A New Platform [Intro Post June]

[voidtreckermods]

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!

Comments

On the trainRe: Wen Ning | ota

[sell_tickets]

In one of the rooms was a man who... needed a break. Today had been a lot, and while he no longer looked gaunt, he was still recovering and had the look of someone thinner than he usually was. He clothes were a bit loose.

He was sitting in the gaming car sipping something that smelled a little like coffee and a lot like booze. In front of him was a game that looked like it was designed by someone who had heard the game Chess described, but hadn't been fully clear on what they were making.

The man smiled up at the stranger. "Hello, here for a game?" He asked. They were in the game car, so he presumed they were, but it was always better to ask.

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

After reuniting with his sister, and Wei Wuxian, and Lan Sizhui, and meeting all manner of other new people, Wen Ning is feeling a bit ragged. He has had a lot to learn, and it doesn't look like it's going to let you anytime soon.

So maybe he needs a break as well. He didn't know what this car was going to contain when he opened the door to it, so he's surprised to see a man sitting in front of a game board of some kind.

"Oh, I, uh..." He tries to get over his surprise. "I don't know the rules."

[sell_tickets]

He chuckled a bit. "No one here seems to, but I am more than happy to teach, if you want."

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

After thinking a moment, Wen Ning nodded and moved to sit opposite the man, looking down at the game pieces with wide eyes.

"Alright. I suppose I have nothing else to do right now."

[sell_tickets]

He gave him a warm smile and set most pieces aside leaving one of each on the board. "Chess is a good game for sharpening the mind and considering strategy, though in general it is not advised to be played across the genders." He grinned. "The purpose of the game is to protect your Queen while capturing the opponent's Queen. The Queen is the most powerful piece on the board, of course," he said nodding at the piece as he tipped it slightly to let the other see. "She is at once, the most powerful, the most vulnerable, and the whole point of the game, for once a Queen os taken, the game is over. There is no way to win without your Queen, so protecting her is the highest priority. With me so far?"

See he knew what would happen if his wife or any of the other Queens were here trying to help him teach. They'd argue that as the strongest piece the Queen had the duty to protect her other pieces. And the argument that would follow would deafen people for three carriages in either direction. He loved the Coven, he did. But if they tried just one more time to throw themselves in front of the carriage, so sure it was the only way to save others... He was going to throttle them all.

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

Wen Ning has never met a queen before. His world didn't exactly have that kind of a ruling structure. Each sect had a leader, and inevitably one of the leaders would position himself at the head of the pack, above all others. First it was Wen Ruohan, trying to conquer the world and exterminate anyone who disagreed with him. Then it was Jin Guangshan, taking advantage of the power gap to position himself on top. Then his son, Jin Guangyao, sat high in Carp Tower, manipulating events to his liking. Now that he was gone, Nie Huaisang was in position to rise to the top. None of these were good men, though Nie Huaisang was at least somewhat kind. And the metaphor of the game being over once the most powerful piece was captured didn't make much sense to Wen Ning, since inevitably someone else would step in after them. But, he supposes, it's only a game.

He nods. "I think I'm with you. Protect your queen, capture your opponent's queen. Got it."

[sell_tickets]

To a point, Khary would agree. A new Queen is chosen when the previous Queen steps down, retires, is removed, of even dies. But the tone of a society takes its lead from the Queen and her Court. When Kermilla took Cassidy's Court - simply two villages - a land that had been prosperous and a people who had been healthy and happy were poor and beggared in only a half year. The Queen was the center, even if she wasn't as eternal as the males who served her would hope.

He nodded. "This is a Warlord Prince," he said, lifting one of the pieces. "While the queen can move in any one direction per turn, as far as her Rank allows, a Warlord Prince moves like this," he demonstrated. "And is her most powerful protector." Just like in real life.

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

Likewise, a Warlord Prince is something of a foreign concept to Wen Ning, but he equates it to the first young master of a cultivation clan, the heir to the throne who fights to uphold his clan's name and honor.

"Alright, that makes sense." He watches carefully, memorizing how the Warlord Prince can move. Nervously, he glances towards all the rest of the game pieces sitting off to the side... This was going to be a lot to remember, wasn't it?

[sell_tickets]

Yes, yes there was going to be a lot. "This is the next strongest protector, a Prince." He showed the next piece and how it moved. "You have more them than Warlord Princes, not so many as Warlords or Blood Males."

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

Yeah, just as he thought, this is turning out to be a lot to remember. Hopefully he doesn't screw it up and get a Prince confused with a Warlord Prince.

"Blood Males? What's a Blood Male?"

[sell_tickets]

"That varies by context. A Blood Male either refers to any male with magic, any of the Blood, such as myself. But it can also be used to indicate any Blood Male who holds no other Caste. For example, I am a Warlord. So I am a Blood Male in the general sense, but not by Caste. In the case of chess, Blood Males refer to the second definition, being the weakest but most numerous pieces on the board." Basically pawns.

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

Finally, something Wen Ning understands. A social caste system. He had grown up among the lower ranks of the gentry as part of a prominent clan of cultivators.

What he doesn't understand, however, is how they went from talking about game pieces, to talking about this person being a Warlord-- or a Blood Male-- or something.

"I thought this was a game... It's real, too?"

[sell_tickets]

"The game is modeled on life. Which is why a smart man avoids playing chess with a Queen. It tends to become an argument which often leads to the male being informed that he is sleeping alone as his wife wants nothing to do with him, or being kicked out of his cousin's house," he said with a chuckle. "Or worse, being made to play cradle. Now there is a game designed to break the male brain."

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

Wen Ning looks a little confused, maybe a little overwhelmed, but mostly he just looks amused. It's clear this conversation is coming from a place of real world experience.

"It sounds really complicated. I can't imagine what a game based on my life would be like." Even if it was a game just about cultivator society, without even factoring in Wen Ning's status as a fierce corpse.

[sell_tickets]

He considered for a moment then grinned. "Bet we could build one."

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

In contrast, Wen Ning looks uncertain. "I'm not sure I would even know where to begin."

[sell_tickets]

He leaned back, hands behind his head. "Well, tell me about what makes it complex and convoluted."

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

"Well..." He thinks about trying to explain cultivator society to someone who knows nothing about it, and the idea frankly daunts him a little bit.

"There are four main cultivation clans. There used to be five, but the Wen clan was destroyed several years ago." Guess which clan he came from. "Each clan has a sect leader, their family, and then disciples from other families who follow their teachings."

[sell_tickets]

He considered that. A pad of paper and a pen appeared and he started scribbling notes as he listened. "What exactly is a clan?"

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

"Oh, well... A sect is a group of cultivators and their disciples who all follow the same school of teachings. Each sect is led by a certain family, or clan." He presses his palm into his chest to indicate himself. "The Qishan Wen sect that I came from was led by the Wen clan. The Gusu Lan sect is led by the Lan clan. And so on."

The other man may be able to pick up on the difference in past versus present tense, there.

[sell_tickets]

"So a little like Territories being broken up into Districts and Provinces, but with people rather than by the natural boarders of the Land. What makes someone a cultivator specifically?"

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

"A bit like that. But the sects don't share territory. Like I said, the Lan sect is in Gusu, the Jiang sect is in Yunmeng, et cetera." There were other divisions of the land and its people, but for the cultivation side of society, this was how things were divided.

"A cultivator? A cultivator is someone who uses the spiritual energy in their core-- their Qi-- to try to attain immortality, and to fight off evil monsters and spirits."

[sell_tickets]

"So... like a Guardian...?" Sort of? He wasn't one to see things as simply as good and evil, but using Craft to obtain immortality sounded like a Guardian to him.

[lookslikeacinnamonroll]

"Oh, well, I don't know. What's a Guardian?" Aside from the general meaning of 'someone who guards something.'

[sell_tickets]

Fair question he supposed.

"Guardians straddle the line between the living and the dead. They are weakened by the sun generally, and like the Demon Dead they need blood to sustain them. They can eat though the closer to dead they are the less they taste or enjoy it. Same for sleep. Their lifespans can stretch on endlessly if they're careful. My uncle is one," he added, to explain how he knew so much.