etrayalogs | November Mingle

November Mingle

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: November 22nd - Early December
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, and an unexpected guest!
NOTES\WARNINGS: N/A, please note any needed warnings in threads.

⏵ arrival ⏴
Welcome to Etraya!

Arrival goes as expected - or it would, except it is not just Aurora that greets the newcomers as they arrive. Certainly they receive their earpiece so they can communicate with one another as those before them have, however there is what seems to be a woman waiting for them that is of a more flesh and blood persuasion as they leave the hospital. She carries an air about her that isn't quite like the newcomers themselves, but she is decidedly not one of the companion bots, nor Aurora.

She has bone-straight blonde hair reaching past her shoulders, with a straight-cut fringe hanging above her eyes. The black dress that ends just before her mid-thighs also has a rather revealing neckline, though the sleeves which cover her arms almost feel like a mockery of modesty considering the rest. She is also wearing black stockings and black pumps, and the red of her lipstick is striking against the extreme contrast in shades she otherwise holds.

As each newcomer independently files out of the hospital, she makes certain to garner their individual attention, either with a wave of her hand, a wiggle of her fingers, or directly calling them over. She is persistent, and with being so new, it is wise to heed her. Not that anyone can force one to, if they choose to walk away, nor does she seem interested in trying to, but she has her means for those proving stubborn.

However, those who aren't...

“Hey! I know you’re not just walking past me. I’ve got- you know, plot relevant, written all over me. I picked this dress out just for you, you know?’

“C’mere, listen up. Mama’s got a little bit of homework for you, but it’s gonna help you, too, okay? I need you to go find the hot goss, the piping hot tea on the street for me. Find out what everyone’s saying about the people we’re stuck with, okay? People are a lot more relaxed and honest when they talk about others, right? This is about efficiency.

Efficiency, honey.

Don’t worry, I’ll be in the trenches, too. But make sure you come find me again. I’ll be around here, okay? I know you’re as confused as I am. Well no. I’m much less confused than you are. But if you can tell me about the people here, I’ll tell you more about where you are and what this is about.”

For those who ignored her, or those not newly arrived, they will receive a message through their earpiece:

“Girl. Hey. Listen. I’m kind of in a pinch, okay? I need like… a little favor. But its a fun favor! I need you to get your girl some info. I need the word on the street, honey. I need the tea piping hot- I need you to go talk to your friends, enemies, frenemies, butt buddies, cousins, and have them tell you about anyone they know. I need straight facts and good gossip on everyone here. And then get back to me. Kisses.

And this isn’t something for nothing. If you bring me some good goss, you’ll get some good info in turn about your whole situation. Cause that’s what you’re missing most besides home, right? Context.”

⏵ spill the tea ⏴

Tatianna having now tasked everyone (new and old) with finding out more about their fellow inhabitants—if not for their sake, for her curiosity—and in exchange she will give them valuable information that may aid them with acclimating here, or something far more valuable depending on how hot the goss is! However, she will not just hand out her secrets so easily, and so she will need one piece of gossip about each inhabitant. So she expects everyone to get mingling and talking, she isn't a charity here!

To assist in this, the companion bots have set up cozy little wicker daybeds around the main hub of the city. All of which are suspiciously cozy and warm once you have sat down on them, but especially so with the accompanying aroma of the tea wafting from the kettle which rests on the center table, accompanied by sweetmeats. The tea itself also stays warm despite the cool autumn air, and so long as you stay within the daybeds, the biting chill won't reach you either.

However, the tea is not only perpetually the right temperature, but it seems to have a way of loosening one's tongue. Especially the more one imbibes it. Did you mean to share that secret that might not have been yours to begin with? Or that personal detail about your best friend that wasn't meant to be known by anyone but who they themselves have told? Probably not, but the cat is out of the bag now, isn't it? Well, hopefully word won't get around...after all, it isn't likely who you are talking is going to tell everyone else, right? Right?

Adding to the oddity of it all, the tea one drinks might not be the same tea that their companion is drinking, despite it pouring from the same kettle. What might be one person's earl grey, is another's pumpkin spice chai. Whatever it may be that pours out, it certainly seems to be to one's liking, or its closest approximation. There's probably some deeper meaning in that, some sort of symbolism one might surmise from the nature of sharing gossip and it being tainted by personal bias, but who cares about navel gazing about such a thing?

After all, this is meant to be an enjoyable endeavor! Getting to know your fellow inhabitant should feel as comfortable as catching up with an old friend. What better way than to do it by sharing tea you both will enjoy? ☕

⏵ close knit ⏴

As the tail end of November draws nearer, people will have already begun to see the first flakes of snow. It grows colder, and while there isn't quite a blizzard or a snow storm happening, the snow does not seem to let up with its descent. It doesn't quite get so cold that it is untenable, of course, but it would be advisable to bundle up! In fact, the companion bots seem to be on the case with assisting in just that!

Around the city people will find groups of companion bots busily knitting sweaters, scarves, gloves, hats, and so forth. In fact, the moment they see someone they clock as not quite bundled enough, they will insist on supplying them with whatever they deem as being without. Are you already wearing a scarf? Well, clearly you need two of them! How about the gloves? Couldn't hurt to have several pairs!

However, that isn't all that's available to people, after all there are cafes out and about where one might get a hot beverage to help fight off the cold, but for those less inclined for such establishments, the companion bots are here to serve! There is at least one companion bot per knitting group that seems to have hot cocoa on hand. If they see someone who is looking particularly cold (almost everyone is, the companion bots aren't particularly keen on the signs of successful temperature regulation), they will have a paper cup of hot cocoa imposed upon them that has their name on the side.

Or, sort of. It is at least a close approximation of their name, or maybe it is an alternate spelling? Really, who can blame the bots for getting confused, there are so many of you!

⏵ snow more games ⏴

The snow is here to stay, but that doesn't mean that it has to be a bad thing! With everyone well supplied in their winter garb, the companion bots have set up spots for fun activities! Perhaps the inhabitants would enjoy a fun snowball fight, or some sledding? Some of the waters have frozen over, so ice skating is always a possibility too. Though one might want to be careful if they are to venture past what the companion bots have marked as safe.

Some of the companion bots are trying their best at making a snowman, but all their efforts seem to come out rather...square. They're trying their best, but maybe they can learn by following the inhabitant's examples. There are others that will offer gold star stickers to those who seem to dominate in the snowball fights, but unfortunately the stickers don't stick too well with all the snow. Well, they tried!

People will still find bots out and about with nice warm beverages available to fight off the cold, too. That service will continue to be available for the foreseeable future. Similarly, if someone comes out who is a little too under-dressed for the weather, the bots might have to pick up those knitting needles again, so be sure to put on your winter clothes..!

⏵ NOTES ⏴

To report information to Tatianna, do so here! She will only give each person their rewarded information once she has a bit of information on each character in the game. Each bit of gossip does not require a thread to count though it should be IC knowledge gained through IC means. Try to check what gossip has been given to her already, because doubling up will not yield results! Good luck!

For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I only know what I was told in the hospital when I arrived.

[ And the woman asking for gossip was no help, either. ]

I have no idea how we're actually supposed to go about proving ourselves or however that works.

[ Hmm... ]

I don't know what they tell you at the hospital... I got dumped outside the café wet and sticky. But, okay-- I think I know what to tell you.

[ And he's definitely grabbing the backpack at the side of the daybed, a patch of a cool guy potentially visible. It doesn't take Gorgug long to reach in and take out a very ordinary spiral notebook, a pen already clipped to the spine. ]

I'm going to write it out because, I'm actually bad at explaining things and not confusing people. Especially when it's about the missions. [ He opens it up, searching for a blank page. ] But, we don't know how the missions or judged or if we're on the right track. We met another place like ours, and it's been running for years.

[ Sooo... just chew on that as Gorgug starts scribbling in the book. ]

Years?

[ Not that the passage of time means a whole lot to someone like him, but this is going to put him way behind on his community service. Uuuuugh. This sucks. ]

I guess the death of the multiverse isn't going to be a fast thing.

I wish it was. We might know some more if it was. The other place said they played games of capture the flag, and fighting each other. For missions.

[ Not to sound callous about the end of all universes, but it sucks to be moving slowly, okay... ]

I think we've done... [ hm. He taps the side of the notebook as he thinks them out. ] Six missions, so far. We're a new group.

[ Nah, he gets it. He doesn't want everything to end or anything like that, but knowing what's going on would be nice. ]

So the missions are how we're put to the test, pretty much? What have they been like?

I think the goal in all of them is to make us work together. For the most part. Let me, I can just...

[ He's scribbling, scribbling! ...and actually, the notes are so short that he only needs another minute, and he'll tear the page out...and hand it with the notebook for the man to read it against anyway.

The notes are as thus:

echo = runs everything
aurora = etraya AI that gives us missions and watches over the city
eos = moorecroft AI

mission 1? I wasn't here for this
• a labyrinth, people got separated and put together with new people somehow (I think)
• there were monsters sometimes and resources scattered in different seconds
• not too few to make people go crazy and start attacking each other

mission 2 (probably)
• people were given stuffed toys that made them obsess over them and go mad over time
• one person said theirs blew up?
• some people were sent messages telling them to get rid of the toys after a set time (I think everyone was given the same message but not all of them had the part about getting rid of them)

mission spaceship (I showed up on the spaceship)
• It got stuck in the gravity pull of a black hole
• also evil clowns came out of mirrors at night from a fun house
• We had to fix the problem (we never did)

mission moorecroft
• this is another place like etraya
• We had to mingle with the people there and pretend that we didn't come from etraya
• not part of the mission but there was an entity here that's important

• the spaceship crashed into etraya between here
fear mission
• We were supposed to have a mission about facing our fears but aurora got infected by the entity above
• etraya still changed for the mission but I don't know if we got marked
• the entity infected people and everything sucked for a month

race cars (this was this month)
• We got grouped into teams and raced vehicles we had to build in two weeks (I think)
• except a giant mammoth raced in wheels
• my team won (team grease lightning)

• you are now here

Enjoy. ]

[ He takes the paper and notebook with a nod of thanks, reading it once.

Then again.

Then a third time, just to be sure, because there's a lot to take in here. Maybe in a vacuum, some of these things would be harmless, but it's very clear that their actions — or lack thereof — have consequences. ]

Damn. Uh, congrats on the race, though?

Thank you. [ His mouth twitches, but it's not much of a smile. ] It was a team effort. I won this bag.

[ The bag....with the cool guy on it. Who Gorgug makes sure to show the man. ]

This was our mascot.

Very cool.

[ That is definitely a Cool Guy.

Anyway, Ivan motions to the paper he’s been given. ]

Can I take a picture of this? You can keep the original. It’ll save you some time when you’re dealing with newbies like me.

[ On one hand, it sounds weird for an old-looking man to say the words 'very cool', but Gorgug will take it. It's ok. Old people can't help it.

He's soon enough distracted, anyway, by the cool idea (not as cool as cool mascot) that Gorgug hadn't even thought about with the notes. Oh. ]

Yeah--that's a good idea. I can take pictures too.

[ Very smart. Very good.

Meanwhile, if Ivan was asking him to make a copy, it definitely went over his head. Ivan's probably got a crystal (phone) on him, right.... ]

[ He does! He's still getting used to the earpiece thing, but he has his phone from home still. He fishes it out of his pocket — a fancy smartphone in a nondescript black case — and snaps a picture of the page of notes. ]

Thanks. I know it's not a gadget, but some sort of record of what's happened around here might be a worthwhile project.

[ Whoa, look at that piece of technology??? Gorgug wants to ask about it, but, they're not talking about a gadget? They're talking about-- oh.

Gorgug looks towards the notes... ]

...are my notes that good?

[ Gorgug has never thought himself an eloquent writer, but.

Is he a Riz in training...?? ]

They're definitely helpful. I was thinking I could use some kind of primer, and now here it is.

[ Ivan's not asking for a novel, here. Even these simple notes have given him some context about what's been going on, which is way more than he had a few minutes ago. ]

Thanks— oh, I'm Ivan, by the way.

[ Wow.... sorry, but Gorgug is taking this to mean that he has a secret potential for writing. He could be a professor? Maybe even a novelist.

Double wow... and with a certain look in his eye that may or may not give away his mind is somewhat elsewhere: ]

Huh? Oh-- I'm Gorgug. [ But, okay, maybe he's coming back to Etraya as his sight goes back onto the thing Ivan holds. ] Does that only take pictures?

[ Gorgug honey, follow your dreams. Just remember the people who got you there when you’re a super famous author.

Ivan’s gaze flicks down to follow Gorgug’s, and he arches an eyebrow. ]

You mean my phone? No, it can do all sorts of things. Usually.

[ He hasn’t tested it fully since he got here, though he can only imagine that making calls is out of the question. ]

[ He's gonna follow his dreams by remembering this later on and realising he has no interest in writing a primer. Alas.

But the word phone clicks for Gorgug, after a second. ] Oh, I-- I saw one of those. You use a battery in them to call and have video chats with people, right? You don't use a crystal? It's-- a chemical that turns into electricity.

[ He knows batteries!! Considering they have them in Spyre, but just with different energies... ]

[ Well, Ivan tried. ]

... Yeah, that's the basics of it. Does your world mainly use crystals as a power source?

[ Crystals have like. Come up a lot in this conversation. ]

[ Crystals have come up so often, that now--

Gorgug reaches into the pocket of his hoodie, and shows a rectangular crystal with a pointed top. Similar to a mobile phone in shape....and other features, when Gorgug makes it switch on to reveal a standard menu screen show across what was otherwise a blank front. There's little thumbnails for apps visible...!!

Especially when Gorgug turns it to show off. The background image shows a nice scenic view of a sunset lowering behind some trees. ]

It's the device, too. You have to power it up at another source. [ He then points to some headphones that have...been hanging around his neck this entire time. ] It has all my music on it.

[ All of it. This is why he carries around an otherwise useless piece of equipment on him. ]

[ Whoa. Ivan's eyes widen a touch when he's shown what is for all intents and purposes a smartphone, just projected onto the face of a phone-sized crystal.

The multiverse really is something. ]

So it's basically the same as my phone.

[ Ivan likewise turns his phone to show Gorgug the screen. There's no fancy wallpaper — everything is pretty monochrome and boring and deeply impersonal — but the gist is the same. App icons, a clock, and so on. ]

[ Gorgug has a similar reaction upon seeing the less crystallised version of a communication device, but if Ivan says it's basically the same.

Well. He has to think about it for a second because this is an old guy, but- ] ...Do you have any music?

[ And is it good? ]

[ Ah. He looks a bit apologetic. ]

Not really, but I'm not much of a music kind of guy. I read books on it, mostly.

[ He does show his disappointment, but even so. ]

That's okay, but- you don't like it? You mean, you don't play?

[ But he reads books? ]

Music? I don't have anything against it. It's just not anything I've ever gotten into, listening or playing.

[ Sorry this man's existence is so sad. 600 years old and he has no appreciation for music. ]

[ He doesn't even read sheet music?? Now it's the confusion, but even a sad sort of sympathy can be seen in Gorgug's expression. No...music? ]

Really? You don't think you never found the right kind?

I... don't know?

[ He sort of feels like he's getting interrogated here. He can practically see the faces of the whole two people he somewhat considers to be his friends giving him pitying looks and telling him to get out and live a little. Listen to music! Find a little joy!!

Uuuuuugh. ]

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I avoid it. I simply haven't curated my own collection.

[ IS THAT BETTER OR WORSE? ]

November Mingle

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