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thirstology2017-12-15 02:08 am
futurologists) wrote in thirstology2017-12-15 02:08 am
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TEST DRIVE MEME.
A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME  Welcome to the Viridian Sea, a rolling body of water populated by a small number of islands and an even greater number of pirates and merchant ships. Sailing, rum, and high-seas adventure is the name of the game for this mission: after the freshly-recruited volunteers (that's you!) are welcomed into Hathaway, they are sent via controlled interdimensional rift to deal with a certain pirate ship that has been causing a certain amount of trouble. The crew of Red Scream, a murderous band of Mako pirates, has been reaving a path of destruction through the sea, scuttling ships of merchants, civilians, and other pirate bands alike. They have also kidnapped a governor's daughter, asking an exorbitant ransom to return her at all, let alone alive. If this wasn't enough of a reason for Hathaway to intervene, Red Scream's current goal is firmly pointed at a legendary treasure buried in a crater somewhere in the Viridian Sea. Hathaway analysts have studied the crater and found that it was definitely caused by a temporal shard cast off from the Merging. And if Red Scream gets its hands on the shard, it'll be bad news. The crew of Little Squid has reached out to Hathaway for help reaching the treasure. The ship and crew are both small, but they are an optimistic and hardworking bunch, and are willing to equally split the treasure with Hathaway as a reward -- they just have to reach it first. ▸ PROMPTS Your mission is simple: reach the treasure before the Mako pirates. If you have the time, you can try and save the governor's daughter -- it's not why Hathaway has been hired, but her father will likely be grateful enough to grant a reward.   High-seas adventure not your cup of tea? The tropical islands dotting the Viridian Sea are flush with distractions, including pirate havens replete with gambling, food, and liquor. It's a hedonist's paradise -- if you can avoid displeasing the heavily-armed locals. TWO ▸ LITTLE SQUID. Ever been on a brig before? The crew of Little Squid are happy to show you the ropes -- literally -- and teach you how to be a master seafarer in no time. The only food on board unfortunately consists of salted meat and hard bread, but there's plenty of rum to go around. Life on the seas is tough, especially during rough weather; unfortunately, they have no cure for seasickness, so if you're afflicted, you might want to head below decks and wait it out. But the view during calm waters is unlike anything else. THREE ▸ RED SCREAM. It was bound to happen: Little Squid runs smack dab into Red Scream on the race to the treasure. Board the enemy ship or wait for them to come to you, but either way, you'd better be ready for some close-quarters combat. The Mako pirates of Red Scream are humanoid sharks with teeth to match, so in addition to their cutlasses and blunderbusses, you'll want to avoid being bitten. If fighting isn't your specialty, you could always hide below decks of Little Squid and hope you don't get noticed. Or, if you're feeling bold, you can board Red Scream and look for the governor's daughter, who is being kept in the captain's quarters -- she's about six years old and ready to fight, so get ready to have your hands full. FOUR ▸ THE TREASURE. Finally, Little Squid reaches the island where the treasure is. There are caves throughout the island where more standard pirate treasure is found -- gold doubloons in rotted old chests and the like -- but there's also a massive crater formed where the temporal shard plummeted to the surface. The crater is a wide hole with sheer walls, so you'd better find someone who can fly or brush up on your spelunking skills. The further down you go into the crater, the darker it gets, but somewhere on the bottom an eerie blue light is glowing. The source is the temporal shard: make your way through a winding tunnel system to find it and retrieve it. But beware -- the shard has attracted temporal insects, ravenous, time-eating bugs that can slow or hasten the flow of time just due to their appetite. Find yourself in their presence and you'll be moving in slow motion or you'll suddenly be aged 50 years. The only way to stop the effects are to kill the bugs and retrieve the shard. FIVE ▸ CHIT-CHAT. It's your standard network option. Maybe you've got a little downtime and you're bored. Or maybe you got lost in the caves and you think you saw a g-g-ghost pirate. Maybe you're just trying to figure out how the hell this magical jewelry thing works! No matter what, you get one username to identify you and one only -- if you don't enter one, it will default to your real name (for example, Voldemort's would be tomriddle.) Choose wisely... or make it assfarts69, if that's your thing. More information on the jewelcomms can be found on the devices guide. SIX ▸ WILDCARD. Do whatever the heck you want! Explore the jungles and waterfalls of the islands, have a party on the beach, try to befriend a dolphin. The world is your oyster. ▸ OOC NOTES Welcome to the first test drive meme of Futurology Season 2! Because the season hasn't started yet, this test drive is meant to be a mini-mission, similar in feel to the missions we have in-game but on a much smaller scale. Since no characters currently have official specializations, we also have no specialized prompts, but plan to in the future. However, feel free to play as if your character is level 1 of whichever specialization you would like to choose. Please be aware this test drive is game canon. Questions about the game can be directed to the FAQ. If you've been with us before, you might notice things look a little different around here. Make sure you check out the welcome page for the basic rundown of how your character joined up with Hathaway. For further information about the game, the full navigation has all the links you'll need. Apps will reopen to the public on 6 January, with early apps for returning characters opening on 4 January. Apps will close when we reach our 60-player cap or on 15 January, whichever happens first. We hope to see you then! |
no subject
It doesn’t stop the back of his ears from burning when he realizes Thrawn is toying with him.]
Well, she didn’t lie to you. Not about the Empire.
[And that will be the end of that. He grabs for the rope and starts the task of pulling the shard up by himself.]
no subject
You have done enough.
[The fear and pride that had spurred Kylo Ren on, the exhaustion that permeates his posture; he has not allowed himself time to recover.
And he is not capable of using it to run from their conversation.]
Leave it for the others. We should not allow an opportunity for the insects to potentially follow the shard above ground without sufficient reinforcements present.
no subject
The sooner its up here, the sooner we can move on.
[Thrawn is going to have to be the one to recruit help. Kylo isn’t exactly a popular kid here among the veterans.]
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[Only it isn't feigned. They are allies, after all— here to serve the same collective for a myriad of reasons. Without pretense, Thrawn moves to fold his hands behind his back yet again, stepping away for the second time to leave Ren with as much space as he requires.]
I take it you know her?
[After all, with few exceptions, it is the only thing that turned Ren's elusive focus so suddenly sharp.]
no subject
[He only offers confirmation. Drawing a more bold line between him and Rey would only invite ruin to their tenuous alliance. The less he knew about their connection to one another, the better.]
There are two Resistance fighters here as well. They seem to have settled their grudges, for the moment.
[He, of course, has not.]
no subject
...with you?
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[He turns away from the shard to face Thrawn, arms at his sides.]
I am its lead enforcer. They are rebels. Poe Dameron, and— [Pause.] — Finn. Perhaps you have met them.
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It is possible that I have, yes. [This time there's no subtle humor to the admission; he seems lost in thought, a gloved hand lifting to rest against his jawline.]
But I am more interested in you, Kylo Ren. [the name drawn long by a drifting, inhuman accent.] More specifically: if the Republic has been reinstated, as I have been led to believe, would the First Order not qualify as resistance enough?
[Why then, does the Resistance exist in the first place? And why did its agents feel it necessary to come to terms with such a prominent member of the First Order?]
no subject
[He isn’t exactly wrong. The concept is humorous, considering the present state of the galaxy. Its enough to get a small smirk out of him that flickers away almost immediately. The matter of the Hosnian System was not as humorous as the suggestion that the First Order were the true rebels in this situation, and it was difficult not to think of its destruction when considering their rise.
He had known several of those senators as a boy. But Thrawn doesn’t care about that — he wants a history lesson. That is easy enough to give.]
After the fall of the Empire, the New Republic was reinstated using a two party system — the Populists, who believed planets should govern themselves, and the Centrists, who favored central government. Naturally, the Populists feared the Centrist philosophy after ridding themselves of the Empire. But there were plenty of Imperial loyalists who agreed on a need for some sort of control, and were more prepared to take it, since the New Republic spent twenty years of their time bickering while the galaxy moved around them.
[He lets Thrawn digest before continuing.]
The First Order rose to fill the void, to prevent absolute anarchy. And the Republic was disposed of. Again.
no subject
And even more unfortunate for a galaxy left undefended without a bulwark against chaos, greed and dissolution.
no subject
[Said, as if to answer his concerns about the galaxy remaining undefended. He is not so privy to the struggles of those on the ground floor of the conflict -- and frankly, he does not care.]
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A very prestigious title.
[Spoken with delicate subtlety, though it remains a commentary all the same. For Palpatine to elect himself Emperor was an almost expected power play, yet the title was simply defined: Emperor. Not illustrious, not unfathomable— no, for all his flaws, Emperor Palpatine understood the pitfalls of openly displaying his vanity.
And those who hold power often find little use for flattery.]
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It is deserved.
[For all of his opinions, he could not argue that much; the Supreme Leader was extremely powerful, and could not be usurped -- not by any conventional means, anyway. Of that, he was certain.]
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[A simple question, spoken eagerly without judgment or pretense: the narrowing of those vibrant eyes a sure sign that he's searching for Kylo Ren's inherently valuable opinion on the subject— the First Order's prime enforcer, the Supreme Leader's right hand— surely he must have some insight on the man. On his achievements, his motivations and machinations, all the momentum that has driven them to end the Republic's rising reign.]
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He has a strong vision for the future, and the power to maintain absolute control. Even in the Outer Rim.
[It had been where they had risen, after all. Power, of course, could mean different things to different people, but in the case of the First Order it was both military power, and strength in the Force.]
The Resistance itself has been culled to less than 200 units. Between that and the total destruction of the Republic, here is nothing left in the galaxy to stand up to his reign.
[Its a slightly impassioned reply (almost bored depending on the interpretation of tone), but no less frank and honest.]
no subject
There is a danger in asking too many questions. A transparency that could sully the tentative bonds they've only just barely established. So instead, Thrawn dips his chin in a deep nod of understanding (and agreement).] In that case, it would appear that you are indeed correct: he must be an adequate successor to the Emperor himself.
I thank you for easing my mind.
[Stepping away from Ren yet again, Thrawn turns his attention towards the fringes of their current encampment.] If you are content to remain here, I will secure assistance from any of our forces nearby.
As you said: the sooner we finish here, the sooner we are done with this world.
no subject
[Both a reply to his thanks, and an answer to his question. He'd stay there as long as he felt necessary, of course, and not bother to wait for Thrawn's return. With the shard secured, there was no further need of his assistance, except perhaps to haul it up.
There were plenty of people around. The hard work was done.]
If you see anyone that recognizes our galaxy other than those I mentioned, I would like to know.
[Just saying.]