Intro Log

[progressmods]

Who: Everyone!
What: Your first magical day
Where: Progress City Tranport Center
When: Right now
Warnings: None planned!



[Today you found a ticket to a theme park. It seems relatively normal, except that it reads: Lifetime Parkhopper Pass to Progress City. ”The Most Magical Pocket Dimension in the Multiverse!” This is not a theme park you have ever heard of, if you live in a world where theme parks are of the norm.

For some reason you’re drawn to the ticket. There’s something… magical in this piece of paper, and you can practically hear it calling out to you, and you feel compelled to pick it up. It’s strange, but it’s a piece of paper, what’s the worst that could happen?

However, the moment you pick it up, you feel yourself being pulled. There is nothing pulling you but there is an overwhelming sensation that something is pulling you by the chest into the ground. You don’t have time to process what’s going on before you suddenly fall over, the strange feeling going away the moment you hit the ground.

It takes a few moments for you to regain your bearings, but as you look up you are suddenly hit with the fact that, wherever you were before, you certainly aren’t there anymore. It appears to be a transport station of some sort, and a very sleek and new one at that. Monorails pass by the station every couple of minutes, with small, slower moving vehicles consistently move in and out of the center.

The innermost wall, right behind where you stand, is lined with portals. It appears that you came in through this portal, but if you try to go back the way you came in, you’ll find that you are unable to enter it, no matter how hard you try.

While the realization that you are now trapped in this strange place, you will soon find that you also have a strange band strapped to your dominant wrist. No matter how hard you try to take it off, it seems like it’s stuck on there.

At least you’re not alone, along with a bunch of other people who arrived around the same time you did, there are humanoid people who seemed to be intrigued by your arrival. They’re all generally nice, but get confused if you ask them why you’re here and why you can’t leave. They will, however, happily tell you the name of the place you’re in if you ask:

Progress City.]

Comments

[drawntodream]

[It's early in the morning, and Yui is trying to puzzle out the piece of paper on her desk. It's... a ticket? She's dressed to head out to class, but she just doesn't recognize it. It's pretty small, and it's for-

-wait, what's that pulling sensation? Immediately she wants to recoil from the ticket, but when she's getting takes toward her carpeted floor, that's difficult. Still, she's relaxing a tiny bit, given she's not getting pulled into a cage again. That's a different feeling. So then, it's not her heart, it's actually her being stolen-

-when she hits the ground, ticket clenched in one hand and bag clattering to the ground next to her, her first emotion is confusion. It's carpet, but nothing should make a noise when it hits? That's when she realizes her hand isn't touching carpet anymore. Whatever it is - feels like stone - it isn't soft. That's what finally gets her to look up and try to figure out where she is. And for a moment, laying face down in the Transport Center, she can only blink.

The moment doesn't last long, as instinct honed from six months of helping Haruka chase monsters kicks in, and she starts to analyze. Of course, that doesn't get her very far either, and after a moment, shifting to sit upright, she sighs, realizing this won't just be something easy.]

It never can be easy with magic, can it? Something goes wrong, something chooses, something needs help... This is the part where the fairies show up, right?

[Some time later, having dusted herself off, she starts to wander around the hall, looking for clues in the limited ways she knows how. She's... not overly cheery, but she's not losing herself in despair. She knows what despair feels like, and she's not even close. No, she's just resolute. She'll make it, one way or another.]

[computerwife]

No fairies here, kid. At least none that I know of.

[Instead you're getting a really dedicated LARPer.]

[drawntodream]

I'd certainly hoped it would be something simple, like a fairy kingdom needing me to save them from some calamity. I suppose it's more complicated than that.

Of course, I'm probably the only person that thinks that way. My year has been a little strange.

[computerwife]

If only it were that simple. I'd definitely rather be dealing with fairy kingdoms or whatever else right about now. Not exactly a fan of amusement parks.

[drawntodream]

I don't remember the list time I went to an amusement park... Other than now, I mean. I haven't actually done the fairy thing either. I just helped.

Um, do we know what we're dealing with, then?

[computerwife]

Not a clue! I can tell you the bands are real suspicious though. Tried to take it off my wrist but it didn't work.

[drawntodream]

Bands-?

[Yui looks down at her wrist; she apparently didn't notice the band before. Hers is a colored-pencil image of a castle with four colored lines coming off it, which she very much recognizes - is this from that time with the Palace? After a token effort to remove it, she looks back at the woman, color draining from her face. How does someone here know about that...?]

This picture shouldn't exist in this world. That worries me more than being here in the first place.

[notasingleword]

[She isn't totally sure what Yui is talking about, but Ariel can't help but overhear her talking. She tries to approach her calmly even though she's on the verge of freaking out herself.]

It really isn't huh? It's kinda more trouble than it's worth sometimes.

[drawntodream]

Maybe, but I also wouldn't want a world without it. Not when so much has happened that I wouldn't have been able to do without it.

[She gets a vague sense of... unease? But not the whole depth of freak out that may be waiting to come.]

Are you all right? Other than the whole... [She gestures to the room around them.]

[notasingleword]

That's true. I'd still be trapped at home at this point...

[In a situation like this, that might be a good thing, but she doesn't want to be anywhere without Freddie now. As for how she's doing well...]

I'm doing my best not to scream at the top of my lungs thanks! This is not the first time I've been in a situation like this; in fact I thought I just escaped from it!

[drawntodream]

[Yui's eyebrows shoot up into her hairline, before her expression softens a bit.]

That sounds rough... At least we can hope this time turns out better than the last?

[notasingleword]

Yeah... you're right. It's just the last time they tried to make us kill each other, and I'm worried this is gonna be the same.

[drawntodream]

...much, much better than the last? I certainly hope that doesn't happen, I have no idea what I'd do... I think it'd be better to not assume the worst, though. No sense in worrying when we don't know anything yet, right?

[notasingleword]

Right... you're right. Totally right.

[She takes a deep breath and feels a bit calmer.]

Thanks for helping me!

[drawntodream]

Of course! If we're... well, we don't really know what's going on, other than that we have a lifetime pass to whatever this place is. But if we're all here, that probably means we're going to have to work together to get out of here, right? I'll certainly take all the help I can get.

[notasingleword]

That's a good point. Last time, everyone did have to work together to win, so I'm sure this time is not that much different. Let's stick together then!

[drawntodream]

Right! Then if something does happen, we can present a united front!

Oh! If we're going to work together, we should probably exchange names, right? I'm Yui. Yui Nanase.

[notasingleword]

Oh of course! It's good to meet you Yui. My name is Ariel! Just Ariel!

[allknowledgegoodknowledge]

Quite possibly. [Just a lady with a teacup casually hanging over here, don't you mind.]

Although, sometimes the fairies come after the part with the sinister dragon. Or is it before? Or are the fairies secretly the dragon in disguise? Either way, there's a dragon involved, I believe.

[drawntodream]

[Yui's thoughts briefly wander; to Puff and Aroma, who disappear into a mental smoke could and are replaced with a dragon somehow sporting Aroma's wings and Puff's ears, and making some kind of adorable cross between her usual "disguise" bark and a dragon's roar. The image is ridiculous, and she dissolves into giggles for a moment before shaking her head.]

If one is involved, the fairies I'm thinking of certainly aren't part of it and don't know one.

[allknowledgegoodknowledge]

You never know who knows who these days. That's way its always good to stay connected on the local gossip. If you can be bothered to, of course.

[drawntodream]

The fairies I'm thinking of wouldn't know which end of the dragon had teeth. I don't have access to their gossip anymore, though... Their kingdom isn't connected to my world anymore. Not after we saved our world and theirs. Before then, we were the gossip.

[kindaruledatit]

Oh man, I wish. [Says the girl leaning against the wall over here. She seems more content to just tug slightly at her band, testing it. Hoping it'll just slide off.]

I've heard fairies can help you fly? I'm not sure if that's true for all of them, and it can kind of lead to accidents, but I've always wanted to give flying a try.

[drawntodream]

It might depend? I only know three, and one has wings anyway. None of them were very good at helping the rest of us fly, at any rate. My friends were... special, so they got help in other ways.

[She gives a small, rueful smile.]

The only thing I was good at, magic-wise, was getting caught.