland, glancing to the higgledies, a hand resting on his hip. "You want us to do what we did now and leave the rest to Rannygazoo?"

...Tidus scoffs as soon as the name leaves his lips, holding back the width of the smile that wants to form. Okay, that is even more hilarious to say than to hear. Please don't call him out on this giggle.
blitzcheer: (who asked you!!)

[personal profile] blitzcheer 2021-02-03 12:51 pm (UTC)(link)
"You wouldn't be able to see me if you were underwater too." Siiigh. Why can't anyone make his passion easier to indulge in? And let him show his friends how cool blitzball is in action!

Which is reminding him of a conversation earlier in the month, a small mirthful huff leaving him. "Rol said I should ask Gibbs to make a giant sphere in the gym car. Can you imagine it? A giant floating sphere of water? Can you imagine it? Who'll clear it up!"

By the giddiness in his heart as he brings it up, he knows who has ideas about that. But no, Gibbs! Do you understand that water can be messy? You're a water spirit thing!! Of course you don't!!
Edited 2021-02-03 12:52 (UTC)