welcome to
the collected nations of struxta.It will happen at random- you could be asleep, or wandering the Temple, or a variety of other options. It will feel a little strange, like a sudden warmth spreading across your skin, and then your bracelet will light up. When you blink again, everything has shifted - changed, developed, like in that blink of an eye you have advanced thousands of years into the future. Around you is a city, a technological marvel. Buildings rise up from the dirt and through the clouds, figures of all shapes and sizes buzz around you. They seem to pay you little mind - a quick glance, maybe a pause, and then they will continue on their away. Ahead, there is a low rumble of thunder, a dim flash of light. It doesn't seem to be raining, but there is an electric hum in the air. A NOTE FROM YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD WITCH
But before anything too weird can happen . . . your watch flashes again, beeps once, and on it has a new message, a hologram-sparkly image with a young woman who (to some individuals!) looks a fair bit brighter than she did a few weeks ago. To those who are new, you will recognize the voice -- Astoria, the guardian of the Temple (or, if you're a bit more pessimistic, your effervescent kidnapper).
 "Hello, my beloved travelers ♥ and new ones, too! My name is Lady Astoria the Witchess-san." The way she says it, though, it is very clearly something of a joke. "I'm so glad you are settling in, adjusting to your new powers . . . I apologize for not coming forward and greeting you all like last time. But I am feeling much more like myself, and ready to send you to a new world ♥
This one is named Struxta . . . Struxa? No, I think it's Struxta. It's very metal. I'm not sure what's wrong in this world . . . but I can feel something building. Pulsing, it's very chaotic. I'm afraid I can't be more detailed than that, I did have a headache earlier . . . Akira told me I was fine ♥" And, again, you can likely guess that Akira definitely did no such thing. Astoria clasps her hands, her bright blue eyes shining, with a bright smile. "Now! Please be safe, and please mind your manners, and tell me all about it when you return! I'll see you soon. ♥"
And, just like that? The humming in the air grows louder, you feel an odd tug in your stomach, and before you can properly adjust yourself to the sensation of being cast across the universe . . . you find yourself in Struxta. (Astoria, it seems, did have it right the first time.)
 THE HOSTELJust as it was in El Minha, it appears that upon arrival, each character is outfitted with a room at one of the largest, arguably most impressive skyscrapers in the city. Nearly two hundred stories tall, and with each floor containing nearly sixty rooms. Every floor, every room, every door is of the highest tech and the more advanced security. The watches that Astoria has given each of the Circle Members act, in many ways, like a key, a credit card, an ID, and any other form of identification the players will need during their stay.
The rooms themselves are simple - one bed, roughly full sized, with a light, a desk, a chair, and a variety of plugs and buttons. Characters are welcome, if they are able to find the appropriate plug, to charge any and all devices they may have. There is a TV of sorts in the room as well, with access to all manner of shows and news stations.
The bottom floor of the building is almost as large as a city block. It is open, sleek, and clean-cut. A kind of open meeting room, which has - upon inspection - been modified to include what appears to be a restaurant. Which, given the fact the group of Circle members who have arrived in the city are the only natural bodies around? Includes the fact you are the only members of the city who have to consume food and nutrients. Upon even closer inspection, the technology used to make the food seems a few decades behind that of the rest of the city, but it still works, and the food can still be produced. It might taste a little weird and turn out to be some sort of glorified goop, but it has some nutritional value.
The rest of the floor has a variety of seating arrangements and places to sit and chat with your other Circle members, but beyond the Welcome Committee, who is set up on the far northern corner, there doesn't seem to be many of the natives walking through.  THE SUPER CENTERHave you ever wanted to go shopping in the most technologically advanced superstore possible? Here is your chance! It appears that if you use your watch, you have been given a moderate amount of credit to buy clothing, toys, electronics, items, and anything else that might suit your fancy. You will not have enough to buy anything significant, such as limbs, organs, advanced computer technology, etc. But you are more than welcome to find a job to help collected more credits! Many of the stores within the Supercenter are hiring - greeters, cashiers, manual labor, errand runners, and everything in between!
The Supercenter is attached, as most of the buildings seem to be in this city, by a roadway of interlocking bridges and stairways- to a point that you could, if you wanted to, move about the entire city without stepping foot outside. There are bridges on every level of the Supercenter, as well as a network of pathways and semi-roadways within the center itself.
There are no restaurants or bars, but there are plenty of areas to relax and people robot watch if you so desire. Otherwise, shop, explore, find weird mechanical devices of the likes you could never imagine back home. There are all manner of stores, some art galleries, music centers, arcades, and more here. There is no limit to what you can find and what you can experience.
Everything is automated, but there are still helpful employees of various appearances at each of the stories to help you decide and browse- small, flying blocks that speak in primarily beeping noises that (thanks to Astoria's wonderful watches) you can somehow understand, completely human-appearing androids of the utmost style and elegance, and everything in between. Take your time, do a little shopping or go to work, and enjoy the pique of futuristic capitalism.  THE RACESIn the south-eastern district of the city, a large section of the city has been modified into a multi-level, vast, complicated race track of sorts. Think Tron, meets Speed Racer, meets a type of racing that is something all their own. It's fun as hell, fast as hell, and dangerous as hell. Sounds great, right?
What is simply known as ‘Racing’ here in Struxta is complicated, but at its heart is exactly what it says: it is a race. A race of cars, bikes, and everything in between through an obstacle course of everything you can imagine. It seems to all be linked, electronically, to a motherboard that decides - each race - what the drivers will find. Each race was drastically different, with dangers galore. One day you might find that the road is full of spikes, the next it might be slick as oil, there could be loops that defy gravity and breaks in the road that seem to be impossible to cross, but that's what the modifications and specialists in the garages are for, right?
The rules are simple: if you have a vehicle, and you have a driver, you are allowed to race. First one to complete the track, wins.
Surrounding the main track is an entire industry of shops, stores, garages, meeting places, lounge areas, and viewing rooms. There are robots who make entire livings on the industry surrounding the Races, without ever having to step food onto the course. Some of the areas will be cleaner, like the rest of the city, while others may air on the side of back-house garages. While there won't be any dirt or natural life forms, for the first time you might catch sight of rusted metal, oil slicks, broken down previous versions of what's out on the road. There are some practice tracks, some experimental safety sections to test out new additions, etc.
The one thing that holds everyone together, here, is the excitement around watching. The excitement around the competition. There are Races every five days, so that gives you just enough to get settled. And maybe find a car.  THE LIBRARYAs many have already come to hear, there are plenty of libraries and museums all across Struxta. However, there is one that is known as The Library, which archives anything and everything in the history of all of Struxta, spanning back its entire history, over thousands and thousands of years. The building itself is as large and impressive as The Hostel, nearly two hundred stories tall, possibly more, and as wide and long as a city block. But where in the Hostel each floor had been made up of rooms, each of these floors are large, open areas, with dark, imposing servers held behind tight, clean cabinets.
No one else seems to be here, which gives the impression that The Library is not open to just any native of Struxta, and that in fact - as members of the Circle you are being given special access to what would normally be off-limits.
In the middle of each floor, there is a small collection of tables, with large screens. These touch-screens will be your access into the Library archives. And that is the thing - you will have access to everything, but as it turns out, everything really means everything, and with backups spanning the course of thousands of years in the past, it will take a lot of time and a lot of energy and a lot of research determination to find anything of use. Not because it is difficult, just because it is so massive and so overwhelming.
The only natives you will find will be on the first floor, as a kind of secretarial position for the building. They are more than happy to try and help guide you through the search process, but they will not follow you up to any of the other floors, and there is a distinct feeling of being entirely alone when you do go up to begin your search. Alone, but watched, somehow.
Remember- if there is something that you wish to look up specifically, please ask over on the world interactions post so we can be sure that the correct information is shared! The best way to go about finding something in the Library will be going at search terms in teams, as there is so much information there is no way one person will be able to wade through it all. Additionally, please feel free to write up and work with your own prompts! These are presented as jumping off points for your characters, not limitations. The idea of this world- as with all the others- is to explore. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask them back on the mod questions thread back in the OOC post from before! And if you have any ideas regarding how your character will interact with the world, also feel free to check back into the world interactions comment from the OOC post from before, as well! From this point forward, the Circle has become involved with the Collected Nations of Struxta. What your character finds out, decides, and does from here on out will affect the future of this city- one way or another! But what you do is completely up to you. What you discover, explore, and uncover will be yours to discover, explore, and uncover. Who knows what you might find? :) |
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acatalepsy_logs2018-07-11 12:02 am
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[ the clockwork knight and soldiers come to mind, though they seemed little more than tools of war, and nothing like a mammer, no sense of memory or growth, only metal and mechanisms.
peering over her shoulder, she frowns thoughtfully. ]
Is everything all right?
[ he's so jumpy!! but they made it in just fine.. ]
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But this topic is even more tangled up around his heart than his friends' missing memories. It's had so long to grow and fester. Uncoiling it—well...
It's not important here anyway, is it? This isn't Eos. Where he came from...wouldn't matter to her. It holds no meaning for her.
They come to a stop in front of the door to the production line. ]
I, uh, I...I've been in a place like this before. Can't say it was...super awesome. The Magitek Troopers are—well, let's just say how they're made is a pretty bad business.
[ Maybe that will suffice. ]
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Fair enough.
[ she says, stopping beside him, turning to look into his face. ]
I am sorry to hear that you have suffered. Are those the androids you mentioned, from your world? Magitek.. troopers?
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[ It's strange, to talk about them like this, because she's never heard of them before. No one on Eos wouldn't know an MT if they saw one, from the way the Empire had ravaged the land with them. And yet...so few knew the terrible secrets behind those masks and gears. That there were innocent souls that had been corrupted to fuel these machines, that they had once been people. Alisaie only knows of them what he tells her, and maybe...he can be a bit more fair than he might've once been. ]
They're tools of the Niflheim Empire. You know the type—big, bad global superpower that wanted to dominate the world. Killed our king and took the Crystal. [ He doesn't elaborate on that right now, but it's clear from his tone that it's a big deal. ] But the MTs...just followed order. They're mindless. Didn't really even know what they were doing.
[ His gaze slides back to the glass door, and the production line that chugs on beyond it. ]
Remind you of anything?
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[ she's not moved through the doors yet, and she won't, until he is ready, since it's quite clear that subject is disturbing to him on some level. so instead she crosses her arms, lifting a hand to knock one knuckle thoughtfully against her chin. ]
Well, the Garleans have plenty of magitek, plenty of them in something of the shape of a man, and completely autonomous, so yes, similar enough things.
[ she arches a brow. ]
Unless you are referring to us, blindly taking orders from that bimbo of a witch, but I imagine that is not what you were thinking.
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Actually, I was thinkin' of the...what'd they call it? The "Mass Subconscious".
[ A beat, before he elaborates. ]
What if...I-I know this might sound crazy, but what if the only reason they all get along like that is because there's something more powerful that's making them think that way?
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but anyway!! ]
Well, I suppose that is possible, but.. you are diving into a tricky philosophical pool, with that. Who are we to say that that is 'wrong,' per se? Would you just as quickly fault honeybees for their natural hivemind social structure? Or sheep, for their mindless desire to cluster and follow?
[ she does not sound critical, only thoughtful. ]
If that is their lifestyle, what is natural for them - as natural as anything can be, for such creatures - then who are we to judge?
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Hm...yeah, I get what you mean. It's not really our place to call the shots, is it?
[ He steps up to the glass, reaching out to press his palms against it. ]
Still...shouldn't they have the choice? To...to choose?
[ Yeah, he knows how that sounded, but you get the idea. ]
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[ should a bee choose to abandon its hive? a sheep to wander the grasslands on its own? both would be doomed for their choice, vulnerable and without place or purpose. alisaie knows what her answer might be, but it is such a complicated subject, and right and wrong cannot truly be applied.
her gaze flickers away from him at last, and toward the glass as well. ]
You must only know, should it come to it, that they may not thank us for it.
[ their entire society would be like to collapse, were everything to be turned so completely on its head in such a way, but would they be better for it, in the end? she could not even venture a guess. ]
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His stomach twists uncomfortably at the thought. Prompto hadn't been offered the choice—he'd been rescued as an infant, well before he could even begin to understand the weight of those decisions. Still...part of him regrets...if he could have rescued even just one of them...
But that's history on Eos, not here, and a moment later, he holds his watch up to the keypad, unlocking the door so they can step inside.
(It has to be his watch, not his barcode. It has to be.) ]
Hopefully it won't come to that. Maybe all this really is as good as it seems.
[ It would be nice if things turned out that way, wouldn't it? ]
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she must put her worries for him aside, right now. should he want to talk.. well, he knows where to find her. ]
Well, the witch dropped us here for a reason, so there is something on this world that is more than meets the eye, but whether it has anything to do with this, I could not guess.
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[ But though his heart hammers against his throat as they descend into the assembly room, there is nothing here that suggests foul play. No humans lined up in tanks, no half-finished experiments or notes on incinerated test subjects.
Instead, there are robotic arms fusing together limbs and carefully wiring together bodies. It seems so...straightforward, from start to finish. There's nothing like a Magitek core in sight, but battery packs and power cells. ]
...Maybe this is a dead-end. Notice anything weird?
prompto looks like a snake in that icon
really, how different is it from cells dividing and growing, wounds knitting together? flesh and blood or no, their bodies are as much machines as these androids, in many ways. ]
Not particularly. But it is rather a large space..
[ likely an understatement; factory work areas tend to be, in a word, ginormous. ]
thanks i hate it
We should keep looking. Gotta lot of ground to cover, huh? Heh....
[ There's still plenty of places for secrets to be dwelling, so he turns back towards the door. ]
file it next to the alien kitchenaid in your mind
so with one last glance, she turns to fall into stride beside him again. ]
Where to next, ser?
i have no idea what you're talking about
Wonder if we can find where they go when they're...finished.
[ Did they wake up fully aware? It's such an odd thought. ]
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[ .. like a river?? right?? i mean that would work wouldn't it? ]
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...Oh, yeah, I gotcha. Let's...see where this goes, then.
[ He keeps walking past the glass windows, following the assembly line as the androids gradually grow more and more complete. He remains quiet, unsettled though they have seen no signs of trouble, only the sound of their footfalls filling the hall. ]
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We need not go further, if you prefer to turn back.
[ she already knows what his answer will be, but nevertheless.. she must at least offer it. ]
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...Thank you. But we...we should see this through. It can't be much further now.
[ In some ways, this isn't about Struxta at all, but instead about Prompto, about proving to himself that he can see this through without freaking out, that he has accepted his origins enough to investigate this with a level head.
After a moment: ]
I...need to do this.
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she has no idea why, but somehow this is.. important to him, in a way that seems much deeper than a simple "bad time" in an android factory. her hand drops away and she turns forward again. ]
I am with you.
[ whatever this is for him, he need not face it alone. ]
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But not before he uses some of it to reach out and takes her hand gingerly in his, squeezing her fingers. ]
...Thanks, Ali. I'm...so glad you're with me.
[ Had he faced this alone, maybe he never would have gone inside. ]
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but mayhaps this is simply the nature of their friendship, now. something far closer than she could have thought she could achieve with another person. gently, she squeezes his hand in return. ]
.. of course. Whatever you need.
[ everyone deserves support when they need it most. ]
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Maybe it's that he knows nothing will come of it. That they're just friends, and that they will remain just friends. Even if this world didn't work the way it did, he's still him, and for all he has ever yearned to share his heart with someone in that way, he isn't — he's just —
Alisaie isn't about to give him her heart, and so this just is what it is. Two friends comforting each other through physical contact.
...Of course, all of this logic and reason hardly bears on Prompto's mind right now, and all he knows is he's holding hands with the girl he likes and he is absolutely ecstatic. Nervous and jittery, but ecstatic.
He threads his fingers through hers. ]
Let's see this through, then.
[ To the end of the line they go! ]
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just when had he become so important?
she does not answer, only squeezes his hand hard in reply, offering him a warm, decisive smile, as they go on. she's hopeful that they will find nothing at all of consequence, but even should they stumble over disturbing information, she is sure he will be just fine. ]
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