No Place Like Home: The Return

[voidtreckermods]

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NO PLACE LIKE HOME: THE RETURN

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a silence broken...

It's been a very difficult few days. Rocking and rolling into the void and out again. Watching their friends out of the window as they wander from world to world. Meanwhile those lost on worlds continue to wander unable to return to the train at all.

"All attempts at returning those who left have failed. This voidcraft cannot do it alone. It is lucky that unlike those that have left before them, I can still sense them.

But I cannot bring them back alone. This is perhaps too advanced for Voidtreckers, but you have done the improbable before. You say you wish to help. This is how you help."

Their SCA's light up with a message. Or rather, a series of instructions:

In the unlikely event a tether gets stranded on a liminal space platform or between their own world and the platform space, you should, in the first instance, contact the Void technicians who monitor their non-travelling self. However, in the case they cannot be reached or there is a mass displacement of tether, an anchoring procedure can be carried out.

Ideally, this will involve two fully tethered individuals to retrieve the lost tether. One should be a stationary anchor. They should be outside of their void craft, if possible, and in physical contact with it. The second should be a roaming anchor reaching to draw the tethers back. In situations of mass tether displacement the stationary anchor can hold mutiple roaming anchors but it is recommended to not exceed five. In this situation, it is recommended that anchors rotate between stationary and roaming.

To start an anchoring of this kind, those anchoring should activate their anchoring program. Those staying station should reach out to the tethers of those they plan to steady. This might cause some emotional upheaval, and they will need to stay steady, especially if connecting to more than one roaming tether. Roaming anchors then must hold the person they search for in their thoughts and move towards them. It is recommended that the lost tethers activate their emergency beacon to facilitate being found and returning but this is not a necessity.

Once the roaming anchor has found the lost tethers they must keep hold of them and guide them back towards their craft, the stationary tethers must draw them back, pulling them through.

There is an additional note at the end, in different font.

It is as Anan told you. Your minds should visualise it. Be strong Voidtreckers.

... a short-lived dream

The doors open and anyone who wishes to try this can leave onto the platform. It is empty, devoid of the figures they had seen before; and, beyond the fog, devoid of anything. But searching requires their SCAs, not a path, and as people get into teams, they can activate their anchors and begin.

For those who will roam, their minds become filled, visualising light, void, voices and chaos; their bodies feel less stable, like they might unravel if not careful. But for those who will stay, when they touch the Voidtrecker Express, they will feel more stable, grounded. The fog shifts, but the world moves around them without pulling them in.

Thinking of the person they wish to keep stable, a mental and emotional link will be established, and they will feel each other as the roaming anchor sets off to find their missing crew.

---

Outside the train...
For those that had left - either by choice or by strange happenings - they have found themselves back at their anchor point during Poi 26, regardless of where they were before. For those unfortunate enough not to have a world to return to, or those who were stuck between in the first place, they will find themselves alone, in a fog filled space where no matter how far they walk, nothing greets them.

All those in fog or back in their world receive the same message from their SCAs.

Hold fast. Press your evacuation button. Your friends come.

---

RETURNERS: FLEETING HAPPINESS

But it's likely before the message arrived, that something wrong has been noticed by those outside the void. More than the bizarre ability to travel between existences, an inability to move far from where they appear. Back at their anchor points, they may notice - in time - colours sometimes flash across the sky, streaking through clouds or making trails in a night sky. At first not much, something to be easily dismissed but it builds. People talk, wonder at what is happening.

For the colours aren't the only thing. Across worlds, in cities, kingdoms, villages, underworlds and space stations, people are dreaming. Bright colours, vivid dreams. Prophets spring from nowhere, people claim to know the future or to have seen the past. Some talk of places and worlds they could not have seen.

Perhaps at first it can be explained away, there are always such people. But more people talk, from urchin children to commanders, people dream and the colours dance.

ANCHORERS: A STEADY HAND

While the stationeries will feel grounded, they aren't blind to what's happening to their roamer. It's as if they're both linked, intimately, meshing together, and they will need to work to keep their feelings separate; hearing each other's thoughts, their feelings. Images of what the other thinks and memories shared between them.

And then there is the search for their teammates, amongst the multiple of realities. Existences move past the roamer, threatening to lose them in the mess, but they must persevere, keep their thoughts on the individual, their stationary anchor to help them. Until finally, they appear - in a world they perhaps know, don't, the kaleidoscope colours of the void faint above their heads.

Speak to each other, keep each other focused, certain, and find who you came to save.

BOTH: HOLDING ON

Searching for individuals, the anchorers will find themselves at a character's anchor point; if they haven't moved far from here or another world, it will be easy to locate them. Now is the time to convince them to come back, and then the eventual work of doing so.

It can be in agreement, or force. Taking a hold of the person, the anchorer can pull them into the mass of chaos. Just like when they helped the guests return to their worlds from the false Diagad, all parties become battered by images, voices. Voices like sirens; 'Just stay,' the voices encourage. 'Just let go and drift into the chaos. It will be easier.'

But they must be strong, move towards their anchor and towards the craft. The crossing doesn't take too long, perhaps ten minutes each way, and once they get to the craft the person they are rescuing glows gold and vanishes. The anchors will know instinctively that they are safe on the train.

And indeed, the rescued will find themselves within the luggage carriage - exhausted, but safe.

TRAIN: AN INEVITABLE RETURN

Exhaustion is something all parties will experience, once everyone is returned to the train and the adrenaline wears off. Those who anchored will be hit with a total exhaustion, leaving them unable to do much more than eat and sleep for a few days. Those rescued won't be as bad, but if they decide to join in with the efforts, they'll too face the soul-tiring experience that other anchorers are.

There's likely to be efforts, to help soothe people over this time. And as people return to their life on the train, they will see the marks of the last few days for those who stayed behind. Broken ceramics, books out of order in the library; the ICPs in the standard coach, storage, sports and games carriages broken, and some damage to furniture.

But for the scars brought on by this event, surely, they will heal - eventually.

OOC NOTES

OOC post. Ask questions here. New second part OOC post here.

First phase of the event took place during Poi 22 to 25; the second phase takes place during Poi 26 to 28 (20-25th February).

VISITING WORLDS: While during Poi 26, it will be possible to go back to wherever they were, or other spaces. However, they will have increasing difficulty doing this, and will feel themselves getting more lost if they try world hopping too much over the next 3 (void) days. It's like something is trying to pull them back, or pull them, but into nowhere.

SCAs: The SCA's comms will not be active at this time.

Comments

[blue_ice]

Seto feels his heart clenching. He knew she was from a dangerous world, far more apparent dangers than any he'd faced. But to feel it...that's the world she's in now, anything could've happened to her before they could find her. She had her team, he had to trust them.

But it almost seemed like there was someone he didn't recognize probing at the link. That set hm on-edge.

...I think someone else is here. Any ideas?

[worthallthis]

What is it about people coming from worlds like this? Maybe every world is like this, depending on what time you come from... maybe the train looking for "heroes" winds up with people who've been through a crucible of some sort.

They answer: (We've had the best results just. Talking. In the past. And acting non-threatening. NOT SURE WHAT NON-THREATENING LOOKS LIKE IN THIS SITUATION. Stating our intentions to help and not hurt, for starters.)

Soldat would very much rather not get into any fights with the locals, especially powerfully psychic ones. They've talked down dangerous spirits more than once, back in Beacon, and definitely prefer that track. If they can't avoid notice, it's probably best to make it clear they're not attacking anyone.

[10billionpercent]

Senku was mostly listening to the psychic chatter, trying to pinpoint it and that dangerous presence was strong.

He wasn't the best at talking out his plans, he attempted to follow that thread and probed back mentally. Was it familiar? Had he met this psychic pokemon during his visit?

Instead of guarding further, he tried to relax, open and willing for the creature in question to probe him further if he wanted to get more of a sense of him. As a result the others might feel it as well. Slow and steady, his breathing is even and relaxed. He is not afraid, although he probably should be.

Did we meet? Eva and I are family. We're not a threat to her. Senku offered, even though Leia volunteered to negotiate. He wouldn't go so far as to negotiate, that was not in his skillset, but a potential gentle reminder was not beyond him.

[motherofresistance]

That last creature- and the devastation caused by it- reminded her somewhat of footage she'd seen of the Zillo Beast that had once rampaged across Coruscant. That too, had been a previously controlled situation gone horribly wrong, though given the one who'd ordered the creature brought there to begin with, she had to wonder how much had been accidental. Either way, the others would sense Leia's grim understanding of the scale of such a disaster and what its aftermath must have been like, as well as flashes of images from the footage Leia recalled, though that would clearly be something Leia only knew about second hand, rather than something she herself had experienced.

If what Eva said about Fluffy is accurate- and it seems to be- acting nonthreatening and explaining the situation is likely the way to go yes, she replied. Which may go faster if she's willing and able to let me offer the information more directly. Once she understands what's happening, Fluffy may even be willing to help us. Eva had described the Mewtwo as being sentient and reasonably intelligent, after all. And it wouldn't take much intelligence to figure out what needed to be done once the situation was made clear.

[mtsilver_conquor]

Seto will 'feel' something poke him. It feels curious, for now. He'll also get a sensation of 'who'?

Senku> would find that it was familiar - he's met it -her -this is Fluffy- briefly on the beach were he met Tanknator. For Senku alone, the dangerous-mind turns wary-accepting. His link with Eva sharpens into clarity, as if guiding him towards the woman.

Soldat and Leia will get the impression that Fluffy is willing to listen, but that Eva's safety comes first.

Regardless of what they each get, Eva comes into view. For those on Arkea, it'll be in the flesh, for Seto, he gets feedback/images focused on this.

Eva's at a picnic table. The scent of salt is stronger here, as if the sea isn't far away. Also fish and chips and over there, seagull-like creatures argue over the remains of a burger. Either way, Eva has her laptop out as she chats with an increasingly worried Satoru. Ehe hasn't noticed them, yet, but the mewtwo with her?

You bet your arses Fluffy has. And she looks wary.