EVENT ▸ FINAL LOG

[futurologists]

RECOLLECTION DAY The next few days following Mission: Drakstaden sees Headquarters transformed into a celebratory atmosphere. Although the Cataclysm had been solved by the Merging, Hathaway's connection to ALASTAIR means that Recollection Day is still celebrated yearly: a festival honoring those whose universes were torn apart by the Cataclysm and the centuries of instability that followed. However, post-Merging, Recollection Day has taken on a different tone; instead of solemn and pensive, the mood is celebratory and triumphant, honoring the members of ALASTAIR who helped the multiverse merge. Accordingly, former members of ALASTAIR have been invited to Headquarters to be honored, so those who have been around for awhile may see some familiar faces. The statue honoring those who lost their lives during the war between ALASTAIR and Zymandis is wreathed in flowers, and the fountains in the promenade have been dyed so when the water jets up it's in a rainbow of beautiful colors. Apart from the decorations, there are food vendors throughout the promenade selling a variety of dishes from across the multiverse. You'll find something you like, make no mistake, but you might have to wade through weird alien delicacies before you find it! Inside the training simulator, the settings have been configured to resemble a pool party, complete with a swim-up bar (stocked with tropical drinks, pineapple, and coconuts) and tiki torches. The alcohol at the simulated party will get you nice and inebriated as long as you stay inside the simulator, though once you exit it, you'll instantly be sober. No hangovers! For those who aren't interested in the louder types of celebration, there is a gentler activity available: there is a new clutch of squidges that have arrived from planet Zeta-12. These alien babies are made of a transluscent material similar to gelatin, with beady black eyes and short limbs. The squidges communicate with wordless gurgling, weigh about seven pounds, and need lots and lots of attention. A small habitat has been constructed for them, with grasses and small trees to explore; it's big for a baby squidge but the size of a small playground for an adult, so if babysitting is what you're into, don't worry -- you won't get lost! Otherwise, the rest of Headquarters is open to explore. Some Hathaway employees might need help putting decorations up, others may invite you to try an unknown dish with them, and still others might want help finding a temporary place to train since the training simulator is occupied. There's plenty to do and plenty to celebrate, so get busy! ▸ EPILOGUE As the celebration winds down and partygoers begin to filter away and return to work, it's a perfect time for current and former members of Guild Ophelia (and the visiting members of the former Team Audentes) to reflect on this whirlwind adventure they've been part of. Countless worlds, timelines, and universes have been forever altered by your work; for better or worse, every member has left their permanent mark on the Timeline. As Headquarters drifts silently through space, stars and galaxies slipping past in the windows, word comes to some Ophelia members through their magitek: your incentive has been achieved, and you may leave Hathaway's employ with your earned reward. It might be sooner than expected (or very welcome news), but if you wish to end your multiversal adventure, now's your chance. Otherwise, you can decline and continue on with Hathaway for as long as you wish. For those who don't receive the message, it's business as usual. The party is over, and so it's back to work: there will always be trouble out there, and Hathaway will always be there to do what it can to help the citizens of the multiverse. ▸ OOC NOTES This is the final log of Futurology. We hope you enjoyed your time in the game! As stated in the SOTG post, characters who have been dropped may return for this log! Characters who did not permadrop are assumed to have been transferred to a different guild within Hathaway, and may therefore be present for the celebration. If they were permadropped/retired, you may handwave that they were invited back to Headquarters for the party. Journals will not be removed from the game communities; you are free to make logs, posts, or continue threading for as long as you like. The mod team would like to take this time extend a sincere thank you to everyone who ever played in Futurology. Without you, the journey wouldn't have been the same! ▸ State of the Game ▸ Mod Contact ▸ Hathaway Headquarters

Comments

[secondnature]

It's not like I had a whole lot of input in how to name him. It was just me and my mom. [Which. Is a thing that he needs to cover with Lance.

A lot can happen in two years, but a lot didn't happen. That's the wonder of a space whale, at least.

Keith finds a cove not far from the celebration, but it's definitely set up so people can have some privacy. Hathaway: always thinking of their introverted folks. Okay, maybe not, but let's pretend.]

Anyway—yeah. Yeah. I got the message. I know you might not be ready, but I am. So, that's what we need to talk about.

[ceruleo]

[ Lance's mouth dries up. ]

Wait, wait--your mom?

[ Keith wants to move the conversation along but Lance sits hard on the little bench, brain still stuck on that information. ]

You found her...? Keith, what's she like? [ And then, his smile widens, softens with genuine, bubbling happiness: ] That's amazing!

[secondnature]

She's like me. [That is the most information that Keith can really apply to it. After spending two years with his mom, it feels like that's his biggest takeaway. They were a lot alike. They wanted a lot of the same things. They reacted to things rather similarly. It was funny, really, to learn that about her—and for her to learn that about him.]

But ... Galran. I guess.

[ceruleo]

[ He lets out a puff of breath, almost a laugh. ]

It's almost like you're related or something...

[ But he can't really hold onto the humour for long; the corners of his mouth droop as if pulled by gravity, his expression sobering into something more resigned. ]

All right, so talk to me. Where'd you get the-- [ He motions to his own cheek, mirroring where Keith's mark is. ]

[secondnature]

That's not where I should start. [He crosses his arms over his stomach, like he's trying to piece together the best way to go about this.] Everything Allura told us before turned out to be true. I even—I nearly died. More than once. [That may seem commonplace for Keith, but the most recent near-death experience shook him. Referring to it, he stares off into the distance.]

My mom and I had a mission. We had to find the source of this quintessence. That's why I left Voltron in the first place. That and ... and Shiro could pilot the Black Lion again. [That's something that hadn't been included in Allura's story. It couldn't have been.]

It took us two years in a weird ... quantum abyss to get to where we were going. Once we got there, we got our answers. Lotor was harvesting quintessence from the bodies of Alteans that he saved during the war between the Galra and the Alteans. He became a savior for them. And he didn't tell any of us. I came back to tell everyone, and that's what led to this.

[A beat.]

Eventually. There's more to it.

[ceruleo]

[ It's a lot to take in. Lance sits, mouth slightly parted, at the onslaught of words. ]

Shiro what? Lotor was what?

[ Definitely a lot. ]

I'm not gonna like where this is going, am I? What more is there?

[secondnature]

A lot. It just happened, though. [The bruise on his left cheek makes it apparent. Whatever he went through, he's not in a position where he's in better shape right now. He's worried he won't be able to make it clear to Lance.]

Lotor had tricked Allura into helping him make his own Voltron. Because of that, I was too late. When we tried to stop him, Haggar came in and took over Shiro. It was his arm. And he was a clone. I—[His voice breaks here.]

None of this makes any sense, does it?

[ceruleo]

[ It's too much to make sense of all at once, but he gets enough. ]

Shiro was a--a clone...? [ He reaches over, takes Keith's hand. What makes sense is that Keith is hurting. ]

Babe. I'm sorry. What happened?

[secondnature]

[The words are just out of reach. Shiro died. Shiro died, and Keith didn't have a single clue about it. His fingers squeeze around Lance's, well aware of the twisting feeling in his stomach. Shiro died. He hadn't even put it that way with Allura, with Lance, with anyone—he couldn't bring himself to say those two things.

He can't say it now.]

Shiro's essence was in the Black Lion. After we beat Lotor and left him in the quintessence field, Allura transferred him back to his body. [To the clone's body. But Keith's complete denial keeps him from recognizing that. He can't see Shiro as being anything but the same Shiro. It's what's keeping him going.]

I had brought him there for that. [The rasp in Keith's voice is apparent. The way his voice splinters shows the pieces of information that he isn't revealing, that he can't reveal.]