here they talked of revolution, here it was they lit the flame

[initiates]

Date: October 1st
Location: The Observatory.
Characters: Everyone.
Summary: New Transports arrive and are shuffled into the Observatory for the show of the year. Initial briefings are very brief this time around, and that Greeter just won't stop crying.
Warnings: new confused people and old sad people??

Your arrival here has been very unceremonious. One second you were somewhere else, and now, very suddenly, your feet hit the glowing white of the Transporter pad, and you're here. You aren't alone, either. There's a crowd of others around you, each seeming just as bewildered, angry, or confused as you might feel. At the head of the group is a woman in purple robes, with eyes red as if she'd just finished crying. She hurries over a quick overview of your intended purpose here, and gives direct answers when asked for them, but to most things she simply shows you how to access the tablet you've just been given. There, you can find the history of this place and a record of what your new cohorts have experienced — although it won't have Network access for another 8 hours. Someone stands on hand to give you a weapon, and though the armory is now greatly reduced, you should be able to find something to suit you.

You're shepherded down a walkway tunnel and into the Observatory, where you will find screens mounted on three sides of the wide room. The only lighting comes from dull red emergency lights, and the scenes of a dreary, rainy city from various cameras up on the screens; the largest of the screens opens up to a view of Earth from a good distance away -- this one isn't a screen at all, you might realize, but a window. As you watch, all screens in the room fill with light, impossibly bright. It consumes the buildings, the people, everything. There is no sound played, perhaps mercifully, only that white light -- and then nothing.

Through the large window, there's a pinprick of light over one of the landmasses on the blue planet. It grows to a tiny blossom and then dies away, but a cloud begins to mushroom outward in the same spot. It pushes the natural clouds out of the way, claiming that small portion of the world and wrapping it in a uniform gray.

Strings of numbers begin to fill the blanked out screens as the base's AI begins collecting data and calculations, but the show seems to be over. You're free to explore the base, visit and use any of the VR rooms, or discover your new room and roommates, but try not to step out of any airlocks if oxygen is a requirement for your system.

Welcome to the moon base, with front row seats to the grave of Exsilium.

[[ooc; reminder! The Network will be down for 8 hours after the wave of new Transports.]]

Comments

[rewarded]

I guess. Still doesn't make it any less disappointing for anyone who's watching it from up here. [And, a small, disappointed sigh. She's acting like a grumpy 5-year-old over nuclear bombs, jeez.]

At least we'll see what fallout looks like from up here.

[affectate]

[She idly taps at the bone of her cheek, a little thoughtful.]

Ah, that's certainly very true... And, the shortage of food put aside, we are safe in this place. No one living on Earth would be so foolish as to detonate nuclear weapons on the moon.

As a result, we are free to observe the fallout as best as we can from this distance! I believe that Exsilium's past climate was itself the result of a nuclear winter, so this should be very interesting.

[rewarded]

Was it? I wasn't really paying attention to the climate, so-- I didn't really know about that.

[More like she was stuffing her face 24/7 and never went outside unless she had to. This girl just had to go and mention the food shortage, though. Now she's going to be painfully aware of the fact that she's hungry all the time.]

[affectate]

Yes! Outside, it was rather cold and rained often! That was the result of their previous uses of nuclear weapons. Because they had yet to recover from those effects, it should be interesting to observe what is effectively two nuclear strikes in quick succession!

That is what I believe, at any rate. You do not seem to be the sort to agree, so for your sake and my own, I do hope that this situation is reversed quickly.

[rewarded]

Huh. The more you know. [SCIENCE!!!]

Think we'll even be up here long enough to watch how fucked up the weather can get? They're already talking about going back and trying to change things, or something.

[What a waste of some perfectly good deaths, man.]

[affectate]

Hm...

While I would very much appreciate a return to that place's previous condition, it would certainly be interesting to see those effects for myself! However, I could not say -- I come from a world without nuclear weapons... we would first begin to see results this week, perhaps?

-- Ah. My name is Elaine!

[She says like her introducing herself and her talking about nuclear winter are totally related, what are you talking about.]

[rewarded]

Really? [That sounds... so uneventful...] How do your humans manage to start wars? With toy swords? Sticks, maybe?

[THAT'S KIND OF DRAMATIC, but. She can't imagine worlds without some sort of nuclear stuff.]

Right. Nice to meet you. The name's Samson-- or, something like that.

[affectate]

With magic, guns, and swords made of metal! Although we have not experienced any war in some time, regardless...

[It's kind of hard for her to imagine, really. Every time you want to start a war you have to prepare to destroy the environment for years? Well, if all the capable people on the other side get killed, it's more convenient. Nuclear winter means no one can eat and everyone still alive starves to death. If she thinks about it like that it's pretty smart? Eh.

Anyway. Isn't Samson --]

Ah, a boy's name? It does, however, come from an old Hebrew word meaning "sun," if I recall -- it suits you very well, Miss!

[rewarded]

Magic. What kind of magic are we talking about here? I can't imagine it'd be the type that doesn't fare well against guns.

[Saying this mostly because, well. The type of "magic" she's seen in her life is the type that usually takes a little bit to cast. Not very useful if you're going against someone who has a gun aimed at you.

But, totally shrugging at that...!!]

Hey-- I'm just repeating what the tablet said. [Being that she doesn't actually... remember her name......] Thanks, though.

[affectate]

You are fair-haired! It brings to mind the sun. So for you, whose hair is like the sun, to be named for the sun -- it does seem very appropriate!

[Anyway.]

The styles of magic most commonly used by members of the military are... augmentative enchantments, I believe? I doubt that an elementalist would fare well against a gun.