A New Platform [Intro Post April!]

[voidtreckermods]

On the Train

Two days after they return from their mission they are awoken as usual "Good morning passengers, it is day sixteen of the month of Egret. The shop has been updated and points have been applied to passengers tickets."

Those that go to check the shop terminals will find they have indeed updated, with the option to buy larger items and also animals. The morning goes on until just after noon there is a second announcement.

"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 they are soon surrounded by the fog that means they are at a platform. Though the fog is thick, thicker than usual perhaps, there are patches on sunlight shining through and it is pleasantly warm.

The doors open and the first few to disembark do so with rucksacks on, hoods pulled up, silent and almost blank faced. Cu Chulain, Dio Brando, Disreputable Dog, Heiji Hattori, Loki Maedhros, Maglor, Naruto, Thor, Tobias Fangor.

They walk to the barriers, show their tickets and disappear.

But on the platform itself there are once again new faces. All are stood, waiting for the train.

For New Passengers

At first all they can see is 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 as people begin to shift or call out it will become apparent they are not alone.

The platform is not large and it holds eighteen figures all facing the tracks, all dressed in cargo trousers and hoodies. It's warm but foggy making it hard to see much, but there are clearer patches bathed in sunlight found across the platform. 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. 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. The store rooms have been restocked with an abundance of onions, in case the passengers weren't bored of them yet.

Passengers who are not brand new will notice that the train has gotten yet longer again with a sixth sleeper cabin for new arrivals.

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. 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. The fog from the windows is gone now, replaced with a kaleidoscope of ever changing colours.

Welcome to the Void!

Comments

[sonoflucis]

Platform

Noct is immediately on guard when the smoke billows around him. He was in the middle of sneaking around Zegnautus Keep, trying to find Prompto, when the smoke enveloped him. When he came to his senses, he was on a...platform? At first he thought he was back at the train that brought him to the Imperial Capital, but he realized quickly this was a different train platform all together.

"Where am I...? What is Ardyn up to now...?"

He looks down at his clothes, frowning. What the hell was he wearing? What was this rucksack he was carrying?

As the train arrived, he read the title and his stomach tied in knots. He didn't know what what going on, but he had a feeling he was not where he was supposed to be.

The train

Despite wanting to absolutely run the opposite direction, Noct finds himself boarding the train. He heads the the cabin he was assigned to, finding that his ticket allowed him in. He set down his rucksack on a bed, moving to press his forehead against his knees. He was confused, overwhelmed, and had no idea what was going on. He figured things might start to make sense eventually, but if he tried to hide for now, could anyone blame him?

Departure

Noct had already taken some time to read all the information available, just to try to make sense of the situation. When the voice came across the loudspeakers, he immediately sat down, his hands gripping onto his knees. The jolt is enough to make him double over, but what's worse is the colors. He squints, looking at the strange kaleidoscope landscape that has replaced the smoke.

"What the hell...?"

Wildcard

(ooc: Feel free to meet up with Noct. He'll eventually be wandering around the train, trying to get his footing!)

Wildcard

[maxwellsdaemon]

Duo had been up and down the train several times so far, just wandering and seeing who he would meet each time. Because every pass gave him someone else, something else to see and it was amazing. He'd yet to spend more than a little time in his actual cabin.

So it was his, maybe third, pass through the games room where he bumped into a guy who he could only have called beautiful. Why the hell were there so many good looking people on this train? He was beginning to think the train had some kind of weird fetish. Though his theory fell apart when he wondered then why the train would have hooked him into it's numbers.

It wasn't so much as the pretty boy looks that caught Duo's attention though, than the lost look in his expression. So he grinned at him. "I think it gets better!" He called over to him. "Least, so far people haven't been too weird!"

[sonoflucis]

Noct was broken out of his train of though by a chipper voice. He turned to look at the young man and, for a moment, words escaped him. He shrugged, not really sure he agreed. "You think so? I think it's only going to get weirder." He hadn't been through anything like this before, but his trust level wasn't very high.

"I guess you're right on the people. Most seem pretty okay."

[maxwellsdaemon]

"Nothin said weird can't be good!" Duo replied with a laugh. To be fair, they were both in agreement there. Duo wasn't the most trusting guy around. Friendly? Hell yeah. Helpful? Sure, if it suited him. But so far he didn't trust anyone he actually met, no matter how nice they seemed to be. You never could tell.

Still, despite that, his smile remained open and friendly as he chatted with the new guy. "Yeah there are a couple strange ones, but generally they seem harmless enough."

[sonoflucis]

Noct snorted. "I guess so. All of my friends are pretty weird." He admitted. He wasn't excluding himself from that list, either.

"So, obvious statement, but I'm guessing you're new to all this, too?" He figured making acquaintances couldn't hurt in the current climate. "Name's Noctis, by the way. Just call me Noct."

Platform

[faithfulsupport]

Ignis had been out on the platform per usual. As Blue Team leader his presence was expected. He had a teddy bear under his arm with no real reason as to why, but no one asked him and he just held onto it.

Something told him to look up and so he did, his green eyes just scanned over the other colour new team members and one particularly dark haired individual assigned to the Red Team made his heart stop.

Could it be...?

The royal advisor moved, excusing himself and moving as fast as he could. His heart started racing and he moved quickly.

He wasn't seeing things, right?

"Noct!"

[sonoflucis]

Noct hadn't really been paying attention to all of the people, but when he heard that familiar voice, he jumped and turned his head. Ignis was...not dressed like himself, and he wasn't...

He wasn't blind.

"Specs? What the hell is going on?"

[faithfulsupport]

Finally getting in front of his king, Ignis could hardly believe who he was seeing and he couldn't resist at least reaching out to touch Noct's shoulder.

"It's about time you decided to put in an appearance. I would almost say you're quite late."

But there was a relieved smile that he could see for himself that things weren't as bad as he'd left them in.

"It's quite a tale to tell. But at least we're all here together."

[sonoflucis]

Noct's brow furrowed, not able to comprehend what was going on.

"Late? Together? I don't understand. You...you...how did your scars heal? You can see? How?" The last time he saw Ignis, he was very much blind. This wasn't making any sense.

"There's more than a 'tale to tell', Specs! What is happening?!" He was spiraling and he couldn't stop himself.

Departure

[wizard_redfive]

"That's the void. Impressive, isn't it?"

The young teen sitting in the seat across from Noctis pipes up. She gives him a nod of acknowledgement, her attention temporarily taken away from the laptop in her hands.

[sonoflucis]

"More like ominous and migraine-inducing." Noct frowned. He is rather taken aback by this kid who is just sitting there like this is all normal. "...Anybody ever accidentally end up outside in all that?"

[wizard_redfive]

"Oh yeah, it hurts if you stare at it too much. One person looked at it with a telescope. Took them hours to recover."

Oddly enough this has almost become a new normal for Dairine. Almost.

She glances outside her own window. "Not yet."

Knowing some of the passengers, the train's locked doors were all that was stopping them from testing out what would happen. Who knows how long that would hold true.

[sonoflucis]

"Why would they...?" Noct shook his head. He guessed some people just didn't have sense. Apparently, they at least had enough sense not to go outside.

"How long have you been here?"

Platform

[bethereprompto]

It was strange being on the other side of this, having only been on this train for two weeks. He wondered if this was what the last one had looked like. He couldn't quite remember given his condition when he'd shown up. Still, it was a chance to get off the train and look around at all the new people. That was something he enjoyed here- meeting all kinds of unique and awesome people.

He was one of the only people on the platform wearing two different colors. His polo shirt had been dyed and cut in various places in a designer style to with a t-shirt underneath. The outer shirt was black, the inside purple, he wore a strip of fabric around his bicep and had made gloves out of straps of cloth that he'd black. His black cargo pants had been taken in a little to make them tighter and he had a couple patches of purple fabric under rips for pops of color.

He'd stopped by Iggy's treat stand for a cocoa and now he was out wandering around seeing all the new people. However, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a very familiar grumble.

"Noct?" He asked, turning around and taking a startled step back. It was. It was Noctis. Noctis in red, which was very strange, but it was him. He stared unable to decide what to do. He wanted to run to him and throw his arms around him, but he was scared. Gladio had said Noct wouldn't hate him for his secret and wouldn't have thrown him off the train without something else going on, but.. he had. Prompto had shown up with the bruises to prove it. So he stayed frozen, eyes tearing up, gazing at the young man he belonged to.

[sonoflucis]

Noct's eyes widened, his heart racing when he saw that shock of blonde hair. The apparent fear in his eyes hurt Noct's heart, but he had to run to Prompto. He couldn't help himself. He didn't have time to question what Prompto was wearing, or what was going on. He threw his arms around his best friend, fighting back tears himself.

"Prompto! You're safe! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

[bethereprompto]

For a fleeting second, Prompto wondered if he should be running. The last time he'd seen Noct, the man was trying to kill him after all. Fortunately, he was too stunned to move and was snatched up in an embrace. His jaw dropped and it took a second, but he then returned the hug. "You were? You were worried about me?" He asked, unsure if this was really happening or was he dreaming this.

"A- after I uh.. fell from the train?" He asked, wanting to make sure Noct was his Noct and not like Gladio- well, that was still his Gladio too, just a different point in time. He also couldn't bring himself to say 'thrown' off the train.

departure

[happyends]

The departure might always be pretty intense, but Madoka has gone through it so much that she's used to the way the train suddenly gets jostled around like that. Most people probably are who have been here longer, right? So when she suddenly hears a bad word that being said from a little further ahead in the train car, she stands up now the train is steady again to see who said it.

It's then that she spots the other squinting at the view beyond the window, and Madoka tries to offer the stranger a polite, but shy smile.

"Um.. I-It's your first time seeing that, right?"

[sonoflucis]

The small, polite voice next to him drags him out of his impending migraine. "Yeah..." He said, trying not to focus on the fact that this girl's hair was pink. "It kinda hurts to look at." He admits. "Does it get easier?"

[happyends]

"I think so. I've been here for a while now, so it doesn't really bother me anymore.."

Although her voice trails off a little at the end there. It doesn't seem like what's outside the windows is the only thing bothering this guy. He doesn't look too great, does he? It's probably obvious that thought shoots across Madoka's mind, considering the young girl frowns slightly in worry.

".. Sorry, but.. are you okay..? I know everything seems really overwhelming at first.. I was really scared and worried when I showed up here for the first time too. But.. um, everything gets easier and better, I promise."

Departure.

[adropofsunlight]

"I assume you are a bit weirded out by the whole what is outside the window, right?" She knew it was certainly something that was strange, but Rapunzel chooses to see it in another way too. "It is strange, I agree. But when you look at the colors, doesn't it just make you want to paint? Or admire the colors if you don't paint."

[sonoflucis]

Noct looked at the young woman, mostly to avoid looking at the colors anymore. "Not really the artistic type. It's a bit much for my eyes." He was used to the drab colors of Insomnia, after all. "You been here long?"

[adropofsunlight]

"Only a month, which isn't that long." Though with how much she had learned and potentially changed it felt like longer. But she was happy with what she had done so far.

"But I can see how it can be a bit much, but I like to try and look at it in a different way. but I guess that's just me. But hey, the rest of the train isn't as strange." It depended on what you would consider as such.

[blueberryprincess]

"I wouldn't stare outside for too long," says the blue haired girl seated nearby. She has a cup of tea in her hands. How she didn't spill it when the train took off is probably either a mystery or she's so used to how the train moves that she can adapt.

The other answer? There's a spell book in her lap, opened to a spell to prevent spilling. This is possibly the most accurate answer.

"It'll give you a migraine."

[sonoflucis]

Noct looked at the girl, going through the motions of trying to figure out how her tea wasn't spilling, and then realizing she was using magic. He really wasn't in a state to try to negotiate how that was possible right now.

"Yeah, already getting one." He admitted. "I'm prone to them, though."

[blueberryprincess]

“If you can give me a few minutes, I can make something for you that could help.” Evie closes the book and sets it aside, still holding her tea in her hands. “If you want, I mean.”

It doesn’t matter if Evie knows someone or not, she will absolutely do what she can to help them out.

“My name is Evie.”