interstellar5555 | ☆TRACK VI: THE NEW AMERICANA

Entry tags:

☆TRACK VI: THE NEW AMERICANA

Who: All the rescuers...and DAFT PUNK.
What: The rescuers enter Vista City for the first time.
When: January 20th, 2055
Where: The ship, the coast, and outer Vista City.
Warnings: Could basically be anything.

“Viral mess turned dreams into an empire.
Self-made success now she rolls with Rockefellers.
Survival of the richest, the city's ours until the fall.
But we don't feel like outsiders at all.”

☆THE NEW AMERICANA

Your arrival on Tera doesn’t exactly happen with a bang – though maybe that’s a good thing, given that this is supposedly a stealth operation. The ship firsts touches down somewhere in the ocean, at which point it hovers above the waves for a few hours while Shep “touches base” with some “contacts.”

This is your time to get ready, to collect any gear you’ve been assigned, and to talk over initial plans with your new teammates. You’ve been given a rough outline of what to expect upon reaching actual land. You’re going to be dropped off in the ring of forested land outside of the city, at which point you are to access a hidden stash of supplies that has been planted there for you and head into the city, where a second stash of supplies will be waiting for you in the outer ring of the city.

It will probably be a long walk. From the onboard supplies everyone will be given the following:

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TRAINING: if your character doesn’t already speak English, they will be given some time with a crown like technological device that seems the be able to psychically teach people languages at a rapid pace. Whatever has been enabling communication so far won’t cover you once you enter the city, so it’s important that you’re prepared. How easily a person’s brain accepts this information will vary based on unseen neurological factors, and can range from perfect fluency to an uneasy second language. (On an OOC level, whether or not your character struggles with picking up English is completely up to you.) Most of this training will be done on the trip to Tera.
THEIR DESIGNATED TOOLS: any items your character was designated on your application will be given to them now. They’ll have some degree of choice in what they get, but everything is limited in supply. There are manuals for everything, but how much you can be fucked to read them will vary. Also, some of them aren’t in English or anything else even remotely recognizable.
COMMUNICATION DEVICES: Everybody will get a communicator, which are worn around the back of your ear and project a holographic field over your eyes when activated. The device itself must be manually switched on with your fingers, and from there on out your exact method of controlling it depends on the settings. Some of the more basic functions can be manipulated with “brain waves” (though nothing very complicated) and the rest is mostly voice or touch activated, though you can also set it up to be controlled with blinking and eye movement if you are a “pro”. Its functions include voice, voice-to-text, and a sort of janky manual text mode that you have to touch the screen to use. Video chat is not available, though it is capable of recording video from your POV to be shared manually after the fact. It can also share still images. Various channels can be set up and accessed, both private and public, much like a Teamspeak server is used in gaming.
HOLO EMITTERS (LIMITED): The amount of these available are limited by “plot convenience.” Do you want your character to have to struggle with their alien appearance to get by constantly? Then imagine there wasn’t enough of them to go around and your character was unlikely or benevolent enough to not receive one. Would you rather they have access to one? Then you can have one. A holo emitter is capable of projecting a holographic image around your character and disguising their appearance, the complexity of which is entirely up to you. The major problems with it are that 1) it can’t conceal things that the hologram doesn’t actually touch – cow horns could be covered in a hologram to look like a hat, but it couldn’t make them look as if there is nothing there at all, and 2) the holograms have no mass, and so if anyone tries to touch them they’ll realize they are just light projections. Also, like most of the equipment, they only work for a few hours before running out of power.

☆STASH NUMBER ONE: THE FOREST

Once Shep has made sure things are prepared and everyone has their stuff, the ship will very briefly skirt close enough to the shore for people to disembark. The beach seems totally free of witnesses, and once you’ve hit land it’s a short run to the tree line. A few random people will have map information uploaded into their communicators (Usagi, Saitama, Reborn, Pearl, and Sparks Nevada are the lucky winners) and will be put in charge of making sure everyone navigates to the first stash correctly, and then into the outskirts of the city where a meet-up point and a second stash of equipment is located. The directions are not complicated, but it’s a lot of people to shepherd around incognito. How everybody handles this is completely up to the characters.

Meanwhile, Shep is piloting the ship back off into the ocean to hide it somewhere. He says he’ll meet you in the city at some point, and that he’ll keep in contact via the communicators. Stay safe, and good luck!

The first stash is about a twenty minute walk into the forest, and should be found with relative ease. It is basically just a few large, plastic tubs buried beneath soil and moss, and has to be dug up like treasure. Inside of it lies the following:

AMERICANA DISGUISES: Clothing, make up, the works – everything the average joe needs to pass themselves off as a resident of Vista City. Outfits are perhaps a bit more eccentric and flashy than you’re used to...or maybe a bit less, depending where you come from. Either way, it’s a specific look, and there should be enough here to accommodate new outfits for all the humanoids. If you’re a horse, you’re sort of on your own. What your character ends up with is up to you, though “space rave” is a good way to describe common aesthetics. There are also a lot of hooded coats, hats, and other articles that would be good for hiding inhuman characteristics.
RATIONS: Enough food at water, tightly compact, to last everyone for a few days. It’s going to start to run out quickly, though, so the group is going to need some breadwinners sooner rather than later.
A WELCOME CARD: A welcome message from these two with their selfie printed on the front. Written inside are the following messages: “Glad you could make It! ♥ –Gold” and ”Welcome to hell. ☺ -Silver”. They are both in the same handwriting.

From there, the maps only lead further into the city.

☆STASH NUMBER TWO: CITY BOUND

You'll quickly notice that Vista City comes with multiple levels - the ground level, that actually touches the earth, and then a second level of streets and walkways that occurs halfway up the mountainous buildings. Cars streak down both sets of speedways, and the signs of life scatter every inch of the towers surrounding you. At the same time, though, a city of this magnitude leaves a lot of nooks and crannies left frequently unseen - something you'll definitely have to take advantage of. In the outer ring of the city the population is less dense than it gets towards the center, so at the least it gives you the opportunity to get your bearings.

You'll find that there is no shortage of people stalking around in the darkness, even as the sun sets and night totally takes hold. A lot of them are dressed pretty funny, too, and any insecurities you had about looking ridiculous can tentatively be put aside. The costumes you were left do allow you to blend in about as well as you could hope. If the navigation team holds true, you'll be able to make it to the next stash in good time. You've been advised to avoid talking to locals as much as possible, at least until you've figured things out better. There is a notable absence of homeless people on the streets, which could mean any number of things.

The place you end up at is, unsurprisingly, a warehouse. One of the few entirely flat buildings in the cityscape, the maps will lead into the center of the building. You try the door. It opens. When you go inside, you aren't alone.

The floor is littered in blankets and what passes for foam mattresses. Waiting with them is the silver helmeted figure from the welcome card earlier. They usher you in hastily and ask you some cursory questions about whether you've been followed. When they seem satisfied, they'll tell you that you can spend the night here.

"This is the first and last time you can stay here," they'll say, gesturing around. "This was Gold and I's launchpad for the last little while, and we're junking it after this. I recommend you follow our example. Don't stay any one place too long, and don't travel in one huge group. If you do that, one bad night will pin you all down."

Silver will pass out what is apparently enough fake IDs for everyone in the ship - complete with each individual's image (or a human approximation) and a made up name. It's enough info to get a job with, they'll explain, if you can manage it. Avoid pushing the forgery's limits, though, if you can. They made them themselves so they expect they are excellent quality, but you can never be too careful.

"...Most importantly," they'll finish. "Don't go looking for the prisoners right now, as much as you might want to. If you fuck that up, you'll fuck this up for everyone - and I'll tell you right now, other people have already invested a lot more blood and tears into this than you have. Respect that."

Silver will stay for a few more hours, and then Gold will appear to take over, bringing snacks and hot chocolate with them. Get a good sleep, you'll need it.

“We are the new Americana.
High on legal marijuana,
Raised on Biggie and Nirvana.
We are the new Americana.”

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Despite the fact that they have absolutely no trouble being quiet, Frisk nods. Applejack looks like a monster, though, so they're a little more willing to speak to her. After all, she's probably lonely among so many humans.]

Better now?

[AJ is lonely, though she thinks she is starting to make some friends. for now, her focus is on resting, while wondering just how in the hay she is going to make-do. she nods to Frisk, wiping her brow with her hoof]

Yeah, a little better. But I'd feel more better if Ah knew where my pals were. [she eyes the fake ID she was given, where there is a picture of a human face, and the name Annabelle Jackie given. a lot of good this is going to do her, if she can't even change the way she looks]

[Frisk nods with a look of resignation. They'd like to know that too. They understand why it'd be a bad idea for everyone to just go rush wherever the prisoners are right away, but they'd at least like to see Sans.]

Soon, probably. [There's no other way to gather information, right? They lean to peer at the ID - oooooh, fake human ID. That's weird.]

[it's definitely weird, especially when AJ can't even use it. how is she going to get a job?]

Mah real name's Applejack. [she explains when she notices Frisk looking at the ID] So it ain't that far off. [she tucks her hooves underneath her body, getting comfortable] What's yer name?

Frisk.

[They've got two IDs now, and they shuffle them about for a moment before showing their false Vista City card. Sam Freudenberger. At least...at least part of it starts with an F, they guess?]

'M not really 13... [Which is another thing the card says. They figure there's some reason for that.]

[Frisk seems like an easy enough name to remember. AJ looks at the card] Yer not, huh? Does that matter?

Guess not.

[It's actually a pretty big difference. Not just the three years on their own, but the gap between being a kid and being an actual teenager. But they figure that's why. Something about getting around in this world on their own - as if they can't do that at ten anyway.

It doesn't matter. The important thing is the rescue.]

I'm ten.

That's pretty young t'be wanderin' around by yerself. [she's not trying to nag, she's just concerned] Y'got a parent, or other siblings around t'help you?

They took my mom.

[The other monsters are somewhere between friends and family, maybe. They don't know.]

[oh........... oh]

Oh, gosh. Ah'm sorry.

[Frisk shrugs.]

Thanks. They hid her now, but my friend is still doing music for them.

[AJ hadn't even considered what it might feel like if her family were taken away from her. though, in some ways, her friends are like her family, too. but to take away a young child's mother... it makes Applejack angry. it just goes to show that they are dealing with some pretty twisted individuals]

Well, we're gunna get everypony back, no matter what. So if things get too scary fer ya, you just sit back an' let the adults handle it.

[..................]

Okay.

[It's a nice thought.]

[Applejack nods, satisfied for the moment. she has no idea of the adventures Frisk has seen. right now, she just sees a child who lost their mother. and that just ain't right!

...maybe they should talk about something nice before going to sleep?] So... You wanna tell me what yer friend who is missing is like? That way we can both keep an eye out for 'em!

Sans. He's a skeleton.

[...that may require a little more information.]

He looks like a human skeleton, but he's really a monster. [Yes that's perfectly clear now]

......... [oh again]

A... monster...

.....yeah.

Are you a monster?

Uh, no... Ah'm a pony. [though... most humans aren't used to a talking pony, it sounds like. she very well could seem like a monster to some people]

[Monsters can look like basically anything. They've all got similarities too, but it's sort of just a general catch-all term for non-human where Frisk is from. There could be pony-looking monsters; they don't know.]

Oh. [They don't seem moved by the denial, at least.] Okay. I'm a human.

My mom's a monster too, but she's not a skeleton.

[so wait their mother is also a monster??? that raises so many more questions. AJ will attempts to be polite and not just blurt out those questions... for now...]

...Sounds like you, uh... deal with monsters a lot...

Yeah.

[Frisk pokes around idly in their pockets, before handing over their ambassadorial ID.] I'm their ambassador to the humans now. King Asgore asked me.

[AJ stretches her neck so that she can look over the ID. a monster ambassador. somehow, there is a relationship between monsters and humans. a good one. at least in Frisk's world. after thoroughly inspecting the card, she lifts her head and speaks to Frisk again]

An' you aren't scared?

I guess sometimes. It's a big job. [Frisk takes the card back again, drawing their knees up to their chest to contemplate it.] But if Asgore did it he'd just scare everybody.

[Papyrus is the best bet. They're actually hoping he can take over while they're gone, if he isn't too busy worrying about Sans. But in those early days, the sudden appearance of an enthusiastic skeleton was shockingly not that well-received.]

Bein' an ambassador of anything is a big job. But Ah meant about the monsters. Ain't they big n'scary?

[Frisk shrugs.]

Some. I was scared at first. But they're nice when you talk to them.

Stash Two

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject