boardmaster: (Default)
BOARDMASTER ([personal profile] boardmaster) wrote in [community profile] pawnstorm2016-04-09 04:30 am

intro ♚ april

WELCOME TO GRAUPERA



We’ve all had those dreams: you wake up on a table, to blurry, ominous images and the certainty that you are absolutely buck-naked in a room full of strangers. This is not quite it.

Instead, you come awake to the sun on your face. The soft burble of water nearby. The hustle and bustle of a busy street and the faint, fortifying smell of bread. You open your eyes and there’s no one there at your bedside, but there is what appears to be the end of the world happening just beyond your window.

There’s a crack in the world across the sky, the “sun” is the totally unnatural light spilling from that crack straight into your eyes, and someone’s left a neatly pressed and folded uniform at the foot of the bed that isn’t yours. Somewhere in the room, there’s a strange clatter like beads, the click of claws on the floor.

Something’s in here with you.

Also, you are naked.

ONE CAPABLANCA & AIRY
As much as Blanc’s capital welcomes its Heroes, new arrivals such as yourself won’t have much time to settle. Get dressed and pick up your weapon and Carrier, because sometime in the afternoon, all floor nannies and Carriers will broadcast an announcement by Commander Lisbrand. She delivers a brief greeting to their new members, but gets straight to the point: they will be headed for Capablanca and the open sea beyond, in order to restore the fortress of Graupera for battle with Noir looming on the horizon. All new Heroes are expected to report to the Airy at the Caissa aeroport on the 8th along with their seniors.

On the morning of the 11th, Airy alights on Graupera, an island about two hours away from Capablanca by ferry. From here, you can either help the navy with Graupera repairs or assist in Verdoni’s investigations and head for Capablanca proper. Heroes will be staying in the (in)famous Hotel Caruana: they say you can check in anytime you like, but you can never truly leave. Nobody will quite meet your eyes or tell you what it means.

Wherever you are, the Airy will remain parked at Graupera.

TWO GRAUPERA, CAPABLANCA SEA FORT
What was once a heavily fortified island rests a ways off the coast of Capablanca; it looks a little too much like one of the thunderclouds slowly swarming on the horizon. Graupera has seen many battles and withstood the ebb and flow of wars. Formerly the city’s first line of defense until it was abandoned after the Reclamation, its dilapidated condition is the current bane of the Blanc navy. Blanc needs to bring it back to its former glory before it can face a single warship, much less Noir’s fleet of magical cannons. Blanc’s government has no doubt Heroes will do a fine job at returning the fortress to its former glory!

A ♙ The great stone and iron wall facing the wide open ocean has seen better days and is full of holes overgrown with stubborn clinging vines; cannonballs used a lifetime ago litter the grounds. The vines are extremely thick and may tangle the careless beyond hope of escape, not to mention filled with a pungent sap that will seep into your clothes and hair for days. It makes a great adhesive, though? Conveniently, parts of the wall are strewn across the floor, so at least some of the cannon holes can be repaired with enough improvisation, desperation and a bit of spit. The rest need new material provided by our helpful Heroes in Option C. Furthermore, the lingering damage from a previous attack and old age have turned the floorboards weak and unstable. The wood creaks ominously beneath the mass of even a single average-sized person, so watch your step.

B ♟ You might want to get your weapon before you descend into the dank depths beneath the castle. Once you make it down the steep, slippery stairs, you’ll be meeting the gigantic, hostile rats that infest the castle cellar from top to bottom. It looks like magical residue from long-ago battles has seeped into both the foundation and its inhabitants. The cellars have become a huge warren filled with strange mana currents, and sometimes flooded with water. If you're going to start an extermination campaign, you may want to recall the magical residue: chopping off a rat’s head and limbs will barely slow it down. It will keep going for hours unless you either lop off all its limbs or pierce its heart.

If you manage to make it all the way up into the castle’s two intact towers (the other two are half-collapsed), the uppermost levels are utterly covered in bird crap. You’ll be encountering the kings of this castle: the unusually large, grey-feathered sea birds that have taken up residence here. Albatrosses, gulls, pelicans, even sand pipers: they all share nesting and pooping space here. The feathers of each bird seem to have taken on stone-like properties not unlike the castle’s walls. They’re extremely ferocious and protective of their nests, which are filled with all kinds of things: twigs, shiny things, coin money, Option C’s supplies, feathers of all kinds, and some completely ordinary tools that seem too small for human hands, and much older than anything else in the place save for the walls. If you look closely, you might be able to see a few baby rats scattered in amongst the eggs and the peeping chicks. They’re being fed, too.

You’re meant to be moving the birds out of the place, but you might have enough trouble just moving their offal.

C ♙ Don’t feel like dealing with pest control? No problem! Blanc will need materials for rebuilding and other supplies for the coming battle! Everyone knows how important it is for the fortress to remain standing, so Heroes will be provided with gadgets and weaponry that should make it difficult for enemies to penetrate the walls yet again. Word has spread that the Heroes are transporting valuable goods, though, so you might have to fend off the occasional hopeful man or annoying mouse (rat) who wishes to borrow much-needed material.

Of course, all this rebuilding will be for naught if you are not prepared to defend the stronghold! Ammunition such as cannonballs, bullets and arrows needs to be transported to Graupera en masse, pronto. Equally important essentials include first aid supplies and enough non-perishable food and water to last a small army (you) a month or two. You wouldn’t want to have to scavenge for rat meat.

No one knows just how long this battle is going to last.

THREE Training
It’s time for you landlubbers to learn how to swim! Commander Lisbrand won’t be tolerating any sinking stones on her task force. The upcoming battle will be fought on the sea so your instructor, one of Blanc’s many fine captains (when she isn’t intoxicated), will make every single individual who hesitates at the sight of the open ocean walk the plank. She’ll even give you a helpful kick if necessary! Once that’s over, she will show you how to steer a ship. However, wandering eyes that land anywhere on the inebriated captain’s assets will be swiftly and spectacularly dealt a large bottle of the harbor’s best swill right where it hurts.

Blanc has also provided training dummies dressed suspiciously like prominent figures of the Othellian underworld. Now might be a good time to branch out and learn about your affinities. Heroes who have recently been promoted in Rank might want to set some time aside for getting used to their new abilities, too. Power and responsibility come hand in hand, after all!

INFO Welcome!
Welcome to Crosscheck's April intro log! For any further questions, please see the FAQ or reach us at the Contact Us page. Have fun!
rollin: by me (gakuen 06)

........ wait no he only did it when anna saw him na...ked.... i hate this canon

[personal profile] rollin 2016-04-28 04:09 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Maybe he should have taught her that first. Let it be known that Yata isn't the best teacher. He recovers as soon as the reaches the edge, ready to yell at the panda!! for being!! an asshole!! But when Yata realizes he's alone, his heart stops.

WHERE IS SABER?

He puts his goggles back on, launches himself into the water and makes a beeline for his student. SENSEI IS COMING FOR YOU. He grabs her before she sinks and brings her to the edge of the pool. ]


Saber! You alright?
hiryugaeshi: (ugh)

[personal profile] hiryugaeshi 2016-04-28 05:19 pm (UTC)(link)
I wouldn't want to be hit by that, then. The only way to get drunk is manually.

[ The fact that he can't fight while piss drunk aside, of course. What's the point of getting sloshed if you can't experience the process? ]
hiryugaeshi: (so badass)

[personal profile] hiryugaeshi 2016-04-28 05:25 pm (UTC)(link)
If you insist. It would be rude for me to keep a lady waiting, after all.

[ Strike he shall, three quick strikes to her wrist, stomach, and ankles in that order. It's just about time to end this silly lesson anyway, so he might as well disarm Caren and bring her to the ground.

That's the plan, at least, and he's confident in this plan. There's enough of a gulf in their swordplay that it would take something extraordinary to send it off course. ]
hiryugaeshi: (ugh)

[personal profile] hiryugaeshi 2016-04-28 05:27 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Ew, indeed, Yukari. ]

That might be the plan, but mine involves being far away when these jobs are assigned.

[ Guess who's not going to wash any coins? This guy. ]
hiryugaeshi: (come at me)

[personal profile] hiryugaeshi 2016-04-28 05:35 pm (UTC)(link)
It's not a very elegant prize, but I suspect somebody will want to study it. If you'll excuse me...

[ Kojirou squats down and experimentally hefts the rat a few times before successfully getting half of it over his shoulder. He can just about drag the body around like this. He knows a scholar who would probably be very interested in what would cause a rat to grow bigger than a man, and also be practically immortal. ]

I'm not the most sensitive to such things, but it is very thick, isn't it? That might explain the rats.
armorial: (pic#10135379)

yata into jailbait...

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-28 06:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[ She's holding onto Yata's forearms so tightly now as if she has been traumatized. There's no shaking or crying, but she does look a bit mortified by what happened. ]

Yes, I am... Alright. [ Deep breaths, she calms down and looks Yata up and down. ] You are not hurt?

[ It's water, Saber, not acid... ]
armorial: (pic#10133861)

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-28 06:43 pm (UTC)(link)
[ She's quiet like before, processing this all in. This is rather quicker than her last silence however. ]

That truly is worrying. [ There's is perfect understanding of this tragedy. She knows well that she wouldn't be able to hand this Food on Monday, but she's wondering if it's at least edible.

Some must make compromises to overcome.
] Thank you for the warning. I am not sure if I could return to eating without concerns after being pampered with well constructed meals.
armorial: (pic#10135381)

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-28 06:51 pm (UTC)(link)
I am not fond of a flavor in particular... [ Any tea is fine for her, really. However, she knows that isn't helpful, so she'll think of one. ]

Earl Grey? [ It has been a while. ] However, anything in your disposal will be appreciated.

I will meet you at the nearby park. [ She has interests in seeing all of the things, so it would benefit her as well. With that, she'll bow out and go get a change of clothes before meeting him in dry clothes at said destination. ]
armorial: (pic#5238723)

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-28 06:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Of course. [ She takes a step back to let Assassin work his magic on this poor giant rodent. It isn't uncommon for anyone to be interested in this kind of mutation, so she doesn't question it. There must be doctors or scientists from different worlds that would love to have a hack at it. Hand on her hip, she surveys the dark, damp corridor, still pondering.

There's a nod since that's what she's thinking as well.
]

Do you think there is a way to disperse it possibly?
armorial: (Default)

it's just barely there right

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-28 07:00 pm (UTC)(link)
[ maybe because boys are dumb, but you didn't hear that from Saber. The drop of the plush gets her to look up at Asuna as if there's danger. Are they being attacked? What's wrong?

Where is the action--oh... She closes her eyes as she returns to this humiliation once more.
]

Yes. It is the Holy Grail... [ A sigh. ] Fate likes to weave satires, it seems.
hiryugaeshi: (srs)

[personal profile] hiryugaeshi 2016-04-28 08:51 pm (UTC)(link)
I should hope so, I wouldn't feel safe sleeping on top of such a large mass of mana if it was completely uncontrolled, but you'll have to ask somebody who knows better.

[ Assassin's just a farmer-turned-wanderer-turned-samurai hero, Saber. He knows a surprising amount about a lot of things, but how to deal with huge stores of mana is definitely not in his wheelhouse. ]

I would never wish to see Caster again, but that vixen would know something about this. If nothing else, she would find an excuse to use up all the mana here for something or another.

[ Like making a million Saber figurines or something. ]
showsnopiety: (like home)

[personal profile] showsnopiety 2016-04-28 11:06 pm (UTC)(link)
[She made an amused noise about that, but turned quick to a gasp of pain. This wasn't a place of miracles, and while she could try, or wish for otherwise, her arm was already sore from his prior strike.

Her rapier was dropped, and she found herself kneeling on the ground, her good arm bracing over her stomach as she sought to breathe. It would be some time before she was good enough with a blade to take down a servant. Other weapons, who knew.

But she was gracious enough, even as she blinked back tears from pain. By that, she didn't try to hit him, but instead bowed her head as she tried to straighten in her kneeling position.]
armorial: (pic#10133861)

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-29 12:14 am (UTC)(link)
... I would rather not see Caster as well. I'll mention it to the commander. [ She shares the same feelings as Assassin on both points. It may have been a useless question after all, but it's still worth asking. The other man must be in this world far longer than she has.

Either way, she'll gesture them to return up the steps.
]

Do you need help moving the rat? [ Since... It's huge. ] Actually, it might not even fit through the door.

[ Uhm. ]
couldntpullthetrigger: (pic#10154359)

Yeah

[personal profile] couldntpullthetrigger 2016-04-29 12:53 am (UTC)(link)
[Yukari can agree with that.]

... Yeah. Let's just... get back to the hotel or something. Hot water sounds good right about now.
couldntpullthetrigger: (There are really no words strong enough)

[personal profile] couldntpullthetrigger 2016-04-29 01:09 am (UTC)(link)
... I think ya got the right idea, at least.

Unless the job is just taking them in some kind of sealed bag and dumping them into a pool or something and letting them wash themselves. But I don't think there's anything like that around here.
convictionary: (I can't hold back)

[personal profile] convictionary 2016-04-29 01:43 am (UTC)(link)
[He wiggles his foot. It seems to be stuck.

...then, after a pause, he gestures to her and the wiggling process begins anew. This time, though, it's his leg out of the boot that he was wearing. That seems to work. His leg comes out and oh fuck him where did his boot drop into.]


...

[...]

Think I can get 'em to give me a new one? [Unsure if he cares.]
Edited (Knock knock.) 2016-04-29 01:47 (UTC)
showsnopiety: (Christ to your)

[personal profile] showsnopiety 2016-04-29 02:02 am (UTC)(link)
...I'm sure you will find yourself shod, one way or the other.

[Just. Wow. Good job Gaius. Way to worm your way out of a sticky situation. She's kneeling on the floor still, and...she can't see where his boot dropped to. Maybe on a boss. Who the heck knew.

But hey. His feet were free.]


Help me up?

[Since, well, her ankle still is being rude.]
rollin: (blush | no you are)

n...o................ don't watch s2 or else I can't defend myself

[personal profile] rollin 2016-04-29 02:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ Like this, it's not too easy to forget that Saber is a girl. Yata's internally screaming. ]

I'm okay...! [ Please just hold the edge of the pool, Saber... ] Let's just stay here. Some pandas are jerks.
burnmydread: (the luxury of loneliness)

[personal profile] burnmydread 2016-04-29 03:25 am (UTC)(link)
[ More like Death Metal. Or some old 80s band. But they could totally make this be a thing.

But hey, he's a protagonist. He knows that in order to gain Social Links he needs to share the love a little bit. He's still surprised to her hear afterthought. ]


Why do you say that?
avantguard: (shock » job skills aren't that useful)

no...... :''( it phat not FLAT

[personal profile] avantguard 2016-04-29 04:51 am (UTC)(link)
[ She only almost DOES IT. Saber worked hard to find her a new one she isn't going to drop it so easily.

SABER CHILL ]


Holy Grail... [ That was in stories about King Arthur, wasn't it? She doesn't get the thing about Fate but I can't believe you hei ]

There's no way it's the same Holy Grail from legend, right? [ She's trying to look closer but it's IMPOSSIBLE she is stuck behind this plush. Maybe she should just send it to Setsuna now and pay for it later. It's hard to talk normally. ]
armorial: (pic#10133749)

i just might............ thank you for reminding me

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-29 06:22 am (UTC)(link)
I am glad to hear that. [ Her new mentor is fine, that calm her heart immensely... However, the panda. ]

I have never met a panda till now, but I do agree that it was rather rude of them. [ She shoots a glower over the culprit for their mishap. She had been doing so well?! Yata had been instructing her and everything?! But it has been ruined by a mere cute panda.

... It's hard to be angry at it actually.
]

Over here is fine. [ Nodding. Maybe it's even safer. ]
armorial: (pic#10133771)

if it's too fat she won't ever find pants

[personal profile] armorial 2016-04-29 07:04 am (UTC)(link)
[ hello? Saber and the Holy Grail are fated to never be, yet here we are. A ploy by the crosscheck mods to instill the very hurt and suffering Saber has dealt with and accepted just to SLAP HER IN THE FACE. ]

That is what they told me... But it is not the Grail I remember. [ The Grail is entirely different--destructive, powerful... Nothing like this cup that refills itself and protects.

She doesn't notice how interested Asuna is, so she doesn't try to show her.
]
showsnopiety: (broken down)

[personal profile] showsnopiety 2016-04-29 07:16 am (UTC)(link)
[Either are good. Or both. Both are good. They could be the leads in a death metal band. Or he could. Because he's a protagonist.

But what love would come from this link, who's to say...]


Because my attacks were ineffective. If any harm had come to you, it would have been my fault.

[She says it so calmly and matter of fact, it's...a little creepy.]
cutiepanther: (88)

[personal profile] cutiepanther 2016-04-29 01:45 pm (UTC)(link)
Eh?!

[ Maki nearly stumbles back. ]

H-How should I know?! I've never even seen a fairy before!
cutiepanther: (99)

[personal profile] cutiepanther 2016-04-29 01:56 pm (UTC)(link)
I-I just like tomatoes! [ She answers quickly enough, trying to deter that way of thinking. She isn't a tomato she just likes them... For a girl that is all about appearances, she doesn't actually want people calling her that. It would be embarrassing.. ]

Yes. You can just talk to your Carrier, and tell them who you want to contact and it comes up. It's a little strange at first but you get used to it... [ Talking at your Carrier to another person she means. Maki misses cellphones. ]

Oh, your's is cute. [ Maki perks up just a little as she sees the lion, feeling some desire to pet it.. Though hers is a little less cute in that it's a large dog sized black panther, that happens to be almost impossible to see in the shadows beneath a table behind her, save the bright yellow eyes that stare back. Diva is protective of Maki, but Saber does not seem dangerous. ]

Well, you might as well just ask me then. I was planning on going to study back in my room anyways, so it's not like I'm really that busy.. [ She instantly moves to twirl her hair. Because this is her being tsun saying she doesn't mind, maybe even would like to help. ]