Week 1

[linkupmods]

WEEK 1

AWAKENING.

You were taken. That much is obvious when you come to your senses and see the world around you. You feel a little groggy – just how long were you asleep for? – but you should otherwise be alert, enough to realize that the surrounding area is unfamiliar to you. You are in front of what appears to be a modern dormitory (or, well, just a large building, for anyone who's never quite seen anything like it before). The area is decorated with balloons, streamers and other miscellaneous decorations with a giant "WELCOME" banner spanning across the front entrance.

You have a moment to look at the people around you. Strangers. No one here looks familiar to you whatsoever. Furthermore, it feels like there is something stirring in your heart, waiting to be brought to light, waiting to speak your truth...

You might need more time to let that sink in, but that time is interrupted by a voice.

"Oh wow it actually worked- Um, I mean! Hello!"

The speaker is a short, plain-looking young woman with dark hair in a bob cut, her hand raised to catch everyone’s attention.


"Welcome to Sunset City! The goddess Braphine needs your help, so she’s called all of you here to fix this place. Fortunately, it should only take about three months of cooperation, I think? Probably. So...

Welcome to your new home away from home!"

The young woman - Mina - goes on to explain the current situation: everyone here has been summoned by the goddess of community and connection, Braphine, in order to rebuild the connections of the people of Sunset City. Lately, the people have become more and more isolated from each other, getting into fights and arguments over the pettiest of details.

While Mina doesn’t know the details, exactly, what she does know is that the goddess instructed her to prepare these dorms for residents ("that’s you!") and to more or less act as her representative. Mina will also note that everyone’s dorm rooms have already been labeled with their names, and that the goddess has deigned to gift some in particular with the means to defend themselves - which is to say, when characters do eventually make it to their dorm rooms, those who did not arrive with one will find their gifted weapon waiting for them with their name handwritten on a tag attached to the item.

For now, people can use their phones to access an app that will allow them to see any currently open commissions - complete the commissions, and they will not only help the community, but also earn money and rewards! And if your character doesn’t know how to operate a phone, well... Mina will patiently guide them through the process, don’t you worry.

If your character has any other questions, they may talk to her at the party, or otherwise contact her via phone!

WELCOME PARTY.

After speaking with Mina, you may have an idea of what you're supposed to be doing here. Things don't have to be all work, though, because despite the state of the city, you are allowed to have fun and get to know one another.

Mina has graciously set up a welcome party for everyone, which will have refreshments inside and outside the dorm, and games available for people to partake in throughout the day at their own leisure! Indoors, there are a variety of board games for you to mess around with. Outside, there's a pool, basketball and tennis court set up with appropriate equipment. Of course, you aren't limited to just those, as there's a small open field at the dormitory where you can play ball in other ways, too. Interestingly enough, there are also some training dummies available for you to use...maybe to put your weapons to use?

Don't forget about the arts and crafts section inside, either, where nametags are laid out for you to create your own (or others')! You can also use this section to create decorations for the dormitory, your room, or even something to give to a fellow dorm mate.

EXPLORE.

You're free to explore the town, too, at your own leisure, to get used to your new home. The city is bustling with people, but for some reason, many of the residents don't have good vibes. They seem unsettled, unhappy for whatever reason. It's not pleasant, but nobody will go out of their way to bother you, unless you trip into them or initiate pvp yourself.…The random trash scattered around various parts of town might make it hard to avoid the former, though. Be careful not to trip on a banana peel, a stray canister, or even something as large as a throwaway tire on the side of the street. The residents will not react positively if you try to interact with them in any capacity.

That being said, for all that the city seems gloomy at a first glance, there is surprisingly an advertisement for a go-kart racing contest coming up in three weeks, and the go-karts are two seaters! The flyers posted around town read that this is a competition for pairs; the driver's seat (left) has a gas pedal, and the passenger's seat (right) has the brake. Looks like the events are being hosted by one of the popular arcades in town, too. Even so, there are prizes for first, second, and third place; the grand prize consists of a good amount of cash, a trophy, and one (1) free night at one of the hotels in Carnation Court for both people. Why not team up with someone and enter the competition, or just find some people to practice with?

(OOC: Please see our OOC section for sign up details.)

NETWORK.

So, about those phones...there's a non-zero chance that you may post your live thoughts onto the network without meaning to. Likewise, you may also unwillingly comment on someone's post with your thoughts while reading it. Yes, this phone grabs from your psyche, for better or worse! Well, mostly worse, but oh well. There isn't a fix for this "bug" just yet, but you can still use the network intentionally! Just don't be surprised if you get a bunch of notifications for a post you didn't even know you made.

COMMISSIONS

TOP MODELS

A local boutique is looking for people to model their clothing, but they plan on taking group photos instead of single shots. This will be a summer-themed photoshoot with summer outfits (not necessarily swimsuits!), and the photographer (who is cranky, sorry) plans on encouraging all kinds of interactions between their subjects for some unique photos. Participants will be able to keep the outfits they wore for the photoshoot! How nice.

CLEANUP

You've seen the questionable state of the city streets. Should you feel like doing your part by cleaning up some of the trash, you may find something valuable hidden in all the rubble. And who knows? Maybe some of the residents might actually respond kindly to your efforts... (Cleaning up can unearth things like jewelry; collector's items; small, old electronics -- just to give you an idea! Go wild.)

PVP ENABLED

Basketball, volleyball, soccer match anyone? Monopoly? Uno? Or, better yet, a sparring match with your fellow dorm mates…? Whatever you feel up for, Mina would like residents to get some friendly ("friendly") competition going in the spirit of getting to know one another.

LEAVE YOUR MARK

The arts and crafts area has a large paper canvas taped to one of the walls with a "DRAW ON ME!" post-it stuck to it. There's a lot of room to be creative with this, and yes, you will get paid for just decorating the dorms a little bit through this commission!

OOC

READ ME!!!!

• Welcome to your event log! Currently, Personas and Elements are NOT in play but you have your weapons with you regardless. These things will be unlocked when we introduce the Nekyia in Week 2.
  
• Please use the OOC PLOTTING POST for all plotting purposes. Please do not plot in Discord.
  
• If you would like to sign up for the Go-Kart Contest, please fill out the form and submit it here! There will be a follow up to this in a Week 4 mini event. :)
  
• Furthermore, we have a very big series of events we are planning to do in later weeks. We will OOCly give details and open signups early in Week 2, with the introduction of the Nekyia. Keep an eye out for that as well!
  

ic comm | inboxes | ooc comm | full nav

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Comments

[destage]

[Sayaka's observant enough to notice someone taking a seat next to her--she briefly goes tense, but the lack of speaking isn't unwelcome, at least. Maybe they need some time themself. Sayaka isn't sure, but she doesn't look up until McGillis speaks, eyes red and at least trying to look somewhat like a good kid--

And then she sees him. He's just as bloody as she is--it gets Sayaka to stare for a moment, before she has the basic decency to look away. He's not staring at anything. She could at least do this man the basic decency of not staring either.]

...No. It's one of the first things I checked when I, um, got over here. I was worried I was going to bleed out on the ground, but...

[It's out before she can stop it, and she trails off there. Pausing really. She wonders how much she should really be saying, but...

...

He's just as bloody as she is. Maybe he's a good person. Maybe they're both bad people. But...if that's the case, he'll at least do her the courtesy of stabbing her in the front, right? Maybe it's okay. To trust, to be a little...honest, even if it's clear Sayaka's awkward about it as she looks at the knife in her hand. The one she clutches like a lifeline--like the only thing she knows. Even if her right wrist still hurts some, but...]

...It seems to have healed over. I'm...not sure how to feel about it. [...] What about you, sir? You look pretty injured yourself--did everything heal over for you, too?

[vogelfrei]

[ Like Sayaka is holding a knife, McGillis is holding a gun... holding being a generous term for it resting loosely in his hand on the floor next to him. Normally he'd feel the need to be vigilant, to defend himself, but... What's the point? What's the point of any of this, when everything should have ended already? The curtain has closed and opened again on an encore he never practiced for.

He sighs and nods. ]

It's all gone, yes.

[ There's supposed to be a bullet in his chest and it's been ripped from him. Irrationally, this makes him angry. It hadn't been someone else's to take. ]

If we'd been saved in the conventional way, they would have changed our clothes. We would have scarred.

[ But they haven't. They've been plucked right out of the moment, it seems.

Glancing over at her, McGillis idly wonders how a girl like that got into a lethal knife fight. ]

[destage]

[The gun is something Sayaka finds herself staring at, instead of McGillis himself. Gun laws are very strictly controlled where she comes from, so seeing one out in the open like this...it's a little surprising, but it gives her an idea of what he must have gone through. Was he some sort of soldier, maybe? He's a little fancily dressed for such a role, but it makes the most sense to Sayaka...

Still, she's at least glad she's not the only one who was healed of her injuries. Even if he probably went down a little more nobly than she did.

...

Still, the second statement, despite itself--it gets a bit of soft laughter from Sayaka. If only because--]

I-I--I'm gonna be honest. I think it's a little rude of them that they didn't think of at least giving us clean clothes. We kind of look like...like vengeful spirits compared to everyone else, huh?

[...It's an awkward statement, but it's an attempt. Sayaka almost immediately regrets it after.]

...Just ignore that, sir. I'm still...shaken up. But it is pretty inconsiderate to drag us all the way over here like this. I can't imagine how it is for everyone else...

[vogelfrei]

[ Sayaka may regret her attempt, but it does land with McGillis who's eyes finally stop focusing on either a) absolutely nothing or b) her knife, and instead land on her face. He gives her a lopsided but genuine smile. ]

Unless everyone else died either by poison or in their sleep, we appear to be the odd ones out.

[ It seems statistically unlikely though, for a group of people skewing this young to all have passed without external injury of any kind. McGillis thinks this lends itself to two possible conclusions: either they were brought in alive or they're not even real to start with.

Sayaka might also not be real, but the chances feel at least a little higher thanks to their shared predicament. ]

If what we were told is true, there's a sick kind of humor to it, bringing people who died in violent confrontations in for the sake of connections.

[ He's just making this assumption about her, because it seems pretty safe to make. ]

[destage]

[...God, Sayaka finds herself chuckling despite itself. It's shaky, a little unintentional, but it's still laughter because she hates how funny that was--]

We really are, if that's the case. And none of 'em even look old enough to have gone in their sleep, either...

[It's strangely nice. No airs she has to put on right now, no mask she has to keep. Not that she knows how to be a human person, but right now, she doesn't care about that. It's strange, but...comforting.]

...There really is, honestly. It feels like a second chance, but...kind of weirdly forced. [...] I didn't, um. Really hear what she had to say all that well, but...do you think it's anything worth believing in, at all? I'm not sure what to think...

[vogelfrei]

[ That's a mild way to put it, but also an apt one. Even interpreting the actions of Braphine in the most generous light, it winds up feeling patronizing. (Like something is taken from him, like even his death can't remain untouched and belong to him alone.) ]

We are, apparently, meant to stay here for three months and help 'rebuild the connections of the people in this city'. A goddess named Braphine summoned us for that purpose, and that girl is her priestess.

Assuming no ulterior motive, it's exactly as petty as it sounds - the people in this place like to argue and we are meant to fix it for them through a variety of tasks. In return, we'll get financial compensation and a place to stay in these dorms.

[ Being able to take in information even when he's totally out of his mind with 'having just died' is his strong suit and he's grateful to his past self for having trained that kind of pragmatism. ]

"Forced" is a good word for it, I agree.

[destage]

[...Building connections. Something about that gets Sayaka's look to sour very slightly for a moment, though she manages to school it back a bit.]

...It sounds like something a business would do, if I'm going to be honest. Forcing us to make connections, and for what? A place that's...

[...]

We're really just being summoned from the dead to do some goddess's menial labor. It's almost hilarious. It sounds like working for my managers, but worse somehow. I don't know if you've had any superiors in your time, but I imagine it must be the same for you, maybe...?

[Either way. Sayaka rakes one of her free hands through her hair, pausing a bit.]

...I wonder what's going to happen after--if any of this is going to matter at all.

[vogelfrei]

[ The notion of superiors makes McGillis exhale sharply though his nose, amused. He hasn't been kowtowing to people in quite a while, but it's hard to forget how absolute servitude feels. ]

We owe her our lives. If she wanted to, she could send us back to death anytime should we not cooperate. And after... well, if she was going to get rid of us she would not say so outright.

[ Gotta keep them motivated for the task at hand and all. ]

But I wouldn't consider it an impossibility. Right now we're in the palm of her hand.