( world #2 - the storm. )

[acatamods]

I ▫ main IV ▫ premise       XI ▫ applications XIV ▫ activity II ▫ logs V ▫ rules VII ▫ bestiary   IX ▫ canon updates XII ▫ taken XV ▫ drop/hiatus III ▫ ooc VI ▫ faq VIII ▫ setting   X ▫ mods XIII ▫ reserves XVI ▫ players a storm approaches.This log is for everyone who signed up for The Storm investigation. Feel free to use the here to plot further on how you plan on approaching The Storm, and the issue. The mod questions thread is also open, if you have anything you would like to run by us. the investigation. It takes a day of preparation, and a day of discussion, before you are led further down into the tunnels. It's pitch black, but one of the BGs who you have become familiar enough with turns on a low light and continues further. You walk for ten, fifteen, twenty minutes, and then turn a corner into a large, open cavern. The BG explains that at one time, this had been an underground transportation system - old and unused for centuries, now, but still in working order. They file each of you onto a single car - it seems to be large enough to fit nearly a hundred, possibly more, bodies - so everyone has a space. The BG explains that they have already input the coordinates into the system, and that once they close the door, you will be transported to the last known location. The car will be programmed to wait for 72 hours, and then will return to this location. There is food and water supplied, and already packed, in the car. If you are not back in the car by that time, it will leave you behind. They then give their farewells, thank you for your help and readiness, and step away from the door - letting it close behind them. The car travels down a pitch black tunnel, and while the inside is dimly lit enough for the Circle Members to see each other and move around without hinderance, you can see nothing through the windows. It continues for a few hours at this rate - nothing to see, no idea where you are going. That is, until it seems to break through the surface, the track running through buildings and another, unknown area of the city. The streets and buildings are abandoned, the tech old and outdated, windows broken out and dust filling the street. The sky, like back in the city you knew before, is cloudy and grey. But these clouds are different - these clouds are dark in a way you haven't seen before. You travel for another half hour above ground before the cart comes to a stop, and during this time it happens twice. A low rumble, seeming to come from everywhere at once, and then a few heartbeats after, a disasterous flash of lighting - miles away, yes, but threatening and gigantic, brighter and more violent than you've ever seen lightning before. The crash shakes the ground under you, and the damage is immense. But the buildings are abandoned, the streets empty save for crates, old mechanical bits, dusty remnants of a society long forgotten by the Struxta you came from just a couple of days prior. This is The Storm you've been warned about. the storm. You have been asked to find out information that will help the BG's, and Struxta, to stop The Storm. From what you can gather, it does seem to be a naturally occurring weather phenomenon, as far as weather systems seem to work on this planet. However, rather than scattered thunder and lightning strikes, it seems to almost recharge and strike with epic proportions. It can damage, or destroy, buildings. It shorts out any and all items (and people) who depend on electricity in any form to function (Sorry Daylight and Conner, sorry to anyone who brought along technology) within a three mile radius. The 'darkness' the BGs were talking about does follow this storm, but they seem to have been referring to this electrical shortage that comes from the storm and it's strikes. If this storm does reach any of the still-occupied areas of the city, it will shut down the entire grid, as well as any of the robots, androids, or electrically based figures that exist there - essentially ending the life of every Struxta citizen that is effected. Plot, plan, theorize, and see if you can find a way to stop The Storm. If not, be back on the train car in 72 hours time, to return to the BGs and report what you have found. PROMPT IDEAS 1.) Discussions on the train - do you have any ideas for what to prepare? Any discussions you may want to have? You and your fellow Circle Members are caught here together for a few hours, driving into a situation you know very little about. What do you want to make sure you're prepared to handle? 2.) Scouting missions - the heart of The Storm is very much in the distance, and it is not moving quickly, giving Circle Members plenty of time to set out and check out the surrounding city. What you will find won't be much - this is a robotic ghost town in every turn of the phrase. Buildings have been abandoned for hundreds of years, covered in dust and left entirely undisturbed, except for the breeze that now seems to flit through this entire area. There are stores, warehouses, apartments, and buildings you can't even tell what they were used for, cleared out. Whenever, or whoever, lived in this part of Struxta had evacuated, quickly but efficiently. 3.) The Storm - The Storm is still a distance away from where the cart has dropped you off, enough that when your 72 hours are up, the heart of the storm and the lightning strikes shouldn't reach the car, or the track. This does mean that to do any closer investigation, you will need to go to The Storm itself. But be careful - the electrical output from these lightning strikes are dangerous, and can have all sorts of effects on both natural and mechanical beings. The wind, the closer you get to The Storm, will also pick up - making any kind of flying or air travel impossible. 4.) Planning - the car leaves everyone off at an old train station, which a large room attached. This room can be used as a kind of home base, as well as a meeting location. What do you plan on doing? Simply taking down information, or trying to take the storm head on? How do you plan on doing that? Will your abilities help? This room attached onto the train station is a safe location - no effects of The Storm will make it inside. Use as you would like!

Comments

[bestaround]

ONE. CITY RUINS
[ This section of the city may have been left to rot, abandoned with no one left to care for it, but it hardly comes as an unsettling sight to 9S. If anything, it's familiar—too similar to an Earth he left behind, likewise deserted of human civilization where the only proof they ever existed in the first place were decayed ruins. 9S had performed countless missions in such conditions, and he wasn't convinced he'd ever have to do it again these days. Seems like he was wrong.

Once they're all prepared to set out—quickly, too, because seventy-two hours is only so long—9S doesn't hesitate to venture into the streets, with Pod floating overhead as usual.

Whether you've been with him the whole time or are only just now running into him, sometime while digging around town 9S can be caught trying to pry an old door to a former convenience store open, with little luck. The hinges creak, but it doesn't budge. 9S slips out an annoyed grunt after a few failed attempts. ]

Aw, come on. How stuck is this thing?

TWO. THE STORM
[ During the next day, when the group (or perhaps some of them, anyway) choose to journey into the storm, 9S decides to come with. Perhaps he hadn't expected what would follow, despite warnings, or maybe he was willing to take the risks—no matter the reason, barely an hour passes by before he already has to turn back.

9S doesn't walk away from the storm so much as he stumbles from it, a struggle in his steps as he does his best to reach a safe enough distance away from the intense, pulsating electrical currents that had screwed up his circuits. Even Pod appears to be having some trouble, bobbing erratically in the air while following 9S. When they make it far enough (he's hoping it's far enough), he stops to lean against a mostly rusted street light, like someone trying to catch their breath, but he'll still call out to anyone nearby whether they're pursuing their own storm investigations or likewise coming away from it: ]

Hey— [ 9S' voice comes out fuzzy and full of static, though, like an old recording. ] Which way was the station again...?

WILDCARD
[ you know how these work. pm/pp/whatever me if you'd like to plot something out! ]

two

[paladorable]

Are you all right?

[ Arenvald may not know much about machines, but he's spent enough time with Connor by now to realize that, as human as this person seems, that may not be the case. The Storm is reacting badly with technology, and the strange quality of the other's voice is enough to clue him in. ]

Do you need a hand? I can take you back.

[bestaround]

[ Is he all right? It takes 9S several moments longer to process the question than it should, staring dumbly ahead before belatedly shaking his head. ]

My procssss– [ gotta love when the track skips. ] –cessors are all screwed up. I could—probably use the hand.

[paladorable]

[ Ah, yes. He’s definitely like Connor, then. ]

Of course. Are you able to walk? You can lean on me.

[ He says, assuming that, like Connor, this fellow is made of plastic and not metal. ]

one

[purrtagonist]

[City Ruins: Shade]

[Akira has to admit that the distant flashing of lightning and the rolling rumbles of thunder make for a spooky backdrop to their current surroundings. he can feel his hair standing on end, and he can't tell if it's from the electricity that hums in the air or his own apprehension. how the hell are they supposed to protect the citizens of Struxta from a storm? none of them can control the weather, and forces of nature are just that. forces of nature]

[still. . . if the BGs are this worried about it, then however dubious Akira may feel towards Mass Subconsciousness doesn't matter. he has to try. he has to do something]

[but initial scouting of the abandoned city area isn't yielding many results. unless you count a disgruntled Circle member trying to rip a door away from a building as a result? well, either way. . .]

Want me to see if I can help from the inside?

[Akira the last time you used your intangibility to bypass an obstacle you got STUCK]

thank u

[bestaround]

[ 9S almost gives up for the time being, stepping away from the door. But at Akira's suggestion, he glances over his shoulder—and if it weren't for the blindfold, he could see both eyebrows raising. ]

Right, maybe it's just locked. [ Yeah, maybe Akira did get stuck last time, but it's just a building, not a near impenetrable blockade into a tunnel. ] Can you get in?

[ He did mention said ability was kind of unstable before. ]

[purrtagonist]

[one day, he totally has to ask about that. . . but, for now!]

If I think about falling through doors reeeeally really hard, maybe?

[that's inspiring. but Akira approaches, reaching out to lay his palm against the rusted metal. he's starting to get a handle on his ability, even though it's a very tenuous grip at best]

one

[bleps]

[He's come across 9S, spotting him and Pod from a distance, caught up in his own mode of exploration. Looking for a place to start, something, anything to stop what appears to be unstoppable: that awful Storm, a gigantic, a looming threat to the whole of Struxta.

He doesn't know where to begin, and he doesn't particularly enjoy that feeling. But best to keep moving, to keep assisting others wanting to uncover anything that might help.]

Do you need help?

[Connor speaks up, stepping towards 9S, eying the unyielding door with the creaking hinges.]

[bestaround]

[ Attempting to find the world's most minuscule needle in such a large haystack is basically the worst. What are they looking for? 9S can't help but feel disgruntled at how aimless every step of the way has been for them during this mission. Those androids in the underground couldn't even throw them some sort of clue, huh... Sheesh.

But they're here now, and if nothing else, 9S is around to lend assistance to his fellow members of the Circle; he promised a few of them that much. And luckily, he's more than used to rummaging around old ruins such as this; information gathering is what he was built for, after all. Though usually, he has better leads than this...

Anyway. When a voice pipes up behind him, 9S spins around on his feet. ]

—Oh, hey! Think you might have any luck prying this thing open?

[bleps]

[Connor is used to more clearly defined crime scenes, combing through them for evidence, scanning for minute clues that might have been missed, sticking blood in his mouth, and generally knowing where to start. This is different. The ruins are vast and dilapidated, too many locations, too many items to take into account, no generalized beginning, no defined limit of where to stop. The inability to know what they're even searching for.

A needle in a haystack, definitely. He needs an army of himself to feel even remotely efficient in this particular circumstance.

Even so, he nods, stepping forward and pressing a hand against the door. Testing it, the hinges protest a little, but it seems to be stuck on something fallen against it on the other side.]

This is an instance where the solution might be relatively straightforward. [He glances at 9S.] We should apply force simultaneously and see if that'll be sufficient.

two

[flyingsolos]

Hey--

[ It's a departure from her usual chipper, teasing tone-- and rather than answer him directly, Rion's moving closer to reach out and attempt to steady him. She'd been one of the ones to investigate the storm a little closer, and it feels like her bones are still humming from it. ]

Lean on me, okay? I'll get you there.

[bestaround]

—Rion?

[ He asks, uncertain, despite how he's staring directly at her. There's a second or so that passes before 9S clumsily yanks down the black cloth tied over his face, revealing the pale blue eyes underneath that blink once, twice, narrow a pinch... and no, it wasn't just the HUD going on the fritz—his own visual system is totally screwed up.

But everything flickers back together long enough to catch her features, so when she approaches by his side, 9S isn't reluctant to take up her offer. Although, Rion might find he's a lot heavier than anyone his size should be... 9S is, at least, somewhat steady enough on his feet that she isn't left to carry the full brunt of his weight. ]

I think I—can still walk.

[flyingsolos]

[ This is her first time seeing his eyes, although she'd at least realized that the cloth hadn't really hampered his vision like she'd first thought-- that, or 9S had just gotten very good at navigating with it on.

But he's very clearly unsteady, and his vision doesn't seem entirely okay, so she'll think about it later. For now, Rion gasps a little at the sudden weight increase, eyebrows shooting straight up. What the heck? He doesn't look any older than her, so why-- ]

Good thing, then. You're a little heavier than I was expecting.

[ She can at least still move like this, thanks to his own efforts, so she'll do her best to anchor him with one arm around his waist and ease them forward. ]

one

[theseuschip]

[ This all feels numbingly futile, but as soon as this building denied them access to it it became the closest thing they’ve had to a concrete goal in days. Not even finding anything inside of it — because what are they looking for? — just getting in. Sometimes everything is just so fucked that you just have to devote yourself to one trivial cause at a time.

Simon is all about taking those achievable actions, so 9S’s door frustration is soon set to the crack of a hunk of metal debris colliding with the glass pane around the corner.

Because if it doesn’t have a password, and it won’t open, how many other options do you have? One. One many. ]

[bestaround]

[ That. That wasn't a sound he was expecting, and genuinely startled, 9S hastily takes a few steps back away from the door, shooting Pod an "uh, that wasn't because of me, right?" glance. From firsthand experience, he knows better than most how delicate at best these old, left to rot structures can be—but he's almost certain he didn't apply enough force to cause things to go crashing.

Maybe.

But if there's ever anyone willing to go investigating, it's 9S. Cautiously—not that there's much around, but y'know—he rounds the corner, only to find... ]

... Oh. It's just you.

[theseuschip]

[ wow ok. Feigning offense at 9S being 9S, Simon fixes him with a Look, unreadable as ever were it not for the way he rolls his head in his direction, and accompanied by a flashlight beam to the face. It was already on, but still. ]

Thanks, Nines. Glad I’m riding out the apocalypse with a friend.

[ Kidding not kidding. He rams the hunk of metal, probably once part of a sign or... robot parking meter, or something, into the glass one more time and it shatters in the middle. And then he drops it on the ground, kicks through the shards at the bottom of the window and walks through it. Stooped, so as to avoid the glass at the top, hands fidgeting anxiously at his sides with nothing else to occupy them. The shelves his light illuminates have been cleared out almost entirely, of course, but no matter how efficient the mass exodus from this place was, he can’t help imagining the mad panic of people they know are now all dead. It doesn’t make him feel any better, really. ]

You wouldn’t happen to be able to scan this for things that can stop world-ending storms?

two

[lumberlady]

[Konoha doesn't want to go into the Storm. She's seen the damage lightning can do, and this storm looks... far more menacing than any she's ever seen. She's largely kept to the main camp area, tending people there, feeding people... but she can't hide forever.

She's ventured out just a little bit, carefully picking her way through the abandoned city... until she sees someone else. Someone who needed help.

Fast as she can, Konoha leaps into action, jumping neatly over a safety railing and cantering up along the once-sidewalk, quick to reach out to lay a hand on his shoulder in support.]

Here- be careful.

[He looked like he might stumble again at any minute if the lamp post weren't there, but despite looking for any wounds... she doesn't see any.]

I've got you-

[bestaround]

[ The world has lost all its color in his eyes, static and glitching pixels clouding his vision enough that he hears the hasty trot of hooves on cracked pavement before 9S sees her approach. His balance gives out on him briefly, but fortunately, she's there for him to lean into her hand before anything worse than a misstep happens.

9S barely makes out her 'I've got you', lifting up his chin toward the unusually tall figure—the... unusually shaped figure, so wildly different from everyone else's, and yet. He recognizes it. ]

Ha– ya...

[ No, that can't be right. That's impossible. From behind the blindfold 9S' eyes settle on her, in an attempt to get a clearer image of her face. ]

Who—?

[lumberlady]

[Afraid that he was worse off than he'd looked from a distance, Konoha quickly maneuvers around to offer more of herself in support, back hooves clattering on broken pavement as she tries to prop him up between lamp post and her withers, arms hovering and ready to assist. He was heavier than he looked, but she was draft strong, work strong, on top of the already above human strength that could be expected of her kind, and she can bear him. ... she had to. (Had to help. Be useful.)]

I'm Konoha-

[Haya-? Why did that sound familiar?]

I'm... I'm with the Circle.

[It still sounds too strange to say, but-]

You are too, right? Are you injured?

two

[abandonware]

[A2 has wisely been keeping her distance from 9S. It seemed prudent to do so, after their first "meeting" here had ended with them raising weapons at one another. Still, she's worried. Troubled. 2B had told her to take care of him, and she isn't a coward, but his hatred for her is a wall between them, enormous and insurmountable. She can't help at all if he can't stand the sight of her.

It would be easier to ask for help, but she's not any good at that. And so she's been watching from afar, distantly, and very carefully. Seeing him now though, she can tell something is wrong. He's moving erratically, off-balance and strange. For a moment she thinks, in a slow and icy sort of horror, that it's the virus.

Not again. Not here. It can't be.

She approaches carefully, like one might to a wild animal, stays a safe distance away. He can run for her, but she doubts he's at full capacity, right now.]

9S.

[bestaround]

[ He's far from a condition that could be considered 'good'. Even while standing still, leaning heavily against the street light, his body slightly sways like he's barely hanging on to standing upright.

With his gaze fixated on the broken concrete below, 9S' vision is too distorted to notice anyone approaching from the corner of his eye. At the moment, all his thoughts are focused on how he needs to get back to safety—to return to the station to guarantee it, but...

Can he manage it like this? Likewise too affected by the storm, Pod wouldn't be able to carry him. He needs to... figure something out.

And then he hears his name.

9S lifts his head, and stares for a long moment, as if he can't quite make out who's there. But eventually, for all his visual processors flicker like hell, he manages to just enough. ]

A2— [ He grits out, cut off by a crackling pop in his voice. Jaw clenching—both out of his struggling and the anger of having to see her (why was she here, anyway?)—9S' free hand balls together tightly at his side. ] What the hell do you want?

[abandonware]

[Beside her, Pod speaks, a warning:]

A2 —

Be quiet.

[A2 keeps her hands loose at her sides, in contrast. Fingers splayed slightly, uneasy but clearly not prepared to fight. She looks diminished somehow, like this. Smaller. Out of her depth.]

You're hurt. Can you move?

one

[parttimes]

[Kou is...running into him by accident, that's for sure. His unfortunate power granted to him is still more of an eyesore than anything, and he still doesn't have a great grasp on it.

So.

When he accidentally teleports to try to get somewhere where he can get more information, his "teleport wherever there's someone who needs help" kicks in and the person who needs help is apparently... 9S. With the stuck door.

Kou...stumbles, rights himself, and blinks.]

... Was worth a try, I guess. [USELESS POWER.] Uh... do you need a hand?

[bestaround]

[ When you're muttering irritably at a door, you usually expect to be alone.

Kou, however, interjects so suddenly into the otherwise mostly-quiet area that it takes 9S by genuine surprise. Startled, he jolts back with an undignified yelp. ]

What the, how did you—?!

[parttimes]

[Uh.

Yeah.

This is kind of awkward, and Kou just lifts a hand in a sort of...greeting...]

Yo.

[...Yeah.]

Uh, anyway, so. Teleportation powers, but they're kind of gimmicky, so here's where I ended up, I guess...?