☆TRACK VI: THE NEW AMERICANA

[interdimanagers]

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.”

Comments

[rising_wing]

Riku sits back up when Usagi comes over. "Nice to meet you Serena, I'm Richard Highwind, but you can call Rick or something if you want.."

Rick, Riku, he can work it somehow.

"Am I that obvious?" He turns so he's facing Usagi and crosses his legs. "It's going to be hard for me too." He closes his eyes. "This isn't the first time someone's messed with Sora's memory. So I'm feeling... irritated."

He recalls, vividly, their first meeting after Sora woke up. How ashamed he had felt, and how Sora grabbed him and cried, saying how thankful he was that he was okay. He had been so prepared to remain 'Ansem' forever for Sora's sake. But of course, he was wrong. Sora needed him, not a ghost.

After taking a moment he opened his eyes again and smiled at the Princess. "You're right, we can do this."

[lightthedarkness]

"You can just call me Sere!" since "chan" and "kun" weren't English, she'd have to come up with cute nicknames a different way. "And it's nice to meet you, Rick!"

She listened to him and nodded.

"It's okay though, it just shows how much you love Sora. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being upset about our loved ones being used like this. Rei has had her memory messed with as well. I don't know if just seeing us will remind them of the truth, but we'll find a way to get them back to who they truly are." She would cleanse the whole planet, if she had to, not caring if it would kill her in the process.

She lightly nudged him with her shoulder.

"Besides, we have to find a way to get to the ones who did this to them as well. We have to take everything slowly, and I know how hard that can be. The important thing to remember is that we aren't alone in this."

[rising_wing]

"Sare it is."

Riku leaned back. "I guess making sure Blanche and Santiago are brought to justice is my duty. Between me and Sparks we have the jurisdiction to do so." Though Sparks law agency or whatever might be believed more than his ancient order of Keyblade Masters. Of course, he cares more about making sure Sora is safe than anything else. Though, he'd need Sora's help to close up the holes in the world, so logic was on his heart's side in this.

He hummed thoughtfully. "It's amazing how brazen those two were. So many people have been affected by them. It's definitely something they'll regret."

Usagi was right. They weren't alone in this. Everyone was here for someone or here simply to help. Some had only their captured friends in mind, like the Mafia people, but Riku couldn't and wouldn't fault them for that.

[lightthedarkness]

"Riku... I know they did bad things, but bringing them to justice is something that needs to be decided by everyone, not just one person." Says the girl who often is the one person who brings people to justice. "The people they hurt, the ones they kidnapped, they all have a right to put in their say about what happens to them. This isn't about jurisdiction, this is about what's right." Though she did wonder what Riku meant by "jurisdiction."

"We just... everyone might try and say they have a right to what happens to them, but no one person should decide. That doesn't make us any better than them. I know they bad things, Riku, but this isn't just for you or me to decide." And she'd stand by that decision. Too many people were involved in this.

"We'll make sure they face what they did, I promise... but...please promise me that you will wait for the decisions of others on this too?"

[rising_wing]

Riku frowns. "They've put the worlds in danger Usagi. It's my duty to stop those who do that."

He blinks, maybe she meant... "Oh! No. I'm not planning on killing them! Just making sure they can't do this again. That's my duty. That and clean up the mess they made, that and saving Sora are my main objectives here." And making sure no one here takes the technology/magic they used to abduct everyone.

There's a difference between planning on killing and defeating an enemy in battle.

"Um..." okay Riku, chill. Might as well tell her now, it's not like he'll be able to keep it a secret. "Here, let me show you." He summons his Keyblade to his hand. It's a wicked looking thing, he realizes, Kairi, Sora, and the King and his court have seen it, but this is the first time he's showing it to someone who wasn't a part of the group dealing with Xehanort. "This is the Keyblade. I'm a Keyblade Master, it's my duty to watch over the worlds, and stop those who try to cause them harm. The exact punishment for their crime..." He lowers his keyblade, looking down at his socks. "I'll be the first to admit I'm still trying to figure out what I'm doing."

[lightthedarkness]

"I know." Really, Riku, she gets it better than you might give her credit for. Still, she lets out a relieved sigh, having been worried by the way he talked about "justified" and "jurisdiction" and "making them regret it." She was glad but she still maintained that it should be something decided by the whole group once they saved everyone, not just anyone person. Not her, not Riku, not any one person.

"But there are others who can help. I mean, if there are multiple universes, couldn't there be others who think they have uh- jurisdiction on this too? I really do think we need to remember that we're not alone in this."

When he summoned his Keyblade, she honestly wasn't surprised. It was amazing, yes, but after seeing Pluto's time key, she wasn't as surprised by a keys being used as weapons.

"I think it's amazing that you are a Keyblade Master and watch over worlds, but I understand this is hard, no manual about how to go about things, no guide book or things like that." Trust her, she knows and half the time she can just go by what her heart tells her is right, and sometimes, she's not always right. "But this isn't anything you're alone in. I'm here, and so are others who want to make sure everyone is safe and set things to right. I'm sure, between all of us, I mean, we have to be able to figure out something right?" she offered a smile, hoping her little joke would get a smile out of him too.

[rising_wing]

He banished his keyblade and smiled while bumping her shoulder with his own. She reminded him of Sora and Kairi. Maybe that's why he felt so relaxed around her.

He sometimes still feels like he was the wrong one promoted to Master. Sora has done so much more than he has. Sora had never given into the darkness like he had, or done any of the horrible things he had.

"I think it's just me and Sparks, but I'm not sure. I should probably ask around, I'm sure they'd be helpful. Like what type of things we should avoiding doing so we don't step on anyone's toes."

[lightthedarkness]

"You should, I think you would be surprised. I don't know Sparks-san, but I hope he can help with this, too. Who knows how long we'll be here until we can make a move, right?"

She smiled and lightly bumped his shoulder back.

"Just uh, maybe don't spring the princess thing on them... even if it apparently super obvious," she teased but her smile was bright enough to clearly show she wasn't upset.

"Do you have any idea what you'll do tomorrow?"

[rising_wing]

Riku looks at he wide-eyed "I promised I woul-" he cuts himself off and coughs when he realizes he's being teased. "Right, that might cause some political hang ups."

Because Princess are usually daughters of important people, right? Well, he had no idea about Alice, and Kairi... he didn't know her past because she ended up on Destiny Islands as a child. She came from Radiant Garden, he knew that.

"I don't know about tomorrow. Namine and I will probably stick together. Other than that, I'm not sure."

[lightthedarkness]

"I'm going to to go with Haruka-san and Minako-chan, but if you both need a place until you can find something, you're more than welcome to stay with us." Well, actually, she should ask, because five in an apartment was getting cramped and Haruka didn't like men in general.

But Usagi didn't want to see either of them out in the cold.

"You can always call on me for help, you and Namine both. You're my friends and friends protect one another."

[rising_wing]

Riku nods and gives her a smile.

"Thank you Usagi."