middleofsomewhere | Crashing Down: Start

As the Voidtreckers are going through their morning routines on the 24th Quicksand, there comes a train announcement over the comms. When it ends, their SCAs glow and bring up a holographic screen as is common before a mission. There's a few hours to prepare before a new announcement:

Shortly arriving at system #78961112094711. Leaving the void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.

The train shakes as it leaves the void. As explained by the mission brief, those who are not wearing their SCA will not be able to physically leave the train.

But for those that do, they will find their SCA lights up with their stopwatch. Counting down from five hous.

CRASHING DOWN: START

QUICKSAND 24 ~ TEAM OBJECTIVES ~ LOCATION INFORMATION ~ OTHER DETAILS
ASK QUESTIONS ~ SHENANIGANS ~ TEAM PLOTTING ~ MISSION TASKS/REWARDS

HOUR ONE

The Voidtrecker Express lands them within a voidcraft multistorey, the same one as when they came to holiday at the Irue Grotto. As soon as it does, their SCAs vibrate and bring up a message, audio and transcript (including brialle) become available from a Ministry worker: the tethering station is on the first floor, and there will be people and gear waiting for them, depending on what jobs they're taking up.

Evacuation plans have already begun, and everything is going to get hectic, fast. Voidtreckers will have no end of work available.

1. PROCESSING. For the more tech-minded, plenty of help is needed. Containers of SCAs in storage need to be scanned and made sure they're not faulty before they're loaded up and sent off to communities outside the Irue Grotto. It's a simple if tedious process, but necessary. There's also helping to process people, getting visitors to the planet back to their voidcrafts, so they can leave and make room for more voidcrafts to station.

People can help civilians through the health scanners, or help manage the cyro-pods that they'll be placed into, Setting up the pods isn't too difficult, it just requires hands and the ability to follow an instruction manual. The void scientists happily give this task to any voidtreckers availible to help so that they can get on with the tasks that require more know-how. ( ORANGE1 )

2. GATHERING. The Ministry also need help with bringing in people. Hover trams will help take officials - including Voidtreckers - into the Irue Grotto, to pick up people at farther parts of the city, and who can't walk to the tethering station. Directing people is necessary, as well as making sure that people have caught the message of the evacuation in the earliest hours; but also those less keen, not taking the call seriously will need to be persuaded.

People are also needed to begin going to further out communities. There are emergency broadcasts throughout the planet but the ministry and the local governing groups are aware that not everyone is going to have heard them. The ministry scramble to give the voidtreckers official passes, to help give credibility to their announcement of evacuation. ( PURPLE 1, BLUE 1 )

3. JOIN THE QUEUE. Help will be needed to help keep some semblance of order, to create a flow to keep everything running. Out in the streets, or even in the tethering station, people will become more panicked if they think they've missed their ride, if they have to wait for too long. It's not yet violent, but people with presence will be useful for helping keep everyone sensible. ( RED 1 )

HOURS TWO AND THREE

The work continues to bring people from their lives to the tethering stations, now packed by anxious individuals. There's aid needed for people outside the Irue Grotto, a call for drivers and more volunteers to stay back and help with tethering processing to get people onto the liminal stations. Panic rises with the tension, and there's also signs of disbelief for what's apparently going on.

The Ministry are handing out SCAs to be taken to those who can't come to the stations, to help with the tethering process. With quick training, people can tether themselves, and arrive at the liminal stations awaiting them.

1. ALL ABOARD. Even in the most busy of void hubs, the tethering and platform systems are not designed for an entire planet to arrive all at once. Those volunteering can access the void by a device at the tethering station. The ministry workers explain that it won't disrupt their own tethers, and they will be able to freely walk through the barrier back to the ministry building. The platform is larger than any voidtreckers have seen in their time in the void, closer to the transport station. There are rows of train tracks, but also docked air craft, space craft, there's even a port with voidcraft that look like traditional ships that would sail through water, if there were any water in the void.

All those tethered have tickets and so should know where they are going, but volunteers have been given tablets with an ever growing database to match passengers up to their voidcrafts. From there, it's a case of helping direct people, carrying luggage, and hurrying children along.

For those who would rather not be around panicked people, there's plenty of work loading animals, be they pets or animals from the zoo, who have their own dedicated voidcraft. ( ORANGE2 )

2. THE IRUE ZOO. Outside the Irue Grotto the planet is pretty rural. Not far from the city is The Irue Zoo, a clutter of domed conservatories customised to house creatures from across the system's planets: avians, reptiles, creatures that don't match anything Voidtreckers know. The zookeepers have already had collars delivered- devices similar to SCAs but for use on animals. They do however need help getting them on the creatures. For any tiny animals, there are chip guns - but, you'll need good aim.

Using drones, those piloting them can also help to make sure an area has been cleared and no one left behind, without the person piloting even being physically present. ( PURPLE 2, BLUE 3, ORANGE 3 )

2. OSIGA VILLAGES. In the villages, there are families who just don't have easy access to reach the Irue Grotto: not everyone has a vehicle. Some eagerly climb into the Ministry ride that Voidtreckers take to reach their communities, while others will need help to go to them instead. They might have family members who can't make the trip, others are more worried about their pets or farm creatures, for those lucky to have indoor farms. Luckily the SCA packs that voidtreckers were given also contain the animal tethering collars- the ministry had factored that into their evacuation plans.

More of a challenge are those who refuse to leave the lives they made, who've barricaded and are making it difficult to be helped. They might not trust the ministry. They might not believe that the threat is real. Or they might resist the idea that this threat cannot be fought, after all they are Osigan, not a weak people at all. ( ORANGE 3, RED2, PURPLE2, BLUE3 )

HOURS FOUR AND FIVE

As their countdown clocks tick to two hours remaining there is a message from Anan. The main bulk of people have been processed by now, freeing up those helping in the grotto to move out to further flung communities. Almost all efforts are now on the portable tethering kits, voidtreckers encouraged to travel by speeder to get to as many places as possible.

1. OFF WORLD. Anan waits at the main transport hub next to a space ship. It's not particularly large, clearly made for short inter planet journeys rather than long durations in space. She looks understandably worried, Chiff sat like a hat on her head, but she welcomes people on board for half an hour before they leave.

They're headed to a space station, getting there not for the faint hearted as it's situated in an asteroid field. Luckily, Anan can pilot her way through safely. The station is mostly occupied by elderly people and small children, suspicious people, a couple even tangry at Anan for leading strangers to their door. She takes their ire with humility but is quick to get down to business.

Here like on Osiga people have varying reactions to the news. The children are frightened but generally tough souls. Some of them know Anan and Chiff already and that helps with coaxing them. ( RED 2-3, BLUE 3, PURPLE 2-3 )

2. ON PLANET. The easily convinced have been evacuated by now, which leaves those who are, for variety of reasons, more difficult. Some are the furthest away from the Grotto, the travel time longer. Here, there is often unrest. There's been a couple of hours for people to work themselves into a state of panic. Even those ready and prepared to be evacuated are frustrated.

As they travel they might even find bands of people moving towards the grotto, angry and assuming they have been forgotten, abandoned. They can be calmed, especially when they learn that the voidtreckers have tethering kits and are here to help. But it will take some loud voices and calm personalities to break through that fear and anger. ( BLUE 2, PURPLE 3 )

3. THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE. But what of those who are adament they will not leave? The refusers are not one homogeneous group. Some refuse to believe what is happening. World eaters? Whose heard of them? Who are these strange people who are trying to empty their world? They never did trust the ministry, setting up in Irue like that...

Others truly believe that leaving their home to an otherworldly threat is an act of cowardice. Surely they should stay and fight. Stand against this threat and drive it back. They have weapons, surely if everyone just made a stand they could stop what was about to happen.

Others just can't bare to leave their homes. They are old and would rather face their fate in the comfort they know rather than leave to go to the void- they might know of it but that doesn't mean they trust it. Others are very aware of what this means, they survive but their bodies do not.

Some can be convinced, others are more stubborn. It may be best to focus on those who do want to leave, but there is no easy answer. ( RED 2-3, BLUE 3, ORANGE 3, PURPLE 2-3 )

All the time the skies are calm and clear, no sign of the approaching danger present. In some ways, this makes it harder; te only indication they have is their SCA clocks counting down. Hours turning to minutes, counting down to catastrophe.

OOC NOTES

OOC Post ~ Questions ~ Shenanigans ~ Tasks Check-In & Rewards
This event will last for 1 IC day, and OOCly runs from 16th to 22nd, with a conclusion going up on the 23rd.

CHARACTER AID: Lan Jingyi will be offering transport over distance, Lea can create keyblade portals to move people; Thanatos and Tidus will have functioning transgates to allow movement between where they are and back at the tethering station. Elidibus will also eventually be creating portals and force-teleports.

Art Credit: Header

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Five, I think. That's how many empty carriers there are at least," he said grabbing one said carrier and hurrying over with it. He opened the door so that the redhead could put 'Bitey' into it.

The comment about his SCA missing words caught him by surprise though. "What do you mean about it 'missing words'?", he asked. No one else had said anything about it after all, so it was news to him.

Edited 2022-06-23 06:14 (UTC)

"Gatitos?" the half-elf repeats, shifting his head lightly to the side. "I'm guessing it means 'cat', with the--" he has to pause in his sentence, shifting Bitey in his arms so that the claws won't reach him. No such luck-- the cat twists entirely on itself to sink all of its claws up in the VoidTrecker's arm, hissing through teeth also clamped on his limb. Bitey's not going to move from there.

Esteban's face pinches at the slight pain, but its claws are not long enough to deal as much damage as it wants, and his standard-given hoodie is a pretty good barrier.

"Here-- try this one. It's not as feisty." He can't maneuver both cats in the carrier, but the one he hands off towards Bruno is at least calm, even if the bright blue tip of its tail is twitching in irritation. Its round ears make it seem a bit more like a jaguar cub than a proper cat, but it should be fine, in theory. It should be a pet.

"Oh-- Ow!" That is the only warning Bruno gets before the cat gets shoved in his arms as Esteban wrestles with the furious beast mauling his hoodie's sleeve.

"Oh that," Bruno said. "Yeah, it basically just means 'kittens' or 'kitties'. Guess I must've been focusing on it a bit too hard on the word or something." And anyway, there wasn't time to really think about it right then.

He half circled around Esteban, trying to get into a position where getting the aggressive cat into the carrier would be possible, but couldn't do much else to assist while also carrying said carrier.

When the other cat was shoved at him, Bruno spent a moment juggling cat and carrier. "Whoa, hey! OK, good boy, now just get back inside here..." A bit of flailing and squirming later- from both Bruno and the cat, the latter of which added a few growls of protest- and Bruno managed to shove the cat back into the carrier and close the latch before it could get out again. One down, four to go.

He set the carrier down and then turned back to Esteban to see how he was doing, and if there was anything he could do to assist.

"Yeaaah, I think it didn't translate 'cause the term doesn't fit," the redhead tries, and the critter is quite heavily anchored into his arm again, claws out, teeth bared and hanging upside down like a particularly vicious and livid vambrace. At least the half-elf's expression is easier, so it musn't hurt as badly anymore.

"I'd, uh. Leave it there for a bit." He mentions, when another attempt to reach for the questionable feline has it hiss like an angry viper. Even it's tail is coiled tightly around Esteban's wrist, and it actually stings a bit with how strong it is. A glance is all it takes for Esteban to grin again-- if a bit pinched at the corners-- before he turns to glance back at their immediate area.

"So five kitties 'f question'ble origins-- didja see which colours they were?" At least to get them started? Bitey here being an obvious blazing red makes it easy to spot, but the shadowy beast with the blue tailtip in the carriage indicates there could be a wide variety. Esteban seems strangely unperturbed at the continuous growling and spitting at his elbow-- merely holding the cat in a way that it won't come to harm if it lets go.

Crashing Down: Start

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