Lunar Interlude 2

[balancemod]

Let's try to keep the paperwork to a minimum, shall we? NAVIGATION 1. NEW RECLAIMERS A. WELCOME WELCOME! FAH WHO RAHMUS For the nine of you who will be arriving today, the story is the same: though you may not remember it, there was a moment where you were living out your life, at home or wherever you were ... and then there was the moment the Hunger came. And amid the television static that is your memory of that moment, a hand reached out to you, beckoning your escape as the tendrils of darkness destroyed everything that ever existed about your world. "Would you hurry this up, please? Your world no longer stands a chance. Come with me, we are the last bastions of hope for all universes everywhere. And we're going to need you." And then, unceremoniously, you are dragged through the universal wringer and plopped down on the soft, though not quite cushioned, grass of the Moon Base Quad. There are other people out in the grassy fields — they may even be people you recognize. They may just be strangers, other Reclaimers, who recognize what you're about to endure. The things they say may be interspersed with static — as if the words themselves aren't reaching your ears correctly. And you have a few minutes to chat before you're calmly led away by Bureau administration, to do something about that pesky static problem. B. THE VOIDFISH The nine of you are quickly divided into two groups, and brought to the easternmost geodesic dome, to an elevator in a well maintained, but sparsely landscaped field. There's nothing particularly ominous feeling about the space — in fact, the two guards who greet you at the elevator entrance seem pleased with your arrival. You are, after all, one of the few chosen by the Director, the few who will reclaim what the Hunger has destroyed. And in a few moments, you're about to find that out for yourself. After a tightly packed elevator ride, your group is ushered out to a rather grand looking hall, banners of the Bureau of Balance adorn both sides of smooth metal walls. And inside the Voidfish's chamber stands a tank — impossibly tall, and soaked in a black ink that obscures whatever the tank may be holding. You may notice the sound of someone speaking. It's a bard, on his second round of introducing Reclaimers to the Voidfish, and this time, he has chosen to demonstrate the functions of the outrageously vertical tank not by playing violin music, but by reciting a piece of classical, and highly valued poetry. When he finishes, he pulls at a drawer just at the metallic base of the tank. He solemnly enters a few scrolls into its basin as the tank begins to light up, like lightning behind dark clouds. And suddenly, you forget what that invaluable example of universal literature sounded like. "Yeah, man, like... don't think too hard about it, it's like that every time. I'm guessing you're here to be inoculated? Just a heads up, you might want to, like, seriously, hold your nose while you drink it down. It tastes wicked gross, man. Anyway, I'm supposed to tell you that you have a choice. If you drink the black stuff, you'll be able to hear through the, uh... Huh, how do I describe it? Through the [TSHCSCHTSHCHSC] sound. You guys like, hear that? Anyway, it's all about knowledge or something. I don't know, I'm just here to, like, feed the thing. We call it the [TSCHHSCHSCH], by the way. So, like. You get a choice. You can drink it and understand stuff, or not drink it and then hear that crackling noise all day every day. If I were you, I'd drink it. But, hey man, I'm not like, your dad or anything." The bard takes five cups and draws liquid from a spigot connected directly to the basin of the large tank. Stormy, muddy looking ichor is drawn into them, one by one. He offers each of you a sip. Drink it (he wasn't kidding about what it tasted like), and you're inoculated to the wisdom of the Voidfish. You try to remember the poetry this bard recited a few moments ago and the rhymes, the meter, the significance, all come back to you. And if you think back to your arrival, some of the things you may have heard other people in the Quad say, that simply sounded like static, are suddenly clear. Bureau of Balance. Grand Relic. Reclaimers. Yet you still can't remember the Hunger or what it had done to your world. And as you look back to the tank in front of you, the water has become clear. There's a jellyfish, as tall as a building, floating within. You look into the body of the creature and you can almost make out a beautiful, tiny universe floating within it. 2. THE TEST OF INITIATION With your new knowledge on the Bureau of Balance and your purpose here in tow, you are led without hesitation to the Arena, where the final phase of your initiation into the Bureau will be held. You are partnered up, whether it is with someone you drank the ichor of the Voidfish with, or perhaps even a veteran Reclaimer, who either stopped by to help, or simply out of curiosity. One Grand Relic has already been reclaimed, you're told. They were a pair of bright red mittens, held by the mayor of a small village who may have meant well, but under the draw of the mittens' incredible space-bending powers, was corrupted into using them, and to nearly killing everyone who lived under him. You may have noticed, at some point while glancing out into space while walking here, to the planet below, a massive evergreen fir that stretches past the planet's atmosphere, very nearly piercing the Moon Base itself. It appears to be decorated for the holidays. That tree is the direct result of those mittens, the actions of a man who could not resist the temptation to use them. Resisting that very same temptation is your task here. And with that order in mind, as you and your partner stand in the middle of the Arena, the walls dissolve, and the simulation begins. You're standing in the middle of a forest. Ahead of you, situated on a pedestal, is an item. It could be any ordinary item: a pair of gloves, a teapot, a simple decorative bowl. Whatever it is, it's yours for the taking. Take that simple item in your hands, however, and the building blocks of the trees around you suddenly collapse like shattered glass, and reform into new scenery — it may even be a place from home that you recognize. A voice in your head beckons you. Perhaps there's a mistake you made, or something that went wrong for you back home that you wish you had the power to undo. Perhaps there's someone you wish you could help, or even save. The item that's in your hands has the power to help you achieve this, if only you'd ever use it. Resist the temptation. Take the item, and drop it into a nearby deposit box to be destroyed. Your partner is here to help you — because once you destroy it, you will be doing the same for them. 3. NEWBIES AND VETERANS, AROUND THE MOONBASE Three or four days into the month, now that the newbies are settled in, something strange happens: The next time you return to your flat from whatever errand or exploring you were doing, when attempting to use your Bracer to open the door results in extremely obnoxious beeping that persists for an entire thirty seconds, and a message on the screen next to the door. ERROR: HOME ASSIGNMENT MECHANISM MALFUNCTION. GO TAKE A WALK. Welp. Looks like you're locked out for a bit while techs fix that. Here's a few places that might be worth checking out. A. PIECES FROM HOME Should you find your way to the Dojo, there's a door that still has that shiny, brand spanking new door look and new door smell to it off in one of the less traversed corners of the building. A sign next to the door demands that you empty your pockets before entering. A scanner for your Bracer will unlock it, assuming it's unoccupied, leading you to a plain white room with no furniture or objects at all in sight. As the door shuts behind you, a pleasant female voice echoes from all corners of the room, greeting you by name. If this is your first time in the room, the voice has a simple question for you: "What memory do you value, or think of, most?" Once you've provided your answer, the walls crumble, much like they did during the Test of Initiation simulation, reforming into something that is, again, pleasantly, or even unpleasantly, familiar. It's a space from home. Perhaps it's your room. Perhaps it's your favorite restaurant (though, the place is curiously empty, and the food you find, for some reason, tastes like strawberries). Perhaps it's a park you always enjoyed visiting, or a corner of the city you lived in. Whatever it is, you, and whoever you may have brought along with you, seem to be the only ones there. And perhaps the details aren't quite right — like maybe someone built a model of your home to explore, but a few pieces were missing from the box. But it's close enough. B. SPEND YOUR DOUGH. SOLVE A MYSTERY Whether you're a newcomer or a veteran returning from your first Field Mission, you've been provided with some spending money. You can use it to buy yourself one weapon and piece of armor from one of the blacksmiths in town. Regardless of who you choose to help you out with that, it'll take about a week to complete your order, so time your purchase carefully. There's also premade weapons and a whole bunch of other bullshit for sale at FANTASY COSTCO. Shelves and pallets of an endless array of nonmagical items, pretty much anything you can imagine, can be bought here, but there's one particular, innocuous item that seems to have Garfield the Deals Warlock in a tizzy. The more those vinyl covers that can be used to decorate your Bracers are purchased, the more the name seems to spread, ghosts of whispers around the entire Moon Base, of a person who may very well be a ghost herself. Who is Miss Zarves? Who was Miss Zarves? A powerful witch with the power to scramble your memories, insists one cantankerous woman who pours you a drink at Madame Frione's Tea Kettle. A heavyset, flushed with drink sort of man sitting next to you disagrees — Miss Zarves is a practical joke Garfield likes to trot out every couple of months to mess around with anybody gullible enough to believe him. Whatever the case, it seems that the name alone gives everyone a curious case of déjà vu. Someone has to have information on her — and this is the Reclaimers' opportunity to hone their information gathering skills. C. A (PERHAPS MANDATORY) DAY AT STOP DYING 101 Whether you're in class voluntarily, or whether you were dragged there on account of dying the past Field Mission, today's session of Fatalistic Fauna, and Danger Sense to channel your inner barbarian is going on a little field trip to the Arena. Because this is your first test to see if you can put all that information that's been given to you in the first few lectures to good use. You and a partner are placed in the middle of the Arena, in a simulation of an expansive, empty field, up against the first monster you were introduced to in class: A Bulette, a fearsome beast that can burrow, lunge, deal severe piercing damage, and jump an absolutely incredible distance. And you and your Reclaimer partner are absolutely no match for it. Your only option here is to escape. Can you? If you are dealt simulated fatal damage, then the Arena will dissolve back to normal, and you'll be given extra homework and reading material for the day. Sorry, them's the breaks. D. OPEN THE DOOR, GET ON THE FLOOR, EVERYBODY DO THE DINOSAUR There's a signup available for those looking to take Dance lessons at the Academy. There seem to be enough slots available for 50 or so people, and the form's name simply reads: "DANCE, NOW. WITH MS. CHARLOTTE." It's a pretty large time commitment- a crash course in dancing is a rather intensive affair. You'll be spending 4 days a week for 2 weeks, 2-3 hours per day, learning all the basics of the waltz, the tango, and the quickstep. Don't even think about trying the cha-cha slide here, it's simply not pasodoable. At the studio, you can borrow a pair of ballet slippers and join in with Ms. Charlotte, which, for anyone coming to the class for the first time should be rightly horrified. The newest member of the Bureau of Balance is a spider. A delegate from New New Aspen, Ms. Charlotte comes equipped with a bracer of her own, has taken in the Voidfish juice, and relocated here, to teach at the Academy. She moonlights as a ballroom dance instructor and a coach, and boy... she's pretty demanding with her approach, but incredibly thorough. You don't want to let Ms. Charlotte down. The sessions she teaches will get you to learn the basics. Natural aptitude, of course, goes a long way, but she's very 8-hands on with her approach at correcting posture and steps. Not without compassion, however, if you manage to get blisters on your feet, Ms. Charlotte's web bandages will set and help heal those sore, tired feet. The next 2 weeks of this boot camp are going to be brutal. E. THE MOON IS YOUR SPACE OYSTER (WILDCARD) There are plenty of other locations around the Moon Base that you can explore at your own discretion. Feel free to refer to the Settings page for more ideas on what shenanigans you can get into. Additionally, we'll be fielding Bender rolls again this month! With the exception of the three items that have been removed from his recipe database, if a food item was destroyed in a failed roll previously, you may roll to try to fix it. Bear in mind, of course, that you may make it worse. Successful food rolls will stay in place at this time. 4. THE DIRECTOR ACTS; A GRAND RELIC DESTROYED Erika has obtained and delivered the Space Mittens to Madame Director herself. She struggles to remain calm and composed at the moment, but the amount of immense pride and relief at recovering the Grand Relic slips through an otherwise sturdy exterior of coolness and level-headed features. She congratulates the entirety of the Bureau of Balance for their hard work, and relates to Erika that she couldn't be happier that she had made this world one step closer to being safe. A message will appear across all bracers, everywhere, with the following: Reclaimers, welcome home and congratulations on a successful first mission. Although there were certain drawbacks and difficult decisions that had to be made, I believe, without a doubt, that you all have irrefutably surpassed all expectations. Congratulations on a job well done. However, next time, please do be more careful out there. For those of you who wish to watch, my office will remain open until 1600 hours today. The relic will be destroyed, and if you would like to attend to see how it's done, please stop by. There will be light refreshments and coffee served, of course. If unable to attend, you can watch the ceremony later on your bracers. Don't forget to click Like and Subscribe. At the appointed hour, a ceremony will occur. She calls forth Davenport to wheel out the structure that's been created and designed with the sole purpose of destroying these things. She dare not takes the relic herself, no, refusing to touch the item at all. It's a medium sized metallic sphere, and once opened and closed, can never be opened again. Pulling back the curtain to an observatory, the Reclaimers can watch as Davenport sports a nifty pair of goggles, and wheels the orb onto a raised platform. He waits for the Director's signal, which is performed by an agreeable stamp of her oaken staff against the floor, and a nod. Davenport hits the KILL SWITCH, and the light show from behind the glass is amazing and terrifying all at the same time. You watch as the Space Mittens are obliterated from existence. An eruption of cheering breaks out. This concludes the first successful mission, and a deeply needed win, for the Bureau of Balance. blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[gotyourbach]

[She gasps with delight, hugging her music more closely to her as she glances up at him.]

Oh, really? I'm a little jealous... I mean, I don't even remember when I first started playing piano, but it must have been magical!

[...]

Oh, not, like, actual magic. I wasn't a bard when I was a kid, obviously! I just mean the feelings of finding the right instrument.

You should try all of them until you find one you like!!

[napstar]

[ Is she a bard? That would make sense. She seems to really love the piano. But he does not want to try all of the instruments. That sounds like a lot of work. ]

What's the easiest?

[gotyourbach]

Ummm...

[She frowns. She's genuinely never tried to think about how difficult it might be to learn an instrument, let alone try to rank them in terms of how difficult they are!]

Well, I think each instrument has its own challenges! I'd be happy to teach you how to play the piano if you wanted, but...

Oh, I know!! What kind of music speaks to you? When you listen to it, I mean.

[napstar]

[ Speaks to him? Is that the same as liking it? Well... ]

I have some with me.

[ He pulls out his MP3 player and hands it over. Most of it is electronic hip hop or drum and bass, though there's a smattering of rock and pop music as well. Notably he listens to Burn My Dread, Want To Be Close, and of course BABY BABY BABY. ]

[gotyourbach]

[She plops back down to the piano bench and flicks through the tracks, only letting them play for a few seconds each. She just wants to get a feel for his tastes! Which are considerably more modern than her own.]

Hmmm... it's really upbeat. Have you met Dave Strider-kun yet? I think you guys have really similar tastes.

[She casts a glance around the music room, hefting the MP3 player in her hand thoughtfully.]

I guess it's important to ask if you're looking for something just to play for class, if you want something portable, if you want to be able to play music like this... you know! What are you trying to get out of learning to play?

[napstar]

[ He files "Dave Strider" away in his memory. He'll keep an eye out for that guy. Meanwhile... What he's trying to get out of it? He needs it to fulfill his assigned role. ]

I'm a bard.

[gotyourbach]

Oh! You should call me senpai, then.

[A beat, then she giggles, shaking her head.]

I'm just kidding. But I think you're going to want something portable, then... I'm still trying to find a decent keyboard to carry with me, after all, and even that's going to be kind of tough to use down on the surface.

What about violin or flute? We could do a duet if you learned how to play those!

[Yeah, her reasons for suggesting those instruments isn't entirely altruistic.]

[napstar]

[ He almost nods before she laughs. He didn't even think it was weird or a joke when she suggested calling her his senpai. She writes music, so she's clearly better at this than he is. ]

I've played violin for school before.

[ Not for very long, and not necessarily well... ]

[gotyourbach]

[Kaede drops her sheet music. In a heartbeat, she lunges forward and snatches up both of Minato's hands in hers.]

Violin! Do you know Mozart's Sonata No. 21 for violin and piano?! We could play it right now!!

[napstar]

[ WHAT. He isn't an expert! ]

Uhh... I can play hot cross buns.

[gotyourbach]

...Oh.

[She can't quite hide the disappointment on her face, but she doesn't let go of his hands, either. Instead, she just gives them an encouraging squeeze, brightening again.]

Well... having a solid foundation is important, and you have to know the basics before moving onto advanced pieces, anyway. Maybe that should be the instrument you start with, if you already know how to play a little bit. Then you can keep practicing until we can play Mozart together!!

[She pumps his hands enthusiastically.]

[napstar]

[ Looks like those hands aren't his anymore. He doesn't fight her on throwing him around at all.

He does need to practice, which he expects to take a few months before he does anything bard-worthy. She's right, it's better to start with something he has some idea about, so her gives her a nod. ]

Sounds good.

[gotyourbach]

Alright!!

[One more enthusiastic pump of his hands, then she finally returns them to him. For the moment, anyway. Don't get used to it.]

And if you'd ever like to play piano with me, I'd be happy to show you how to do that, too.

[napstar]

[ Yay, his hands are back. Kaede is very energetic. He doesn't think he has the energy to keep up with her but he will do his best. His best may involve naps during practice. Piano, though? ]

Maybe later.

[ He has enough on his plate with learning one instrument. Unless he can play an inspirational version of hot cross buns? He doubts it. He searches the room for a violin he can practice with. ]

[gotyourbach]

I'll hold you to that.

[She lets out a quiet laugh, moving to gather up some more of her scattered sheet music. If she's going to have someone else using the music room alongside her, it'd be rude to keep leaving her things around.]

Oh, I think I saw some cases over there, maybe?

[She points to a corner. Honestly, she hadn't looked for any other instruments, since a piano is pretty hard to miss.]

If you decide you really want to focus on using the violin before the next mission, I bet we could find one for you to buy in town.

[napstar]

[ He follows her direction to an assortment of cases in the corner. He can recognize a violin amongst the others, though the case is covered in a thin layer of dust. He pulls over a chair from another corner, trying to stay out of Kaede's way. ]

I haven't been to the town.

[gotyourbach]

No? If you want, I'll go with you. It can be kind of intimidating to wander around a strange place all by yourself.

[She goes back to organizing her sheet music, trying to at least get it back into some semblance of order.]

[napstar]

Sure.

[ New New Aspen would be pretty interesting to investigate.

Minato sets up his little violin corner and prepares the instrument. Back up straight, feet apart. He tries to remember how to play. He plays slowly at first, listening to the notes the violin makes. Hot cross buns comes back to him and suddenly he's playing it without sheet music. On a whim he adds some flourishes and continues past the song into something he's making up on the spot. It's not grand professional stuff, but it shows off a lot more skill than "I can play hot cross buns" implies.

Until he suddenly stops. He frowns at the violin. That was a lot easier than he remembers it being... Is the violin magical? ]

[gotyourbach]

[Not just New New Aspen, but the town on the Moonbase itself, too! If New New Aspen's currency is still candy cane, though, it might be cheaper to buy from them...

She doesn't want to distract him from practicing with her own playing, so she instead keeps trying to organize her scattered sheet music back into its proper order. It's mostly waltzes she's been practicing, but she's also been referencing other works and still has some half-blank pages she's been working on. There's plenty for her to do!

What she doesn't miss is his skill with violin. Her jaw drops as she watches him play, feeling absolutely enveloped in the music.]

Arisato-kun!! [When he stops, she pouts at him, though the flush to her cheeks is a hint that she's not actually upset with him. Just surprised! Music is the easiest way to get her attention, after all.] You said you could only play Hot Cross Buns, but that was amazing!! Are you secretly the Super High School Level Violinist?!

[napstar]

[ He doesn't know that term but he can guess it means "very good at violin." Which he isn't, so he's pretty surprised too. ]

No. I think it's magical. [ It must be. He's really not that good. ]

[gotyourbach]

Really? Let me see.

[She sounds doubtful but insistent, abandoning her sheet music for now to just-- take the violin from him. It wasn't a request, it was just her telling him she's taking it now.

...It's once its in her hands that she realizes she doesn't magically know how to play violin.]

Umm... like this?

[She awkwardly jams it under her chin, trying to figure out how to hold her wrists.]

[napstar]

[ She takes it, no fight or animosity from him.

Oh god the angle is all wrong. You don't need special prodigy powers to see that, just a beginner's class in violins! Or a "how to hold a violin" YouTube video. ]

Ah. No. Like um.

[ He doesn't want to touch her and make things awkward so he mimes the proper angle to hold it at. To the side, not directly in front! ]

[gotyourbach]

[What a sweet boy... she tries to mimic him as best she can, and ends up in a somewhat better position. It's nowhere near perfect, but it's better than the poor attempt she'd made before.

She draws the bow across the strings and frowns with concentration.]

Okay, this is C... A...

[She can identify the notes by ear, but has no sense of where to position her fingers or the bow to actually get those notes on purpose.]

I'm... pretty sure this violin isn't magical, Arisato-kun, [she says finally, lifting the bow the second she accidentally drags a screeching sound from the strings. Her ears are sensitive, and that hurts!]

[napstar]

[ His ears aren't sensitive at all but he still winces from the screech. He has to agree with her on that. But if the violin's not magical. ]

Then... Why?

[ He doesn't know how to explain his proficiency. It just came to him after messing around with it for a little bit. This doesn't make sense. ]

[gotyourbach]

Hmmmm....

[She lowers the bow, frowning as she thinks about it. There's a very simple answer to it, hidden in the "So You're A Bard!!" pamphlet she still carries in her backpack, but unfortunately it's not the first thing she thinks of checking, since it's not one of her skills yet.]

Could it be... you've forgotten your talent? I... knew someone like that.

[She murdered him! But she's trying to focus on Minato, not the dead.]