ioduanlogs | Fear is the brightest of signs

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Fear is the brightest of signs | February Catchall; open

Characters: Pepper Potts, Devin Parker, and you!
Date: Throughout February
Location: Around Aifaran
Situation: Pepper and Devin are both exploring the city and getting jobs, albeit in very different fashions. The vampire continues to be snippy.
Warnings/Rating: None yet; will add as needed.

A. [Pepper] Verdant Sentry | Early February | Open

Now that things are settling down, Pepper needs to find a job. She's naturally drawn to law-enforcement, and while the Verdant Sentry has some aspects of it that are definitely militaristic, they still remind her of SHIELD (minus some of the more problematic aspects). For the time being, at least, they're definitely where her skill-set is most applicable. They don't seem immediately convinced by her resume, even when she tells them about the power armor. Still, they're not turning her down for joining, but skipping some training she already has may not be happening.

It's possible that she shouldn't try to help out on every patrol she sees. The eagerness gets tamped down some after the first week of February, and Pepper settles for studying how the Sentry operates as well as hitting the books.

B. [Pepper] Dreaming Bridge/Opara Core | Mid February | Open

So, Pepper is a natural phone user, and the yimo is absolutely awesome. Aifaran doesn't quite have the internet, but things like Xa Xa and the other aspects of the Lae Shunjai are super cool, and she wastes no time in trying them. She even snaps a few shots from the air when she's in her armor, which are suddenly hugely popular.

And then, mysteriously, her Xa Xa account seems to have disappeared, which is a Problem. She spends a little time trying to figure it out before going to ask for help from the Dreaming Bridge staff, who will probably just tell her to contact tech support. It's not a bad idea to know where the Opara Core is, anyway, so even if she doesn't need to attend to the issue in person, she's going to find a map and figure out how to get there.

C. [Pepper] Aifaran Cafe | Early February | Bakura

In Keeliai, Pepper and Bakura had a few favorite locations to get food, like one that made crepes. Now in Aifaran, they don't have any favorites anymore, and testing out places to try new food seems like a great way to learn the city. There's no shortage of cafes, and they got some recommendations from the Dreaming Bridge about where to go. Until they both have jobs, they'll have to be especially considerate about spending, but they could go somewhere casual.

"How's your roommate working out?"

D. [Devin] Central Ioduan Academy | Early February | Open

Devin is glad that the city he's ended up in this time is larger. Not as big as some, and not as large as he might like, but it's big enough that he can blend in more easily. It will make it simpler to disappear when he feels like it, even if departing entirely is ill-advised. He has certain needs that smaller settlements may not be able to support - or would simple refuse to, not that he would blame them. Staying here means he needs to find a job, however, and he's not interested in law enforcement again. Too busy, too structured. He's been in the military before, and he's not in the mood. The only thing he really enjoys is books, so he heads to the most sizable one in the city, at the Ioduan Academy. He doesn't expect to be given a high ranking position; that's not important. The rest of the Academy looks interesting, too, so he spends a little time exploring the campus.

E. [Devin] Aifaran Piers | Throughout February | Open

Devin is brooding. There's really no other word for it. As little time as possible is spent at the Dreaming Bridge, because he'll have to deal with his roommates. When he's not working or wandering the city learning its streets, he's found an old pier by the water that no longer sees commercial use. The wood is weathered and beaten, but still sturdy enough to support pedestrians. Someone set up a bench at one end of it, and Devin can sometimes be found there taking notes in a journal or reading a book. He may or may not be up for conversation.

(OOC: Let me know if you want a specific starter or feel free to write your own!)

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[Unfortunately, Devin might have to deal with his roommates regardless. Padparadscha's found by the ocean to be a good place to think, considering it's one of the few things familiar to them in a world like this, and since they can't risk getting too close to the water just yet, the pier is an ideal place to go.

It seems like there's someone else there today, though, and the gem smiles slightly as they recognise one of their companions.]

Ah, so you're the bookkeeping type, huh? [They nod to the journal, stretching arms above their head and enjoying the feeling of the wind and sunlight.]

[Great. Company. Company that knows him. This is exactly what he doesn't want right now, and so Devin does not look up from his journal.]

I find books are better company than most people. Keeping notes is part of how I learn places.

Opara Core...

Ursula has mixed feelings about the high technology available through Opara Core. On the one hand, she finds that her Yami is so useful. She can get live updates on the happenings in her new home easily. She can -- even though she has not used it for such, yet -- communicate remotely. The fact that it reminds her of a phone reminds her of home, and that is wonderful. And yet, that is also the problem.

Because technology, especially mixed and matched in an environment that has magic, reminds her of someone else. Her eyes are almost sad as she stares up at the building -- until she thinks better of letting that show. She slides her glasses up, with her finger, and they glint. The glasses hide her eyes and the mask tightens.

Which is when she spots Pepper, though she couldn't say whether she is coming and going. Ursula smiles, then lifts a hand in a wave. "Oh, hello! Looking at what they have to offer here?"

Well, well, I can't really fault that one. Books are a lot quieter. [Said with the tone of someone probably entirely aware Devin was seeking peace and quiet in coming out here.] That's a good idea. It's pretty rare for people like me to forget things, but there's a lot of new information to keep track of, huh?

[That and if they lose any pieces here, it could definitely help jog their memory. It's sounding like a better idea the more they consider it.]

Pepper is also looking at the Core building intently, taking a few moments to simply absorb it before she was going to march in and get some assistance. She catches the wave out of the corner of her eye, turning that direction and smiling back.

"Not exactly." The redhead holds up her yimo, shaking it a little. "Technical problems. My Xa Xa account got eaten by a grue or something, and the Dreaming Bridge people told me to come here to fix it." She offers her hand. "I'm Pepper. What about you, just checking out the place?"

Yes, they don't interrupt you when you don't want to be.

[Books also didn't hurt you or abandon you, but stating that aloud was too personal. Devin gives the Gem a slightly annoyed glance before returning his gaze to the paper.]

It's a blank slate, even for those of us who have been to this world before. Not everyone considers that a good thing.

"Mm-hm. I'm still getting accustomed to this place. And this... well, it reminds me, somewhat, of back home." It reminds her of mobile phones and other modern accessories that weren't allowed at Luna Nova. She had one, but she was a teacher; even then, she just preferred the ability to use her magic for those things.

She shakes Pepper's hand, firmly. "Ursula Callistis," she says. "Your Xa Xa account was eaten by a... grue?" She asks it, head tilted. "Is that a local creature?"

[That just makes Padparadscha laugh a little.] Ah, well, I find leaving people to their own devices can lead to unexpected things a lot.

[It doesn't mean they intercede very often, but it does mean they're keeping an eye out for this sort of behaviour when they can, especially in the wake of what happened with Phos.

As for whether it's a good or bad thing, they just shrug.] Since I wasn't here before, I don't mind the blank slate, since it's less of an advantage to bridge. But losing that advantage must feel a little annoying, right?

[The idea that his roommate is somehow checking up on him is not especially pleasing. He hasn't exactly given the Gem a reason to care.

The pen pauses over the journal.]

Not exactly. I don't mind getting to know a new city in principle. No, I was simply rather busy in my native world, and I had asked to leave this one. [The vampire gestures around them.] Yet, here I am, back again. I don't have time for a vacation.

[And yet, he's taking one forcibly anyway, until the turtles see fit to send him home once more.]

[So, another one dissatisfied with being returned here. Padparadscha's been hearing that opinion a lot lately, enough that they don't seem at all surprised to hear it again. A slight smile pulls at their mouth, but there's something musing about it.]

There's a lot of you like that, isn't there? I wonder what the significance of it is, that you've all been brought back around to this place after just a little while gone.

[Whether they mean the five hundred years that passed in this world or whatever time did for them in their own worlds, it's hard to tell, but the result is the same.]

(Bakura is less concerned about stretching the stipend that the Dreaming Bridge had allocated him than Pepper might be.)

"I haven't spoken to him that much," the thief acknowledged. "And now there is a new one, whom I haven't met." Their schedules had apparently not crossed, which didn't bother Bakura that much. "I'd almost say it was nostalgic having housemates again, like when there were soul lanterns, but that'd imply I missed something about it before."

In defense to former housemates, they hadn't all been bad. Costigan at least had been entertaining, if short-tempered. But it had been during that time frame where Malicant had made his first major play, and Bakura had no wish to relive anything from that era.

Pepper can't help but laugh, shaking her head. "No, sorry, it's just a saying where I'm from. I think it's a reference from a video game or something," she explains. "Grues aren't real. Well, probably."

Anything was possible, really. Maybe they didn't exist in her world, but a grue might be native to another.

"It's kinda pretty, for a big tech building," Pepper remarks, glancing back at the way the building tiles shimmer slightly. "Not quite skyscraper-y, but it reminds me of them. Wanna go in?"

[Devin's eyebrows go up, and he finally raises his head to look at Padparadscha.]

A handful. Twenty or so, not more. I wouldn't call more than five hundred sixty years a 'little while', either - most people would be dead many times over in that time.

Tu Vishan got us lost in the Dreaming, somehow, or the Dreaming decided to yank us around once more. We'll probably never find out why it spit us back out just now. Trying to figure it out is a waste of energy.

Ah, right. A long while, then. [Padparadscha doesn't sound particularly convinced of that, but for the purposes of a peaceful conversation - and because it probably is a long time for living things, they're just not used to it.]

What is "the Dreaming", actually? It's obviously why they call us Dreamfolk, but I haven't really heard anyone talk about it like that.

[Tu Vishan they have heard mentioned, so they don't chase after that particular bit of information.]

"Never say never!" Ursula says, with a knowing smile. After all, she reasons, creatures like that must have their origins somewhere. (She doesn't know about how such things could be brought into existence, here, the way that Dreamers are.)

She looks back up at the building, though. Her brow furrows for a moment -- and then she looks sideways at Pepper. "Let's!" she says. "I admit, I didn't get much time to look around before. And I'm curious how they fix these machines."

(Pepper's trying not to think about why that is :P)

"Well, at least it's not a complete pain and you aren't on a lantern leash any longer. Leo and Eve are nice, but I do miss having my own space. I guess this is sort of what it's like to live in college dorms, though, so maybe I should get used to it," she considered, amusement in her tone. Her expression turned a shade more serious after that, though still fond. "Or, you know, look for a place together, when we can afford it."

She'd lived with Tony and Gene at the house in Keeliai, but that didn't mean she had to find a place with them again, and Pepper had pretty effectively started to move into the dojo by the time they were transplanted in the Dreaming.

[Time is relative depending on your lifespan; given how long Devin is probably going to be around, 500 years may not seem all that long someday.]

It's one of the three planes that makes up this place: Life, Death, Dreaming. The Dreaming is how we get here, and it's responsible for some of the weirder things that happen in this world. [A skeptical look.] Did they not explain that to you at the Dreaming Bridge? Someone needs to do a better job of onboarding.

[Padparadscha listens closely to that - obviously death is much more significant here than it was in their world too, if it's an entire plane of its own. When he makes the comment about the Bridge, though, they just laugh a little and shrug.]

I had a few other more pressing things to ask about first, so it was probably lost in the explanations. This world is almost nothing like mine even in the basics.

"Especially here," Pepper agrees. "This world is pretty much the place for impossible things to become possible."

Sometimes that was terrifying, sometimes that was awesome, sometimes it was bittersweet. The Dreaming was a strange force, and you could never really say what was going to happen next.

"Probably depends on how the machines are broken," she says, laughter in her tone and gesturing up the steps. They're low and wide, simple like the face of the Opara Core itself. "Back home, IT help can get the short end of the stick and it can be a sucky customer service job, so hopefully this isn't a super annoying thing to fix," Pepper adds, frowning at her yimo.

Someone leaving the core holds a door open for them, and the lobby area inside is bustling. A few desks and some reasonably helpful signage suggests that it won't be too hard to figure out how to get some assistance. The decor is about as simple as facade. "Well, they seem to subscribe to the function over form philosophy," she remarks, looking around at everything intently.

[Devin gives the slightest of hmphs, but it's not disagreement. He'd been pretty distracted himself upon his arrival.]

You seem to be dealing with it alright. [He scribbles something in the journal.] Other than the preponderance of living things, what's so different?

[There's a shade of academic curiosity in his tone. If Padparadscha is going to insist on interrupting him, Devin may as well learn something.]

[Padparadscha can recognise that much, at least, and they give a faint smile.] Well, start with the fact that where I lived was only a small island. We could cross it within about half a day, or maybe less. So a city this big says that there's much more of a world out there to learn about than what I once knew.

[It's more than just that, but the matter of scale is still a good start. Even the moon colony hadn't seemed this large.]

"I've noticed that. Though... I wonder," Ursula says, with a slight smile. "I'd like to test that sometime!"

Perhaps it is hard to take the magic away from a witch's instincts.

Ursula follows her in, and she looks around as they step through the door. A bustling lobby, and it seems quite impressive at a glance; enough to draw a long look and an appreciative whistle from the witch. She places her hands on her hips, and then she nods her head once to what she says. "It seems so -- and I certainly hope not. I had a..."

She thinks of Croix.

"...acquaintance," she says, after a pause. "She was good with technology. But... she made things a little, ah, more stylish."

[That does put things in perspective somewhat.]

It's quite large, yes. This is actually small, as the continents go. Or went. Some of them haven't fared well over the past few centuries. [He frowns slightly in thought.] Did you have no way to leave the island? Was that the only landmass on your world?

Pepper grins slyly. If Ursula likes pushing boundaries, she and Pepper are probably going to get on swimmingly.

"Yeah? That's cool. My friend Tony is an engineer and a genius, and mostly he's about just making insanely awesome tech, but sometimes that lines up with it looking really good, too," she remarks. Since there's no rush to really get the account problem fixed right this second, they can linger and absorb the comings and goings while they chat. "What kind of things would she make?"

As far as we knew. We had enough troubles there, so it was safer for us to just remain where we were. [Nobody had ever indicated the existence of other land, especially since the ocean had taken over the planet after the last comets fell anyway. It seemed safe to assume.]

I don't regret it, but it means something like this is a bit of a shock to the system. But you say there are larger ones still?

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Fear is the brightest of signs | February Catchall; open

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