No Place Like Home: Outside

[voidtreckermods]

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NO PLACE LIKE HOME: OUTSIDE

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HOME SWEET HOME

You find yourself not on a wide station platform, in the clothes you last remember, holding what you were when you went through the glas door. There's no longer a train behind you, no sound of its whistle, with no other passengers around you in similar style of clothing to your own.

You're somewhere familiar, or just - the last place you remember being before your life became tethered to the Voidtrecker Express. A field, a city, a kingdom, or perhaps even a space station. You should be nowhere, yet you find yourself somewhere, despite all odds.

People - if there are people - don't at first notice you; but attract enough attention to yourself, and that will all change. Friends, family - are they near, a phonecall away? It's either everything you wanted or everything you imagined (for good or worse), and it could seem unbelievably real. But it is real - you're off the train, back somewhere you know.

Finally - the journey is over...

---

...If only.
You're moving away from where you arrived, for whatever reason. Who wouldn't? You may be far from home, have business elsewhere, or want to go sightseeing. It's time to return to - and live - your life, and that doesn't include sticking to one place.

But you'll find that when you reach a point, the world becomes...foggy. A fog that you hadn't seen in the distance before it appears, and when you walk through it, you'll find yourself in a place some have already found themselves in.

Because for some passengers, there was nowhere for them to return, and so the barriers lead only to fog, and then straight back onto the platform. The Voidtrecker Express may be stationed, or there may be a blanket of fog where it should be; sometimes, it can be caught trying to leave the station, only to come back a few minutes later. The doors are shut tight, and the windows are obscured, showing nothing inside.

Those who came from somewhere can go back, should they go through the turnstiles again. And if they want, they can take people along with them, too...

---

But sometimes, they go to a world no one knows. They go through the barriers into nothing, a black emptiness. Not space, for those that know space, and it doesn't seem to be the void either. But it is a void, devoid of anything at all. Just a darkness so complete they will not be able to see anything at all, they will only know their companion is there through touch and sound. How they are breathing, how they are living at all, is a mystery; one probably answered only by the SCA on their wrist.

Being there brings an unease deep down inside them. This place is not natural, not somewhere that they should exist in. Not a place that should exist at all. Luckily they are never there for more than a few moments before they return once more to the station, fog covering them like a safety blanket.

A DIFFERENT CORNER: LOCATIONS

In the first couple of days (whatever that means, when time doesn't match up between most places), the only way to move to another's tethered location is by them leading another there. But after that, individuals will show up in other locations when they reach close to the distance limit. Indeed as time goes on everything gets a lot less stable. They may know their five miles perfectly but still one step to another leads them back to the platform. Attempting to return to their world leads them somewhere else entirely.

And there's quite a few places to end up.

---

SETTLEMENTS

• Buddhist Temple, China ( Koumyou Sanzo | TL )
  
• Rebel Camp, Lothal ( Hera Syndulla | TL )
  
• Homestead, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA ( Nell Ingram TL )
  
• Capsule Corp ( Trunks | TL )
  
• School Grounds, College ( Idia Shroud | TL )
  
• City Ruins, beach ( Najaran | TL )
  
• Hakkei Palace, Tai ( Taiki | TL )
  
• Gusu Lan, mountain sect (China) ( Lan Jingyi | TL)
  
• Lotus Pier, riverside, China ( Jiang Cheng | TL )
  
• The Endless Abyss, Hell ( Shen Qingqiu | TL )
  
• Hyrule Castle Town ( Zelda | TL )
  
• Haven Palace ( TL )

COMMUNITIES

• Spaceport ( Yondu | TL)
  
• Mobile Station Base ( Kiyoiri )
  
• Arkwood, Town (Ryo | TL )
  
• Techstead, Town ( Devero | TL )
  
• Tatsumi Port Island ( Ken Amada )
  
• Mor Dhona / Town, Mountain, Lakes ( K'zeka Tai | TL )
  
• Hyrule Field & Lon Lon Ranch ( Link | TL )
  
• Ishigami Village, Japan ( Senku Ishigami | TL )
  
• Aether Paradise/Artificial Island/Natural Preserve ( Katsuya Jonouchi )
  
• Nautilus ( Spark/Clef TL Clef | TL Spark )
  
• The Underworld, Hades ( Zagreus and Thanatos | TL )
  
• Sanctuary ( TL )

CITIES & KINGDOMS

• Saillune City ( Zelgadis | TL )
  
• New Mantle, City ( Ruby Rose | TL )
  
• Brooklyn, New York City, USA in 2017 ( Jake Peralta | TL )
  
• Azabu-Juban District, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan ( Usagi Tsukino | TL )
  
• Hau'oli City ( Eva Iden'no | TL )
  
• Gauig City ( Little One/Buttercup | TL )
  
• Kyoto, Japan ( Masumi Sera | TL )
  
• Shinjuku, Japan ( Yosuke Otoha | TL )
  
• Kingdom, Evermore ( Roland Crane )
  
• Garlemad, Kingdom ( Zenos | TL )
  
• Kingdom of Knothole ( Mina Mongoose | TL )
  
• Domino City ( Yugi Muto | TL )
  
• Amnity Park ( Danny Fenton | TL )
  
• Garlemald ( TL )
  
• Lothal ( TL )
  
• Los Angeles ( TL )
  
• The First - Crystarium and Lakeland ( Elidibus | TL )

OOC NOTES

OOC post. Ask questions here.

LOCATION TOPLEVELS: Since it'll be easier for players to engage with settings presented by those offering them, when we see a toplevel for one of the above locations put up, we'll add it to the list! We've also included the OOC comments for settings to the side, so any questions can be left with the player, as well as extra details. Please always speak with the player first if you intend to do anything drastic to the setting!

A REMINDER: Time of log is Poi 22-25, but time within worlds can last up to a maximum of two weeks. Minimum is whatever you want it to be.

During Poi 22 and 23, characters will need to be led to a location to be able to access it. From Poi 24, people will show up in locations regardless of invitation.

The second half of the event will go up during 20th to 25th February (Poi 26-28). But as always, play around in here and do as you like!

If your character's setting isn't above, link us to it in the Questions post, along with your toplevel! We'll add it.

Comments

[subcircuits]

Oh bless you, Yondu. Since he initiated, Devero lets himself collapse against him, returning the squeeze. He hides his face in the sturdy, familiar leather of Yondu's coat and clings to him for a long moment.

He sniffs suspiciously when he draws back, dragging his hand across his eyes, but he's able to stand tall as he turns to glower at the train. "I hope they realize what happened in there," he says. "I hope they're trying."

They have to have, right? They've got to be working to get the people who want to be there back on board....

Then something occurs to him. His glower turns into a grin, though it's a lopsided, sort of strained one. "If Koumyou has anything to say about it, they are. He knows I wouldn't leave him."

[yondu]

Yondu's good for it. He's gotten used to it. For all the roles he's fallen into, being something to cry on has been surprisingly easy for him, a job he's welcomed, and he pulls the usually ever-present tissues out of his pocket.

"Hell no, he won't. Nor would anyone that knows you half-way. They'll get ya back. They just need a little bit o' time."

He cups Dev's face, smooshing it with his hands. "You feel me? Don't give up. You got people who won't let this happen."

[subcircuits]

Devero grins sheepishly and accepts the tissues to blot his eyes dry. He laughs wetly when Yondu squooshes his face, the rough physical affection making fresh tears roll free.

He catches one of Yondu's wrists and gives it a rough squeeze. "And I've got you on my side out here," he says. "If they can't get us back on the train, bet you you can."

He's always had a lot of faith in Yondu's ability to improvise and problem-solve. If anyone could figure out how to get back on the train from the outside, he knows it'd be Yondu.

[yondu]

"Mostly I've just been runnin' to ever'one else's worlds. Tryin' to set some things right."

Things that other people can't do, or just lend a hand. Because he doesn't actually have the confidence that they'll make it out, and while he might put a desperate message out to Anan? Mostly he's just... tired.

He just wishes he knew what the hell went wrong.

"Speakin' of which lets get you somewhere comfortable. I don't trust bein' out here too long. Probably does bad things to us if we're exposed too much." Liminal whatever all this is.

[subcircuits]

Devero blots his eyes and nods, smiling fondly at Yondu. He would be trying to set things right for everyone else.

"Rust and ruin, it probably does," he says with a tired huff. "Okay. Let's go somewhere."

[yondu]

"I'll escort ya back home, but you gotta lead the way. Cain't find your world without your help... and honestly, considerin', I'd much rather ya be there with company."

He does remember what happened to Dev, all too keenly. And he wants to be there to keep anyone from getting their hands on him. Even if his murder record would be an offense on the senses, it's like he told Quatre: sometimes people with softer hearts need someone with a harder one to look out for them.

[subcircuits]

'Back home' makes Devero stiffen up in automatic reaction, ready to protest-- but he holds his tongue, and relaxes again. If there's anyone he'd feel okay to go back to his world with other than Koumyou, Yondu's it.

"Okay," he says with a nod. "Follow me." He still has to square his shoulders and swallow hard before he does so, but he's able to lead Yondu through the barrier gate with his head up.

On the other side, they've stepped into Techstead's community square. It's a lovely plaza, paved with close-fitting stone cobbles and shaded by lush trees in full autumn display. A stately building presides over the far end of the square with a fountain playing in front of it; other buildings are visible through the trees, with pathways leading off from the square in several directions. There doesn't appear to be anyone else in immediate evidence, which makes Devero relax even further.

[yondu]

Yondu's quiet, too. Unusually so. No questions, no persistance. He's just following Devero acting very much like a man who doesn't want to be noticed. And he likely won't be, which he knows, unless he draws attention to himself.

It's quaint though, he thinks. A nice little rebuilt place. His fin lights up as he tries to keep track of how close any people are around them, a brief flicker like sonar to let him find all the little people shapes and account for how many of them there might be watching out of their office windows or down distant streets. But he also knows they probably won't care.

"This the last place you was at, huh?" he asks finally, keeping his scratchy void low.

[subcircuits]

There is a very, very small number people of detectable for him, especially given the size of the place. Most of the ones in the immediate vicinity seem to be congregated dead ahead of them in the prominent Administration building, and even that is less than a dozen.

"Yeah," Devero says, his own voice just as low. "Home." He laughs one of those humorless laughs of his, brief and bitter. "Used to be, anyway."

[yondu]

"I've been to a lotta reclaimed worlds. They're doin' pretty good." Mostly ones that the Kree completely decimated, the native populations having thrown their backs into frantically rebuilding.

He shrugs at it being 'home' though.

"Sometimes I still call Centauri IV home. And I barely even remember it. Your mouth gets trained on stuff your heart ain't fully feelin' sometimes." He realizes that there was some purpose to how Devero said it, but he wants him to know that the sentiment of "home" isn't always house and hearth. "Home's the same name for a marker where you start and keep goin' from."

[subcircuits]

Eyes closed, Devero listens to Yondu's rough wisdom and huffs a breath when the other man's done. "Yeah," he says. "This place was home for a real long time. Makes sense my mouth would still think of it that way."

And it doesn't help that he still thinks of this world as home, even if Techstead is no longer the safe haven it used to be.

"C'mon," he says, jerking his head towards one of the cobbled pathways leading off the main square. "Let's be... not here." Where Valdana could come strolling out of that big fancy building one the far side of the plaza any minute now....

[yondu]

"Reckon someone's gonna tell her that you're here?" Yondu says without even needing to be told of who he's thinking about. He won't say it out loud- knows better to, but silently he promises that if Devero needs it, Yondu will do what's necessary to get rid of her.

That silent promise, he also suspects, is part of why Devero would want to keep a low profile. That difficult balance between a soft soul believing in justice and public respect of crimes, and a hard one that's sometimes seen 'justice' twisted by smart people to suit their needs.

Not something he likely would want to deal with while his whole life hangs in the balance.

[subcircuits]

"Most likely my emID will ping a monitoring program," he says heavily, starting to walk. "What happens after that depends on who ordered the alert, but why wouldn't they report it to the administrator? This is her town."

[yondu]

"What about it bein' in two places at once? Wherever your body's hangin' out should have it. You got a monitor on you, and it's just gonna turn up as an error. I think you get to some kinda terminal you got time to hide it."

Maybe Yondu can help with something, at least. He's not a hacker, but he can pick a digital lock like a madman. If Dev needed to get into a private area, Yondu could help with that.