INTRO LOG - JULY 2013

[rekindlemods]

Who: Everyone Where: The Welcome Plaza When: 18th July, afternoon Summary: The new arrivals, freshly pulled from their worlds or others, awaken in a strange plaza... Warnings: Inbox death may occur. System overload at own risk. SOME NPC RESPONSES WILL BE SLOW UNTIL THE ONE WHO PLAYS THEM IS PRESENT. The first flickering of a lantern... 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 Assistance Devin, Technological Assistance However, 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!)

Comments

[soldiernoclass]

"Well, thanks." If nothing else, it doesn't seem like he'll have any trouble avoiding the bad side effects of this place - if everything he's heard so far really is true. Holding hands or hugging somebody, even a total stranger, is a pretty small price to pay for not ending up "dangerously ill," even if he's still got plenty of his own misgivings about the whole process. When you're chock full of the stuff they use to power cities back home, the idea of being somebody's battery takes on an extra shade of sinister, no matter the seemingly innocent manner of conduction.

"I'm Zack." He offers a hand, even though he has to slouch down considerably to do so, and another smile of his own. "And I appreciate the out, too. That's some name."

[heroofjustice]

"No problem. Some people tried not touching anybody, and they got really sick, so I wouldn't do that if I were you." Kerry's had his own problems with using others for energy. "Just refusing to help isn't going to work."

Kerry reaches out and takes Zack's hand in his own, his grip firm. "Nice to meet you, Zack." He laughs. "Yeah. Nobody back home could say it--" He falters, for an instant, remembering that everyone "back home" is gone and he won't ever see them again, but he moves on quickly. "So most people call me Kerry."

[soldiernoclass]

Refusing to help outright isn't really Zack's style, so he doesn't think there's much danger, there. And given that avoiding physical contact with everyone - all the time - sounds like a punishment potentially worse than any grave illness he can imagine-- Maybe this won't be all bad, even if it's got plenty of unsavory parts to its name, already.

He's a little surprised by the confidence in the kid's grip, but it's not a bad shock. "Kerry it is, then. Nice to meet you, too. Or, y'know, considering...

"By the way, uh, what's the deal with the living situation around here? This letter's pretty vague."

[heroofjustice]

"Right, there's probably a better way to meet than being kidnapped by the same people." Although he's met people in worse ways!

Kerry is all too happy to answer his question, which is an easy one. "Oh, they give us all apartments to live in. I've got my own." Yes, he lives all on his own. Which he still feels weird about, never having lived on his own before, but he's not about to admit that. He's an adult. He can deal with it. "You should've gotten a key with your stuff. It's supposed to say what apartment you're in. I can show you where it is."

[soldiernoclass]

"Probably." His sarcasm is good-natured, like just about everything else about him.

The idea of a kid living alone is pretty weird, but only in that he's got an entire apartment to himself, from the sound of it. (The thought that Kerry can't be a whole lot younger than he was when he left home recurs to him - but he may be misjudging. The kid's awfully well composed, too, for whatever his age really is.) Apparently, they're playing things kind of fast and loose, around here.

"Yeah, the note said something about that. It's, uh--" He pauses a moment to rummage around in the envelope, fishing for the key down at the bottom. "...Three twelve? I guess it won't exactly be a room with a view."

sorry this is so late, feel free to ignore!

[heroofjustice]

"Just maybe." He smiles.

"The apartments here are pretty nice, so it's not that bad. I've explored everywhere we can go in the city, so if you need to know where anything is, you can ask me." Kerry enjoys being helpful. It helps him to feel better. All he really wants to do is help people. "Do you want to go now? They're not gonna tell you anything else, so there's not much point in staying here, unless you want to eat." He points toward the refreshment table. The refreshments do look good...

♥

[soldiernoclass]

"I'll probably stick around a little while longer, anyway," Zack says, shaking his head. Maybe there's nothing more to hear from the official-looking types set up around the center, but that doesn't mean there's nothing more to learn from anyone coherent enough to hold up their end of a conversation. Kerry's done a good job of proving that, himself.

"Can't hurt, right?" He's in no rush. "And it's just bad policy to turn down a free meal."