voidtreckerexpress | A New Platform [Intro Post March]

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A New Platform [Intro Post March]

On the Train

Once again passengers are awoken by the morning announcement.

"Good morning passengers, it is day One of the month of Kazoo. 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 is thick, the air is warm and humid and there are rumbles of thunder, the air heavy with the promise of rain.

As usual the first to leave the train notice nothing as they walk silently, rucksacks on their backs, towards the barriers: Alfredo Martini, Daia, Enna Alchiba, Lord El-Melloi II, Natsuno Yuuki, Nita Callahan, Saku Gyousou, Sakura, V and Wen Qing

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, and seems smaller with twenty-seven 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.

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'). Those not new to the train will note the addition of an eighth sleeper carriage. The store rooms have been restocked with fresh ingredients, it seems the month of Kazoo is defined by the tomato and there are plenty of them.

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 as thunder rumbles further and the storm threatens to break. 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!

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"Shy, huh?" The teasing is light, said with a smile; voice raised as he's near his way out, but he's turned just one last time.

"Well I'll say it for everyone! Thanks for the food, Cap'n Chef."

This would be where he'd give a playful salute, but with his hands full, all he can offer is the lift of his chin before he turns. "Alright, better get this out-"

And they may see each other once or twice, but Tidus keeps busy that day with actually being out on the platform to see the newbies. He knows about the announcement for the team structure for Purples coming up before it does, and Glorfindel's been missing for a while. Someone's got to stop those over-responsible types that're left from over-working themselves, so. Why not him to help do the whole 'sorry that a train kidnapped you' routine?

He doesn't have a particular interest in reading the surveys as they come back in, that Roland receives. He'll play liaison for now, but up until the team gets better offers, and all that. But Soldat--that's someone he knows who'd be good for a certain job, and a small exchange has him keeping an eye out for the cook-loving guy.

Wherever he might spot them we'll leave up to their player, Tidus will give a friendly "Hey", a hand raised in greeting their way.

"Meet anyone you know from wherever you're from?"

"Not today," Soldat says, shaking their head a little. They're in the standard car, listening to the quiet chatter from a few rows up, head leaning against the window. Or, it had been, before hearing Titus coming. They shift in the train seat to more comfortably face him. "Last platform there were two. But no one this time."

And if they're a little disappointed, well, they're at least accepting of it instead of upset. They know how this sort of thing works. You can just wish for people and have them show up. "You?"

"Two's pretty good," Tidus offers with a sympathetic tilt with the head, pace slowed down to the side of the booth seating opposite from where Soldat sits. Figures that's the way to speak about it anyway, though for himself- "None for me, but I'm fine with that. They've got good lives back in Spira. And I'm far from lonely."

He scoffs lightly, a joke at their cramped conditions, the side of his elbow then leaning against the soft padding of the seating.

"But I had something to chat with you with! If you're just chilling?"

And up for a chat?

"I'm usually happy for a chat," Soldat allows, shifting further so they're properly facing each other. They don't look nervous, but their expression is politely bland. The first thought they have is they did something wrong, and they're quietly preparing for it. "What's going on?"

"Cool." He's not one to read into expressions--taking it for what it looks like, just a guy chilling and taking a break. Which makes it easy for Tidus to explain, a hand waving up and out as he does. He does that often when he talks.

"I was hanging out with Roland earlier when he was going through those survey sheets he asked us to do. Don't worry, he didn't share anything personal with me," he slips in, as if it might matter. Rather, he didn't think he'd be the one worth sharing any personal details with, if anyone was going to help with that.

"I just brought up about you cooking, and he said you put down you were into that. We actually wanna keep some food in supply, in case people don't make any, pack it away for when missions come around. We've got this bread flour too we buy -- lembas? They'll fill you up - real good for the people who eat the weight of a shoopuf."

But of course, there's a reason he's going into all this, explained as Tidus goes on.

"Anyway, I was wondering if you'd be up for leading that. Seeing what food we get in each month, whatever we can get from missions and ordering, keeping an eye on the food supply? Think you'd be into that? Would be good if we had someone more in charge of that side of supplies."

Soldat's expression slowly morphs from careful neutral to curious to increasingly, almost painfully hopeful. A job, a task, something to help fill up their time that they don't have to work out for themselves, that will help people-- "Absolutely. Yes. Please, I would. I used to to that, in my last place. Helped keep track of supply, made lunch for everybody every day, supplied people going out to explore." (Come on, pal, rein it in there. Sorry. Sorry, Sarge. Don't apologize to me.)

To Titus: "Sorry. But yes. I can do that. If someone shows me how to make the lembas, I can do that, too." Raven got some of that for them their first day, they remember.

"No need to apologise to me," Tidus says; a bit taken back, but in a good way, really. Adding jokingly, "I just talked your ears off!"

And if he was expecting anything, it wasn't quite this level of agreement--but it makes Tidus glad to hear it, that the idea wasn't a bad one. Some people didn't want too much responsibility.

But it sounded like they hit a jackpot, here. The enthusiasm was infectious. "But hey, this is great! I know Rol'll be happy, and we can get you the recipe for them. You'll be working with Cassie with the inventory, but I know how the food'll be stored." Ah. He looks about the table, glancing to his right hand that he raises some before looking back at Soldat.

"I can show you what we'll be using, and how to use it -- right now. It's one of those items that let you just put stuff nowhere. You ever seen that?"

It's the kind of responsibility they've learned how to bear easily, the kind that's taking care of people rather than ordering them around. The kind where no one actually has to look at them. This is the best.

"Pocket dimensions, bags of holding," Soldat says, nodding, leaning forward over the isle seat to show they're paying attention. Cassie. They've spoken with her, they can take orders from her if necessary. "I've seen it before, yeah."

"Hm, alright!" That's good. Tidus takes a step to the table, all that's really separating them. But he wants to stay standing, when he puts out lifted hand, hovering over. There's a ornamental band on the wrist, hard to miss.

"This?" Tidus nods to it. "It's an arms band - you've probably seen a few people wear it, but sometimes it's smaller. Anyway," since that's not really important, "--it's one of those. We've got three to spare for the team, and we're gonna stick all the supplies split in them. The way we sorted food stock for anyone to take regardless of team, is we took the empty suitcases over in luggage, and we filled them with the lunchboxes. And when you wanna bring that suitcase back out..."

He twitches his hand, his attention swinging to it, and without much of a moment, a purple duffle bag appears on the table, 'gold dust' appearing but quickly fading around it.

"--This is my personal stuff," he explains, a smile tugging at talking about one thing, but oops, here's something else. But I just have to know it's in there, and I'll make it appear! You might wanna label the suitcase bags -- but you'll want to stack everything together. You can't really just look in a band and know what you've got, you know? Too many small things -- you'll forget. You need a way to remember everything."

He's taking off the accessory as he talks. If Soldat's looking, they'll see that the band of it widens around Tidus's hand to match its width before becoming smaller.

Tidus holds it out to Soldat.

"I'll let you put this bag back away, and then take it out. But you following everything so far?" A small chuckle- "I usually leave this to Roland to explain."

But if he ain't doing a bad job, he can go onto the next step.

"My memory is perfect. Well. When it's not being wiped, anyway. But I will keep a list," they promise. They accept the band and slide it onto their own flesh wrist. It expands into what looks like three or four plates from the metal arm, with gems intact. "Okay." They shake their wrist a little, then frown at it. "How hard is it to pull the wrong thing?" Since Titus apparently just did.

And also, you know, how did he actually do that. There has to be more than just knowing it's there, or else things would fall out every time you thought about them.

"It's good for you and the other people using them," Tidus explains, at least the reasoning for it. But, memory wiping? Notttt touching that. Not really the time for it, anyway. It explains itself on the bottle too, doesn't it? So he moves on to the question, humming in the negative.

"You can't really, not as far as I know? Since it's really specific how you take it out. So you put your hand on that bag-" he directs, motioning to the bag, "and what you what to do-- Roland talks about imagining somewhere safe and personal, whatever that it is to you, and imagine putting it there. I think about putting it in a hole in a cave wall, that's always following me."

A beat, and there's some light humour as he admits, "...I'm not really imaginative." Heh. "But you do that to put it in, and then do the same to take it out. But in reverse."

That is, removing the bag from that 'safe place'. But if Soldat does imagine what safe is to them, and the bag being 'put away' even in some sense of the meaning, a warm feeling will wash over them before then--it's gone disappeared into the band.

Safe. What's safe? Soldat has... very little that counts as safe. Certainly nothing here, not on this train. But maybe elsewhere. They think for a moment, then settle on... handing the bag to Misty. Setting it into her arms for safekeeping.

It vanishes from the table, and Soldat looks surprised.

"Cool, you got it!" Tidus has seen the disappearing-reappearing act of a band to not be surprised, but he appreciates the look that Soldat wears nonetheless.

"Now you just think about wanting it back with you, and..."

He turns his palm upwards, gesturing to the table top again. And presto--if Soldat makes it happen.

It's as much surprise at how they managed to do it on the first try, as the sight of something actually disappearing. Which shouldn't be a surprise, Soldat knows they're pretty good at picking things up, but this is magic. Magic is different than learning a dance step or a new gun quickly.

They frown at the table-top, and try to imagine Misty handing the bag back to them. It takes two tries, this time, mostly because now they're thinking about it, but then there's Tidus's bag, right there on the table again. "Huh. How much can fit in one of these."

"No clue," he answers, even if it was just a thought spoken. A shrug of his shoulders that's small, a look away glance as he tries to remember one thing. "But I think there's something up... about how many weapons you can carry?" Hmmm. "You'll wanna ask Roland for the specifics - he knows them better than me. But we get a lot of stuff into those things, so they're pretty handy for being so small."

Nevermind the fact that they can keep foods in there so a good time, which- "We've got some bears too, from a mission-- ...three missions ago? Yeah. You ever cooked bear?"

He says it with a light lift in his voice, as if it's a joke.

"A bear." Soldat stares a little, though at the Arms Band not Tidus. "No. I've. Cooked rabbits? Squirrels? Never caught a bear." But now that they've been made aware, damned if they aren't going to try. "In this one?" They tap it with one metal finger, making a soft pinging noise.

"No, that's my personal one," he admits with the sliver of a sheepish note, but then figures to hold out his hand to take it back. But, not with any particular impatient motion to it.

"They're in one of the bands for Purple's stuff - Cassie can show you, or Roland." Either or. "And Inigo can help you with preparing if you need a hand. He knows about that better than me -- and bears. I lived by the sea," he says, more sheepish this time than before.

That really wasn't the right explanation, but hey, he'll go with it if Soldat doesn't ask.

"I lived in a city. And then a bunker. Only learned how to cook rabbits over a campfire in the war." They take a second to figure out how to get the Arms Band off, but then offer it back with no reluctance. They're not going to pry into the "sea" thing, not if Tidus doesn't seem comfortable with the subject. "Don't think I ever saw a bear except in the zoo. It'll be an adventure."

"War, huh?" He says it after Soldat does, the word - the meaning, the implication - hanging onto him. Nothing new, but always something foreign to him, but not. But he lets it go, a small huff behind his mouth that's drawn in a small smile.

"I think... there was a zoo where I'm from." It's thoughtful, and he's trying to think; whenever he thinks about Zanarkand, there's things he remembers and doesn't. More or so, it's a reminder - of a life and city he didn't think to explore, will ever get the chance. His eyes lifting to look at the ceiling before returning to Soldat.

And he realises he spoke and went nowhere with it, and pulls a smile that's goofy and apologetic, tipping his head.

"You ever wish you paid more attention to your old life before it disappeared?"

Disappeared - it's not the word he should've gone for, but he looks around them for meaning of what he means.

"I don't know if I paid attention to it or not. If I appreciated what I had." Soldat considers a moment, going over the scattered memories they have from before the war. "I think. Maybe the person I used to be. He did appreciate it. He's the one who went to war, and he had. There was training beforehand, there was time between the draft letter and shipping out, to know what was being lost. And he seemed the type to really live life."

They shake their head. That may not really be what Tidus means by "pay attention to", but they definitely couldn't say what the person they used to be paid attention to. So they finish: "And I definitely appreciate it now."

That is so not what Tidus meant, and he realises he's stepped into a complicated story, more so than most people experience when Soldat answers him. Complicated. Complicated for him to even know what he thinks, but it's not something he wants to really pry into.

"'Don't worry about the past, live in the moment'? --That feels like something someone would say." And maybe it's his way, of not putting emphasis on the thought, on his original question. Maybe he shouldn't think as much either about his old, gone life. Sprinkled in with a little humour, to keep it light.

"The person I used to be, maybe." Soldat doesn't frankly have a lot of choice in the matter, with only pieces of their past left. They don't really feel like prying into Tidus's real meaning, either. They've got a purpose, and it's time to start planning. "Well, I guess I should go talk to Roland or Cassie about one of those bands. And some bears."

"Sure! And if you need a hand with the cooking..." He shrugs, waves out a hand. "I can help. But you should ask around the other people who like cooking. Everyone wants to feel useful, you know?"

Mostly. It's been a theme anyway, of people want to do more, feel more involved. Hopefully, Soldat won't go as wild with the cooking as they did earlier that day, all on their own.

They understand, but that does kind of... require asking people for help. Soldat is not historically great at that. Maybe if they walk in on them, they can put people to work, but actually seeking out people for support? Way too much initiative for a murder machine.

"I'll remember that," is what they say. "There's usually a handful of people in the kitchen car, anyhow, whoever's on chores for the month."

"And outside of chores," Tidus chuckles lightly. Yeah, some people were just a fan of cooking around here.

"But-- that's everything! Thanks for helping out," Tidus says, with nothing really more to ask Soldat. But he appreciates the task that they're willing to take, the thanks sincere with the smile he gives.

"You all good? Don't...think I left out anything, do ya?" Aha- no last explanations or something or other?

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worthallthis - 2021-03-18 23:21 (UTC) - Expand

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