Priority Log - Part 1

[locomodo]

Log 02 Priority (Part I)
The Mine Car

As characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new message…

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> OVERRIDE: TUTORIAL MODE DEACTIVATED.
> OBJECTIVE:

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NAME: The Mine Car
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT: Gothic era
DANGER LEVEL: High
GENERAL STINKINESS: High
COMMON DENIZENS: Humans, ornithrops, bearkin
CUISINE: Peasant gruel, bird seed

There is no sender. Or objective?

But that's fine, probably! The car itself is completely functional, and features a fully developed society.

Passengers will arrive in this car and be immediately greeted by a fog that chills them to their core. The car around them is vast, and yet deathly silent. They'll find themselves starting off in a forest of petrified wood, the ground hard and unyielding underneath their feet, with flora and fauna in various stages of decay around them. While the fog around them is thick, the lights of a nearby village can still be seen from a distance, and as they travel, the dirt road will give way to cobblestone.

Eventually they'll be greeted with a signpost, welcoming them to the town of MINECRAFTIA.




While Minecraftia's denizens are harrowed and distressed, they're quick to warn the passengers traveling through of the ailment, a mysterious illness that is plaguing their town. It's been leaving even healthy youths bedridden, and while the town mayor has passionately declared that he will find a solution, it appears that there's no cure in sight.

Locations

Minecraftia is a foreboding little town, even in the daylight, with murky skies above and fog blanketing the roads. Still, the denizens persist through their daily routines, and won't stop the passengers from exploring.

Clinic: The town's only clinic with the town's only doctor. It's a small, rickety building that operates all hours of the day. Between the rapid spread of sickness and the steady depletion of supplies, it's a grim place to be nowadays. Anyone healthy who visits might be roped in to help, and those who look ill will be quarantined with an uncomfortable bedroll and thin blanket.

Cemetery: Located on the outskirts of town, the cemetery is home to dead bodies, even deader earth, and a deadpan gravekeeper. The exit door is here in a flower-covered plot, but cannot be opened.

Chicken House: A barnyard building home to the town's chickens. Lately they've been more worked up than usual, and taken to flying the coop and finding refuge by digging their claws into the scalps of bystanders. Agitating one chicken may cause a whole flock to descend on you!

The Dark Woods: The village is surrounded by what was once lush woods, but the trees now stand dark and eerie, an unusually thick fog rolling between them. While there are some of the usual, woodland creatures chirruping in the dense silence, they're hard to find. Monsters, meanwhile, are much more common.

The Mines: In the heart of the woods are entrances to the town's expansive system of mines. Stepping inside shows that the dirt and stone is laced with beautiful gems and minerals, but passengers will be shooed away by miners if they try to explore any deeper. It seems there's several dangerous mine shafts underfoot, as well as past attacks by what seems to be mole monsters.

Mayor's Mansion: The largest building in Minecraftia, situated on a hill. While Mayor Chadsef's staff welcomes guests, they will be cautioned not to explore past the lobby, which just smells a little like cleaning chemicals thanks to a diligent maid crew.

Denizens

Players may use denizens as convenient in threads, as well as these NPCs, except for the Mayor. He's a very busy man!

Madam Vermeer: The Madam is a human extremely afraid that she'll die before seeing her son marry. Which means that she is hunting the streets for eligible men and women, and whisking them in droves away into her mansion to be made over, trained in the art of serving, etc. before presenting them to her son.

Cassy Cassatt: Cassy is an ornithrop and the owner of the chicken house. She's shorthanded nowadays, but business-savvy enough to prey on considerate bystanders. She'll rope anyone she sees into helping out, whether it's collecting eggs, feeding or breeding.

Turner: Turner is a bearkin, and one of the nurses at the clinic. He's taken to drinking his weight in mead whenever he's off the clock, and it's not uncommon for his body to be seen unconscious on the road. He'll try to flee or swat blindly if anyone tries to help him, but he really does need help getting home.

Chadsef: The mayor of Minecraftia, who is notably wealthier than the rest of the citizens. He's young and inexperienced, but carries a Birds of Economics degree, and is determined to bring jobs to the town. He'll just need to make sure people are alive to do them first!

Other

The longer that passengers remain in the car, the more they'll learn, and soon they'll realize the following:

1. They are not immune to the illness. They can't determine what it is that triggers it. At first it's a sense of fatigue, then hunger and irritability. Then, the numbness will begin, starting in their extremities and spreading up their limbs, until that numbness turns into pain. Eventually that pain will lead to madness, a state of delirium where they begin to behave erratically, endangering themselves and those around them.
   
   
2. There is something in the woods. Though the passengers saw nothing when they arrived in the woods, at night they can hear growling. Venturing outside will reveal grotesque creatures emerging from the fog, rampaging into the town and tearing flesh and stone with their massive claws. These creatures appear rabid, familiar but warped, and they swarm the town with no regard for their own safety or benefit. Examples: (1) (2) (3) (4)
   
   
3. Corpses are disappearing. Despite deaths, the cemetery isn't seeing any more business. Rumour has it that a certain wealthy denizen has been paying to have the corpses taken away. But to where, and why, remains unknown…

Numbers

Numbers! Everyone starts with one that glows on their bodies — as a fun thread mechanic, we suggest they're somewhere visible, but it's up to you!



Because while this is not IC knowledge yet, numbers are determined by how troubled your character is. This may be based on their past actions and crimes, but also alienating habits, regrets, personality flaws, trauma, etc — a higher number does not necessarily mean they're a bad person, but it may signify a difficult time in their life, or substantial personal issues.

As passengers enter this car, they'll notice that their numbers may begin to change in response to certain actions and decisions. The general rule is that numbers change as characters work through their issues. If they make a decision that serves to better themselves, their number will decrease. But if they make a decision that is ill-intentioned, their number will increase. Players can change their number as they see fit going forward.

OOC Notes

Exploration: Players may submit on-going threads here to get a short mod tag with further discoveries in any given location. Characters can potentially earn items or clues as to the car's objective this way. Please limit your explorations to one per player; we will let you all know if we have the capacity to do more!

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locomo e2 traincation

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Comments

[catsy]

[That's an interesting turn of phrase. She "used to" be good with animals?]

You don't remember?

[shiftybladesofcray]

Ah!

[He leans forward, she leans way back.]

What kind of a c-crappy ghost is that?! Haunt someone else!

[kahunanu]

Nah. [ Good, perfect, he'll make his subtle attempt to pull that mug out and away from her. ]

Ghosts like me need to be absolved of their earthly woes before we pass on. Offerings usually work. [ Like this illegal booze. ]

[shiftybladesofcray]

...I'm assuming th-that's space talk for "cat."

[The Lord is testing her.

She'll have to grill the lot of them about the extent of their abilities sometime. Poke at the foundations, too. Cal had said people with sensitivities could learn, and Toko was still the teensiest bit curious: could a lowly louse like her have untapped potential? It would be wonderful, even if it only ever worked in this delusional locomotive dream, to have some ability that didn't rely on Jill.

Since he doesn't have specifics Toko is happy to drop the subject of bad actors. She has plenty suspicions on her own, and isn't keen to add to the list. Not that she wants to be ignorant, just that...well. She's near the end of her tether already. She hates how quickly this place will throw her for a loop.

They move onto his theories, which she leans a touch forward for, looking up from the curtain of her bangs.]

I met another guy who's thinking the s-same thing. Sort of. But... [Toko worries her lip, casting around for the words.] Isn't that t-taking all these objectives at face value?

There's usually a hidden element. [Back home, it was a guarantee. Every time.] Like — we moved the d-dogs across the river, but what if there was another animal society on the other side? Like mice. Wouldn't moving the dogs mean certain death for them? Or the seeds!

[She gives a fuming scowl.]

Those th-things took forever to gather up. But I bet if that car had a simpler challenge, we could have m-made it to this one before everything went to pot. We might have stopped all this grave robbing and sickness and crap before it began!

[soulshard]

[ So it's going to be like that, is it? Ardbert rolls his eyes and tilts his head skyward for a spell. ]

I would have spotted them eventually!

[ With a sigh, he heads over to gather them, carefully depositing the eggs into the woven basket that Cassy lent him. ]

I somehow doubt you're simply here to check my work, and you're clearly not here to help, so why are you here?

[ Ardbert poses the question as he approaches the fence, giving the newcomer another once-over. ]

[soulshard]

[ And yes, Ardbert does assume it's a glove, not having reason to expect anything else. With some of the intricate armor pieces that he and other adventurers wear back home, it's hardly worth blinking at Anakin's metal fingers. ]

Has he? I can't say I know much about him. It could be he's simply in denial.

[ Who would come to a town that's been ravaged with an unknown illness and which can barely serve up any food beyond gruel and bird seed? Who save for them, the passengers. ]

What I find odd is that the people who live in these places we visit don't seem at all surprised by our sudden appearance, as if they were expecting us.

[ While saying as much, he keeps his voice low between bites of food, not necessarily wanting to draw attention to their conversation. ]

[soulshard]

[ This sort of village is also more along the lines of what Ardbert knows from home, though he has seen the marvels that the Crystal Tower is capable of, remnants of a bygone age of technology. He's also now seen the impossibly tall buildings in Amaurot, a city the likes of which he never would have been able to imagine before.

Though when Dimitri speaks of a homegrown plague, Ardbert frowns to himself before managing to make eye contact over the Turner's slumped shoulders. ]

So this isn't your first plague, then? That's sorry luck. [ The words are said with no small amount of sympathy. ] What did it take to eradicate it, then?

[ It's true that there's no telling if experiences from their homes will help here, and yet Ardbert imagines it's still worth a try. There has to be a reason they've been brought to these places. ]

[soulshard]

[ Ardbert can't hold back the laugh that escapes out of him, though it's brief. He glances back down the trodden path from whence he came.

When he glances back to Nanu, it's with a lopsided grin. ]

It is, but how else do you expect to make progress? Come on, I have to believe those knees of yours have some fight in them yet.

[cuedoves]

This is stupid.

[ zuko looks plenty conspicuous himself -- he truly doesn't have the figure to be dressed as a convincing maid, even with the wig which i now decided he is wearing. ]

[ why did he agree to do this? obi-wan made it sound like such a solid plan, but now that it's in action.... ]

[ unfortunately for zuko's pride, it's too late to back out now, especially as, despite his complete lack of curves, no one seems to have noticed. or maybe they're just pretending. ]

... Let's just get this over with so I can get out of this stupid outfit.

[ grumbles!! ]

[shiftybladesofcray]

[wtf?]

He-hic!-hey! I paid for that!

[Drat. He's too fast and subtle. The ale is lost.

Something is off about this specter. He's much too solid and too, uh. Dickish? Definitely more of a jerk than a malicious spirit. Toko's nose wrinkles up.]

So what then? Your "earthly woe" was...w-was letting some dumb kid drink your beer, or whatever? G-get over it. That's the lamest excuse for being a gh-ghost I've ever heard. You're path-hic-pathetic.

[unrepentant]

[Having spent his formative years on a ball of dirt that passed for a planet and covering himself in grease and engine fluid in his free time make it hard for Anakin to have lived this long while also being fastidious. He's been scolded more times than he can count for tracing a mess through common areas and cockpits. What's a few extra leaves?]

Huh? [Anakin straightens, ducking at the last minute beneath a branch that's definitely lower that it was when he went up. If he's actually blaming this stranger for his fall, he isn't showing much of a sign.] Oh.

Yeah- the clinic uses some of the flowers from this tree. But a lot of the plant life around here is starting to go. [His head turns, and Anakin squints up at the tree once more.] Figured they'd be in better shape further from the ground.

[unrepentant]

[It's not like he's used to difficult personalities- Anakin gets along just fine with Rex and the rest of the 501st. They work seamlessly with the 212th and he's been paired up with plenty of other Jedi on other missions. He's not used to arguing over maybe-a-little-dangerous plans, or pulling rank, or worrying about whether the person he's with can handle themselves. It's just that he kindof... expected to.

A complete stranger, powers he doesn't understand, a place where people are getting sick and dying- it's a great setup for disaster. But this is pretty alright. He could get used to more missions like this.

Anakin watches him go-] Weird guy. [Before turning to find a spot for himself. With so many of the dying already tended to, he'll head to one of the quieter places inside: a room reserved for those who have just left, or who will be leaving soon.]

[unrepentant]

[So many of his conversations in these traincars have been about the past- the things behind them, the people, worlds, and experiences they want to get back to or in some cases, were rescued from. This is the first one that's been really different.

Hearing the low pitched question Anakin's expression opens up. Mouth full of eggs and dutifully chewing, the Yes! Exactly! still comes across with almost comical transparency. Maybe it's the conspiratorial shuffle forward.]

It's like they've never left this train car. Or that they don't even know it's a train car.

[overruns]

[ He smiles minutely—no offense meant, little droid, though the beeping only really serves to prove his point. ]

Ah, then I should've introduced myself sooner. [ He shakes his hand and bows from the shoulders, polite but small, speaking in practiced script. ] Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd. It's good to meet you, Cal and BD-1.

[ Formalities aside... ]

May I ask what you were doing? Besides instigating—investigating the chickens.

[overruns]

[ He doesn't grimace or flinch at the wounds, but he does frown, brows furrowed minutely before he pulls out some bandages and scurries off to find some water. They probably ran into someone's house—he'll have to apologize to the landowner later, but no time to waste.

He speaks from the kitchen— ]

I'm not a healer, but I am quite skilled at carrying heavy loads from place to place.

[ Said with a faint, tongue-in-cheek sort of self-deprecation, because it's really not a skill so much as the fact that he's a brute. A fighter, not a medic. ]

I was delivering this all to the clinic, but they won't mind if it's put to good use. Rest assured I am neither a thief nor unaccustomed to blood—I know how to apply field dressings, at least.

[overruns]

[ He smiles briefly at the show of sympathy, more thankful than contented, but his Kingdom's plague, while it took a heavy toll, is behind them. The present demands his attention, even if it is difficult to dislodge thoughts of the past. The number on his palm—636—ticks down slightly when he speaks. ]

Hm... [ He considers. ] For us, the issue was that we are not an abundant nation, and our weather is very cold—when our population expanded, so with it came filth and disease. Plague conditions beget more plague.

[ Illness causes death, dead bodies stacking up causes illness. He speaks with a learned, bureaucratic tone, reciting history. ]

So to resolve that, one of the royal advisors designed new waterways and there was a mass overhaul of the city's infrastructure, which the king prioritized above all else. Obviously, that may be an unrealistic undertaking here, but...

[ That exact solution isn't applicable here; it's more about what he can share that might help Minecraftia specifically. ]

The first step to solving a problem is identifying what it is. For us, it was tainted water and cramped living conditions. Here... I am not sure. But if we could track back to the source of the issues, we may be able to eradicate it. Is there a common link between those that fall ill? When did it start, and when did it take a turn for the worse? I believe these are the sorts of questions we should ask ourselves, until some sort of pattern emerges.

[ He's a nobleman, so these are matters he has some personal investment in—it's part of running a nation. And besides, the sick villagers occupy every corner of his mind right now. ]

[constrainer]

Sure. I understand. Trying to get on the mayor's good side?

[ He asks, more conversational than accusatory. ]

Or is it more maintaining your own "well-bred" image?

[ Both have their own merits; he just doesn't find himself especially inclined to playing pretend with enjoying food more than is strictly necessary, nor trying to make an image of himself as a good party guest (or part of the nobility, for that matter.) ]

[constrainer]

[ Right, telekinesis... it makes sense that if the man can move things with his mind, he should be able to bring things towards him, too. It doesn't keep Kurapika from watching the item whizz by with a careful eye, tracking its movement closely. The Force feels strangely different from the nen he's used to, which he can sense all around him, in all living things. Other passengers on the train have similarly peculiar abilities - use concentrations of energy that feel distinctly foreign from the world of aura and nen, are powerful in ways he can't quantify by his usual standards. Whatever Obi-Wan's ability, it's something to be reckoned with. ]

The illness. The townspeople don't know where it comes from, but I would think the animals could be the culprit. Considering their contact with the town... if they are infectious, then every time they attack, there will be exposure.

[ A sickness from birds or swine - that isn't likely, per se, but it's plausible enough for him to consider it a possibility. With his chain returned to its rightful place, he leans his back against the brick of the alleyway, peering out of the alley to see if there's anyone else in immediate danger. Then, he turns back to his companion, his brow lightly furrowed. ]

I wasn't certain if you were planning to deal with it from afar. Or... [ His eyes drift to the Thing in his hand. It looks like a weird canteen to his uncultured eyes. ] With that.

[kahunanu]

[ Don't be corporealist, ghosts can be dicks too.

Anyway if she's catching on to him that's fine. Being called pathetic is oddly cathartic, especially when it's not coming out of his own mouth. He embraces it all the same and will literally just start drinking from that deceptively large mug; a cautious sip at first, then he makes a face a starts to chug big gulps. It's bitter and lacks any of the nuance of a good sake but he'll put it down his gullet all the same. He he can tolerate it better than her and the less she has right now the better. If she spent this long working on just half of it he downs a quarter in a few seconds.

He sets it hard on the table with a big sigh. ]

Disgusting. Order something better next time you need to cope with whatever it is you're coping with.

[kahunanu]

[ Nanu sighs performatively, mostly to try and back a endeared grin of his own. He's right, he knows he is. ] You're the most insufferable help I didn't ask for.

[ He turns heel and starts walking back to town, though it's slow as if to already spite himself for this being a waste of time. ] Nanu, by the way. Not native to this... train car, or whatever this thing is, whatever that's worth.

[kahunanu]

Noble lad, you. [ Nanu mutters while softly hitting his head against the back of the door, turning his tired grimace to the ceiling while Dimitri busies himself finding water. After a few moments and effort convincing himself he forces himself to rise to his feet and better take in his surroundings. Definitely someone's house and they don't seem to be home. Can't be blamed for having guests when they didn't bother to lock the door. One thing he can't complaint about. He can still hear the angry clucking of chickens outside but it's noticeably less than before. They'll go away with time. ]

Guess I'm in no position to refuse a good hand while mine look like this.

[ Nanu sloughs off his over-shirt and hooks it over the back of a wooden chair, then sits himself down it in and rests his arms over a small table. Cripes, he really let himself have it. Unfortunate that they blend in pretty well with all the old pre-existing marks mottling his arms, those cat-made however. ]

Truth be told I don't entirely trust the folks at the clinic either.

[kahunanu]

You think this plague is being spread from something on the ground...? [ Nanu rubs his chin and his gaze also goes tree-ward as Anakin's does, then to the ground. There was a noticeable gradient of disease and ichor, poor lighting permitting.

...Might be on to something with that. [ Persian started feeling sick after she was eating a bunch of diseased rodents and other small animals that scurry around. There was also something to suspect in the mines, deep underground which was being kept off limits for some reason. ]

Ironically the last place I saw a good looking flower was the graveyard I woke up in.

[onlyhope]

[ Unlike Rex, who is making a lot of noise about how he doesn't care, or some of the other more cagey individuals who think it's some sort of ranking system, Obi-Wan sees no harm in sharing this information. ]

312

[onlyhope]

[ They don't call him The Negotiator for nothing, but he still thinks it's a pretty good plan. Of course, it means he must place quite a bit of trust in Zuko, but from what little he's come to understand about the boy his fiery temperament doesn't take away from his capability as a soldier.

Tucking a strand of dark, artificial hair behind Zuko's ear he adjusts the hat on top of his head before taking him by the shoulders and turning him around. ]

Off you go, I'll be right behind you.

[ And he will. Obi-Wan gathers the Force to him, trailing after Zuko and using his distraction to follow him. This way, he can send a well placed Mind Trick to anyone getting too suspicious — at least as long as he remains close enough to Zuko to employ it. ]

[onlyhope]

Characters: Obi-Wan & Zuko
Thread link: here
Activity: They're sneaking into the Mayor's house to find out if there is anything underhanded (or otherwise??) going on that the maids might know about, or have access to.