Viva La Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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vivalaooc2024-07-31 09:00 pm
vivalamods) wrote in vivalaooc2024-07-31 09:00 pm
Entry tags:
TDM #2
TEST DRIVE #2
The day begins as any other, you’re going about your day, living your life, when, without warning, you feel the world around you shift on its axis. You feel a great tear, welling from the depths of your soul as you are ripped from all you have known. If you’re lucky, you arrive in the wilderness of an unfamiliar world, where the language is foreign and the people are hostile. To make your escape, you must learn some language, flee, and occasionally fight, all to find your way off the floating isles you find yourself on and to the great ocean below, where rebel forces will welcome you.
If you’re unlucky, you materialize within a room full of armed guards and are quickly subdued with charged nets, stripped of your belongings, fitted with strange devices that suppress your powers and pressed into servitude. Your days are unimaginable pain and toil.
Fortunately, even in this world, there is still hope. For the denizens of this world have not given up. And it is for that dream of salvation that the Crimson Corsairs raise their flags and sail - for liberation. Perhaps you are one who has lived their entire life under the oppressive yoke of the Empire. Perhaps you have seen first hand your family and friends cut down by nobles hunting men for sport, or perhaps you have run afoul with the church and barely escaped with your life. No matter your origin, the Corsairs sail for you, for your freedom, for your life. And today, a taste of freedom will be won for all.
ARRIVAL/LIBERATION
The Corsairs are flush with victory over the Hesaeth labor camp. A mining operation formerly under control of the Empire, this strategic victory will give the Corsairs access to desperately needed materials to build weapons and war machines. The former members of the labor camp are being quickly evacuated - packed onto ships and taken to the floating city of Flotsam for a hot meal and integration into the broader organization.
Many of the prisoners were armed ahead of the fight and took part in the rebellion themselves, while many others were whisked away by rescuers so their injuries could be treated. The mines were a harsh life, but for now, at least, the former workers are free. The mess hall of Flotsam rings out in merriment as the new arrivals are fed and clothed, but for those who took part in the fighting, they may do well to seek out their assigned berths… assuming they can find much of anything. Flotsam is many things, but organized and constant it is not.
THE TRIALS AHEAD
With the Hesaeth mining camp now under Corsair control, the arduous task of staffing and defending it now falls to them. Engineers and tacticians are convening in the Vault to discuss matters and make plans. Staff assignments, escape routes, potentially rigging the entire site with explosives, nothing is off the table. The Corsairs know that their victory will be short-lived, the Empire can crush a static operation with the full might of their army should they so choose. But so long as they hold it, the Corsairs must plan to use it. And when the time comes that the Empire attacks, they must do everything in their power to get as many people as they can out alive.
Scholars are going to be especially busy as schematics are being passed through the building. Every ounce of knowledge stored in the Vault’s considerable archive is being turned to this project, so meetings are frequent between committees and subcommittees as the Corsairs quickly and (mostly) efficiently prepare and execute a plan to secure the site and get it operational in short order.
AIRBORNE ASSAULT
The next mission is already being planned, and what scholars and tacticians can be spared from the massive effort of turning the Hesaeth mining camp into a viable operation have been tapped to plan the next mission - a daring attack on a VIP’s airship escort. The Corsairs are still determining how they want to approach the attack, but one thing is certain - they will need means to attack the airborne fleet before it arrives on Elysium’s soil.
With the miniscule amount of airships in the Corsair fleet, the Corsairs must carefully plan their troop placement and plan of attack. Gliders are already being churned out of the Vault’s lower workshops to support the boarding crew. Whether they sink or capture the airships, the attack crew will need everything it can get.
Beyond that, those who are preparing to take part in the operation are getting a crash course in ship combat. Glider usage will be critical, so glider lessons are taking place in Flotsam, and those who don’t have experience on airships will get to be taken up - best they get their air legs now and upend the contents of their stomach BEFORE the operation. Those hoping to fight will be spending their time flying up in the airship and using their gliders to return to Flotsam below.
FESTIVAL OF GAMES
In the waning days of summer, the world used to celebrate the changing of seasons and the start of the harvest with games, feats of skill, and banquets. While the Empire has mercilessly crushed all these old festivals, the Corsairs have managed to preserve the traditions and carry them forward.
Across the three cities, competitions are happening. In Vault, indoor competitions are held in large underground arenas set up specifically for these festivals. In Flotsam, there are chaotic boat races, swimming contests, spearfishing competitions and other such aquatic endeavors. Even Elysium is observing a hunt festival where people cull monsters and try to bring home the most game, although much of it will be siphoned off by the Empire. Spirits are high, good cheer is had by all, and the grog is flowing freely for any Corsairs who might want to participate or spectate.
WILDCARD
Have an idea for your own prompt? Feel free to make any prompt that you think would fit!
OOC
Welcome to the Second Test-Drive Meme for Viva La! All threads here may be considered canon once characters have entered the game. Threads here are eligible for use as a roleplay sample for applications, which will open on the 5th of August at midnight.
code credit
Shu | Arknights | OU
[She sits quietly on a bench amongst the good-natured chaos, her face molded into an expression difficult to discern. Relief, certainly. Exhaustion, perhaps. But her brows are furrowed and her mouth slightly parted, striking a note of incongruous melancholy in the midst of this celebration. There is a bandage upon her head; one arm is held in a splint, and the blackened and calloused palms of her hands bear witness to the labor she had been forced to endure.]
'Branch and bone bear weeds; mounds and ruins bloom fields.' In the midst of utter despair, there arises a sprig of hope.
Yet to think... must every world sow such destruction?
[Also she is clearly a dragon person, and her yards-long tail might occasionally twitch and send some unobservant passer-by tumbling to the ground.]
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[Harlock trails off, his eye falling upon the swimmers at the beach, before settling on Shu - searching. The pirate had disguised himself as an inquisitor to smuggle in weapons, wondering if she was among the group he aided]
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Yet it is the fool who inflicts such hurt with wanton disregard. I know of no nation that can survive by heaping a mountain of suffering upon its common people.
[As if returning to the present from a faraway dream, her eyes flicker towards Harlock and her expression remolds into a smile.]
Ah. But I know your face. [Considering the sheer amount of chaos that had occurred at the mines, this is perhaps a more impressive feat than it seems.]
Please, accept my gratitude for your courage.
[She stands in an elegant gesture and despite her injuries, bows deeply with her hands together. One has the sense that despite her current rough cloth garments, she is more accustomed to silk and finery.]
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I appreciate it - I detest entities like the empire, and if it turns out that spiting them liberates others, so much the better.
[Harlocks notes her stance, and the graceful way she held herself despite her circumstances, it reminded him of a couple of people he knew in his universe.]
And I found in the sea of stars - those who control others by pain and suffering end up being destroyed by their own methods.
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Then I must be thankful for being the secondary beneficiary of your spite.
[Though there is a faint twinkling in her eyes. She seats herself and gestures towards the space beside her.]
The ‘sea of stars’, you say. What a poetic term - is it literary, or literal? Perhaps the name of your home?
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Well... I suppose it's both?
[He wasn't sure what her frame of reference was as he starts to explain]
I am from a world called Earth, but it's one of many where people live, and to travel from world to another, people have to travel among the stars.
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[For the first time, she seems ill composed as she half-gapes.]
I should not be surprised. And yet such a thing seems more impossible than interdimensional travel.
[For she had long known of the existence of artifacts such as the Door of Sami -- and knew, too, that its unveiling was not an 'if' but a distant 'when.']
What a wondrous thing, and yet you speak of it as if it were pedestrian. Worlds beyond worlds... Long have we gazed at the firmament and sought to reach beyond the tethers of our earth, asking 'who are we?' in the vast cosmos.
Tell me more. Such a thing is a commonplace occurrence for your society? Societies.
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Well, Humans have been doing where I am from so for almost a thousand years, and even with that, there is still so much that is beyond our understanding that raises questions, worlds where it rains rubies, a world that are soft and lacking shape.
...As for commonplace, most people on Earth had turned their backs on the stars in the last several years - preferring their little world, but cargo, transport, and mail ships still move. But those who don't fit on Earth, the sea of stars is where we live.
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[There is a distant awe in her voice and she gazes up automatically, despite that it is broad daylight.]
What wonderful stories your people must have to tell. It is a dream of Terrans to some day break beyond the Starpod and pierce through to the worlds beyond. 'For the stars lean down from open space, and the moon runs up the river. What am I but a sand-snipe in this wide universe?'
Perhaps we all long for what we do not have. Your 'Earth' must be a fine place to live if it compares to the countless stars.
[She shakes her head wistfully.]
It is difficult to survive in my land. The yearnings of the people are for a world free from Catastrophe, free from that which burdens us. It is a fancy, of course. A folly. Yet is a life spent chasing a dream in a distant sky any less fulfilling than with head bent, feet plodding along the earth?
no subject
[The laugh was much more bitter than he intended when she speculated that Earth must be a fine place to live]
It is less that and more that for a time, humans on earth had largely given up on anything.
[Quietly he shifted topics]
You mention 'Starpod' what is that exactly?
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[There is a warmth to her tone. Evidently, she values the appreciation of her culture. She takes the cue to change topics easily enough, observing the harsh laugh of her companion. It is not seemly to press new acquaintances.]
The Starpod is a euphemism. We do not have a correct term for it, for we barely understand what it is. It is a... false sky.
[This is confusing to explain. But then, the reality is more confusing.]
Our planet, Terra, is encased in a barrier that defies any attempts to accurately perceive beyond it. ...I am afraid I do not have any answers to the questions you will ask. We know only that it is there, to our great consternation.
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[There is just a bit of a tilt of his head, curiosity evident in his somewhat raspy voice]
...I can't imagine living in a place with such a barrier, a false sky, and isolated.
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[She smiles at his faint confusion.]
To tell the truth... most of us are too preoccupied with the necessities of everyday life to think too deeply on the Starpod. A farmer dares not lift his head: he reaps only whatever is before his feet.
[...]
What is your name?
(no subject)
(no subject)
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[Fiore was probably not meant to go to that particular labor camp, being a local. She'd run into quite a few people who didn't even have the context to speak with each other, let alone her, but this dragon-kin lady had obviously been here long enough based on the...injuries she has. Fiore's thoughts immediately go to what she could have done to help her out, even though she wasn't in the prison long enough to meet her, and was also a prisoner herself.]
I like that bit of poetry.
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[She responds simply before turning towards the one addressing her.]
I am. My home is called Terra. It bears little resemblance to this place, for good and for bad.
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[Fiore grumbles this, almost, but there's enough edge to the statement to show it's completely earnest, and not just complaining.]
I guess you and us at least have farming in common though, if you've got proverbs about fields and weeds.
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Yes. You read my murmurings accurately.
I am an agricultural specialist, a Tianshi of the city of Dahuang. I have overseen the harvests for many years.
[A pause.]
I volunteered this information when labor was first demanded of me. I assume that is why they placed me in the mines.
[This is sarcasm, though spoken so straightforwardly that it is difficult to tell.]
1/2
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I'll get angry about it later. This is for celebrating sticking it to 'em, right? Or at least getting to know each other now that we're not in a damn cell.
So...agricultural specialist, huh? That like being in charge of the farmers?
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I work the fields alongside them. Due to my experience, I am qualified to advise on all matters relating to a successful harvest: weather patterns, crop rotations, Originium pollution, and seasonal trends.
And yourself?
[The girl is a little fiery for a farmer. From long experience, she suspects that the redhead is a youth raised in a farming environment who moved on to bigger and better things, as many youths do.]
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[It's not that she wanted to leave the farm, or could have even if the thought had occurred to her. But many people don't get to have a peaceful life, and some get mad about it.]
After that it was good ol' banditry, sorry to say.
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[There is a grim set to her lips.]
But I can imagine.
You were caught?
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Honestly I'm not sure why they didn't execute me on the spot, but I did actually get hauled in front of a judge and sentenced to a lifetime in that trash heap. I guess if they're desperate enough to use world-altering magic to get more slaves then they'll throw a normal crook in there from time to time too.
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What will you do now that you have been freed?
[Not return to banditry, she hopes. There is more she would like to say -- many questions that have run through her mind in the past few months of enforced labor. But as is her wont, Shu invests far more energy in the wellbeing of those around her than in any personal wants or needs.]
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(no subject)