voidtreckerexpress | A New Platform [Intro Post June]

On the Train

The days following the mission are relatively uneventful as people once more get used to the rhythm of life on the train. "Good morning passengers, it is day sixteen of the month of Fiddlesticks. Points have been updated on the system."

They have indeed and everyone can spend the morning shopping. Those who have been on the train a while will 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 they are soon surrounded by the fog that means they are at a platform. It is a cool day, clouds gathering threateningly though it stays dry luckily.

As usual the first to leave the train notice nothing as they walk silently, rucksacks on their backs, towards the barriers. Leviathan, Atsushi Nakajima, Spinel, Peggy Carter, Evie Grimhilde, Cal Kestiss, Gwen Stacey, Renee Corbin, Lan Jingyi, Waver Velvet, Aoko Nakamori, Namine, Jak and Marcus Wright all reach the barriers, show their tickets and disappear through, vanishing into the fog.

But on the platform itself there are many new faces. Wearing hoodies, 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. 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 six figures all facing the tracks, all dressed in cargo trousers and hoodies. The air is cool with a slight breeze. 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. 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

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 plenty more bacon as well as other staples.

Passengers who are not brand new will notice a new carriage. A second gym. This one is outfitted for training with mats, fighting pads, balance beams and even climbing apparatus to help get everyone ready for the missions ahead.

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He's an elf that has been given the powers of a Maia, the Middle Earth versions of angels, so....]

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" Glorfindel asked kindly. "Care for a cup of tea? We also have coffee if that is your preference." He gestured at the machines. He was willing to explain them if the other was unfamiliar, as he had been when he first arrived.

Aziraphale perks up slightly. "Oh, tea would be lovely." Real tea? And choices, maybe? He sure hopes so. He did have tea in the world he spent time in before this one, but lets just saw the choices were rather limited.

"Are you familiar with the technology of the tea machine?" Glorfindel asked. "If you are, I won't bore you with an explanation," he said with a grin.

"We have the basics. A nice black, a couple of herbals, a half decent green. No yellow or white teas though."

"Tea machine?" He wasn't entirely clueless to the existence of machines that poured tea, as several of the newer bakeries in London did have them, but he's always made his own by hand.

He regards the machine. "Well, a nice Earl Grey would be great. Is there some?"

"It is just a fancy kettle," Glorfindel said with a laugh. "Though I haven't used one since I was reborn and discovered I can do this." He poured the water into his cup, then heated it. The only sign he'd done anything was the steam that came from the cup. He placed it in front of Aziraphale and made another.

"It seems a popular flavor," he said, handing over the little basket of bagged teas. "I'd prefer a better selection, and perhaps in loose leaf, but beggars cannot be choosers, right?"

"Oh, I see." The angel responds, vaguely impressed by the man's ability. One could say the angel can even go a little further, but he does so enjoy the entire ritual in the process of making tea.

"I suppose they can not." He says with a polite smile, though one that clearly relates. "Thank you."

Taking his cup, he examines it for a moment. "Have you been here long? If you don't mind me asking."

Glorfindel laughed. "Usually if I am making this for more than one, I'd use a teapot, but we make do." He put the teabag in his cup. "Milk? Sugar? I also have some pastries," he said, holding a finger to his lip and nodding at a little basket nearby. "Old Elven recipe. Made by a real old elf," he said with another chuckle.

"Not as long as some," he said, shaking his head. "Only a month. It is...very different from home, but I am fortunate? To not be the only one from my world here."

Aziraphale grabs himself a teabag, much to his disappointment, but he's soon distracted by the last offer. "Elven?" He asks, quite curiously. He pauses for a moment, before regarding Glorfindel again.

"Are you an elf?"

Glorfindel nodded, as he reached over to the basket and pulled out a couple of pastries. "I am. You've heard of my people, then?" he asked curiously. "There are four different types on the train, five of us from Arda, and one each from three different worlds, unless yet another has snuck in while I wasn't looking."

"Oh, I see." The angel seems genuinely interested. There was something fascinating about meeting people from other worlds, different kinds than the ones he knows to exist, even in his particular perspective of his world. "Elves are part of certain versions of lore - in the world where I'm from."

"Really? History or myth?" Glorfindel asked. "It's been one or the other depending on who I've spoken to here."

"Myth, and many fantasy tales. I believe most humans nowadays do not actually believe elves are real, but there have also been many interpretations of what one actually is." As an avid fan of written and, before that, spoken word, Aziraphale had heard many of them in the early days.

Glorfindel smiled. "We exist alongside Humans, Dwarves, Hobbits, and others, on my world. Elves are the First Born, we Awoke just after the stars were placed in the sky. The Valar, and the Maiar, beings like yourself, mostly live in Valinor, where the elves are. The last of the Maiar, Mithrandir, left Middle Earth just recently, when most of the rest of the elves did. There are only a small number of us left there." He looked at Aziraphale. "Are any of your myths or fantasy tales similar to that?" he asked.

Aziraphale could swear that some of those terms, besides the basic old myth ones, are fairly familiar. He'd have to check, though, unfortunately he hasn't had access to his beloved books in well over half a year.

"Maiar?" He sounds rather confused, suspecting, quite obviously, that Glorfindel must be privy to his, well, inhumanity, in a literal sense of the word. "And, er, well, there are many myths, created by humans themselves. I'm not quite sure how similar some of them may be, but it all depends on what time and culture you're looking into."

A New Platform [Intro Post June]

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Can he feel anything from Aziraphale? Like that he's approx. a Maia?

I don't know what that is! But if he can feel that Aziraphale isn't human, sure

Maia are between Elves and the Valar, so basically Angels.

I'm assuming they're winged elves of some sort? Either way, any interpretation is fine