No Place Like Home: The Return

[voidtreckermods]

---

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: THE RETURN

---

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

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Anchoring

The first person to walk anywhere near the Overlord gets said demon immediately stepping into their path -- like, flash-step really-quick right-there in their path, with a scowl.

"Anchor. This'll go faster if you don't argue."

Hunting Persephone

Out into the Void, a scowl on his face and a general air of impatience adopted so everyone knew just how much he was annoyed by this. He absolutely had to make certain that people could see he was doing this out of obligation and a vague sense of an Overlord's duty, not because he was desperately worried and compelled on the most visceral level to get Persephone back. If his thoughts were focused on her, her smile and her sharp wit and her tangle of hair and her warmth and how wonderful she felt tucked against him, that was just because he needed to focus to find her, right?

Right?

...damn it. He couldn't even convince himself any more.

You Other Losers Too

Persephone wasn't the only one who needed help. And as Overlord, it was his duty and responsibility to protects his underlings and servants. Even if they'd done something foolish out there. Even if they'd bought this whole stupid like hook, line, and sinker!

Back out Zetta went, searching for others. Into the Void again.

Inevitable Return

Exhausted. Zetta was exhausted. He'd gotten no farther than the garden carriage, his old haunt and a place he still insisted was his domain and his alone despite his private room with Persephone, and then collapsed. Just no more of his infinite and unparalleled strength to call on right now, leaving him sprawled out on a stone pathway.

"They better appreciate how I've sacrificed my dignity for them," he muttered into the hard floor, a slight twitch the only effort he could muster towards getting up.

anchoring

[myblueskies]

He jumped a little when his god appeared right there in front of him but he nodded straight away. Because he had been looking for someone to help!

"Yes sir! Are we going to try and get miss Persephone back?"

Of course that would be who mister Zetta would be looking for!

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"I should've stopped her," Zetta said, even though they both knew he neither could have nor would have. He wasn't even doing a good job pretending it was just annoyance and not deep-seared worry. "We're gonna drag her back here top speed."

[myblueskies]

"She wanted to go sir, so we couldn't tell her no." That would be mean. But now they needed to go and get her to keep her safe.

"I can anchor you to the train! I'll hold on really tight!"

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Right." Zetta was sure that physical strength had nothing to do with it. Things like this were never that simple and easy. "I don't know what's going to happen, but it might get rough for you. So be prepared."

[myblueskies]

"Of course sir! I'll try my best!"

And be very prepared. "Shall we do it now?"

The sooner the better, to get miss Persephone back safe and sound.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Yeah. We're not waiting." Romeo understood exactly. "Not sure what it's gonna be like, but it won't be the weirdest thing we've been through."

[myblueskies]

"Probably not! Lots of weird things happen!"

He grinned. "Okay so we got to press these anchors and I got to touch the train and then you got to go and find her!"

They were the instructions, he had read them carefully.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Right. And since that's all it says, we're probably going to have all sorts of weird stuff happen, all of it bad."

Zetta had gotten just a touch cynical about the train and everything to do with it.

Return

[unrecovered]

Wash doesn't witness the collapse; he only sees the results as he enters the garden car and sees a very tall man completely splayed out on the path. He stops by him and takes a knee to check him over. He's breathing and doesn't seem to be otherwise hurt - probably exhausted from anchoring.

"So. You want some help, or do you want to nap here?" For once, it's an actual question, not sarcasm.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Zetta made many comments that had no real force behind them, muttering stuff about 'dignity of an Overlord' and 'tremble before me' and so forth. Eventually his pride reflex wore off, and the demon turned his head slightly to look in the man's vague direction.

"How the hell do YOU have any energy?"

[unrecovered]

Boy, is that a lot of grumbling for someone flat on their face in public. Wash lets him talk himself out, mentally going over his to-do list, until the so-called Overlord looks at him and asks an actual question. He doesn't get a real answer (because "Anchoring would've made me have a mental breakdown, so I didn't do it" isn't something he's about to share); instead, he gets a casual shrug. "Someone has to take care of everyone who anchored. Now are you gonna answer my question or do you just wanna bitch some more?"

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Zetta's utter weariness showed in having to actually think about the question.

"Uh, would you be willing to become my vassal for like five minutes here?"

Bone-deep weariness, no matter how well-earned, still had one hell of an enemy in an Overlord's pride.

[unrecovered]

The answer to "does Wash want to make a contract with bitchy goth satan" is a resounding fuck no, though he doesn't necessarily have to phrase it like that. "No," he says in that same casual tone, "but I will move your ass off the path. If you have the patience for it, I might even get you to a bed."

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"...Look, this would be a lot easier on both of us if you'd just agree." Zetta groaned, rolling agonizingly over onto his back just to sprawl out again. "As an Overlord, accepting help would be a sign of weakness I refuse to tolerate. Commanding the service of a vassal is okay though."

[unrecovered]

Ah, egotistical bullshit, because things can never be simple. "Yeah, my last roommate was a literal demon from hell, so I'm not about to make a contract with anyone who uses the word 'vassal' unironically." It's a massive misrepresentation of Michael; then again, Michael isn't exactly here. (He'd probably have some very off-kilter opinions on the entire situation if he were.)

But none of that solves the demonic road block problem, and Wash takes a few seconds to turn his options over in his head before approaching it from a different angle. "I could drag you off against your will and leave you someplace a little more comfortable. You could bitch about how some weirdo took advantage of your 'weakened state' for his convenience, and we could start a bullshit vendetta that doesn't go anywhere but also doesn't bruise your ego. How about that." It's Red Team tactics, though spelled out a little more explicitly than he'd normally need to. You didn't explain the vendetta to Sarge; you just leaned into it knowing he'd do the same and used it to get him to do what you wanted (usually either 'put down the gun' or 'holy shit, it's two in the morning, leave me alone').

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"I said for like five minutes, for Magog's sake!"

Hmm. The whole alternate idea actually had some pretty good logic behind it, except for the whole 'weakened state'. "How about.... I just take a nap right here, and we run with a version of that?"

[springforth]

Persephone had spent the last few days waiting. Waiting for what, she can't name. For her world to end perhaps. For perhaps a train to appear. Deep down, she's waiting for a rescue. And she hates it. She hates feeling helpless and she desperately misses home. Because the train is more home than here, somehow.

It's when she's suddenly back in the spot she arrived that she gets a sense that something is happening. She fiddles with her SCA, turning on the beacon and waiting. Waiting--sick of waiting.

And then--something maybe? The world starts to go misty and she remember this river. From before. And while some struggle to remain, she's stumbling out there to find someone. Hopefully, he can manage against the waves of her life and world. It's not always pretty. Though big stretches of it are, objectively, pretty.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

WHONK.

That was the noise of an Overlord impacting the ground in a way that didn't make any sense until you accounted for him being an idiot with bad luck. Waves of life and world be damned, he needed to grapple with basic reentry first!

"Ow," he said, in a very distinctly Zetta way.

[springforth]

It's a sound that has her looking down. For the first several months of their friendship he was a book after all, with a tendency to fall to the ground with loud thumps.

How he managed that here and how he managed to sound so very Zetta in the process is something she'll think about later.

"Zetta?" Somehow her voice sounds a little far away. It's a weird place.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"'Sephe!" The Overlord scrambled to his feet, already looking for her -- farther away than she was, thanks to the distortion of her words. "I'm here to get you back safe! Everything's going to hell, possibly literally!"

[springforth]

Persephone spins in a slow circle, taking a step, then another, pretty much at complete random. He sounded like he was in this direction but sound is weird here.

"I could tell--the sky went void-like."

She'll tell him the rest of what she did, what strange things happened, when they're back. For now, one step at a time.

Parts of her life start hitting him harder. Pictures of Sicily, laid out glorious before him, then the same hills caught fire, buildings lifted and tumbled askew by a tree taller than a skyscraper. Her small and hands outstretched to bring the hills to life, then her tall--taller than anyone, blood splashed over her hands and face. Apollo grabbing her shoulder, Eros hugging her on a rooftop, her nymphs sleeping beside her out on the grass. The campus of her university, the depths of the Underworld lit up like neon stars. For someone so young, she's certainly seen and done a lot.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

All these images, swift and sudden -- they were a lot to take in, which Zetta did primarily by ignoring the hell out of them and focusing entirely on Persephone proper. Zetta was, after all, a master of ignoring things he didn't want to deal with. Plus whatever information poured through in those visions, either she'd tell him or they weren't his business.

"Stupid void! I'll kick your ass! Get out of my way!"

This might not be the most glamorous rescue she could ask for.

[springforth]

A short bright laugh follows as she listens so intently, hands out. And then--a brush of a fingertip against him. Looking much as she left him, she grips his hand tight. A smile just as bright as her laugh meets him.

"Where have you been? It's been weeks, love."

[badassfreakingoverlord]

There! A familiar hand, in a familiar color, and obstinately at right angles to him. What the hell was going on with perspective in this place? Was he on the floor or was she?

"Not for us! You've barely been gone. Suddenly we get an emergency and they're sending us out to save everyone's asses!"