recolle | JANUARY EVENT LOG

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JANUARY EVENT LOG

EVENT

Auld Lang Syne
The city of Recollé...it's a new year and new changes are around the corner. Are you ready?

I.

The nights are long and cold during the winter months. Residents of the city will notice that the sun sets on January 2nd at its usual time of around 5:30pm as the street lights flicker on. Neon signs illuminate the busiest areas of the city and the evening continues on as usual.

The next morning, however, is a little different. The city is quiet and still, the street lamps dying down around 7am and the sounds of morning traffic filtering in from off the streets. But the sun isn't out. The sun appears to be gone and there's no natural light source visible in the city. Those brave enough to venture outside with a flashlight or other light source will only have to glance at the sky to see a large opaque dome enveloping the entire city, faintly reflective in appearance but blocking the outside world. It still feels warm enough outside. It isn't hard to breathe, and the flora and fauna seem to be responding just as naturally as always. But the city of Recollé is pitch black except for the light citizens shine themselves.

The dome stretches incredibly high over the city, but anyone who can get close enough to it via ground or air will find that they can briefly see themselves in the surface. Upon touching the dome it appears to be smooth and almost rubbery in texture despite a shell-like shield appearance. Soundproof and unable to provide clues to what's happening outside of the city the dome is also harmless for those who wish to touch it and examine it, causing it to bounce a few times under light impact. However, do be careful not to trigger its defense mode! Should anyone attempt to damage the dome itself, it will light up with a bright, sickening blue color for three seconds before delivering a shock to its attacker and rendering them unconscious for an hour. Perhaps you'll get lucky and you'll only deal with the too-hot-to-touch surface that self-activates when the dome is threatened, or the spikes that appear at the source of impact. The dome seems to have a temperament of its own. It may be best to treat it the way you want to be treated.

II.

While NPCs comment on the eclipse-like weather, they seem to be going about their usual business and expect the rest of the city to follow along. Classes for the Recollé school district begin on January 8th and employees across the city's businesses are expected to be at work on time and work through these conditions.

On the other hand, there are some workers who seem to have completed their job and have abandoned their worksite for the time being. Some citizens may remember that the old subway system has been under construction for nearly a year now. Others may remember exploring the tunnels that run below and some may even remember certain facilities underground. With the darkness shrouding the city it's easier than ever for anyone to slip into the tunnels...especially given the soft yellow light that seems to illuminate the entrance leading from the city to the rails underneath.

For those up for a little adventure, or just curious to follow the light (or hell, maybe you ended up down here on accident), the light will guide you for roughly twenty-five feet before it dies down again. You're allowed to turn back, of course. There's nothing stopping you. But as explorers venture further into the tunnels they'll hear the echos of a bustling transportation hub and the sound of subway cars moving along tracks a few tunnels over.

Though the tunnels may be dark and empty, this doesn't mean they're without danger. Similar to another tunnel previously discovered, vines and roots will come to life out of the walls to stop travelers. The red glowing eyes follow, but this time they're accompanied by the forms of large rat-like creatures that rush forward to delay travelers further. Bats echo in the caves even if they can't be seen and while the tracks closest to the city appear battered and broken, they remain whole and stable the further you walk into the dark.

Some citizens may have old blueprints or maps to guide them, but they'll find that after a certain point even these won't help as the rail lines lead off the originally discovered paths. It'll take a good sense of navigation or sheer dumb luck to find your way...but where are you going? Is it worth the journey?

III.
Lucky for you, there are plenty of stops along the way. Or, at least, there are plenty of things to explore down below for anyone brave enough to excursion and get past the defeatable plants and rats. At varying points the main path of the tunnel splits off into other rails and destinations making it difficult to map out exactly where these things are going and where they'll spit you out. On occasion, however, you will find yourself facing an abandoned subway car. The lights of the car and the surrounding area are a washed out yellow glow, eerie in appearance and yet enticing all the same.

For explorers who would begin comparing notes, they will come to find there five cars in total, though some seem to be moving on their own. One car appears to be an abandoned passenger car scattered with the remains of life lost. The luggage of vacationers can be opened and ransacked for clues but the newspapers, clothing and items appear to be personal in nature, dating back at least fifty years ago and mirroring the world news and trends from that time period.

A second car is a sleeper car featuring rows of beds and musty sheets, also scattered with the belongings of people who no longer exist.

A third car appears to be a little more useful. With a full kitchen in the back this dining car has everything you need to dine in luxury...sort of. Some covered platters of spoiled food sit out on tables, but some digging around will reveal food and drinks from the modern era including from new establishments such as Big Bang Burger and Freshens brands. These are safe to eat if you're desperate, but they may come with side effects including dizziness, temporary loss of taste, temporary loss of sight, and sudden transparency. The effects will only last for an hour and will even be in effect if the food is removed from the car itself.

If entertainment is more your speed, you may wish to try and find the fourth car filled with old instruments, records, audio equipment, and a strange silver screen at the front of the interior. Stay on the car long enough and the doors will suddenly slam shut, a song playing on the speakers overhead in a crackled, muffled tune. The car begins to move along the tracks and you (and whoever you're with) are along for the ride. When the song ends, the screen may be of interest to you. It flickers to life even without being plugged into anything and a scene begins to play out. ...what is this? It looks like something you've seen before. One of your already regained memories is on display for the entire car to see, and despite being with few other people you may hear the reactions of unseen company. There are the sounds of laughter echoing through the car if the memory is particularly funny, or the sounds of sniffles and sobs if it's a real tearjerker. How are you going to explain that one to your companion?

Oh well. Maybe you won't have to. Maybe you took another route and came face to face with the last car down below. Unlike the other four cars, this one is completely empty. It's a skeleton of a car, lights blinking and broken and the interior ripped to shreds. You can get closer to examine it if you wish! There's nothing to be found inside. But this particular car doesn't like to be touched; the moment anyone lays a hand on it, the engine whirrs to life and the lights focus, headlights narrowing like eyes as the train begins to move right toward you, two metal appendage-like features springing out from the sides acting as its arms. The arms will make an attempt to grab anyone close by, but even if you dodge the train will prepare itself for combat.

You can try to fight the car if you think you can! It can be taken out with enough damage so long as you can get enough hits in before the train charges again. But you may be better off trying to outrun it and disappearing into another tunnel even as it gives chase and follows for a while.

IV.
It's been a long arduous journey for most of you who have ventured this far. You've fought some things, faced some others, and maybe even made some friends along the way. Fear not. The reward may be worth it if you consider a source of light a reward. No matter which tunnel you find yourself stumbling out of or which car you're on they all meet in the center at a grand central hub. The lights are bright down here and though there are no signs of other people there's plenty to look at.

Moving past the trains and the tunnels reveals the beginnings of an underground shopping mall with pop-up shops, vending machines and other fancy kiosks. Some shops appear to be older than others with clothes, toys and goods dating from the 50s all the way through the 80s and 90s. Modern shops appear to be on the rise, too, and you may even find items from Tanaka's Shopping Channel or the Moogle Shop down here with a little looking.

Most importantly, however, there's a shop at the very end of the mall with a blue hue surrounding it and the Retrospec symbol stamped on the sign above the door. The inside gives the appearance of a travel agency or a real estate office stocked with blueprints upon blueprints of the current buildings in Recollé. There are miniature travel guides as well, though some are more faded than others. "Welcome to Rapture", "Welcome to Tokyo", "Welcome to Gaia", "Welcome to New York", "Welcome to Egypt", the list goes on and on. Some of the guides are blank, but those who have regained several of their memories will find that their home guides will have information that corresponds with their memories and nothing more, landmarks they may find familiar and other facts they know to be true. There will be no new information found in these guides that travelers do not already have.

Lastly, there's a large book on the table: "Welcome to Recollé." Flipping through this book details the history of the city and the story of how the four founders traveled far to settle on Earth to create this city decades ago. The city was originally to be a safe haven, a central hub much like this subway station, until the Retrospec project could reform everything. However, the city became a home to the founders, the founding families, and others that were rescued throughout the galaxy who'd lost their planets. The book goes on to explain how Retrospec created their original headquarters in a bunker in the woods hidden from prying eyes so they could do their job with utmost secrecy. Retrospec was never to be looked into by ordinary people and the original company had less than 10 employees working for it.

This subway station, it says, used to be the way that travelers from other worlds would arrive to the city of Recollé and a way that they could leave to explore other parts of the planet at their leisure until the system was shut down sometime in the 1970s due to the collapsing of several tunnels.

There are several pages at the end of the book, too, but the text is illegible. Instead, in bold letters written in sharpie are the words "LET'S REWRITE HISTORY" and dated 2007.

The guides can be taken out of the office, but the book is bolted down to the table. Photos can be taken of the information though.

At the end of the day, 6pm sharp, a loud electronic recording will echo through the mall: the last train is now boarding. Please make your way to the station to return to the city of Recollé. Returning to the station at 6pm (and only at 6pm), you'll find a brand new subway car fitted with modern accommodations and fixtures. The train will depart at 6:30pm and return all travelers to the start by 7pm. When the last passenger is off of the train, it will begin to move backwards and take off to return to its start point.

Weird.

BONUS.
Meanwhile out in the city it's just as dark as ever. The dome blocks out light for days on end with little sign of letting up and leaving citizens to figure out their own methods to shed some light on the situation. Several shops begin to provide discount pricing on flashlights and candles. For those brave enough to enter the woods there are plenty of dead branches to carry back and start fires around the city and in fireplaces.

No matter which way you accomplish it, however, all new sources of light produce a prism effect. The colorful lights won't appear with street lamps or storefronts but the more creative the light source the brighter the colors will be. On the other hand as soon as those lights turn out again the rainbow disappears. With enough teamwork, citizens may just be able to generate enough light to brighten the inside of the dome with colors but it will take a little extra thinking and a few extra hands.

Welcome to

recolle's January's event!

The prompts are simply loose guidelines for you guys to play with and make up your own fun adventures for the entire month of January! You may also create your own logs or inbox threads based on these prompts. Any questions you have regarding this event may be directed to the mod comment here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Tanuki is hanging out with Baren, as tanukis are wont to do when their Kumous are nearby. He watches Minato watching him watching Minato watching him.]

Even when the truth hurts?

[ . . . as seen from that memory. It's none of Baren's business, but he's also the type to press until someone tells him to stop. Call it curiosity, in a way.]

If the truth hurts... [ Generally, he doesn't care and says it anyways. Doing so has gotten him into plenty of trouble, being told off for not considering other people's feelings. As seen from that memory, sometimes it's just him not recognizing when the truth might hurt. ]

Does omission count as a lie?

[ Things like changing the subject or keeping silent are as good an answer as any, just without words. ]

No.

[Easily, he leans back and reaches up to scratch Tanuki behind his ear. Tanuki leans into the touch and the screen flickers again, as if it's trying to pick out a special memory to destroy Baren in particular. He watches it warily.]

But I'm a liar.

[So maybe his word isn't the one you want to take.]

I've never met somebody who's fundamentally a liar.

[ Maybe it's naïvety, but he's always thought most people are like himself: honest to a fault unless absolutely necessary. Most people lie because they need to, and, looking over at Baren, lying to Minato here doesn't serve any purpose. ]

People are all the same in the end, probably. [ He takes his eyes off the other man's face and turns it towards the screen and whatever secrets it holds. ] Whether one lies to preserve the peace or to protect someone...

[ The amount one has to lie doesn't matter, if he believes it's for a good reason. ]

... sounds like an easy way to miss out on life.

[If you think that everyone's the same.

But Baren doesn't get a chance to explain as the screen flickers to life. Sounds of struggle fill the car as the image of a battle drawing to a close play on the screen. Baren's eye narrows at the memory.

He warns - ]

I'd look away if you're squeamish.

[ It's a warning, but he wishes Baren had been more specific about it. The moment Minato sees the pile of dead bodies on the screen, he freezes right up, all expression wiped clean off his face, breath held as if doing so would halt the passage of time.

Time doesn't matter anymore for those who are dead, and those who aren't... Even watching from above, the voices— the screaming— ring loud and clear in Minato's ears. What good would looking away do, when what pierces his heart aren't tears and blood, but the calm order for son to take his father's life, the cold reality that is letting people fight their own battles. He isn't wrong. ]

["That's what war is, isn't it?"

It's not his proudest moment.

Still, it ends with the idealist springing forward and declaring him an idiot. The screen flickers weakly at the end before the image disappears entirely and Baren hops off the piano. Without much concern for propriety, he reaches for Minato's wrist - ]

You still got a pulse?

[It's hard to watch.

He knows.]

[ His hand hangs limply when Baren takes it, pulse thrumming just under the surface of his skin. He doesn't move otherwise, still staring up at the screen as if it would turn on again, roll a bloopers reel where everybody gets up again, alive and laughing and praising an amazing movie director for making it all seem so real.

He knows it that's not how it is.

One of his earliest memories were filled with fire licking at his back and the stench of blood in the air, but he had never seen a person die before. He had never seen a person kill. He had never seen these things done so easily, so senselessly. But he thinks, if it were his memory, he would be Baren walking away. ]

[Baren feels for the pulse, stares at Minato and wonders what it is that's gotten him to go mute again. Weren't there plenty of movies and shows these days with this much violence? Is it naive to think that someone would be desensitized to that sort of thing -

Or is that just because Baren feels the sense that he lived through it living in his heart?]

.... you know, I wouldn't mind memories of fucking up dates.

[He reaches out to ruffle Minato's hair just to try to pull a reaction out of him.]

You still in there, lover boy?

[ Books and movies and video games about this sort of stuff all come with a disclaimer these days that say they are works of fiction, and that makes it easy to distance himself from it. But it's the knowledge that these are memories, actual events that happened to a person somewhere sometime, even if that person isn't explicitly the one standing before him right now.

He lets out his breath, old and stale, and lets his eyes fall closed for a moment, the only reaction Baren gets.

Baren, as casually as he regards that memory and tries to steer the conversation away from it, lived through that memory and stood in place of that person. There was no way he could not have felt everything that had happened. ]

...Would you have done the same?

[ . . . . ah.

Would he relive his not-so-proud moment? Baren thinks about it. In the face of certain danger and almost certain death, would he have intervened if it meant that family members wouldn't have to kill each other? He seems to take a moment to think about it, his expression becoming more closed off.

It's the time period, he would always say. That's how it was.]

... I'm not the type of person who's meant to play hero.

[Not the type of person to run into danger for a stranger.]

That's not what I asked.

[ Nobody in their right mind would play hero. The priority for all living things is the preservation of one's own life. These are facts ingrained through both logic and human nature.

And yet people do it all the time.

They throw their lives away for things like hope or possibility, often with no gains for themselves other than a meaningless "thank you" from a stranger they will never cross paths with again. That time period or this one doesn't matter. Did he feel any compulsion to act? That's what Minato is asking. ]

Are you sure?

[A challenge, because - ] If I acted differently, that'd be putting a target on my own back, right? The definition of dumb heroics. And there's no guarantee that anything I would've done would have changed anything - then there'd just be one more body on the pile.

[Baren's gaze flicks back to the screen - Sakichi was there. Sakichi jumped into danger. Sakichi was a big, dumb hero.]

Risking your life for a stranger on death's doorstep is still foolhardy.

[ - if undeniably noble. Baren waves a hand dismissively, as always, because:] But that's just my opinion.

[what does that count for anyway?]

[ He's sure that's what he asked: the difference between what you think you would do, and what you would do. Baren's opinion, as it's always been, is reasonable and what Minato would follow too. He picks up a recorder and spins it idly in between his fingers; it's too wide and heavy, turning slowly in an obvious need for distraction, something to busy himself with as he thinks of how to reply.

Maybe this is what marks him as still being a child, thinking he can play hero. And that this intention grants him invulnerability. ]

I like hearing about your opinions.

[ Saying nothing about whether he agrees. ]

In the end... that's just how reality is. It's not a game, or a movie. I know that.

Why?

[Rather immediately - and he clarifies quickly:]

Not the thing about reality, obviously. But why do you care what I think?

[A remarkably sincere question coming from Baren because... well, he's confused. He's not someone with good opinions, and he knows it. He sees the world rather bleakly, all things considered. His thoughts aren't ones that he shares regularly for a reason.

So - why?]

I don't care what you think.

[ The phrasing is a bit rude, but it's said as matter of fact as commenting about the weather. He means exactly what he says: he likes hearing Baren's— anybody's, really— opinions, but it's simply to hear them, to learn about them, and decide for himself what to make of them. Baren's opinions don't have to be right, or good, or even truths.

... ]

I should rephrase that. It's not "care" as in "concern" or "esteem" but...

[ What's a better word than care? Something that implies interest but not entertainment, with importance but not sole importance... Minato is ESL and this is why he hates talking. ]

Nah, I like how you phrased it the first time.

[ - with a grin, because Baren appreciates rude phrasing if it sounds closer to the truth.]

It's good - don't care what I think. But what's the point in hearing about them, then? Am I talking at air? Or are you just gonna silently judge whatever I say and compile them away into memory?

[ Not having to watch his words is appreciated, and Minato relaxes a little. ]

Yeah, just pretend I'm air. I don't care what you think, you shouldn't care what I think. Makes everything much simpler.

It does. It works for me.

[It's the type of life that Baren signs off on, even if it's not exactly the best idea. But what's the point of living a life where other people's judgment dictate your actions?

. . . still, he thinks of that girl he saw in Minato's memory.

And he huffs.]

Even if it's not everyone's cup of tea.

[ Minato doesn't need to know who Baren is specifically thinking about to understand that; it feels to him that it's nobody's cup of tea aside from the few practical people like Baren here. ]

I know that. If that's the case, it's easier to change myself than expect everybody else to change. I can learn how to care.

[ . . . Baren tilts his head at that.

It's easier to change myself is a phrase he hates. Deeply. With everything that he has. Even if he understands, even if he fell into that trap for most of his life.

So incoming another big question:]

Are you happy this way?

What does my happiness have to do with anything?

[ He regards Baren closely; apparently, there is something in what Minato had said that he doesn't agree with. But in Minato's opinion, it's hard to change yourself, it feels impossible sometimes, and it feels like lying, but that doesn't stop it from being the simplest option there is to keeping the peace. In the end, that's more or less what he wants. ]

Probably everything.

[He waves a hand, moving past Minato to actually work on that door that slammed to shut them in. This is a conversation that he doesn't feel like having face to face, instead moving to examine the lock to see if it's something that he can either break or pick or if the gods are keeping them here for longer for a reason.

Eventually, he continues:]

If you're not laughing, are you really living? [A vague hum.] Not that you seem like the type that's easy to laugh - but it's more about the feeling than anything. If you're not enjoying yourself, what's the point?

If you're not happy, then change, I guess. But if you are - and you're not hurting anybody - what's the point of accommodating how other people view the world? Who's to say they're right?

[ - but that sounds like a lecture, doesn't it.]

.... well, I guess you did say you wanted to hear what I think.

[ It sure sounds like a lecture. It's not one he's heard before, but rather, the sort that you just sort of know in the back of your mind and do your best to ignore until somebody else drags it forth again. The purpose of living. Happiness. All of that.

He watches Baren's back for a moment, then turns to the windows so he can see if they open and speak to his reflection on the glass instead. He looks tired. Never particularly happy, but that doesn't mean he's unhappy. ]

...There's more to living than enjoyment. A sense of purpose. Something more fulfilling. I don't know, I'm still in the trial and error phase of it. [ He rattles a window frame, but it doesn't budge, so he moves onto the next one. ] I'm not particularly happy or unhappy, but it's the "not hurting anybody" that's the current roadblock. Not being accommodating can hurt people.

[ There's his problem: not hurting people requires bending to them, and he can't find his way around that on the account of being a shitty person at times. ]

Finding people that are tough to hurt is a good alternative.

[ - just talking from one shitty person to another.

He rattles the door a couple times.]

But anyway, you don't mean to hurt them though, right? You seem a little too prone to guilt for that.

["You seem like you still have a heart?"]

JANUARY EVENT LOG

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