etrayalogs | FEBRUARY MINGLE

Entry tags:

FEBRUARY MINGLE

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: February 14th - March
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, a mini mission, and some new city features!
NOTES\WARNINGS:

⏵ arrival ⏴
Welcome to Etraya!

Arrival goes as expected - characters awaken on hospital beds and are offered an explanation of their situation: that they have arrived in the city of Etraya, and they are their world's only hope. They are welcome to wander the hospital if they would like to - the upper floors are mostly empty, full of pristine hallways and numerous rooms filled with supplies, cots, and things one would expect from a relatively average 21st-century hospital.

In the hospital's lobby are several party tables set out with miscellaneous baked goods: croissants, cookies, breads, cake slices, as well as tea and coffee to accompany them - or hot chocolate, for those who are opposed to the other offerings.

Outside the hospital, the last remnants of snow are melting in the sunlight as the weather begins to warm up. It's still chilly enough one might want to put on a coat, but not so cold a jacket is necessary for wandering around without freezing off one's fingers.

We hope you enjoy your stay.

⏵ heroes return ⏴

As the Quantum Rail train glides to a halt, returning passengers step out onto familiar ground - the train station, right where they had initially begun their mission. When exiting the station, their earpieces vibrate, indicating the automatic download of a detailed map which highlights key locations, transit paths, and notable landmarks. As Aurora promised, she had been working on a few renovations around Etraya! A sleek trolley system now winds through Etraya, following clearly marked pathways through the city bubble to make travel across the city smoother. However, the trolley only moves one way, eternally following the loop Aurora has set it on. And because of this, it takes six hours to complete it's loop all the way around. Don't miss your stop!

Pets and animals have been returned to their usual preferred areas, some awaiting the arrival of their owners, and others keeping to themselves in the forested areas throughout Etraya.

Beyond the small upgrades, things seem relatively unchanged - until one familiar sign catches the eye. One marked by four vertical lines, methodically crossed out one by one: the final slash has now been drawn through. The tally is complete. What it indicates has yet to be made clear, but it has to mean something, right? No one would go through the effort of making an ominous-sounding sign without following through.

⏵ love in the air ⏴

This Valentines Day, Aurora and the companion bots have opted to try something a little different: they have scattered mystery valentines across the city. Hidden within mailboxes, tucked into cafe menus, slipped under doors, on the outside of high windows for those wall-crawlers to spot. There are countless of these little slips of papers, strewn throughout the city. And within each valentine, is a challenge or gesture to complete. Please feel free to make these up yourselves as long as they fit in with the theme!

Some examples include:

Deliver a flower to a stranger.
Write a heartfelt poem for someone.
Share a box of chocolates!
Confess your feelings for another.
Play matchmaker for two people - this can be platonic, or romantic!
Gift a friend with a stuffed animal.
Give five different people a genuine compliment.

While not mandatory, completing five tasks will earn an individual an additional ten points to use towards anything they would like!

Each little Valentine is signed "Your Secret Admirer. ♡", and some of them may even be addressed to specific individuals. Don't be surprised, Eddie, if you see one or two that are specifically addressed to you lurking around your collection of chicken friends!

And while most of these are harmless, some of the valentines cards come with effects for those who come into contact with the paper. Perhaps they thought it was a piece of garbage, or were just kicking it out of the way rather than intending on taking part. It doesn't matter! They get to join in on the fun, too.

Heart Eyes - your pupils literally turn into hearts for a few hours, making it hard to focus on anything other than things (or people) you find attractive.
Love-Struck Stammer - You can only speak in poetic compliments or romantic declarations, regardless of whom you're speaking to.
Chocolate Bliss - Everything feels good. Simple. Easy. As if there's nothing in the world to concern yourself with. You feel happy, without any concerns or worry.
Rose-Tinted Vision - everything looks soft and romantic, as if you're in a romance novel. You know the ones.
Magnetic Attraction - regardless of what you had been doing, you suddenly find yourself unable to leave the side of the person closest to you. Had you been eating chocolates while walking down the street? Well, have fun getting stuck to the guy who'd been out for a jog!
Serenade Syndrome - you find it impossible to resist the urge to sing your words, turning all conversations into love ballads.
Heartstrings - A thread appears, connecting you to someone close by who you share many similarities too. Perhaps you had never met this person before, but the threads tied around your pinky fingers that refuse to let go until you allow yourself to open up to them clearly means you should be a little more familiar with them.

Love is in the air—or maybe just a bit of well-intended chaos! 💕

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Welcome back from the mission, and welcome to Etraya for our newcomers! We've tried to keep this log simple for an easy introduction, as well as some downtime for our mission-goers who worked hard to solve the Quantum Rail mystery.

There is something else going on, but. . . well, no one seems to know what! The computer that had been on the lower floor of the hospital is now missing, and Aurora may seem a little flustered as she flits around Etraya, in search of something.

For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

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[ It was a longshot, and when it fails John lets go of Dazai's hand; no need to prolong that. ]

I don't suppose we could get away with just saying something romantic?

[ Not that he has anything romantic to say about Dazai, but he could figure something out. He's trying to buy time before they settle on "sharing secrets". ]

[ Is there a difference between "knowledge" and "belief"? Probably, in a religious sense. Belief is probably more like prayer, like wanting god... or something like that. John isn't a spiritual person and has spent little time contemplating religion. ]

Are there other gods where you're from?

[ John is... at a loss for words. He has so few true connections, and they've all been more than happy to just let that relationship be... whatever it is. He and Harold don't talk about it, he and Shaw don't talk about it, even he and Zoe don't talk about it. Carter, Fusco... he can count his meaningful relationships on one hand. Except, now he's in Etraya and he's met people. He knows people. He probably should have expected someone to have a conversation like this sooner or later, but he really hadn't, and he hadn't expected it to be Shadowheart.

So, what does he say? He genuinely has enjoyed her company the times they've met so far. He brought her flowers. Does that make them friends? Does he even know how to be friends? He has people he's friendly with, but he thinks he makes a really shitty friend. He doesn't know how to "be a friend" anymore. He cut that part of himself out when he walked the path of the CIA. And that's not even answering her question about "more". He has his thing with Zoe, but they have a mutual understanding that it's not... it doesn't mean anything. Or at least, it's something they could both let go without feelings being hurt. It's fun, but they're professionals about it.

And then, his deepest secret, Harold. Harold who is no longer at arms length, who is no longer just his employer. They live together. He sees Harold when he gets up in the morning, he makes him dinner at night. Sometimes a sandwich for lunch, or lets Harold have the leftovers while he's working on some project. Can he really promise anything to anyone when Harold is right there? When he's confronted with his feelings for Harold every day? When he has this mirage of what he's wanted for so long?

He can't.

He's been thinking for far too long; has it been a full ten seconds? He's left her waiting with the food processor held out, a vaguely stupefied look on his face. He reaches out and takes it from her, speaking quietly. ]

You've probably noticed, but I don't make a very good friend.

[ He finds it a bit cosmically ironic that one of the few times in his recent, miserable life he is being genuine but isn't believed. Ah, well. Isn't that just the way of things? He's not upset about it, actually, and instead thinks Maria is a smarter woman than she's letting on to see through his posturing to some degree.

That just makes her all the more interesting to him admittedly. He does at least have the mind to act mildly chagrined at her call out. ]

A man has to have some secrets, doesn't he? What I said is true, mind you, but there is more to it than that. Maybe we could discuss it again over drinks sometime?

If you're enjoying me now, you'll definitely enjoy me even more then.

"Such a gentleman. Do the behemoths have names?" He hummed as he finished the beer in his hand and then replacing it with another to chase the buzz he knew was coming. "I happen to know I make an excellent pillow, so I appreciate you keeping me alive and well to let you experience it."

He was dropping the empty into the box and pulling another; this was not his first time having to chase down a buzz to enjoy it with another person. He wasn't a light weight, but he also knew himself and heavy drinking was not something he had done in a long time either. Responsible for kids and all.

"I won't deny a little fun restraint," he said, though he was curious of the cuffs. He was capable of breaking out of enforcer cuffs, but also, he had allowed them to hold him during other times. At his size and strength, the idea of forced vulnerability was something he leaned into. "We'll see what mischief we'll get up to in your big ominous castle workshop."

He chuckled as he downed more of his third bottle straight, shaking his head as it was starting to hit him. A low pleasant warmth. "Pub too? You're just riding that drunk high to all sorts of places. You're an easy guy to like, Cid." His arm tightened around the guy's shoulders, his smile turning warmer and a bit goofy.

...Dolls for adults?

[ Yoko Taro bless him, sex dolls weren't a thing in his original time. He circles back to mannequins. ]

Seems like they'd take up a lot of space.

Edited 2025-03-11 04:44 (UTC)

If you can, I would recommend giving a sample to me. It may or may not save you trouble later.

( no promises, because he would need to dig into what makes shimmer function to truly decide whether or not his family would allow it to continue existing here. todd is more. . . sensitive to drug use than others, but something that functions as sevika has explained it? can't go without cost either. )

[ ~~looks directly at singed i'm not sure even he knows how it functions little man~~ ]

We'll see.

[ It's a vague answer, promising nothing. It's not as though it'd be difficult to get his hands on a sample if they brought an actual refinery here, but for now, the stuff was in short supply, and she wasn't too keen on handing it out provided she got her hands on it. ]

As it is, I couldn't convince them to give me my broken-ass arm and the shimmer needed to run it, so we're both out of luck for now.

Edited 2025-03-11 05:46 (UTC)

Who says that they can't still be stranded in the snow with a bunch of prowling monsters? The day's not ended yet. Or on one of those missions they've been told to expect.

So look forward to that.

"At the rate things are going, we'll just be pulled to another world," Gaia counters. But it's not a gripe that's directed at Popp specifically, just at their particular fate. "I think we'd better start figuring a way to get ourselves home and not expect anyone to actually return us there."

...Though here it might be worth staying around at least long enough to find out whether this whole 'prove yourself worthy to save your reality' thing is actually true. With the demonstrative spin, Gaia muses thoughtfully.

"I suppose that's to our advantage. If you want to stick close to Sephiroth and I, I suppose we could arrange to be near each other in the apartments. It's a little more than an inn room. You'll have your own kitchen and indoor bath."

Gaia actually sounds pleased. The whole discovery of the bathroom was a positive experience. What she doesn't realize is this offer is going to lead to the suggestion of living in the same apartment together.

But that is for future Gaia to worry about.

I was actually going to give you some of these chocolates. [octavia reaches into her bag to hand over a small box towards him] I do have a stuffed animal though if you prefer that though. [ she figures she might as well offer options so there is less likelihood of him not accepting the trade ]

Hey, what happened to that certain lovable quality you said I had? [she's laughing it off, not really offended, but geesh. Vincent, you're hot then you're cold you're yes then you're no etc etc.]

But fair enough though I don't think you need to worry so much about Gorgug. [perhaps others. but Gorgug was putting a lot on the line for her. Maria figured they were probably really friends.]

I am a big girl, though. I can watch out for myself. We need to worry about Heather, right? [she knows that she's important to some of these plans but again, she knows her importance is far less than Heather's. no matter what she is, or what Vincent believes she is.]

[Ithaqua visibly pauses, before leaning in and giving the bag a sniff. She wasn't lying, and immediately he knows what he wants.]

I'll accept the chocolates.

[There was something to be said waking up in someone else's bed with his feet hanging off the end and a morning cuddle occurring as they lazed for the morning - no wait, afternoon - hours. He appreciated that they continued to express similar methods and wants from this relationship with each other.

Vander was also all about establishing what it was that this was so there was no confusion. Emotionally, he wasn't in a state to support a full on commitment, not with everything he still had to work through. Yet, this was something they both seemed to need and want.]

Ah well, that's not a concern I've ever experienced. I like to set expectations so no one is confused. It lands me and everyone else in less trouble that way.

[His fingers continued to stroke up and down her spine, and he turned his head to watch her nestled against his chest and side. No, they were good. Better than good.]

After the train mission, I have the impression we both needed this.

[it's been a few months since she had come here and yet it still surprises her every time someone says something like this. it surprises her how it is possible that someone enjoys her company. being trapped so long in one place, with only one person to talk to that didn't seem to want her company at all; this never stops being new.

it always feels like the hard part is not acting like such a simple compliment doesn't mean the world to her.

so she smiles.]

Thank you, John. I've enjoyed talking to you, too. And really, I'm not smart like Harold and can't fight like half the people here but if there's anything you need help with just let me know.

[Laura might feel happy Maria can relate but that hardly seems fair to poor Laura. Maria's smile doesn't drop but she does feel terrible inside.]

Yeah, those pesky gambling laws, huh? Well, who knows. Maybe one day something like that will be in Etraya. No money so not like gambling really applies here. That way we both can experience a lot of different things together.

I'd recommend getting a better arm rather than relying on this one.

( but he's pulling himself up to his feet, grabbing onto one of the gears he'd pulled from the arm. it's one of two; the other has been tucked, stealthily, into one of the pockets of his utility belt. just in case she decides to object. )

Souvenir.

[Why is he being pitied!! I mean probably it's because the guy hates humans so much, but still!]

Is it wrong to want peace? I could never do very much, when they attacked me.

You're sure recommending a lot of things today, tiny.

[ She says after lighting the new cigarette up and blowing some smoke out away, off to the side. She has just enough respect for the kid not to blow smoke in his face, so there's that. Her eyes do follow the motion of grabbing the gear; she doesn't look too happy about it, but... ]

Just don't take any of the hydraulic pieces. We'll likely need to melt all of them down for the metal.

[ She doesn't even question it. It isn't as though she doesn't take souvenirs herself; the golden lighter with the fancy curly F on either side is proof enough of that. ]

[The response genuinely takes her aback.

Shadowheart has little enough experience with friends. Prior to Etraya, there was the tiefling, all but forgotten, not even a name rattling around in Shadowheart's skull. And then there were the other victims of the Absolute's schemes, their friendship forged out of a necessary alliance mere weeks before Shadowheart found herself here. She has little enough to compare John to. But he's been kind to her, polite, not pushy or prying. He hasn't tried to hurt her or manipulate her or stab her in the back. He even thought of her all on his own and brought her flowers. Perhaps it's merely her dearth of experience with friendship that causes her to be shocked by John's insistence that he isn't a very good friend, but she can hardly imagine better.]

You can't be serious. You're one of the kindest, most thoughtful people I've ever met.

Edited 2025-03-11 19:40 (UTC)

Get better materials.

( he realizes they're running on limited supplies here, but they aren't that desperate. damian - pulls out a batarang, flipping it over his fingers for a moment before he wraps his fingers around the center of it and shoves the sharp bladed part of it into the table. )

Custom steel alloy. I doubt Talis will figure out how to mimic it, but if his plan is to melt down metal for new parts, I would use this for parts you need reinforced.

There are other religions.

[ A diplomatic answer, he supposes. ]

Change you. In what way?

I assist police in investigations, specifically in case of androids becoming deviant

[Connor's gaze flicks down to the hand closed around his wrist and then back up to Damian.]

I'm not certain you want to fix me.

A different version of me entirely. I have none of his memories.

Not at all?

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FEBRUARY MINGLE

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