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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["Bunnies?"]

Yeah, they can eat those, too, but we need hay to make sure he's getting enough fiber.

[He shifts his hold on the rabbit though, so Shiro can poke his head out of the blanket Shintaro put over him.]

My hands are full. You want to give him some lettuce?

[She stares when that fluffy white head peeks out. Way too cute...]

Ah, yeah sure. [Kido takes some out of the bag and leans down to be closer to him. Though, she doesn't want to spook the poor thing. She naturally talks more gently to it anyway.]

...Hey little guy, here. Sorry it's raining so much.

[The rabbit sniffs nervously at the food he's being offered. He's jittery, but he'll take the lettuce and start nibbling on it happily.]

You can call him Shiro. I mean, he won't respond like dogs will, but that's his name.

Shiro, huh? [Kido wouldn't be very original with names either so it sounds good to her.] It suits him. Feeling better, Shiro?

I think he's fine. He didn't get too wet in the rain so he won't get sick, either. [He takes a minute to play with the rabbit though to make sure Shiro is getting the attention he needs.]

So, how long have you and Kano been here?

[At least Shiro is okay! That makes Kido smile just a little before it fades at the question.]

Hm, about three months I guess. It feels like a really long time.

[Three, huh? Shintaro dreads that idea, looking around again. He never imagined the future -- on the rare occasion that he tried to see the future as more than a mass of dark blurry shadows -- to look like this. It's kind of sad. (He wonders if this might happen to their world, and if Ene would survive something like this.)

He sighs.]

That's great. I've got a feeling we'll be here for a while, then.

[She scratches the back of her head. As far as optimism goes, she's hit or miss. Her type doesn't work on everyone, though it seemed to work pretty well on Momo. But Shintaro can't let himself get too down about it.]

I know we don't know each other well but you've got us. We've been making the best of it since dwelling on it won't do any good. So, as long as you're here, may as well try to keep going, right?

Hm? Aah, yeah. Thanks.

At the very least, it comes as a relief that there are people I knew beforehand that know this place better than I do.

That's good to hear. [She was kind of worried he'd end up curling back up somewhere.] Maybe I underestimated you. Sorry.

[He might once this all sets in.]

Huh? What do you mean by that? Come on... do you know where they might sell hay?

[She pats Shiro's head gently before straightening up.]

Don't worry about it. Anyway, yeah, there's some you can find. Is it for a pen for him?

For his pen, and for food. Rabbits need a lot of hay to keep themselves healthy and not sick.

[Shiro-san's life will be in danger if we don't get hay, Kido.]

[This just became the most serious mission ever.]

Right. Come on.

[She starts walking quietly but with purpose. Gotta make sure the rabbit is safe.]

[... That was easy to predict, thinks Shintaro, as he replies with a quiet "o-oh yeah" and starts following her.]

Do you know where to find them?

Yeah. There's this old woman who sells stuff like that. You can probably tell but the soil here isn't so great for growing things, so you need to make sure you know which vendors have what you need.

Yeah, I figured. This weather is bad for farming, too. Where does she get her stuff then?

I haven't asked. I figure it's safe enough if the locals can use it. They've figured out how to survive here, you know?

Aah, yeah. I've noticed it. Even though everything around them is either a wasteland or enemy territory, it's doing pretty well. [Shintaro retained the information from his tour pretty well, it seems.] It would help to know, though.

Huh, you hear information well, don't you? That's a good trait to have. [She has to know what he's capable of and what uses he'll have to the Dan after all.]

Tell you what. You can ask her. That would be good practice for you, right? I'll be right here the whole time.

You think so? It wasn't that difficult, honestly.

[But he immediately grimaces and looks away at the suggestion of talking to this unknown lady at the vendor. Well, he's done a good chunk of interaction already. He could try. He guesses. But.]

You don't have to treat me like a preschooler on his first errand.

Sorry if it comes off that way. It did sound rude, huh...? [She scratches the back of her head.] You get why I'm concerned though, right? Because you're from back home and your sister needs our help, you're important to us. So knowing what you can do and what your limits are will help. That includes how much social interaction you can take and how you manage it now.

[A beat.] I have to think this way, so don't take it personally if it sounds off.

Huh? I don't mind. If that's what you have to do as Leader then it's fine.

[Besides, if Kido is the leader of the first people Momo ever called her "friends" and was going to help his sister with her problem, then he can deal with a little bit of deadpan. It's not like they seemed like bad people.]

Aah, but if it's social interaction, I want to outright refuse.

I see. [She puts her hands in her pockets.] So... you only want to interact with us? What about missions? Are you just going to stick with us the whole time?

[He sighs and steps forward to walk a little ahead of her.]

I never said I wouldn't. I don't want to, but it's kind of necessary here, isn't it? [He glances back at her.] I'm not a big fan of it, that's all.

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