A New Platform [Intro Post October]

[voidtreckermods]

On the Train

"Good morning passengers, it is day sixteen of the month of Horsehoe. Points have been updated on the system and new stock is available."

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. The first thing they may notice is that this platform is inside a basic shelter, making it warmer than the last couple at least.

As usual the first to leave the train notice nothing as they walk silently, rucksacks on their backs, towards the barriers. Adora, Alex Hashimoto, Catra, Cloud Strife, Elizabeth Midford, Feanor, Gerome, Gladiolus Amicitia, Glimmer, Ifrit, Isabella D’Oro, Maru, Nari Reno, Noctis Lucis Caelum, Prompto Argentum, Scorpia, Siobahn Chereshei, SXT-2, Tamamo-no-Mae, Tony Stark, Uta, Zidane Tribal

But on the platform itself there are many new faces. Wearing hoodies in all four colours 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. The second thing they will notice is it is gloomy, even without the steam and fog. They are in a wooden building, open to the tracks on one side. It in a creaky shelter, cobwebs hang from the rafters and there is a peculiar whistle as wind finds its way through the cracks.

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 nineteen 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 gloom 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.

Indeed whereas usually there is plenty time for people to be met and brought slowly onto the train, the whistles blow a lot quicker this time, 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… teddy bear shaped luncheon meat being the main ingredient to be found. There are plenty of other staples.

A new carriage has been added, those that go to investigate will find a room full of lockers, designated as the Armoury. Even for passengers without weapons it is somewhere to secure possessions. There are instructions on how to use the lockers and enough for everyone to claim one.

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 over the noise of the hail stones to encourage any stragglers braving the snow 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

[only_one_wei]

[Wei Wuxian has a project going to help Xue Yang, he'd be willing to take Meng Yao in as well!]

Well, I don't like to brag, but.... [He goes from sounding like he's about to brag, to a deep sigh and a sad look] Yeah, I'm kinda bored. I mean, sure, I have Lan Zhan, and we are quite happy together, but I need a break once in a while. He's a bit vigorous.

But I do like to cook. And I'm not the only person cooking. You've had Gusu Lan's food. For those who don't like flavor, they can have that. And I think Mami makes food for the people who don't like heat. My food is more for the discerning palate.

[only_one_wei]

"Orange seems to be the problem solvers. Like detectives, and a couple of wizards, and pokemon trainers, and a robot-creature who used to be something called the 'internet.' Lots of different types of people. Blue, my team, is half children, which makes missions interesting, and Purple seems to be more of a catch-all. They're usually the biggest, but Orange is running neck and neck right now."

"Team Leads are kind of appointed from within. Though, it's pretty self-evident if you are a Team Lead type pretty quick. They're the ones that help organize and plan for the missions and help out if someone has a problem. Like for Blue, it's Lan Z--Lan Wangji and Piccolo. For Red, I think it's just Lightning right now as the others left. For Orange, there is Eva and Curufin, but it's a big group, so if you're interested, ask. Purple just has Roland and Glorfindel, but again, they just had a couple of others leave." He was not a team lead type. At least, not currently. He was raised to be the right hand to his Sect Leader, and that was what he was falling back on while he recovered.

[aluciner]

"I don't usually eat junk food. Sometimes people give it to me, but Chainsaw ends up eating it." Technically, Ronan supposes, people give the junk food to him for Chainsaw. He's not even a weird health nut, he's just never developed the habit of eating junk food regularly. Junk food is a thing he eats in specific circumstances. "You can order something off my ticket, if you want. It's not like I ever use my points."

[only_one_wei]

"Thank you! Although it is a little odd. I am from about a day later than he is, so I remember us getting together, because it happened in that time. But apparently I had been here on the train before, and at that time he and I got officially married, with a ceremony and everything. I don't remember any of that though." He shook his head. "Others have apparently come and gone as well. Some remember their previous time here and others do not."

"Please, uncle, take time to recover your strength. I..." he paused for a moment. "I died. I was brought back through some strange machinations that I won't get into right now, but this body is not my original one. I have a Golden Core again, but it is much much weaker than what I once had, and physically, this body is also far weaker. I am working on it though, and you can as well. Once you are ready. I will not push you, but if you want, I can lead you."

At the gurgle, he grinned. "Absolutely! We have a kitchen car. Would you prefer I take you there first, or to your cabin and just bring you something?"

[deferences]

[‘teacher’ and ‘his husband’ are easier to figure out, considering he's already met lan wangji, which means wei wuxian is here then? and who else? someone he isn't keen on prying about just yet.] A-Qing, [sizhui repeats, realization dawning rather quick that technically, he knows her... but she's dead back in his world.

no reason to bring that up, however, so he smiles faintly instead and asks,] A-Qing, who is the doctor?

[deferences]

[sizhui withdraws further as well, lowers an arm, the opposite one lingering momentarily near his father's sleeve before – albeit with blatant reluctance – falling to his side.] The Voidtrecker Express? [what a name...

a brief glance toward the train then back again.] What is it for?

[deferences]

Well, I certainly can't make an assumption about that. [taking into account they've only just met, after all.

he visibly perks, clasps his hands together in front of himself and moves forward a step, head tilted, eyes narrowed with thought as he examines the cracks along senku's forehead.] Dyeing your hair is possible? [huh, what an idea! sizhui's left hand raises, fingertips touching his forehead just below the white band and drifting down over his eyebrow, tracing an invisible line.] The marks on your face... do they hurt?

[deferences]

[surprise, surprise, he'd expected him to yank away! whenever jin ling doesn't though, he tugtugtugs and smiles softly.] Isn't it, though? On you, however, it's a bit more fitting. [you know, because of who is uncle is and all?

don't worry, his secrets are safe with sizhui.]

No, we aren't. I met Hanguang-jun on the platform before boarding the train. [it is odd to consider, being somewhere they have no idea of, but wait, there's more—] Except he isn't the same Hanguang-jun we know.

[only_one_wei]

"My team, the Blue Team," he indicated the sash he wore around one arm, "is about half children. There are also several on the Orange Team. I think there are only a couple on the Purple team, and there is one on the Red team as well. We don't know why they were brought here any more than we know why we were." Wei Wuxian huffs a little in frustration at that.

"Well," and his smile grows sharper again. "The path I chose was necessary. Wen Qing and the others didn't deserve to be killed for what their Sect Leader did. That was not Justice. It was Vengeance and Petty Revenge. But, I failed them," now his voice was soft with regret. "Wen Qing is here, on this train. She remembers being burned alive. Let us not make this a point of contention, shall we?"

Wei Wuxian grinned, all happy smiles now. "Yes, my new body has a Golden Core! I'm working on it though. It is a lot weaker than my old one was, before..." he cut himself off. "I'm working on it."

[only_one_wei]

[Wei Wuxian bows to them both.]

Very nice to meet you both.

It is important to have a good partner. Mine is Lan Wangji, though we are both Cultivators.

What is a Digimon?

[10billionpercent]

It was, it probably could be again if I thought about the chemical composition of hair dye and brought it back, although seems kind of like a waste of time.

[ He hums thoughtfully, yes he definitely could. ]

The marks? Oh. [ He glances upwards, instinctively. ] Not at all. They're just there. They don't bother me or anything.

[only_one_wei]

"So you're giving up on us? And what exactly is a vassal?" He'd been one to Jiang Cheng, but he didn't remember ever being approached by Zetta. Maybe it had been too subtle?

[aluciner]

"You don't even really get to pick where you sleep. Everyone wakes up in their bunk in the morning." Which had been a fun fucking time for him the first few times it happened to him. Waking up and being able to move his body immediately isn't something he's used to at all and he's definitely fell out of bed at least once because of it. "Time works here about as well as it did in Cabeswater."

He hasn't tried to actually make a clock that works well, but he gets the feeling that it'll probably always be a little weird. There might be a learning curve to using - well. Honestly, Ronan doesn't know what powers the dreaming on the train but he knows there isn't a ley line and the power must come from somewhere. It feels different to using Lindenmere or a ley line, and Ronan hasn't quite figured it out yet.

[nobodys_puppet]

That at least she could answer, though it was perhaps not quite as reassuring an answer as he might have hoped.

"Not here," she said, quietly.

[najaran]

"Not sure how long you'd consider long," she said, thinking about it. "I've been here a while, I guess." She found a seat and leaned against it, resting back on her heels.

[death_from_above]

"Do you have the... right... magic? Or am I being left fishless again?" Big kitty eyes.

[death_from_above]

"He's an oracle, and a Seer. So mostly he looks like this," he glanced back and squinted up his eyes in an imitation. Which could be taken as an answer that was somewhat serious or like an answer that was a pun. Kind of like "Walk this way" could be either sort of an order...

[springforth]

"I did mean the brazier--but--I'm sorry to bring it up."

Persephone looks hesitant about it. He never seems to want to talk about it--but who is she to judge someone for that? There's plenty she hates talking about. Plenty more he doesn't know to ask about.

[springforth]

Persephone is struck by it, how different she looks--much like Glorfindel looked when she ran into him and he'd said he needed grounding, gone translucent with it all. How he said elves could die of a broken heart.

Her arms tighten around Nerdanel, as if she could hold her together, hold her fast and solid and whole with touch.

"Can I do anything?"

[forleaving]

It sounded like he belonged in Orange then. He didn't know how he felt being accurately sorted while also assuming their kidnappers hadn't studied them in advance. He was also upset at the idea of there being children here.

There was a lot of information being thrown at him and he did his best to make mental notes of all the important bits. He had no interest in being a team leader himself, but he had a feeling it would come in handy in the future to know who led Orange. "Thank you. Do people leave regularly?" And if they did, how.

[only_one_wei]

"Well, I've been alive, I've been dead, and I've been alive again. I now appreciate the smaller thrills," Wei Wuxian said with an answering smirk.

"But if you like this sort of thing, you are going to have a blast with the missions!"

[sizedoesntmatter]

[So he could at least guess she was from his world, but not someone he knew personally. That makes sense at least.

But it was kind of awkward to be told they were shorter than he was expecting.]

... [He was pondering on his precise wording for what seemed like forever.]

I am sure people don't usually bring up my height for things like that... So i can see why it could be a surprise if you've never met me in person. But my tournament just for a replica of my deck... [Just...he didn't get why. Considering what he believes in it makes 0 sense to him.]

[tokenloveinterest]

You gave my beloved Judai his Winged Kuriboh card, too, and...

[... hold on, the lightbulb is going off.]

Oh, right. President Kaiba said that I'm from the future compared to you guys...

[flatteries]

For a second he's quiet. Maybe slightly startled into that quiet with the relative ease of Tidus's reaction. He remembers that Tidus tends to be more difficult about these things than Inigo himself, after all, too unused to this sort of thing with men, but somehow it makes all of this more touching. That Tidus is willing to go for it with him so easily, and it makes fondness rise in Inigo's eyes.

".. thank you, Tidus." The words are said so softly, but so genuine. There's so much quiet gratitude in them, as if Tidus is saving his life over here rather than just agreeing to Inigo's whim. It's just.. there's nothing he can think of that he'd want more right now than just being that close with Tidus, practically connected with him. Nothing else could even try to fill up the hole.

He moves to indeed take off his shoes, kicking them off without much of a care where next to the bed they'll land, before lying down on the bed with his back towards Tidus.

"It's fine like this, right..?"

Just like how they did it last time.

[only_one_wei]

"Your world has that kind of story, huh?" Wei Wuxian grinned at her. "That sounds interesting. I'd never heard of such a thing before here I was!"

"What do you think of it, now that you are here?"