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

[flatteries]

"Sure. Let's train until my sword can shoot lasers too."

A joke, obviously, but it's not a joke he's lingering too long on. Because he's now instead busy staring at that fist Nita is holding up, no matter how loosely held. It's so obvious from the way he stares at it that Inigo has exactly zero idea what a fistbump is, although he can sense something is expected of him here..?

So he does the best he can do. He copies the way Nita holds her fist, holding it up near Nita's fist without actually touching it, and then giving her a look. Did he do it? Is he now hip and happening?

[unfavorableinstigation]

"Honestly, we could probably rig something up for that."

Though it'd be a finite amount of charges, naturally.

Nita gently taps Inigo's fist with hers, then grins again.

"Fistbump! More informal than handshakes."

So yes, yes he is.

[flatteries]

Inigo's confusion turns to surprise as he watches the fistbump. Then he slowly taps Nita's fist with his own this time, as if he has to experience that again.

".. A fistbump." At the very least it's a word he can normally repeat without sounding too much like a grandpa in a teenager's body.

He grins.

"That's cool." Okay, but 'cool' is definitely said with the grandpa trying to be hip kind of tone though. He didn't even know that word before his stay on the train. "I like it. Though I should probably keep my sword the way it is now to avoid quite literally shooting someone in the foot by accident with it."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Inigo gets +1 Modern Slang!

"Yep!" Nita returns, grin still in evidence even just in her voice.

"And yeah, fair. Swords and blasters are deadly enough separate and all."

[flatteries]

"Right."

.. although honestly, that talk of rigging up something like that does make him think of something else. One can practically see the realisation slowly dawning upon Inigo's face.

"Does one need to be able to use magic themselves though to be able to use a bracelet like that? Or could you make them for others and store the magic in it for them?" Listen, he may just think that the idea of summoning a sword like she pulls out a blaster is so cool. But Inigo sure skipped out on magic class when he was a kid.

[unfavorableinstigation]

Nita pauses, squints.

"Some spells can be keyed to go off without a wizard present - at least when it comes to wizardry from my world."

She'd come up with a shield for one of the flower pots placed in the garden car, after all.

"If I pay for the wizardry up front, then I could do that, sure. Though if you've got your own talent I could help with the- mindset, I guess? Especially for things like shielding."

Not the same as pulling a sword, but it could still make the different between someone's life and death.

[flatteries]

For what it's worth, he does seem to be seriously considering her answer rather than cracking some dumb joke right away. That does sound like it could be useful, after all. (Although this is Inigo we're talking about, so he's more just thinking of the potential uses of shielding for others than for himself..)

But after looking like she's seriously thinking for a moment or two, he does smile, still making a light joke-- "Why, Nita, don't you know I'm a man of many talents?" -- just to make sure things don't get too serious before he continues.

"Although if we're talking about magical talents, then I'm not quite sure I have much of it. I've never tried to use magic before."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Inigo's remark does provoke another smile, though her expression dips back towards curious as he goes on.

"Worst we can do is get no results, I guess - and it won't change the rest of our being friends if it comes to that, either," she adds, one finger raised, hopefully chasing off that doubt before it can come to roost.

[flatteries]

There's a very momentary surprised pause, but it quickly changes into him bowing his head for a moment as he can't help but smile. It may have been terrifying at first that Nita saw one of his worst qualities in his dream, that constant self-doubt, but at this point it's rather nice if this is its aftereffect. He's so used to hiding everything that he's never experienced someone vanquishing his fears so immediately before.

"And here I thought that the worst we can do is something blowing up in my face," he jokes. It's not quite as bombastic as the usual, since his heart is still filled up to the brim with fond feelings. "I would be up for trying it though."

[unfavorableinstigation]

Sometimes you had to be the change you wanted to see in the world - whether that was investigating something that had escaped everyone else's concern, or just making sure to look certain doubts in the eye and tell them not today. Or give them the bird, as it were.

"Or singing an eyebrow, if it comes to that?" Nita slyly retorts.

"I think we can handle that. Race you to the Gym carriage?"

[flatteries]

"Hey, I would look great with an eyebrow slit. I could pull off that mysterious bad boy look!"

No, Inigo.. No, you couldn't. You're too much of a marshmallow for it.

"But of course! Last to be there is a slowpoke!"