It's a beautiful day in the village - TAKE A LOAD OFF, LOG 1

[libraryassistants]

Who: Readers and Actors
What: Beta Story Start - At the start of any particular Story, characters will be drawn to a section of the Stacks. Those inclined to resist will find themselves there anyway, through the shifts and changes inherent to the Library's structure. The Story manuscript will be laid out neatly on a side table, its pages lit by a faint aura that draws focus and beckons insistently to the Editors. Touching it will bring them into the Story.
Characters can either voluntarily touch the Story to enter it, or the Librarian will eventually sweep them in. Regardless of how long it takes them to enter, everyone will arrive at the same point in time.
When: November 14- November 27
Where: Woodhurst (UK) and the SS Radiance (in space!), 2019
Content warnings: Please tag warnings in comment headers!

In Woodhurst

It’s another Monday morning in Woodhurst, and as is often the case for the United Kingdom in the fall, it is raining. It is, all in all, a rather typical Monday morning. People shuffle off to work, dropping by the various cafes and shops for their morning caffeine. Polite (if meaningless) greetings are exchanged, vague comments about the weather are made. Heads down, trudging along, just keeping things going.

By midday, it’s clear that this Monday is a little bit… different. There are some people who seem especially cheerful and helpful. Perhaps you’ve just been served a free upsize of your morning coffee. Or a stranger held an umbrella up for you. People keep talking about the benefits of yoga? And it’s not just a bunch of people seeming to be having an especially good day and paying it forward (that would be strange enough). Some of your friends and loved ones aren’t acting like themselves, aside from being remarkably cheerful. They don’t seem to remember basic things, don’t know their normal rituals, and are generally just very off. You think one of them might have blinked sideways? Whatever it is that’s happened, it doesn’t seem right.

As for those ‘friends and loved ones’… The novices from the Interstellar Group are largely inexperienced with such a thing as covert operations. Fresh off the ship and with no frame of reference, their human disguises may have a few significant flaws.

However many fingers it is they have, they’re keen to help - perhaps a little too much so. Whatever it takes to make these human lives easier, whatever they can do to help them relax - the Group are on it! Hopefully they’ll catch on quietly.


On the IMW Group Supply Ship: Radiance

No plan survives contact with the enemy, is how the saying goes. But within the Interstellar Mindfulness & Wellness Group, the concept is usually applied to patients. Patients are, almost entirely across the board, unpredictable creatures - and while the science behind wellness is robust, there’s simply too much individual variation for a standardised approach. That being said, this particular plan seems to be going… rather more poorly than expected. It starts to break down once the word ‘kidnapping’ is brought up. It’s such an ugly word to use. The Group tries to avoid it. But in some of these cases, the humans need the Group’s own facilities! The idea was to convince the humans to follow them to a very not suspicious space capsule, or to get them to touch this particularly strange teleportation device, and they’d be on their way to recovery. However, most if not all the humans seem to be reacting… quite negatively to that. It’s almost like they don’t understand that this is for their benefit!

The ship is very nice, and perfectly designed to relax and comfort (--for the species the Group are familiar with, at least). Soothing music plays along the spaceship’s halls, which are lit in a soft violet glow. Potted plants are artfully displayed, though none of them are recognisable as any species found on Earth. For those with a sensitive nose, the flowers give off a bright, delicate scent; not unlike that of lavender and lemon myrtle. An entire stretch of glass is dedicated to the view outside, the Earth looking so serene from this distance; stars shining in the space around it.

For those Aliens aboard the mothership, maybe you’re delivering this hour’s yoga session. Maybe you’re leading a group chant or meditation. Are you perhaps talking humans into resting in the healing spa, or - for those so inclined - are you delving deeper, forming a connection, and really getting to know these humans? For the humans… well, at least the spa looks really nice, right?

[Space Spa Features:
Yoga - you’ve been herded into a room where a flexible alien encourages you to breathe deeply; holding it in your stomach and feeling your heart beat before letting it out in a big sigh. The routine is not very different to yoga on Earth, except… well, if you can’t find your proboscis, maybe that particular pose won’t work for you.
Sauna - the heat promotes circulation, but the temperature in here seems to be a little off.
Spa - you know what a spa is. Or, you thought you did. It looks like the aliens aren’t quite on the same page. Where there would normally be cucumbers, there’s a strange pink fruit. Where you’d expect water, there’s… a viscous fluid, gently rotating through a myriad of colours, that seems to soften and soothe your muscles as you soak in it.
And Others - the aliens have no shortage of remedies for what ails you! Since this is their first time experiencing humans, results may vary.]


Optional prompts (player-run):
An alien adrift, unsure what task to complete? Seek guidance from your leader.

In Woodhurst, unnerved and skeptical? Drop in at your local seedy bookshop to chat with some alien enthusiasts.

[Have a plan to drive the Story direction? Let us know, and we’ll add it to the list!

Info post can be found here.]

Comments

Shadow (Prime) | Actor (human)

[ultimateedgehog]

[the Stacks, before the Story]
Shadow the hedgehog finds himself by the open book before he's aware his feet have carried him there. He gets so far as a hand raised, reaching toward the book -- before he realises what he's doing and jerks back, quills bristling and eyes momentarily shocked; their usual ruddy brown quickly gleaming to a sharp red glare.

"What is this." He hates it. The draw, the pull. The coaxing feeling to touch the book, that shimmering aura of power. Even now his arm is twitching with the urge to reach out. (His hands curl into tight, rebellious fists by his sides; teeth grit hard in a snarl. He'd rather destroy the book than touch it.) "This compulsion -- how are they powering this?"

And how does he turn it off.

[Woodhurst - General]
Nobody escapes the Story's pull. However it happened - whether he went willingly or whether the Librarian had to shove him in - Shadow is here now. He'll blow up about it later.

But for right now... Shadow the human is a regular sight around Woodhurst. You'll hear the sound of his skates before you see him, the rolling of something hard against asphalt or concrete. He's not polite as he speeds by, wireless earphones blocking out any protests as he hops the curb to dodge traffic (pedestrian or otherwise).

There are plenty of opportunities to catch him. Stalled by a crowd or waiting in line for his coffee. Unlacing his skates outside the grocery store. Yanking down the roof access ladder of the abandoned video rental shop, or hanging out at the skate park.

Or, perhaps-

[At the Dream Palace]
Randy has a strict rule about Shadow's skates, which starts and ends with "no". So the teen stomps around in Heeleys instead, gliding along the polished floor whenever he thinks he'll get away with it. (Which is, let's be real: all the time.)

Shadow doesn't wear a uniform, or a lanyard, or even a badge to identify him as being staff. The most customer service you'll get out of him is when you pick up a book in his line of sight, and he scoffs at the choice. Given the shirt he's wearing - something that can aptly be described as three wolf moon but aliens - it's pretty clear he has a lot of Opinions about this stuff.

Eventually, he may slide by (literally; the plastic wheels of his shoes are rather quiet on the hardwood floors) and thrust a book out to the browsing customer. Aliens Among Us, the title reads. Additional text is splashed across the cover, proclaiming it to be: A definitive guide to the extraterrestrial.

"You'll need this," he says. Dead serious about his offering.

Tony Hawk’s Existential Nightmare

[shelloflight]

Oi Shadow, catch!

[And Mitch - as Michiko has never objected to being called - tosses a head-sized object right at him.

It’s a helmet. A motorcycle helmet, in fact, in black, with racing stripes in the teal, pink and gold of Star Aria’s Free World’s Alliance ending in the starburst on the sides - but also with a phoenix emblem trailing flames on the back. The legend “PHOENIX 01 - Xavier - SHADOW” is stenciled on the front.]

Wanted to keep you safe while you’re catching air without cramping your style. Now you can pretend you’re blasting Cydonian sand rats in a Starhawk.

…d’ya like it?

[ultimateedgehog]

[Catch it he does! Skidding to a cool stop with a sharp slide, snatching the helmet out of the air before he realises what the projectile is.

He blinks at it for a moment, turning it over in his hands. Taking in every detail. The colours aren't his first choice, or even his second or third. They're too bright for him, the starburst too cheerful. The phoenix too powerful an image. It doesn't fit at all with the leather strapped around his wrists, or the red streaks in his hair, or the generally 'black and alien' aesthetic he rocks.

He nods once anyway, a short - curt, but genuine - gesture. He's never getting rid of it, he's keeping this forever. Except--]

Just 'Shadow'. [He turns the helmet around to face her, finger touching the Xavier. Of everything about the helmet that doesn't suit his usual preferences, that's his only objection. He'll ride or die anything else Mitch gives him.] Can you fix it?

[shelloflight]

Easily.

[She whips some black gaffer tape out of her backpack, presses it over the offending name, rips it off.]

I'm not the only one sick of the wrong name today, eh?

[ultimateedgehog]

[He hums a short and non-committal agreement, satisfied with the update to the helmet.]

Hold onto this until next time? I don't have my bag.

[And he's already wearing the kit she gave him previously - true to his word, he's been dutifully strapping it on whenever he hits the skate park.]

[shelloflight]

Can do.

Any new tricks? Seen any flying objects you couldn't identify?

[Does she believe in aliens? Yes. Does she believe they're anything like the ones on Shadow's shirt, or the ones from the mental theories he keeps talking about? No.]

[Closed to the Shadows]

[ultimateedgehog]

[Midnight at the abandoned video store is one of Shadow's favourite places to be. It's quiet out here, and only one person ever comes looking for him. It leaves him free to wait for a clear sky, or to play old videos on the VCR that was left behind as part of the store's display. Not valuable enough to remove or sell, left behind to languish with the cassettes.

It's such a familiar place that he could navigate it with his eyes closed. It's one of the few places he can't skate, the old carpet sticking messily in any wheels, so he's forced to - ugh, walk along the aisles to find the tape he's looking for. ('Looking' is such a word. He knows where it is. He's the one who keeps putting it back there.) And it's that familiarity that makes something about tonight ring as weird, something prickling the hairs on the back of his neck. It's overcast outside, and the only light inside is from the static of the TV screen that he's hooked up to a portable generator. It casts an eerie glow over the shelves, that normally Shadow is fine with--

--but was that a shadow that just flickered on the corner of a shelf? He jerks his head to look, but there is, of course, nothing. He's being paranoid.

...but the locks on these doors haven't worked for years. He's only been here for maybe two minutes. He certainly didn't bother checking every aisle to see if someone else had discovered the goldmine his haunt is, at this late hour of just past midnight.

Hand curling into a fist, he takes a cautious step towards the corner of the aisle. Heart hammering. If it's Charles about to spook him with more ghost stories, swear to God--]

[thelightshines]

[All things are as they should be at the front end of the store. It's the back end that might feel like...they may not be the only one here. It could just be the rodents or critters scuttling about though. Run down places like these do attract those kinds of company.

But critters don't speak in a muffled voice that sound vaguely human, and yet not. Behind one of the back doors that should be locked, that voice is coming from behind it.

Zarnex was here under the impression no one would come to an abandon human establishment, threatening to possibly collapse one day. An ideal spot to log his findings for the day and relay it to his people. Humans are...well, a disorganized society. They tend to look out for themselves, even when helping others would benefit them as a whole. It could just be the location he's chosen, but they are very independent thinkers, which interestingly lead to a variety of life here. But also decision making from the higher up tends to take an egregious amount of time. No wonder they're so dispassionate outside of their daily lives.

He could do with less of this rain too. Ugh.]

[ultimateedgehog]

[These flickering shadows really have him on edge. There's nothing around the corner of the aisle, but he can't breathe a sigh of relief. Dammit Charles, he can't stop thinking about ghosts now. He hasn't put a video on yet, but he swears he can hear -- a voice? Muffled and quiet, easily missed if not for his paranoid checking.

It's not like this is Shadow's store. But he's still a bit possessive over it, indignant that someone else would come here. (And, Jesus - does the wind have to blow that hard outside? The way it's rattling the doors almost made him jump out of his skin.)

Having had enough, he whirls on the door to the back room with a scowl. The door that should be locked, but unless he's going crazy - is the one he thinks he heard something from.]

Who's there? [He's very demanding, for being in an abandoned store at midnight, confronting a stranger while holding no weapon. The hubris is strong with this one.]

[thelightshines]

[Ah frak. Humans and their rebellous nature of ignoring warning signs. It's already too late, but he's stopping everything he's doing to wait, listen. He starts to put away his devices with some convinient alien hammerspace. Eyes glance at the door as he moves to stand.

How does he look? He fixes himself before looking around to find an alternative route out of this room. There is none, unless he dares to go through the dirty vents. Ugh.]

[ultimateedgehog]

[He's still, and silent, for a long moment. Listening hard. But all he can hear now is that damn wind outside, and the patter of rain starting to fall fresh on the pavement.

This is stupid, he grouses to himself. He's not scared of a muffled voice in the dark. There's probably not even anyone back there. And he'll prove it to himself by---

...ah, crap. The door is unlocked, he finds, when he reaches out to grasp it. It turns easily under his hand, and Shadow has a moment of oh shit that seizes his chest. But he's committed. Converting the startled rattling of adrenaline into a solid scowl as he roughly pushes the door open.

It's dark. Shadow himself is backlit by the flickering static from the TV screen in the main shop area, casting enough of a glow for him to make out a person but not their precise features. Not that he needs to see them properly to issue a stern:]

What are you doing here?

[--as if he, himself, is not trespassing.]

Dream Palace

[bestofall]

It may not look it, from the way this random tourist appears wholly absorbed in the titles on the shelves, but Festival's been paying much more mind to the humans in this shop than to the wares. So it is he's not startled by the young man's appearance, though he does eye the title of the book with some mild confusion.

"Of course," he agrees, taking it anyhow before asking, "Wherever did you get those marvelous shoes? I'll be needing a pair of those as well."

[ultimateedgehog]

The teen blinks, like that is not the question he expected, and glances down at his shoes before looking back to the customer and raising an eyebrow.

"Internet." He says shortly. "They don't stock them around here. ...Not enough of a customer base."

And that's him eyeing the stranger's feet now, trying to gauge what size they are. He's not above selling one of the many pairs he's accumulated, if the guy really is serious about it.

[bestofall]

"The what?" asks Festival all but automatically, the word internet entirely novel to him. That's probably not the right answer, though, so he hurries on: "I mean, what is wrong with people here if there's no customer base for wheeled shoes?"

As for his feet, they're dainty little things--he's a pretty dainty little man in general.

[ultimateedgehog]

Is this guy hard of hearing or what. Shadow's mouth opens to automatically answer the what question, and closes it again when the man hurries on. Okay, weirdo, whatever.

He finds himself nodding in agreement though. And hey, Shadow's pretty sure he's got a pair that came in too small for him - they might fit this man's smaller feet.

"I might have something. Come with me." And he's just gonna scoot off through the store, to a curtain that hides a set of staircases and a small kitchen from view.

He'll set off up the staircase, the walls lined with alien-themed paraphernalia. Fully expecting the stranger to just, y'know. Follow. What is stranger danger?

please feel free to ignore if this is too crusty

[bestofall]

"Might you?"

He's quite excited about the possibility, excited enough to follow this young stranger wherever he might lead. The curtain gets a curious look--too curious, from one who's never seen anything like the creatures depicted on it (nor such quality and detail in a tapestry!).

Of course, his pause may be mistaken for a case of him feeling stranger danger--at least, until he gets over it and comes jogging lightly up the steps behind Shadow.

Dream palace

[angel_of_baal]

Tsang's human disguise is inscrutable. That's the word, right? For when something is absolutely flawless! What could be more average than the jeans/hoodie/manbun/beanie combo look?

It had gotten so confident it how inscrutable this disguise was that it was outright MINGLING.

And look how well it's going. It's being offered GIFTS! Tsang gladly takes the offered book.

Uh. "H-how did you know?" Perhaps its humanflage was...scrutable?

[ultimateedgehog]

His biggest question is why there's a hipster here, but Shadow's not allowed to cast aspersions on customers any more. (Something about it being 'bad for business'.)

Everyone knows about Woodhurst having been an alleged alien landing site, years ago. In Shadow's view, it's the only reason they ever get tourists. So:

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Shadow's narrowed eyes could easily be taken as a glare. He's actually just being incredibly serious. "Why else would you be here. If you're going to stick around, you should know what to keep an eye out for."

[angel_of_baal]

If Tsang had prepared better, it would have brought flyers for the drum circle it was holding later tonight. That was why it was in the shop.

It looks alarmed at the 'it's obvious'. Oh, no, busted?

Oh wait, no. Whew. Its shoulders visible relaxed. "Yes, so obvious. That's why I'm here." It's not entirely a lie?

It thumbs through the book, because it is time for Conversation. "Have you ever had any...encounters?" As the book called them.

[ultimateedgehog]

A shame Tsang didn't bring the flyers - Shadow would have actually shown up.

There's a glint of suspicion in his gaze when the man looks weirdly alarmed and then relaxes. Shadow is always half a thought away from linking things to an alien conspiracy, and right now is no exception.

"Too many to count. Woodhurst is a hotspot for activity." It is not, and the things Shadow's thinking of as encounters actually do not count. As it looks through the book, it will see that there's information in there that shouldn't be - things that a planet without 'first contact' shouldn't know. "You?"

[angel_of_baal]

Everyone can come to the fake drum circle to get therapynapped!

"That's exciting that everyone is so open minded here."

But Tsang is of course, not at all suspicious, and doing the best job passing as human. It entirely misunderstands that the book Shadow is pointing at and the question aren't quite related. "Me? Oh, this is my first time." Right now, having an experience with an alien species. It's so exciting!

Dream Palace

[fearinahandfulof]

Are those supposed to be yoma on his shirt?

...Are they sickly?

Cassandra looks at the proffered item and frowns. "Why?"

[ultimateedgehog]

"It's the most decent guide we have in this place." He's not joking. With an incline of his head, Shadow indicates the rows of books nearby that proclaim to be full of 'facts'. He does not think highly of any of them. "Don't bother with any of those. The old man ordered them as some sort of joke."

[fearinahandfulof]

"A joke?"

[ultimateedgehog]

He nods shortly, a sour look crossing his face.

"He does it to piss me off."

The look turns calculating then, eyeing her for a moment. Usually the tourists they get into this store are well-versed with the part of Woodhurst lore that Shadow's all about. Gesturing to the book in his hand -

"Do you really not know what you're getting into?"