epidemiology | EVENT ▸ WELCOME TO HANABIRA

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EVENT ▸ WELCOME TO HANABIRA

LAND OF CELESTIAL MOUNTAINS

Following guild Ophelia's first mission, after which the temporal shard was found and safely disposed of back on Headquarters, Guild Master Imogen informs them they've received a contract to help ease tensions in a land known as Hanabira, on an unnamed planet designated as Hathaway-484. However, the contract is from a third party and the Hanabirans themselves do not know about interdimensional travel, she explains, so it'll be best to announce Ophelia as visitors from a foreign land. Any strange appearances or abilities will be able to be brushed off as magic, as the Hanabirans are no strangers to things such as ogres and imps. They're given five days to look over the dossier, and then it's through the rift they go.

Those who are new to rift travel may find themselves a bit dizzy on the way out, but overall, everything seems to have gone according to plan. Upon arrival, their magitek projects words in front of their eyes that only they can see:

Location reached: HANABIRA.

No events scheduled. You may wish to survey the surrounding area.

» LAND OF CELESTIAL MOUNTAINS
A militaristic society that values strength. Main sources of income: mining, foresting, hunting, blacksmithing. Heavy matriarchal ideals. Empress NAMA resides at the HEAVENLY SUMMIT.

Those who attempt to reach the Heavenly Summit, which turns out to be the name of a castle situated on the tallest mountain peak, will not make it very far. Empress Nama's guards have no time for foreign strangers attempting to enter the castle without an audience, and there are plenty of them. It looks like that plan of action is going to take some time to rethink.

There's still much more to look at, though. In the Merchant's District, you can stock up on everything you'll need to blend in. A cursory look at all the clothing and it's clear that the Mountain Clan style focuses on a more powerful look, with broad shoulder accents and thick fabrics. Both men and women wear kimonos, but it seems men's fashion changes depending on their age and marital status. Time to figure out those backstories! There are several more items for sale as well, as long as you're willing to pay -- or if you're particularly good at sleight of hand.

The Commoner's District, derogatorily called the Slums by some, is where many of the lower class Mountain Clan work and live. Those who don't have the coin to buy a space in the Merchant's District sell their wares here; they are at a lower price, but often of lower quality as well, unless you're particularly lucky. This is the most densely populated area of the Celestial Mountains, and also the most egalitarian. Here, both men and women must do the same work to provide for their families. However, you will still find that the prevailing cultural attitude supports the matriarchy.

On the other side of town is the Noble's District, which is patrolled by guards on regular routes. Men on their own will arouse suspicion in this area, as will anyone in any garb but the noble disguise. Troublemakers will be asked to leave and unceremoniously escorted out. Those who manage to stay will be able to find conversation with the nobility, many of whom are high-ranking military leaders.

The rest of the town belongs to the lower to upper middle class, who are friendliest to women or groups with at least one woman in them. Women's reactions to sole men may range from dismissive to awkward, although men alone are not in any danger of angry or violent reactions (as long as they don't provoke anyone).

▸ SPRING FESTIVAL

After a bit of time for exploring, a new message flashes in front of recruits' eyes.

New event scheduled: MOUNTAIN CLAN FESTIVAL.

» INFORMATION: Analysis of all mentions of 'festival' since the arrival of OPHELIA suggests heavy HANABIRAN presence at this time, during which guild members may wish to gather intel.

It appears as though Ophelia has arrived just in time for the Spring Festival, a yearly celebration in honor of the changing of seasons. Plum and cherry trees throughout the Celestial Mountains flower in white and pink blossoms, creating a cheerful atmosphere as the population goes about their daily business during the day. Workers view the flowers during their lunch and tea times, and nobles can be found strolling through gardens in the Noble's District at all times.

In the early afternoon, food stalls begin to appear in the Merchant's District, and by the late afternoon, the festival is in full swing: dumplings, noodles, persimmons, and skewered meat are available at various stalls, as well as plenty of sake. Other stalls sell beautifully designed kites, fans, and kimonos, and as the sun begins to sink down, some stalls begin to sell incense-stick fireworks.

There are also games to take part in, from the light-hearted collaborative ball game kemari, to an archery competition, the winners of which are rewarded with plums and sake. An old man near the archery competition invites any passersby to join him in a game of Go, and he'll even offer to teach foreigners the rules of the game. There is also a falconry competition for the nobles, but unless you have a disguise, you'll just have to content yourself with watching.

With so many people milling around, it's a good time to ask questions and try to get a feel for the political opinions of the people of the mountain clan. They are all in favor of their empress ruling Hanabira, supporting the spread of their traditional culture over the more lax culture of the sea clan. If asked their opinions on how to ensure there is no war, suggestions will range from preemptively killing the sea empress and her army, to banishing them across the sea. It should be noted that the mountain clan is not especially known for their expertise in diplomacy.

As the sky darkens, fireworks light up the sky. It's very beautiful, but also very distracting -- the perfect time for something to go wrong.

▸ AN AMBUSH

The fireworks are loud, and everyone -- even guards milling around -- are looking skyward toward the display. No one notices the danger until it's too late.

A scream pierces the air, and everything after that happens quick and sudden: people are running in all directions, panicked, trying to escape. Stands are knocked over and food goes flying through the air. A merchant struggles to reach her wife, caught across the fearful throng of festivalgoers. It's chaos.

As the panicked crowd begins to thin, those of Ophelia who stay behind to help will see the cause -- women wearing clothes of the sea clan and masks covering their faces are laying waste to the festival ground. They begin to set stalls ablaze, and though they aren't targeting any civilians, a handful lay dead or injured, crushed by the panicked stampede.

Guards rush in to stop the women, and they could probably use help; they will be trying to capture them, but if your character is killing an ambusher instead, please let the mods know with a link to the thread.

For those who aren't the fighting type, there are plenty of other things to do -- direct traffic, try to rescue civilians from the stampede, or go find someplace to hide yourself. Once the immediate trouble is dealt with, the festival unceremoniously ended, the civilians drift back to their homes to begin a restless sleep. If your character hasn't found lodgings for the night yet, they'd better get that matter settled soon.

The morning after the ambush, there is tension and unease in the air. The people of the mountain clan mutter about taking revenge or continuing peaceably; the ambush and its effect on their relations with the sea clan is the topic of the day. Was this an attack sanctioned by the Empress of the Crashing Wave? Were these sea people acting of their own volition? Does it matter?

The festival grounds could use cleaning up, and tending to the injured can be a good way to ingratiate foreigners (that's you) to the mountain clan. Otherwise, the forests of the Celestial Mountains are open for exploration, or the Flowerlands and its farms below.

▸ OOC NOTES

Welcome to the first mission of the season! Apps are now closed and will remain closed until the mission is over. If you have questions about this log or the overall mission, please ask them on the dossier. Questions about Futurology in general should be directed to the FAQ.

▸ The festival and ambush lasts one IC day, after which characters may continue to explore. Areas currently open are the Land of Celestial Mountains or the Flowerlands. The Empire of the Crashing Wave will be introduced in the next log on 3 February.

▸ The Bounty Board is now live, as well as an items page. The February calendar will go live in late January.

▸ January AC will go up on 1 February. You will only need to supply one proof. February AC will require full activity.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Uh-huh.

[ That dry tone comes out of none other than 9S, who easily slides into place next to Simon to check out the wares. For all the uncertain footing he had regarding Simon previously, it seems to be mostly overshadowed by the enthusiastic demeanor 9S has; he's no different from a kid setting foot in the world's finest candy store for the first time, except that store is an honest-to-god city full of humans doing... well, normal people things. It's such an utterly mundane thing to be this thrilled about.

Yet here he is, rocking on his feet as he curiously scans over the colorful fabrics hung around the stall from behind his usual blindfold. ]

You don't sound very convincing there. [ A beat passes, and despite what he just said, 9S manages to completely lack any tact with his addendum (however unintentional it may be): ] These're supposed to be clothes?

[ Simon’s about to greet 9S — he gives him a surprised once-over at the practically palpable excitement radiating off of the guy — but then he goes full tactless on this poor person who’s currently outnumbered by robots, and this may not be immediately apparent as a dagger-filled D U D E stare in 9S’s direction, but that is exactly what it is. ]

You can’t just— Sorry, this is his first time out in public.

[ ...okay, they... they have important things to do, he hasn’t forgotten. But, also important: is Simon really witnessing the start of Hyper Realistic Android Made In Man’s Image Super Duper Year 12,000 Robot Racist’s remedial course in being people, because this feels like what’s happening. he takes 9S by the shoulder and gently turns him away from the stall, ready to Learn Him A Thing. his poker face is very very good ]

—Huh?

[ Evidently, 9S hasn't caught on to the problem on hand as Simon drops an excuse on the merchant (okay, there's a lot of truth to it, too) and nudges him away. He doesn't physically protest it, but Simon's no doubt killed some of the buzz here, with 9S' nose wrinkling indignantly. ]

Wait, hold on! What now?

Listen, you can’t say stuff like that to the locals. They’ll get offended, and if they’re offended they’re not going to tell us anything. We were all probably on thin ice as soon as we got here.

Just... be polite?

[ Okay, actually, Simon is sincerely, no-malice-intended, not 100% sure 9S knows what politeness entails. Especially by human standards. ~~Nothing says “nightmare mode” like getting schooled on manners, as a sheltered android soldier, by a Canadian.~~ ]

[ Luckily for Simon, he does know how to be polite. Fashion sense had simply been such an unimportant thing back on Earth—among androids, anyway, god only knows when it came to humankind—that 9S hadn't thought twice about commenting on the oddity that he sees. These "kimono" are so... loose and wavy and vibrantly colored; it doesn't match what he knew as typical clothing for people.

9S' expression shifts as he tries to make sense of Simon's reactions and words, but in the end responds with a sulky sounding— ]

Fine, fine... No talking about the clothes, I got it.

You can talk about them, just, make it complimentary.

[ ...9S is looking up at him and, okay, now Simon feels kinda bad. That he can’t help noticing how young 9S looks, seems, when he’s out of his element like this, doesn’t help matters. He’s just a sheltered android and... probable child soldier. He averts his eyes, shoulders slackening a little. ] Don’t worry too much about it, I’m just... kinda on edge today.

[ he glances around, finally noticing a conspicuous absence compared to the first time they met ] Where’s your little buddy?

[ Apparently, 9S thinks, and actually has it in him this time to keep the commentary to himself. The why is less obvious, but before he could think to mull on it any further, Simon points out the lack of the one thing 9S is typically never seen without. ]

—Oh. Pod, right? We can't keep 'em out in the open; their technology is considered too advanced.

[ Which is painfully ironic to think about when there's two robots standing out in the open right here... Even if one is a little less subtle than the other. ]

[ yeah 9S is sticking out like a sore thumb here. where’s your tarp dude ]

Oh... right. That sucks. Can you still... do everything you normally do? I mean, you still have your blindfold.

[ Yes, 9S told Simon it’s not a blindfold. but yes, Simon spent like an hour calling the Omnitool, which is labeled in all-capital letters, ‘the door-opener’, so, sorry for your lots. ]

Oh, c'mon. Just 'cause Pod's a support unit doesn't mean I'm gonna die without it.

[ An inconvenience, sure, and 9S is a little sad Pod can't check out all the cool human stuff with him, but he'll manage.

9S slides the tip of a gloved thumb underneath the bottom of said blindfold, gently tugging at it just enough that Simon might catch a glimpse of an actual eye underneath, before he lets it fall back into place as usual. ]

I could deal without having this too, but it's not like any of you notice what it is in the first place. Or me, for that matter.

[ So hey if he can get away with it, why not??? ]

[ Oh, huh. He does have normal eyes under there. Simon watches the cover return to its usual spot curiously, having had little time to look for any discrepancies. Sure looked like entirely normal human eyes. ]

Yeah, well, I’m looking for masks that don’t exist here. Don’t tell me you’d go without the blindfold unless you mean it.

[ That was facetious. Mostly. It probably wouldn’t work on him, anyway. ]

[ To that, 9S gives a snort. ]

If you're looking to avoid attention, I'm not so sure a mask is the way to go.

[ Speaking from personal experience.... He could count the number of interactions he's had where it didn't come up on one hand. ]

Okay, got any better ideas? I’m pretty sure I can’t just leave my eyes in my room.

[ -Quote from man who recently found a pair of disembodied eyes in a room ]

Uhmm...

[ Well, it would be too convenient if they found another pair of disembodied eyes, wouldn't it. ]

Glasses? [ 9S sounds a little uncertain about the suggestion, but there you have it. ] Aren't there ones that... [ He gestures vaguely in front of him, unable to nail the proper word for them down. ] Kinda hide your eyes or something?

[ Sunglasses. He means sunglasses. ]

... Oh, sunglasses? [ There’s amusement in Simon’s voice — not mean-spirited, honest. ] Pretty sure those haven’t been invented yet here, but good idea. I’ll look out for anything similar.

[ he glances around, clenches and unclenches his fists at his sides absently. 9S looks far more human than he does, but he’s glad for his presence anyway, even if things with 9S can get a little weird. Sure, Simon can’t hide not being human, but at least with other robots he doesn’t have to feel as freakish for it. Not many people in Hathaway with whom you can have casual conversations about rebooting yourself. ] So, what’s your take on... all this? You know, the mission.

Edited 2018-01-17 02:36 (UTC)

[ Haven't been invented yet...? They look so basic, though; surely even a society such as this one should have something like them.

The thought goes forgotten for the time being when posed with a question. Right—the mission on hand, not that 9S has been doing much beyond marveling at everything.

9S slowly turns on his feet, as if to get a better angle to survey their current surroundings. He has to take a moment to figure out how to answer that. ]

There... sure are a lot of people. [ Which, yeah, and 9S has had time to get used to being around them—but stepping foot within a whole town full of humans going to and fro between well maintained buildings without a worry in the world is still incredible in itself. ] It doesn't feel like there's anything wrong going on at all.

Yeah. When things are going wrong, we walk around pretending everything’s fine for as long as we can manage it. Festivals on schedule, everything. Sometimes we even double down on that stuff.

[ ... So, he figures, no surprise that 9S is unfamiliar with the sight of such a phenomenon. ]

... Really didn’t expect this mission to make me miss the pirates and cave bugs, but this “prevent war and murder” stuff is kind of doing it.

[ And 9S and 2B? Rescued by Hathaway from fighting humans’ wars for them and then dropped into another one. Man. At least 9S is having a good time looking at stuff. ]

[ Oh. That's... weird, but okay. The more 9S learns about people, the more baffling they become. ]

Yeah, but it's a problem we caused in the first place. [ General 'we', of course. ] So... I guess there's gotta be some way to fix it, too.

[ Granted, 9S is really hoping neither war nor murder break out before they're finished here. He could kill a machine without hesitation, but he has no idea what he would do should anything serious spark between the people here. ]

Yeah. Gotta be. [ finally someone who shares both his surface optimism about this situation and his sense of shared responsibility for this mess ]

We just have to figure it out. I’d really like a break from mass death scenarios.

[ Way to phrase that in the most self-centered way possible, Simon. ]

[ 'Mass death', huh... 9S looks up, settling his gaze on a family passing by, then turns his head toward a couple sharing their festival food together up ahead. His mouth purses into a thin line, before he speaks again. ]

What're the chances it'll come to that? [ 9S almost feels as if he wouldn't expect it, but Simon speaks as if it'll eventually become an inevitability—and he's the... former human, here. ] If they're pretending everything's fine, doesn't that mean they don't want a war, either?

Civilians, yeah, but... if their empress wants war, they won’t get a choice.

[ Simon watches 9S’s reactions, the way he observes the locals, the way he’s learning about humans and it’s some of their absolute worst traits first and foremost. He feels a little bad for explaining all this, both in the sense that describing it all to someone so human but not throws humanity’s dark side into seriously sharp relief, and the ‘guess what Santa Claus isn’t real’ sense. ]

Humans have a good side too, but we can be pretty awful sometimes. I mean... we created androids like you, with feelings and personalities, to make you fight a war for us. That’s pretty bad.

[ 9S shoots Simon his own surprised look from over his shoulder; even with half of his face covered up, it doesn't take much to see that Simon's said something he hadn't expected to hear. ]

But that's—not really the same. [ Humanity was driven away from their rightful home, thanks to invaders from another world—or so the story went. It's a different matter entirely. ] Our survival was at stake back on Earth. At least here, they have a choice in the matter.

Somebody does, but it’s usually not the ones who have to do the fighting.

[ Simon’s pretty certain of his own feelings on the matter of 9S and 2B’s situation, namely that it’s appalling, on humanity’s part. But from the androids themselves, he can’t infer anything unambiguous. Even from 9S’s response he can’t tell how his own stance on it is going over at this very moment.

Either way, war fucks people up. He knows that, even if he doesn’t know the ins and outs of it, so his tone is as careful as he can make it. ] Do you ever think it’s unfair? The way humans... use you, on your Earth? I could’ve heard this stuff as a human and I’d still think it was horrible.

[ Unfair? There was a lot about his and 2B's and the rest of YoRHa's existence that was unfair, but when it came down to it, it was nothing he could blame on humanity. Even if they were at fault, well... 9S doesn't think he could ever bring himself to admit it. ]

I... no, I don't. [ It's the best he could give without getting into how insanely screwed up everything else had been. ] I've never thought of it that way.

[ But programming is to blame there, really. It's tough to think ill of humanity when you're wired to be utterly devoted to them. ]

[ Simon cannot wrap his head around it, but when it comes to war and loyalty — well, flesh-and-blood minds can be programmed, too. This could be anything. ] I know to you and 2B it’s normal, but I just keep thinking—

[ palms upturned, his voice gets emphatic, directionlessly frustrated, ] You’re just— both of you are just... so... human.

[ And he doesn’t even know where to begin explaining the weight he’s giving that word, whether it warrants it or not. ]

[ Perhaps Simon can't quite explain it, but 9S can certainly feel it—like one's heart dropping to their stomach, rather than feeling praise. There was undoubtedly a sense of pride to the comparison, to a degree, because if there was one thing any and all YoRHa units knew, it's that they shouldn't—and couldn't—be too much like the beings they regarded so highly of.

9S' composure falls into something uneasy, gaze averting away. ]

You really shouldn't. [ Maybe it's why Simon sounds so frustrated about it; he and all the others who talk as if they're voicing displeasure about it. It's always humans who do this, but they also look and treat him as if he's one of them. Of course they would never want any of their kind to do what 9S has had to, yet if they would just understand what he is... ] We're not human, Simon. We're androids.

[ He says, as if that's all that needs to be to convey we can't be on the same level. ]

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