voidtreckermods: (train)
VoidTrecker Express Mods ([personal profile] voidtreckermods) wrote in [community profile] middleofsomewhere2021-04-10 06:25 am

The Endless River

On the morning of day twenty one of the month of Kazoo there is a message on the ICP screens around the train. Their SCA's will light up the colour of the Void and show the following information.

World #398050 is a void nexus known locally as Tshering. As a void nexus this world has strong links with the void and the connection through worlds. World #398050 is home to the Endless River. Legends speak of this river being powerful enough to send thoughts from one heart to another across any distance. All that is needed is for you to know who it is you wish to reach.


On-board

The dressing carriage is open, filled with clothing best suited to a pleasant spring day. Light, airy and in a rainbow of joyful colours and florals. One closet is entirely filled with wide-brimmed hats bedecked with ribbons, feathers and ornaments. A stack of picnic baskets and containers filled with an alarming variety of passenger-suitable foodstuffs and flasked drinks sits in one corner, next to rolls of thick, weatherproof blankets in the four team colours.

The large box marked Do Not Use Yet, filled with small, empty jute bags, is hopefully still sat in the Luggage carriage, ready for passengers to grab handfuls of its contents as directed by the announcement.

Upon landing (after an appropriate countdown), the train remains on the surface, its carriages partially curved to form a gathering site for the day. Welcome to Tshering, the eighth void nexus!



A Day for Picnics

Tshering, system #398050, is a strange place, only habitable by grace of the passengers' SCAs. The sky is shot through with colours, a cascade of sunsets, and through it, the void shimmering through it in seams like a child's painting of the milky way. Still, there's a beauty to the chaotic mash of colours that soaks through its landscape, and in the shelter of the forests of towering funghi that dot its surface, the Void can go unseen by its visitors.

The temperature seems mild, suitable for the provided clothing, and if there are weather patterns around the world they've taken the day off. The funghi are sturdy enough that what air flow there is doesn't disturb their stalks, and carved grooves and holds in some of the larger examples indicate that climbing them to sit atop their glowing crowns is eminently possible, and, in fact, encouraged.

the Endless River

The Endless River is a font of pure chaos, flowing from a multitude of small rivulets across the area to a central reservoir, from which it pours directly upwards, away from Tshering's surface and out of sight, beyond the world's atmosphere.

Anything bagged and placed within the Endless River will also flow upwards and soon be out of sight, passing, presumably, into the Void. Scattered across the surface of Tshering are small, glittering pebbles, as described in the announcement.

The stones are pleasantly cool to the touch, and all passengers need to do is feel. Messages can be in any form that the Voidtreckers wish. Perhaps words, perhaps feelings, perhaps an image from their mind into the stone. Perhaps a mixture. Once they begin their message the stone will glow slightly and continue to glow as they secure it in the bag and cast it into the river. They will feel, almost instinctively, that they need to focus as they do so, thinking of the person they wish to reach all the while.

There are plenty of bags and many more stones; passengers will not be limited in their sendings.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-04-20 12:50 am (UTC)(link)

"Yeah," he affirms.

Helping people is what they certainly do and he's grateful that he can. His eyes widened briefly at the swear but relaxes and even laughs a little at how his friend is ready to defend his right to be a cultivator.

"Not who they are now. But...I'd say who they were before. There's certainly a reputation that they established. They did kidnap and try to destroy the rest of the cultivation world by bringing them under their flag."

He is constantly reminded of the crimes of Wen Ruohan: the devastation of the Cloud Recesses, the destruction of Lotus Pier. It is only by some small grace that Sect Leader Jiang and those who survived in Yunmeng were able to give them a chance.

agoodsoul: (Default)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-04-20 09:09 am (UTC)(link)
Sounds like the Wen clan did a lot of bad stuff, so he gets why there would be a hate and lack of trust in any associated with it, but... that still wasn't fair to Sizhui and his family.

"But that weren't you or your family. Saying an entire clan is bad is like..." Dennis sighs, "It's like if part of a city did something real messed up, then they other cities around them blamed everyone in the city. Just not right." And sure, he's probably preaching to the choir, Sizhui knows this, but he feels pretty strongly about this kind of stuff.

"Cut down the rotten tree, but don't toss out the good apples, yeah?" And he smiles a little, trying to lighten up a bit. Also he's maybe proud of that analogy.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-04-21 05:50 am (UTC)(link)

He can't help but smile back.

"That's a very good analogy. I like that." He looks in the distance. "Cut down the rotten tree, don't toss out the good apples. You're very wise, Young Mast--I mean, Dennis."

It's strange to not be so proper around people. Even with Jingyi, he still needed to make sure they didn't get in trouble.

"Is there anything like that where you're from? In...London?" he asks carefully.

agoodsoul: (51)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-04-22 06:59 am (UTC)(link)
Wise? He's not so sure about that. Dennis shrugs.

"Got a few good ideas once in a while." He smiles sheepishly. No worries here, Sizhui, be as improper as you need to be. Dennis is so far from proper anything.

"Mm, kinda?" Sizhui had gotten the plates out so he'll start pulling food out of the basket.

"Just cause of where you live, how poor you is... people think you ain't nothing. That there's no point in you trying shit." Give you a shitty nickname that's pretty fucking demeaning. Fun things.

"Even when you're just trying to be something better, you're not worth it." There's a lot of bitterness in his voice.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-04-23 03:40 am (UTC)(link)

His heart goes out to him because that's a voice that sounds like experience. Sizhui waits patiently as he speaks.

"I'm willing to bet that there are those who think you're worth it," he says simply, reaching into the basket to get his own lunch. "If not, I can name at least two who believe you to be very noble."

agoodsoul: (31)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-04-24 04:52 am (UTC)(link)
"Wha-" of course he's got a couple people in his life who see the good in him, maybe one he really thinks he doesn't deserve, but... is Sizhui implying both him and Lan Sizhui think that? They've only just met him!

Dennis isn't sure how to respond to that, shrugging a shoulder awkwardly.

"Come off it, you don't even really know me yet." If they knew any of his past they might think differently.

"Dunno if noble is a word I'd use for me, you two definitely though." They speak so nice and properly and seem very refined.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-04-25 06:28 am (UTC)(link)
His expression is open and honest, not a hint of deception.

"It's true, I don't but I like to think I'm a good judge of character. And I believe you to be noble from our few conversations. And I believe my brother feels the same way."
agoodsoul: (45)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-04-26 05:20 am (UTC)(link)
"Noble." Dennis says it like it feels weird in his mouth. It's hard not to smile a bit.

"I know Lan Sizhui can't lie, guessing you not lying type either huh?" But his tone indicates he's not insinuating he would anyway.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-05-02 08:16 am (UTC)(link)
He chuckles and smiles back at him.

"I may not have been raised by the Gusu Lan sect but many of their principles are behind Hanguang Jun's teachings to me. So yes, I am not the lying type."

He tilts his head as he regards his friend.

"Do you truly not see yourself as noble?"
agoodsoul: (2)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-05-03 04:33 am (UTC)(link)
Lying us bad and all, but he can't imagine never telling a fib or nothing. Though lies have 100% fucked up his life, so yeah. Lying? Not cool.

As for Sizhui's question, it's uh. Loaded. Dennis gives a soft shrug.

"Dunno. Hurt a lot of people in my life, feels hard to look at myself as noble." Not like he ever meant to hurt them, but there are consequences to poor decisions and all that.

"Before the train was trying to make something good of myself."
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-05-03 04:35 am (UTC)(link)

He taps a finger to his chin, humming a thinking noise as he twists his lips.

"If you were trying to make something good of yourself, then that classifies you as noble. I've told you about...other members of my family. Since then, we've also tried to make something good of ourselves. Though I suspect my uncle's alcoholic drinks are...far worse than anything that anyone's ever attempt to brew."

agoodsoul: (35)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-05-04 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
"Sounds like a lot of you were good anyway." Not their fault that people couldn't or refused to see that.

"I'll take your word for it, you seem like the expert on nobility." Dennis teases, trying to play down the whole thing.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-05-05 03:39 am (UTC)(link)
He reaches over and gives him a playful push. Not too hard though.

"I might know a thing or two."
agoodsoul: (32)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-05-05 09:01 am (UTC)(link)
Dennis looks afronted at the push, though obviously he's not actually upset by it.

"Nevermind, I take it back. That's very un-noble of you." And he'll reach over and tug Sizhui's sun hat down over his face. Gotta tease back.
wenyuan: (Default)

[personal profile] wenyuan 2021-05-18 08:55 pm (UTC)(link)

"Hey!"

He laughs and rights his sun hat again

"Al alright, no picnic desserts for you, then."

agoodsoul: (65)

[personal profile] agoodsoul 2021-05-19 07:11 am (UTC)(link)
"S'fine, watching my girlish figure anyway." Which is sorta true, but he wouldn't say no to a sweet.