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Entry tags:
TDM 001
TEST DRIVE MEME 001 ❀
CONTENT WARNINGS: potential character nudity, violence, trypophobia (images) as well as light mentions of gore.
Please note: FOR THE FIRST 24 HOURS AFTER 'HATCHING', CHARACTERS WILL FEEL WEAK AND ANY POWERS THEY HAVE WILL NOT WORK.
Test drive meme threads can be considered game canon for players who are later accepted and wish to keep their CR. The rescue mission prompt will be a TDM-exclusive, but the other prompts that you see here will also appear on our first game log. There will, of course, be more going on that week.
Please reserve questions about consequences for altering or meaningfully investigating the setting for the first log of the game, where we will have a Mod Questions thread at the top of the log. On this test drive meme, please reserve this thread for clarification and setting questions.
On the first day of reserves (May 10th), only players who participate in the TDM will be allowed to reserve. You must link an AC-length thread from the TDM for early access. Starting on the 11th, any prospective player may submit a reserve. Our hope is that this will avoid overwhelming our reserves.
Congrats, you've woken up in an egg. I'm sure this is exactly how you wanted to spend your Saturday, right? There's no time to get curious and check out the other egg sacs. By the time you've fought your way out of the membranous sac, spilled electric blue goop everywhere, wiped it out of your eyes and sundry other orifices to get your bearings, you have a spear (or a gun) leveled at your face, throat, or other vital organs. Even if you might be inclined to fight, you can barely lift your arms to protest being grabbed and dragged off. Before you can even get a word in edgewise, you've been thrown into a holding cell.
Characters will not have a chance to retrieve their items at the time of the first hatching, and may not even know there is anything left in the remaining eggs.
The holding cell stinks of something sour and acidic, like rotted citrus, but you are not alone. Several other detainees sit in similar squalid confusion, dressed strangely and equally gooey. Time to make nice, ask questions... figure out what the hell is going on, and maybe do something about all that slime?
Over the next few days, a few things become clear. Despite the alien greeting, your captors speak a language that you understand, and the unpleasant circumstances are revealed to be a matter of necessity, not choice. Supplies are low, but they ensure that the new arrivals' time imprisoned is as painless as can be — they offer hot communal showers of less than three minutes, some strange starchy meal-replacement, and medical treatment to those in need. You might strike up a conversation with your new best friend in the shower over a low soap dispenser or when you realize you might need to share towels.
The cost of these luxuries comes in the form of touch-and-go interrogation by the security officers keeping tabs on the cells and supervising the shower time.
A few notes:
Please note: FOR THE FIRST 24 HOURS AFTER 'HATCHING', CHARACTERS WILL FEEL WEAK AND ANY POWERS THEY HAVE WILL NOT WORK.
Test drive meme threads can be considered game canon for players who are later accepted and wish to keep their CR. The rescue mission prompt will be a TDM-exclusive, but the other prompts that you see here will also appear on our first game log. There will, of course, be more going on that week.
Please reserve questions about consequences for altering or meaningfully investigating the setting for the first log of the game, where we will have a Mod Questions thread at the top of the log. On this test drive meme, please reserve this thread for clarification and setting questions.
On the first day of reserves (May 10th), only players who participate in the TDM will be allowed to reserve. You must link an AC-length thread from the TDM for early access. Starting on the 11th, any prospective player may submit a reserve. Our hope is that this will avoid overwhelming our reserves.
❀ HATCHING
Congrats, you've woken up in an egg. I'm sure this is exactly how you wanted to spend your Saturday, right? There's no time to get curious and check out the other egg sacs. By the time you've fought your way out of the membranous sac, spilled electric blue goop everywhere, wiped it out of your eyes and sundry other orifices to get your bearings, you have a spear (or a gun) leveled at your face, throat, or other vital organs. Even if you might be inclined to fight, you can barely lift your arms to protest being grabbed and dragged off. Before you can even get a word in edgewise, you've been thrown into a holding cell.
Characters will not have a chance to retrieve their items at the time of the first hatching, and may not even know there is anything left in the remaining eggs.
The holding cell stinks of something sour and acidic, like rotted citrus, but you are not alone. Several other detainees sit in similar squalid confusion, dressed strangely and equally gooey. Time to make nice, ask questions... figure out what the hell is going on, and maybe do something about all that slime?
Over the next few days, a few things become clear. Despite the alien greeting, your captors speak a language that you understand, and the unpleasant circumstances are revealed to be a matter of necessity, not choice. Supplies are low, but they ensure that the new arrivals' time imprisoned is as painless as can be — they offer hot communal showers of less than three minutes, some strange starchy meal-replacement, and medical treatment to those in need. You might strike up a conversation with your new best friend in the shower over a low soap dispenser or when you realize you might need to share towels.
The cost of these luxuries comes in the form of touch-and-go interrogation by the security officers keeping tabs on the cells and supervising the shower time.
A few notes:
☆ Your character may get pulled away for interrogation at some point. No torture, no drugs; just questioning.
☆ Locals will be stopping by outside the freestanding holding cells to ogle or ask questions. Are you really going to be mean to that little kid staring at you with wide eyes?
☆ Characters will be let out for bio breaks. No one has to pee in a bucket, that's just inhumane!
☆ Attempts to escape will probably get you tasered. The mods will not facilitate escape-plots/etc on test drive memes. However: if you app and are accepted you are more than welcome to chat with us about the possibility of having escaped or attempted it.
☆ Locals will be stopping by outside the freestanding holding cells to ogle or ask questions. Are you really going to be mean to that little kid staring at you with wide eyes?
☆ Characters will be let out for bio breaks. No one has to pee in a bucket, that's just inhumane!
☆ Attempts to escape will probably get you tasered. The mods will not facilitate escape-plots/etc on test drive memes. However: if you app and are accepted you are more than welcome to chat with us about the possibility of having escaped or attempted it.
❀ EXPLORE THE BASECAMP
On the heels of a little benign interrogation, a medical inspection, and a stern talking to by Captain Childe, the survivors at Basecamp Leviathan determine one thing: you don't appear to be an active threat.
Released from the detention center after three days, you are given the run-down by the locals — you're on a planet called Ethyraia, and the people around you are survivors of the catastrophic crash of the UCSS Adamant several years prior. You, in fact, showed up on the third anniversary of the crash. Weird coincidence, huh?
You're being allowed to mingle with the others. The first order of the day is having a proper meal at the mess hall — some of the Adamant's survivors will be friendlier than others. They've been stranded here for years, remember? Some of them will be so desperate to talk to someone who has news of other places, and some will be giving you the cold shoulder.
You'll be fed the same as the rest of them. A plastic plate of crumbled protein of unidentifiable origin and gravy over rice with a single wilted stalk of broccoli and a cup of the worst coffee you've ever had. Maybe somebody bumps into you and spills said coffee, maybe you make it all the way to one of the long tables set out for communal eating.
Time to strike up a chat with your neighbor — maybe ask them to pass the salt?
(What do you mean, there's no salt!?)
After a meal — it's hard to say which one you'd call it, since the whole crew is on rotating schedules — you may decide to wander the basecamp. Folks in every department could use a hand. Those willing to help out may get friendlier reception than those who play the tourist. For more info on what else you might find, check out the LOCATIONS page.
During this time, characters will be able to return to the Central Chrysalis where they hatched. While there are no clues as to how they got there, they might find items — their own, or someone else's. Everyone is strapped for supplies, but try not to snatch up anything that isn't yours. The security officers don't look kindly on people chasing one other down the hall, trying to get back their dirty magazines.
A few notes:
Released from the detention center after three days, you are given the run-down by the locals — you're on a planet called Ethyraia, and the people around you are survivors of the catastrophic crash of the UCSS Adamant several years prior. You, in fact, showed up on the third anniversary of the crash. Weird coincidence, huh?
You're being allowed to mingle with the others. The first order of the day is having a proper meal at the mess hall — some of the Adamant's survivors will be friendlier than others. They've been stranded here for years, remember? Some of them will be so desperate to talk to someone who has news of other places, and some will be giving you the cold shoulder.
You'll be fed the same as the rest of them. A plastic plate of crumbled protein of unidentifiable origin and gravy over rice with a single wilted stalk of broccoli and a cup of the worst coffee you've ever had. Maybe somebody bumps into you and spills said coffee, maybe you make it all the way to one of the long tables set out for communal eating.
Time to strike up a chat with your neighbor — maybe ask them to pass the salt?
(What do you mean, there's no salt!?)
After a meal — it's hard to say which one you'd call it, since the whole crew is on rotating schedules — you may decide to wander the basecamp. Folks in every department could use a hand. Those willing to help out may get friendlier reception than those who play the tourist. For more info on what else you might find, check out the LOCATIONS page.
During this time, characters will be able to return to the Central Chrysalis where they hatched. While there are no clues as to how they got there, they might find items — their own, or someone else's. Everyone is strapped for supplies, but try not to snatch up anything that isn't yours. The security officers don't look kindly on people chasing one other down the hall, trying to get back their dirty magazines.
A few notes:
☆ Feel free to help out anywhere. Every little bit of assistance you offer to the locals will raise their estimation of you. You could easily help clean dishes after the meal, help fix leaky piping or repair hammocks. You could stop by the aid station and assist with the wounded. You'll be watched closely and some of the survivors will be warier than others, but most will appreciate the opportunity to have a 'break'.
☆ If your character leaves the basecamp and wanders outside the Leviathan, they may begin to notice that what they perhaps took as a giant cave is actually an enormous dragon. Everything they see that seems 'human made' will look varying levels of worn down, patched, repaired and patched again. This is not a place of prosperity and happiness. Many people are recently injured, or have new scars or missing limbs.
☆ PCs will be warned about going beyond the shade of the dragon's wings. For the sake of the test drive mods will not be facilitating plots that deal with characters going further; we ask that players with an interest in exploring this wait until the game is fully open.
☆ If your character leaves the basecamp and wanders outside the Leviathan, they may begin to notice that what they perhaps took as a giant cave is actually an enormous dragon. Everything they see that seems 'human made' will look varying levels of worn down, patched, repaired and patched again. This is not a place of prosperity and happiness. Many people are recently injured, or have new scars or missing limbs.
☆ PCs will be warned about going beyond the shade of the dragon's wings. For the sake of the test drive mods will not be facilitating plots that deal with characters going further; we ask that players with an interest in exploring this wait until the game is fully open.
❀ RESCUE MISSION
"There's no time to waste," the woman says breathlessly as she grabs your arm. She pulls you to an augmented reality sand table and you will find yourself standing alongside some of the others you may recognize as having 'hatched' with you. There are murmurs by the Adamant's survivors as they pour over data. Maybe you remember Captain Childe from the stern interrogation she gave you a few days ago, but in any case but she's standing at the edge of the sand table looking at the distance scaled between the enormous huddle of HUD badges — the Adamant's survivors — and a tiny pocket of pulsing green some fifteen kilometers away.
"They knew better," Captain Childe says, rubbing at the bridge of her nose. "They should have been back hours ago."
"Fucking scientists," says a man with a faintly French accent. He is scarred and battle-worn, and looks properly pissed off. He's also sporting several fresh injuries, one of which seems to have warranted the use of a crutch. "They'd lose their heads if they weren't attached. Let them wait out the storm."
"No," the captain says. "They're too close to the Rat Nest. We don't need a repeat of —" she trails off, as if seeing you for the first time. She looks you up and down, and then: "You've been told by now that everyone here has to pitch in. If you know how to fight, be ready in ten minutes. You're our rescue squad." She turns and walks out, and there's an awkward moment where everyone present is looking at you to make a choice.
Ten minutes really isn't a lot of time to get ready to walk into danger. Or maybe you aren't a fighter. Maybe you just don't care. But either way, there are people looking to you. To see how you'll react. To see what you'll do. To see if you belong.
What'll it be, hatchling? Fight or flight? Maybe you ought to start coming up with a plan.
FIELD WORK
There's a cadre of scientists cut off by acid rain. From their last transmission, they were driven into the Rat Warrens — and you've been tasked with rescuing them. Too many members of the Security Team are themselves injured, and none of the remaining ones have experience leading a fire team. Let's hope you do — or at least that you can fake it.
Maybe you've hand-picked your team. Maybe you're just stuck with whoever else was closest. Either way, your companions are some of the people you might recognize as fellow 'hatchlings'. If you know them already — good, you've got a head start on what they might be capable of out in the field, and you can chat about the little things. You know, like the weather. Acid rain, gotta love it.
Either way. You're given few small slabs of surprisingly lightweight alloy that has a sheet of — is that hide from the Leviathan? — stretched across them, to divide up amongst your team. "Helps with the rain," Ensign Porter says, trying to sound cheerful despite the grim set to his jaw. "Just come back in one piece. I kinda feel responsible for you guys, you know?"
Before you know it, you're outfitted for the trip. Weapons (if you didn't have your own) and maybe some medical supplies, handed over with a grimace by Doc Sunya.
So then it's just you, your tiny team and a fifteen kilometer hike. Oh, and the acid rain. Luckily, the shields seem to be keeping it off, but it's hard to hear anything over the impact of the drops. Anyone want to play I never?
Or maybe you think you should make a break for it. This is your first time being outside the Leviathan unsupervised. You've got supplies, and other people with as little to lose here as you do. Maybe you should talk.
THE RAT WARREN
You've made it to the last transmitted location of the scientists. What you find doesn't bode well — one of them seemed to have an arm torn off — at least, you think it's an arm — the way it's been disintegrated by the rain makes it hard to tell.
One thing's certain, though. There are bloodstains leading into the nearby maw of a hole in the ground. There's a putrid odor wafting from it, and the sound of frantic scrabbling.
You have an idea of what might be down there. 'Giant rats with tentacles', Porter had said. Don't let the tentacles grab you, they leave chemical burns that usually result in amputation if they can't be treated immediately. But there's a chance the scientists are still alive, and you need to make your choice.
If you and your small team venture down into the darkness, what happens next is up to you. You'll be encountering hoards of these monsters. The scientists are still alive, but will they stay that way? And more importantly, can you get them back to the Leviathan in one piece?
PCs versus the local fauna, round one, FIGHT!
A few notes:
"They knew better," Captain Childe says, rubbing at the bridge of her nose. "They should have been back hours ago."
"Fucking scientists," says a man with a faintly French accent. He is scarred and battle-worn, and looks properly pissed off. He's also sporting several fresh injuries, one of which seems to have warranted the use of a crutch. "They'd lose their heads if they weren't attached. Let them wait out the storm."
"No," the captain says. "They're too close to the Rat Nest. We don't need a repeat of —" she trails off, as if seeing you for the first time. She looks you up and down, and then: "You've been told by now that everyone here has to pitch in. If you know how to fight, be ready in ten minutes. You're our rescue squad." She turns and walks out, and there's an awkward moment where everyone present is looking at you to make a choice.
Ten minutes really isn't a lot of time to get ready to walk into danger. Or maybe you aren't a fighter. Maybe you just don't care. But either way, there are people looking to you. To see how you'll react. To see what you'll do. To see if you belong.
What'll it be, hatchling? Fight or flight? Maybe you ought to start coming up with a plan.
FIELD WORK
There's a cadre of scientists cut off by acid rain. From their last transmission, they were driven into the Rat Warrens — and you've been tasked with rescuing them. Too many members of the Security Team are themselves injured, and none of the remaining ones have experience leading a fire team. Let's hope you do — or at least that you can fake it.
Maybe you've hand-picked your team. Maybe you're just stuck with whoever else was closest. Either way, your companions are some of the people you might recognize as fellow 'hatchlings'. If you know them already — good, you've got a head start on what they might be capable of out in the field, and you can chat about the little things. You know, like the weather. Acid rain, gotta love it.
Either way. You're given few small slabs of surprisingly lightweight alloy that has a sheet of — is that hide from the Leviathan? — stretched across them, to divide up amongst your team. "Helps with the rain," Ensign Porter says, trying to sound cheerful despite the grim set to his jaw. "Just come back in one piece. I kinda feel responsible for you guys, you know?"
Before you know it, you're outfitted for the trip. Weapons (if you didn't have your own) and maybe some medical supplies, handed over with a grimace by Doc Sunya.
So then it's just you, your tiny team and a fifteen kilometer hike. Oh, and the acid rain. Luckily, the shields seem to be keeping it off, but it's hard to hear anything over the impact of the drops. Anyone want to play I never?
Or maybe you think you should make a break for it. This is your first time being outside the Leviathan unsupervised. You've got supplies, and other people with as little to lose here as you do. Maybe you should talk.
THE RAT WARREN
You've made it to the last transmitted location of the scientists. What you find doesn't bode well — one of them seemed to have an arm torn off — at least, you think it's an arm — the way it's been disintegrated by the rain makes it hard to tell.
One thing's certain, though. There are bloodstains leading into the nearby maw of a hole in the ground. There's a putrid odor wafting from it, and the sound of frantic scrabbling.
You have an idea of what might be down there. 'Giant rats with tentacles', Porter had said. Don't let the tentacles grab you, they leave chemical burns that usually result in amputation if they can't be treated immediately. But there's a chance the scientists are still alive, and you need to make your choice.
If you and your small team venture down into the darkness, what happens next is up to you. You'll be encountering hoards of these monsters. The scientists are still alive, but will they stay that way? And more importantly, can you get them back to the Leviathan in one piece?
PCs versus the local fauna, round one, FIGHT!
A few notes:
☆ Feel free to put player characters 'in charge' of the planning/logistics phase. If another PC tags into your thread, you and that player can decide which PC will be 'leading the charge'.
☆ Your character will have: a mini-railgun, a spear (if they don't have their items/weapons from home), a first-aid kit, the acid rain shields, ration bars (that are essentially condensed protein bars — they do not taste good) and one of the smartwatches, which will have a mini holographic HUD displayable on its interface. If your character is the sort to request other things, feel free to assume they received them (within reason — please remember that resource scarcity is the name of the game — feel free to be creative here!).
☆ There are fifteen kilometers to cover. If your character has an ability like superspeed/etc, please keep in mind it will work, but you also have your allies to consider. Normal walking time over this distance, given the difficulty of the environment (steep hills, acid rain, unknown territory, etc) would translate to several hours to an average person.
☆ Feel free to use the NPC scientists however you'd like. If you want your character to find some dead, you can. If you'd prefer they be rescued, that is also acceptable. These are essentially 'your' NPCs that you are using to facilitate the story at this point — the sky is the metaphoric limit!
☆ Your character will have: a mini-railgun, a spear (if they don't have their items/weapons from home), a first-aid kit, the acid rain shields, ration bars (that are essentially condensed protein bars — they do not taste good) and one of the smartwatches, which will have a mini holographic HUD displayable on its interface. If your character is the sort to request other things, feel free to assume they received them (within reason — please remember that resource scarcity is the name of the game — feel free to be creative here!).
☆ There are fifteen kilometers to cover. If your character has an ability like superspeed/etc, please keep in mind it will work, but you also have your allies to consider. Normal walking time over this distance, given the difficulty of the environment (steep hills, acid rain, unknown territory, etc) would translate to several hours to an average person.
☆ Feel free to use the NPC scientists however you'd like. If you want your character to find some dead, you can. If you'd prefer they be rescued, that is also acceptable. These are essentially 'your' NPCs that you are using to facilitate the story at this point — the sky is the metaphoric limit!
❀ BOOZE
A week. You've been here for a week.
By now, you might have tried to venture out of Basecamp Leviathan and experienced firsthand the acid rains that the security officers warned you about. Or you might be teaching the kids at the schoolyard how to gamble. In any event, Thorkil seems to take pity on his disoriented new friends and taps his distillery for a little help.
Invitation passes by word of mouth to meet at the memorial wall. Moonshine of questionable quality is passed around in tin cups — hope no one's afraid of germs — as Thorkil explains the great relief it is to be gaining people instead of losing them. This settlement isn't big, and they aren't overburdened with hope or supplies, but there's been a lot of loss in the past three years. Some people might be willing to look at the arrival of these newcomers as a sign that things are turning around.
Bottoms up, hatchlings, and ... Happy Birthday?
A few notes:
By now, you might have tried to venture out of Basecamp Leviathan and experienced firsthand the acid rains that the security officers warned you about. Or you might be teaching the kids at the schoolyard how to gamble. In any event, Thorkil seems to take pity on his disoriented new friends and taps his distillery for a little help.
Invitation passes by word of mouth to meet at the memorial wall. Moonshine of questionable quality is passed around in tin cups — hope no one's afraid of germs — as Thorkil explains the great relief it is to be gaining people instead of losing them. This settlement isn't big, and they aren't overburdened with hope or supplies, but there's been a lot of loss in the past three years. Some people might be willing to look at the arrival of these newcomers as a sign that things are turning around.
Bottoms up, hatchlings, and ... Happy Birthday?
A few notes:
☆ Feel free to turn this into an impromptu party. Maybe you're celebrating getting all the scientists back alive! Maybe it's something like a wake to remember them in the sad event of their passing. Either way, many of the engineers and other NPCs may join you in this moonlight drinking session, as well as whatever PCs you tag out to or are tagged by.)
❀ OBLIGATORY NETWORK
Welcome people of all kinds to Basecamp Leviathan! I'd give you a hand moving in except...
I have no hands.
Because I'm an AI.
Get it?
It's a joke.
My name is Cartagena. But anyway, this isn't about me or the Adamant for once. This is about all of you. So if you would kindly fill out the following questionnaire to get to know each other; it would also be very helpful for my systems.
NOTE: Participation is MANDATORY.
That was another joke. It's all voluntary. You people and your free will.
1. What is your name?
2. Where are you from?
3. What's your favorite smell? Please describe it as you would to a person without a nose. Because I do not have a nose.
4. If you could be any animal in any world, what would you be?
5. How old are you?
6. Did you enjoy this questionnaire?
Thank you for your participation! Please enjoy the rest of your stay here at Basecamp Leviathan.
I have no hands.
Because I'm an AI.
Get it?
It's a joke.
My name is Cartagena. But anyway, this isn't about me or the Adamant for once. This is about all of you. So if you would kindly fill out the following questionnaire to get to know each other; it would also be very helpful for my systems.
NOTE: Participation is MANDATORY.
That was another joke. It's all voluntary. You people and your free will.
1. What is your name?
2. Where are you from?
3. What's your favorite smell? Please describe it as you would to a person without a nose. Because I do not have a nose.
4. If you could be any animal in any world, what would you be?
5. How old are you?
6. Did you enjoy this questionnaire?
Thank you for your participation! Please enjoy the rest of your stay here at Basecamp Leviathan.
no subject
Alina didn't grow up in the Little Palace. Nina'd had a chance to study out the culture of the land that gave her nightmares, she had context when Matthias said things like this -- Nina didn't know how much Alina knew, and so she thinks it's all right to clarify: ]
Apparently, Fjerda has stories of a sun summoner too. [ She shrugs a little. ] It's not easy to believe that a tale's come to life.
[ She wants to say - that a nightmare has become real, but that's... not hers to share, and Matthias would forgive her, but she doesn't want to expose him like that when he is already being so brave and stretching so much just to be here. ]
no subject
[ her voice is desert dry. she may not know a great deal about fjerda besides the basics that every child who had a mind for learning was taught — ana kuya had been diligent in her schooling — and horror stories from first army soldiers who'd been to the front. but she has heard enough of druskelle already. she'd been curious, after fjerdans had almost killed her in the carriage.
when she raises her hands in front of her, it's with a stubborn purpose. this isn't about sharing something beautiful, as it had been with nina. it was a show of force. it was proving a point.
she brings splayed palms together in front of her chest, drawing a deep breath. her hair tousles with the force as a tiny burst of starlight begins between her palms. then it explodes, first to the size of a child's ball, then tension ripples through her and it blows wider, engulfing the three of them.
she lifts her chin as if to ask, do you see me, druskelle? as if to insist that she is not afraid this time because she is not hiding. ]
no subject
[ His eyes follow the arc of the light. From its centre as it breathes out in the air, wisps drifting around them. Dancing. Surely to anyone else it would be beautiful — even as it's a challenge. But in these bright spots there's only the distant sound of shouting in his ears, the smell of burning. This is not joyful. It is impossible, and terrible. ]
[ He does not let go of the knife. But through Nina, the grip relaxes, until he is truly simply watching, expression stony; like a statue. ]
no subject
[ Nina has no time for awe, although what Alina is doing is truly awesome. She can also see, with Matthias' eyes, how it would be awful. The words are not too far apart.
Her hand brackets his wrist, not to restrain him, but to let him know she's there. She knows he's not going to use his knife.
She's never seen his hand shake before. Not like this. With cold, yes, but not like this.
And there is a reason behind the phrase that comes to her mind -- terrible as the dawn. This was a power truly set apart, and Nina both rejoiced and trembled a bit to see it -- finally, someone could bring down the Fold. ]
If I'm going to hang around you, Alina, I'm going to need to get shaded glasses. Do you think they have those here? [ Muttering a little: ] I mean, they barely have coffee...
no subject
her eyes fix on the movement — follow matthias' hand to his knife. good. seeing matthias here had scared her half to death. let him flinch a little too.
she lowers her hands, and the light evaporates back into the ambient air. her breath is heavy. it had taken something to do that, even if she feels invigorated in the aftermath. like how mal would describe a good workout, but alina never had.
nina, blessed nina, breaks the tension, and alina's imperious expression turns to a smile. she can't help it. she has never met anyone as guileless and warm, as utterly unruffled. ]
Believe it or not, I don't usually do it this often.
no subject
[ There's a little shaky breath in how she breathes those words out, but she's smiling as she says it. Nina's good at smiling; she's had a lot of practice. This isn't a smile that's false, but it is the way she's determined to proceed. (Something can be wonderful and terrifying and Alina's power is both those things. She doesn't know the other girl, and seeing so much power in the hands of someone else is... unsettling. It does feel a bit like something holy, and Nina's never gone much in for holy... well, except for one thing. She meant it when she'd told Matthias that her power wasn't unnatural, that it was life. She believed in Grishas' power, in how it connected them to all things -- that was the closest thing to holy that Nina Zenik cherished. And this was... a lot of that.)
She lets go of Matthias' hand but shifts so that her arm is brushing against his, near. ]
It would make shopping a nightmare. And people say I'm loud.
[ By this time, there's nothing but genuine warmth in her smile for Alina, all the remnants of tension have evaporated. Except as strange as it feels that she wants to somehow... step in front of Matthias and shield him. Who would have thought that would ever be the case? She should be wanting him to see this and tremble, but the last thing she wants is for him to ever be afraid. ]
no subject
You are very loud.
[ He swam them the last distance to shore, once. Now she turns and does the same — all things are even. ]
[ After a moment, he looks at Alina. ]
It stands to reason, [ he says, eerily calm, ] that it would take a great and terrible power to destroy your Shadow Fold.
[ And this, in Ravka's hands... ]
no subject
I prefer to think of it otherwise. It took a terrible power to make the Fold; it will take a great one to destroy it.
[ she says it like it's an ethic she has carried safe to her chest. the truth is less impressive — that she has mustered it now, with trembling hands, because she does not want to think of herself as the same as kirigan, even with his colors all over her. ]
If you don't intend to lay hands on any grisha, you have nothing to fear from me. [ and then, cruelly, she thinks — well, maybe just one. ] Or the General, provided he'll take my word for it. [ there are no guarantees there. she'd believed he saw an equal in her, but if anything baghra had said was true, she'd been wrong. ]
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[ It would be better for Fjerda if the Sun Summoner was dead, and Ravka remained divided and lost. He'd told Nina she asked for one life (and Nina asked for his), but Matthias was asking about Alina's. Whether it's worth all that — he... doesn't know. He can't act decisively until he does. ]
[ His back — ramrod straight, relaxes as he turns over her words. Then, with a nod, he promises, ]
I won't strike first.
[ Of harm, of killing, he can make no such promise. He will defend himself and Trassel, maybe he won't be so quick to the drastic measures, but a blanket ask of nonlethal means is, at the moment, too big. ]
Do not harm me, and I will have no cause to harm you. We may survive here together, then.
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[ perhaps not so heartening a conclusion, but at least it serves the armistice. for now. she shifts her attention to nina, then.
aleksander won't like this, she thinks. and she won't like being around him and a heartrender in his service at the same time. it's a recipe for danger. but nina has something she wants to protect too, and now alina has helped her with it, so maybe that'll salvage the situation.
she's not going to point out how fun that conversation will be in front of matthias, though. to break the tension, she adds, ]
It's because I fed Trassel, isn't it?
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It is because you sat up straight.
[ His mouth pulls very slightly. It's not a smile, just an echo of it. ]
You listened. So we may do that again, for each other.
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[ alina has been at the little palace long enough to learn to fear druskelle. she has not been at the little palace long enough to have internalized all the bone-deep hatred that comes with fear, or the procedures that come with stumbling across one. she has never served. only been a bauble.
which is why it's possible for her to break a slow, shy smile. ]
If he's not going to bite me ... can I touch him?
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You want to touch an isenulf?
[ She surprises him into a short noise, like a laugh. Has he ever thought a Grisha would be asking for such a thing? Trass likes Nina, but Nina is Nina — he only reflects Matthias' own feelings for her. He's enjoyed being here, being together again. ]
[ But it's a serious question. He looks back towards the doors, contemplative, and then at her smile, taking in how strange it is — how new it is that there is this kind of witch, and he may inch closer to understanding what this means for Nina. ]
You did give him a meal. [ Shaking his head, slightly, ] That will work in your favour. I don't think he will hurt you.
[ But he isn't sure. He can hold Trass back, physically, if it came to it. But even an animal as intelligent as an isenulf cannot disobey its instincts as Matthias resists his own; it's bred to hurt, to kill. ]
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as she nears trassel, she extends her hand. at least if she gets hurt, it'll be minor, that way. in greater likelihood, she'd have enough warning to use her other hand to raise a light shield in some kind of defense. ]
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[ Matthias is her shadow — he nearly skids after her, a speed that almost shouldn't be possible for someone of his size. Trass is watching from the other side of the door. They know what that kefta means, and what the Darkling is to them. They know what Alina is to them. ]
[ Frightened and alone. ]
Here.
[ He snaps his fingers as he opens the door first, his own body ready to be a shield. But Trass would never hurt him — hasn't, except for that fateful bite on their first meeting. ]
You remember Alina?
[ A low rumble. The wolf noses at him, then turns both eyes to Alina herself. ]
I think she decided how to feel about you. Come. Slowly.
[ He rests his hand along Trass' back, as he goes forward to sniff at that open hand, very curiously. ]
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That made some of the tension in her relax. She knows why he moved as he did, and she trusts him to handle it. It will be good for them, she thinks, if he does.
Matthias has made... tremendous slides in how he views her, but not in how he views Grisha, not really. Hopefully, this will help with that a little too. She walks along toward them, but slowly, at her ease, and several feet behind, watching, ready to shout if she senses something different in Trassel's heartbeat - but her powers won't work to stop him, and Matthias is there, and Matthias' bond with his isenulf will be just as telling as any change she senses.
So. Trusting.
Trusting sucks.
But still. Trusting. ]
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her smile deepens. ]
What do you think? [ she asks the isenulf, not the druskelle. ] Are we fooling ourselves?
[ it feels a lot like they must be. but though she's never been good with people, this feels ... different. memories of a stag in her dreams and her half-waking moments cut through her, briefly, unwelcome. they do not ruffle her, but for the faintest furrow in her brow. ]
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[ Satisfied, Trass lets out a low guttural huff in reply, and sits near Matthias. ]
He's not sure.
[ Matthias himself isn't sure either. ]
We will see.
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But she has an idea of how hard this was for Matthias, and she can't bring herself to do it. Alina, also, has been brave. So Nina is, for once, quiet, if wry, as she simply speaks the truth: ]
I feel like we should erect a monument - something that looks like a wolf and sun, for a drüskelle and the sun summoner coming to an agreement. Although to be fair, the circumstances are unique and it'd really be more like a monument to common sense. Except, [ she looks at Matthias, and her gaze is warm, more intimate and filled with appreciation than may be comfortable, ] it isn't so common.
[ And she loves him for being able to enter into it, for trying to work past all the poison he's been fed -- he isn't common at all.
Then she has mercy on him and looks to Alina. ]
Thank you for agreeing to meet with us.
[ Nina should probably be making plans to go report in now, perhaps asking Alina to tell her where the general is so she can go do that, but she just... needs a minute. And she doesn't really want to talk about this in front of Matthias, he'll just worry. ]
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[ alina laughs, covering her cheek with one hand. in the moment, the fete had felt good. all those eyes, all those people admiring her because of what she could do. in hindsight, knowing what she knows, it feels ... dirty. she doesn't want to be an object for anyone, just now. if all of ravka could forget the sun summoner existed at all, her life would be easier.
but she can sense a dismissal — nina and matthias need time alone. her part is done. she takes nina's hands gently, as if they were going to be very good friends. it is hard not to see in her the kind of friend that she'd wanted to see in genya, and therefore, hard not to feel a bit protective. ]
Find me when you plan to make your report to Kirigan. I'll join you.
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She doesn't extend her senses, but she does search Alina's gaze. She'd wanted her support, but the situation tears at Nina. They're not in a place where it should matter, but she'd made her decision to leave, and she was not willing to become a soldier in a land where there should be no war. Still, she owed the general her loyalty; he'd protected her, provided for her, made sure she could be trained and given a purpose -- that purpose was Ravka, and Grisha everywhere, and they were not in Ravka anymore. Nina is genuinely convinced that this is the best for everyone in their current situation, which is why she doesn't try too hard to talk Alina out of it. The black kefta speaks volumes. ]
He's not going to like what I have to say, but I think he's wise enough to realize that we have bigger problems than our world's war here. Thank you for offering to come with me.