MISSION: RELEASE THEM BACK INTO THE WILD

[initiates]

Date & Time: April 27th - May 1st
Location: Wollongong, Australia, 2464.
Characters: All voluntary transports + maybe a few drafted ones.
Summary: Make those stay-at-homes leave their nerdcaves! My god, do they even know what sunshine looks like???
Warnings: none planned, will be updated accordingly!

The city is old, dark, and very, very quiet. A good deal of the buildings are crumbling and old, but the ones that are actually inhabited glow like candles in the dusk the Transporter has dropped you into. All of these buildings are infested by wiring pouring in from every angle, ensuring that each inhabitant in his or her little block of a room has every modern convenience available in 2464.

There is no one on the streets, no public transportation, and even cars look scarce. But that doesn't mean there's no movement. Maintenance drones, controlled remotely, run deliveries or work repairs. Armed law enforcement drones patrol on rounds through the city, although their mechanized attention is mostly turned outward. Still, they might come to investigate a ruckus within the city limits. And if the persons causing the ruckus don't respond to peaceful attempts to get them to cease, the drones might attempt to subdue them with paralyzing technology and haul them in for a night in the city jail — another dark, unused place.

If you get hungry, there are entire warehouses dedicated to the production of foods. It can't be that hard to sneak in and collect a meal, right? Or you can hack into the system and order whatever you want, if you're good with that kind of thing. Or you can just scavenge—or fast for four days, maybe—if thieving and hacking aren't your style.

And somewhere around here, in those glowing, secluded towers, behind the legions of automated drones, live the reclusive citizens of Wollongong. The methods are up to you, as long as you can get them to come out and breathe the fresh air somehow.

[[ ooc; Mission details are here! This will run from 27th of April to May 1st, with those on the mission returning to Exsilium at the same time that the new arrivals show up. It's an optional mission, but if you'd like your character to go along that would ICly sit it out, feel free to say that the Initiative drafted them for this one.

There aren't any teams or structured threads to this one, so go wild! ]]

Comments

[concealingeyes]

Hymns... [Isn't that religious? Not that she cares but it surprises her a little.] I've heard some of those, I think. Like chanting and stuff like that? It's pretty, too, in a different way. I mostly listen to mellow rock.

[She looks into the crate he opened and grins. Excellent. She'll be taking two of those.]

[bloodyashes]

That sort of thing, yes. Choirs, mostly, and I've heard Yulia's Hymns a few times.

[He hums low, a snatch of melody - someone familiar would recognize the tune as being that of Yulia's first and seconds hymns, the only two Asch has heard frequently enough to remember the melody. Even not knowing the words, it's a pleasant sound, helped by the fact that the humming is perfectly in tune.

The phrase 'mellow rock,' though, gets Kido a confused look as Asch drops the lid of the box back into place.]

I've never heard music related to rocks.

[concealingeyes]

[She listens through the humming with a soft smile. Imagining it from dozens of people a well-trained singer would be wonderful.

She would ask more but she's stuck now explaining why it isn't as stupid as it sounds.]

Uh, no no, it's not like that. It's like...

[Kido hesitates. Knowing some music history is one thing but explaining it feels weird. And she can't really think of how to put it into the best terms. So Starts humming a bit of song herself, mostly to get the beat in her head, and then rocks her body back and forth to the music she hears.]

See? It's called rock because you want to move to it. Mellow rock just kinda makes you sway. I guess that's how it is.

[bloodyashes]

[Ironically, the tune he hummed is always sung alone - indeed, there's only two people in the world who know the words.

His head tilts slightly as he watches and listens. He's familiar with the idea of dancing music, both court dances and festivals, but nothing like this.]

I guess I'll have to listen to some some time.

[Moving on to some other crates, yep.]

[concealingeyes]

[Well. She feels thoroughly embarrassed and grateful that he isn't looking at her now. It gives her a moment to clamp down on the heat hitting her cheeks. Well, it's fine. It was totally cool to show him that. Asch always has that kind of quiet personality so...]

Yeah? Thanks. I like sharing music. Do you have any hobbies like that?

[bloodyashes]

[Yeah, Kido, you're pretty lucky he's still somewhat in business mode. The mention of hobbies makes him frown a bit, though, pausing as he rustles through a box of discs.]

Not really.

[Not since I was a child.]

I didn't have a lot of free time in the Oracle Knights.

[concealingeyes]

Ah, yeah... Is that why you've been practicing cooking now?

[If Asch suddenly has freetime...]

[bloodyashes]

Among other things.

[Training, for one - just because he can relax doesn't mean letting himself get rusty, even if the Initiative's idea of training is well below his level.]

I've got a place I'm looking to fix up. It's an old restaurant, so if all goes well, maybe I can get it operating again.

[concealingeyes]

You're going to run a restaurant? That's really cool. [She smiles as she says it.] What made you want to do that?

[She doesn't want to assume it's a dream of his since he makes it sound like his life hasn't given him time for those.]

[bloodyashes]

[Nope, not much time for dreaming, or much inclination when you're being told that you're only useful for your fonon frequency and/or to die.]

It'll be a while before it's up and running. The building isn't in very good shape.

[He shrugs slightly.]

I'm a decent cook, and I don't like living off what the Initiative hands out. Might as well combine the two.

[concealingeyes]

[Wow Asch stop being so sad or you'll get awkwardly hugged someday.]

Do you need any help? I'm pretty handy at a lot of things. Well, and I've gotten pretty bored without regular missions to do.

[bloodyashes]

[AWKWARDLY HUG AWAY he needs it.]

That would be great, actually. Especially if you know someone who can fix a leaky roof.

[concealingeyes]

Seto would be better at it but me and Kano could probably do a decent job. We have to take care of the base back home.

[bloodyashes]

[Kido, you are an actual lifesaver. Congratulations, you have earned an Actual Smile.]

Anytime it would be convenient for you to do that would be fantastic. I can pay, if you need it.

[Since he's pretty frugal, especially now that he's got his wardrobe sorted out.]

[concealingeyes]

That'd be pretty nice. I've been working as a waitress to make some extra money.

[Well, they don't really spend it, either, but it's good to have just in case.]

[bloodyashes]

[Well, for the next while, he'll be spending most of his extra cash on tools and building supplies.]

Probably a good idea. I'd do so myself, but fixing up that building is going to be a full-time job in itself if I want it done any time soon.

[concealingeyes]

I could ask some other members of the Dan to help out, too. You're pretty much a member as far as I'm concerned anyway.

[bloodyashes]

The Dan?

[Member of what he did not sign up for this.]

[concealingeyes]

Ah, my gang. We're called the Mekakushi Dan. To us, it's basically a family. So it'd be strange not to at least think of you as an honourary member since we're friends. Well, I was going to invite you for real but I figured you might turn it down.

[bloodyashes]

...I see.

[A family, huh. It seems weird to even think about having one, of any kind; adoption isn't a foreign concept, but it's not very common in the noble families for obvious reasons. He doesn't really feel close enough to anyone to call them family, anymore.]

...I'll think about it.

[It's not exactly an outright no, either.]

[concealingeyes]

[Hey that's a lot better than she expected.]

No pressure. We've still got your back either way.

[That's just how it is. You grow up with the idea that family are people who make you happy, so anyone that fits that can be invited in.]

[bloodyashes]

[That makes him quiet a bit. Aside from one silly replica and company, he's not used to the idea of having anyone who would back him up, and in the case of Luke's group, most of them didn't really care for Asch himself all that much.

He makes a small noise of acknowledgement before peeling back the lid of another crateful of devices.]

So what are these?

[concealingeyes]

[Kido will take that acknowledgement. It's still something, after all. Plus she gets the feeling there's a lot in his past. But she won't ever ask.

For now she peeks into the crate and a long pause comes as she tilts her head. Her eyes widen and she jumps back from the crate.]

Th-Those are, uh- W-Well... I guess people here would... [Her face is going to match Asch's hair at this rate.] J-Just... think of them as... a kind of massager...

[bloodyashes]

[Her blushing only earns a pair of raised eyebrows, because he comes from a selective steampunk society and what is this.]

Massagers?

[concealingeyes]

[Kido groans and hangs her head. There is no good way of explaining this why does she have to? If she could hide right now, she would.]

Uh, they... 'massage' certain... areas of the body for... reasons. That are, you know, private and...stuff.