agogelogs | THE AMAZING BASE.

WHO? Everybody!
WHAT? Welcome home, nerds.
WHEN? Outside time and space, in the aether between dimensions.
ANYTHING ELSE? There is also a fish. Please warn in subject lines for anything beyond physical violence and move to a personal journal if things go beyond PG-13.

MYSTERY FISH;

question the mystery fish

DEPARTING GALLIPOLI

The order comes the day after the Marie Antoinette sets sail:

PACK UP AND GET READY TO MOVE OUT. WE'VE DONE ALL WE CAN HERE.

DEPLOYMENT: BASE.

WE NEED TO RESTOCK. BE PREPARED FOR MORE TRANSFERS ON ARRIVAL.

STAY SAFE. TIME-STEP EXPECTED TO BEGIN WITHIN THE HOUR.

FOR THOSE OF YOU NEW TO COST: FIND A SECLUDED SPOT AND TRY NOT TO EAT ANYTHING BEFORE THE JUMP.

The Time-Step

The transfer begins like a vibrating heat on the collar bone, just a hum of sensation.

But the vibration spreads. Veteran COST soldiers often refer to this phenomenon as "the buzz". The feeling builds, not unlike standing near a great engine or the wind-rattled branches of a massive tree. There is a long moment of motion sickness and you can't be sure if the world is shaking you from the inside out or the outside in. It may be better to close your eyes against the growing nausea, as the world blurs out of focus.

A star shines in the distance. You may hear the faint rustling of leaves. Some swear they hear voices in this moment, indistinct words echoing off nothingness. Others say they feel a touch of the divine, that the eyes of the eternal look down upon you. Ancient bones rattle just out of earshot, cold and brittle and nothing more than the suggestion of sound. Or maybe it's only an illusion, brought on by the powerful technology grafted into your skin.

One thing is for sure: One moment you are here and the next you are not.

The shift takes you from whatever solitude you could find aboard the Marie Antoinette to the temperature-regulated hallway of what looks like a very poorly put together space station. Droids rush up and down the long hallway, fixing broken bits of machinery or just chattering with each other. A few crows sit on high ledges, looking down and watching. Someone mutters something about a centaur around the corner.

And you might just notice, provided you were in Gallipoli long enough to acquire stowaways, that the parasites lurking on your skin are mercifully gone.

For new arrivals who didn't experience Gallipoli: You, too, will appear in this long hallway, filled with droids and crows and humans (still filthy and clad in ANZAC uniforms, carrying battered equipment from the first World War). And you'll be wearing the minimal COST-issued athletic underwear and holding whatever one item you were allowed to bring. Surprise!

READ THE BASE INFOPAGE.

home away from home

Those who have been to BASE before may find a strangeness to it all: BASE seems...still. The windows show a verdant world instead of the usual aether (though with the typical paranoia), and the halls are bereft of all but a few crows. A man stands at the end of the long hallway you arrived in, waiting for you to get your bearings before he speaks.

Except, you know, he's not a man. He's a centaur.

"It's been barely a week since you left, by my reckoning. But for you, I'm sure, it's been much longer. Still, much has changed. You may have noticed we are...becalmed. This is due, it seems, to an error in our ways. We kept something that does not belong to us, several wild creatures that are meant to be free. They seem to have psychically called out to their home, and their home responded; we are now somewhat stranded.

"But let me explain—the Aether is the nexus between worlds and times, but it is not a dead thing. Creatures live in it. We have crashed onto the back of one such creature, a mighty beast, as large as a small country and entirely undiscovered. We have found why the creature has intercepted us: we have accidentally taken captive some of its children. Shapers, the wild creatures I mentioned, it seems they form a symbiotic bond with the creature, and live happily within its stomach."

He frowns, considering this.

"Shapers, I should mention, are creatures that briefly infested our fair BASE. The issue was dealt with, though we kept some for experimentation. The coelacanth took issue with this, it seems. It can speak, of course; we are stranded very near its head, and if you wish to ask it a question, I implore you to do so. The creature is older than creation—older than me—and only speaks once to any creature it encounters. It's said its wisdom brings kings to their knees."

His eyes crinkle in humor.

"My name is Chiron and I am the caretaker of this place, for those of you whom I have not had the pleasure of meeting. More importantly, I am a trainer and a teacher of some experience; if you wish training or schooling of any sort, do summon me. I will be happy to assist."

He's easy to contact, often found in the library, the training area, his capsule, or elsewhere in the station, attempting to fix what he understands and arguing with crows.

"We intended to spend this time exploring, for this is a rare opportunity to discover more of an entirely uncharted world. I hasten you to see if anything on the coelacanth can be of use, but be careful. Take only what you need, not what you may want. I intend to learn my lessons well; these creatures are not pets. Takes food, water, and any materials of use to us for our survival and perseverance, but no more. We task you with this: explore the coelacanth, and see what of it can be understood. Bring us back samples, but do try to interrupt the natural habitat as little as possible. We are guests here."

He bows and the action shows a slight limp in one of his back legs.

"I would join you, but I am far too old for such activities. Still, do pepper me with any questions you should encounter. I am always available on the network, or in person, within this hulking mass we call home."

And then he leaves you to find your capsules and rest.

CAPSULE ASSIGNMENTS

Once you've found your room and settled in—perhaps taken a shower, collected clothes, and eaten—a droid will approach you with camping equipment and give you a brief explanation of how to access and use the database. It's time to get your gear and go.

Of course, you can decline. You can stay and tend to the fort, maybe try and clean up this patchwork jumble of metal and machinery. But seeing the sights on the back of a giant fish flying through non-space? Who can say no to that?

the undiscovered country.

BASE's airlocks open into a lush valley, vibrant with color and rustling with life that has thrived on the coelacanth's back for millennia. It's a striking shift from the rot and gunfire of Gallipoli, unmarked by shrapnel, bombshells, and never-fresh air.

No, the air here is clean in a way that can leave you breathless, untouched by pollutants and stirred into a gentle breeze. It's a marked departure for anyone used to a more modern Earth or rough equivalent; letting the air sit on your tongue leaves a crisp, unsullied taste behind. And the whole forest feels alive, in a way that reminds you of how small you really are.

A white crow perches in a tree near BASE's exit, too high up to properly engage but a stark contrast to the bright leaves around her. She merely watches recruits come and go with a shrewd eye, feathers fluffed against the light chill. There are other crows scattered throughout the wilderness, some easier to find than others as they flit through the trees, sit on camping equipment, or hitch rides on the hoverbikes.

Besides those brief flashes of black feathers, however, you're left unsupervised.

Try not to fuck up anything too badly.

EXPLORE:INFOPAGE|DATABASE
talk to a fish | destruction report

NAV. NETWORK LOGS OOC MEMES PLURK

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ For some reason, one Meliorn cannot fathom, Bunnyhawks enjoy spending time with him. Perhaps it's the fact that he's quieter than most on BASE, or perhaps it's because they can sense he's Seelie - but he only has to sit still for a few moments before they dive down, curious and friendly.

When he comes to a clearing he's been meditating in as of late, he's not surprised to find them - what he is surprised to find, however, is someone else. ]

They seem to like you.

[ He keeps his voice quiet and stilled, not wanting to scare one of the bunnyhawks currently trying to impress the stranger by doing a loop-de-loop in the air. ]

[ it's almost hypnotic, the way that the strange creatures lift up off the field and move through the air, catching warm currents above the trees. the field had been a good place to stop for the moment, rest his feet and lay his rifle down a while to ease up on his shoulders. he's noticed the one bunnyhawk moving through the air in fantastical circuits, certainly enough to keep percy's attention as he watches.

the footsteps, however, bring him to turn just a bit, peripheral still on the little display at hand. ] Is that what this is all about? I've never seen such behavior from a rabbit. Must be the hawkblood in it, making it bold.

[ there's a lazy kind of smile on his face as he turns his attention back. ] Incredible they've made their home on a giant fish of all places.

Life finds a way, no matter the odds. [ Meliorn's voice is measured, but not unkind. He tilts his head - 'may I join you?' - and while he waits he keeps his hands clasped in front of him, watching the sight. ]

It's the fact that we're on a fish that leaves me slightly uncomfortable. If it dives down, will we be safe? Is it wise to hop atop a sentient being's back?

I suppose if you can't swim you won't be very safe... but considering the very size of it, I doubt we feel like much of anything compared to what lives here. So long as we don't go wandering into any of it's ticklish spots, perhaps. [ there's space enough beside percy. he returns the slight motion with a nod to it. he could use the company after having had more than enough time to himself. he sighs, watching as the one bunnyhawk swoops in fairly close, playfully so. it's... cute... damn. ]

This can't have simply sprung up overnight. Forests lush as these - looking like something from the Feywild... they would have to take hundreds of years to manifest.

The feywild? [ Now there's a term he hasn't heard in a while, and Meliorn, head canting to the side, is successfully distracted from the Bunnyhawks showing off in lazy circles. Forgive him for being curious, Percy, even as he sits down it's with another glance at Percy. ]

You're familiar with the arcane, then? Outside of this place.

[ percy knows all about curiosity, and won't shun it. he adjusts himself for better comfort, draping arms over his knees as turns his eyes to meliorn and gives him a nod. ] There are many arcane things where I'm from. I'm a man of science at heart, but I've seen some things that are unfortunately hard to disprove. The feywild is one of them. Not my most favorite trip made, but a necessary one. And we made it out all right.

You as well, I take it?

Quite. My universe is liberally peppered with magic. [ He's almost smiling - a feat in an of itself - and he brings an arm out experimentally, waiting to see if a bunnyhawk will land on his arm. Not yet, so when he speaks he lowers his voice considerably. ]

And as a man of science, how have you come to terms with both existing simultaneously?

[ percy watches the maneuver, draping his arms over his knees instead to watch as the bunnyhawks slowly make their investigation of the both of them sitting here, idly talking. his own voice mirrors the softness, catching on. ]

I've no choice but to accept that they live together side by side. I've good friends who wield power over nature, transformation, healing and use these to great advantage and to help others. But I myself feel like I have no room in my life for something as unpredictable as magic.

[ though he wields it in dire moments himself, percy is not a fan of how... wild it can be at times. ]

It is not a terrible thing, magic. But it's something I would rather leave to... [ he tilts his head a little bit ] the experts.

If there were more people like you in my world, it would be easier on all of us. [ Meliorn? Throwing shade? Must be a day ending in y. But he means it - the amount of times Warlocks have pushed their magic too far have been astronomical. Hell, anyone who doesn't know how to stay in their line re: magic. He decides he likes Percy, if not just for the pleasant company, than for this alone. He shrugs. ]

Most humans where I am are ignorant in their knowledge that the arcane even exists. It's common, in your world?

THE AMAZING BASE.

2b bunnyhawk time

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