Intro Log: Eat Your Veggies

[hadrielmods]

Who: New arrivals and everyone else!
What: The intro log for January
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: January 10th-16th
Warnings: Luscious greenery and confused newbies

As has become tradition within the good (well, okay) city of Hadriel, new arrivals will awake on the floor of the half-destroyed colosseum. Confused and disoriented, you may be wondering where you are and what you're doing there. Don't worry! Someone will probably tell you sooner or later, as long as you get out of the colosseum alive.

Oh, right. About that. Along with the poor, innocent, vulnerable new arrivals are a number of other new friends! Well, maybe less 'friends' than 'horrifying monsters', but are you really going to be picky? Wandering the arena are Shambling Mounds. These creatures are large, unattractive piles of vaguely humanoid-shaped vegetation. They hit hard, they can take a lot of damage, and if you're really unlucky they might manage to engulf you with their weird plant bodies. If that happens, you'd better try to get free fast - otherwise they'll just walk off with you stuck inside and kill you later at their leisure.

The Door appears to have cast a wide net for 'plant monsters', and while Shambling Mounds are the only ones that can actually hurt you, it's managed to pull in a number of smaller, less dangerous carnivorous plants. Some of them are even kind of cute! So if you were looking for a pet venus flytrap or a new pitcher plant, you're in luck. Scattered around the colosseum are carnivorous potted plants, just waiting to find a new home.

Make a new plant friend, or get eaten by one, or run screaming! Whatever you choose to do, once you find your way out of the colosseum there's plenty of other distractions. Feel free to go 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 January 10th-16th.
► 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

[turingmachine]

"What is the... Undernet?"

(They don't recognize the name. Perhaps another network of some sort?)

"The Meshnet is the proprietary network to which all ROMs are connected. I don't recognize the term Undernet, so I can't tell you how similar they are, but not being able to connect to it is... worrying." (And now they're frowning, though they brighten up a little bit at the mention of a painted map.)

"Oh! Could you show me its location? If you haven't already guessed, I'm not familiar with this area." (They seem to have temporarily forgotten about San's skeletal nature. Or at least, they're adjusting to it pretty rapidly.)

[skelebro]

[So, uh...sounds a bit like UnderNet, though not entirely. Can't exactly say he's in a position to be chatting about a thing like that at any length. Especially to a...robot. ROM? What the heck is a ROM? Like a CD ROM?

He doubts it.]

Yeah, no problem. You can, uh...hop on, if you like.

[He pats the seat of his moped, which, given Sans's rather diminutive size, has plenty of room for a passenger.]

So you're a...ROM, is that it?

[turingmachine]

(Obviously, whatever a ROM was, it was completely adorable, and that's all that really matters.

Speaking of adorable, Turing gives Sans the heart smile.)

"Thanks!" (They're pretty diminutive too, so there's definitely enough room for the both of them. The tiny robot climbs up without hesitation. Awful trusting, aren't they?)

"Yes. To be specific, I'm a custom built companion ROM originally designed as part of an experiment involving machine sapience."

[skelebro]

Machine sapience, huh?

[Yep, they just...scramble right on. Bit like Tina in that way. Sans kicks the thing off and the pair of 'em go heading for the city center.

So kinda like a robot, he's guessing. Maybe Mettaton would have a better idea about this kinda thing than Sans would - Alphys too, for that matter, bein' the one that built him and all. Can't help but wonder if he should call her up and see what her thoughts on this might be.]

Y'gotta name?

[turingmachine]

"Yes. May I ask what you are?"

(A ROM is a type of robot the same way a skeleton is a type of monster.)

"I am Turing."

[skelebro]

Sans. Sans the skeleton.

[Answering both the question and the social expectation to introduce himself in one go - two Moldsmals, one stone. Or something along those lines.]

I'm a monster.

[turingmachine]

"A monster?" (Their tone is somewhere between fear and bewilderment.)

"That doesn't seem like a very nice way to refer to yourself..."

[skelebro]

Y'know, people keep sayin' that. [He sounds more amused than anything else, breaking off to chuckle for a moment before continuing.]

It's a species. Where I come from, anyway.

[turingmachine]

"Oh!" (They say, as understanding suddenly dawns on them.) "It's kind of a strange name for a species, don't you think?"

"Do people still use it as an insult?" (They feel kind of bad referring to Dekker as one now. Sans seems pretty nice!)

[skelebro]

No stranger than "ROM," I'd say. But some do, yeah. Not where I come from.

[Usually.

The moped sputters to a halt a few feet from the painting of the map that...some fella or another splashed up on one of the walls. Can't recall who, so he doubts he knew the guy too well, or even if he's still around.]

It'd be nice to get a digital map one of these days, but...eh. I ain't part of the nerd brigade. [But it's a question to pose to Alphys or Hermann.]

[turingmachine]

"ROM stands for Relationship Organizational Manager, which makes sense, as our most basic and common uses are as advanced notification systems, personal assistants, and portable MeshNet access points."

(They pause thoughtfully.)

"Though I suppose Monster makes sense too; it seems like an apt description for a talking skeleton. ...No offense."
(Their tone is... awkward, but the map quickly distracts them, and the hop off of the moped to get a closer look.)

[skelebro]

None taken.

[If he were the type to take offense, he'd have a lot fewer friends than he does now. So Turing here seems to be something of a robot, yeah. Even if ROM is a considerably more long-winded of a specificity.]

There's lots of monsters where I come from. Not all of 'em skeletons.

[turingmachine]

(They continue to observe the map as they listen to Sans. After a moment, they decide to commit it to their personal memory. Perhaps they can use it as a basis for a digital version later.)

"May I ask what sort of monsters there are?" (They find themselves growing increasingly curious about this.)

[skelebro]

All sorts. My buddy Alphys, she's kind of a lizard made of anxiety.

[Tell him he's wrong. He dares you.]

[turingmachine]

(They don't know Alphys, so they have no way of knowing just how valid that description is.)

"So there are skeleton monsters, and lizard monsters, among other kinds... that does sound like an impressive amount of variety." (They step away from the map and look back at Sans.) "I have committed the map to my personal memory."

[skelebro]

We're a pretty diverse bunch, yeah. [But most species are, he's learned.] Have ya? Photographic memory, huh?

[He scoots up on the moped, a clear invitation should Turing wanna keep gettin' a ride.]

Where to?

[turingmachine]

"Technically yes, though I have to be careful about managing storage space. Especially without mesh access." (That's a pretty convincing mimicry of a sigh.

They don't know what they're going to do about that...)

"I honestly have no idea." (They just got here, and they're not used to being quite this alone.)

[skelebro]

Well, you're gonna wanna grab some housing, I'll bet.

[And, uh...right, there's the whole newbie guide thing Mello concocted. Not exactly a stand-up fellow, Mello (heh heh), but he at least completed a pretty necessary function.]

And, uh, you should have a phone on ya. Everyone shows up with one. That's got all the Hadriel 101 stuff on it.

[turingmachine]

"I suppose you're probably right." (The idea of living on their own is also something they're unused to. It's more than a little intimidating.)

"Oh!" (They pull the phone out from where they stuck it in the pot with their plant.) "I thought it had been lost and was intending to return it..."

[skelebro]

Nah, that's yours now.

[If it belonged to anybody before, they sure as hell ain't around anymore. It's more or less like those things materialize in your pockets on entry, but who can tell, right? Probably best not to question it.]

There's a network and everything, if you need to give anybody a ring.

[turingmachine]

(They nod, powering on the device and checking out its features.

They make a face.)

"This is really weird. Usually I'm the one acting as the device..."

[skelebro]

[Not sure if that's meant to be derogatory. Don't sound much like it, and in any case, he ain't really here to debate the personhood of sentient robotic operating systems.]

Well hey, at least you ain't alone there. I mean, I'm pretty sure we got a few robots around here if you need pointers. [Nick, he's reasonably sure. Though that's uncomfirmed.]

[turingmachine]

"Oh? I must admit, though I am no longer alone, I haven't had much opportunity to interact with my people."

(If these other machine intelligences are their people, that is. It sounds like ROMs may not be very common... still, it'd be nice to talk to them.

They put the phone away for the moment.)

[skelebro]

Place is pretty much a closed circuit. Can't leave the city. But there's plenty goin' on here in the meantime.

[Plenty of good and enjoyable activities for everyone, yep. No death or destruction here.]

[turingmachine]

"We're not trapped here forever, right?"

(At this point, they know they can't just leave, but they'd like to see their friends again someday...)