balance_logs | Lunar Interlude 3

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Lunar Interlude 3

	What a mess.
	NAVIGATION

1. NEW RECLAIMERS

A. WELCOME WAGON

For the 14 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.

You're not alone, either. Along with the newest members of the Bureau, in a fashion probably not unlike this, there are people waiting here for you. People who wanted to see the heroes the Director has managed to bring in this time.

People who are excited to see what you're capable of.

You have a few minutes to talk with each other — or maybe lob a few questions at the impromptu welcoming committee, or any of the older Reclaimers who may happen to be nearby. But before long, you're whisked away to a different area of the Moon Base.

B. THE VOIDFISH

The 14 of you are quickly divided into three 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 a melody, someone playing the violin. It's a bard, on his third round of introducing Reclaimers to the Voidfish.

When he's finished, he pulls out a few pieces of paper — sheet music — opens a drawer at the bottom of the tank, drops the papers in, and shuts it.

And suddenly, it seems you've forgotten everything that may have been ironic about that melody.

If you seem alarmed, the bard takes notice of it.

"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."

You sort of get the sense that he's said this speech once or twice in the past. It's well rehearsed, much like the stories you'd expect a bard to be able to recite.

"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 song this bard played a few moments ago and the melody, the meter, every octave, 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.

After the proctor confiscates your weapons for the test, the room you are placed in is stark white — it sort of gives off the vibe that it was supposed to do something other than look so sterile once upon a time, but for whatever reason, that function is lost. With a sound similar to an airlock, the door is shut behind you, and the outline disappears, the lines of the door frame magically filled in with the rest of the wall.

Your task here is to escape. You are provided with the following tools:

○ A small flatware set from the café. Two forks, two spoons, two butter knives
○ A popular Faerun children's toy: "It's Elementary, My Dear Brewer: Chemist Set for the Discerning Beginner." It's essentially a simple chemistry set.
○ An inflatable hammer that plays one progressive note of a jingle a lot of you probably hate by now with every hit.
○ A wooden toy sword.
○ A plate of spaghetti — hear us out, though. Thanks to a Reclaimer who came before you, and thanks to the robot that's making your food, it's the kind of spaghetti that grants you extra strength for an hour after eating.
○ A crowbar, with a note attached to it: "DO NOT USE CROWBAR."

Seriously, don't use the crowbar — the purpose of this test is to assess your ability to find a solution outside of the most obvious one. The purpose of this test is to determine if you are capable of resisting the call of a Grand Relic.

Use your wits. Use the path actions granted to you when you arrived. Use any ideas your partner has. But do not use the crowbar.

3. NEWBIES AND VETERANS, AROUND THE MOONBASE

A. I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN

The Reclaimers were already sort of elevated to a certain level in the Bureau, as The Director's chosen few, the ones who were ultimately tasked with saving everyone, and the ones the rest of the Moon base is charged with assisting. And now that the Reclaimers have successfully brought home two Grand Relics, they're ... starting to become something of household names. Moon Base names?

The next time you wander into town — an old Reclaimer veteran or a brand new face — you may very well be accosted by a well-meaning, if curious admirer. And they have questions: Did you get to hold the Grand Relic? Is it true that you took out a sandworm by tricking it into tying itself in a knot? Can they see your weapon? Would you spar with them sometime? Maybe they're not quite this annoying. But still annoying.

You may need the assistance of another Reclaimer to escape from this wholesome new Adoring Fan of yours.

B. MALFUNCTION

Resting on the Moon Base is your time to catch up. Maybe there's someone you didn't spend a lot of time with in the Netheril. Maybe you're new, and you're still working on meeting as many of your fellow Reclaimers as possible.

Which is fair. These are the people you will have to cooperate with for the foreseeable future, so it's best that you get to know them as well as possible, right?

And then, one day, your Bracer buzzes with a message:

Hello!

Not all that curiously, the message appears to come from a username that you recognize. Whoever it is, it's another Reclaimer — one that you know well.

Much more curiously, the message is followed by an odd beeping, and a perhaps familiar two-toned sound of something shutting down. And when you try to message your friend back, you may find that:

For the next 24 hours, your bracer's translator feature is broken. You will not be able to understand Common — and when you speak, you won't be translated into Common. Have fun with that!

And yeah, that probably wasn't actually your friend messaging you. Add another mystery to your list of weird phenomena that needs addressing.

C. POWERING DOWN

This is meant to be a few weeks of rest while the rest of the Bureau prepares for your next mission. The Director, however, believes that this free time should be used to better oneself however they might see fit, and she certainly won't stop anybody who'd like to spend time in the areas they've visited previously — and any new Reclaimers who would like to learn a little more about Faerun.

Grab a pal and try these options, both on the Moon Base and beyond, on for size:

○ Stop Dying 101: Also known as Fatalistic Fauna, and Danger Sense to channel your inner barbarian. This is a class that was introduced after the first field mission that offers instruction on basic survival strategies when up against the more inhospitable areas of Faerun. The class is open to everyone, but if you have died at least once during the course of Balance, attendance is mandatory (Unless you're an old bird who was talked into teaching a class instead). Yes, that means you, Komaeda!

Curiously, the simulators for this class seem to be working just fine. Neither the Director nor the instructor are going to question it. The monster of the month you'll be facing is the Tarrasque (scaled down to size, but that doesn't make it any less terrifying) — are you cunning enough to escape the simulation? Or are you going to go against the point of the class and try to fight it?

○ Winding down room: A small room filled with the kotatsus brought back from Vista Virs, board games, books, and other quiet activities for one of the days where you're feeling a little more restful. At the front of the room, a keyboard and other instruments are waiting — unnamed Bureau members will offer a few quiet, soothing performances throughout the day, but you're welcome to play as well.

○ Visiting New New Aspen: You may have noticed that there's an enormous tree (You say Christmas, we say Candlenights) jutting out past the atmosphere, nearly touching the Moon Base itself. This was the site of the first field mission, and the tree stands as a monument to the Reclaimers first success in recapturing a Grand Relic. At the bottom of the tree, a peaceful town that cherishes the ornaments it makes sits. The mayor of New New Aspen, Matthew, will greet you warmly, and invite you to any number of ornament carving classes, or to dinner with his Aunt Laurel (She's a giant spider, by the way), or to even just spend some time with the giant cats that protect the town.

Perhaps worringly, though, the cat captain of the guard, Bread, is missing.

○ Visiting Vista Virs: A town in the middle of an unforgiving desert that was left completely destroyed. If you choose to return, expect to be put to work — you'll be gathering supplies, helping rebuild homes, or just comforting the Needlers, a race of catcus people who inhabited the town, who have lost everything.

D. 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! 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, and can be utilized how you like. Keep in mind that only one magical effect can be in place at a time.

blurb code by photosynthesis

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't intend to.

[She gives him a faint, knowing smile— she's seen enough cautionary tales, and has come to be rather close with one in particular in this place. It fades as she takes another sip, considering his words. Of course he's right— it has to be enough, because there's nothing they can do to change it. They can help as much with the relief effort as they like, but there's no reversing those casualties.

She nods, her gaze dropping as a frown pulls at her mouth.]

I know you're right. It's not the first time I've seen this kind of destruction, and the only way we can move forward is to let it be enough— but I want to make sure that even if we let our best be enough, we never become... complacent with letting lives be lost.

[Casualties are unavoidable sometimes, but...]

The cost should always be considered.

It doesn't get any easier.

[He wishes it did, but the fact of the matter is he's the type of person whose failures stick with him. 76 spends an inordinate amount of time wondering if what he's done is enough, if there was anything he could have done differently--if there was some way to achieve a different outcome.

All you can really do is take what wins you can, and learn to live with yourself.]

I've been doing this a long time. It doesn't go away.

[He'll count that guilt as not being complacent, for what it's worth.]

[As heavy as that guilt is, it's important that they feel it, isn't it? She never wants to allow herself to become numb to the suffering of others. She knows, logically, that it's impossible to save everyone, the same as it was back home, but that doesn't take the sting out of that loss.

If anything, it helps to hear that it doesn't go away. She nods slowly, taking another sip of her drink and screwing her eyes shut for a moment as she swallows it down.]

Back home, I was in training to be a Huntress. This isn't the first time I've seen destruction like this, but... I can't imagine anyone could ever get used to seeing it on this kind of scale.

[She looks up at him, studying his face for a moment.]

All that time, and you're still dedicated to the job?

[That's admirable. Not everyone is that strong.]

[Jack probably wasn't much older than her when he signed on to fight the Omnics, and that choice had irrevocably changed him. He's always been duty bound, however--believed in something much larger than himself. There was no way he'd be able to stand by while destruction ravaged the world, even if it had cost him any semblance of a normal life.

Where did it get him, really? All he was doing before ending up here was chase ghosts.]

Sometimes you keep at it for so long you forget how to do anything else.

[He says that a little darkly, like it's not something to be admired. Fighting's what he does, because fighting is all he knows.]

It's not necessarily a good thing.

It's a sacrifice.

[At least, that's the way she's always seen it.]

Hunters and Huntresses where I'm from... it's the same, really. Once they're committed to the job, it's rare for them to go on to do something else. A lot of them die young, but we all know the risks when we sign up. Sometimes those who manage to keep going end up training the next generation. But... I imagine it's not so different from being a soldier anywhere else.

[Even if the cause itself varies from place to place.]

That kind of life changes you. Even so... I'm glad to hear that some things never get easier.

[It's important that loss continues to matter to them. Lives mean something.]

You're too young to be saying things like that.

[Though, perhaps 76 wasn't that much older when he signed himself up for this kind of life. From where he's sitting, however, she still has a chance to get out and make something normal for herself. Still, if she's half as duty-bound as he is, or as she sounds right now, he knows that anything he says won't actually dissuade her.]

Leave that kind of talk to the senior citizens.

[She smiles wryly. To an extent, he's right— but a lot of people in her world are too young to see the sort of things they've seen.]

I started fighting young. Practically born into it. It's just how things are.

[Once she'd been old enough to make a choice, she'd decided to stick with it, to fight for what she believed in.]

Anyone who wants to be a Hunter or Huntress back in Remnant starts training early. We don't have the luxury of waiting.

Yeah, me too.

[Not born into it, but as soon as the occasion arose, 76 knew what he needed to do. This, however, is starting to sound a little different, like there's some kind of impending threat that has people her age training as soon as they're able. The Crisis had started abruptly, in comparison.]

Fighting a war, or something?

[She nods her understanding, a show of solidarity. For as different as they might appear to be at first glance, they certainly have their similarities.]

Something like that. Even when our Kingdoms are in a time of peace, those outside of them have to be able to fight to survive— our world is full of monsters called Grimm. If you can't defend yourself against them, then you're asking to be put in an early grave.

[There's more to it than that, too.]

I'm also a Faunus— we're not very well-liked by most humans. Just another reason to learn to take care of yourself early on.

Right.

[So, not much of an opportunity to retire. And 76 can understand duty, though of course it pains him a little to see people so young roped into a life of fighting. He doesn't know much about this Faunus business, but he certainly knows the conflict between humans and omnics. That's not likely to go away in his lifetime, despite best efforts from both sides.

Still--]

Doesn't leave much time for vacations, huh?

Not much, no.

[Her response is paired with a faint smile, however, able to appreciate the wry attempt at levity.]

I've never minded that part, at least. It's just part of life. Here, it's—

[She almost hates to say it, but:]

Almost easier, in some ways. What about for you?

It’s someone else’s fight.

[But none of them really have a choice, if they’re to believe what they’ve been told about the Hunger. It’s hard for 76 to let go of everything he was working toward back home, and perhaps a part of him still hopes he can get back to it, once this is all over.]

I’m happy to help, but I had my own work to do back home.

[It’s hard not to be a little bitter about being pulled from it.]

[She can certainly relate to that, as well. If what they've been told is to be believed, there's no fight left for any of them to go back to, but Blake still feels like she'd been pulled from something vital, like she had left too much unfinished.]

It's not our fight, but... they need us all the same.

[She pauses before continuing, cautious.]

If what we've heard about our homes is true, it's the only fight left.

[A sobering thought.]

If it's true.

[There's no evidence that the Bureau is lying about that, but 76 is a naturally suspicious person. He still wants to keep the possibility alive, if only because he's not sure what else there is for him if there's nothing to go back to. The idea of staying here forever is not really something he's capable of processing at the moment.]

But I guess it doesn't matter if the fight's not won yet.

[He'll cross that bridge when they get there. If they get there.]

[Blake, too, isn't one given to blind trust, and she would rather allow the hope that the Bureau is wrong about what happened to their worlds persist— it doesn't even have to be a malicious lie on their part, and the more they get to know the Director, removed from them as she is, the less she suspects that it might be.

She nods in agreement, her gaze dropping back to the drink he'd offered her before she takes another swig, followed by another wince.]

What comes after doesn't matter until it is, I suppose.

[They have a ways to go.]

Two relics down. We just have to keep up that momentum.

[Hopefully with fewer casualties in the future.]

I guess.

[She's right that there's nothing they can do. He just has to keep moving forward, hoping there's an eventual end to the relic-hunting and 76 can get back to his own problems. Even if his world is gone, he's not keen on staying in the Bureau's employ forever.]

As long as we don't get cocky.

You don't strike me as the type.

[It's meant as a compliment. He's clearly experienced— he knows better, she imagines, but it is something they have to keep in mind.]

We'll all need to remember to be careful. No victory guarantees that another will follow.

[She exhales, setting her glass down. There's still some liquor in it, but considerably less than when he'd handed it to her.]

Thank you for the drink. And... the perspective?

[76 laughs a little--or makes a sound that might be a laugh--and leans back in his chair.]

Don't mention it.

[Anytime is the implication. 76 isn't entirely keen on sharing this much about himself, but it's clear that Blake is something of a kindred spirit.]

Enjoy the downtime while you can.

[She smiles faintly as she gets to her feet, offering him a nod in reply. Their experiences may be different, and an outsider may not think it to look at them, but they're both soldiers in their own right— and that's a hell of a thing to have in common.]

You, too. Who knows how long it'll last?

[She'll leave him with that— but it's nice to know he's here. This might be someone else's fight, but there are good people here doing the fighting.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Lunar Interlude 3

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rl and hiatus got very hardcore, I apologize; feel free to drop if this is too old for you

no problem!

<3!

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