A New Platform [Intro Post January]

[voidtreckermods]

On the Train

After a very quiet latter half of the month of Catfish the calendar clicks over. Passengers wake up in their beds as usual to the passenger announcement. "Good morning passengers, it is day one of the month of domino.".

Those that have been on board a while know that new months usually come with new people and so the message a few hours later will not be a surprise. "Shortly arriving into a designated void platform. Exit from void imminent." A lurch and a jolt and they are soon surrounded by the fog that means they are at a platform.

It will come as a relief that no one leaves this time, no one with packed bags to walk silently towards the barriers.

Added to that the platform itself holds more people then it ever has before. Twenty one figures, all the colours are represented. The ground is icy and their breath pools in white clouds around them.

For New Passengers

At first all they can see if steam. Billowing around them as they come to their senses. They are standing, in clothes that are not their own, styles 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 but then the steam begins to fade and they realise they aren’t alone.

The platform is not large and it holds twenty one figures all facing the tracks, all dressed in cargo trousers and hoodies. The air is cold, the ground icy beneath your feet. Both left and right the 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 into the cold step a selection of people. Some are human, some are less so. They are wearing the same hoodie in one of the four colours, red, orange, blue and purple.

The Train

The doors hiss open. Those from the train may encourage those on the platform to board. It’s not like there is 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 not be a good thing also it’s very cold out on the platform. The train is warmer.

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. The store rooms have been restocked and it seems that water chestnuts are the month of Domino’s ingredient of choice! Any of orange team who who go to check the luggage cart will find a parcel containing gingerbread snowflakes, decorated with icing. One for each of the orange team, including new members, come share in the reward!

New passengers will find their tickets allow 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 and you will hopefully find a pillow for your bed if it has not been nabbed by a roommate, there are also spare blankets for if it gets cold.

Departure

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

The train sets off, the fog obscuring the view 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."

Hopefully someone warns you that you really want to heed that warning because a moment later there is 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. The fog from the windows is gone now, replaced with a kaleidoscope of ever changing colours.

Welcome to voidspace!

Comments

[thinhammer]

[ See, this is what Naruto needs. A good, responsible adult who doesn't mess around with laughing at the way he pronounces things or berate him for being loud, just tells him what he needs to know with no nonsense or fuss and even shows him something cool for his trouble. What a blessing Wade is.

Naruto gets up and follows without question, scurrying past to catch up with Wade's head-start, till he's peering over his shoulder to get a good look at this ""extinguisher"". ]

Oh- I'm Naruto! Who're you? Are ya like.. a leader or somethin'?

[ He knows they don't have jounin here, and probably not teachers either. They certainly don't have Hokage, so 'leader' is the only word he can come up with that these people might understand. Wade is clearly responsible enough to be teaching him important things, therefore he must be in some kind of figure of authority... right? ]

[filmnotyetrated]

[Now where has he heard that name before? Wade hums as he taps the nozzle of the extinguisher on his chin. ]

What like that ninja kid? All the weird hand stuff?

[ Wade grins suddenly behind his mask as he hears someone coming down through the carriage. He ducks back in the hallway and grabbing the kid to pull him back as well. ]

Nah, I'm not a leader, by the way. Names Wade, or Deadpool, or just hey you. First, you pull the little pin out. Doesn't work if you don't do that. Now...


[ He pops the pin from the extinguisher and nods down the hall at the serious looking man approaching them. ]

That's the guy in charge here. So what you want to do, really, is just point and aim and pull the trigger. Got it? Normally, with a fire, you're gonna wanna aim at the base of it to put it out. But we can make an exception here.

[ Without waiting for acknowledgement he aimed and fired right at the Supreme Train Overlord, Tony Stark, starting the drench centered on his chest. ]

Hey kid, you a fast runner?

[thinhammer]

[ Ninja kid?? Naruto looks as confused as one should, and is about to comment that yes he certainly is a ninja kid and does some arguably weird hand stuff, but then he's yanked around the corner and is listening with only half his attention span to what Deadpool is doing with the extinguisher.

In other circumstances this might even be informative, but as it is Naruto doesn't really have enough time to really learn anything, especially not when Deadpool rounds the spray of the extinguisher on a guy Naruto has never seen before. The guy in charge? Naruto's brain wars with him - one part that sounds like Sakura telling him that if he's in charge then he certainly won't find a burst of water to the chest funny, while the other that has a voice like Jiraiya-sensei's points out the very swaying fact that while he might not appreciate it it still would be very funny. Ultimately Naruto can't really react in enough time to stop if he'd wanted to, so instead just watches as Train Boss takes a shot to the chest, reflexively crowing with laughter.

At Deadpool's question, Naruto's eyes light up. ]

Only kids run away, y'know!

[ He's just utilising what he knows. He forms a quick hand-seal and by the time the smoke clears there are two identical copies of Naruto standing either side of him, having apparently sprinted to the two carriages bracketing this one, stolen the extinguishers and are fast following Wade's instruction and proceeding to pelt Mr Train Guy with two dual streams of water right to the face. ]