etrayalogs | MISSION 004 (part 1)

MISSION 004 (part 1)

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: July 19th-July 27th.
WHERE: Moorecroft Village
WHAT: Enjoy life in your new suburban neighborhood!
NOTES\WARNINGS: Potential death.

⏵ welcome home ⏴
Welcome to Moorecroft Village, where the sun casts a gentle glow through soft white clouds. Pavement paths wind around the village, adorned with wildflowers in every hue. Birds sing a soothing melody, while a few content cats lounge in sunspots or on benches along the streets. Cars hum by, ferrying residents to work, the store, or back home after a busy day.

It looks almost perfect. The ideal little village, occupied by individuals from all over. Orcs, elves, faeries, werewolves, vampires, and dhampirs coexist harmoniously, each contributing to their quaint little town. Despite their varied backgrounds, they appear to embrace this place as their own. They take their baby carriages out during the day for a stroll, chatting with friends and neighbors about current happenings, discussing their most recent mission (a ‘game’ of Whodunit, in which one of theirs, Theo, was tasked with killing one of their own each day and they all had to figure out who had killed them before they could come back to life) and the difficulties therein, new job assignments, weird things the teens in their houses are getting up to... generic, neighborly conversations.

The village is full of life. There are numerous facilities to wander and things to do! The library houses a vast collection of books spanning history from countless other worlds and whimsical children's tales. Teens gather at the ice skating rink, while the movie theater screens films spanning generations. An aquarium full of wonders: glowing rainbow fish, miniature great white sharks, a colorful octopus with patterns running over it that almost look like ivy, and numerous others.

In the daytime, everyone can explore clothing stores, indulge in gourmet cakes from the grocers, and partake in leisurely pursuits without financial concerns; just like on Etraya, money does not exist here.

⏵ help wanted ⏴
Moorecroft surpasses Etraya in its development, offering attractions and activities to engage its inhabitants throughout the day. But with these advancements come additional responsibilities. By day, at least one adult from every household is expected to fulfill their shifts at 'day jobs', lasting anywhere from four to eight hours. Meanwhile, the youth are expected to go to school, absorbing knowledge in various disciplines.

Each job duty requires different skillsets, but whether or not those required skillsets are matched to those who are expected to work them... well. They’ll have plenty of time for training, won’t they? Or perhaps they’ll get dropped right into their job and be expected to figure it out all on their own.

For the younger residents, education is structured into two main institutions: "Sandalwood Lower" for those twelve and under, and "Maplewood Upper" for older students. These schools offer a broad curriculum encompassing Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Physical Education, Technology, Fine Arts, and a diverse array of Foreign Languages. Electives range widely, from specific sports to Survival Training, Creative Writing, Journalism, and Sociology.

At lunchtime, the school cafeteria presents an array of choices. Options range from standard fare like school pizza to other offerings such as vampire's blood, brains, and hearts—just in case an unexpected guest should drop in. After all, one never knows who might show up in Moorecroft.

⏵ honey do's ⏴
But life extends beyond work and school. A structured routine of what is expected of each household is kept on digital calendars, and installed on the wall in the kitchen of each house. These calendars update daily with smaller tasks, and weekly with larger ones, detailing what is expected of those residing within its walls.

Typical tasks include simple activities such as:

Take the child(ren) for a walk outdoors.
Visit the local park.
Bake a pie for the neighbors.
Tell your spouse(s) how important they are to you.
Share a secret.
Shop with your child(ren).
Mow the lawn.
Don’t forget to attend your child’s school’s PTA meeting!
Help with homework.
Take family photos.
Go on a date.

More complex tasks are found under weekly checklists, and may involve:

Host a neighborhood barbeque competition.
Volunteer at the hospital.
Teach your child a sport.
Start a soccer league.
Create a garage band.
Get a part time job.
Join a club.

Eos will check off each task as it is completed. At the bottom of each calendar, a tally records the completion of tasks, providing a visual measure of productivity and community involvement.

⏵ night watch ⏴
As the sun lowers over the horizon, everything shifts. Every long-term resident understands the consequences of curfew and the threats within. They retreat to their homes, urging those unfamiliar to them who may not understand the rules just yet that they, too, need to return indoors for the night.

Within the confines of their houses, life continues under a fragile veil of normalcy. A peek into some of the homes of long-term residents will find them playing board games with their family units, completing homework or work assignments they were unable to finish during the day, watching a few family-friendly shows on their couches, or enjoying a late dinner. Eventually, they’ll return to their beds and wait for the sound of their alarms.

In Moorecroft, no friendly companion bots roam the streets during the day. In their place, highly advanced robots emerge to enforce curfew once the time comes. They silently make their way through the streets, sweeping away anything that isn’t part of Eos’ design: trash left out on the street, bugs left by suspicious men wearing cowls that have ears on them, graffiti, new decor that Eos decides she doesn’t like. No winds shake the trees, there are no cars on the road, but noises can be heard coming from outside that don't sound... normal by any means. Croaks, whispers, scratches against doors and walls alike.

Those who defy curfew will be asked, once, to return to their homes. If they opt not to listen, they are met with force: physically restrained, subdued, and dragged back to their homes. If they decide to fight, the bots are not above killing them and dropping their limp bodies just inside the front door of their houses. They will revive after 48 hours but not without cost. Each return carries an absence—a missing memory, a lost skill, or a fragment of their very essence, stolen away in the process of their revival.

Even those who manage to evade capture will awaken in their beds with no recollection of their death or what they may have witnessed before dying. They will instead have a vague feeling that something horrifying happened.

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Daily and weekly tasks can be chosen by players! We won't be listing these out for each household, but relying on players to choose what's most fun for them to play with within their households.

As noted on Mission Plotting, we're open to one group successfully staying out past curfew, but would like to keep this to one thread.

We have a separate log for NPC interactions for this mission!

For any questions relating to the contents of this log, mod queries thread on the initial plotting post to assist us in keeping all mission-related information in one place. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.
⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Asuka's expression twists and without thinking about it she folds her arms, her shoulders tightening up as he speaks. She shakes her head after a moment. ]

What do I care about someone's stupid legacy? That's not up to me! It's not up to us!

[ She glances away, expression sour. ]

We have to deal with our own stuff. Trying to get the approval of adults is pointless.

[ She says that but she spent most of her life chasing after approval from others. ]

[ It's not like he's stupid.

Or-- well, Fabian is a little stupid. But he's not stupid enough to not realize that Asuka's relatively intense reaction to a simple statement like that must be coming from somewhere. He can't tell for sure from where, but somewhere. It makes him stare at her while she looks away like that, his single eye squinting a little, like he's trying to figure it out. Like he might see it on her, if he looks long enough. ]

You didn't have people you were studying under at pilot school?

[ This entire thinhg is likely not about teachers.

After all, Fabian can't imagine anyone having a very intense relationship with those when his own relationships to his teachers is so chill and lowkey.. But it's not like he's going to address the issue of Parents so directly when Fabian knows the sort of mine field that is. Maybe Asuka will bring it up herself, if he just tiptoes close enough to it. ]

Edited 2024-08-13 14:35 (UTC)

[ She glances back in time to catch him staring and that makes her feel self-conscious. Like a freak. Like he can somehow stare right through her and see every little bit of her that's ugly, the parts of her she hates. Maybe he's judging her right now. Maybe he thinks she's stupid or weak or-

Her jaw clenches. ]

I had instructors. But it wasn't like they cared that much about me.

[ Misato and the others had praised her, had pretended to care. But she was always alone, always feeling on the outside. Feeling like she had to prove herself and - why? Because her father didn't care. Because her mother was gone. Because her mother had rejected her in the last year of her life. ]

They weren't family. And they didn't try to be.

[ It sure makes it sound like maybe no one cared for Asuka at all. Which would explain some things, but-- it's not exactly the sort of thing you just ask a friend about either. Especially when you're both trapped in some weird town where you're living a pretend life on top of it all.

It does make it hard to think of what to say here though. Fabian isn't exactly used to having conversations like this. Not that he doesn't have thought about all of this, but-- he's usually so busy shoving all of it down that he doesn't really know what to say when the topic is suddenly headed in this direction.

So please don't mind if he has to think for a moment or two before he speaks up again, Asuka. ]

Sometimes friends can be closer to you than family.

[ Not that Fabian is entirely distant from his own family, despite the issues there, but he has friends for whom it definitely is the case. ]

Nothing bad about that, right?

Sure. If you have friends.

[ That slips out, a little bitter, a little angry. She's had one person she could consider a friend before her arrival here and that hadn't done her much good, had it? But she acknowledges that having someone to care about you... helps. Even if she's still fumbling that around, even if she doesn't know how to really cope with people. It's finicky and complicated and she hates it.

But also she kind of needs it, doesn't she? ]

Usually you have to rely on yourself. No one else.

[ .. yeah, that definitely feels familiar.

Sure, Fabian had the Bad Kids to rely on, at least. But that had exactly turned out to be the problem once the other Bad Kids got too busy with various things at and surrounding school to really hang out with him anymore - and no matter what else he had tried to do, nothing could fill the void left behind by his parents and his friends not having any time for him whatsoever. There was no one to even ask for help. You have to rely on yourself, indeed. Isn't that what he had told himself all this time too?

Yet.. seeing it reflected in someone else doesn't feel as great. It was easy to convince himself of, but the more he hears Asuka speak like this, the more Fabian knows he doesn't want her to have to talk like that.

His gaze softens. ]

You can rely on me, Asuka.

[ Sure, she probably has more friends to rely on here. It's likely that all this talk is just about her situation back home, but--

He wants her to know. He doesn't want her to have to think like this. ]

I am well aware you often think I am just talking a big game. [ He rocks the baby a little bit, not wanting to neglect it while talking to her - especially when that might mean it'll decide to loudly wail again. He so does not want to have to deal with that. ] But I promise you that I have meant every single word I have told you. If you needed help here, and you would call me-- then I would be there as soon as I could, no matter what the problem is.

[ Asuka had told herself over and over again that she wasn't going to rely one anyone. That she was going to live on her own, stand on her own, just handle her life as best she could. So people would recognize her as being something, someone, and in the end nothing had been good enough. It had all ended up an utter mess. She'd fallen apart. And then she'd died because she couldn't even win on her own - because the boy who was supposed to help her had been too busy feeling sorry for himself.

She's lost in thought and then Fabian speaks and she glances up, her cheeks coloring. ]

I don't - I don't need to rely on you! You don't need to tell me that! It's not like I want that kind of thing, anyway!

[ She sputters for a moment. She's caught between feeling relieved or even touched and that harsh, instant, angry reaction. How dare someone assume she needs help? How dare someone presume she wants it? ]

Why would you say something like that, anyway?

[ Sorry, Fabian. ]

[ Look, Fabian has been into toxic girls back home. It's not like he doesn't know a thing or two about unconventional responses to things he says. But Asuka is her very own unique case - because no matter what, he has never had someone sputter as much in the face of kindness or helpfulness as much as she has.

.. well, other than Fabian himself, but that's much more avoidance than it is outward sputtered rejection like what comes from her.

But what else is he supposed to do in the face of that, other than just push on? Especially when he means what he says, looking at her rather than at the baby as he says it. ]

Because I don't want you to ever have to feel alone?

[ A slight pause. Fabian hesitates, like he's unsure whether or not to say the next part-- but then he does anyway.

He just makes sure to word it a little more vaguely, so it doesn't feel as much like he's admitting to experiencing something like this himself. Yet he's saying it so awkwardly that it's pretty obvious what he's about to say is something born from experience. ]

It truly sucks. Feeling that way, I mean.

[ Asuka just stares at him for a few moments of silence, as if she can't quite beleive what she's hearing. It's hard for her to put this into words - it always has been. She hates everyone around her - no, that's not it. She hates herself for being weak, for being left behind, for not being good enough. She hates that she needs other people but she craves their approval, their companionship, and it hurts. It always has. She decided (once) to simply be alone so she would never have to suffer being abandoned again. So she wouldn't have to rely on anyone.

In the end that hadn't worked out. It had been foolish. But she still can't tear herself away from old, bad habits. ]

What do you know about being alone? What do you think you know about me?

[ Her voice rises, almost strident, certainly shrill. Angry and hurt and lashing out because she needs to push him away - or she needs him to prove that he means what he says, somehow. ]

Since when do you care that much?

[ Her lashing out like that definitely startles the baby all over again. Fabian looks surprised, distracted by the loud wailing for a moment, and then holds the baby closer against him as if that might stop the crying - which it doesn't, but at least the sound is a little softer now it's half-muffled against his shirt.

The way he panics over it means that he isn't really thinking about the words that leave his mouth next - they just flow right out. ]

Because-- Because I was alone too, okay?! My papa made me kill him, and then mama left me alone to go on a cruise with her new boyfriend!

[ It's stuff he wouldn't confess so easily about, let alone practically confess to feeling bad about.

But there's no time to think between an angry Asuka and a crying baby, and Fabian not knowing which one of those two things to address first. His voice is even raised with panic. ]

That is how I know it sucks! It is the worst feeling in the world when it feels as if-- as if maybe no one cares enough to be around for you at all!

[ She's silent for a few moments, her hands curled into fists at her sides as she just stares at him and tries to properly process what he's saying. What he means. She has always known, at least on an intellectual level, that she's not the only one who has lost something. Or been alone. But to hear him spit that out at her rocks her back on her metaphorical heels. ]

...yeah.

[ She says the word slowly. It grinds out in a slow little exhale. ]

And then you think you don't need them. You don't want to need them because they'll just leave you alone all over again.

[ The words keep coming. ]

[ Fabian is quiet.

The baby, suddenly, is also quiet. It's likely a coincidence, since it's not like the fake baby would be capable of understanding Asuka, but it still goes quiet in the face of those words - perhaps feeling the impact of them through Fabian.

His panic ebs away, morphing into something that's turned a little more inward. Something sadder, something heavier, and there's a sympathetic sadness in his eyes when he looks at her. ]

.. you can't stop though. [ It's not a callout.

It's just something Fabian knows to be true within himself. Something that's been true all year now. ]

You still need them. Or you at least need.. something.

[ It's circular, destructive logic, isn't it? You don't need them, because if you needed them you'd be weak and they'll see that and they'll leave. So you don't need them. You don't.

She doesn't know what to think about that anymore, though. ]

They still disappoint you.

[ THere's something small and bitter in her tone. ]

They're selfish. They hurt you. And you just wish they'd die.

[ ... ]

You deserve better than to get hurt, Asuka.

[ It sounds like her case is even worse than his own, after all. Sure, his mother left him all by himself, but-- it's not being selfish, right? She just wasn't thinking about it. She just can't imagine things from his point of view. And sure, his father hurt him, but it was just.. It was just the way he was.

Asuka's case has to be way worse if she was actually hoping for them to die, so Fabian can't even think about his own hurt in the face of her own. He doesn't want to. ]

I realize it might make everything I say hard to believe, yes. But-- I promise you that I have meant every single word I have told you in this place. And I am sorry that others may have lied when they said those things.

[ Another pause, and then-- ] I mean, if any of those people ever show up here and you need me to punch them for you, you can always give me a call.

Don't pity me!

[ Her voice rises and then she has to reel herself back in, body language tight and contained and defensive, her arms wrapped around herself as she stares at him with a mixture of venom and fear and maybe a sense of pleading. ]

Deserve - deserve doesn't matter. of course I don't deserve it! But - that's just how it is. That's what people do to me. They decide I'm not good enough. They abandon me. They leave me. Shinji left me to die. NERV never cared in the first place. My mother - my mother-

[ It's a complicated, messy story. ]

I don't need you to protect me!

[ Although she'd like to be protected. She likes him, in her own way. To be safe, to trust, to let her defenses down, that would be nice, but it's a fantasy. ]

[ It's not like Fabian hasn't used some avoidance tactics before, but-- his own are way different from Asuka's. He's seen this from her before, but the degree to which she's drawing up a wall filled with spikes right now is definitely a lot.

It's a good thing that he has never been the kind of person to give up easily. ]

You don't need it, no.

[ Because Asuka could clearly punch someone herself if she wanted to. She's got the spirit for it. ]

But I'm going to do it anyway. [ Fabian straightens up a little. ] Have I not made it very clear that I am determined to prove to you that I won't just abandon you?

I-

[ She sputters for a moment, searching for something to say. She's heard stuff like this before, hasn't she? But he seems so convinced that it's hard to just outright dismiss it. She falters for a moment. ]

I'm not weak!

[ She finds that to be the best retort she can muster. ]

You're not.

[ He says it so easily.

There's no emphasis. No pushiness about his tone when he says that, even. Fabian isn't saying it like he has to convince her of the fact that it's true - he's just saying it like it is an objective fact. Like he thinks it's something so obvious about Asuka that she hardly even has to mention it. ]

.. you know, my papa always said that strong people don't need anyone else. But.. [ There's a moment, a slight pause, and then Fabian does look a touch flustered. Like saying this isn't so easy for him either, but maybe Asuka just has to hear it from someone for once. ] I think he was wrong about that. Sometimes, when you find a connection of any sort to the right person-- You can draw even more strength from that sort of thing, on top of what already exists within you.

[ God, why does he have to say it like that? She knows. She knows that connections matter and they can help, but she hates it. She hates having to rely on people, no matter how irrational it is. Because every time she starts to think that she's not worth it, that she'll let down her mother somehow, that it's all just another stupid mistake. ]

...is that the kind of connection you think we have?

[ Her voice is low. Maybe a little dangerous.

She doesn't know how she feels about this question or what she wants the answer to be. ]

[ There's a split second before he answers - though it's more because of the tone she's using than due to any real hesitance on Fabian's part. He knows his answers, even if he can't tell for sure what's going on inside of Asuka's head. ]

I like to think we are friends.

[ And is that a connection one could draw strength from? Sure. Fabian knows that he'd jump into any sort of trouble to help her out, even though he knows she'd yell at him that he doesn't have to do that at all if he'd mention it out loud.

Which is why he doesn't. ]

Friends.

[ She repeats the word, almost as if it has a bitter taste. She has mixed, confused feelings about that. That deep, instinctive urge to lash out and push him away, to make him prove that he'll be there when she's at her worst. To show that she's not worth it, to wallow in that self-fulfilling prophecy of not needing anyone and driving them away. She punishes herself because she deeply dislikes who she is - it's not even conscious, sometimes. ]

Maybe. I don't have a lot of friends. And I don't - I don't need people.

[ It's a lie, she knows it's lie, she says it anyway because there's somehting about making her own emotions go sour that's familiar and almost safe, for all the harm it does. ]

What makes you think I want your strength? Or that I need it?

[ Fabian could point out that Asuka's entire attitude practically puts up a neon sign above her head that reads 'I need friends.'

But that's not exactly the nice thing to do. And he wants to do the nice thing here - not just because her attitude is kind of terrifying (because Fabian has always had a thing for terrifying women deep down, after all), but just because the fact that so many people have let her down just makes him want to show her all the more that there are people in this world you can trust. Even if it's not everyone. ]

That's the thing about friendship, Asuka. [ He therefore slowly says. ] That strength-- It's there when you want it. You don't have to take it.

[ God knows that Fabian would feel kind of pathetic too if anyone suggested he was completely dependent on his friends for his strength.

Even if it's sort of true in his case. ]

But if a day ever comes when you might need it, then you will know it's there.

[ Asuka hates that his logic makes sense. She still wants to slap the hand away - it's that urge to be on her own because to not be on her own means she's weak and paradoxically then doesn't deserve to have anyone close to her. Self-sabotage. A contradiction. She takes a breath in through her nose and then out, her shoulders tight, her expression flat. ]

Maybe.

[ She feels momentarily overwhelmed by emotion and she raises a hand to swipe at her eyes. ]

I shouldn't need any of that, though. I shouldn't want it. It's all - I should be on my own.

[ She hates herself so much. ]

[ .. oh, Asuka.

It's the way she's moving that hand up to her eyes that really gets him. After all - a part of Fabian understands it. Maybe not the full feeling she's dealing with, but.. something similar to it, something he grew up with. The sense that you should be fine on your own, even when you know you're not.

So rather than directly replying to those words, he speaks up with: ]

If you promise to not murder me over it-- Can I give you a hug?

[ You look like you could use one, Asuka.

And Fabian likes hugs. ]

[ There's tension in her shoulders. And she doesn't know what to say. She wants to say "no", she wants to say "yes". She desperately wants comfort and equally wants to shove it all down into a spot somewhere and not think about it. She swallows. ]

...if you really want. But if you tell anyone... I - I'll kill you.

[ It's such a teenage thing to say.

And maybe she does want him to hug her. He's got a dazzling smile, he gets it, and - well. Boys are a mixed bag to her still, but he's a decent sort of boy. ]

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