exsiliumlogs | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Date: July 1st
Location: The Initiative Hold & Courtyard.
Characters: Everyone.
Summary: New Transports arrive and are shuffled into the Courtyard after their initial briefings. Now with 200% more People-Seeking lists!
Warnings: None.

You've just been hustled and bustled through mazes of information and literal, wide corridors of the Initiative Hold and you've been equipped with your weapon—be it a gun, a sword, or even your existing powers. They've handed you this light netbook and a small pouch of coins (or a debit card, if you're more inclined), and there are several Transports before and after you going through the very same motions. You can hear the Greeter's voice as she walks alongside large groups, telling them all about the history of this place and sharing with you your purpose here in a hurried and urgent tone. "You're in luck that we have enough rooms for all of you; the housing building is getting awfully full. Please, let me show you into the courtyard."

You pass what looks like huge gymnasiums, all with dummies and targets strewn and splayed around the room. Training areas. There are even classrooms, and a few small offices. You're rushed past a large library while the Greeter informs you that you can find almost all your information there, if you've got the time to look—and trust her, you'll have time. You don't spend a lot of time in the bank, and it's a bit of a blur of exchanges with more and more of these strangely-accented and oddly polite-seeming members of the Initiative.

Soon enough, you're in a massive courtyard bustling with all the other Transports. It's not exactly what you'd expect, and it looks more like barracks than anything—huge walls of concrete and stone, separating you from all of the hallways you'd just passed through. It's raining heavily, and dark clouds loom in the air, though it hasn't turned to snow. It's a chill cold, and there are shelters—long cloth hangings that extend from the walls of concrete to house you from the rain, but not enough. Most notably, the courtyard is filled with a marketplace. Even in the cold and the rain, there are several citizens seated at their covered booths and tables, bundled up against the weather. They're selling all manner of their own handmade goods and foods, and citizens and Transports alike are traveling from one small covered shop to another in search of all manner of necessities. Now and then around you you might spot paper fluttering in the faint wind from somewhere relatively dry. It looks like a list.

The Greeter's voice has become so faint now, but you swear you can make it out in the back of the crowds as she tells you, "Good luck. Be safe!"

Her voice is drowned out by the busy marketplace, though even the transactions taking place are somewhat subdued. Nobody is overly happy, really, though most citizens can be found with smiles on their faces. It doesn't seem like they're that shocked to see you, either; even if you're not bound in tattered rags and wrapped in heavy shawls as they are. You're welcome to walk up to a shop, and find yourself something to eat—hey, maybe you'll even find something akin to a raincoat. Or, you can join the others under the coverings against the walls. Where am I? What war? She was talking so fast, and it didn't all make very much sense… did anyone else catch it all?

Welcome to the courtyard. Welcome to the Initiative Hold—and most importantly, welcome to Exsilium.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ neku had been preoccupied maybe two stalls' length away; he's definitely under one of the awnings, that's for sure - precious designer CAT phones and all, which he had no particular interest in exposing to this place's nasty weather.

he's not very observant of those drizzling surroundings at the moment either, considering he's got his face stuck in that tablet he'd received maybe an hour earlier. seemingly laid-back while leaning against a stall's prop with the screen scarcely illuminating his face, he's actually engrossed in scouring through this junk-heap of information. there's gotta be a deliberate (and preferably quick for him to achieve) way out of this crazy city and back to his own (which had suddenly become a lot less crazy, in retrospect). missions were fine - didn't wanna do 'em, but it wouldn't be the first time he'd been in this kind of position. it's the lack of any schedule, criteria, or time limit to be elapsed that's bugging the hell out of him.

but momentarily distracting him from his thoughts would be the sound of things falling over a ways across from him; but he doesn't look up immediately, figuring it's just some disoriented klutz--

at least until she starts rambling apologies and he realizes that he actually knows this klutz. ]

( !? Hey, is that-- )

--Shiki? [ then louder, ] Shiki!!

[ wow screw this - he's roughly shoving the tablet into his pocket and darting over to where she is now.

it's only a few yards away, but he's booking it regardless because the less time spent in the rain, the better. ]

[ she may be a klutz, but at least she's not a jerk!!

actually, no, she doesn't really care -- she's actually super relieved to see this jerk. mainly because she knows he's a lot less of a jerk now, so her face lights up when she sees him running. with her head turned, her attention is completely gone from the fallen toothbrushes for now... so the person running the stall will just have to wait. ]

Neku!!

[ ah... yeah, he's super wet and dripping. S'OKAY THOUGH she's really not all that much better. nor is mr. mew. sob, poor kitty. ]

I- I can't believe it -- they got you, too?

[ YEAH HE'S.. not happy about the whole soaked thing and he'd been pretty cranky about it earlier, but it was at least flying over his head for the moment because finding shiki makes things better -- sort of. he's not exactly glad she'd gotten dragged into this because ugh not again, but hey thank god someone wasn't a total stranger so he's both relieved and not. partner...! ]

Yeah... That Initiative thing or whatever. Looks like they brought a lot of folks here.

[ he really doesn't care about the toothbrushes or whatever it is either, so he just.. motions to straighten the box and what's left in it with a hand (kind of the equivalent to sweeping under the rug), before extending his other to get shiki off the dank ground, geez. ]

Yeah... no kidding.

[ well shiki cares about toothbrushes, especially when that scary person running the booth is glaring at her in such a threatening way. at least it doesn't take long, though... by the time neku's straightened up the box, all the toothbrushes are in her hand, and with mr. mew tucked under her arm, she accepts his.

there's a sigh of relief that serves as her thanks, and she plops the toothbrushes right back where they belong. ]

I'm glad you found me. I'm still trying wrap my head around around everything that lady said.

[ neku has a pretty good memory all things considered (except for that time he didn't have one) - he's always been able to take in mr. hanekoma's info dumps and stuff in an almost eidetic fashion, so while he got everything, he can't really say he firmly trusts all the information.

in fact, it's really hard for him to not immediately call bullshit. in any case, he knows exactly why they're both having problems with the info-- ]

'Cause it's nuts. ( THEY'RE nuts. What kind of group goes around forcing people into this? Talk about shady... )

Figure Beat or Rhyme's here?

[ just a déjà vu inspired guess - plus he kind of thinks of them all as a sort of crew now, honestly. ]

[ nuts is an excellent word for it; but she has to admit, he's already reacting much better than he had to being thrust into the reaper's game. seems like this is something else they'll have to figure out together, before they can get back home.

she looks thoughtful at at the mention of their friends -- but rather uncertain as well. after all, she's not even freakin' sure what happened to shibuya in the end. ]

I didn't see them... but then again, I didn't see you either, until just now.

[ with a bit more hope: ]

Should we keep looking around?

[ the whole not being dead thing helps, for one. and actually having things (kind of!) explained. not that he's okay with this for one second and it's still confusing as hell, but it's not quite WHAT THE HELL!? to the skies level of dramatics.

for now, anyway. ]

Couldn't hurt. [ also neku had been conveniently oblivious about the glare from the person whose booth they'd been loitering in (that shiki had already disturbed), but she'd chosen this particular moment to clear her throat.

neku has to fight really hard not to roll his eyes at this, but he decidedly opts not to acknowledge her outwardly. ]

( ...And we're supposed to be helping these people? ) Let's go.

[ ...jeez.

shiki spares the woman a glance when she clears her throat, but the look they're given in return is so nasty that it doesn't end up being much more than that. embarrassed (not to mention slightly confused at the overreaction), shiki turns away at neku's prompting, and winds up following him easily; all too eager to get far, far away. ]

A map sure would be nice. [ she's glancing around as they walk, expression somewhere between impressed and overwhelmed. ] I don't even really know where to start.

Hang on. There's, uh-- [ stops for a sec, here.

and neku will return his attention to the tablet he'd shoved halfway into his pocket a few minutes earlier, jerking it back out - ]

--one on these things. [ a button mash before he pulls it up on-screen. neku had known about the map beforehand because as soon as he'd found a spot where people wouldn't run him over he'd decided to be asocial-kun and check out the comm-thing - at least until shiki had came along. ]

Maybe somewhere up ahead. [ which would be the gymnasium and northern vendor areas from where they're standing - he waits for shiki's input, though. ]

-- oh, our tablets! Mine's in my purse...

[ as he button mashes, she trails off and looks at said purse contemplatively, wondering if she should pull hers back out... but it seems like neku works pretty quickly. she hears his suggestion and glances back at him, peering over his shoulder to take a look at what he's found. ]

But yeah... maybe! [ she stares at the map intently. ]

If I'm reading this right, we'll hit the training facilities if we keep going... and look here. There's a library, too.

[ he's sort of repositioned it by now for her convenience when he'd noticed her peering over, so hopefully they can both see it well enough...

aside from the courtyard itself, the training facilities seems the most likely-ish place for them to be, since he can't really picture beat hitting the books unless he were literally doing so - especially if he were by himself; he'd be looking for rhyme first.

but it's because of this that neku nods when shiki points it out. ]

Wouldn't put it past Beat to get lost there. We'd better check both.

[ they really do work well together, as unlikely as it may have seemed when their partnership first started out. shiki looks enthused, slightly amused by the mental image behind his words -- and she's only all too happy to agree. ]

Right.

[ they might as well do some recon, anyway... seems like they'll need it. ]

Heh, it'll be nice to look around somewhere dry, anyway.

[ excuse to get out of the rain get. ]

I'll say. [ and he shifts to flip over the device (actually pressing the off button this time!) before he shoves it back into his pocket.

he'll wipe some of the moisture off his forehead with the back of a palm, too, before preparing to jump back out of cover and beg for more of it to get in his eyes and everywhere... ] Let's move.

[ nodding his head in shiki's direction for a cue, he's fisting his hands and dashing for it. he's still got a few questions though, so it won't be a silent dash - in fact, he's even speaking up to make sure she catches everything he says in this bustling crowd + pouring rain combo. ]

So...getting stuck in this dump together-- [ getting stuck together again - although shibuya was practically rocking streets of gold compared to this place.

-- and halting for a second, noticing a crowd of people in their path up a little ways ahead.

he decides to cut left here and circumvent that, pointing in the same direction before doing that so shiki gets it. in the moment he's pointing, he'll turn his head to her and try to talk loudly over the clamor - he doesn't want to have to repeat himself. ]

--That's gotta be on purpose, right? It's like. [ how to put this...

cutting left. ] Some big set-up all over again.

Yeah -- [ her breathing gets heavier as they go; but she's in pretty good shape, and in pretty good sync with him, so there's not much trouble keeping up here. she's used to taking is cues; and she's able to cut left with him, even as she's thinking of how to respond.

she wishes she knew the answers for once. it always was neku, figuring out the daily missions. ]

I was thinking... maybe this place has got a Composer, too. But I dunno...

[ casually wonders if it would even make any sense, for there to be someone like that here. ]

[ a nod, unmissable despite the jogging because lol hair, although it's getting really deflated from the weather exposure. ]

Yeah... Somebody's gotta be in charge.

[ he concentrates on his breathing for a short while since running and keeping a conversation isn't something he does too often - he usually stops for the speaking part, but rain changes things. his breath hitches when he starts speaking again. ] -- Guess there's not much we can do about it right now. But...we'll figure something out. If these guys they wanna oust really are messing with Shibuya, they've got another thing coming.

[ still, you'd think they'd ask with an incentive that big. he doesn't trust these guys by a long-shot, but he'll spare shiki from his suspicions aloud. neku halts. he tugs his bangs out of his face (that he could deal with just fine normally, but wet? ugh...) while looking up in order to get a larger window of sight at the wall-ish obstruction they're now standing at. those sure are some large doors. there's a shade-structure slanting off the top of it, too, so goodbye rain... ]

[ thank the lord. or joshua. or, y'know, someone --

she really is happy to be out of the rain though, so she's letting out deep breaths of relief when they get to that building and take a breather in its shade. she takes the opportunity to think about everything neku's said, and when she notices him peering upwards, she does, too.

he sounds so determined... ]

Yeah... I mean, obviously, Shibuya's got a Composer of its own. Not to mention us.

[ she's assuming he's got the same memories as her at this point. no real reason to doubt it, so... he must know who the composer is. ]

What even happens if two Composers decide to butt heads, anyway? I don't really know if I want to find out.

[ hopefully it's just not true. things have got to work differently here... right? ]

[ neku raises an eyebrow at the way she phrases that... he's not too keen on thinking about that kind of thing, either. everything about this scenario was almost a flashing Too Soon for him. ]

Doesn't look like we get a choice for which side we're playing, either.

[ again. granted, kitaniji wasn't anything near a composer, but that's definitely a territory he's not interested getting involved in a second time. the fact that they're reduced to "players" again is aggravating enough. neku tugs at the end of his hair fruitlessly, drying off being the only thing he's looking forward to in this situation, barring the chance of finding the others. if all else fails, he's thankful for shiki, though. still, there's something that's been weighing on his mind he's wanting to ask - if she'd gone through the same information spiels that he had, anyway. pointedly avoiding getting any close to the doors, he's silent for a moment. ]

... Hey. Shiki? [ he pauses, still looking in the direction of the doors. ] ...You trust these guys?

[ on the contrary, shiki's kind of eager to go in. she'd approached the door with his words in mind, wondering if there WAS any way to make their choice. what would happen if they defied the Initiative, if they refused missions, etc.

would they be erased?

but then his question comes, and she turns to him, thinking all over again. this feels like an important answer... which of course, is why she's so hesitant at first. ]

...Well, I think it's like you said. We don't really have a choice, do we?

[ no choice but to trust them. in the end, shiki's belief in people wins out, and she wills herself to stay positive. ]

I think they deserve a chance... y'know, at least for now. We can always work things out later, when we've got a better feel for how things are here.

[ together, they can do anything. ]

[ neku is still relatively new to the whole trust concept, all things considered, not to mention meaningful relationships, so he's not particularly enthusiastic on getting involved with these guys while lacking any clear direction if he should be or not, but it's true that they don't get much of a choice in this scenario. as long as neither of them get hurt in the process... it should be okay. and there were a lot of other people in their shoes, this time, so when he considers that the pressure sort of lessens. ]

... Yeah. [ a nod, followed by rubbing the back of his neck for a second. ] I guess...we can decide for ourselves. We've gotta clash in order to figure things out, right? And we've got time.

[ something they didn't really have before, but it still goes to say that standing around worrying won't get them anywhere. he finally takes to approaching the door himself, pausing when he catches up to shiki. ] Let's go.

[ it doesn't really take a genius to tell how difficult it is for him. but shiki's glad. she's glad, because this is already progress from the neku she knew before -- and she finally begins to realize how much he meant it when he told her he'd changed.

when she somehow... became the thing he valued the most.

she opens the door wider with that lingering thought, smiling as she steps aside for him. ]

After you.

[ ...and then she adds, after a pause during which his words sink in: ]

...Sometimes clashing isn't so bad.

[ -- huh?

naturally, the statement is something neku had been made to understand after... everything that happened, but it hadn't occurred to him that it was something shiki might not have hooked onto yet -- moments like these were always a reminder of just how much shiki was confused about things as he was. it's... nice, to be able to figure things out together again.

so he nods before passing the doorway, sort of half-smiling knowingly. ]

...Yeah.

[ -- a smile.

she's actually distracted for a moment; it's so rare to see him like that. it actually boosts her confidence a little. if she can manage to make him smile, even in a situation like this, maybe she can do it again after all.

he said it himself, right?

she was his entry fee... the most important thing. ]

[ ... heh.

well, even if she is, there's no doubt beat or rhyme could help do the same thing. so she walks in and starts to look around.

it's actually a bit quieter in here. so much easier to think. ]

It's huge...

[ she blurts it out without really meaning to, as an observation, though the shock in her voice fades quickly. ]

No surprise there. If we're supposed to train here, we'll need all the room.

Yeah... Guess they didn't pull any punches.

[ it's easier for him to contain his wonder, but there's no denying this initiative group had resources. neku's eyes scan the place -- it really didn't feel like they had stepped "indoors" so much as they had stepped past a gate. but thank you based god for the roof; fighting in rain was not something he was keen on trying anytime soon.

training, though... neku raises an eyebrow the more he looks around. normally, he'd train by crushing noise, but... sparring was the way to go here, he guesses. it'd probably be something like fighting the reapers except with a lot less murderous intent which would be pretty sweet, in his opinion. y'know, except for the part where it involved socializing. he will practically be socializing under duress as far as he is concerned -- definitely not how he expected his second chance at life and people to go, considering the last time he did this was in the game.

catching sight of the right hall, neku stalls. library, right? briefly tapping shiki with a loose-hanging hand and pointing with the other -- ]

Let's see what's up over that way.

(no subject)

grooves - 2013-09-02 08:16 (UTC) - Expand

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(no subject)

1/2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

no subject

no subject

(no subject)