It's a shuddering breath, a sensation of being
pulled to elsewhere and finding oneself pressed against something rather hard with the sound of water coming from nearby. However, before one can fully stir, there is something that lifts you up from the rather warm (yet why did it feel like a chill going down your spine?) stone when you begin to drift off once more. It felt as though someone had thrown you from the frying pan, and then into the freezer - all you wanted to do was sleep...
Yet the feeling passes quickly, and when you awaken, you begin to realize your surroundings. It looks like...a plaza of some sort? As they look around them, the ground beneath them is an intricate mosiac - a water fountain at the center of the plaza in this foreign world. There are many buildings around its perimeter, making this location seem like a central hub of whatever town this was. Some may even recognize the peculiar design of the buildings and sloped tiled rooftops as a Far Eastern theme. Were they somewhere along the Pacific? Who knows! But what is quite apparent is this: Along with the many buildings surrounding the plaza, the first thing that is noticeable is the amount of people sitting or standing around you in a similar daze.
You are not alone...One building seems to stand out among all the others; one that seems large enough to house all of the completely lost and confused masses gathered here to the welcome plaza. A sign outside the door reads:
WELCOME CENTER
Newcomers: Please come inside for refreshments and your welcome packets!Odd... This wasn't written in your own language, and yet you find it easily understandable. Soon enough, if you don't enter on your own, someone comes from inside the double doors to usher you and everyone else inside.
"Welcome to
Saeng Seong! I know you must be confused as to where you are and what's going on, but we promise to explain this to you once we're inside and away from the hot sun!"
Whether you go inside immediately or linger outside a little longer, eventually you must come in from the hot summer day, and sooner rather than later would probably be better. You'll find yourself in a well-lit lobby, filled with comfortable-looking couches and chairs. Along one wall are refreshment tables, loaded with all sorts of food and drink, including some you probably aren't familiar with. On the wall opposite are a pair of desks, each with a sign and a person seated behind them -
Irene, General AssistanceDevin, Technological AssistanceHowever, before you can go over and give them a piece of their mind and ask for questions, the same person who ushered you inside hands you a manilla envelope that contains your welcome packet, urging you to read this before asking the three figures questions that the packet likely answers.
Inside it, you will find: a ring with a key and apartment number on it, some kind of cash card, a
map and informational guide to the city, and a letter folded neatly on the top -
Welcome to Saeng Seong!
You are among a new group of arrivals to our city, from many far-apart worlds.
We have gathered you here because our city is in a crisis, and we are at our last resorts. The energy of the city is in a slow downward spiral, and is dangerously close to expiring altogether.
That's where you come in - you and everyone else we've brought to the city. Unlike those of us here, you have the potential to generate the energy the city needs, but you'll need to work together to do it.
Why? Because the energy can only be generated when two people touch each other. Any touch will do, but it must be between two of you who are new to the city. If you don't keep in contact with someone, eventually your energy will begin to drain as well, making you dangerously ill.
A few other things:
The closed-off sections of the city are closed off for a reason; approaching them will cause your energy to drain very rapidly. We're working to open the rest of the city to you as soon as we can, but for now, please remain within the two central districts of the city.
You have been given a key to a one-bedroom apartment in a complex set aside for you and the other new arrivals, near the riverside in the 1st district. You're free to change your living quarters whenever you like, and we encourage you to move in with someone in one of the larger apartments. When you want to change, just come back to this building to exchange your key.
We've also included a cash card with a living stipend; if you're unfamiliar with this system, or the network established for new arrivals, you can talk to Devin in the lobby for help. It's what he's here for. If you need medical assistance, contact Mai, one of our nurses - she'll be going around today for anyone who needs help.
Again, welcome, and thank you for all your help.
Irene
Arrival Liaison
Back behind you, others still linger, and through the translucent glass you can see a banner hanging from the tiled roof of the building across the street in the blistering summer day:
WELCOME TO SAENG SEONG
(ENJOY YOUR STAY!)
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rekindlemods) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
rekindleme2013-07-18 07:41 pm
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Is this really something I can help with?
[She unfolds the letter and reads over it again. Your move, Emil.]
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He looks up, and of course it's her. But how?]
Marta? You're here too?
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E-- Emil? [Oh man, it's really him. Her fingers curl into her palms, unable to help the feeling of relief and excitement-- and then worry, because what's happening in the Ginnungagap?
But he's here, and he's not alone, and that's the important thing. Fuck manners-- she's running toward him, just two steps, and then throwing her arms around him in a tight hug.
He even smells the same.]
It's really you.
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[She's right there, she's hugging him, but it still takes him a moment to realize that all this is real. How is it that they're both here? What does that mean for the future?
Emil can't really think that hard with Marta right there, though, so he just gives in and returns the hug.]
I can't believe it. I didn't imagine that you could be here, too.
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I was worried. I mean, I know you're safe behind the door, but I still worry. I can't really help it.
[She smiles a bit, finally letting go of him and looking up.]
I guess they really need our help, huh?
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[That's right, she doesn't know...he'll have to tell her about what Richter and Verius did soon.]
They took us all the way to another world for this. I can't imagine how they did it, but it must mean they're that desperate.
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[She leans in, then looks around him.]
Tenebrae?
-- I guess he didn't come along.
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[Except, you know, when he was trolling instead. Anyway, Emil figures that's as good a segue as any into the subject of his future at home, assuming they ever get out of here.]
Um, Marta, there's something I need to tell you.
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[She pulls back a little, surprised at the sudden transition and its ominous-sounding nature.]
What is it, Emil? You can tell me anything.
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[It feels strange saying it, because he sort of still can't believe it actually happened.]
I don't know why, but Richter and Verius agreed to it. So that's what I'm doing when we return to our world.
1/2
[That's-- not what she was expecting, especially after the entire bit with how Emil and Ratatosk are the same, and that means he has to stay behind the door. Even in her dreams she didn't think that maybe, just maybe, she could be that fortunate.
Her heart skips, but she ignores the awkward almost-pain, trying to see through obnoxiously-blurry vision.]
You can live with us?
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T-that's great! We can really-- we can really help rebuild the world together, and... oh, Emil, I--
[She laughs through her tears.]
I love you so much.
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[Without shock to distract him, it suddenly hits Emil how much he's missed Marta already. This time his hug is tighter, and he's quiet for a moment as he basks in the feeling. He doesn't understand why he got this chance, but regardless it feels like a long time since he's been this happy.]
When we go back, I'll come find you. I want to go back to Luin as well, and some other places, but I'd like it if we could do it together.
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[Her fingers tighten in the front of his tunic. She's trembling in a good way, excited and happy and relieved all over.]
Of course we'll go together. We're... partners, right?
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[Emil leans his head slightly forward towards her, uncertain but affectionate. Is that the right thing to do? He's still not sure how to approach all of this, being in love, but he's trying.]
Even if we're here, in another world...I'm glad that at least we're here together.
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Hehe, you're making me blush! ♡
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Marta, come on...
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[Omg tsun harder, Emil.
She squeezes his hand.]
I'm glad we're here together, too.
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Yes. I feel a lot better knowing you're here with me, even in a place like this. I guess it's up to us and everyone else they took here to help, isn't it?