A New Platform [Intro Post August]

[voidtreckermods]

On the Train

"Good morning passengers, it is day sixteen of the month of Grasshopper. Points have been updated on the system and Voidtrecker Express lunch boxes are now available to buy."

They have indeed and everyone can spend the morning shopping, for lunch boxes or other items. 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. The sun beats down, a harsh, red glow heating the structure almost to the point of discomfort, although the train remains pleasantly cool. People might want to leave hoodies in their cabins.

As usual the first to leave the train notice nothing as they walk silently, rucksacks on their backs, towards the barriers: Alex Hashimoto, Ardyn, Basilton Pitch, Garrett, Gyro Gearloose, Heart, Higgs, Jack Harkness , Luke Skywalker, Merciless, Sam Bridges, Scintilla Caminus, Sven, Telli, Tokidoki Rikugou, Undyne and Wen Ning

But on the platform itself there are many new faces. Wearing polo shirts in four familiar colours, with an equally familiar array of expressions.

For New Passengers

At first all they can see is steam billowing around them as they come to their senses. The second thing they will notice is the oppressive, cloying heat hazing the air. The paving is sun-warm, and damp with water vapour.

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. They aren’t alone.

The platform, all pale paving and cement pillars, is not large and it holds thirteen figures all facing the tracks, all dressed in cargo trousers and hoodies. 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 heat step a selection of people. Some are human, some are less so. Most are wearing the same uniform 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.

Once again it’s not all that long before the whistles blow as if hurrying the passengers along.

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 more carrots, as well as other staples for the month. Those heading to the luggage carriage for their parcels will find some generic boxes labeled All Passengers. Inside they will find extra leather bound journals for those who have gotten to the end of theirs. There are also supplies of extra toiletries for passengers who are running low.

The big changes that passengers will notice is that the Quiet Coach and the Medical Coach now have two stories. The quiet coach has a whole extra five booths upstairs. The medical coach now has four recovery rooms whilst downstairs now holds two treatment rooms as well as a surgery bay.

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

Welcome to the Void!

Comments

Glimmer | OTA

[queenofsparkles]

I. Platform

The heat hits Glimmer first; the cloying, humid heat reminds her of the saunas of Mystacor, and for a single moment it's easy to imagine that she's wrapped up in the warm waters, leaning on her friends and sinking into comfort.

Then she opens her eyes, and that thought is completely drowned in panic.

A sharp yelp is the first thing out of her mouth, and and is quickly followed by a few short "What-- how--?" as she looks down at her outfit - she was not wearing this before, she doesn't even recognise it! Where the hell was her royal clothing?? A drawn out groan leads into a sharp and no less panicked, "Where are we?!"

II. On the Train

Glimmer has no idea what this is.

Objectively, she does - it's some kind of huge transport vehicle - but if it was a prison, then why did it seem so nice? She's never seen a vehicle this large on Etheria, nor one with dedicated rooms quite like this. Transport vehicles were for storage or prisoners, not... entire kitchens, larger even than the one she's used to stealing from in Bright Moon. Instead of using the stairs, whenever she walks into one of these overlarge carriages, she teleports upstairs in a flash of sparkles, reapparing about a second later (and frequently leaving her purple duffelbag behind). She has the very tell-tale signs of someone who has no idea where she is or what's going on, especially with how she's stopping and poking her nose into every nook and cranny in most of the carriages she passes through - the medical carriage gets a thorough poking around in, and she can't resist opening the ball cupboard when she passes through the gym to pull one out at random and examine it.

The rock garden in particular gets a long pause on her way through, as she takes a brief break from everything to just. Try and relax, but mostly just work out some of her panicked energy by setting off little fireworks of sparkles into the air with her palms. It would probably work a lot better in calming her down if she didn't keep staring out into the strange emptiness outside; it was like staring into space, or the Moonstone, except it keeps giving her a headache.

After that she doubles back to the games carriage and just. Curls up in a beanbag for a little while, so she can take her pullover hoodie off and instead start digging through her duffel. Which gets a small noise of surprise, followed quickly by a loud sigh of relief as she pulls out a tiara and single earring, which she's quick to put back on. "Well, I guess that helps a little..."

III. The New Digs (Closed to Peter Parker, Elena and Gerome)

"Okay, this is... it." Glimmer's voice is mostly a quiet murmur. She's not used to feeling so... helpless. She can still feel her magic humming through her, a comfortable warmth in her veins that tells her she's not as bad as she could be, but she still feels small, as she stops in front of the door. Sleeper three (and that took a while to work out, when there were so many), cabin B.

She lifts her ticket, gripped so tightly that it's gotten crinkled up, and hastily flattens it out again before she hesitates, a few times, and finally presses it against the black screen with her name on it - hers and a few other peoples, none of them she recognises. There's a new thrill of concern when she realises that Catra won't be in her room.

The door slides open, making her flinch back, but she's quick to pull her shoulders up, her back straight, and walk into the room. "Uh... hello?"

i

[nocawsforconcern]

[A very good question, to which Enna does not have the answer. But she didn't become a captain by not managing weird crises, so she is going to put a hand on Glimmer's shoulder in what she thinks is a calming way.]

Hot and humid. South of where I should be, definitely. Place with a lot of rain. Not a place I recognize. Daytime, so no stars to map.

Wherever this is, it's not possible for me to have gotten here. Probably you too? So it's gotta be someone's power at work. What kind of power? Dunno yet. Clothes, teleport. At least two powers. Waking up means we were asleep. Three powers. At least three people responsible.

Caw. That's all I've got. Who are you? You're very pink.

[queenofsparkles]

[That was... a lot more information than Glimmer expected, and distressingly it also tells her nothing particularly useful. She's not really sure she wants to be touched right now, either, but the girl only looks about an inch or so shorter than her, which is almost comforting.

Still, she takes a half-step aside that turns her to face this girl while gently removing that hand with her own.] So basically, you have no idea either. [And then she frowns slightly.] ...and you have no idea who I am.

[what]

II

[tactlesstantei]

[Masumi was also poking around the medical car, mainly because it definitely didn’t have a second floor until now. She’s just ducking out of one of the recovery rooms when Glimmer teleports in, getting a jump out of her in the process.]

“Oh, uh, you new here?” [Masumi had never seen her around the train before, so it made sense.]

[queenofsparkles]

[Glimmer jumps as well, to be fair, when she realises just how close she was to running into someone, and there's a flash of colour across her cheeks for a moment.]

Ah! --I-I mean, um. Yes. [A quick, deep breath to calm her shattered nerves.] I found myself here this morning, so everything's a bit...

[She shrugs both shoulders, bringing her hands up in a kind of "ehhh" motion, with an anxious sort of not-quite-a-smile on her face - before she lets herself slump, too tired to pretend.] It's a lot.

II

[adregem]

Roland is quick to check the new additions of the train cars the moment he hears the announcement. He does a quick sweep of the new stories, takes note of what was there before and what's here now, and familiarizes himself with the growing layout of their long ride. The rhyme and reason of it all is lost on him still - what the train prioritizes and what it decides to give its passengers continues to inspire mystery.

He checks the Game car last, making sure he misses no corners. It was one of the cars which received new equipment the last time, so he has some reason to audit it again, eyes sharp, ready to take in anything new or surprising. But someone was already there when he arrives. A Purple teammate by the looks of it, though at this point, he's already familiar with majority of the names listed under the color. It's easy for him to presume that she's a newcomer, and it isn't a question of whether or not he should approach. She looks just a tad bit lost, a little distraught, and after she puts on her earring, he comes in close with a small smile on his youthful face.

"I take it the train's accommodations aren't to your liking?"

[queenofsparkles]

The tiara and earring look quite nice, some kind of diamond or pearl with an opalescent sparkle. The same kind of sparkle glitters in the young woman's eyes, as she gives Roland an uneasy smile.

"I suppose not," she says, a touch wry. "I... don't think I've ever been on a train before. Is that what all of this is?" As she gestures one hand lightly at... everything in general.

II

[deage]

In the Medical Car, Glimmer will come across a tiny child - definitely not older than 7 or 8, and given her height, probably younger. She's sitting at a counter in one of the examination rooms, pills just set out on the desk in front of her.

She turns her head as Glimmer pokes hers in. "Can I help you?" She sounds slightly annoyed, though honestly that's just how she always sounds.

[queenofsparkles]

Glimmer might start a bit when the youth looks at her. Everything is new and scary, but an annoyed-sounding little girl is one of the easiest parts of it to handle.

"I-I'm sorry to disturb you." Her tone is cheerful, despite her nervous energy; and not quite condescending, but very much that 'speaking with a child' tone. "I'm just... getting my bearings, I suppose."

She steps into the room a little more, and notices the pills on the table. "Oh, you're working on something?"

II

[callmegladio]

Gladio was in the kitchen when someone walked in that he didn't know and he grinned over at her, waving for her to come closer as he finished off a few sandwiches.

"You're new, right Hungry?" He pointed over to a platter of assorted sandwiches he'd already made. It wasn't much, he knew. He'd been tempted to make cupcakes, but figured something a bit more filling was in order. "Help yourself! Anything I can help with, just ask. Name's Gladio, by the way. And welcome to the VoidTrecker!"

[queenofsparkles]

Oh he's big. This guy looks like he'd fit right in with the palace guards back home. Glimmer can appreciate that.

...as does her stomach, when she lays eyes on those sandwiches, and it lets out a loud rumble before she can get a word out. "I guess I am," she admits, smiling awkwardly. "Turns out freaking out is really good for working up an appetite."

And she'll walk up and boost herself onto the counter next to the plate, taking a sandwich as she turns to the tall man. "I'm Glimmer. Is that what you guys call this place?"

III

[wyvernmaster]

"..." Gerome, laying on his bed reading a book, turned his head to look when the door to the room opened. He didn't recognise her, not that he really recognised many people. But he knew enough to know she wasn't one of his usual bunkmakes.

And then he remembered that people left here. Had the other one gone, and this one replaced them? How strange. No warning. No anything. Was that what it was always like?

"... Hello." Noting the page on the book, Gerome closed the book and set it aside, before he scooted down the bed and slipped his legs over the side by the ladder, sitting with his head ducked slightly. There just wasn't much room at all. "... I think the other top bunk is free."

[queenofsparkles]

Very stoic. She's comment if she wasn't worried about making a bad impression to someone she's going to have to live with, apparently.

"Oh! Thank you." At least he's helpful?

She puts her bag on the ground so she can stare at the wall for a minute, trying to work out how to make a bed happen. This is... not like anything she's ever seen before. She's a bit lost, so. She mumbles to herself as she tries.

"Okay, so if I do this, um... Or, maybe... Oh!" She jumps back in surprise when she gets something to unlock, and the mattress pops out, and she lets out a little laugh of relief. It's nice to have something go right.

|

[sos_pilot]

Glimmer will then feel a few sprinkles of water on her face - not from rain, but from his older (duck) woman flicking off some water from an open bottle.

She's trying to help. Really.

"There, feel any better?"

[queenofsparkles]

The splashing gets a surprised squeak, and she raises an arm defensively even if there's not more coming, using to wipe her face with the weird chunky sleeve (oh she does not like the feel of this material, it's all scratchy on the outside), before she actually looks for the source.

And. Stares. At Della.

"...you're a duck." Great start. Try again. "... a talking duck."

II

[schrodingersghost]

"You can teleport? That's awesome!"

In one of those overlarge carriages she is followed to the second floor by a white-haired (and faintly glowing) teenage boy phasing through the second level floor.

"You're not a ghost, are you?"

[queenofsparkles]

Glimmer was expecting to find more cushions in the upper half of the self-proclaimed games carriage. Not a bunch of weirdly patterned not-carpets. And especially not someone following her up through the floor, and the sight of Danny sticking his head up through the floor gets a sharp yelp of surprise as she jumps back away from him.

But... he just looks like a normal kid. So now she's blushing because she just embarrassed herself. "Sorry! I'm, uh. I'm not a ghost, no. I'm a Princess. Well, queen," she corrects, before she powers on. "I'm Glimmer! What's your name?"

ii

[silentwoof]

Whisper likes the rock garden. It's quiet, and while the quiet cars are, uh, quieter this feels more natural. There's no 'outdoors' on the train, but she needs to get as close as possible to keep her head on straight at times.

So she's in the rock garden, half just to see who else shows up here and if they're causing trouble. The fireworks show isn't trouble, exactly, but it's hard not to pay attention to it and the girl putting it on.

ii

[happyends]

After being on the train for a while you learn to expect things to happen on platform days that are.. at least somewhat out of the ordinary compared to the things that normally happen on the train.

Yet it seems that Madoka didn't expect someone to just teleport in sparkles out of nowhere. She was just innocently standing on the upper level of the kitchen carriage when Glitter materializes out of nowhere. Instinctively Madoka lets out a slight yelp when those sparkles suddenly appear, only to realise it's an actual person appearing in the room.

"A.. Ah! W-What was.." What is this person even? A magical girl, maybe?

I

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"Hey, hey!"

The panic caught the attention of a nearby ninja, who quickly turned to face her, hands up in a placating, calming gesture. "You're not in danger, you're not among enemies. You're not going to like the answers, but we've all been through this!"

II

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Hey!"

From behind a nearby pile of rocks, a book of all things leaped out, floating in midair to tremble aggressively at the woman.

"How dare you unleash fireworks in my garden without a permit?!"

Laundry Car

[only_one_wei]

Wei Wuxian was in the middle of moving a load of laundry from the Washer to the Dryer when someone appeared in a flash of sparkles. Not as surprised as he would have been two weeks ago, he nods in greeting. "New here?"

He wasn't wearing the usual color coded outfit, but a nice black robe with red accents, including the ribbon in his hair. The SCA on his wrist has a blue band, however.

II

[adropofsunlight]

Rapunzel was happy to see new people arriving, it meant more help for when mission came along which she knew wasn't going to be for a while. So for the time being Rapunzel was making her way around with her art supplies as she paused every so often at certain spots.

As she reached the game carriage she paused putting a thumb up and then tilting it as she tried to figure out where good spots would be and what if she was allowed could she paint.

but soon she found herself lowering her hand and moving her fingers through her now short brown hair. There seemed to be someone else in here, and someone new in fact.

With a smile, she walked over, hands in front of her. "Hey there. Oh, is that a crown?"

1

[morethanadistraction]

Catra knows, from the very first sickened inhale, that this is not Mystacor.

She's already bristling in alarm when her eyes snap open, darting around quickly to take in the scene. It's like she's in the Wastes, the air hot and oppressive, and her claws extend to full length with a jerk of her muscles.

And the ones on her feet immediately tear into... something.

That's the first thing she sees, when the fog clears enough for them to become visible. There are shoes, heavy and constricting, on her feet; and with a growl that's lost in the sudden roar of the transport-convoy approaching, Catra tears them off - literally shredding through the sturdy hiking boots to remove them from her feet.

The cargo pants aren't hers either, and neither is the purple shirt or rucksack on her back, and in the confusion and anger of having obviously been duped, Catra can only think one thing:

She is going to kill Glimmer.

So, you know, Catra's a little bit stressed - Melog bright red and bounding along to keep up with her fast pace - as she shoves through the departing passengers, making her way right to that familiar whining voice.

"What did you do to us?!" Catra's teeth are bared, and her hair's still risen in alarm, when her sharp-clawed hand grips Glimmer by the collar of her purple polo and yanks her around. Melog, too, is upset; warbling loud complaints. But they're less attack-ready than Catra is; lingering behind her half a step away, all four of their paws on the ground and their red tail flicking with concern. "I thought you had this under control!"

I. Platform

[laurefindil]

"That is an excellent question," the tall blond elf with intricate braids and matching purple clothing comments from nearby. He smiles at her. "We're not sure where these Docks or "Platforms" are located, but we stop at one every two weeks to take on new passengers. My name is Glorfindel, and I am one of the Purple Team Leads," he said, indicating their matching outfits.

"Are you familiar with Trains?" he asked.