THE AMAZING BASE.

[agogemod]

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

Comments

[horsepowered]

Where have you managed to see already?

[This is a better question in Chiron's mind, one to encourage exploring and focusing on wonder rather than...well, grim reality. That they'd depart and get dropped into another mission that might be even more taxing than the one before. He isn't ready for it, not yet. All Chiron wants to do is spend a lifetime here, studying, learning, basking in it all.

But that is not a luxury open to him. Not as a Heroic Spirit and not as a part of COST.

That kind of self knowledge is why Chiron has a ready answer for the question asked of him.]

I had the most freedom in life. Between here and where I was originally summoned, I believe it evens out to about the same, with some very, very different stakes. My inital place of summoning and the war it was related to is much, much easier than this.

[Grail Wars were just one and done, not on going slogs. A month and done, if that.]

[lonelywar]

[The question snags at him a little bit; he feels he has to clarify, to know exactly what Chiron is asking from him.] Here, upon this creature's back?

[He would have to refer to the map data that 9S had supplied them; he hadn't really been keeping much track otherwise, besides picking out the largest landmarks. It was difficult to be so in the weeds of it when he would prefer just range freely, not thinking too much about where he was or where he was going, only that he was, for the time, free of war and the shackles of time.

But even that freedom became taxing once its novelty had worn off, when the stress and strain of duty finally wore away and was only replaced by the hum and flow of days moving along one after another. If they remained here for whatever reason, eventually they would become restless and seek purpose. It was the way of creatures with enough thought to yearn for such a thing.

He listens carefully to Chiron, nodding; the answer made sense. Of course he would have had the most amount of freedom in his own life, but this continuation of his existence didn't seem to be his own.]

If you do not mind my asking, what lies beyond this for you?

[Should they achieve their goals, what then for him? Did he simply disappear at that point?]

[horsepowered]

Well, unless you've found something new at BASE that has hitherto escaped notice?

[In truth, Chiron wasn't sure how many people were keeping careful track of their movements. He was, but that was so he knew what he wanted to come back and examine more extensively later.

He also wanted to hear how it was Ashitaka was interacting with this new world. The familiarity of forests but the novelty of all creatures and plants in it were bound to highlight well...something interesting. He was always a thoughtful young man in Chiron's experience, and so wishing to hear his thoughts was just selfish desire on Chiron's behalf.

The question asked of him turns those tables though.]

In truth...I'm not sure. I thought I knew what I wished for, but I've re-evaluated that and remain unsure what I wish to do now.

[lonelywar]

Only the stable.

[There's a faint smile as he says that, though; it makes far more sense to ask what he's seen here, though he's not certain he can be extremely specific, only because there is so much and it is all new to him.]

I initially traveled... well, it is not south, but toward the tail of the creature for some time, though an impassible mountain ridge had me travel east until I arrived here, where I feel I can cross and continue the way I was going.

[He's fairly adept at keeping track of such things while traveling, and has been trying to keep notes by referencing the map data they had been given. It's not exact, but he has a general idea of his path.

He looks into the embers of the dying fire for a moment, contemplative.] It is strange. It is all so different from what I have ever seen on Earth, and yet it also feels closer to home than all of the places we have been so far.

[That was just his experience, though; he was used to the untamed wilderness, far more so than civilization. He isn't sure how many others felt the same, though Chiron might be one of the ones that might understand the easiest.

Ashitaka nods, though it is a slow movement and given after a moment's hesitation. It is not an easy situation for those of them who were summoned spirits, certainly.] You will have time to think of such things, if nothing else. [The line of his mouth thins into a slightly-pronounced frown.] And hopefully what it is is something available to us.

[horsepowered]

I'll need to explore it then. I admit, I primarily rested and then was far too excited to come out here than examine what was new back on BASE.

[Chiron is slightly embarrassed by that fact, but only slightly. He's still only himself and can be distracted by things.

But Ashitaka's description has him rapt. He hasn't gone towards the tail yet, and so to know what lies ahead is an absolute thrill. While he isn't descriptive on scenery, the feeling of it, that counts for so much. What Chiron hears in those words makes his heart feel light.]

I've gone east and west myself, exploring up to the legs to see if there was any sort of symmetry in the landscape. I was pleasantly surprised that there was a greater asymmetry instead, and I've only just found myself here. Perhaps I shall go towards the tail next.

[It'll be good to do it on four legs. The terrain will feel like the mountains of Greece.] Wildernesses, while different in what lives there, perhaps all share a similar feeling of place. Or at least, that is my guess.

[It could be a good one, it could be utter crap. Who is Chiron to say?]

Yes, that's a factor as well. But I am not so fussed about that yet.

[lonelywar]

[That was understandable. Truth be told, Ashitaka had only checked the stable because he had received a note which said something of his waited for him there, and after he had been reunited with Yakul and the situation had been explained, he left to start exploring.

He hasn't really been back to BASE since.

There's something in Ashitaka's faint smile which resonated with what Chiron said. He had no reason to be embarrassed.] I spent as little time aboard BASE as possible before coming out here, myself.

[For obvious reasons.

He nods. He'd wondered about symmetry too, but just looking towards the port and starboard horizons made him think that the levels of elevation didn't quite match across lateral lines. The creature was so vast he wonders if he'll even be able to see much of it, let alone all of it. But he knows he will do his best to do so.]

If you decide to go in that direction, you are welcome to join us.

[Yakul flicks a single ear in seeming agreement.

He agrees with Chiron in that, though; it was not so much the familiarity of the foliage or the creatures or the sky or anything, but just the feeling of the unbridled wilderness, untouched by industry or civilization. It was a feeling that they both seemed to appreciate, especially when the alternative was remaining inside BASE for weeks or being sent to another battlefield that might be just as bad as (or worse than) the trenches of Gallipoli.]

Yes... It is always best to worry about things that are at hand, as keeping your eyes too far forward can sometimes cause one to miss hazards at their feet.

[A brief pause, but then Ashitaka's smile takes on a slightly sheepish quality.] I am not so good at taking this advice myself, though, often enough.

[horsepowered]

In truth, I can hardly blame you.

[Recovery of his own strength had to come first though, althought there was no reason to say so outloud. The young man was smart enough to guess, and he had seen Mordred's predicament. He could make the logical leap and apply the issue at hand.

At the offer to travel along with Ashitaka for a bit, Chiron bows his head, and nods.]

I would be honored to come along with you both. You will not have to worry about my ability to keep up.

[He was, after all, horse powered. And he had already raced against the bikes COST provided, and proven that he could keep up with those as well, even if that race ended a bit more dramatically than himself or 76 truly intended.]

I'll not give a platitude about saying versus doing, but I will agree that it can be a struggle to follow one's own advice. Especially when it comes to being able to move outside of your own head.

[lonelywar]

[He's well-aware of Mordred's situation; by this point he feels honor-bound to sacrifice some small amount of whatever food he had so she could manage to hold onto her presence here. He knows this was true for the other spirits that fought by their side; he thinks only that he will try to help when he can and otherwise hope things are manageable for them otherwise.

Ashitaka's smile deepens a bit at his reply.]

I had thought so. It is good to hear. I had not expected Yakul to be able to outpace these machines that COST supplied us with, but it seems he can do so easily enough.

[The elk seems to have noticed his name being said and flicks an ear, his eyes opening for a moment before sinking back into a doze.

There is less he can find to say in response to what Chiron says next. He's right, after all, and it's something that Ashitaka reflects upon in a moment of silence, looking first at the dying fire and then out over the expanse of wilderness. The light remains as it always has been, in an odd sort of twilight, broken by the strobing lights of flickering bioluminescent creatures.]

This place having neither day nor night is something we have found difficult getting used to. [The fact that Yakul was snatching sleep whenever he could was a testament to this.] How long have you been traveling before coming across us?

[As in: how tired were you, Chiron, because Ashitaka's about ready to sleep for a while... or, wait, do the spirits even need sleep -]

[horsepowered]

I will admit, myself and 76 did test out the theory. [Chiron smiles, a little embarrassed. It had been an immature whim, but truly, it had also been an absolute blast. Even if 76 almost went over a surprise cliff neither of them were aware of.] Unless Yakul also feels like racing, in which case we'll do that later on.

[As to the question of traveling (and the walking around the advice given, Chiron does notice that much), there's a soft, considering hum before he replies. It's an airy lightness, one that suggests that truly right now, time is of no importance at all.]

A few days, I suppose. But I am helped along by the fact that technically, I don't require sleep. With that said, I don't oppose sitting watch if you need a few more hours off your own feet.

[lonelywar]

[Ashitaka actually does chuckle a bit, just imagining the mental image of the two of them doing something like that. Chiron need not feel embarrassed, though; the laugh is entirely good-natured. In all honesty, it was nice that they were able to even have moments like that. After what they just went through, a period of decompression like this one was vital.]

Perhaps. He is not particularly used to such a thing, but maybe he is competitive and simply does not know it.

[He doesn't really think that's true, but it would be funny.

Well, this answers his question. He nods, an expression of appreciation resting on his face.]

Yes... We have been traveling for quite some time. Give us only a few hours, and then we can continue onward.

[horsepowered]

I shan't push either of you into it.

[Besides, Chiron would rather make a friend of the fuzzy newcomer, not invite competition. At least the image of the race is enough to get a laugh - it had felt much the same way at the time, right up to crashing.]

Do what you need to do, and I'll keep watch.

[lonelywar]

[Ashitaka gives him a tired smile.] Regardless, anything is worth trying.

[He had already had an impromptu race with the bikes, so testing his speed against another quadruped certainly wouldn't negatively impact him too much. Yakul was a gentle soul, in the end.]

Thank you. [Ashitaka nods as he pulls a blanket over himself, head resting against Yakul's flank as a make-shift pillow.] We will... rest for only a few hours.

[And it takes him maybe less than a minute to fall asleep after that, lulled by the sounds of the crackling fire and the distant rushing of water.]

[horsepowered]

You're welcome. Rest well.

[Chiron's happy to slip into silence as Ashitaka and Yakul rest. It is a pleasant place to sit and watch the world go by, the soundtrack even finer.

Would that this could be the only other place COST ever needed to go.]