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

[selfimage]

[ Loki leans down just as a branch whooshes over his head, grabbing a seed from the ground and tossing it up and catching it with the other hand. ]

Close call!

[ he says with a casual cadence, making the motion to nab another one. there are now two seeds held between dark nails and open fingers, and an uncaring Loki missing branches by—what seems to be—chance. ]

Is that all you can do? I thought there'd be a little more fireworks.

[mitthrawnaruto]

[For a moment he is a glacial blur, ducking into the thick shadows beneath raised roots— disappearing entirely. With his absence, the branches slow in their pursuit, curling briefly in midair: it can't chase what it can't perceive, apparently, which leaves Loki as its focus.

The seconds tick on— turning instead to a minute or so— the Grand Admiral either absent or inactive, or some mixture of either, just before Thrawn calls out, standing at Loki's back some distance away (dirt flecking shimmering blue-black hair and the rest of his angular features):]

We Chiss prefer subtlety.

[He tips his palm, showing off a handful of gathered seeds.]

[selfimage]

[ Thrawn goes, and it takes Loki less than a few seconds to follow. he's quick to teleport just out of the reach of the willow, watching briefly as it extends toward him with flailing branches. curious, he tests the reality around the area: looking for little hiccups or oddities in the way that it responds. it's almost lazy in execution. (Mephisto had accused him of so much. what displeased Mephisto tended to please him.)

there's a brief glance over his shoulder as he decides to show himself again. ]

I would call it a disappearing act rather than an act of subtlety. [ there's his next dose of sass, but he doesn't sound all that upset about it. ] You could have just done the whole thing yourself, you know.

[mitthrawnaruto]

Is that not the same? [Thrawn asks seemingly in earnest, moving now to close the distance between them— not balking at the deflection as he had at the beginning of their interaction.]

To act on my own would have defeated the purpose of this exercise. I have gathered seeds, you have gathered seeds [And to that extent, he lifts his glinting azure palm, extending it towards Loki in a gesture of subdued camaraderie, the little nest of seeds clearly waiting for their brethren kept in Loki's grip.]

—and we have both discovered something new about one another.

[It's amazing how nice he can be when he thinks someone has worth, what an asshole this guy]

Now tell me: what are you?

[selfimage]

[ the dubious look that Loki gives him is answer enough at the question, but he moves on seamlessly. ]

Usually there's a please that follows a question like that. Let's not forget our pleasantries.

[ like Loki should really be saying anything about pleasantries.

for a few seconds he looks at Thrawn, then looks at his hand, looks at the nuts, and then looks at his face again. as if he had all the time in the world, he finally extends his hand with the two nuts ]

I'm Loki.

[ it's a play of sort, and still in essence what he is without naming the nuances of his nature: he is lies, chaos, and mischief wrapped into a divine package. saying Loki was far more concise. ]

[mitthrawnaruto]

[Pleasantries? What are those?]

Loki. [Thrawn repeats thoughtfully, clearly ignoring his companion's suggestion of utilizing etiquette in any amount; plucking the seeds up with fingers as cool as frigid ice— and no less precise for it.]

I have not heard of this species before.

[selfimage]

[ it's always thrilling and disappointing when someone doesn't know of him. there are so many Lokis in the multiverse, that the worlds that the person or the myth does not exist are few and far between. there's a curious tilt of his head. ]

Some would say that you should consider yourself lucky. [ it comes easily. ] I suppose you'll now be able to judge for yourself.

pls feel free to disregard if it's been too long! rl did in fact murder me

[mitthrawnaruto]

I prefer to rely on my own assessments. [His palm curls, pocketing the seeds and setting himself to brushing the dust from shimmering hair and icy skin I'm sorry his canon description is a mess as he begins to trek back towards his coat once more.] Legends, myths, and rumors often do little to convey the truth, I have found.

[Speaking from personal experience, at least.]

its cool i understand

[selfimage]

[ upon first glance, he looks Kree. he's certainly not, but the resonance in the multiverse works in particular ways. ]

Perhaps—or too much of it, depending. Tell a lie long enough, and it becomes more than just a falsehood.

[ deep, but he treats it like casual conversation, tucking his hands in his pockets and swaggering in one direction, their work here done. ]

[mitthrawnaruto]

It becomes whatever those telling it need it to be. [For Thrawn, this is casual conversation. It is familiar, and engaging, and laced with deeper observations about the world around them— as well as the ones who interpret it. He shrugs on his coat, securing its fasteners with deft precision. Imperial facade snapped back into place.]

A warning against straying too far from what is expected and known, a balm when hope would otherwise be lost. Morality, philosophy, aspirations— lies with greater purpose.

But then the truth is also a matter of perspective.

[He had been wary at first, uncertain that his companion would ever truly commit to the task at hand, much less complete it fully— yet now he restructures his initial assessment, and once his uniform is fitted to exacting specifications, he fishes out an equal portion of their gathered seeds, extending it in an open offer.]

Your freedom.

[selfimage]

Is that so?

[ how long as he spent chasing freedom? he never once believed that he was free—only fools did that, but he had the tools to give himself more leeway. ]

Well that's lucky for me, as I'm not one to cling too tightly to the bars.

[ he takes one, tosses it in the air, and catches it again in an open palm. ]

[mitthrawnaruto]

Bars? [He asks, his brow line creasing tightly, crimson eyes narrowing by degrees, as though searching for a deeper meaning in his companion's commentary. Were Eli Vanto here to witness it, he might never let the Chiss down for reenacting countless prior conversations about figurative expressions— ones Thrawn seemed only a few steps away from grasping, more often than not.]

Which bars are those?

[selfimage]

[ there's a pause and Loki examines him for a moment, then continues: ]

Of the cage we all keep ourselves in.

[ Loki had always found some way to pursue freedom that he never had: it was always over there, never where he was. with his nature as a story, and his ability to scribble bits of his own ink across the parchment of reality, he wonders how much control he has.

he is, after all, a walking metaphor. ]

[mitthrawnaruto]

[An expansive cage. An inclusive one. Life, perhaps? The Chiss's glowing stare narrowing by degrees in thought— working to measure the smooth set of Loki's features, his facial heat and body stance, and— no. Likely not. The creature at his side does not seem so brittle, or laced with ire.]

You speak of our servitude?

[selfimage]

No.

[ the word comes out easy, as if they were talking about the weather. there's a lot for Loki to be bitter over, but it's not this. ]

Your perceptions, duh.

[ he adds that list bit for a good measure. ]

Along with hang-ups, patterns, and other sorts of fun things the universe demands of mortals.