all this energy calling me

[agogemod]

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

TOUCH BASE;

backfill armed services echelon
COST re-appropriated vehicle 854A-5.2

read the base setting infopage

DEPARTING FRANCE

The order comes out the second day after the Tuileries is sacked:

PACK UP, 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, and it starts like a vibrating heat on the collar bone, not painful, not to start with. Just a hum of sensation. But the vibration spreads. Veteran COST soldiers often refer to this phenomena as 'the buzz'. The sensation builds, feeling not unlike standing near a great engine, or the wind rattling the branches of a great tree. There is long a moment of motion sickness, and one cannot always be sure if it is you that is shaking from the inside out, or the world that is shaking you from the outside in. It may just 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. Some swear they feel a touch of the divine; the eyes of the eternal look down upon you. Ancient bones rattle just out of earshot, cold and brittle. Or maybe it's an illusion brought on by powerful technology grafted into your skin.

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

Nausea is commonly accompanied by this shift. One moment, you're in the cold of France. The next, you're in a temperature regulated hallway, looking not unlike 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. Crows sit on high ledges, looking down, watching.

(For those of you who just apped in and didn't participate in the TDM, you'll appear alongside your comrades now, standing in this long hallway filled with droids and crows and men and women in clothing from 18th century France. Of course, you'll be wearing the minimal COST athletic issued underwear, and holding whatever one item you were allowed to bring. Surprise!)

At the end of the hall is a long table with heaps of used clothing on it. The sizes and styles vary, along with color and detail (AKA none look exactly like the linked pics, they're just a baseline, use your ~imagination~). One thing's for certain, all the clothing has been used before, with holes darned and worn edges. They're all clean, though, and each bears a single patch with the words 'KNOW YOUR RIGHTS, THE FUTURE IS UNWRITTEN' and 'COST sewn into the side.

They're not exactly high fashion, but they might be more comfortable than the late 18th century digs you're still wearing, if you showed up in France. Or, you know, the underwear.

Meet the Drill Sergeant

There is the echoing sound of hooves, and a strange creature emerges from a nearby room: a centaur. He smiles kindly, happy to see you've arrived. He has a significant limp in his back left leg, causing his hoof-beats to pitch an irregular rhythm as he walks slowly through the hall.

"Hello, all!" His voice is kind, but it's pitched to carry. "You may know me as Sergeant-- I am in technicality a drill sergeant. You may call me Chiron, if you wish, though I'm to understand some may know others with the same name." He laughs, amused. "In any case, welcome home. It is not much, but we have tried to make it hospitable for you in your time here. Your room assignments have been uploaded onto your BCEs, along with some technological upgrades we've been testing out. There are a few prototypes and experiments you may find in your rooms as well. Our agents are..." He looks up at the crows. "We are a curious people."

He looks over to the table stacked with clothing. "Please pick out what suits you, and make adjustments as needed. If you have any complaints, and wish to change your rooming situation, your username, anything of that nature, please send me a request. I am also known in some capacity as a trainer-"

One of the crows caws, and it sounds almost sarcastic.

Sergeant Chiron ignores it. "Hm. If you wish for me to make a training regiment for you, to better your skill in this organization, please let me know. But for now: I am to understand your last mission was... tumultuous. Please, rest and acclimate yourself to BASE."

He turns to leave, before stopping-- "And please be kind to the crows. They remember slights."

The crows' cawing sounds like laughter.

HOTSPOTS

There's been some technical difficulty since the prognosticators had their little meltdown. Coolant is in short supply, and some of the corridors of BASE are a little warmer than others. Pleasantly warm. Comfortably so, like walking through a sunbeam. In these hotspots, it feels comfortable and snug.

Characters walking through them will feel the urge to lie down and rest, maybe take a quick little nap.

Sleeping in these spots will cause unsettling or confusing dreams, but not nightmares. Dreams in these hotspots-- and sleeping in these hotspots will never be dreamless-- will be hard to remember upon waking, but they seemed very... strange. Almost as though you were intruding on something important but private.

Yet you can't quite remember it when you wake.

If you're clever and watchful, you'll notice the crows avoid these areas, so you can avoid them as well before you're seized by the urge to lie down and nap.

Particularly watchful characters may notice the hotspots are growing in size and number as the days wear on.

(More information about these and the forthcoming December plot will be coming in an infopost on the 12th, but if you have any questions now, feel free to ask here!)

read the base setting infopage

NAV. NETWORK LOGS OOC PLURK DISCORD

Comments

[horsepowered]

I. Clothes
[While there is relief in being free of his clothes from France (laundry, it needs to get done), Chiron can't say that going through the current selection is the most favorite thing that he's done. It's less the selection, and more the damage that's been accumulated over the years.

There is no joy in wearing what are most likely the clothes of the dead. It's a reminder of what the actual situation is, something that leaping from time to time doesn't always allow.

As Chiron sorts through, hoping to find something broad enough for his shoulders, he takes care to fold what he was examining for the next person.]

--Could you pass the shirt that's over by your elbow, please?

Immediately after meeting the drill sergeant
That...was unexpected. With the crows call, Chiron just walked out. There was no anger on his face. Rather, his expression was one of absolute amusement, that this is where the situation has gone.

"These fates," he said, shaking his head slowly. "Are something else."

Wildcard
Whatever you like

Drill Sergeant

[chariotry]

[ Achilles isn't smiling, though Chiron.

In fact, he's glowering. ]

Assuming that this is the work of the Gods.

... Do you find this funny? [ Achilles, though a lot more laid back than he used to in his past life, is not finding this amusing so much as confusing. ]

Re: Drill Sergeant

[horsepowered]

I don't believe I have any other response in me but to laugh.

[Chiron's in need of a few more moments of processing. It was enough to find himself facing Achilles in Trifas. He could muse on fate then with a sort of cool, calm detachment. But to be face-to-face with oneself?

Oneself who was still, for all he could tell, perfectly alive and probably still immortal? It was the sort of thing that ought to be impossible.]

[chariotry]

[ Ugh. That calm, detached nature of his is so cool. Does Chiron even realize how awesome he is?

Achilles doesn't smile, but his lips to twitch, quirking only slightly. ]

You know, rather than fate, people of the present time refer to these things as irony.

He's not my teacher. Would that make him an imposter?

[horsepowered]

It can be both. And no, it wouldn't.

[Chiron's laugh fades, and his face becomes more serious.]

Heroic Spirits are the sum total of all stories, correct?

[fernbeleafer]

Chiron! Hi! [ keyleth spots chiron making his way somewhere and waves to get his attention. her long strides just keep from speeding into a jog. ]

I meant to tell you before we went all help-the-civilians, but I didn’t want to distract you. [ she waits a beat, smiling as if she’s got a secret, and then: ] Out of all my friends who have tails, yours is my favorite. What kind is it? Looks a little pony-ish? It’s very nice-- well-groomed. Oh! I could braid it for you some time, if you want?

[ ...keyleth you can’t just offer to braid people’s TAILS. ]

i want to frame this

[horsepowered]

[Chiron's happy to stop in the halls for a conversation, and Keyleth is someone well worth speaking to. Her disposition is one of the sunniest he's met well, ever, and that's always a valuable thing.

Her question, however, absolutely blindsides him. It takes him a beat to respond, and then it's...

...it's weird, she's the first person to notice.]

I have to ask. How many of your friends and associates have tails?

as;ldkfj MY JOB HERE IS DONE

[fernbeleafer]

Oh-- two! Well, I guess Trinket has a nubby little tail too, so. Three!

[ she beams, excited to put chiron in such esteemed ranks. ]

But theirs aren't braid-able, and the one stings pretty bad when she whips you with it.

[horsepowered]

Well that's...[What a life you lead, Keyleth.]

I can't say I've had anyone that keen on braiding my hair before.

[fernbeleafer]

Hey, there's a first time for everything!

[ she is just extra happy to see a sort-of familiar face ok ]

It's a nice way to relax during downtime, and you can do it pretty much anywhere! Even in uncomfortable metal caves...

[horsepowered]

Perhaps so.

[There had been instances, of course. His kids, his students, but that was always in the sparkle of youth. Keyleth was...clearly not up to his waist.]

Mm. The conditions are cramped, aren't they? Especially compared to having an entire city to explore before hand.

[fernbeleafer]

Right? I mean, I don't think I've seen a single plant since shifting here. It's kind of unsettling.

[ then again she hasn't scoped out every inch of the place yet. ]

[horsepowered]

I've tried to accomplish a fair amount of exploring myself. I can verify that for what I've covered, there's been no greenery.

[fernbeleafer]

Oh! I can totally fix that.

[ she whispers something to herself, and presses her hands together. when they come apart, she presents chiron with a gift, and beams. ]

Now your quarters will be a little more colorful!

[horsepowered]

[There's a moment of surprise on Chiron's face, followed by genuine delight. The smile on his face is all to warm, and he holds the gift very carefully, lest he damage it.]

Thank you, that's extremely kind. Am I to guess that this kind of magic is your forte?

Clothes

[frogfractions]

[Prelati's rummaging with all the grace and enthusiasm of someone who really doesn't care what she's looking at, and more about what it could be. A coat - no, the material's too cheap, too ground down by time. She tosses it back onto the pile, distinctly unfolded, then glances over at -]

Ah. Chiron. [She turns her head and grabs the shirt, balls it up in her hand before tossing it over to him, underhanded.]

Thank you for your help, earlier. If I'd left for Nantes on my own... well, basically, you saved me some trouble.

Is that shirt alright for you? There's a hole in the chest. Some people might appreciate the view, though.

[horsepowered]

[There's no delay in Chiron's reaction time. He catches the shirt immediately, and holds it out in front of him to inspect it. That's...that's not a hole he's pretty sure that's someone taking a very deep cut from a bladed weapon.]

I'm not sure what people you're speaking of.

[The shirt gets carefully folded and set aside.]

As sorry as I am about forcing you to cancel your trip, I'm glad it worked out in the long term.

[frogfractions]

Don't be. Even if I could have gone, it might not have been a good idea. Some things are better left buried, to put it bluntly.

[And Gilles having his resting place burned to the ground without anyone really thinking about him - that's probably what he deserves. Poor fool.

She glances over at Chiron as he folds the shirt to the side anyway.]

I could see about fixing that one up for you, in return. I'm going to be experimenting with these - [She gestures to a small pile she's making, a stack of whatever few delicate things she could find. Nothing fancy, but it's the cream of the crop, in her mind.] so I may as well take a look at that, too.

Unless you really do want to show off your muscles.

[horsepowered]

I'm not sure that there's any value in showing them off.

[It seemed strange to want to do that, and in truth, Chiron was mostly just focused on the practical.]

But if your experiments are successful, I might need to ask for your hand at needlework.

[frogfractions]

[Chiron seems like a good guy - as much as Prelati's capable of judging such things - but she's befuddled by just how impossible it is to get under his skin. She blinks at him for a second, then shrugs it off.]

Mm. A little more complicated than needlework, but I should be capable of that, too.

You are broadly built. It's useful, obviously, but I've only found one or two things that might fit you. [Not that she's really been looking, mind. She rolls the thought over.]

A friend of mine was very tall, especially for a woman. She had difficulty finding clothes, as well. And of course, given my height, a lot of what I wore back home was meant for children...

I wonder who exactly fits into most clothes?

[horsepowered]

Most of the trousers that are in my size are rather torn, I'm afraid.

[Chiron's smile is apologetic when he reveals that. It wouldn't be easier if he did't have to deal with pants, just different.]

I'm unsure myself. Perhaps the people they're intended for don't truly exist, and the rest of us simply have to make ourselves fit the best we can.

[frogfractions]

Ha. It's the same over here. I enjoy my body, at the end of the day, but I do wish Saint-Germain had thought to make me taller. Then again, a smaller body uses less energy. I did tell her I only cared about being able to study.

[It's a series of very weird statements without any context, and she knows it - she's wondering if she can at least get his curiosity going.]

You didn't tell me the Sergeant had the same name as you, by the way. [Speaking of curiosity.] Or were you surprised as well?

[horsepowered]

Ah, foresight on the matter didn't occur to you. [But yes, there is some curiosity. Chiron's eyebrows rise slightly.] May I ask what the process was?

[His suspicion is necromancy, but....

...ah. That. Well, all cards on the table.]

It's been unexpected running into myself.

[frogfractions]

Alchemy. She constructed this body for me of the same materials all human bodies are made of, plus a few extras. [She wants to go into more detail - but, well. That second part gets her curiosity going.]

You're the same person? [That explains more than it should. She hums at the thought. If he's the same person, then - well. She really hopes they don't recruit her past self, back when she had her original body.]

... I suppose it would be strange. Is it difficult to talk about? I could ask the sergeant about it, if you don't feel up to giving answers. [She does owe Chiron one - and she can relate to the discomfort of self-examination. Especially when it's so literal.]

[horsepowered]

Hm. That sounds like a length process. Did you inquire about additional details, or did you decide that there was a limit to what you wanted to know about the process?

[Same person, just different bottom halves. Chiron's honestly found little problem in discussing the matter. There's a single key difference between them, and that makes all the difference.]

Not so much. Where we stand now is completely different, even if our general stories are the same.