INTRO ♚ FEBRUARY

[boardmaster]

WELCOME TO CAISSA

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 ♟ Settling In

Welcome to Blanc! You wake up on one of the beds inside the Hall of Glory. You might still be feeling a little light-headed, but sudden dimensional travel will do that to a body. You could have sworn visions of a fantastic world flashed before your eyes not long ago: monsters, magic, and a mission to save the world. You can't quite recall much beyond the basics, but could this be it?

Save your questions for later! The room nannies are quick to urge Heroes into their uniforms (with their beaks if necessary) and to point them to the pick-up locations for their Blanc-issued Weapons and Carriers. Hopefully, nobody but the pigeon’s watching you change. On the other hand, maybe you're the type to turn every roommate into a new friend before you even step foot outside the room.

As you make your way down the halls, you might notice strangely familiar faces around you. But don’t linger too long to chat—the people in charge of the armory and the menagerie have gone through many Heroes before you, and still have many more to go after you. NPCs need meal breaks, too! If you don’t make a decision in time, the random Weapons and/or Carriers they pick for you can be just a little odd.

And if you’re hungry? No matter how rich you were in your homeworld, you’re penniless now until you earn some colle. Thankfully, the Hall of Glory provides free meals to Heroes and those associated with them! Sunday’s breakfast and lunch are bananalicious and seafood pasta. A friendly visiting scholar may have a word of advice for you: “Beware the dining hall on Mondays.”

But you’ll barely have time for lunch before guards come and round you up. “For the parade,” is the only reason they’ll give you.

TWO ♟ Welcome Celebrations

Trumpets sound, cymbals clang and the crowd roars as the parade gets underway! What’s all the fuss about? Well, you Heroes were sent by the gods to save Blanc, right? Of course they’d celebrate! Smiling and waving at the citizens of Caissa from your uniquely crafted float might be a chore, but hey, they love you. Are you really going to let them down, or lose the spotlight to the fellow Heroes sharing your float?

The reception after the Prime Minister’s speech is like some kind of idol session, with Caissa citizens coming up to shake hands and welcome the Heroes warmly. Some are even asking for autographs!

There’s a lot of things to do in festive and lively Caissa, even late into the night under a light fall of snow. Sparrow Town is all lit up, ready for another festival next week.

While some shops are closed for the holiday, others have buffet tables or are giving out free samples to the Heroes. The food stalls here are way better than the bizarre cafeteria menu at the Hall of Glory! Why waste the opportunity to finally gorge on real food? The shop owners have done their best to impress, showing off their local cuisines proudly along the city streets: from the local hamburger joint to the exotic L'adderan curries, you'll find a little of everything to whet your palate. Your growling stomach will likely thank you for the food. … Oh, wait. That wasn’t you? You think the fish sandwich on your plate just sang? Nonsense. That just means you had a marvelous piece of fish bread. Please remember to visit them again sometime when you have the colle, okay?

Various stalls with games and activities have also been set up. Maybe you can impress the crowd by nailing an apple with an arrow or by sacrificing your friend(s) at the water tanks! An unusual Go-style stall offers something like fish scooping, but be careful: touching the fish with your bare hands will leave you feeling funny… Wow, you’ve never seen that color before! But whatever it takes to impress the children, right?

Said children might try and get you to dance in the falling snow. Better not mess up, though, because everyone in Caissa seems to be watching.

THREE ♟ The Day After

Hopefully, you didn’t sleep too late after yesterday’s celebrations! Or maybe you slept badly, since it felt like something was watching you…

The free breakfast that awaits you at the dining hall is… something special. Please enjoy it to your heart’s content! Remember: no food fights, and leave no leftovers! Nothing will save you from the chef’s disapproving mustache swirl if you do!

If you want to make money (to get away from Monday’s Horrors), there are now jobs up for taking at the Hall of Glory and the Poisoned Pawn! If there’s nothing to your taste, check back again every so often. Something new might pop up!

Heroes not in the mood to be errand-runners (it’s understandable, you’re Heroes after all!) can hang out in the parlor, read in the library, or express yourself in one of the Hall’s many studios or other rooms.

If lying back and taking it slow isn’t your thing, you could train or spar! Being summoned to a new world takes a toll on the body, and some Heroes have lost abilities familiar to them. Besides, it’ll take a while to get used to your weapons. Some of them might even be disobedient, backfiring at worst and unresponsive at best. Try not to hit your fellow Heroes (including yourself), or you’ll either have to find enough Heroes to cast weak healing spells or carry the wounded to the infirmary. While the snow has been cleared overnight, it’s still very cold!

INFO ♟ Welcome!

Welcome to Crosscheck's grand opening log! For any further questions, please see the FAQ or reach us at the Contact Us page. Have fun!

Comments

[troyhard]

I... I insist!!

[ But it's already too late. Setsuna has seated him on the bike and now he's immediately holding onto it for dear life. ]

Wait, I don't even have a helmet?!

[ Oh yeah, he's definitely praying alright. ]

[quaria]

[ Setsuna would have offered him one... But he doesn't have one, either. Blanc didn't sponsor him additional gear. Just like everyone else, he only got the weapon itself. Too bad for Slaine x2. ]

Do not let go.

[ If you value your life, then don't let go at all. And so, the motorbike's engine releases mana emissions and prepares to dash along the frozen canal again... Which happens within the next few seconds, its impressive speed boosted by the slippery ice. ]

[troyhard]

[ No helmet, no seat belt... There are so many consequences for the lack of these safety protocols. Who issued this bike to Setsuna? Who gave him a license?? Would it even be valid if they aren't in their respective worlds??

These are questions that people should be asking right about now. Instead, you have one young blonde trying his best not to scream. He's been in death-defying thrill rides before, but he was behind the wheel that time. Now he's been forced to entrust his life to someone else?? ]

D-don't drive on the ice!! You'll crash again!!

[ Back-seat driving is the only thing he can do right now. ]

[quaria]

[ Backseat driving? More like backseat nuisance. STOP YELLING, it will only increase their chances of crashing. Slaine needs to blend with the rest of the environment: be chill! Setsuna is doing his best to concentrate and attempt to control his bike more, but it really is a stubborn one... Why does it insist not following his directions? ]

This is the fastest way.

[ To doom, that is. No, fine. It really is the fastest way. Besides, he wants the added practice. It's much more effective this way than trying to take baby steps. Gundam Meisters don't do baby steps!! ]

[troyhard]

But it's still dangerous?!

[ Setsuna, you need to stop.

Please practice on your own time, and not with a live (and injured!!) passenger behind you. Unless your plan was to have him beaten up further, than by all means, go ahead. Have a blast. Slaine will send you the bill for his hospital fees. ]

A-at least slow down a little!

[ You know, just to give him a peace of mind. He'll yell less, so it's not a bad thing to do. ]

[quaria]

[ STOP IS NOT IN HIS DICTIONARY. Setsuna can barely hear Slaine, too... The wind velocity, the sounds of the motorbike's mana emissions and steampunk engine, and a very lively city surrounding them all contribute to muffling his voice. That distress is merely whisper among the chilling wind. Yes, that means they're still keeping their heart-racing pace.

Hope you're still hanging on tightly, Slaine. Don't talk about sending the hospital bill to him too, everyone knows that's out of character for that slave. C: Besides, they'll be late if they don't hurry! Apart from the hospital, they both still need to go to the orphanage. ]

We are nearly there...

[troyhard]

[ Excuse me, at least use the term servant. It sounds better than slave.

But considering the fact that Setsuna refuses to listen to him, Slaine will just have to go back to crying out prayers. They probably go somewhere along the lines of meeting his dear father in heaven soon and apologizing to Princess Asseylum for not being able to reunite, protect, and show her the birds she wanted to see.

He's lived a short life... This isn't the kind of end he was expecting.

But!!! If they actually manage to reach the hospital with neither of them getting launched off of the bike, Slaine will practically jump and land on the floor... He wants to hug it so desperately because he's made it.

He somehow alive. ]

[quaria]

[ Don't worry, slave-servant. It's not because Setsuna refuses to listen; it's that he couldn't hear... Even as Slaine said his prayers, he couldn't hear those either. Though as he said, they really did get there rather quickly. In just a few more minutes, they are already in front of one of the city's hospitals.

... But not without having a small accident. Since Setsuna's bike is rebellious like the rest of the magical weapons, it refused to acknowledge that he was activating the breaks. Ah, well. That means they're going to crash. ]

Hold on to me.

[ Slaine, have you ever experienced being princess-carried by a fellow man? That's happening right now. Because Setsuna decided to jump out of the bike with him rather than wait for the actual crash to happen to them. So he leaps off the raging bike, allowing it to crash against the wall by itself. Meanwhile, they land safely on the ground together thanks to his reflexive footwork. ]

[troyhard]

[ Nope. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPE. nope nope nope. Slaine should be carrying the princess. It should never ever be the other way around.

And yet here he is, in the arms of a strange man. On one hand, both of them are alive with no further injuries. On the other hand, this costed a bit of Slaine's manliness-- Slaine let's out a small yelp and he finds himself still clinging onto Setsuna when he was instructed to-- scratch that, more than half of his manliness is gone now. The boy immediately covers his face with his hands. ]

P-please put me down. I can walk on my own.

i'm sorry, i lost my icon keywords so the earlier tags are ruined ;;

[quaria]

We need to go... We will be late soon.

[ Sorry, Slaine. Deal with it. Setsuna continues on carrying him, for the sake of getting through this faster. He can tell the boy is still disoriented, so it'll cost them a few minutes just waiting for him to adjust. They can't afford to waste any more time.

So Setsuna makes a dash for it, running through to enter the hospital and quickly arranges a check-up for Slaine. Since he made it sound urgent, the nurses hurry on... Especially after seeing their Hero uniforms. So whatever medical process involved here, everything is sped up and with in just a few more minutes, they're already ready to head out again.

Yes, again. c: ]

Then, we shall head to the orphanage.

[troyhard]

[ Really, the whole ordeal is too much for Slaine to handle. Once they're outside again, he's eyeing the motorbike dreadfully. He doesn't want to get back on that thing even if he's still alive right now.

Risky tricks in the air are one thing when he's pilot, but he's not so sure about putting his life in the hands of someone else, especially if they have trouble controlling their own vehicle. ]

... T-thank you, but... I can walk.

[ See the way he's kind of just... inching away?? Yeah. ]

I'm pretty fast on my feet-- not as fast as a bike, of course, although... [ There's a long pause. Look at him, trying to make up some sort of excuse. ] I'm still trying to get to know this place better, so walking and memorizing all of the different buildings is important.

[ Can't do it while you're zipping past everything with blinding speed. ]

[quaria]

[ Slaine... Did you not hear what he said...! They will be late soon. They can't afford to do a leisurely stroll or jog. Setsuna stares at the boy for a few seconds, then decides perhaps he's just being shy.

Well, that just means he has to reassure him that he doesn't mind. c: So Setsuna picks him up one more time that day, heading to the bike to help the boy on it before getting on himself. ]

We only have a few minutes left. Even at running speed, you will not make it with that distance... I will get us there.

[ And then, the engine starts again. ]