synflux | TEAM BUILDING EVENT #1

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TEAM BUILDING EVENT #1

TEAM BUILDING EVENT #1

CONTENT WARNINGS: forced scenarios, violence & action scenarios, thalassophobia, mass death & injury from natural disaster.

▶ 001. GET ALONG PROMPT

LILITH is highly invested in the physical and mental well-being of its employees. A happy and connected workforce is a strong workforce, after all. However, SYNTHIA has picked up on many instances of discontent between Outsiders - people being blocked by each other on LINE, or teetering on the edge of having a fight (you know who you are and so does SYNTHIA, surprise!) That just won't do. Outsiders who cannot get along will fail miserably when it's time for teamwork. That is why this month's team-building exercise aims to spread positivity amongst the Outsiders. We all gotta get along in the middle of a crisis.

Whether you are looking someone in the face, texting them, or staring at their profile on the network, you receive a prompt from SYNTHIA, followed by an image (exactly as pictured, Shutterstock watermark and all):

"LILITH promotes a positive working environment. Why don't you pay this Outsider a compliment or do something nice for them? Or else :) Noncompliance will result in disciplinary action."

True enough, ignoring the prompt a total of 5 times will result in characters being transported to their rooms and put under house arrest - ahem, time out for a total of 2 days. It doesn't hurt to play along, right? As a note, the prompts become especially persistent when you're faced with someone you dislike. Should Outsiders try to leave their room during this time, they will find the automatic doors do not open the typical way (retina scan and thumb print.) They are trapped! Perhaps asking SYNTHIA for some mercy with positive compliments directed her way will do the trick (it won't, bu you can try!) Remember, Outsiders can speak to SYNTHIA anytime. She's everywhere all the time. Consider her your prettier Alexa. In fact, she might be flattered by that compliment.

▶ 002. TEAM ACTIVITIES.

You've had your fun back at the MAIN BASE. Now it's time to work. Outsiders will be sent back out towards Tokyo Bay while LILITH's research crew continues to try and detect the source of the strong waves. The city is in disarray after the tsunami, with the less secured buildings torn down and many lives lost. Morale within Neo Tokyo is at an all time low even with civilians comforting one another. Each Outsider will receive a small mission brief marked in the colours of their respective team as they are once again flown via helicopter to the designated area.

REDEMPTION:
Outsiders within REDEMPTION are tasked to spread joy in the streets and at the hospital. Be creative in how you wish to do this, whether it's putting on a performance, a skit, or spreading kindness with gifts and sweet gestures. Those with a Style Upgrade are encouraged to use their chip to don funny and eye catching costumes to entertain the civilians. Those with a healing upgrade are highly encouraged to help medical staff.

REVELATION:
Outsiders within REVELATION are tasked with babysitting duties. Many parents are still recovering in the hospital and there's no one to watch their children while they recover. A lot of pets need looking after too! Make sure the children and furbabies are fed, clothed and getting enough sleep. This can even include filling in for classrooms that have recently lost their teacher. Outsiders in REVELATION are encouraged to keep a tally of the census and go looking for lost children if someone seems to be missing.

EVERLIGHT:
Outsiders within EVERLIGHT will be tasked with keeping the people fed and the local businesses running. This can mean organising a soup kitchen, preparing homecooked meals for the civilians and delivering hot meals door to door. It can also mean helping local businesses with repairs to their shops, bringing them supplies and filling in for the staff they might have lost. The city might have just been hit with a tsunami, but that doesn't mean it needs to shut down!

BRIMSTONE:
Outsiders within BRIMSTONE are the luckiest of the lot - they get to be clean up crew. They will be mandated to wear hazmat suits in outrageous colours along with breathing gear. Why? Because they will be scrubbing the whole place of rubble, dirt, debris and corpses. Yes, corpses. Outsiders within BRIMSTONE will be given a census and tasked with identifying any dead body they find. They will then need to transport the corpse to the nearest LILITH disposal truck on a stretcher, where LILITH will cremate it properly. Note that they will be some survivors in the mix, so be prepared to administer first aid and conduct rescue operations accordingly.

Within certain parts of the city (the sewers, in particular, which have flooded with water), the natural flora seems to have been poisoned by a mysterious element. Toxic, monstrous plants are coming alive and attacking anything they see! They bind and strangle Outsiders with their vines and sting them with their nettles. These plants need to be dealt with before they overgrow. Fire & ice works well on them.

"Good afternoon, Angels of LILITH. Please pay close attention to the brief sent to you. We have specific duties for each team. Once you have done enough work, you will be prompted to help another team with their tasks if you desire. Our research crew is searching for the source of the kaiju and we have received information it is in the ocean. Please be ready in case it makes an appearance again before we can find it. You will be staying in Moonlight Inn & 11 Hours hostel once again as we should remain close by. Thank you for the cooperation."

Outsiders will need to finish their team missions. However, if they have time afterward and want to do some overtime, they are more than welcome to help the other teams on their missions.

▶ 003. IT ISN'T OVER YET.

Those who remember the mission brief two weeks ago will know that the first shockwaves are usually the sign of an impending kaiju. LILITH is conducting their own investigations, but with a fresh and energetic workforce it only makes sense to ultilize it. All Outsiders will be given orders to collect samples and bring it back for ongoing testing. By samples, they mean contaminated fish or ocean life remains, or samples of the toxic plants appearing in the sewers.

For Outsiders braving the sewers, they will need to don the silly hazmat suits issued to BRIMSTONE for their own protection and fight off the monstrous plants to clip some samples. It's encouraged to get leaves, stems, seeds, flowers or the whole plant if you can manage it. (Note that collecting the whole plant in a sample container will result in said plant hissing and striking you through the glass.)

For Outsiders who feel like taking a swim, they will be given diving suits and ordered to take a dive in Tokyo Bay. Once in the waters, they are to hunt down and capture any contaminated fish or marine life they can find. This means tuna fish with three eyes or octopi with two heads and 16 legs. It's encouraged to capture them live, but LILITH will also accept remains or waste samples. (Note that the available oxygen in the tank is limited and attempting to swim too far from Neo Tokyo will likely result in an Outsider drowning. )

▶ 004. AFTERWORD.

Welcome to our first CR Building event! All prompts are highly encouraged but OOCly optional. Characters are encouraged to participate in their team-specific missions but can help out the other teams if they have time. Feel free to ask any event-related questions below!

As always, you are free to check out our main base and locations page and make up your own prompts!

Please note that all tags in this log will count for 2 reward points each. Have fun! The next log will feature the kaiju fight and will be posted on FEBRUARY 1st in lieu of a TDM.

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Along the way, Raidou debates whether or not to talk. It felt awkward to say anything, but it also felt the same not too. Everything felt awkward. He couldn't even try to politely decline in case Bakugo didn't really want to do this - Raidou is fairly certain Bakugo never does anything he doesn't want to. In the end, he stays quiet, trying to organize his scattered thoughts.

Once at the bath, Raidou disappears around that corner in order to change, letting Bakugo do his thing. It's then that he speaks up. Somehow it's easier without someone looking at you.]

I... I know I have mentioned when and where I am from. But maybe not about what it is I did, as a summoner. Yes?

[It's awkward as fuck doing this. He might be trying to get Raidou to spit out whatever's bothering him, but it's not an invitation or encouragement for the guy to start running his mouth a million miles per hour. But that sad expression from before, and the way he tried to dismiss his own feelings and will...

Ugh, people like that tick him off. He's not like Midoriya, who would reach out and touch someone's heart in order to save them and become their friends. He's not someone who cares enough to encourage a troubled person to cry on his shoulder and tell him their darkest secrets. He just doesn't like it when someone cheapens their own humanity via some shit excuse.

Bakugo pulls the knob to turn the water on, watching it grow from splattering all over the tub base to plunging into a rising surface. A quick check with his hand- Yep, still fucking freezing.]

No. You didn't say shit about your job.

[Except that his will doesn't matter and he's "the people's" summoner.]

We summoners are tasked to protect others from the threat of demons. There aren't many of us, but we're well trained. We take our job very seriously. If we don't, people will die. I... I had been granted the title of Kuzunoha Raidou the Fourteenth. A very esteemed title and position as the protector the Capital. Its main, and mostly sole protector.

[There were other summoners out there, but they were needed elsewhere, and their strongest was the one tasked with serving the Capital. A very impressive feat at his age. He's quiet again as he finishes up, slipping quietly around the corner again with one towel around his waste, and one around his shoulders that he fiddles with as he figures out how to put this succinctly.]

... My entire life was devoted to this position. It was an honor of a lifetime. But right before I arrived here, I was defeated in battle, and...

[He trails off.]

[There's no point in heating the water up with more cold water coming in, so the explosions are staying off until the bath is full. Gives him time to absorb Raidou's story. It reminds him some very old texts and stories from the past, where specific guards would be posted at different buildings, and levels within those buildings. Almost like a secret service or private guard situation.

Bakugo certainly understands the notion of taking jobs seriously and protecting others to avoid death... It's not the same thing as a hero in his world, but it's close enough to make it a moot point. Though hearing "Raidou" is a title rather than his teammate's real name is... irritating, yet explains the viewpoint.]

So you abandoned yourself to become the title for your station. A trained soldier.

[It's not that different from someone who takes being a hero so seriously, there's no "person" under the hero's name. Very rare in his world, but it's happened once or twice. Disturbing... He's curious about whether Raidou, or whoever Raidou had been, accepted the position willingly, or was groomed into taking it.

Someone who was that focused on his job, with such a duty on his shoulders, wouldn't take losing in battle lightly. Bakugo can guess the results of the Capitol's protector being defeated: harm and death.]

They pulled you in here right after something bad happened.

[Without giving Raidou the time needed to process his defeat and the results of it. Likely grief, rage, frustration, guilt, and more...]

Yes.

[His voice is distant.]

The consequences for my loss will most likely be catastrophic to the Capital. It's not that I don't have faith in my fellow summoners to protect it. They just won't realize what really happened, until it was too late. I hadn't.

[If Raidou hadn't been able to tell that he had been working with the traitor side-by-side the whole time, how would anyone else?]

I know that there is nothing I can do now. That I would be dead if LILITH had not intervened. But I... I can't stop thinking about it.

[His voice was almost a whisper on his last sentence. What might have happened to not just the Capital, but his colleagues and fellow summoners - his friends. Even the traitor hasn't left his mind.]

[Thought so. Bakugo turns the water off once it's 3/4 the way up the side of the tub, then drops his hand inside. Muffled explosions start up, taking more force and concentration to make them work underwater. It gives him something to do while listening to Raidou reveal his past. The "will" and "realize" comment suggests it was an immediate future concern.]

Of course you wouldn't be able to forget about that.

[The unknown and being dragged away at that critical time... How the hell did this place thing Raidou would react? To say nothing of that helpless feeling upon realizing there's no way back that they know if. Raidou speaking of his death resonates a lot harder with Bakugo than it might've otherwise.]

You're not going to be able to stop thinking about it. But shutting down and stuffing it away aren't going to help you either.

[He looks down in the water for a few seconds before turning his head to look up at Raidou.]

Unless you were dead when they pulled you, you don't know what could've happened. Death, defeat, loss, victory. The future's not made.

[He has no comment on his shutting down. His stony facade can't even be totally blamed on his work, though it's part of it. The other summoners in his life certainly aren't like him in that regard.

He looks back at Bakugo, his face weary. He nods at his assessment, though.]

I've considered that. I have no way of really knowing one way or another. I do know that I was betrayed, captured, and lost consciousness before waking here. I was their biggest obstacle, so I would assume they would not leave me alive.

[If Raidou ever found out that Abe Seimei didn't actually have the heart to go through with killing him, he wouldn't be as surprised as he thought he would be. Even if he turned out to be a traitor, he was quite fond of Raidou, as Raidou had been for him.]

My future is here now, for better or worse. I'm no longer a summoner, I shouldn't even be using this title or carrying that sword. It's just hard to... [He looks down at the floor.] I don't know how to move on yet.

[Bakugo isn't going to rip into him for that stone-faced shell. He's met enough people who act like that, though there's a difference between people who are quiet and serious and people who pretend they're immune to emotions and feel nothing.

Raidou's expression says a lot. The guy's exhausted for so many reasons.]

Assuming the worst only undermines your strength to stand. What kind of idiot walks into battle expecting to lose?

[Even if all the facts point to defeat (or death), the brave and determined will continue to fight to the very last breath. As stupid as it sounds, you're not dead until you die. Bakugo sends another runs of explosions through the water, causing it to boil and pop beneath his hands.]

Haa? Who the fuck said you're not? These assholes brought you here because you're strong. They didn't bring a bunch of trash that can't help them. [As much as he dislikes the kidnapping situation, so far he's not seen reason to think LILITH selected useless people to fight for them.] Keep your sword and title, Shashou. You're still a summoner even if you can't summon yet. Summoner, duelist, sorcerer, hero, these people can't take from you who you are.

[Bakugo lifts his hands from the water, leaving it steaming from the heat coursing through the bath.]

You don't have to move on. [Some people never do.] But you move forward by taking one step after another.

[He hesitates to add this, as he appreciates the things Bakugo is saying. He doesn't want to make it sound like he's wanting to continue wallowing in self-pity, but there's more to it than that.]

If I had somehow survived, there is a good chance I would have had my title and sword revoked due to my failure. Or worse.

[The Kuzunoha clan is not above execution for such extreme failures in duty.]

I know that they're not here, that... none of this applies here. My past doesn't matter to the people here, only what I do going forward. It's for their sakes that I'm trying.

[He's trying to convince himself of this still. But hearing it from others helps more than he realizes. He's not in this alone in this strange, overwhelming situation.

Still looking downward, he has one more thing to add.]

... Thank you. For this, and for hearing me out.

[It's an old fashioned world, far removed from Bakugo's own time. The things Raidou speaks of sound archaic and stupid, but those honor-bound severities aren't unheard of. Some people take failure very seriously. On pain of death, right?

But he's also not someone to continually encourage someone after giving them a reality-check smack on the head.]

Either accept your death, or fight to right your failure and atone for it.

[Those are Raidou's options. Even if he can't technically do either of those in this world, he can face his future with one of those decisions in mind. While it may not "apply" here, either his failure or his past, that's no excuse to abandon his past and pretend it doesn't affect him.

Nor is it an excuse not to learn from it and strive to do better in this world to prevent himself from making that kind of mistake again. Facets Bakugo already communicated to him. It's up to Raidou to pick those lessons out and apply them.]

Don't forget to try for your own sake too, dumbass.

[Even heroes are allowed to be selfish. Frustration over one's own failure isn't a sign of weakness or negative. It acknowledges a short coming and should be the showing of determination to improve. Not just for others, but for yourself.]

Yeah, yeah. Get in. It's gonna look pathetic if an Everlight's found frozen and sad in front of a window.

[Raidou finally looks up again.. Still weary, but at least a little more determined now.]

I'll try. ...I will.

[Sure, he still had to correct himself, but it's a good step. Sometimes you just need someone to help to push you in the right direction. Raidou smiles at that thought, nodding at Bakugo's last comment, and heads over to the bath.]

Alright. I'll be sure to stay in long enough to thaw out.

Hmph. Good. [As long as Raidou's going to make progress after today, Bakugo will consider it worth the annoyance. He's not suggesting Raidou break into smiles and say everything's fine. Just not to wallow in the past, wondering about what if's, if it's going to negatively affect his present.]

I'm gonna hang out here.

[And like last time, Bakugo sinks down with his back against the side of the tub, content to rest in the heated room. It's fucking cold out there and he's not eager to go back out into it. If it means he's opening himself up to more conversation, whatever. They have things to talk about that won't be annoying.]

If you want.

[No sense in saying "you don't have to", of course Bakugo wouldn't stick around if he didn't want to. Raidou didn't mind either way.

He slips into the water, a contented sigh as he lowers in. He's starting to feel a little spoiled, he thinks with a smile. Once settled, he speaks up again.]

Maybe it's your turn to talk.

[Raidou has probably talked more in this meeting than he has all week. He wasn't sure if he had any words left in him.]

[Raidou's learning how to navigate Bakugo's turbulent waters. He avoided a snap by not saying the other words. The blonde crosses his arms over his chest and slouches a bit, bracing a foot on the ground and throwing the other ankle over his bent knee to rest. He can warm the water up as Raidou needs.

Better not be telling other people about this... It's not some kind of damn service he's advertising.]

Tch. What do you want to know? [Small talk is not Bakugo's strong point. He doesn't usually like talking long winds in the first place. Would've been fine sitting in silence.]

[As if Raidou was a great conversationalist either. He's quiet for a few moments, tracing a hand over the surface of the water as he thinks of something.]

What do you think of life here? It's very different for me, but others seem more... adjusted to it. Is it similar to your home?

[Just when he thought he'd get away with sitting in quiet and reviewing articles on the network. But he dragged a lot out of Raidou. Guess it's not completely out of reason to give him something back...]

It's similar in some ways. [Raidou already knows well enough Bakugo hates the whole "kidnapped and forced" aspect of their lives right now. This freezing weather doesn't help either...] In my world, most people develop a superpower, called a Quirk, early in life. Some idiots think that means they can do whatever they want to anyone, regardless of the laws. That's why people chose to become heroes, those who uphold the law and use their Quirks to fight against villains and protect people from them.

[While monsters and kaiju aren't the same, the idea of protecting other people is. Obviously Bakugo's role as a hero and Raidou's role as a summoner are similar in the same "protecting" vein. Likely explains why the explosive blonde can resonate with the way Raidou's been feeling.]

Most people do?

[What a difference from his own world. What he wouldn't give to have more summoners on their side. But then again, more people with those kinds of abilities only opens up the possibility of more problems. A two-way street of an issue.

He nods.]

So you've traded villains for kaiju. I guess we'll see how things are really different when one eventually shows. [Since it's a matter of when, not if.]

Were you assigned a job here? They put me in the high school... senior year, so I already graduate in the spring. Synthia said it was in effort for me to "catch up" on life here.

[Honestly, not the worst idea the AI has had.]

Around 80% of the world. The other 20% are Quirkless.

[And they're not exactly treated the greatest within the hero society. While not abused (mostly) they're largely ignored unless they determine to make themselves great at some other element of hero society, like reporters, mechanics, and a host of other non-combatant fields that intelligent-yet-Quirkless people can fill. It's not a common happening, but not rare either.

Raidou's quick to two and two together.]

Yeah. Some villains can do similar damage to kaiju, but I'm waiting to see what these bastards bring.

[Especially if this world is now down to 30% of its population. Then again, if it's just people with limited tech and no superpowers, then that explains things? But the place is technologically advanced in a lot of areas... so that's questionable and brings the severity of the kaiju threat into major consideration.]

Pfft. [Enjoy that mocking scoffing noise and the smirk as Bakugou tilts his head back, looking at Raidou out the corner of one eye.] You're a high schooler? [How's he supposed to make a living with that "job" here?] Is it helpful or are you passing things easily? [He figures Raidou would have some kind of education if he was guarding the entirety of the Capitol in his world. Strong but dumb isn't going to be a good guardian...] I work on the police force.

[School has been tough. He did well enough back home, when he actually could make it to class. Unsurprisingly, he missed a lot due to his work. Another reason Synthia thought he needed some catch-up time.]

It's... strange. I have over 350 or so years to catch up on. School is here is very different... but everything is. I think I should be able to pass, though. I keep getting asked what I want to do after I graduate. I already work at the shrine after school most days, so I tell them that.

[Just wait til he gets sat down with a guidance counselor to talk about college. He'll have no idea what to do.

That side-eye is returned. A cop? Really?]

I see. Do you like it?

[That's not a fucking excuse. Bakugo and his class were in school for heroics and ended up having to deal with Pro Hero issues a number of times, but still had to make their classes, do their homework, and everything else. Though they were students first, heroes second... at least up until the war broke out. Raidou probably was Summoner first, student second.]

The fuck? You don't have to know everything that happened in 350 years! [History and major events, shit that is going to be different for people's different worlds. Hell, if he's learning this world's history, who's to say that's how Raidou's Earth would progress? Likely wouldn't.]

They're gonna pass you when you graduate in four months? [April. When Raidou just got here in December. How the fuck is that happening, unless the entire school thing was just a cover story.]

Do you want to work at a shrine full time? [DON'T STICK THIS GUY IN A FUCKING COLLEGE!! THERE'S GONNA BE MONSTERS SHOWING UP!! If that's on the intent, then do a damn internship or apprenticeship for a trade, dammit!]

It's the closest thing I have to being a hero back home. [They have police in Bakugo's world. It lets him use his Quirk, kick ass, use his brain, keep in shape, protect people, basically all the elements of an active life with his job.] You should look into it.

[While Bakugo won't immediately slap down Raidou going to university, he isn't sure if this place is going to offer the Summoner a salary for... going to school.]

Not necessarily just history, but, ah, technology, social mores, life... A lot is different here. [It's probably good that the socially awkward kid gets out there to meet people and know what it's like to be a (relatively) normal teen. However, the other kids in school don't know he isn't, which is why he gets all the questions about post-graduation plans.

He shrugs lightly at the shrine question.] I don't know. I'd probably be okay with it. I do like it there. It's... serene, and familiar. Not much different there than shrines in my time.

[At the suggestion of police work, Raidou's head tilts thoughtfully.] You know, my cover as the Capital's summoner was as a junior detective. I worked with a detective who gave me cover to investigate strange cases that were most likely caused by demons. [Not that it would be the case here, but still. He liked that work. He was good at it.] Maybe you're on to something. It's just hard to think about the future here, isn't it? Everything seems so uncertain with our missions coming up.

No shit. [But things like technology and social mores are more a given than something you'd learn in school. Unless they've got Raidou in Tech Education or Social Skills 101. He doesn't know what kind of classes they have in Neo Tokyo. Probably what to do in case of a Kaiju attack... While Bakugo won't dis Raidou for being getting the "normal" teen treatment, his world's certainly got a different view on what "normal" teens are. Especially since a lot of them are focused on heroes.

So the guy'd be fine working in a shrine? Then again, after living a life of a trained soldier, it's not hard to think Raidou would want to live in some peace for a while.] If that's what you wanna do.

[There's always the ass-kicking shrine worker trope. Kendo with a broom or killer shots with a bow. He glances to the side when Raidou perks a bit at the suggestion of police work.] You did detective work? [That's interesting. It piques Bakugo's distrust in LILITH as well. Hmph, as annoying as this guy can be, the explosive hero is finding more reasons to consider him an ally.] Thinking about the future gives you more reasons to survive the present.

[Fighting because you want to protect something, whether that's a person, a goal, an ideal, is far better than empty battling with no drive.]

Becoming a shrine priest comes with its own new set of hurdles, too. Not that becoming a detective wouldn't, but that might actually be easier.

[A private eye license versus priest training? LILITH might even be able to cover him for the former, too.]

I wouldn't be handling supernatural cases here, of course, but... I think I'd still enjoy the work.

[Sure, Raidou might be shy to talk to on a personal level, but when he's on a case, things are different. Business is business.

He takes a moment to think while he rinses his hair.]

I suppose I have a little longer to think on it, but not too much.

It's up to you. There's a ton of other options to look at.

[Many other jobs, many other opportunities. Raidou could serve in a vast number of different places, in a vast number of fields. But it wouldn't be unwise to look for something that suited his personality, his preferences, and his skillset. Bakugo doesn't intend to direct him one way or another, merely to offer the option he might not have considered before.

Listening to him mull it over aloud in the bath reminds him of Midoriya, though without the incessant mumbling at high speeds with ridiculous details. He scoffs slightly at the notion of supernatural cases. Mostly because just the other day, he had to go tackle toxic plant monsters in the sewer. There's a high chance Raidou might find himself in "supernatural" issues later on.]

Unless this world suddenly vanquishes all its kaiju problems in another month or two, you'll have plenty of time.

That's true. Until now, though... I never needed to consider other options. I wouldn't have wanted them anyway.

[He was proud to be a summoner. He worked hard his entire life to get where he was. Why would he consider anything else?

He runs a hand over the quickly cooling water, nodding lightly.]

Right. I suppose I do. Kaiju or not, this is home now. Once we settle in more, once we have our first real mission... I can spend more time thinking about these things.

▶ 001. GET ALONG PROMPT

▶ 002. TEAM ACTIVITIES.

▶ 003. IT ISN'T OVER YET.

▶ 004. AFTERWORD.

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