etrayalogs | MISSION 004 (part 1)

MISSION 004 (part 1)

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: July 19th-July 27th.
WHERE: Moorecroft Village
WHAT: Enjoy life in your new suburban neighborhood!
NOTES\WARNINGS: Potential death.

⏵ welcome home ⏴
Welcome to Moorecroft Village, where the sun casts a gentle glow through soft white clouds. Pavement paths wind around the village, adorned with wildflowers in every hue. Birds sing a soothing melody, while a few content cats lounge in sunspots or on benches along the streets. Cars hum by, ferrying residents to work, the store, or back home after a busy day.

It looks almost perfect. The ideal little village, occupied by individuals from all over. Orcs, elves, faeries, werewolves, vampires, and dhampirs coexist harmoniously, each contributing to their quaint little town. Despite their varied backgrounds, they appear to embrace this place as their own. They take their baby carriages out during the day for a stroll, chatting with friends and neighbors about current happenings, discussing their most recent mission (a ‘game’ of Whodunit, in which one of theirs, Theo, was tasked with killing one of their own each day and they all had to figure out who had killed them before they could come back to life) and the difficulties therein, new job assignments, weird things the teens in their houses are getting up to... generic, neighborly conversations.

The village is full of life. There are numerous facilities to wander and things to do! The library houses a vast collection of books spanning history from countless other worlds and whimsical children's tales. Teens gather at the ice skating rink, while the movie theater screens films spanning generations. An aquarium full of wonders: glowing rainbow fish, miniature great white sharks, a colorful octopus with patterns running over it that almost look like ivy, and numerous others.

In the daytime, everyone can explore clothing stores, indulge in gourmet cakes from the grocers, and partake in leisurely pursuits without financial concerns; just like on Etraya, money does not exist here.

⏵ help wanted ⏴
Moorecroft surpasses Etraya in its development, offering attractions and activities to engage its inhabitants throughout the day. But with these advancements come additional responsibilities. By day, at least one adult from every household is expected to fulfill their shifts at 'day jobs', lasting anywhere from four to eight hours. Meanwhile, the youth are expected to go to school, absorbing knowledge in various disciplines.

Each job duty requires different skillsets, but whether or not those required skillsets are matched to those who are expected to work them... well. They’ll have plenty of time for training, won’t they? Or perhaps they’ll get dropped right into their job and be expected to figure it out all on their own.

For the younger residents, education is structured into two main institutions: "Sandalwood Lower" for those twelve and under, and "Maplewood Upper" for older students. These schools offer a broad curriculum encompassing Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Physical Education, Technology, Fine Arts, and a diverse array of Foreign Languages. Electives range widely, from specific sports to Survival Training, Creative Writing, Journalism, and Sociology.

At lunchtime, the school cafeteria presents an array of choices. Options range from standard fare like school pizza to other offerings such as vampire's blood, brains, and hearts—just in case an unexpected guest should drop in. After all, one never knows who might show up in Moorecroft.

⏵ honey do's ⏴
But life extends beyond work and school. A structured routine of what is expected of each household is kept on digital calendars, and installed on the wall in the kitchen of each house. These calendars update daily with smaller tasks, and weekly with larger ones, detailing what is expected of those residing within its walls.

Typical tasks include simple activities such as:

Take the child(ren) for a walk outdoors.
Visit the local park.
Bake a pie for the neighbors.
Tell your spouse(s) how important they are to you.
Share a secret.
Shop with your child(ren).
Mow the lawn.
Don’t forget to attend your child’s school’s PTA meeting!
Help with homework.
Take family photos.
Go on a date.

More complex tasks are found under weekly checklists, and may involve:

Host a neighborhood barbeque competition.
Volunteer at the hospital.
Teach your child a sport.
Start a soccer league.
Create a garage band.
Get a part time job.
Join a club.

Eos will check off each task as it is completed. At the bottom of each calendar, a tally records the completion of tasks, providing a visual measure of productivity and community involvement.

⏵ night watch ⏴
As the sun lowers over the horizon, everything shifts. Every long-term resident understands the consequences of curfew and the threats within. They retreat to their homes, urging those unfamiliar to them who may not understand the rules just yet that they, too, need to return indoors for the night.

Within the confines of their houses, life continues under a fragile veil of normalcy. A peek into some of the homes of long-term residents will find them playing board games with their family units, completing homework or work assignments they were unable to finish during the day, watching a few family-friendly shows on their couches, or enjoying a late dinner. Eventually, they’ll return to their beds and wait for the sound of their alarms.

In Moorecroft, no friendly companion bots roam the streets during the day. In their place, highly advanced robots emerge to enforce curfew once the time comes. They silently make their way through the streets, sweeping away anything that isn’t part of Eos’ design: trash left out on the street, bugs left by suspicious men wearing cowls that have ears on them, graffiti, new decor that Eos decides she doesn’t like. No winds shake the trees, there are no cars on the road, but noises can be heard coming from outside that don't sound... normal by any means. Croaks, whispers, scratches against doors and walls alike.

Those who defy curfew will be asked, once, to return to their homes. If they opt not to listen, they are met with force: physically restrained, subdued, and dragged back to their homes. If they decide to fight, the bots are not above killing them and dropping their limp bodies just inside the front door of their houses. They will revive after 48 hours but not without cost. Each return carries an absence—a missing memory, a lost skill, or a fragment of their very essence, stolen away in the process of their revival.

Even those who manage to evade capture will awaken in their beds with no recollection of their death or what they may have witnessed before dying. They will instead have a vague feeling that something horrifying happened.

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Daily and weekly tasks can be chosen by players! We won't be listing these out for each household, but relying on players to choose what's most fun for them to play with within their households.

As noted on Mission Plotting, we're open to one group successfully staying out past curfew, but would like to keep this to one thread.

We have a separate log for NPC interactions for this mission!

For any questions relating to the contents of this log, mod queries thread on the initial plotting post to assist us in keeping all mission-related information in one place. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.
⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[You know what's worse than trapped inside all night under the threat of horrifying sounds and violent security robots?

Being trapped inside with the AI baby next door screaming all. Night. Long. Natsuno headed outside the second the curfew listed just to get away from that goddamn noise.

Turns out it's still screaming when he comes back. Not that Natsuno wants to do his "homework," but even half-assing it is impossible with those wails. He's looking for the right music to blast loudly when someone's knock on the door. It's Fabian and his screeching baby, and Natsuno looks at both without a shred of sympathy.]

Just smash it.

[Surely he's joking! The lack of expression and emotionless voice are the mark of a true comedian.]

[ Fabian's jaw drops the moment Natsuno makes that suggestion.

It's not even like he himself hasn't advocated for wanton violence before. Hell, he's pretty sure that his father was alive and in this place, he would likely have suggested the very same thing. But there's something about this entire situation that makes Fabian feel sick to his stomach at the idea of smashing it.

Not that he can put it into words though. He hardly even consciously realises it himself. So rather than giving any intelligent answer, he just says: ]

W-What?

[ Like he just didn't hear Natsuno over the wailing of the baby.

To be fair, it is screeching pretty loudly, even now. ]

[Natsuno's eyes wince. Ugh, this noise is insuffarable, curse his sensitive ears.]

I said smash it. It's not even real.

[This guy has either gone deaf from all the screams, or just too taken by the thing's shape. Natsuno holds out a hand, palm turned out.]

Would it help if I smashed it.

[ Apparently it, in fact, does not help, because Fabian immediately pulls the crying baby closer towards himself when Natsuno makes that suggestion. Sure, it would stop the noise, but it feels-- bad. Even just thinking about it feels bad.

Fabian doesn't want to think about why it feels bad, but he knows it just does! ]

You can't just smash it! [ He says, showing that he at least did hear what the other is saying now. It takes some volume, but it allows him to be heard over the baby's weeping too. ] I mean-- Just think of what will happen!

[ It feels like the easiest excuse to use.

Even though Fabian knows that's not even what he's really worried about. It wouldn't be his first rodeo when it comes to getting into trouble with authority. But he doesn't want to think too hard about the real reason it bothers him, let alone sharing it with other people. ]

[Natsuno raises an eyebrow when Fabian pulls the fake baby closer. Guess this guy is more parental than it seems. Well, Natsuno has no idea how to calm babies down, but he's got no issue ignoring bursts of misplaced fatherly instinct or fear of punishment.]

What, you think someone will put you in prison for imaginary child abuse? This thing's about as alive as a vacuum cleaner. [He's being rational, here.] You can always say you dropped it on accident or looked away when he crawled to an electric socket.

I'm a cop, they can't arrest me.

[ .. it's just about the only upside to that title, but Fabian will be damned if he doesn't at least claim it. Everything else about it sucks, so he might as well see it as the get-out-of-jail-free card it is.

It doesn't help the crying baby though, so Fabian lifts the baby up to his shoulder, awkwardly starting to pat its back. T-There, there, baby? Or maybe burp? What do you want from him, he has no clue!! ]

Seriously, there is no way I would be afraid of what's in charge here. And I know the baby is fake, anyone can see that. It's just--

[ Hm.

See, the problem with getting all the other stuff out of the way is that it leaves only his most vulnerable reason left. One Fabian doesn't even consciously realize as a thought, since it's more just a feeling.

A feeling he doesn't want to dig into, let alone talk about to others. ]

I just-- feel like I can't.

[ He has no choice but to at least voice as much, even if he can't get into the details of it. Maybe that's why Fabian has such a troubled facial expression right now. ]

[Whatever Fabian's issue with the robot is, it clearly runs deeper than he's willing to share, and Natsuno isn't about to pry. He also doesn't mention that Eos seems like the type to not allow anyone to get away with consequences, no matter how important sounding their pretend job is. Since Natsuno has no interest in the babies' well being, and Fabian refuses to abandon or destroy it, there's nothing he can do to help. He should close the door or walk past Fabian and head somewhere else...

But he isn't heartless. Fabian helped him out of that room in the labyrinth, even if the task was horribly embarrassing. He's been nothing but friendly - too friendly, but being annoying doesn't make someone undeserving of help.]

In that case, you better come in before the entire street comes out to smash it. Vanessa's supposed to be a herbalist, so maybe there's something to calm it down. [Pause.] If it can even eat.

[ Does Fabian look kind of surprised at the offer of help?

Yes. Not even because it's Natsuno or anything, since Fabian doesn't have a negative impression of the other at all. Instead it's just that he didn't really expect anyone to offer to help out with the baby. It leaves him standing there, blinking at the other, before realizing he should probably respond to the offer before Natsuno thinks he's not going to take him up on it at all.

Which means he quickly steps inside like the other asks him to, still holding on to the crying baby. ]

We can try. [ He seems at least willing to try out this solution, as weirdly protective as he seems of the fake child. ] And, uh-- thanks.

[ Fabian may already be walking a step or two ahead of Natsuno before realizing that he doesn't know where the kitchen is in this house, instead waiting for the other to lead him.

And in the meantime Fabian does manage to ask over the baby's crying: ]

You're here with Vanessa? [ There's definite recognition in his eye at that name. ]

[He leads Fabian to the kitchen, where he opens a small cabinet that smells of herbs and spices.]

Vanessa's my designated "mom." [He rolls his eyes.] Could be worse, I guess.

[Her dark aura still rustles his vampire sensitivities with a mix of fear and attraction, but Natsuno's spiteful refusal to follow his monster instincts manages to balance things out. Neither of them want to bother each other with unwanted supernatural crap, so it works out.

Natsuno comes up with three bottles which he puts on the kitchen table, not before giving each a sniff. It smells nice, at least, not that any of it can affect him.]

These are supposed to be relaxing. Not sure what's the right dosage.

[Either the baby calms down or it falls into a coma and dies. Win-win as far as he's concerned.]

Let's start with a little bit.

[ Because that seems relatively less harmful. Sure, there's the risk of it not doing much, but then they can always add a little more, right? It's better - to Fabian - than the alternative of just destroying this baby.

Sorry, Natsuno.

'Sorry, Natsuno' seems to pretty much be on Fabian's mind here anyway - as he frowns, starting to look rather apologetic. ]

Could you.. [ He doesn't finish his sentence, but his request is probably obvious enough. He's asking Natsuno to help with the bottles, adding: ] My hands are kind of full.

[ You know. With the baby he's still trying to rock a little bit to try and soothe it a bit.

At least Fabian understands he's asking a lot of the other when Natsuno clearly preferred a more quick solution to this problem, so to make up for that, he adds: ]

I'll owe you.

[ Natsuno doesn't seem like the type to ask him for anything unreasonable anyway.

.. well, other than smashing the baby, but Fabian likes to think he's made his dislike for that idea clear enough by now. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

MISSION 004 (part 1)

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