azume | Welcome.

Welcome.

AWAKENING.

You're asleep, and the first thing you're aware of is the pulse.

It comes quickly, flooding through your system and jolting you awake; the room you're in is dimly-lit but the bed you're in is soft, and while all of this is jarring you'll soon become rather aware that you aren't going through this alone. The room you're in is lined with beds not unlike the one you're in; you'll be able to hear other people stirring, coming awake as they respond to the pulse too, and...

...And it will soon become evident that whatever just happened, something is wrong.

Whatever your response may be to waking up in a low-lit room full of people is going to be highly amplified, the emotion rubbing your nerves raw in a way that makes you feel like you're experiencing it for the first time, and whenever you manage to sit up, you'll feel something...strange on your head, tickling the sides of your face, and as you turn your head a little you'll catch a glimpse of an odd, synthetic-looking green.

A wig...?

Your clothes, too, are different from whatever you remember last (because whatever you remember last, it wasn't this room, it wasn't this place - ); they feel warm, designed to withstand cold weather, and if you throw the blankets off at any point (or even just pause to look beneath them) you'll be greeted with an outfit made of thick material that's alternating parts black and white and glossy silver, with an emblem inscribed on the chest - a G inscribed in gold and black.

Whatever's happening here, you aren't given much time to dwell on it; everyone here seems about as confused as you are. There are twenty-four of you in the room altogether, and you're all going through the same thing; whatever you're experiencing, the door is closed, so at least you're experiencing it in relative privacy.

For now.

It isn't long before a voice can be heard, soft but agitated-sounding, as though trying very hard to not awaken everyone in the building; it sounds like a man, and you can hear his footfalls pause just outside your door as he speaks to someone else, voice soft and androgynous.

"And you're sure they're gone?"
"Yes, Commander."
"And don't you think something should be done about that...?"
"Right away, sir."

With that, the man and whomever he was speaking to can be heard parting ways, one moving rapidly down a corridor and the other pausing, shifting a bit before eventually moving on himself.

You have several options.

I. You can sit here for a while and get to know each other, seeing as none of you know what happened. That might be a good idea, all things considered, and as long as the door remains closed there's no rush. It's the middle of the night, after all, and it isn't as though anyone is going to come looking - despite the urgent conversation outside, there isn't any alarm going off, nor is there any reason for most of the building to be on high alert.

II. You can explore the building. Should you do that, you'll find several winding corridors leading to what look like dorms, with several rooms containing sleeping people and areas such as formal break rooms; exploring a little further will let you find conference rooms and other large, empty spaces that don't seem to have much of a purpose. There are signs and notices in several places referring to "Team Galactic" and its protocol, all adorned with the same emblem that's on your clothes. Some of these corridors also lead to doors that are, unfortunately, locked and staying that way; some of them lead to people dressed exactly like you, bizarre wig and all. They seem to be a little strange, however; they'll greet you, and they'll speak to you if spoken to, but they look odd and dead behind the eyes and there's not much to their answers, and asking them about preferences or any personal information will just net you a blank stare. It's going to be a long strange journey through the building, but at least you're traveling light; you don't seem to have any belongings with you - save for the outfit you woke up in and the red and white capsule attached to your belt...

III. You can also pause to try to figure out what's going on with those capsules. They each contain something very important to you, after all - a creature that seems to have been assigned to you specifically. They don't seem to have anything on them indicating a name or another person that owns them, at any rate, so it's probably safe to assume it's yours. That said, something seems decidedly wrong with it - it seems alarmingly apathetic, the look in its eyes dull and resigned as opposed to alert and emotive, and while it's willing to follow you (it's almost a bit too willing to follow you, it will stay close by your side in the manner of a dog trained to heel if you try to walk away from it) it doesn't seem to be due to any sort of genuine affection. It's all very...sterile, for lack of a better term.

Welcome to Sinnoh. Glory to Team Galactic.

[OOC: Welcome to Azume! Feel free to use this log to get to know one another iCly; you can use the prompts given or come up with your own, though for now you're confined to the building. The Commanders are currently not present in the building (anywhere that you can find them, anyway). For now, have fun getting your bearings.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Eep. And here he thought he was over his chicken days.]

Uh... [He raises a hesitant finger.] Scouting?

[Raising an eyebrow, Rin folds her arms but tones down her glare. They've obviously been kidnapped, and this is a weird situation; he's probably scared. She should be more understanding.]

Scouts are supposed to be quiet, dummy. Nothing's happening so far, but their boss could be back any minute, and he'll hear you a mile away.

[No, Rin, you're just going to scare him further like that. She huffs, and tries to make her voice gentler. Understanding, understanding.]

Why don't you take a minute and calm down?

[Well to be fair, he was never a very good scout. He'd always get caught by somebody...]

I...you're right, yeah...

[Long sigh. That actually seems to get some of the tension out of his body, if the way he loosens up is any indicator.]

Sorry about that...

It's... It's alright.

[She's not sure if he's feeling better, or if she's just made him depressed. Turning her shoulder halfway, Rin spies a room she passed not too long ago and her eyes light up. She treats the other boy to a small smile.]

There's a refrigerator in that room over there, and some chairs. I think it might be a break room, actually. Let's sit there for a minute and get our bearings.

A break room?

[He does perk up a bit - finally, something normal in this place.]

That might be a good idea, yeah. Thanks...

[Rin simply nods, and turns to lead him to where she saw the room before.]

Right over here. [It's only about ten feet off, so they'll find it in no time flat.] I'll get you some water, if you want to poke around the fridge. Or would you prefer coffee?

[There's a little coffee machine by the sink she sees now, as she heads over there. Huh, that explains where the mook Jake was beating up earlier got his from.]

Just water is fine...

[Coffee is a bit too bitter for his tastes.]

Umm... [Let's poke around that fridge. There's a couple of packed lunches in there - probably belonging to the employees. He can't bring himself to steal one.] Huh. These people don't eat that much, do they?

I didn't look too closely.

[Like him, she couldn't bring herself to swipe their lunches. She's a Fate character, okok; we're very uppity about the sacredness of food. With the styrofoam cup filled though, Rin turns off the tap water and heads over to see what he means.]

What do they have?

Yeah, like robots...

[Sena tilts his head.]

There's some packed lunches, and...they all look the same. It's kinda creepy, actually.

[The same black container, the same arrangement of food inside. He'd wonder if they were store brought, but there's no label or anything to indicate otherwise.]

Um...there's a bowl of weird fruit inside? [Pokeberries. Not that he'd know that.] And a pitcher of iced water, and some bread, a stick of butter...not much, really.

[HRMMM. Well, she'll hand Sena his cup, though no offense is taken if he'd rather dump it and help himself to that ice water.]

How boring. I know lunch breaks are never long enough to eat anything substantial, but that doesn't mean you have to eat the same bland thing every day. Can they even tell their food apart?

[...Still, Rin's not intent to steal their lunches. With a sigh, she points to the bread.]

It probably won't be a problem to take a few slices of bread, though. Grab a couple slices for yourself, and I'll the cabinets for anything we can spread on it.

They probably have their ways.

[He thinks about these people coming up to an assembly line like robots to get refilled, then shudders.] Or maybe they just don't care who eats what since it's all the same anyway. I can kinda see that happening...

[Thank god for bread. He snatches that immediately. The...fruit? looks interesting, but he doesn't know enough about them to just try one out of the blue.]

[Well buddy, we are in for a time then, because Rin's found jam. Two jars, to be precise; she pulls them down to examine their labels.]

Cheri, or... Bluk? [What the hell are these flavors.] Is that even a word?

[She has to do a double-take just to make sure that isn't a typo.]

Cherry jam? I guess that'd be a little sweet, but I haven't heard of that before...

[No, Sena. Not Cherry. Cheri. There's a difference.]

But, uh..."Bluk" just sounds like the sound someone would make if they didn't like that stuff...

It does kind of sound like a dry heave. Maybe it's Gaelic?

[She gives the label another considering glance, then slides it onto a nearby counter. Weird. She is curious though, so maybe she'll check back later.]

But cheri it is! [The lid pops off the jar with a twist, and Rin extends her hand.] You can give me the bread now.

Maybe? [He has no idea what Gaelic is.]

Oh! Right, here- [Sena hastily opens the bread bag and hands over a slice.]

[An adventure in human language, that's what.

But cool, cool. She'll accept that with a thank you, and find a butter knife to spread the jam with. Does he want peanut butter? Because she'd think to add that too unless he declines, to make a proper sandwich. A proper... Spicy, fruity sandwich. Welp! YOLO.]

Aaaand, ta-da!

[Crusts cut off and cut into triangles, she'll hand Sena the finished product.]

It's nothing fancy, but bon appétit!

Haha...compared to what those lunch boxes are, I'd say this is fancy enough...

[He'd rather have something simple like this than...whatever those things are. And hey, peanut butter is always welcome.

...And, yipes! He didn't expect the spice, so maybe he took a bigger bite than he intended. It's not bad or anything, he's Japanese, he's used to the idea of spicy and fruity-ness being put together, but it's not what he expected.]

Wowmf...is that really cherries?

[Damn, she can't tell if he actually likes it or not. That... Brushes up against her competitiveness a little bit, actually, so she pauses in cleaning up.]

What? Is the taste off?

[There's still a little bit of jam left on the butter knife, now that she looks at it. Gently, Rin scraped it off with the side of her thumb for a quick taste.]

Oh, I see what you mean. That has a little kick to it.

I didn't expect it...

[He swallows his mouthful and grins.]

It tastes good, though, since the peanut butter kinda...I dunno. It works with it somehow...

[He can't quite vocalize it, but it's the thickness of the peanut butter. It mellows it out and gives it some body.]

Thanks for going through the trouble...

[Aha! Ego massaged, Rin drops the knife in the sink and grins back.]

I'm just glad it didn't turn out terrible. If the customer isn't satisfied, as the person who made it, the blame would fall on me, and I'd have no choice but to tell you it's on the house.

Mmh? Customer?

[He takes a small sip of water.]

Do you have a shop or something?

Not really, but I made you lunch just now, didn't I?

Oh...right.

[He laughs a bit.]

I'd give a tip, but... [He motions to everything.]

Well, I suppose it's the thought that counts. We can call it an IOU.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject