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.
subcircuits: (attendant)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-01-31 05:43 am (UTC)(link)
"Great! Lead the way." Devero follows closely as Romeo takes them to this electronic screen, keeping his eyes peeled for any more of the rampant Helpmates as they go.
myblueskies: (Alfredo is speaking!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-01-31 01:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Romeo skipped along until he found the tree where he remembered seeing the screen. It was near the ground, almost as if it were a plaque explaining the species of tree.

"There sir!"
subcircuits: (interface)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-01-31 11:08 pm (UTC)(link)
There it is. "Thank you," Devero says to Romeo, even as he takes a knee in front of the screen. Lifting a hand to his Interface, he sends out a generic connection ping from his Interface to any receiving systems-- including, hopefully, this one.

This isn't likely to work, but if he can just network to it directly...
myblueskies: (Alfredo is speaking!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-01 06:57 pm (UTC)(link)
Romeo sits across from him, watching him as he looked at it. "Don't you got to press it? I think it's like the ICPs sir."

No buttons, but a screen to press, a bit like the phones in the heavens.
subcircuits: (tch!)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-04 02:46 am (UTC)(link)
Ughhhh why is his world the only one that's managed to get away from haptic technology. Devero tries to keep his distaste to himself as he prods the screen-- which responds immediately, just like Romeo had predicted.

"Yup," he groans. "We have to press it. Fine." He brings both hands up to the panel. "Let's see what's in this menu..."
myblueskies: (of course!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-05 04:28 am (UTC)(link)
"Do you not got screens like that in your world, mister Devero?" He peered over his shoulder at the menu, it looked a little bit complicated, hopefully Devero would find what he was looking for.

subcircuits: (i see you)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-08 12:01 am (UTC)(link)
"Not like this," he says, leaning over the screen as he navigates the initial landing page. "Where I come from, I would connect this--" He lifts one hand to tap his Interface. "--to the screen, and then I would be able to use it without having to touch it."

To him, thsi UI isn't complicated at all. The trick is getting through the surface interface and down to the settings below. Hmm. For all that he doesn't use haptic tech all that much, his fingers sure are flying with confidence as he selects and dismisses various options in sequence.
myblueskies: (smiles all round)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-08 04:59 am (UTC)(link)
"Without touching it?"

That was pretty amazing! But what is also amazing is how fast the man is pressing buttons on the screen. Romeo has never seen anyone work so fast before. How could he even read that fast.

He leaned forward, watching, but not interrupting.
subcircuits: (oh come on then)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-12 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
"Mm-hm." He's a little distracted by what he's doing, but not so much that he ignores Romeo. He's just frowning and a little distant as he tells the boy, "I could talk to it and tell it what do to, or use certain movements of my hands to interact with it. Be a lot more sanitary than this is, that's for sure."
myblueskies: (I don't understand!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-12 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
"Sanitary?" He tilted his head, "I don't think it's too dirty here. It's very clean"

That's what sanitary meant right? But this world was unusually clean and neat. It was nice, but a little eerie.
subcircuits: (all right i'm listening)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-15 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
Devero glances up at Romeo, thinks for a moment, and then decides it's best to pick his battles. "It is clean, especially for agricultural country, isn't it?"

He returns his attention to the screen, dismissing another dead-end prompt chain with a grunt. "C'mon," he mutters, mostly to himself, "there's got to be a settings menu in here somewhere."
myblueskies: (Alfredo is speaking!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-16 05:26 am (UTC)(link)
He nodded, it really was. He would expect it to be more muddy, but this world was strange in every way.

He watches with wide eyes, going quiet again as he recognises Devero's frustration, he doesn't want to interrupt him while he's trying to concentrate.
subcircuits: (appealing)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-17 11:54 pm (UTC)(link)
It takes him a few more minutes, but soon enough he sits up in front of the screen with a triumphant crow. "Got it!"

He's found the configurations menu.

"So these things control the Helpmates," he says, tapping the outside bezel of the panel and looking over at Romeo. "Best I can tell from what I've seen in here, it's one Helpmate to one panel, but if we can figure out which goes with which, we should be able to make some changes from this menu to control the things.

"I think I want to try calling this panel's Helpmate and test everything out, does that sound all right to you?"
myblueskies: (of course!)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-19 05:27 am (UTC)(link)
"Well done sir!" He peered over at the screen as he listened to what mister Devero was explaining. This screen controlled one of the Helpmates and they could tell it what to do from here.

"Okay sir! If it gets angry I'll use a borderline so you don't got to worry about it hurting you!"
subcircuits: (determination)

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-20 08:31 pm (UTC)(link)
"That would be perfect," Devero says, ignoring the qualm he feels about allowing a child to protect a grown man from attack. After all, this child has magic; it's not like he's some helpless kid from Devero's own world.

"Here goes nothing," he says in warning as he navigates back to the main menu screen. He takes a deep breath, and then he hits the 'Call Helpmate' button to summon one of the constructs.
myblueskies: (so proud of you)

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-21 08:54 am (UTC)(link)
"Okay!" He stood ready, ready to throw a borderline as Devero works the screen to call one of the Helpmates.

It didn't take long before it arrived, appearing in front of them.

For now it didn't seem that it was likely to attack. Romeo watched carefully though! If he was being a bodyguard he had to watch really carefully for danger!
subcircuits: (determination)

he's so pure, help

[personal profile] subcircuits 2021-02-27 04:33 am (UTC)(link)
Devero's got a hand on one of his pipes as the Helpmate materializes in front of them, relaxing a little when it shows no sign of malfunction. He instructs it briefly to stay where it is, glances at Romeo with a little nod, and then starts to navigate his way back through the panel's UI to that configurations menu.
myblueskies: (of course!)

here to protect with cute

[personal profile] myblueskies 2021-02-28 06:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Romeo gave him a big grin and a thumbs up with his free hand, he kept his eyes on that helpmate though! Just in case it tried to do anything tricky!

"What are you going to try first, sir?"