THE SQUAD DOES AN INTRO - [modplot] [event]

[wildermods]

THE SQUAD DOES AN INTRO
OOC POST
In their homeworlds, they suddenly hear water flowing over stone, the wind through the leaves, and the gentle rattling of Kodama. The hushed sound of treetops waving in the breeze lull them to sleep whether they want it to or not, and in what seems like a dream they fall through a tunnel that passes through layers of dirt and roots and then through seemingly endless boughs of trees.

During this impossibly long fall, spirits whisper in their ears. They tell them that they must save the Wilderlands and the Green. They tell them that they will be given the power or weapons to do it - or that they're already strong enough as they are. They tell them that in the times they're not needed, they may find themselves trapped in the faerie realm known as the Brugh, but that the mirrors will let them speak, and the mirrors will let them see.

And they tell them that they're about to become lost in the forest and that there are others like them, just as lost.

When they wake up, they find themselves in the ruins of an abandoned city; the forest has overtaken it, threading new life through the decay, but the green of the leaves and vines pales in contrast with the broken buildings and streets. Every single building in this city was once a vibrant shade of emerald, and even now, after the slow ravages of time, the green ruins glimmer like they're hewn from precious gems.

The only things that aren't that bright shade of emerald are the statues. Countless statues are scattered through the abandoned city, shaped like men and women and children and pets, all dressed in 1900s era Earth-style finery. These figures are extremely intricate, almost too detailed to be believably carved by a human hand. Many of them are smashed and broken.

Some of the statues don't look human. Among the humans are little beings shaped like china dolls that are made of stone like the rest, instead of porcelain. And in the middle of the city, standing near each other are three strange petrified figures: an axe-wielding man that looks like he was made of metal before being petrified, a man who looks like a human-lion hybrid, and a living scarecrow. All three have expressions of surprise or anger on their faces.

When the characters are brought into this place, the magic that brought them in seems to have trouble getting them all in the same place at first. They find themselves spending brief amounts of time in one spot (sometimes just minutes, sometimes longer) before they're teleported again. Each time they teleport they find themselves near someone new, someone just as lost as them. Those that don't speak the same language may find some difficulties communicating, but over time, the magic of the Wilderlands will kick in, and plant a whole new language in their heads. This magic works faster the more they emotionally connect with other and find understanding without words.

The teleportation keeps zapping them in different places all over the city -- and sometimes outside it, where they can see an abandoned road made of yellow brick that trails off into the distance. Fortunately, the people they keep getting paired off with seem like normal people just like them, and beyond that, they're entirely alone in the ruins.

Probably.

---

OOC INFO
✦ Post in actionspam format. Plots and mod-run events in the game are meant to be in actionspam format to keep a brisk pace.

✦ Please see the OOC post linked up top for more information about the event.

Comments

[googledox]

[The last thing Brainy does is take the ice pack again and now he puts that on over top, putting a wrap around Robbie's hand to snugly hold it in place. It'll stay cool for at least a half hour, which will help with getting any swelling down.]

[Then he starts to pack up his supplies again.]

Robbie. You said that was your name, yes? [Slyly.] If there's any room for it amidst your babbling, you may have mine.

[It's an insult and yet not. The words could be much harsher than they are.]

[balladin]

[ He blinks rapidly at that response. It's the first time the translation has been so smooth, and Robbie has to think back to the start of the conversation. No, he's sure the guy was actually speaking English at the beginning, despite not seeing his mouth. There's an underlying sense of... some other sounds under the English, now. ]

Yeah, it's Robbie. Man, I don't like getting my head messed with by this language thing.

[ He shakes his head, as if that will clear away whatever tech, telepathic, or magic effect that's swapping out Klingon for English. ]

And it's banter, not babble, Borgface.

[googledox]

You're not the only one that dislikes the mental intrusion. I suspect it's -- [He shudders] -- magic that's behind it, which makes it inherently untrustworthy and most likely completely nonsensical.

[He finishes packing up his medical supplies.]

As for that name...

[He flicks his hand with a fluttery little gesture as if waving away the absurdity of Borgface.]

You may call me Brainiac 5.

[balladin]

Magic would explain it. [ He's quite obviously musing over this and not exactly exuberant that the answer is wizard did it. ] I liked it better when my head was Fort Knox.

[ Robbie pulls a face at Brainiac 5. It's a hodgepodge of incredulity, boredom, and disbelief. He makes a T with his fingers, careful to leave the wrapped ones out of it. ]

Timeout. Is the translation magic borked, is it alien naming rituals, or did you just codename me? Because if that's how you want to play it, then it's Speedball to you.

[ He really wishes that his uniform wasn't connected to his powers. Robbie feels like his presence is just lacking in street clothes, no matter how much he draws himself up to his full height. ]

[googledox]

[Ah, so he's a superhero as well. No wonder why he was asking about Brainy he wasn't worried about his team. Perhaps he's worried about his own.]

It's not just a codename. It's a title. It's as much my name as my given name.

In some ways, perhaps more.

[It was rare for anyone to even use his real name. His title as Brainiac had meant more to Colu than his real name, back when they were terrified of him and it was meant to be a warning label.]

[And now, after he's made it into something heroic, it's even more significant - and even more important to him.]

My friends call me Brainy.

[The blocky box with the dials and readouts attached to his belt starts making beeping sounds and Brainy unclips it from its strap and takes a look at it, pressing some buttons on it.]

[balladin]

[ He’s trying not to think too much about them, but he’s more despondent than worried. It’s not an improvement, which is why the alien is a welcome distraction. ]

Brainiac 5 is a title? Like Lord or King?

[ He looks askance, but Robbie can’t decide if he’s scandalized about what an awful nerd-title it is or the fact that Borgface is alien royalty.

But he rolls his eyes hard at Brainy. ]

God, so much to say and only the first one really lands, you know? I’ll give it my best shot.

You don’t get to just announce that you’re Brainy. I don’t try to walk into a room all “my friends call me Sexy.”

[ A beat, and then he mimes rewinding his gesticulations. ]

Does this mean we’re friends?

[ Rewind. ]

But, oh, Lord Grey Matter the Fifth, such abbreviating is a hanging offense!

[ Rewind. ]

If you aren’t blue, I’m not calling you Brainy, bub.

[ He pokes Brainy in the shoulder for finality and moves closer to look at the device. ]

Hey, is there writing on that? I want to see if the linguistic voodoo works on text.

[googledox]

[Brainy looks on in something like amusement as Robbie can't seem to settle on one specific joke and instead needs to run through a few of them.]

Are you quite finished?

[Still, the words could be harder than they are.]

It's not a royal title. It would be... difficult to explain without the proper historical context. [And first contact with a stranger isn't a great place to announce you're descended from supervillains.]

[Brainy holds up the device, which has alien text scrawling across one of the screens. Robbie will see that the magic does help translate but instead of translating it to English, it translates to the new language that's being implanted in his head. The words probably make very little sense even translated, given that they're highly technical terms.]

As I said before about my team, we are dimensional wanderers. Whenever we arrive on a new world in a new dimension, an environmental assay must be performed to ensure that there are no toxins or contagions that would be harmful to our physiologies - and we must ensure that we're not introducing dangerous non-native pathogens that could be harmful.

[The device suddenly goes ding with a sound that's almost like a kitchen timer and Brainy checks some of the displays.]

[Then he starts taking off his gear. First he takes off his flight ring so he can take off his gloves. The skin of his hands is green and slightly callused. Then he puts the gloves away in a pouch at his belt and puts the ring back on. After that, he unhooks the rebreather and re-coils it at his belt. Then he pulls the hood down and lifts the goggle up so they rest in his blonde hair at the top of his head. His face looks almost human, but the strange white implants on it add an alien touch.]

[Brilliant green eyes that match the wreckage around them peer at Robbie curiously. He arches an eyebrow just slightly.]

Is green an acceptable shade for me to be called by my own nickname?

[balladin]

[ Robbie is, for the moment, unabashed and smug. ]

Yep, I’m good. But I’m reserving the right to revisit the matter for now. You can skip the history lesson forever.

[ It’s not the time for something tedious and long There’s plenty of time for jokes, though at the moment Robbie’s intent on the scrolling text. He's sure that he’s reading the words, but most of it means nothing to him.

Robbie does start as GRAVIMETRIC ANOMALY: crawls across the screen, but the NULL that follows it crushes that stupid squeak of hope. ]

Dimensional wanderers… [ He’s mumbling as Brainy starts disconnecting tech. ] This isn’t your f- holy HAL, you really are a B-

[ Borgface, but that suddenly doesn’t seem acceptable as a joke. ]

Bright green, and, uh… no. See, Brainy’s a smurf. All smurfs are blue.

[ Robbie looks apologetic, but he’s dug this verbal hole for himself and this is where he lives now. He can’t see his way back to asking if Brainy's dimension hopping is causing the teleportation. ]

It's a nice shade of green? It's not too vegetable.