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…

> ▮▮▮▮▮▯▮▮
> ▮▮*
> OVERRIDE: TUTORIAL MODE DEACTIVATED.
> OBJECTIVE:

>

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!

---

locomo e2 traincation

FAQ & Game Info / Calendar / Taken
Applications / Reserves / Hiatus & Drops



FULL NAVIGATION

Comments

[constrainer]

[ Sigh... all this frou-frou food is not his style, but also like, he knows rich people love to see their guests at least indulge their insane richness? He nods in acknowledgment to Wheatley's offer, begrudgingly taking the flute of champagne from the table. ]

Right. I suppose you don't require any usual sustenance...

[ other than like... oil?? He guesses? Kurapika knows nothing about robots. In any case, a talking robot is hardly the weirdest thing compared to his own home world, but that doesn't mean it's not a little interesting. If these people want them to be distracted, then he can at least make small talk while he waits for one of these maids to do something suspicious. ]

You're autonomous, correct? You're not controlled by another passenger?

[constrainer]

[ He didn't think of it that way, but now that Obi-Wan's said it, it does make a lot of sense. He supposes it'd only help if they could be moved to some sort of pen or pit, which there's no way the passengers could create on such short notice... ]

I see. That's a common ability where I come from— controlling animals or other people to behave in certain ways for your benefit. That would be the easiest method to deal with these things from afar...

[ It's said neutrally; he doesn't really judge when it comes to these things, because in the world he hails from, you're stuck with the type of ability you're born with. People can't help it if they're born to excel at controlling things. As if on cue, one of those huge spiders crawls into their field of vision on the street outside their alley - Kurapika takes a step further in to the darkness. ]

Nevertheless. If neither of us can manage such an ability, we should at least keep them away from others. [ He whispers, watching the huge bug as it searches a different alley from the one they're in. ] Were you planning on killing them?

[testgasm]

Well, I'm not supposed to roll.

[Obviously! He sounds almost insulted by the prospect, though he seems to have enough sense to lower his voice when Lucretia does. The good news is that any offense Wheatley might be feeling is quickly overriden by the prospect of being an integral part of the plan.]

A distraction, eh? I like the way you think. Just--just don't forget to come get me, when you're done.

[oomfies]

[ Lottie is tempted to cut in somewhere that, no, she didn't die. She just went into a coma and had to get reconstructive plastic surgery for her face or something, not that she knows and kept track of her recovery or anything.. Because she didn't. She finds out she doesn't have to clarify anything — Toko is in her own sort of melancholy world that she doesn't think she can interrupt.

Or at least, interrupt without sounding as smart and poetic as she does. A lot of what she says flies over her head at first, but she thinks she understands. It's a concept Lottie battles with virtually all the time: the real Lottie Person and the fake Lottie Person. The one she has to constantly show to the public to try and reel in her image as much as she can from ruin, because it's either going to be herself that does it in or her inconsiderate friends. Her ex. Caroline, who clearly doesn't mind murdering or cajoling her into her worst. The list goes on.

Some small part of her likes to think that people can sympathize. It's not like she's Beyonce or Rihanna.. Most of her fanbase are women and all of them call her "Mom". But she's moderated, curated, her comment sections enough to know people can turn on her easily. That when rumors spread about her and her ex boyfriend splitting up circulated there was equal amounts of catty glee and sadness about what could be.

She stirs and stews and sits in this feelings, the reminder that her life isn't so simple — certainly isn't right now — and that this girl is really literate when she's drunk (go figure). It makes her wonder what kind of media she's consumed to slap this all together, to make being an influencer sound.. Important. Like it actually means something to people other than a pretty face to look at, because Lottie knows she has a pretty face. Has been advertising said face for eight years until she started gaining traction.

Quietly, silently, she halfheartedly slaps (a more dejected, depressed pat) of Toko's hand away from the drink. She doesn't take the easy solution of drinking it herself to stop the teen (it messes with her allergy medication, as tempting as it is), so she instead draws the mug closer to the wall. Right by the edge of the table and out of sight. And then, she heaves a sigh, carefully rubs at her face to remind herself.. She doesn't know, shit happens. She says aloud, not really wanting a response because she can't figure one out for the life of her she'd like: ]

Everybody wants what they can't have, right?

[ Like, they want to get off this train but for some reason they can't. And Lottie wants to be someone with the capacity to care for people longer than it takes to paint her nails, but for some reason she can't. There's a long moment where she snaps out of her own self spiral, stares at Toko and the small way she curls into herself — ]

C'mon. Where are you staying right now?

[unrepentant]

[Anakin wouldn't describe himself as a guarded or taciturn person, but he knows that the last few years of shouting over blaster fire and reading casualty reports have changed him. They've changed everyone, some more obvious than others. But it's more than just grim resolution; Anakin has found a kind of understanding and fraternity among the Clone Soldiers that he hasn't had among the Jedi. A willingness to be in the moment instead of examining each and every new person, place, thing from as many angles as possible.

As far as he's concerned, this man has asked for help and Anakin is able to provide it: no interrogation required. His hands clap against each other as he dusts them off, shaking dirt loose from both the knuckles and creases of his flesh hand, and the joints of his durasteel one- but it's clear that the question catches him off guard.]

Oh- yeah.

[Or maybe it's the offer of help that's done it. He frowns thoughtfully at the grass. The grass doesn't respond.]

The clinic is running low on supplies so I figured it couldn't hurt to scrounge up anything edible. This place seems pretty unprepared for the disease. If it keeps going on like this there won't be many locals left to make sure the sick will eat.

[unrepentant]

[If he were younger Anakin would have struggled to understand it. Every slave on Tatooine had wanted to leave- had felt both the instinctive desire for freedom and the bone-deep need to flee a place that's been nothing but pain and cruelty. How many times had he dreamed of leaving?

But then, he had. It was his mother, and countless other slaves that had been unable to escape. That had been unwilling or unable to leave behind the only life they knew, their sometimes separated families and the small friendships that had kept them alive all this time. Anakin's gaze moves off, cast out in the direction of the town center without really looking at anything; his plate, long empty, remains in his lowered hands as if forgotten.]

Maybe it's a test.

[testgasm]

Thank goodness for that, right?

[Wheatley isn't convinced that their gracious hosts aren't trying to poison them, or something. He supposes that if all the passengers start dropping dead, he'll cross that bridge when he gets to it, but it is sort of relieving to know that if it does happen, he won't be among them.

Not that he's going to say any of that out loud. It's easier to explain robots to Kurapika, instead.]

Autonomous, yes. Not being controlled by anyone, no man behind the curtain, as it were. This is--this is all me.

[soulshard]

[ Don't give Ardbert too much credit.

He does remember the survey and had taken it for lack of any other option. It had called him a strange name, a "scrub" if he recalls correctly. He's not sure what that's supposed to mean in the given context. Scrubbing was something you did while cleaning, was it not? ]

I thought about doing as it said, but didn't get around to it. [ The admission comes with a sheepish smile as he rubs at the back of my neck. ] It seems you were at least rewarded for your hard work.

[ He has no idea what a shopping mall app is, but he gets the general idea now and that's good enough for him. He shifts around so that he can get a better look at the sword and its pommel, head tilting this way and that as he considers how it might function. Some manner of magic must be involved... ]

Only one way to find out, I suppose. And that's assuming that this isn't some cruel prank and it doesn't actually do as they claim.

[ He'd like to hope not, but it isn't as if they know the true motivations of the people sending them cryptic messages. ]

love me ( also this is a million years late so if you wanna do smth else lmk )

[recitations]

The ... birds. [ It takes her a second to catch up to the situation. The chicken on the roof and the man staring forlornly after it and all. She straightens up eventually, now that the biggest threat to her life is a fowl.

Anyway. ] Right then. There's the one under your arm, the one on the roof — how many more are we looking for, exactly?

[recitations]

... Superman. [ It's a miracle she kept a straight face through that one. ] Kal-El may roll better off my tongue, I'm afraid.

Aria Forzane, at your service. [ Her words are well-practiced, as if she's said them hundreds of times ( she has ). There's a small nod, almost a bow, before she takes his hand and shakes it firmly. Before she waves the same hand to dismiss Eos, for now. The fairy is nowhere to be seen in a few moments, and it's just the two of them once again ( for now ). ]

It's — a form of science. At least where I'm from; you need a certain pool of energy, and with enough study it can be manipulated. In simple terms, anyway. [ A beat. ] I'm starting to learn that this isn't very common with people — including yourself, I imagine?

[recitations]

A scholar. [ Which doesn't make a ton of sense without context; but there's a pause ( dramatic in every horrible way, as she tends to be ) as her hand glows the soft green color once more. ]

— A field medic, I suppose, is the best description. I'm definitely no chirurgeon. [ There's a few long moments before she eventually leans back again, and the bloodied shoulder is at least... closed. Even if it's bloody. ] I'm assuming you're unfamiliar too, then.

[recitations]

[ Narrator voice: she's enjoying this as much as she looks like she's enjoying this. Sorry Estinien.

His hand takes her's, and she squeezes them back in turn. There's a way in which her favorite (?) dragoon is carrying himself where she's pretty certain he's injured, which means that's a whole host of other problems to contend with shortly. But, for now, one step at a time. She allows her weight to shift into his a little, just to give off the appearances of a particularly close couple. ]

Maybe if the suitor is right— I jest, I jest. [ She looks up at him, then winks. Her tail seems to be swaying back and forth idly as she turns back to Madam Vermeer. ] I apologize, ma'am — but I would like to keep him to myself, if at all possible.

[ Not that Aria looks particularly apologetic. But at least Madam Vermeer looks appropriately flustered. I hadn't realized he was— you were— well, I could never have my darling son get involved like this...

Well! Maybe if you ever decide to become available again. With a wink and all. Aria has to tighten her hold on his hand to keep from laughing. ]

[recitations]

We're— well, I would have no one else by my side. [ So to speak. Given the circumstances. They're technically true, for a given definition of the word. ] But I don't believe in having too much of a good thing — and neither does he.

[ This shouldn't work. Or perhaps it should. Madam Vermeer is growing increasingly red, and she seems to shake her hand at the thought.

'Quite alright, really — it's — I didn't— I appreciate the offer, but you two look so happy together, and I don't want anything to come in between that...' ]

Oh, there's no need to worry about us, really. But if you'd rather not... [ A glance up at Kaeya, then a shrug. ] I suppose there's no helping it. Shall we, darling?

crawls back, lmk if u wanna swap around and one day i'll stop dying

[lavishes]

[ Blue armor and big sword — well that shouldn't be hard at all. There's no other message from her as she takes off. Surely she'll be able to find her new friend (...) easily.

— Which she does! The cemetery doesn't have a ton of trees, and it makes the whole blue armor and giant sword thing extremely easy to spot. Congrats, Bea, because Jester's pretty much blue from head to toe ( but in a cute way ). ]

Hi! [ With a wave, and all. ] You're, um— Beatrix? Yeah? For your sword experiment.

[lavishes]

Yeah! To him! [ As if it's the most obvious thing in the world. Before he knows it, she's already settling beside him, looking at the corpse. Her nose wrinkles when the smell hits her, but she presses on. ]

We could probably ask him some questions, if you wanted. I have a spell that does it. Well, so technically it's only 5 questions, but if we're smart about it we can learn a lot, you know? [ Warning: she's not always very smart about it. ]

[lavishes]

[ The man thinks he's being followed. Jester frowns immediately. Somehow, he's infinitely worse than Caleb when he was stinky. ]

Ugh. Why would I—

[ No, Jester, you're better than this. You're better than stooping down to this dick's level ( what would Fjord do in this situation? Yasha? Beau? No, Beau would probably punch him. Maybe Caduceus— ) ] There's only two ways we can go on this train, and the other door was like, super locked. So like — we're all kind of here now I can't really go anywhere else.

Anyway. D'you want a cupcake? 'Cause you really shouldn't throw food around like that. Even if it's super gross.

dies

[lavishes]

[ Scissors are definitely a nonstandard weapon, as far as she can tell. Or maybe things are different where she's from. Who knows! Either way, the scissors are gone. ]

Could you kill me super fast with scissors? [ A beat. ] Wait, are they like magic scissors?

[ Because that would be a very valid reason to maybe worry about her life. Too bad she's not. ] You can tell me if they're magic scissors, and I'll tell you who I am. But — oh, the sign at the edge of town said we're in Minecraftia. So that one's pretty easy.

[onlyhope]

I didn't say it was either. We should never be so optimistic that it leads to arrogance, but neither should we be so pessimistic it prevents us from seeing the good in the world.

[ Arrogance was just as dangerous as fear. Both could make one blind, both could make one power hungry or angry and hateful. A combination of both was a deadly cocktail that dove straight into the pits of the Dark Side. One did not need to be a Force user to fall into the grip of the shadow of the universe. ]

Your focus determines your reality.

[ He taps the air with one finger between them as he says this, the way he might tap on her chest where her heart is. ]

As a Jedi, we are taught to be mindful of the Living Force. That is to say, we strive to be present in the moment.

Right now you are lamenting what could have been done, or should have been done. That will not help us or the people that are here. What is done is done, we must now muddle our way forward with the current situation.

[onlyhope]

Well, I am glad you are at least firmly aware of where your interests lie. Though I am not sure how it will help us leave this train car.

[onlyhope]

[ That's food for thought, isn't it? To worry about something else for a while. She has a good point. Here, his only focus lies in himself, Anakin and Cal. He cannot worry about the way the war is progressing in his own universe, cannot report to the Jedi Council. There is no crumbling Republic to try to save, or flee from. It's entirely possible that the world beyond has simply stopped moving, like the anomaly of Mortis they encountered. (Hidden under his vambrace, his number ticks down. )

Here, he only has to worry about getting to the next car, and about saving Anakin from his fall. (His number ticks back up).

Turning his attention around, Obi-Wan smirks and raises his glass in a toast. ]

To kidnappings allowing us a brief holiday?

[onlyhope]

[ It's not quite how he would describe it, and the phrasing stirs something uneasy in Obi-Wan that brings his attention back around. The thing is, Kurapika is not exactly wrong. That is precisely what a Jedi mind trick does. The only difference between how the Jedi implement it and the Sith do is in their intent. A Jedi can coax a confession out of a guilty party, but a Sith could dig the information out themselves at the cost of the individuals mind. He remembers how he, Mace, and Anakin had all tried to force Cad Bane into confessing and how hard he resisted. The knowledge that if they had done it again, they could have irrevocably damaged him — and that Obi-Wan is not confident they wouldn't have followed through. He thinks of Barriss.

(We have so lost our way we have become villains in this conflict.)

He looks back out at the spider, and hidden under his vambrace his number rises. ]

This illness seems to have made victims out of these beasts as much as everyone else, but I believe we have no choice. They will kill us if given the chance, and I think whatever they were before is long dead.

[ As if to prove the point, a shriek rings out in the street and the spider skitters backward eerily fast, turning toward the sound. ]

That's our cue!

[ Obi-Wan doesn't glance back to see if Kurapika is following him before he's darting out from their hiding spot. ]

[testgasm]

No, but it's not like it's been a problem, historically. I was perfectly content, not being able to float--hey!

[It's clear that he is not a fan of being picked up without asking--his shutters narrow into a glare and he wiggles around a little, handlebars waggling as if somehow this is going to free him from his predicament.

The good news is that it gets him out of answering the other question.]

How would you like it, if I just picked you up without asking? Probably wouldn't, is what I'm thinking. You can't just do that, without permission!

oh okay then

[shiftybladesofcray]

[She absolutely could kill her super fast, sorry to say. She does not get to point out such things though, because we've gone in a whole different direction than expected.]

...Magic?

[Oh. Is that what they're dealing with here? Is this what her life has become?

Is that why Gloomy has kept her on lock for...sheesh, how long was she sleeping for? A week? A month? A whole year? Shit, how would she even know? Should she check if she's gotten bushier?]

Minecraftia. Ooookay. [That actually answers nothing. This isn't even Earth, is it?] So, basically, what you're saying is this is an insane place for insane people and insane things. Like magic and blue skin and cutesy birdy people, walking around like regular folk — oh, oh! Look! Bear people, too!

[She's slapped a hand to Jester's shoulder and spun her half around, just to gawk at some lumbering hairy oaf, tottering off about his business.]

Wow wow wow! Oh man, I'm neck-deep in it, aren't I? Hey, Smurfette, I'm gonna level with you: I literally just woke up. Okay? I don't know how I got here, I'm so lost! C'mon, gimme the tour! Won't you? Tell me all about this humdrum town.

val if u want we can wrap up around here if thats good for u !!

[constrainer]

[ Kurapika lets out a breath he didn't even know he was holding when the woman finally leaves the two of them be, pinching the bridge of his nose with his hand. ]

I think it went well enough.

[ Or like, as well as pretending to be married on the fly can go. He pushes himself out of his own chair, giving the room a final glance as if there'll be anything of note in there, like some clue, that would make this painful experience even a little worthwhile (there's not.) ]

Though it would have been better if we had not been dragged here at all. Or been forced to act this way.

[ There's no real Pointed Annoyance towards Beatrix for the matter, even if he does think it's her fault he had to (badly) play the part of a husband. He just seems kind of annoyed at the lost time. ]

I doubt we'll have any effect on what happens with her son, if that's what you're referring to.

oof im sorry this is so late!! we can deffo wrap up soon here if that works for you🤧

[constrainer]

[ Kurapika takes the vigorous shake in stride, expression unflinching. You know what, this is hardly the worst personality he's had to put up with in the world of human trophy collectors and mafia bosses. Obnoxious, yes. But impossible to deal with without making his stomach churn? No. ]

Kurapika. I'd prefer to be called by that.

[ And not "Sweet Cheeks" or "Cookie," if he has things his way. He answers, tone even, not rising to any of the funny nicknames or comparisons to whoever this mystery person must be. Wherever he can manage it on the train, he would prefer to keep the cold, calculating, and occasionally polite™ façade up - better to remain as professional and impersonal as he can. ]

I'll honor our agreement for the next car, then, Jill. [ He retracts his hand, shoving it into one of his pockets. ] You've been here since the first car, haven't you? You should already know how to contact me if the need arises.

[ You know, probably? It's not like he's ever seen this person, but the knowledge about the cars changing is enough for him to take a wild guess. ]