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!
thawed_pride: (Nort-I'm getting too old for this.)

[personal profile] thawed_pride 2021-02-04 09:08 am (UTC)(link)
"Certainly not by availability...I was in the midst of preparing for something quite delicate. I do trust the others with it, but..."

He gestures vaguely at the air.

"Simply because someone can do something alone, doesn't mean they ought to be forced to. My only solace is that they may realize they have a way to solidly confirm whether or not I've died."
thawed_pride: (Nort-This seems worth my while.)

[personal profile] thawed_pride 2021-02-04 09:11 am (UTC)(link)
"Likewise. Now then..."

He stands up and brushes himself off. Despite having been sitting directly on the ice block, the back of his pants doesn't even look damp, and the spot where he'd been sitting shows no sign of having melted.

"I'm sure you're tired. How about we board, and find you somewhere better to rest than a block of ice?"
tactlesstantei: (amusement)

[personal profile] tactlesstantei 2021-02-04 09:28 am (UTC)(link)
Thanks, Conan! I’m sure this’ll really come in handy.

[You never know with the train, after all. Pocketing the badge, Masumi considers the most obvious question about this, namely who else is going to get a badge.]

Who else is getting one? I assume Ran and Ai are getting one too since you said ‘those of us here’, and that you obviously kept one for yourself, but you also mentioned a few allies.
yondu: (1 3 3)

[personal profile] yondu 2021-02-04 09:45 am (UTC)(link)
He doesn't say that he's not sure their heads aren't being messed with right now. Seems like it's somethin' they'd already got tickling around in the back of their brain, and if they don't got it then likely they don't need it there.

"Almost sounds like a vacation compared to what I'm used to."
kumoko: (eh really??)

[personal profile] kumoko 2021-02-04 10:00 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, she doesn't need a Bullshit Detection skill to get that one. Doesn't truly exist? What, he's like one of those empty shells, or... Anyway, why is he worried about being eaten if he doesn't exist?

Smells fishy.

"You ever eaten-- er," Wait, shit, she's meant to be helping him out, not debating whether he tastes good. "Never mind, never mind, just let me get you free, 'kay?"
yondu: (0 5 3)

[personal profile] yondu 2021-02-04 10:21 am (UTC)(link)
Wouldn't make sense if she was an angel anyway. He wasn't bound for that place. Even his culture had an idea of heaven and hell, and one good ending note does not a life worth living make.

But that said, he still feels like death warmed over, and he coughs into his hand again before straightening up.

"Fair enough, fair enough," he concedes. "Then what the hell is this?"
its_dad_sanzo: (what's over here)

[personal profile] its_dad_sanzo 2021-02-04 10:22 am (UTC)(link)
"A lot of things, huh?" Koumyou beams up and over at Devero as he carries the trunk over to the edge of the stage and sets it where Dev can go digging into it if he wishes to. Then he just boosts himself up to sit beside it, legs hanging off the edge.

"You didn't have to haul it all the way here, you know," but he had, so Koumyou's extra curious, "what did you get?"
sciencegirl: (081)

[personal profile] sciencegirl 2021-02-04 11:02 am (UTC)(link)
"I've had people forget about me once or twice but that wasn't because I was a demon or a spirit or anything."

She turns in place, hair still moving and going about its tasks.

"If you come from another world with magic, that's great! I'm trying to find out as much as I can about what's going on elsewhere and see if there are any unifying dynamics."
sciencegirl: (08)

[personal profile] sciencegirl 2021-02-04 11:03 am (UTC)(link)
"Can you count it by platforms? Or does your ticket have a stamp on it? I still haven't figured out the month system yet. I need to do that."
mynameisallen: (Glance ★ With my heart on the trigger)

Re: Najaran OTA

[personal profile] mynameisallen 2021-02-04 11:11 am (UTC)(link)
"You two must have been pretty close then?" He figured at least very good friends because even then seeing them leave would have still been painful and that hope of seeing them always being there.

He had a good few people we would love to see again personally after all.
mynameisallen: (Joke ★ And major tom will sing along)

[personal profile] mynameisallen 2021-02-04 11:13 am (UTC)(link)
"No one knows or really remembers how they get here" It was a thing he honestly hated for the most part.

"it's one of the major annoying things about this"
mynameisallen: (Glance ★ Looking down in hope)

[personal profile] mynameisallen 2021-02-04 11:14 am (UTC)(link)
"What are you getting stock of? Medicines or something?" He couldn't think of what needed a lot of stuff. Though really what it could be is a much longer list.
sizedoesntmatter: (019)

Re: Library

[personal profile] sizedoesntmatter 2021-02-04 11:32 am (UTC)(link)
"I wasn't lecturing. It was more out of concern, but if it sounded as such I will at least apologize for that." More so since they did say they eat plenty which was, for the most part, his main concern.

"Nothing wrong, but studying alone also means you don't form bonds or connections because it's a one person thing unless it's a group study thing, I suppose... Then that's another factor." Yugi was one who thinks having friends help people in various ways at least.

"But I assume you'll say to me you never get lonely, right?"
sizedoesntmatter: (45)

[personal profile] sizedoesntmatter 2021-02-04 11:35 am (UTC)(link)
[Yugi had to be surprised for a moment at a book being shoved at him. But she seemed so excited he couldn't help but smile.]

So it's something wilderness related? [He was for the most part taking a guess.]
so_dark_a_road: (by the laws of our people)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 11:37 am (UTC)(link)
"I'm sure Gen would appreciate that," said Curufin, with a smile.

"It ought to be interesting, looking at the night sky of some mission planet. It would be so different from the Earth's sky, and a fascinating view, I'm sure."

He nodded. "Ah, I see. The giving of a flag is a tradition, and it seals the deal and indicates respect."
sizedoesntmatter: (43)

[personal profile] sizedoesntmatter 2021-02-04 11:38 am (UTC)(link)
Yugi laughed slightly at being dragged down and happily letting it happen as he sat on the other's lap. But after a moment he looked at him curiously.

"Celebrate in what way? I feel like you'll say a game or something since we're in the games carriage," And that was something he didn't mind at all really.
sizedoesntmatter: (105)

[personal profile] sizedoesntmatter 2021-02-04 11:43 am (UTC)(link)
"You could always do running. That is good for legs right?" Exercise and what's good for what is not his strong suit, but he at least knows running works the legs so it made sense it would help in that area, right?

"I guess Vegeta exercises completely differently then?"
so_dark_a_road: (in the unmeasured night #3)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 11:46 am (UTC)(link)
"I'm glad you're fine. And it's good to keep busy, isn't it?" Curufin used the same strategy to get through the days and nights. "Say, how's your painting coming along? Any interesting projects in the works?"

The last person departed through the turnstyle, and Curufin felt a kind of emptiness. "Maybe so, though it was important to me the first time I did it. I can't stop anybody from leaving, and I don't know why they're going. But I can say goodbye. I don't know whether they can hear me or not, but if they can, it might be a comfort to them, to know that they will be missed."

He shakes his head. "Anyway, that's better than the alternative, which is that they aren't in any sense here at all, that the train simply provides us with images of the people who have already left. Holograms, or some such thing."
so_dark_a_road: (in the unmeasured night #3)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 11:53 am (UTC)(link)
"How did you get the white robes? Did you order them at the train store? It must be nice to feel like a Herald again."

Indeed, they are here at the pleasure of the train entity. That's if it's really true that people leave because the train decides to ditch them. Curufin is not convinced that people can't leave of their own accord.

"Your sympathy is appreciated, Selenay. I wish there were anything anybody could do for me, but I don't suppose there is, besides listening. Though that's not nothing! I didn't see Glorfindel around, so I went looking for him, and he's just. . . not anywhere on the train."
tactlesstantei: (happiness)

[personal profile] tactlesstantei 2021-02-04 11:54 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, nice. I hope he likes what you got him. [That seems like a nice thing to do, and Masumi smiles as she gives her well wishes.

However, her smile fades as the topic switches to what she wanted her phone for, as it’s a much more sensitive topic that she has to be careful discussing.]


Yup, it had a picture on it that I wanted. It has to do with what we talked about at Jema’grethy, actually.

[She’s not as open about it here since anyone could just walk in and overhear, and she’s trying to avoid that.]
so_dark_a_road: (by the laws of our people)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 12:02 pm (UTC)(link)
"Nautilus, a rather beautiful name. A nautilus shell is complex and pearlescent on the inside. That world entity sounds a bit like the train, in that it's purpose is to defend other worlds. Did you leave deliberately, or did you just. . . find yourself elsewhere one day?"

Curufin smiled a little. "A good wish. It is hard to be separated from someone who is so important. You've spoken of your son before, and you obviously love him very much. I hope the same, that all parents and children who are so bonded may meet again."
so_dark_a_road: (these are my brass knuckles)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 12:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Curufin smiled. "I will do that, then. It would be fun if we could spend more time scrounging those worlds for interesting food and enjoyable experiences -- instead of fighting for our lives and the lives of others. And I do like to fish, but unfortunately, most of those mission worlds don't seem to have streams and rivers with fish in them. Better a fish than a vain wish." He was resorting to rhymes, since he couldn't think of a good pun at this moment. As had been his habit in other worlds.

His coffee was made, so he poured it into a cup and sat down by Spark.
adregem: (look forward to tomorrow.)

you know my weakness for dorky >//<

[personal profile] adregem 2021-02-04 12:13 pm (UTC)(link)
"Senku."

Roland smiles in return, his eyes already on the said bag, a finger under his chin.

"Wow. To what do I owe the pleasure of a gift exchange? You know, that crate of food was a birthday present. You don't need to return the favor, heh." The jest comes easy enough; they were allies now, true allies, after all. He waits for the reveal, whatever it might be, a little excited at what's in store. Senku was quite the gift-giver.
so_dark_a_road: (rainy day in the forest)

[personal profile] so_dark_a_road 2021-02-04 12:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yes, your Cards are really important to you," he said. "Can you give me an exact description of a Culdcept Card you would especially want? I can ask at the train store and find out if I can buy something from someone else's world. I'm not sure whether the train will permit that, but it never hurts to ask."
adregem: (chin up kid.)

[personal profile] adregem 2021-02-04 12:17 pm (UTC)(link)
He did indeed, and it's just to his tastes. The only thing he opted not to wear out was the tie, too formal for an occasion like greeting newcomers or seeing old friends depart into the great unknown.

But at Taiki's insistence, Roland meets him halfway. The returned coat is halted firmly, giving Roland some room to maneuver one arm in, resting the long garb across his back and shoulder. The other half is carefully offered to Taiki, so that in the end, should his tactic prove successful, they would be sharing the same coat, one armhole and shoulder each.

"Exactly. It's cold out. So you should protect yourself too. Is this better? It's very warm, right? The lining is definitely a plus." Roland smiles, nonchalant in delivery yet he hopes he isn't too forward with such a gesture. Regardless, he means every word. Kingmaker or not, Taiki was still someone with an earthly disposition in many ways, or he would so assume. Getting sick shouldn't even be risked, if he can help it.
Edited 2021-02-04 12:18 (UTC)