(no subject)

[initiates]

Date: December 1st
Location: The Observatory.
Characters: Everyone.
Summary: New Transports arrive and are shuffled into the Observatory after their initial briefings.
Warnings: None.

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, solemn and taciturn. 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, or tells you that the DITR's greeters will explain everything. On the tablet, you can find the history of this place and a record of what your new cohorts have experienced. 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; they show multiple variations of satellite images, focused on... somewhere snowy. It's difficult to say more than that, but those that record heat readings seem to suggest there are people there, where ever "there" is. It's night outside the great wide windows, and the lunar landscape isn't much to look at right now. But, hey, at least all the lights are on, right? No more creepy red emergency lighting upon arrival — not that you'd know anything about that.

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, and to the remains of Exsilium.

[[ ooc; As a note for players of current characters: please keep your root comments confined to the various groups and organizations that set up root comments to greet new characters! We highly encourage tagging around here, but since it's a log meant for new characters specifically, we ask that they be the ones to set up root threads to the entry. Thank you, and happy playing! ]]

Comments

<3

[pauldron]

[Lightning's not the type of person for random hugs, not like Vanille, but she does reach out to steady her anyway. Or at least, that was the idea. When Vanille doesn't fall from that stumbling pace, Lightning draws her arms back to rest them at her sides. Sounds real, too. Fang's not going to like this, that's for sure.]

Yeah. [A quick look up and down, checking for injuries, but when Vanille appears in one piece, she sighs quietly through her nose.] Did you just get here?

[smiled]

[overcome with joy from seeing someone she knows, the vanille that rocks animatedly back and forth on her heels bears little resemblance to the solemn, still figure that had been staring into space moments before.

she nods vigorously, pigtails bobbing with the motion, and makes one of the high-pitched sounds of enthusiasm anyone whose spent more than five minutes in her presence is familiar with, and possibly irritated by.] Uh-huh! I was looking for you, then I ended up back here!

[she tips her head back and sighs with happiness, stretching her arms above her head before dropping them to thread her fingers together behind her back.] So, where's everyone else?

[pauldron]

[Well, at least some things never change. Vanille's never-ending cheer is a relief to see once more, even if Lightning's likely to never admit it...or smile about it, though one corner of her mouth quirks upwards anyway. It's...not exactly easy to be angry when Vanille is here. Not really.]

Around. Fang, Snow, Hope, and Serah are also here, though Fang's not on the base right now. [No, she's down there on the world they left behind. Lightning doesn't like that one bit.] I haven't see the others today, but they're around somewhere.

[She hopes. They can find them together, probably. Maybe that would be a good thing.]

[smiled]

[it takes a load off her shoulders, hearing that more of her friends are here, though she's not sure she approves of fang being off the base (they'll have to talk about that later, when fang returns), and her concern about the fate of cocoon still weighs heavily at her.

she has a million questions, but one seems more pressing than the others for the moment: there was a name missing in that list. vanille twists her fingers nervously and looks up at lightning, brows drawn together with worry.] What about Sazh?

[pauldron]

[Lightning immediately shakes her head. There's no sense in holding off telling the truth here.]

Not here. [Left alone to fight the fal'Cie...or in a world where time has stopped. She's still not sure of that.] I've been here three months and haven't seen him once. Not since I got dragged here.

[smiled]

[her face falls, mouth tilting down at the edges, though not quite enough to be called a full-blown frown. but in an instant it's gone, replaced by the grin of someone who has to believe the best in a bad situation or risk falling apart.] Maybe he came here with me, we just gotta find him!

[she reaches out then, and does take hold of lightning's hand, attempting to drag her along.] You can show me around while we're at it! [there's a momentary pause in which her disappointment (and maybe a little disapproval) at fang's being off-base becomes apparent.] And tell me where Fang went!

[pauldron]

[The attempt at dragging her doesn't get very far, Lightning digging her heels in. Slow down, girl! There's one more thing that needs mentioning!]

She went back down to the planet. [A gesture with her free hand out the window, at the sphere below them.] She went with others on a mission. I don't know when she's coming back.

[Because she figures Vanille would ask when. Those two were attached at the hip, after all.]

[smiled]

[stopping short when she feels the resistance, vanille looks back at lightning over her shoulder, but doesn't let go of her hand just yet. she's always been tactile, fond of communicating through touch, but she's never really touched lightning. part of it was probably lightning's general stand-offishness, but a larger part was vanille's constant guilt over the situation she'd gotten them all in. she didn't have the right, not when it was her fault lightning's whole life had gone to pieces.

they'll have to talk about that, she decides. she hadn't really gotten the chance to properly apologize, and in the face of her promise to be brave, she can't very well run from that conversation. but now's not the time for that. they've got friends to find... and fangs to frown at.] A mission? What kind of mission?

[pauldron]

[To Lightning, the apologies would matter but not change anything. It isn't as if they could go back and change the past, change what had already happened. There was no going back to the days that had passed. Now, they had to deal with the here and now. With the future that was coming.]

Recon. Finding out if it was safe to move everyone back or not. [her eyes narrow, that old familiar habit of scoping out a situation before running ahead. She's no Snow, that's for sure. She still hasn't pulled her hand back just yet, not feeling cornered enough to do so. besides, it's Vanille. Even if the cheer is annoying, she's family.] Considering the last time we were down there they tried to blow us all up, I'd be surprised if situation's cooled down enough to do that.

[The whole world out to get them. At least it's still familiar.]

[smiled]

[Vanille is nodding along with the explanation; recon is something Fang would do - she hates being cooped up and feeling useless - but she's a little upset that they don't get to see each other just yet, and it shows in the drooping of her shoulders.

But the sadness dissipates with the next bit of information she's given, blown away by the shock that follows. She pulls her hand back to press both palms against her cheeks, eyes wide.] What? Why!

[It's not that she's unused to violence and people fighting, but more the casual way Lightning says it, coupled with the knowledge that Fang is down there now.]

[pauldron]

[It's less casual and more to the point. There's no point in sugar-coating any of this, not when things are really that bad. She doesn't hesitate to explain, but does linger a moment to find the right words. She's never been good at this kind of thing...]

Because we're fighting a war against them. They're trying to take out the opposing side, same as Cocoon's forces were. [A sigh, then:] They're doing just about everything they can to take us out, even if it means taking out their own people in the process.

[A lot of their own people. She remembers the Island, for what little time she spent on it.]

[smiled]

[Vanille's shoulders only droop more at Lightning's response. She hates war and killing and unnecessary death, but that seems to be all the gods fit to fill her life with.

Everywhere she goes, there's only tragedy left behind. Or at least, it had been that way until she had found peace at last, asleep with Fang inside that crystal pillar. But here she is again, seemingly doomed to fight even against her will.] Oh... [It's a small, sad sound, barely more than a sigh. But Vanille is not one prone to letting things keep her down for too long - visibly at least - so she perks up and forces a sunny smile.] We'll just have to do the best we can then, won't we? [A nod, mostly to herself.] And our best is pretty good!

[pauldron]

[Their best, huh? This is different than what they're used to. Cocoon's forces would have eventually run out of manpower or they would have defeated Orphan. This...this seems so much bigger, and not everyone has the same idea in mind to get the job done. There's too many people here to make things work smoothly. It's not like it was before.

But still...they're just going to have to make it work.]

Yeah. [She's right about that, at least. Their best is pretty good, really.] Humans are easier than the fal'Cie, anyway. Shouldn't be too hard once we find them.

[Unless they get bombed again. But that's a thought for another time. Putting a hand on Vanille's shoulder, Lightning gestures for her to follow.] Come on. I'll show you around.

[smiled]

Right! [Vanille nods, pumping her fists determinedly. She knows, of course, that things are easier said than done, but after what they've all been through together, she has to believe they're capable of anything. And she has to keep that hope alive for the others - it's the least she can do, after everything.] We can definitely do it!

[At Lightning's hand her shoulder, she relaxes a bit, some of the forced enthusiasm behind her words and actions melting away. It's comforting in a way she hadn't expected, and it gives Vanille a little more determination and a little more hope. It helps her really believe in what she's been saying.] Thanks! I tried looking around before, but I didn't get very far!

[pauldron]

There's not that far to go. It can be a little confusing if you're not paying attention to where you're going, but it's not that big of a place. [Just one that calls for walking in circles a lot. Stepping down the hall, Lightning inclines her head.] It's about the same size as Oerba, now that I think about it.

[Just. More cramped and without the gentle winds or sea the Pulsian town surely once had. Oerba might have been easier to live in even now.]

[smiled]

[The mention of her ruined home hits Vanille like a sudden blow to the chest, and she finds herself sucking in a quick breath of air. She hadn't really had time to grieve, for all that she'd known in her bones for ages that Oerba had been reduced to nothing.

There was something different about seeing it though, something visceral and painful about knowing that she was responsible for its devastation and witnessing that devastation up close. They had been on a mission when they passed through, had been desperate to find answers, and so Vanille had promised herself she would pay her respects to the dead later, and pushed her sorrow to the back of her mind.

She pushes that sorrow back again now, and all of her aching is visible on her face for only the briefest of moments before she pipes up, just as cheerful as ever:] Oh, then I'll learn my way around in no time!

[She skips forward a few steps, then turns to face Lightning again.] They told me I have a room... how about we go see it?

[pauldron]

[With her back turned to Vanille as she walks, Lightning doesn't catch that ache. She wouldn't really understand even if she did. Losing Serah isn't the same as losing a home, and Serah is here. Oerba and its people aren't, except for their absent friend. The differences are stark, and always will be.

Really, all they can do is move forward. Keep moving forward and not dwell on the past until they can go back home. So she nods, then inclines her head back in Vanille's direction.]

What's the room number? We can head there first.

[smiled]

Uhmmm... [The sound is long and drawn out, and Vanille scrunches her face up, tapping her forehead as she tries to remember.]

I think it was... [And then it's like a lightbulb goes off, and she points that tapping finger upward in jubilant celebration of her obviously amazing memory. Nevermind that she could just look it up on the tablet.] 192!

[pauldron]

[192...that's back down the other corridor. Determined to get her there and actually start this tour off, Lightning turns on her heel.]

This way. I'll call the others while you get settled.

[The others still up here, anyway. Not that she has any doubts Fang will be pulling Vanille into their shared quarters once the other woman gets back. Attached at the hip, those two.]

[smiled]

Sounds good! [Vanille turns to follow, heels clicking against the floor as she trots to keep up. Some things never change; the brisk way Lightning moves when she's got a goal, however minor, is one of them.

They walk quietly together for a minute or two before Vanille, whose thoughts have once again turned inward to her worry about the fate of Cocoon, breaks the silence.]

Say, Lightning? What's going to happen to Cocoon? [She scuffs a booted toe against the ground as she moves.] I mean, since we're all... here?

[pauldron]

[Having pulled out her tablet to send the others texts, Lightning doesn't answer right away. She still doesn't really know how to answer that question, what with no experience to back up anything she can say. She knows Fang and Snow wouldn't lie about something like this, but...]

I'm not sure. [She sighs quietly.] Fang told me that times flows differently here, that we'd all been here before and hadn't noticed a thing back in our world. [She shakes her head. No use thinking about it.] I don't know what's going to happen to Cocoon, but we can't worry about that now. We've got enough things to deal with here.

[smiled]

[It's something of a relief, to get a response that's so... Lightning. Of course they have enough things to deal with here, and can't do anything about Cocoon from where they are. Since Vanille has known her, Lightning's been the type to concentrate on one problem at a time, and solve each one that's presented to her with admirable efficiency. To hear something so opposite of her own tendency toward excessive guilt and worry, well, it makes her feel better.

Vanille nods and breathes in slowly, deeply, then out again. She exhales the lurking panic, for now.]

You're right! [She stands taller, shoulders straight, perhaps unconsciously mimicking the soldier's posture that seems to come so naturally to Lightning.] If there's nothing we can do... well, worrying won't help anyone. Focus on what you can change, and think about the rest later. [A pause.] I met some people, before you found me. They said I'd been here before, too. Maybe Fang is right. [Another pause, followed by a tentative smile. She hopes so, for Cocoon's sake, and for the sake of her newfound family.] And if she is, then there really is nothing to worry about, right?

[pauldron]

Right. [She says it around a sigh, not entirely believing that there's really nothing to worry about with this whole mess, but still knowing they really can't get swept up in it. Not yet.]

We just need to stay alive, finish this, and get back home. [Said like it's the simplest thing in the world. Well, it's an ultimate goal at least. The rest they can handle as it comes if it comes. She doesn't let any of her apprehension show as she returns her focus to the tablet, scrolling across pages and menus all while walking the halls. Hope and Serah and Snow have to be here somewhere.] At least it's not the first time we've faced impossible odds.

sorry i was partying it up!

[smiled]

[It's a good thing for all of them that Vanille's supply of optimism is virtually endless, even if her guilt tends to chip away at it from time to time.

She latches on to what Lightning says like a lifeline, uses it to pull herself away from any negative thoughts; she can ill afford them right now. She looks around the room instead of dwelling on things they cannot change, poking and prodding and exploring as she is wont to do.] I'm sure it won't be the last... not while we're here!

[She's back to her usual perky self now that Lightning has managed to reassure her, and peeks over her shoulder at the tablet.] Didja find them yet?

no worries~

[pauldron]

Yeah. [At least someone's more optimistic than Lightning, though that doesn't take much. The near involuntary quirk of her mouth in a half smirk drops as Vanille peers over her shoulder, but Lightning nods anyway. She's found their contacts, but hasn't sent the messages yet. Soon. Very soon.]

Working on it. Hope should be nearby, though.

[She thinks. Dammit where the hell is everybody?]