voidtreckerexpress | A new platform [intro post September]

A new platform [intro post September]

For those on the train

“Good morning passengers, it is day one of the month of Bassoon.” The train announces the morning the month changes. It seems the train counts months in days of thirty. Team Points have been updated on the system.

The day continues as most days do, chores, eating, getting ready for another day. But those who suspect that a change of month may bring something else are correct. It is only an hour or two later that there is another announcement.

“Shortly arriving into a designated void platform. Exit from void imminent.”

By now they should know to hold on as the train jerks and jolts. There is only fog outside the windows but the train soon comes to a stop. The doors hiss open.

As they exit into the fog they may notice Evie exiting from the luggage carriage door. Much like Hibiki the last time they were on a platform. She leaves the train, backpack on her back as she walks through the station. She heads no call, reacts to no words and cannot be stopped as she walks to the ticket barrier and disappears through it.

Strange. But even stranger still is that there on the platform that whole time is Evie. Dressed in purple, backpack on back, with her are others. Waiting for the train.

For new arrivals

At first all they can see if 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 your 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 very large, but it hold twelve figures all facing the tracks, all wearing similar clothing. The tracks stretch left and right into steam, or perhaps fog. Nothing can be seen to either side. There is a wall around the platform and the only entrance is a ticket barrier. It cannot be open, nor do there seem to be any staff.

What there is, is a train. Jet black and gleaming where it stands on the rails.Voidtrecker Express is emblazoned in the engine in gold. There is a hiss as the doors slide open.

Out step a selection of people, some less human than others, wearing clothes just like those worn by those on the platform.

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.

Once on board there is lots to explore. Passengers both old and new will hopefully be delighted to see the boredom of this train journey is somewhat alleviated by the introduction of a game carriage. Plenty of games, both familiar and new to play with your new travelling companions.
Each ICP shows the same message. If Red team go and look they will find a box in the luggage compartment that contains their prize. A dralite themed cake lolly each. There are enough for the new members of Red team too, share in your teams previous success!

The food stores have been topped up with new fresh food. Salmon has taken over as the primary ingredient of choice. Hopefully everyone likes fish!

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. For those who boarded two weeks ago they will know what is coming next.

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."

Hopefully someone warns you that you really want to heed that warning because a moment later there is 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 voidspace.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

His eyebrow crooks up - as a professional liar himself it's rather painfully obvious, but at the same time... well. They've only just met!

"Really? Where are you from, if you don't mind me asking? And I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who doesn't have weird trains like this at home!"

"I'm from Mitakihara." Thankfully that is something she can easily talk about, so it's pretty obvious that she's honest about this one.

"Have you heard of it before? It's in Japan."

Then again, some people here came from worlds where it sounded like Japan didn't even exist, so maybe that won't help much to indicate where it is.

He shakes his head.

"Sorry, no - whereabouts in Japan? I'm from Ekoda myself."

"Oh, it actually isn't too far away from Tokyo!" But.. you know, she isn't going to expect everyone to know all city names ever, and it's not like Mitakihara is huge.. so nothing is too weird to her about him not knowing where it is.

"I guess it isn't a really big city.. But I really liked living there."

"Ekoda's like that too." He nods. "We're close to Shinjuku, so it's not like we're that far out! But far enough to have it's own feel, you know? Tokyo's a bit too large these days to keep up with where all the wards are."

"That must be kind of nice then. You don't have to live in the middle of the busy city, but you could still visit whenever you want."

Not that Madoka has never been to Tokyo, but it also isn't a very common trip for her to make either.

"Well.. I guess that no matter whether you lived in a smaller or a bigger city, it must be really strange either way to suddenly have to get used to living in a train instead. I can't imagine that's normal for anyone.."

"Yeah." He agrees. "I like the big city, don't get me wrong! I wouldn't want to live there, though. I suppose I might end up working there, eventually of course. But I think I like living out in the suburbs."

"Um.. If you don't mind me asking, what kind of job do you think you'd want to have in the future then..?"

There are a lot of reasons why you could be working in the big city, after all, and Madoka can't help but be a little curious.

"I'm going to be a magician." He says promptly. "Just like my dad! Tokyo to start, and then go international, if I can."

Madoka lets out a gasp, amazed.

"A magician?"

Honestly, she was thinking it'd probably be more something along the lines of working in an office for some big company, not that.. But clearly the thought of this is much more amazing.

"So.. can you already do magic tricks now? I'd love to see..!"

"Yep!"

He grins at her, and takes out a deck of cards.

"Sure - I only have a deck of cards with me, so we're going to be stuck with just card tricks." As he talks he shuffles them, and then splits the deck into two face down piles.

"Okay, now, pick a deck - right or left?"

Hey, card tricks are more than fine with her. Madoka is easily impressed to begin with, so any small trick could look like a huge display of magic to her. Even now she already seems to be anticipating the trick, looking at the piles with hopeful eyes.

"Um.. The left one?" She points at it before looking at him again.

"Awesome." He sets the spare deck down and fans out the one she picked, face down.

"Ok, so pick a card, and memorise it - don't let me see it! Then shuffle it into the other deck."

"Okay!"

She looks at the cards for a moment before picking one up, taking a peek at the other side - it's the eight of hearts - and then putting it back before starting to shuffle it into the other deck.

"Like this?"

"Perfect!" He grins, and takes the second deck back once she's done.

"Now, I do believe..." He looks briefly at them and pull out.... "this is your card?" The eight of hearts.

Madoka is quietly waiting in anticipation, but the moment he pulls out the card, Madoka lets out a very, very impressed "Wow!"

Honestly, she doesn't even bother of thinking what trick could be behind that. It just really looks like he somehow managed to guess it in her eyes.

"Yes, that's my card..! I can't believe you found it between all those others.."

He laughs.

"This one's a fairly simple trick." He assures her. "I can teach you, if you want. But I'm glad you liked it!"

"Would you really teach me? I thought that magicians were never supposed to give away their tricks!"

She doesn't even realise that it might be exactly because it's such a simple trick..

He grins at her. "My fancy tricks of course not! But this one is one of the easiest for a beginner."

She bites her lower lip for a second, but then after that second of thinking she actually starts to look a little excited instead.

"Well.. I-if you really don't mind giving that one away, then I'd love to learn..! I've always thought magician tricks were so cool.."

He smiles and offers her the cards.

"Card tricks are the first place to start for all magic tricks. This one requires preparation - I'm good enough to do it when I shuffle, but basically, this one requires you to split the deck into all red, and all black, so."

"Hmm.. And then what do you do with the cards?"

Because clearly just splitting the deck isn't enough to be able to guess a very specific card, right?

"Now - this trick relies on your audience not knowing you have pre-sorted them." He explains.

"That's why I was shuffling so fancily, when I did it with you - it makes it look as if I shuffled them properly, when I was basically sorting them out. So - when you present the deck to the audience, you present it as one deck, not two. You can either do this like I did, by 'splitting' a deck that you have just arranged, or by offering them half a deck from the start, saying something like 'here is half of a deck of cards, the other is still in the box', or something like that. So - you get them to choose a card, and mix it in the other half of the deck - so when YOU look at the deck... "

He does so, taking a card face down from one pile and slotting it into the other, before turning the new pile face up - where it is the only one of the new color.

"It is obvious which card is theirs - although obviously, you don't want them to see that it's all the same color in your hand!"

"Oh.. wow, I really didn't realise at all!"

Which is.. the point of the trick, yes, but Madoka is a little slow with understanding these kinds of things. At the very least she does understand his explanation, no matter how amazed she looks about it.

"You're right, of course one card that's a different colour would stand out so much.. That's such a good magic trick!"

He grins at her. "Thanks! Sleight of hand relies on you being fast enough that the audience doesn't notice what you're doing. Sometimes, this means being hugely flashy, as a distraction. Depends on what your style is, in the end, as to how you adapt a trick for yourself - but the principles are the same."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A new platform [intro post September]

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