exsiliumlogs | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Date: May 1st
Location: The Initiative Hold & Courtyard.
Characters: Everyone.
Summary: New Transports arrive and are shuffled into the Courtyard after their initial briefings, while those Transports on the mission to Wollongong return.
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.

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.

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[Jade's reward is Guy obediently taking the umbrella. Some habits are hard to kick. But he doesn't smile or look calm and easy as he holds it over both of them, shielding them from the rain.]

[This is the first thing you say? But it's Jade, of course it's the first thing he says, it's the first greeting Guy gets from this particular friend.]

[He briefly contemplates smiling, playing along, rolling his eyes and muttering about Jade being a horrible person.]

[He also considers grabbing him and shaking him until something human falls out (there isn't enough human in there for it to be worth the effort).]

[He settles for neutral and blunt.]

How's Luke?

Then you've seen him.

[There isn't enough human in there, but Jade pushed and umbrella into Guy's hands instead of hitting him with an uncomfortable. Not enough human, but Jade wanted to protect Guy from the sudden and aching pain he had felt a month ago.

Too late. That's all right. Jade isn't human enough to regret that.]

He has been doing well. As far as I've been able to tell, both he and Asch are in perfect health. Neither has shown any signs of an unstable existence.

[Guy is beyond disoriented by this whole adventure, the entire setting. Seeing Luke, and Asch even, is enough to unbalance the semblance of equilibrium he's built in the scant time since his arrival. Jade's the only one he's comfortable enough letting that show to, even if that itself might be telling in ways he'd rather no one see.]

...

[He could say a lot to that, a flash of anger at Jade's neutral tone--what good would getting angry at Jade for being Jade do though?]

[It might make Guy feel less helpless. He looks away, frustrated, but manages to direct his confused burst of emotion at glaring at the rain a moment, instead of the less productive "yell at the convenient target". He has more self-control than that.]

Good. Fill me in.

Asch and Luke have been here longer and can give more detailed information. In a brief summary, we are as you've doubtless worked out: tools in a losing battle. The Initiative tends to favour us over its native people, devoting most of our resources to getting us and keeping us.

Given the general state of the transports, I can easily believe that the Initiative can't control who they do or do not bring here. Their missions are poorly run and would never be acceptable by the standards of any of Auldrant's militaries. The smaller, individualized missions, of which I've been sent on one, seem more more tailored to the abilities of those sent alone. Our last large-group mission was to cause members of a reclusive population to leave their homes. No guidelines or restrictions on Transport behaviour were given.

The Transports themselves are varied in opinion, as you would expect. Unless someone else has slipped past while I wasn't looking only you, Luke, Asch, and I are from Auldrant.

...This sounds like a complete mess.

[But at least it's nice to know where they stand. Even if it is in the middle of a complete mess. Guy shifts, closer to Jade, holding the umbrella still considerately more over the other than himself.]

[He's tired and tense and upset but he's still thinking. Considering the situation as it's been explained and as he's seen.]

What are your goals right now?

[Jade hardly notices. He really doesn't mind the rain that much, but he thinks he knows a few of Guy's comforts by now.]

I've been trying to repurpose some medical equipment to respond to fonons. [But fontech isn't his specialty, so.] Despite my reservations, I've determined it best to work with the Initiative for the time being. [That, of course, means he has been actively looking into everything about them.]

Let me look at the equipment. I'll see what I can do.

[Not that he's sure he can do a better job than Jade. Jade's ability with anything "not his specialty" is still uncanny. It must be nice, sometimes, being a genius.]

...You think so? [That, coming from Jade, means a hell of a lot more about the situation than anything else Guy's heard so far.]

[Jade nods; he was hoping for Guy's assistance. A lot of Jade's non-speciality may be things he takes to easily, but he genuinely dislikes working with fontech and would rather have outside assistance.]

I can't approve of any organization that kidnaps unsuited civilians for battle and resurrects the dead. Unfortunately, the threat the United Earth poses to Auldrant and other worlds makes opposing them preferable to standing idle.

[A small noise of agreement. There's no approving of what the Initiative is doing. But if Jade thinks that the United Earth is a bigger threat and it's worth cooperating... Than that's that, isn't it? He trusts Jade's judgement.]

So we help them out. [It's a lot to take in.] Sounds like we've been conscripted to an indefinite battle.

Just as I had begun to look at Malkuth's retirement plans for officers. [By which Jade means yes.] Of course, it will also be wise to keep an eye on the Initiative's capabilities and motives. I'd hate to win a war only for a new threat to form. [Sam technology as the UE, same resource-starved world. The Initiative has already proven itself willing to bend morals in a desperate situation.]

[Guy shifts a bit, thinking. That much was natural precaution--the lesser of two evils was still an evil. Work with the Initiative didn't mean trusting them necessarily. And having the same goal at present didn't mean goals wouldn't diverge in the future.]

It seems we're a little low on resources for dealing with new threats, even if one did appear.

[Do you have a contingency plan Jade or is that a future goal.]

[A yes and a no.] Working with the Initiative and coming to understand them may help with that.

[If he has to take them apart himself to keep Auldrant safe, so be it.]

[There won't be any argument from Guy about tearing the Initiative down brick by brick if there's a threat to their world. They worked too damn hard (gave up too much) to save it the first time.]

Alright. That's fine for now. What's this equipment you want me to look at?

A fonon scanner. With your help, we may be able to adapt it to multiple functions. [Scieeeeeeence.

He just wants to make sure his redheads aren't going to do something stupid like, he doesn't know, dissolve into nothing or smush into one person or something. But telling Guy about the Big Bang is still not high on Jade's goals, whether 'the big bang' refers to the scientific theory of fomicry or that chuck lorre sitcom.]

That should be doable.

[Having a project will help pass the time too. And Guy does enjoy that kind of thing genuinely. If it can help Jade out all the better.]

[Even if Jade's a jerk who keeps crucial information about redheads and sitcoms from Guy. Do you know how cool the idea of sitcoms are? That kind of wide spread technology? Why think of how cool televised broadcasting is even--!!]

[Probably a good thing to keep Guy in the dark all around, really.]

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