Intro Log: Ugh, Talk to the Hand

[hadrielmods]

Who: New arrivals and everyone else!
What: The intro log for February
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: February 10th-14th
Warnings: None

Welcome to Hadriel. Your first glimpse of your new home is maybe not the most welcome - you awaken on the floor of the colosseum, surrounded by sand and walls and... trees? Yes, trees. Along with you and the other newcomers, a number of Territorial Oaks have arrived in Hadriel. They look just like normal trees, except for those welcoming smiles - oh, and they don't like you at all. They move fast, hit hard, and if you manage to bring one down it'll go out in a large, dangerous explosion. This may have you rethinking your stance on clear-cutting.

While you're trying to avoid the trees, you might come across a few of the other things the Door has deposited in the colosseum for your (its?) entertainment. Namely, a bunch of toys that no one has played with in years. But maybe one of them will tickle your fancy?

Once you've finished indulging your 90's nostalgia, feel free to look around. You can explore the rest of the city! Find a house, a new monster, a project to help with, or simply scavenge for supplies. Good luck, and enjoy your stay in Hadriel!

► This log covers February 10th-14th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► All characters arrive with phones that have network communication and the newbie guide installed.
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!

Comments

[spazzed]

( honestly, if you're looking for any real kind of explanation, he isn't the one to give it; he has a very basic understanding of what they're doing here, but not the why behind it or why they all seem to be from different points in time, even as close together as they seem to be.

but he's doing what he can, because he doesn't want to leave her hanging. because that wouldn't be right, and he wouldn't feel right doing it. ) Oh, yeah, monsters. There were dragon things when I first got here. ( a beat. ) Killed one, too.

( lance that is not the point of this conversation, even though we are very proud of your dragonslaying skills.

it's something, really, to be here when he'd only briefly been back on earth, only seen his family for what felt like a handful of minutes; they've been working so hard to get back there, to get back to where they belong that it feels almost like being cheated out of something good, something they all deserve. but then, there's allura having lost her home and her family thousands of years before, displaced from everything she knows and that can't be easy, and so … maybe his focus is more on that, now.

and maybe he needs to like. text keith to let him know she's here, and that he's going to be bringing her back home, because there's no way he's leaving her out here alone. ) D'you wanna maybe, like, get a little farther away from the nasties? I can show you where we're all staying.

( yep, totally going to let keith know before bringing home a new houseguest. he doesn't want to get yelled at. )

[quintessent]

“Dragons”?

[Said like she’s unfamiliar with the concept because they’re really more of an earth thing. But judging by Lance’s tone and expression, killing one was no small feat.

But there would be time for specifics later, and she had plenty of questions beyond just “what are dragons”, and she nods at his next offer.

(And if she knew that Lance was guilt tripping herself because of the things she’s been through, she’d assure him that she was at peace with her situation (she wasn’t) and that no matter her struggles, it didn’t invalidate the struggles of those around her.)]

Yes. Although, I do not think the monsters in there can fit through these doors. [So they’re not in any immediate danger from the “nasties” but-] I would like to see Shiro and Keith as well.

[Even if her most recent memories of Keith had been tense at best, he was still her friend and she wanted to see with her own eyes that everyone was safe and sound. She moves to start walking, but there’s a moment, before she realizes she has no idea where she’s going, and a sheepish smile crosses her face.

She nods to Lance,] Lead the way.

[spazzed]

Dragons. Flying ones. ( because it should be made note of that not all dragons fly? or something like that, because honestly they're a much more difficult target to hit when they won't be still long enough for a shot to be made.

or. you know. he could just stop talking about dragons altogether, because they'll surely need to be explained in full when the time comes, but for now … it doesn't matter if what was in the colosseum couldn't fit through the door, it would just. make him feel so much better to be back home where it was actually beginning to feel safe. ) They're really gonna want to see you, too.

( if you think things with you and keith had been tense … well. there are a few things that have been ironed out since lance first showed up here, but it goes without saying that it was through no small amount of effort on his own part to get over some things he'd thought had been left in the past.

she starts walking, and it's almost in the right direction, which has him chuckling a bit to himself as they start off. there are a couple of seconds of silence before he inevitably pipes up again. ) Oh, yeah, you should have a phone thing on you — it has kind of a guide for new people. ( not 'kind of', lance, but whatever, you're trying. ) I mean, I could tell you some stuff about this place but that's gonna be way more helpful.

[quintessent]

[She nods, looking impressed even if flying dragons doesn’t really do anything to explain what dragons are. Lance makes it sound impressive and she’ll believe him. And she just got done fighting giant exploding trees so it’s not as if the creature’s form does anything to inform how dangerous they are.

“They’re really gonna want to see you too”, Allura offers a small, half smile at that. Because even if she never really questioned her bond with her friends, things before she arrived had been… tense. Especially with Keith. Even if what he had said had been born out of fear and frustration (it was hard to blame any of them when they were just on the edge of dying in the middle of space) the words still weighed heavily. Not because he had been cruel but because he had been right.

But she’ll have plenty of time to stew about that,]

A phone? Is that what this is? [She fishes the small rectangle out, looking at it curiously. She’d thought it was some kind of communication device, looks like she was right.] To be honest, I can’t help but think of the others. If we’re here, then does that mean that Pidge and Hunk are on their own? [Then again, given the mismatch of timelines-] I take it that if you and the others have settled, then that means there’s no easy solution to returning home.

[spazzed]

( he'll tell her all about dragons one day, and impress the fact that they're usually fictional on her, so the fact that they were actually a thing here for even a brief period makes the whole thing good enough for a decent anecdote. hence why he'd brought it up in the first place.

but making sure whether or not she understands what dragons are in the first place isn't the most important thing he could be focusing on right now. so. moving right along from that.

maybe things had been tense with everyone before — and he needs to stop and consider the fact that she's been taken from a point in their timeline before they'd reached earth again means that tensions might still be running high, in a manner of speaking. he and keith have since really talked through all those harsh words that had been exchanged, and they're okay, but.

not that his thoughts have made it that far into understanding, but it doesn't lessen the fact that he's convinced they're going to be happy to see her. nothing about that is ever going to change.

it just. might be more than a little tense for a while. nothing they can't work out, right?

the fact that we're leaving this up to keith and allura notwithstanding.

he nods at her question. ) It definitely counts as one. Haven't messed around much with it myself, but. It's there. ( and there's definitely a pause there as he considers how to proceed. ) I don't know about the odds of getting back home yet, but … I mean, nothing has really come up to make me think it's gonna be easy. ( another beat. )

I asked Shiro about the others when we first ran into each other — whether he thought they would be worried about us, and he said he can't imagine them not being worried … which means they're probably working on finding us and getting us back. ( he worries at his bottom lip with his teeth for a second. )

I dunno if it's true, but it made me feel better.

[quintessent]

If anyone can find a way to get us back, it's Hunk and Pidge. Once they return to Earth they-

[She trails off, remembering all to well that the last she'd heard, Earth was overrun with Galra occupation. They'd heard from Sam Holt, but even if Pidge and Hunk were able to make it to the Garrison without trouble, and even with the full power of Altean plus earth technology, they had a lot more to deal with than just the disappearance of the greater half of their team.

Silence stretches longer than is comfortable, and she sees the way Lance is worrying at his lip and she has to resist doing the same. Things don't look great.

Finally,] I don't think Shiro is wrong. We have all been through worse together.

[That she could say with the utmost confidence. They've accomplished things that would otherwise be impossible on more than one occasion. And nothing about any of it has been easy.]

It might just... take some time.

[spazzed]

( things don't look great but they don't look as bleak as they have before, either; he has to have faith in their friends and their abilities, their smarts in figuring out a way to either bring them back home or keep things afloat until they find a way back on their own. if anyone can do it … it's absolutely going to be pidge and hunk. or maybe a couple of holts together.

regardless, he's not going to allow himself to feel like there's nothing to be done just yet, because nothing is certain, and while it's no surprise that their lives continue to be a string of variables one right after the other, they can roll with the punches for now.

… can't they?

yes, they can. he doesn't want to end up worrying allura with his own concerns, because she's just arrived and is probably unsure about everything ( especially … how their respective timelines don't line up quite right … but he's not going to linger on that now ) so. what he needs to do is focus on being a positive influence, maintain that morale, maybe boost it a little?

what he needs to do is be a good friend. so. he smiles — not quite as brightly as he would otherwise, but it isn't false by any means. he's always only given genuine smiles to her, and even the uncertainty of their current situation isn't going to change that. ) Looks like we've got a lot of that on our hands. Time. ( he huffs out a laugh. )

I think we can manage until somebody figures something out, don't you? I've got that kinda faith in us.

[quintessent]

[If anyone is to be left behind with the legwork of figuring out the whys and hows there wasn’t really anyone better suited for it than Pidge, Hunk, and the rest of the Holts. (Really, it’s a shame they’d never had the chance to visit Altea. They’d fit right in among the rest of her engineer-minded people).

Lance smile at her, and she can’t help but feel a little bit better, even if she doesn’t quite smile back (she’s never been good at fake smiles herself) but it’s obvious in the lines of her shoulders, the way her arms relax near her sides. Because even if things are uncertain, even if he is uncertain, it’s nothing that they haven’t been before. One might argue that they deal almost entirely in incertainties these days.

Time he says, and here is where she can’t help but smile a little,] At least this time we won’t be in our Lions.

[A bittersweet thing, but the road to earth had been a large and lonely feat. Even if they’d only been a communicator apart, it made her realize how nice it was to see her friends in person. Chiming in agreement are the mice, who perch themselves up on her shoulder for a quick head scritch, and Allura smiles,]

And this time we don’t have to sketch straws on the animals.

[…Or was that ‘draw straws’?]