Intro Log: The Forgotten City

[atlasmods]

GOOD MORNING NEW ARRIVALS This time for real! WAKEY WAKEY. As the storm finally peters out and characters can once again move above ground it becomes abundantly clear that the landscape has changed. Where vast expanses of sand dunes once laid is now the half-buried remnants of what looks like some sort of...city? Full of structures. It stretches so far it's really hard to tell. But there is one thing characters will notice: There are more stasis pods. Revealed by the sandstorm, a whole new flurry of pods can be found scattered on the way to the city (curiously though, not in it. Hurry and wake those guys up! SPREAD THE LOVE. OR ACID. With the departure of the storm there's even more new arrivals to be found besides those fellow travelers of yours! The "Seedlings" and "Cactus" are now both available, the former blown in by the storm and the former uncovered. The Seedlings are generally pretty harmless. They like to burrow into the sand so only their "Leaves" plant-like leaves remain above ground, and they're quite happy to stay that way until surprised. Then they pop up and trip over themselves a little, before slowing down and wandering aimlessly. When they find a patch of sand that looks comfy they begin burrowing back down. Pull or yank on their leaves though and you'll find yourself with a face full of pollen that makes you want to just tell everyone how super-cool they are. It lasts a while, and then you get a fever and vomit for two hours. Good times. The Cacti are much less harmless and just...why would you eat them? Everything about this plant is poisonous, and cracking it open causes a corrosive acid-like substance to spill out. It'll eat through everything but...dirt, oddly. Metals and flesh are like hot oil on plastic. DON'T GET LOST And last but not least: The Forgotten City. Maybe you want to check out the Hull first for some loot, but maybe that's not such a cool idea anymore? Although it looks like the ship's definitely more powered after draining the suits of whoever went in, now it's started to spread and fill the sinkhole the ship's in. Suits can go from 100% to 0% in just ten minutes--not good! Lucky for everyone else, it looks like finally there's some sort of civilization up ahead. Go on and check it out! OR DO. THAT'S OKAY TOO. Go nuts, have fun, and enjoy! (This is the wildcard option) OOC The Flora, Fauna & Resources page has been updated with information on the seedlings, cacti, and crystals! These items are now all available for Discovery, and The Forgotten City will be available indefinitely from now on! Characters can take this time to settle & build up a foundation for themselves, explore the area, and of course, harass those poor little seedlings. We encourage players to make their own open posts for this setting--you don't need to stick to just this intro log! But make sure to make our newbies feel welcome!

Comments

[resnipstance]

I guess you could say that after a thousand years of peace and prosperity under the rule of the Galactic Republic, nobody ever really imagined that it would come to war. Everybody thought that the Separatist faction would eventually see sense and come back into the fold. Or else resolve things diplomatically.

But the Separatists were preparing for war the whole time. They were only biding their time so that they would be prepared.

[ceruleo]

[ He's getting a very condensed version of events. His conflict with the Galra is simple in comparison, but only because there are no other players, as far as he's aware: Zarkon controls nearly every sector of known space with an iron fist. ]

What triggered the war?

[resnipstance]

Uhhhh. That's... more complicated. There were a lot of different things at play-- and you'll get different answers depending on who you ask, too.

The shortest version I can give you is... well. In the months leading up to it, the Separatists launched a bunch of terrorist attacks on the capital, in protest of our government. Then, things escalated. There was an assassination attempt on a Senator-- incidentally, a senator who was one of the foremost proponents of engaging in peace talks with the Separatists. Fortunately, she lived.

Assassination attempts are pretty serious business, though, so they assigned a Jedi to investigate what they could and track down the culprit. His findings eventually led him to Geonosis-- a Separatist planet-- where he discovered a massive droid army being manufactured in secret. Not only that, but he also uncovered that the Trade Federation was behind Senator Amidala's assassination attempt. Uh-- sorry, this is where it gets kind of complicated. So, the Trade Federation and the Banking Clans were all backing the Separatists, because. Well, one, war is good business for them financially, and two, the Separatists were offering them more trade freedom and better rates. Short version, people are motivated by money. No one is surprised.

Anyway. The Jedi Master who went to Geonosis to learn all of this happened to be Anakin's master-- when Anakin himself was still an apprentice. His name was Obi-Wan. At the time, Anakin's assignment was to guard the Senator who'd escaped assassination. Geonosis is fairly far away, so in order to get his report back to the Jedi Council, he had to relay his message through someone else on another planet. That someone else was Anakin. Obi-Wan was then captured by the Separatists, tried, and found guilty of espionage-- punishable by death.

Anakin and the Senator both didn't want to leave Master Obi-Wan to die, so they decided to mount their own rescue-- but of course, they were also both captured, tried as spies and found guilty. At that point, it was going to be war either way, if the Council let the Separatists kill Senator Amidala. Either that, or the people would lose all faith in the Order to protect them and restore balance, and that probably would have sparked a civil war instead. So the Jedi Order eventually invaded Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan, Anakin and Padmé back before they were killed.

Aaaaaand that's what kicked off the Clone Wars! Aren't you glad you asked?

[ceruleo]

[ There's a long stretch of silence after Ahsoka's donespeaking, and even though Lance was nodding along to her explanation, he still feels woefully uninformed. ]

So uh, is this the part where you tell me there's gonna be a pop quiz on Monday...?

[resnipstance]

[Ahsoka just laughs.]

No. No quizzes. I just-- couldn't think of a shorter way to explain it. Like I said-- it was complicated.

[ceruleo]

Definitely sounds that way. [ There's a beat, Lance looking away from her at the roaring storm just feet away from their small cocoon of warmth and light. She was a kid--drafted into war, just her and her master and whatever great forces were still at play. He's sorry she had to live through all that.

Predictably, what comes out of his mouth is: ]

So, was Anakin always kind of a jerk?

[resnipstance]

[Another chuckle, but she looks away this time. She can never refrain from being amused when people ask that, but thinking of Anakin also hurts her heart now, too.]

Mm, pretty much. [She says, looking fond.] But you shouldn't judge him too harshly based on that.

I mean. Yes, his temper is bad, and he always thinks he's better than everyone else-- usually because he is. But... beneath all that, he's actually a really good person. He cares deeply about everyone and everything around him. But that isn't the Jedi way, so... he struggles with it.

[ceruleo]

[ Hotheaded, arrogant, actually not so bad under the surface? Struggles with his emotions? ]

Sounds like someone I know. [ There's enough tension in Lance's voice that it's obviously a loaded topic, and he segues ] What do you mean he's...not allowed to care? What's 'the Jedi way'?

[resnipstance]

Mmm... yes and no. It's more complicated than that. Of course Jedi are allowed to care. It's our-- their job to care. A Jedi respects and treasures life in all it's forms. But it's also their job to remain impartial. That means no attachments. You can't put friends or family or even personal bias before the mission, before greater good. That's why they don't marry, or have family. Why our training starts young, so we don't have any particular loyalty to a home planet.

[ceruleo]

[ He notices the way she stumbles over their, remembers how she told him once she wasn't a Jedi anymore. ]

Is that why you left?

[resnipstance]

No.

[Her face and voice both look about as neutral as she can forcibly make them, but her unconsciously her hands squeeze into little fists.

For a while, it seems like she isn't going to say anything else. Isn't going to elaborate. But then, finally--]

... I left because it became clear to me that the Order was not what it was supposed to be. That it was no longer upholding it's own values. And I didn't want to be a part of that.

[ceruleo]

[ The silence is long enough to tempt him to fill it, feeling the tension rise, watching the press of muscle when she clenches her fists. The firelight puts taut tendons in relief. ]

O-oh, well--

[ But then she's speaking again, and he snaps his mouth shut, feeling clumsy. There's another pause when she's done, because she's making him think of Pidge, who he misses terribly. ]

Sounds like you made the right choice. Must not have been easy.

[resnipstance]

... It wasn't. The Order was my life. My family.

[It was the hardest thing she'd ever done, really.

As for whether it was right or not-- who knows? But one thing's for sure. If she'd stayed, she'd be dead right now. Cold comfort.]

Sorry-- this is kind of a downer topic. Hence why I don't usually talk about it.

[ceruleo]

[ He jerks sideways, bumping their shoulders together. ]

Luckily for you, I'm the best pick-me-up there is.

[resnipstance]

[With more cheer than she actually feels:]

--Oh yeah? You're going to cheer me up?

[ceruleo]

You don't need to sound so unconvinced!

[resnipstance]

[Ahsoka chuckles.]

Sorry, sorry. ... You don't really need to do anything special to cheer me, though. It's the thought that counts.

[ceruleo]

[ Satisfied, he leans back, hands coming up to pillow the back of his head. ]

'Course I don't need to do anything special. I know just being in my presence is special enough.

[ I'm sorry, did you call him thoughtful? ]

[resnipstance]

[That earns a wry headshake.]

Aaaaaand you ruined it.

[ceruleo]

Ah, but you're smiling.

[ He wins. ]

[resnipstance]

Only because you're a dork.

[ceruleo]

You like this dork, admit it.

[resnipstance]

... Eh. You have your charm points. Sometimes.

1/3

[ceruleo]

[ HOLD UP.

That wasn't a no.................................... ]

2/3

[ceruleo]

O-oh yeah?

[ He's such a puppy he may as well have a wagging tail. ]