EVENT ▸ RETURN TO HQ

[futurologists]

RETURN TO HQ After a tough mission, it's time to return to Headquarters for a well-earned rest. Hathaway's medics and healers are there to patch up any lingering injuries (as are any teammates with healing abilities!), everyone's room is tidied up for them, and the entirety of Hathaway HQ is ripe for exploring. Take your time -- you earned it. Also sharing downtime at HQ are Guilds Horatio, Montague, and Watchman, composed of humanoids of various shapes and sizes. Temporary pop-up shops down in the promenade include a spa where one can get a manicure, pedicure, or other beautifying procedures; a yoga studio; and an imported salt cave for meditation. After a few days of silent relaxation, members of Guild Ophelia will all receive a text message on their magitek from Imogen -- their Guild Master, if they don't remember. Imogen, while not directly involved in any world-saving affairs, has a rather sizable amount of inheritance that she puts towards the Hathaway cause. Specifically, she uses it to finance Ophelia's endeavors. This sort of makes her in charge, or as much in charge of this rag-tag team as any one person can be. Hello, Ophelia! Once again, allow me to congratulate you on your successful mission in Hanabira. I hear the wedding went smashingly. Hathaway's analysts should rift down someone to check in on your success in several years, but the mathematicians are confident your solution has brought peace to the region. One should never rest on their laurels, however. From what I've seen in magitek messages, this guild is sorely lacking in the ability to work together and trust all guildmates, regardless of who they are. I've spotted more than a few barbs exchanged. Hanabira will be only an exception if you continue to behave this way. We'll be conducting guild bonding exercises today. While they are not mandatory, I assure you I've procured incentive for you all to participate. It isn't cheap to finance your exploits, and I won't spend my resources on a group of ruffians slinging insults at each other. Meet by the memorial fountain in one hour, and do try to bring a positive attitude. Your Guild Master, Imogen Those who choose to participate will find Imogen, a very prim and graceful elf dressed in elaborately embroidered robes, standing near the fountain. She greets everyone by name -- "nice to see you" and "glad you could make it" -- before directing them to the training rooms on the upper deck. The training rooms include run-of-the-mill exercise equipment and the training simulation room, both of which are free to use by participants and non-participants alike. A tall, strong-looking man whom some may recognize as their recruiter is making use of the equipment. His name is Khalef, and he is happy to answer questions about the training facilities or anything else about Hathaway. Between exercises, Imogen is available at the memorial fountain to chat but she's otherwise busy with paperwork. ▸ SECRETS Two partners sit in a room furnished only with two (very comfy, if it matters) chairs and a table between them. On the table sits -- floats, really -- a colorful orb, softly glowing. It is comfortably warm to the touch. The instructions automatically flash across the participants' magitek, thanking them for participating and asking them both to answer the following questions with complete honesty to gain the most from this exercise. Then, the first question pops up: What is something you like about your exercise partner? It seems simple enough. If a participant tells the truth, they will notice the orb's glow brightening, almost as if it is starting to flame. If a participant lies, they will notice the orb's glow dimming. Otherwise, there is no penalty for lying. The questions slowly get more personal, with the aim of getting the two partners to open up to each other: If a crystal ball could tell you the future, what would you want to know? What’s the one thing you would like to change about yourself? What are you most proud of accomplishing? What do you think existed before the universe was created? What do you think is the worst crime a human could commit? Do you think jealousy has value in driving people to improve themselves, or is it a purely negative emotion? If you could start your life over, what would you do differently? If you were given only one week to live, how would you spend it? Who had the greatest impact on your life? What was it? What’s the difference between justice and revenge? Is it possible to live a normal life and not ever tell a lie? Do the ends justify the means? Are some people’s lives worth more than others? Why or why not? Complete this sentence: "I wish I had someone with whom I could share..." If a loved one died, but someone created a perfect copy, would they be the same person and would you love them just as much? If you were going to become a close friend with your partner, please share what would be important for him or her to know. ( Mod note: the above are just ideas! You can pick and choose, or come up with your own. Whatever is most fun for you! ) If the two partners truthfully answer their questions, the orb will eventually catch fire, although it will curiously still remain only pleasantly warm if anyone attempts to touch it. It will blaze until it burns out, leaving two small marble replicas in its place. When one of the partners grasps it in their hand, they will be able to see through the other partner's eyes for one minute (although they will not be aware of their own surroundings, so you might want to be in a safe area). The other partner will be aware of this and able to sever the link by removing the marble from their person. These items are bound to their owners and cannot be used by others. If one or both partners lie, the orb will eventually fizzle out entirely, and the magitek will inform them that the exercise was failed due to deceit. ▸ RIFTING Next, guild members are directed to the rifting pad located on the upper deck. Technicians scurry about in the rifting area, spinning dials and taking readings, as volunteers are directed to stand on the rifting pad and wait. It's just like rifting to a different universe for a mission -- the world goes bright and then, in a flash, you're standing somewhere else -- except the technicians emphatically explain this is not a mission. It's still part of the training exercise, you see! Participants have been rifted to an unpopulated garden planet, in the middle of a forest clearing. The grass is tall -- nearly 150 cm in height -- and is surrounded on all sides by forest. A notice pops up on your magitek that informs you there is no aggressive local wildlife, but there are aggressive plants: including, unfortunately, your goal for this part of the exercise. Spread throughout the forest are aggressive willow trees, sentient flora that will lash out with sharp, clawlike branches at anyone who comes too close. The branches have incredible reach, but the trees have no other defense, and are rooted to the spot so they are also unable to maneuver. The goal of the exercise is to gather as many willow seeds as possible, ostensibly without hurting the trees themselves. Willow seeds are around the size of a small marble and have a fluffy attachment that will allow them to blow away on the wind; you can scour the forest in search of them, of course, but the highest concentration is below the willows themselves. Once participants feel they have gathered enough seeds -- or if they simply want to give up -- they need only speak to the rift technicians via magitek and they will return back to Headquarters immediately. The participants will each receive a pot of soil and a seed to plant within it. The plant that sprouts from it will be no ordinary plant; it will require no water to sustain itself, but it will require something else: friendship. As the relationship between the two participants strengthens, the plant will grow, its appearance representing how the other participant feels about the plant owner -- pink and red blooms may represent romantic love, whereas bright, multi-colored petals may simply represent a strong friendship or budding blooms may represent... well, a budding friendship. (Of course, there's no "flower guide", so it's up to them to decide how to interpret this.) As the relationship weakens, the plant will wilt and, if the relationship turns sour enough, die. So take care of your relationship and take care of your plant! ▸ COMPOSURE This exercise completed, participants are free to return to the first deck and go about their business. But on the elevator back down from the rifting pad, the elevator suddenly jerks violently and then stalls. You're stuck! The emergency button doesn't seem to be working, no matter how many times you press it. And for that matter, no messages seem to be going through the magitek, either. You're effectively trapped in here with whomever you stepped aboard -- a friend, an acquaintance, or even a stranger. But don't panic -- surely Hathaway hired you for your ingenuity and not just your pretty face, right? The elevator can be broken out of in a number of ways: If you brute strength the doors open, you'll find that the elevator is stuck halfway between floors. This means that you must either climb up or down to escape the narrow opening, and, if your partner isn't the athletic type, help them out as well. If you hack the elevator's control panel (prying the panel door off first, obviously), you may be able to guide it up and down the shaft. Depending on your expertise in this sort of thing, the ride may be jerky and uncomfortable, and there's always a risk of the elevator plummeting down to the bottom if you lose control -- although strangely, there's never any impact if this happens, only the elevator springing back up the shaft after the fall. Either way, you should be able to figure out how to get the doors open. If you open the access hatch at the top of the elevator, you'll be granted access to the elevator shaft. It's a dimly lit tunnel of cables and wires, and unless you're lucky enough to find a service ladder in the midst of all of it, you'll have to use the cables to climb. It's dangerous -- you could lose your footing at any moment and slam back down onto the elevator below -- but you should be able to find a door eventually. And then it's only a matter of figuring out how to get it open. Or you could try a combination of these, or something entirely different! No matter what method you choose, once you find your way onto solid ground, your magitek will light up: Congratulations! You passed the final exercise. Rest assured, you were never in any real danger, I promise! Your Guild Master, Imogen Indeed, if you found yourself falling too far down the shaft, you would have found yourself instantly buffeted by invisible winds to keep your landing soft -- and if you found yourself unable to find a way to escape within two hours, the elevator would automatically start up again. Those who succeed will receive a flashlight that does not seem to work at first; however, it is capable of taking and storing light from its immediate surroundings, which it can then release into similar light sources or, in the absence of those, floating orbs of light. It is incapable of taking light out of an entire building, for an example, but can darken a room. ▸ OOC NOTES If you have questions about this log, please direct them to this comment on the plotting post. Questions about the game in general can be directed to the FAQ. ▸ Up now: Hanabira Bounty Board is still open! Bounties must be turned in by the start of the next mission on 15 April. Congratulations, Guild Ophelia now has an official uniform! The uniforms may be modified in any way characters like. The FAQ and Headquarters pages have been updated to include the uniform information. ▸ Coming next: 25 March: Mandatory How's My Driving meme. Participation is required to pass March AC. 28 March: April calendar, including news about apps. 01 April: March AC begins, ending on 5 April 23:59 UTC. ▸ Plotting ▸ Hathaway Headquarters ▸ Hanabira Bounty Board ▸ March Calendar

Comments

[futurologists]

[She laughs mildly.]

Oh, my wealth isn't in dollars. It's primarily in imperial gildens, although I have a fair amount in klevoks and solar qurbips as well. And, of course, I've invested heavily.

[futurologists]

I certainly wouldn't mind the help. Two out of three of my compatriots lack opposable thumbs, and the third is... ugh, pumping iron.

[She grimaces, then gestures for him to sit.]

What was it you wanted to ask?

RIFT

[forcevisions]

You're just saying that so I'll be the one to get smacked.

[ She says this light-heartedly because she knows he's the faster of the two, given his abilities during the ambush on Hanabira. Her eyes aren't on him, though. They're on the chaotic wave of limbs above them, trying to trace some semblance of a pattern in them. It's no good, of course. This tree is more alive than any tree has a right to be.

Absurdly, she thinks of Poe's story, of the Force tree he had nurtured. Had it grown into some kind of monstrosity like this? ]

I'm not saying I have a better plan, but that's a lot of limbs. I'm not sure I can distract it completely.

[hackedhistory]

[She gives a small shrug.]

We should go where we're needed. That's the job, right?

[There's another pause as she mulls this question over before asking it. It isn't that she's questioning Imogen's credibility, but honestly she'd feel a lot better if she has to trust one person that she can spend time with and get to know with both her safety and her compensation, rather than dealing with an unknown entity and trusting them to follow through.]

Do you also coordinate our incentives once we're finished?

[futurologists]

Some of my funds go towards that, although I'm not chiefly in charge. There's another committee -- or guild, you could say -- tasked with carrying your payment out.

[She raises an eyebrow.]

If you had questions regarding that, though, I could attempt to answer. I know about as much as you, as it isn't my department, but two heads are better than one in almost all cases.

[notthatjason]

[Jason does so. Despite the fact that he's talking to someone very powerful and influential in the guild, he doesn't seem nervous about it.]

I was curious about how the guild picks which place to send us on missions and if it was just one person making that call or if other people had input into it.

[futurologists]

Ah! Excellent question.

[Imogen folds her hands in front of her.]

From my understanding, various worlds are registered as being in need, either by a third party or by someone living there. For example, Hanabira was registered by a third party, someone who had noticed unusual activity in the world. From there, it's possible for me to choose a mission to send you on -- for example, I was able to send you to Hanabira since it was a less time-sensitive situation.

[She presses her lips together.] However, I've been told this may not always be the case. In a crisis situation, I may not have a say in where Ophelia is assigned. Is there any particular reason you ask?

[notthatjason]

I mean, if you're quick enough, you shouldn't be smacked TOO much.

[Though honestly he'd been thinking he could distract the tree from the air and try to keep as many limbs off the ground as possible. But, that's the problem isn't it, he's thinking about an enemy with fewer limbs and not...well a tree.

He's faced many different types of opponents in his life. This would be his first time really fighting a tree. The fact that he hadn't had to fight a tree before surprised him more so than anything, but he decided now wasn't the time to dwell on that.

His eyes suddenly light up with another idea.]

What if we had a third decoy?

[He starts taking off the cloak from his uniform.]

It's a tree, right? It can't be that smart. I can use the winds to make this move around. Greeks aren't the only ones who can be tricky.

[So it wasn't as sophisticated as a Trojan horse...it was still pretty good in his opinion.]

[hackedhistory]

[Ahh outsourcing. Joy. She isn't really surprised.]

I'm just really hoping that they'll follow through, that's all.

[She would hate if they were getting duped in exchange for all of this.]

Do you know someone in that guild?

[notthatjason]

[Jason listens intently, nodding at the explanation since it is pretty easy to follow.]

It was something another guild member, Veronica, and I wondered about during the Hanabira mission. I'm used to being told where to go for a quest so I hadn't really thought about it, but that was usually from prophecies. [He shrugs.] We were just curious.

Are those who send the request also the ones that send you the information for the dossiers or is that done by someone else?

i willow you one!

[tolight]

[ Lucina nods anyway, because going up close and personal has always been her preferred method of attack. It's not so different here, really. ] I can move up ahead, yes.

[ Though... ... ... ] ... What are you planning to do? [ They literally just said try not to hurt the trees. ]

rhys | ota

[dbag]

i | secrets

[ Rhys isn't exactly a bare his soul type; he's more about bravado and trying (and failing) to make himself look cool by any means necessary. So, this is a little awkward. He taps his fingers on the table, both real and robotic, shifting in his seat. ]

Okay, sooo... [ He draws out the 'o' sound, glancing around the room like he's expecting an out. He isn't, he's just kind of hoping there is one. It's awkward! He's awkward. He's not good at this when it's not forced, much less when it is. ]

Did you want to start? Or I can. ...Okay, I'll start. Um, I—

[ He pauses. ]

Oh. You seemed like— it seemed like you were gonna say something. No? Are you sure? 'Cause it... it just seemed like maybe you were going to start.

ii | network

[ un: RHY5-W1NZ, as always. ]

Sooo I guess the whole announcement thing about people being mean to each other got me thinking. So I just wanted to say that if I was ever rude to you, ACCIDENTALLY, I just wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart... that I'm starting over. So if I owed you an apology, that's done, I'm moving on. And I think it would be best if you did too.

Uhhh yeah that's about it. So. Keep that in mind.

iii | wildcard

[ wildcard option! closed starters will go in the replies. ]

FIONA | closed

[dbag]

[ Rhys is very excited to take Fiona for a spaghetti day, as she is a dumpster baby and has never experienced the finer things in life like vagina steaming and cactus massage; he is also somewhat nervous, because she's a dumpster baby. Don't embarrass him. It's going to be fun, though! Probably. Either way, they're both going to come out of it looking fresh to DEATH. ]

Okay, so, [ he says as he steers her towards the pop-up spa, ] if they give you cucumbers, do not eat them. They go on your eyes. [ She's probably seen this on TV and he's just being insulting. ] I'm kind of an expert about this stuff.

KEITH | closed

[dbag]

[ Rhys ends up on the elevator back with Keith, which is— whatever. He doesn't really plan on striking up much of a conversation, especially since Keith was in such a sour mood the last time they saw each other. They're going to ride the elevator in pleasant silence, then step off and go their separate ways, and that will be that.

Then the elevator screeches and stalls, Rhys stumbling back as it jerks. It takes a moment for the circumstances to register, then: ] Um. [ He presses the emergency button with absolutely no reaction. Nothing lights up, no sound, nothing. Again, he presses it; again, no response. ]

Uhhh. Hm. [ He bites his lip, scratching his head. ] Elevators have their ups and downs, but, uh, if I'd known this was gonna happen, I would have taken some steps to avoid the elevator.

[tormado]

...

[Blink.]

Does that last one have something to do with the sun.

Majima Gorō | Yakuza 0

[justbeingknife]

SECRETS;

[ Majima settled in his chair, looking none too serious about the exercise. Team-building? For real? Despite his casual posture, however, -- crossed arms, head tilted slightly to the side -- he didn't come in intending to lie. Not if it was part of the job, anyway. ]

What do you think of the person across from you?

[ Were the words scrolling across his magitek. ]

Goin' straight for the jugular, huh? Alright, I got a lot of thoughts on this... and now you're gonna hear about it.

RIFTING;

[ Majima slid his dagger out of its sheath, tossing the latter almost carelessly over his shoulder as he regarded the trees. The gleam in his right eye looked amused... or maybe long-suffering?

porque no los dos

He glanced at his training partner. ]

What, another finessing mission? It's like they don't want us to run wild.

NETWORK @kyouken;

I need some hair ties, and I need some weapons. Suggestions?

WILD;

[ Also up for random wandering about, super interested in threading out another spec bounty!! Feel free to contact me at Tetradecimal or tetra | majima #2434 ]

network■ un: virtuoso

[fourscores]

What kind of weapons?

[justbeingknife]

I ain't picky.

Back home, I used melee weapons and conventional firearms. But there must be a whole world of other shit out here.

[ come thru high-frequency laser knifes!! ]

ii. un: alucard

[reposing]

Only if it were an accident?

A shame.

[reposing]

Less in that I need help and more that I would simply like to meet with you. As a friend.

[do u wanna hang man]

[dbag]

I have never been rude on purpose.

middle deck

[reposing]

[There's almost a suspicious look on Alucard's face as he peers at the Halloween decorations. At Lance's question, he raises a brow.]

I... suppose? What are these supposed to be?

[he gestures at the very stereotypical vampire costume.]

[reposing]

I find this incredibly unlikely since our last conversation. Unless you really are just that oblivious.

[dbag]

I NEVER ACTUALLY SAID YOU HAD SYPHILIS.

I just hadn't met any vampires before, okay.

[reposing]

It goes well beyond your ridiculous accusations at the state of my health. You were incredibly rude, even if I do respect you looking out for your friend.

However, if you are truly apologetic, then I would hear it from your voice.