TRAVEL LOG #5

[synfluxmods]

TRAVEL LOG #5

CONTENT WARNINGS: death, nightmares, gun violence, survival scenario

▶ 001. EYES WIDE OPEN.

"Angels of Lilith, report for duty in the DISPATCH."

The day starts off with alarms blaring and oculars shining bright lights in the Outsiders' heads, waking them up early for an emergency dispatch. Although the current Rift at Mt. Fuji needs to be explored and examined, the Rifts continue to appear in different parts of the world, and this Rift is no different. Captain Yamakawa continues,

"We have received a distress call from EGYPT. Much of the region fell during the first kaiju crisis. Now it is a desolate land that survives with the help of a generator called an ESSENCE which is currently malfunctioning. We assume the cause is Rift energy—according to our radar, there is a heavy amount of Rift energy coming from that area. We will move out immediately. Pack all the things you may need, but each Outsider will be supplied with a care package of their own containing essentials."

Even though it is 4:00 AM Tokyo time, LILITH hopes you all have slept well. It could be the very last good sleep in awhile. While the dataportal to Egypt is operational on Japan's end, because of the malfunctioning generator, Outsiders are unable to come out on the other side. The old method of using the flying cruiser will be used once again.

There will not be assigned seating for this other than by teams. Everlights will sit with Everlights, Brimstones with Brimstones, and so on. The Outsiders will be encouraged to rest on the flight, and a few hours before landing, an in-flight meal will be provided. The meal is surprisingly delicious and consists of chicken or pork katsu cutlet, but with the warning that all Outsiders will know about: it contains high amount of cyber caffeine. This sort of newly innovative caffeine can keep Outsiders awake for several days, but sometimes it may cause restlessness or hyperactivity, causing characters to have a jittery amount of energy but razor sharp focus. Other times, it simply keeps characters awake and they feel no different. The cutlet will be served with KAIJU™ Energy Drink. Any Outsiders that require a different diet will be provided with what they need, and the cyber caffeine will be added to it if they would like.

Yamakawa gives instructions again:

"We have received more information about the kaiju. Civilians have died in their sleep from horrible nightmares, and we are encouraging Outsiders to sleep together in pairs or groups, or disregard sleeping at all until we obtain more information. We are still receiving facts about this monster, but this meal will help with keeping everyone awake as a safety measure."

Those who do not want to have the highly caffeinated meal can have everyone's favorite: a ration bar that isn't spiked with any energy, but it doesn't taste good at all. Outsiders may be more likely to fall asleep and be in danger by choosing this meal. The balance of a dystopian society.

▶ 002. ARRIVAL IN EGYPT.

When they finally arrive, the air is temperate and dry in Alexandria. The Outsiders might have to check their clocks once more to make sure everything is right; everyone is expected to land in the late afternoon and every clock says it should be close to evening, but the city is already growing dark with the sun setting quite early. Because of the ESSENCE disruption, Alexandria is running on back up energy, which makes for spotty lighting and loss of basic power.

LILITH will be greeted by a small group of researchers at the airport and they will help take the Outsiders to their base: the Alexandria Institute which was once the University of Alexandria. They will give the Outsiders a quick run down of the situation and some background.

1. LILITH does not have a strong defense branch in the region any more. Instead, the branch here seems more focused on research, especially on the origin of kaiju and rifts.
2. This region is extremely prone to spontaneous Rifts. Many of them are small and pass quickly but this most recent one is unprecedented.
3. One evening, in the final week of March, the Alexandria Institute received a corrupt file from their fellow researchers in Greece. It shut down much of their research facility (including their warp portal) and all they have been able to recover so far are the words, "Do Not Go To Sleep."
4. The next morning, they awoke to find the sun rising later and setting earlier. It feels like the days are getting significantly shorter.
5. Many locals developed a fear of the dark and going to sleep. They would then die in their sleep within the next few days.
6. The autopsy of these victims have shown no cause of death, puzzling coroners.

Progress has been slow because the corrupt file shut down many of their facilities. They have not been able to track the source of the Rift or identify the kaiju responsible for it. They believe the answers may be within the corrupt file and will be happy to receive any help they can get from the Outsiders.

When they arrive at the Institute, Outsiders will be set up in the old student dormitories. Each room has 2-4 beds depending on the room, with a common shared area on each floor. Given the current threat, there is also a supply of energy drinks and bars boosted with cyber caffeine. Outsiders have two options:

1. OPTION ONE: Stay in Alexandria and help the researchers with the generators, while keeping themselves and teammates awake during the night by playing games.
2. OPTION TWO: Go out into the Egyptian desert on camel-back, spending time getting to know their camel before heading out.

OOC NOTE: While players may write prompts for both options, we ask that you submit for a clue only once per player (not per character, as we have a lot of characters in game now!)

▶ 003. LEARN & EXPLORE. (ALEXANDRIA RESEARCH.)

Times are hard in Alexandria right now with their generators malfunctioning and efforts being split. The researchers are trying to get the generators back up and uncorrupt the data they received from Greece. LILITH will instruct the Outsiders to help with the research but also warn that they cannot afford to just sit around and wait to crack codes. The researchers also agree. Sometimes the best way to get research data is to go out into the field, but they haven't been able to do it due to not having much protection. The desert is vast, and there have been sightings of other small kaiju lurking beneath the sand and in some smaller cities.

Outsiders can decide to stay in the city of Alexandria to help crack the codes, or they can opt to go out into the field. For the latter, they can choose to stay close to home and investigate within Alexandria.

Those who wish to help with the ESSENCE generators and researchers will stay in Alexandria, using any downtime when not investigating to try and stay awake, slumber-party style. Two Truths and a Lie? Maybe Spin The Bottle? Perhaps some games can keep Outsiders enticed so they don't doze off.

▶ 004. FEELING SANDY (DESERT EXPLORATION.)

For those who wish to explore the desert and smaller cities, Alexandria Institute will supply what they need, such as water, food, essential tools for digging, sleeping bags (no sleeping, but maybe for resting!) and anything else. To conserve energy, the researchers supply camels for the Outsiders to use. The camels are mostly tame, but have their own distinct personalities, so they may need a little more handling and can be coaxed to behave with treats like artificial carrots and bananas. Outsiders can spend time getting to know their camel if they are going to explore the desert or cities. A camel can seat two people on its back comfortably, but also carry any essentials that travelers need to bring along.

In the distant small cities and across the desert, Outsiders will come across Sand Crocodiles, one of the smaller kaiju that have been inhabiting the desert. These monsters are basically crocodiles but with a twist: they can spit fire if angered and they can camouflage in the sand. They hide strategically, and one wrong step will cause them to push their jaws out of the ground, harming a person or camel. The stubby quills along their backs or rounds of their horns aren't entirely covered while hiding, so watch carefully. Fortunately, Outsiders will be supplied with a shotgun. Aiming between the eyes or in the mouth will kill it, but also beating it with the back of the shotgun will also do the trick. And yes, they also taste like crocodile too, if anyone is hungry.

After exploring, Outsiders are requested to report their findings back in Alexandria.

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

Welcome to our fourth travel log!

Welcome to the new and improved Travel Log! Below, you will see the link to the MONSTER DEBRIEF SHEET post that has information about the kaiju below along with RIFT EFFECTS. Fill out the form for RNG Attacks and whether you would like to receive a RIFT EFFECT. This should give characters some ideas for the status of their character in the next log, which will have more action and monsters in it. Outsiders may use the CHAT to report and discuss any findings.

We thank you in advance for your patience as we try out this new format!

All tags on this log are worth 2 points and will count towards April AC.

EVENT BREAKDOWN/RECAP (CLICK TO EXPAND)

1. EYES WIDE OPEN: Outsiders travel to Egypt after receiving reports of their power generator, ESSENCE, being unstable and malfunctioning, leaving citizens in peril. They are instructed to "stay awake." They are supplied cyberpunk caffeine and told to try not to sleep or stay in pairs to be watchful of any danger.

2. ARRIVING IN EGYPT: Arriving in Alexandria, the Outsiders are confirmed that citizens have been dying in their sleep, with coroners unable to determine the cause. The days are mysteriously getting shorter and people are unable to stay awake.

3. LEARN & EXPLORE: Outsiders are given options to stay in Alexandria to help with the generator or find clues to assist the research team. Between researching, they are asked to continue to stay awake by any means possible. Those who will be exploring the desert and smaller cities for clues are given a camel for transportation. Outsiders are encouraged to get to know their camel before traveling.

4. FEELING SANDY: While looking for any clues out in the desert, Outsiders encounter smaller kaiju known as Sand Crocodiles. They hide in the sand and attack at the opportune time, snapping jaws and spitting fire. Shooting them between the eyes or in the mouth will K.O. them.

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Comments

[egraegis]

[Such a strange feeling... or rather, more like a nostalgic one. How long has it been since he was so eager to win the approval of someone superior- or at least, someone he thought was? How many times had he stood in front of his father, feeling just like this, longing for the approval and affection he'd been denied for many years, something that had only gotten worse when his mother was killed. Even to the bitter end, he'd wanted that man to change his mind, to look at Athrun and feel something other than disappointment. He'd longed for something in those final words, as Patrick Zala died in his arms. (And just like always, the disappointment had been truly mutual.) He'd like to say he'd gotten over that feeling, but experiencing it again, even if the target is different... if his father hadn't died, would he truly ever been freed from it?

He really doesn't know. But should he ever meet this Akagi person, he's going to be watching very carefully.

Her eerie smile is a very weird expression to be wearing, admittedly, but he's no stranger to seeing people smile despite being in such outrageous pain. Lacus does it more than anyone else he knows, and Kira as well, to a slightly lesser extent. Even Athrun isn't guiltless, but he's not good at making it look very sincere. An ironic look more than anything. Even as she tries to support herself, he continues to do his best to hold on to her anyway. If this is the only way he can help, he's not letting go. And he doesn't know what that cruel illusion expects him to do here, but he sure doesn't have to cooperate with a smile. ]

...Yeah, sure. When all of this is over, we can spar. Maybe it'll do us both some good.

[Although, if she really wants a good fight, he'd wait to offer until he figures out a way to free Justice from the confines of Z'Gok's armor. Otherwise it might feel as if he's holding back too much.]

[harboredfeelings]

Then it's a deal.

[ The continued attempt to support her weight takes her aback but doesn't quite surprise her. This whole encounter has given her a pretty good read on Athrun she thinks and that read screams "Hero", though he's a lot less insufferable about it than say... 80% of Everlight. Weird that he's not in that particular little group, it makes her curious if he's hiding some sort of darkness that disqualified him from Sunshine and Rainbows club.

Whatever the case may be she appreciates it. It makes reaching out to open that door all the easier for her. Behind said door is, well, Chainsaw Man. The sight of which has Kaga's smile fall away and her ears pin flat to her head as she glances at Athrun. ]

Sorry about this.

[ She means it too. Nobody should have to live through this let alone see it and if experience is anything so far, Athrun may very well end up doing both. The absolute predictable happens, Kaga stumbles into the room. Chainsaw Man chainsaws her arm off.

It is an involved process that is noisy, bloody, and excruciatingly painful. Kaga doesn't scream though, she refuses to. She didn't back then, she was too elated to be of service, that euphoric joy mixing in with the pain in a way that would almost make her giggle if she wasn't biting down on her tongue.

Blood loss soon sees the world starting to fade out for her. The last thing Kaga remembers from this instance is Akagi. Kneeling down next to her as she lays in a pool of her own blood, gently stroking her hair and smiling with approval. And then all goes dark.

Athrun is free to seek her out after they're both out of that fun little trip down memory lane if he wants. She'll be somewhere on base, Kiko at her side, silver flask in hand, drinking like she's dying of thirst. Her coping mechanisms are violence and sake. ]

[egraegis]

[....

Well, that was... horrible. Wretched. Words really don't describe, and as Athrun wakes, he curses himself for being useless (and for falling asleep to begin with). It's a good thing he's no stranger to nightmares of his own, because this has surely been added to the pile. That's a problem for future Athrun, though.

He doesn't seek her out immediately, giving them both a little space and time to process all of that; he's not the type to immediately charge over and offer... what, condolences? A venting partner? Both feel appropriate. But this will surely be awkward. (It's him, so really, what isn't.)

He will go looking before too long, though. He doesn't want his absence to imply some kind of evasion or lack of care.]

[harboredfeelings]

[ Find her he does! Situated in the dining area the Institute has put to the Outsider's use, sitting at a table staring at a wall and drinking. Her ears twitch as he enters the room but she doesn't turn around.

Kiko however gets up from where she's laying to walk up to Athrun, at her usual wolfhound size, and proceeds to lightly body slam into his side in greeting. Just fox things. ]

I'm sorry you had to see that. [ Kaga speaks up without turning to face him. The thought of it has her drumming the metallic fingers of her right hand on the table surface. ] Brasov sucked.

[ Understatement of the year there, girl. ]

[egraegis]

[Does Kiko like and/or accept pets? Because if so, he'll give her some scritches.

The fact that Kaga doesn't immediately yell at him to piss off or throw a bottle at him is enough of an acceptance of his presence that he stays, quiet for a moment. Yeah...]

Knowing what I know, and seeing what I've seen now... agreed. [A beat, and then, more quietly,] It was difficult to grasp the scale of it, before.

[harboredfeelings]

[ Kiko in fact loves and craves pets! Athrun's attention is rewarded by nine wagging tails and some very happy "hehehe" fox noises from the shikigami. ]

Mmm.

[ That's the only response she has. She simply sits there and keeps staring into space, her metal fingers still drumming on the table. Then finally-- ]

The physical aspect wasn't so bad. [ A pause, hit off her flask before she continues. ] Alright, it was a little worse than usual, I was essentially human at the time and your bodies aren't exactly... durable. But the way they got in my head...

[ She sighs and leans backwards, turning her head so she can look at him. There are dark rings under her eyes that her usual red eyeliner just accents. ]

After I recovered from that? I was a good little worshipper. I was devoted wholly to that damn Kaiju to the point I fought the other Outsiders when they finally reached the castle. As long as I stayed loyal the cultists kept me fed with blood and "Nee-sama" kept giving me her approval.

[ She sounds positively sickened addressing that thing like that. ]

And I got off light. Three people died in there, three. One of them was so brutalized it's a wonder there was enough to cremate. And there were still people who wanted us to spare those fanatics, can you fucking believe that?!

[ A final statement she punctuates by slamming her fist onto the table and leaving a considerable dent in it. Whoops. ]

[egraegis]

[Oh, good. Then Kiko's getting pets, as he shuffles closer and sits down next to her. Her affinity for making close contact had been discomforting during their first meeting, but right now it would feel cruel to put distance between them, after what he'd just witnessed.

He glances down at the dent in the table, then away once more. Unimportant in the grand scheme of things, and her anger is plenty warranted. The dream, memory she'd been given (and forced to share) was so cruel. Was that some sort of extra incentive to stay awake, or really a trick of the kaiju?]

There are some who can't be swayed from pacifist ideals. Some who believe that anyone can be saved, or turned back towards the light. [Whatever it is that the "light" might be. It's very much a matter of perspective in many cases.] I understand, to an extent. But I also understand that sometimes you need to make a decision, to spare or to kill. Doing one or the other can cause or prevent more deaths in the future. You might never know what version of reality you've created, when you make that choice.

[A person you spare might go on to change their ways and save the world, or they might turn around and kill your best friend. Someone you kill could have been stopped from murdering a whole city. Maybe they'd have been the make or break factor in halting a devastating war.]

You really can't know. You can only decide. And you have to be able to live with that decision.

[harboredfeelings]

[ Kiko trots along and leaps up onto the table, shrinking down to a regular fox size in mid-leap. The now more manageable ninetails wastes no time in positioning herself right in front of Kaga, preventing any further table destruction whilst demanding attention with her almost pathetic gaze. Kaga of course relents, scratching the shikigami behind the ears.

She still looks positively ticked off though. For all of Athrun's good intentions she can't help but think in the back of her mind he's not outright condemning her out of fear of seeing her go fully off the rails on him. She doesn't know him from anyone else (which luckily for him means without the influence of the surgeries from the other month, not invasion of his personal space), so she can't say for certain what his deal actually is. But on the other hand. ]

Tsk. They should've put you in Everlight. You sound just like Enterprise.

[ Which despite her agitated ear twitching is a wholly good thing. If there's one thing Kaga wants in the world besides defeating Enterprise in open combat, it's to have that KAN-SEN's approval. Bleeding heart that she may be Enterprise is everything their species should aspire for. Strong, clever, absolutely indominable in her spirit. Enterprise never would've cracked under the cultists' torture. The damn bitch.

Kaga sighs and closes her eyes, some of the tension slipping from her as her shoulders slump. ]

I've been through a few versions of reality, funnily enough... I don't ever seem to get it right. This time? I chose to follow orders, LILITH said wipe them out, I wiped them out. I'm not ashamed of that, I'm a warrior, a soldier, it's what I do. But... I regret it, a little.

[ She shakes her head and fixes him with a tired look. ]

You've been a soldier longer than you've been an adult going off what Yahtzee-kun says. I'm not going to ask you a pointless "what do you think you'd do in my place" or lecture you about how different it is when the choice is in front of you, I'll guess you've already been through it more than enough.

[ She pauses to take a draw from her drink, ears twitching again. ]

Just be prepared. This world is falling apart and neither the enemy or the people we're helping play by any rules. This is going to get worse before it's over, I can practically smell it.

[egraegis]

[Athrun half-grimaces at first. Yeah, he'd have liked to be in Everlight, too, personally. But being placed in Redemption adds some connotations that he really shouldn't try to overthink. Maybe he doesn't deserve to be in Everlight as he is now. Maybe they thought he'd focus better if kept away from Cagalli. (They're wrong, but it's not something he can do anything about now.) Regardless, it is what it is.

Everything else she says is just as sobering, and for a long moment he's not sure what to say. She's right, of course. He knows that what he's saying is deeply idealized, and nothing is ever as cut and dry as he'd like for it to be. Nuance in every situation. Complexity and troublesome choices and people who can't be swayed just by being defeated or told that they're wrong. Just as much as someone might be too stubborn to back off and let a war that wants to happen happen, so too will there be people who can't stop fighting no matter the odds or the lack of logic involved. Humans - no, people - will believe what they want. You can't drag everyone away from those beliefs.

He sighs faintly, not defeated, but... admittedly, a little resigned.]

We're still early in this fight. It always seems to get worse. Let's focus on surviving it together, all of us. Until we get to the "better" part.

[He's stubborn enough to believe that they will get there, eventually.]

[harboredfeelings]

The better part, huh?

[ That's something to think about. "The better part" is the entire reason her kind were made in the first place. An intelligent super species that made human warfare fully obsolete, that would've ensured peace if not for the Siren invasion, that would've won if not for... whatever "X" is. In the experience of Kaga's world each time one fight is finished a new one pops up right before that "better part" is really able to get under way.

She up ends the last of her drink. Somehow she fights back a sigh, much like Athrun she's more resigned to the situation than anything. ]

The kaiju have been assaulting this world for years now. The Outsiders have been here for about a year and so far have only one real victory under their belts... and that victory came at the cost of our main base. Not exactly a great start.

[ There's the sigh finally, but it's accompanied by a nod. ]

Maybe you're right. It is a start. The base was totaled, sure, but none of us have died since Brasov. That's not nothing. We'd be better off with a few more KAN-SEN in the ranks of course, but we can't really control that. At least LILITH was smart enough to pull in two of the most powerful ones... and having meatshields like Gigan and the gecko is a plus.

[ This is the woman that's watching people's backs with highly dangerous military weaponry. This is how she views people. Scary... ]

Infighting's going to keep up though, especially if we run into another cult situation. The intelligent kaiju all seem to have some kind of powertrip or another, seems like just a matter of time till we find another one with an army of pet humans.

[egraegis]

[Scary, indeed. He shouldn't be surprised, though. Those in power - who have a lot of power - often have certain ways of talking about those they view as lesser in some way. Chain of command, or raw power held- it's apparently hard to play nice when you're making the calls. He's grateful that these days he's managed to find a chain of command that understands what it's like to be the one taking orders as much as giving them. At least, back home.

As for the rest... yeah, infighting has him worried. He'd had enough of it in his time in the military, with so many switching sides, clashing mid or after battle. It's fortunate that LILITH had the sense to take even their group from his world from the timelines they're from. If it was from years ago, when they were fighting or disliking each other... what a disaster that would be.]

Worst case scenario would be us forced to fight each other seriously. We have enough problems, between the rifts, the mutations and kaiju coming out of them, the state of the world... we need to remember who the true enemies are. We can't prevent arguments, those will happen whenever people are gathered together. But we shouldn't let it come to blows. Injuries, even deaths at the hands of our comrades... those are only going to make our fights harder, and make the job of the kaiju trying to destroy us much easier. And if they get themselves an army, we go for the head of the one controlling them.