voidtreckermods: (voidtrain)
VoidTrecker Express Mods ([personal profile] voidtreckermods) wrote in [community profile] voidtreckerexpress2021-02-01 06:00 am

A New Platform [Intro Post February]

On the Train

Three days after the Voidtreckers return to the void after their adventures on the biosphere world, they are awoken by a familiar announcement.

"Good morning passengers, it is day Sixteen of the month of Jelly. Points have been updated on the system."

They have indeed, and everyone can spend the morning shopping. Those who have been on the train for a while will also be expecting the second announcement that comes a few hours later.

"Shortly arriving into a designated void platform. Exit from void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one." A lurch and a jolt and the windows fill with the fog that means they are at a platform. The fog seems thicker than usual and as they step out onto the platform they will find it is cold, very cold. Icy fog sticks to their clothing, makes it hard to see very far; the atmosphere is dark and gloomy.

As usual the first to leave the train notice nothing as they walk silently, rucksacks on their backs, towards the barriers: Alexis Rhodes, Elfnein, Itsuki Myoudouin, Ken Ichijouji, MT, Neku Sakuraba, Nike Lemercier, Noctis Lucis Caelum, Rainbow Dash, Rei Saotome, Taichi Yagami, Tsubomi Hanasaki, Yuri Tsukikage and Zechs Merquise all pass through the platform, not looking back before they disappear through the barriers and into the fog beyond.

But on the platform itself there are new faces. Wearing hoodies in all four colours, in various states of confusion.

For New Passengers

At first all they can see is steam, billowing around them as they come to their senses. As their eyes adjust, they will see they are on a platform, glass and dark stone rising in sturdy arches around them. Behind them is a set of barriers, and in front of them is a single track extending both ways into thick fog.

They are standing, in clothes that are not their own and a style they might not even recognise. They are carrying a rucksack on their back. For a moment it seems to just be them, alone in the white haze; then the steam begins to fade and they realise they aren’t alone.

The platform is not large with sixteen figures scattered around, all facing the tracks, all dressed in cargo trousers and hoodies. To both the left and right, tracks disappear into the mist. Then there is a roaring sound and out of the fog arrives a train. Jet black with gold writing on the side. The Voidtrecker Express. There is a hiss as the doors slide open and out step a strange assortment of people. Some are human, some are less so. Most are wearing the same hoodie in one of the four colours, red, orange, blue and purple, though some are sporting different clothes in a variety of styles.

The Train

After a short time, the doors hiss open again. Those from the train may encourage those on the platform to board. It’s not like there's anywhere else to go and even if there was, you feel a pull. A need to board, a feeling that staying on the platform would lead to something terrible. If that is not enough, there are plenty of people on the platform now, to encourage them onto the train.

Each ICP shows the same message and next to the screens there are stacks of leaflets written by those on the train, with further information (see
'Publications'). The store rooms have been restocked with fresh ingredients, including several crates of avocados, the ingredient of the month of Jelly, as well as all sundries.

For passengers that have bought items, these are also scattered around the luggage carriage in various suitcases and bags.

New passengers will find their ticket allows them into their cabins. They may need to negotiate for beds, especially if they want a top bunk!

Room is tight but there are storage cubbies at the head of each bed, beds fold up and the bottom bunks double as benches for the small table. There is storage under those benches full of spare blankets and pillows.

Departure

A second horn sounds to encourage any stragglers braving the freezing fog, and the doors slide shut. Veteran passengers know what will happen next, but they may wish to brief their new companions.

The train sets off, the fog obscuring the view again as it picks up speed.

"Welcome aboard, passengers of the Voidtrecker Express." A female-coded artificial sounding voice echoes throughout the train. "Please take the time to read the passenger information displayed on the Information and Communication points and familiarise yourself with the layout and emergency exits."

The train begins to tilt, leaving the ground and rising up into the fog-filled sky.

"Entrance into Voidspace imminent. New passengers are advised to remain seated. Entry into Voidspace in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."

A shudder, a jolt, a lurch to the left. A flash of light, colourful and blinding. As quick as it happens it is done. The train seems to steady itself. The fog from the windows is gone now, replaced with a kaleidoscope of ever-changing colours.

Welcome to the Void!
deductiongeek: (chinhand)

[personal profile] deductiongeek 2021-02-03 07:47 pm (UTC)(link)
"Enough. Like I said, they've both backed me up here since I've known them. And they've kept my identity secret."
deage: (the villain enters)

[personal profile] deage 2021-02-03 07:53 pm (UTC)(link)
A princess, is it? Fire Nation doesn't sound like any nation in Earth, even accounting for an unreliable translation, but she's been to enough worlds at this point to accept that. A princess of any world could be a good contact, though.

.... or a major headache. One of the two.

"I can't say I've ever heard of a Fire Nation, but it's a pleasure to meet you regardless, Your Highness." She pauses for just a moment to answer her question, though, running the math in her head. "As for me, I've been here about... a little over three months?" Since Grasshopper, she believes. "A long time to be on a train, in any case."
deage: (condescending)

[personal profile] deage 2021-02-03 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
"I suppose that'll have to do, for now." What are you gonna do, Haibara, vet them? Don't ask her that. "You've had a pretty good track record of figuring out who to trust, when your hormones aren't trying to make that decision for you. I can probably take you at your word for this."

Is that a compliment or an insult?
worthallthis: (friendly)

[personal profile] worthallthis 2021-02-03 08:02 pm (UTC)(link)
Soldat, on the other hand, is just happy to have a mission now and then. They're not exactly comfortable with authority, but a sentient train is somehow a lot less scary than a regular human with an agenda.

"I heard about the last one having animals in it, yeah," they agree. "You don't have to stay on your team, though, for missions. I'm on purple team." They pluck at their purple hoodie with a wry little smile. "But I've been mostly helping out red team so far."
yondu: (0 6 7)

[personal profile] yondu 2021-02-03 08:12 pm (UTC)(link)
"Somethin' like that woulda made my life a lot easier. Looks like it does like a Flerken's mouth... They got these pocket dimensions in 'em? They can eat like, ten people at once an' they're about yay big."

He makes a space between his hands that's basically adult cat size.

"That said, yeah, looks like some stuff I could use in there." He squints at some of the smaller tools. "Need to see what kinda metals y'all got."
dreamtamer: (pic#7374726)

Standard Car

[personal profile] dreamtamer 2021-02-03 08:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Just like every time they stopped at a platform, Takato had found his way to a seat in the standard car to watch the void as they departed.It gave him a little bit of a headache, but it was worth it for the view. After departure he stays in his seat for a while. Guilmon had already fallen asleep in the seat next to him, and Takato sleepily leans up against the red dinosaur as he watches people moving through the car.

He stirs slightly as he sees someone he didn't recognize moving through the car.

"Did you just arrive?"

If she could sense such things, she might be able to notice that the red dinosaur was a creature of data and programming. Or that the child was also a creation of data, in part.
schrodingersghost: (phantom revelations)

[personal profile] schrodingersghost 2021-02-03 08:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[Danny scowls grumpily back.]

Yeah, thanks. I get that a lot. For the record, ghosts in my world can be tangible if we want to be. And I'm only a ghost part-time.
yondu: (1 2 4)

[personal profile] yondu 2021-02-03 08:18 pm (UTC)(link)
"They sure as shit are playin' it real fast and loose with this whole team thing. I probably woulda set up some structure." He waves dismissively with his hand, though.

It really seems, from the sound of it, that they're just handing someone's backend stuff? But he can't even tell so far.

"I reckon I'll cross that bridge when I get there. How rough have the missions been?"
deductiongeek: (innocent)

Cabin 1B

[personal profile] deductiongeek 2021-02-03 08:19 pm (UTC)(link)
In one of the other bunks (the one where the entire storage space has been taken up by mystery novels), there is a small child watching this.

"I've never seen an arrow like that before!" he says brightly. "Don't you need a bow to go with it?"
Edited 2021-02-03 20:20 (UTC)
10billionpercent: (Default)

[personal profile] 10billionpercent 2021-02-03 08:21 pm (UTC)(link)
"Never heard of them." Senku said with a shake of his head. "But it's something like that."

He considered the question. "I'm not sure we have metal for public use. We might have some scavenged robot parts left that haven't been used or claimed. Otherwise it could be something people are using for personal use. You can borrow the toolbox for now, you just can't keep it indefinitely." He felt the need to add that since someone had already asked him if they could keep the tools before.

"I've got iron, but it's one of the items I barter with. I don't withhold things like food or water, or necessities of other kind, but I do barter with other things." Senku explained.
nutkrusher: (Contemplative)

[personal profile] nutkrusher 2021-02-03 08:24 pm (UTC)(link)
"They do, I've made some friends here," Cassie says. "Can't say you're replacing one of them, but...really, I haven't got much to say other than 'it's nice they got to go home.'"

She's made more than a friend, too, but that might be a bit much to lead with.
worthallthis: (look up)

[personal profile] worthallthis 2021-02-03 08:25 pm (UTC)(link)
"That's good." So at least they don't need to worry she's going to burn herself out on a mission, or something. And if it's a special skill her family has.... "Guess it ain't something you can to do somebody else's bullets, right?"
nutkrusher: (Gun Drawn)

[personal profile] nutkrusher 2021-02-03 08:27 pm (UTC)(link)
"I've never tried," Cassie says. "I could probably give it a shot."
deductiongeek: (pic#7651066)

Kitchens

[personal profile] deductiongeek 2021-02-03 08:27 pm (UTC)(link)
After departure, Conan had eventually abandoned his book in the library (he'd read all of them before anyway) and made his way to the kitchen. There he pulls open the refrigerator as he debates both what he could reach without having to drag a chair over and what he could make with his extremely limited cooking skills.

When Steve enters, Conan promptly decides to make use of his height.

"Do you think you can get the bread down for me? I can't reach it."
worthallthis: (Default)

[personal profile] worthallthis 2021-02-03 08:29 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yeah, I get it." As much as they hate to be alone, really, not having to deal with people sometimes is important. A little concerned by her demeanor and the head-rubbing, they offer, "You wanna just go now, and I can bring you your tea when it finishes steeping?"
10billionpercent: (Huh?)

[personal profile] 10billionpercent 2021-02-03 08:52 pm (UTC)(link)
"Eva and Curufin are the team leads for the orange team." Senku responded. "It's not a terribly rigid structure, but they just basically keep track of what team you go with and remind you to prepare for being off the train for a few days, that kind of thing."
unfavorableinstigation: Nita looking directly at the viewer, mouth slightly open, as if she's in the middle of an important or unamused expression. (Focused)

[personal profile] unfavorableinstigation 2021-02-03 09:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Crumbs.

[Comes the answer, all non-chalant.]

And grease, from the oil.

[Which, depending on what you were doing, wasn't necessarily a problem by itself.]
unfavorableinstigation: Nita working with a Kernel (Wizardry Is Kid Stuff)

[personal profile] unfavorableinstigation 2021-02-03 09:02 pm (UTC)(link)
This part takes much less time.

Nita gives Otoha a helpless smile at his observation.

"... Yeah. They were some of the places I felt the safest, back in elementary and middle school."

Away from bullies. Home had been okay, but it wasn't the same.
unfavorableinstigation: Nita looking right, holding a book. (I'm In The Book)

[personal profile] unfavorableinstigation 2021-02-03 09:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Nita shouldn't be surprised when it's Inigo that joins her where she is; after a moment's more effort at straightening herself up, she leans back against him.

She nods. "Yeah. Sometimes for the train," she starts, thumbing back behind them at the wall.

"But sometimes for me, too."
blitzcheer: (ummmooo)

[personal profile] blitzcheer 2021-02-03 09:07 pm (UTC)(link)
...Yyyeah, sure Della, I have a real big opinion about hugs.

[ Really, Della? ]
irrationally: (and set sail for dreamsy)

[personal profile] irrationally 2021-02-03 09:13 pm (UTC)(link)
Pattern? Something about that word makes Alice raise an eyebrow. After all, thinking about things logically usually isn't the way she approaches anything, so it seems odd to her.

For a moment, anyway. Since she does at least answer.

"Not as far as I can tell. It just seems to bring us to any place it can find that's in trouble somehow. No matter whether that trouble is caused by a meteor or a hostile invasion." She shrugs a little as she says it.
irrationally: (i don't even have a song)

[personal profile] irrationally 2021-02-03 09:13 pm (UTC)(link)
"I don't often see people enjoy frightening things," she simply replies. Is that even a direct one to one answer to that question? It's hard to tell, but at least she's being honest about that.

(Especially since Alice is from a world where things like rollercoasters don't exist yet.)

"Isn't being frightened by things merely a sign of one's survival instinct kicking in? Then thinking it's lovely at the same time would be quite counterproductive."
irrationally: (i was travelling through the past)

[personal profile] irrationally 2021-02-03 09:13 pm (UTC)(link)
That's..

[ Alice starts, but seems to give up on her sentence after only uttering one word. She even raised a hand, which she's now promptly dropping. As if she's giving up in the face of his way too casual reply. ]

What kind of place do you come from that you would eat something like that in such a way? [ Of course the implication being that he must be from some country bumpkin kind of place, even though she doesn't explicitly say it out loud. ]
irrationally: (now i can't sing; i can't feel)

[personal profile] irrationally 2021-02-03 09:13 pm (UTC)(link)
At first it seems that Alice's expression isn't about to change. Not even as he backs out, then walks back in, then speaks up again. She still seems entirely unamused, and kind of wary about the guy even as he proclaims his reason for being here the fact that he's their new roommate.

But then he uses the words 'sleeping platform'. And though it first makes Alice look surprised for a moment, she then looks amused.

But in that kind of way people look amused when they're trying really hard to hold back a laugh. No one is getting one out of her that easily!

"It seems we lost two of our roommates today, so you can pick. I sleep over here. And.."

She points at another bunk.

"That's where the old man sleeps." (Sorry, Siebren.)
happyends: (the ancient magic i dreamed of)

[personal profile] happyends 2021-02-03 09:16 pm (UTC)(link)
She shakes her head practically instantly after he says those latter words.

"You don't have to apologize." Not for being sad. Of course no one can be happy all the time. Not even Romeo, who's smiling pretty much always. Constantly, whenever she sees him.

Of course losing someone would be hard, even on him. It's hard on everyone.

Quietly Madoka takes a seat next to where he's laying on the seats.

"You can be sad for a while.. That's alright. Everyone feels that way when something like this happens. It's painful when someone important to you is suddenly gone.."