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

For Richard

[cleansewithfire]

[ The second night everyone's here, Sunrise remembers that oh, right, she has to change her bandages too. She's borrowed the first aid kit in the building for a bit and bought some extra bandages from the store to replace what she'll be using up.

She's sitting on her bed in the room and pulling her gloves to reveal that her hands are completely wrapped up in bandages, fingers and all. ]

[ledbythewind]

[For the most part, Richard has been trying to keep to himself as much as possible to avoid bothering his roommate (it's a bit awkward having a girl for a roommate, much less having a roommate at all, though it's not as though either of them have any choice on that front). He greets her when she enters their room and treats her politely, of course, but that's as far as he intends to go on the interaction front unless otherwise forced.

Still, it's impossible NOT to notice those bandages swathing Sunrise's arms, and so concern wins out over the desire to keep his distance.]

... did you injure yourself?

[He's not really sure why he's asking. He's no doctor or healer, nor does he have any sort of first aid skills beyond the most rudimentary. If her hands are bandaged up, then they've clearly been taken care of by someone else, so it's not as though there's any need for him to do anything about it.

So why is he asking, then...?]

[cleansewithfire]

[ On the other hand, Sunrise hasn't seemed very bothered by the idea of sharing a room with a guy and has also treated him unfailingly politely. ]

I did. [ Actually true. She can only really blame herself for this.

...Oh, right, Richard might not be used to this kind of thing, so... ]

You might want to look away.

[ledbythewind]

[His assumption, naturally, is that she doesn't wish to upset him with the blood that surely lies underneath. A kind thought to be sure, but it isn't something Richard isn't already accustomed to seeing, and so he shakes his head.]

You don't need to worry about me. I'm not bothered by the sight of blood.

[She doesn't need to know why that is, and he's not about to share.]

[cleansewithfire]

[ Simply: ] Oh. It is not blood.

[ Fortunately any bleeding stopped a long time ago. ]

But it is not pleasant to see, nonetheless.

[ledbythewind]

[... ah. Burns, perhaps? Goodness, what did she even do to herself?]

Still, I doubt it will upset me. Go ahead and change the bandages if that's what you need to do-- don't let me being here stop you.

[It's something of a relief that she isn't expecting him to help with it, at least, because while she's nice enough, she's still a stranger to him.]

1/2 [CW: Burn descriptions]

[cleansewithfire]

[ It's a funny story, but in a black humor sort of way. Sunrise looks at Richard for a moment. Her expression is blank enough that it's hard to say for sure what she's thinking, but she's probably appraising him before deciding to take his word for it.

Slowly, she unwraps the bandages around one hand. The first thing worth noting is that the skintone of her hand is noticeably different than the rest of her; darker, with a different undertone. As she reveals more of her hand, Richard can see that her palms and the undersides of her fingers are covered in burn scars, and like she held onto something too hot for too long. It seems like it's been a while, but the raised, dark web of bumpy skin all over isn't nice to see. ]

[cleansewithfire]

[ And then, with her mouth pressed into a straight line, she slowly bends over where she's sitting on her bed. Her hand is itchy. Her palm and fingers...hurt? They hurt.

It's not as if she no idea what pain feels like (there are certain things that even if she knows them only through inherited memory, she can never, ever forget). But pain is a new and Exciting™ experience for her to have herself, which is to say, it's probably impressive that she hasn't made a sound and has limited herself to just sort of keeling over with her hand held out. ]

[ledbythewind]

[The burn scars are unpleasant to look at, to be sure, but even so they could still be perfectly innocuous-- the result of a child grasping for something hot without having the knowledge that it will hurt them. The different skintone is a bit less easy to explain, though it doesn't raise any immediate red flags just yet either.

Sunrise doubling over suddenly in what appears to be pain does get a response from Richard, and he's quick to take a few steps forward, though he hesitates simply because he's not quite sure what to do.]

What's wrong? Are you ill?

[Could something about this world be making her sick somehow...?]

[cleansewithfire]

It...hurts?

[ There's the vague tone of someone confused about this like it isn't what they're used to happening. Her free hand sort of feels around blindly to try grabbing the iodine (which she doesn't actually know what it is, but if it's in this box it's bound to be useful right?). ]

This is the first time it has hurt.

[ledbythewind]

The scars, you mean?

[There's no point in dancing around the obvious, not when he was already just looking at them. But they clearly aren't at all fresh, though, so... hmm.]

Have you done anything that may have irritated them somehow?

[He's no doctor, he doesn't know the first thing about old injuries...]

[cleansewithfire]

I think...this is what it is supposed to feel like.

[ She says this while she's squinting at the instructions on the iodine bottle. Suddenly she better understands why Day had insisted she keep her hands bandaged under her gloves. ]

"Ask a doctor before use if you have serious burns"...

[ ...The way her eyes look at the label and then at her hand pretty much says she's trying to judge whether this applies to fairly serious burn scars. ]

[ledbythewind]

'Supposed to feel like'?

[The expression on Richard's face betrays his confusion. Sunrise may as well be speaking in tongues for all of the sense this makes to him, though he doesn't say as much out loud.]

Still, that warning should be referring to fresh burns, not ones that have already healed. I can't imagine it would cause harm if there aren't any open wounds.

[...]

May I see the bottle?

[cleansewithfire]

[ Sunrise obediently passes the bottle to Richard, perhaps in stark contrast to Richard's earlier hesitation. ]

...Normally, I cannot feel pain.

[ "Can't", not "don't", which is pretty telling in of itself. ]

[ledbythewind]

[Taking the bottle, he looks the instructions over just to be sure... they're pretty much what he expected them to be, which only furthers his confusion until Sunrise speaks and the pieces begin to fall into place.]

Not at all? Not even from new injuries?

[... some small part of him almost envies that. The memories of that encounter in Wallbridge spring vivid and unbidden to his mind, his brow furrowing just slightly at the reminder.]

[cleansewithfire]

No, not at all. Ms. Velvet said the part of this body that feels pain most likely does not function at all.

[ "This body", not "my body", for some reason...

She tilts her head when she notices Richard's brow furrow. ]

Are you alright?

[ledbythewind]

Yes, I'm fine.

[But his tone is a bit tight and more clipped than it was just a moment ago. He notes the odd choice of words, yet again opts to say nothing for the time being. This entire thing is just getting stranger and stranger...]

I would say that could be dangerous, but if you're able to feel pain while you're here, then I suppose it won't be a problem. Though I'd imagine it must be somewhat unpleasant to be feeling something you aren't used to...

[... ah. He realizes now why this girl gives him an odd sense of nostalgia. She's not unlike Sophie in many ways...]

[cleansewithfire]

[ Sunrise notices the change in tone, and wonders if perhaps she said something wrong. ]

It is...different. [ She isn't sure if she wants to call it strictly unpleasant, because: ] But I think it is a good thing, in a way.

[ledbythewind]

You do?

[Richard sounds... somewhat skeptical, yet also curious. Why would anyone want to feel pain if they didn't have to?]

[cleansewithfire]

Because pain is something everyone feels.

[ She says this as though this would give her something in common with other people. ]

...And Ms. Velvet says I would likely not get injured as much if I could feel pain.

[ledbythewind]

... I see. She is right about that.

[He's not quite sure what leads him to ask his next question. It's not as if it concerns him at all, really...]

... does that happen often in your world? You getting injured, I mean.

[cleansewithfire]

[ Sunrise seems to be trying to figure out how often is "often", before she settles in this: ]

Often enough that she complains about it.

[ledbythewind]

I'm sorry.

[It's automatic, because someone so young shouldn't be getting injured that often, nor should they have scars like that. The injuries potentially (likely?) being accidental really doesn't make it better at all-- in a way, it almost makes it worse to him.]

[cleansewithfire]

[ Oh...Maybe she really did say something wrong, if he feels the need to apologize to her over things that either can't be helped or are her own fault. She looks at Richard for a moment, before gesturing with her still-bandaged hand to lean down a little. ]

[ledbythewind]

[It's probably a good thing that Richard is so unused to any sort of physical contact or affection that he doesn't even have the first idea of what it is that Sunrise is about to do.

It's also probably just as good that her resemblance to Sophie is enough to get his normally-wary instincts to settle down enough in order for him to do as she beckons and lean down a bit, his expression hesitant yet also quietly wondering.]