Anyone wishing to read up on what's happened so far can find the previous thread here.
The new OOC and Player Roster thread for the game can be found here.
PTU: Divided Age
"Time is an....interesting phenomenon. You hardly ever notice it. And yet, it surrounds everything, dictating the very ebb and flow of reality itself. Without it, nothing would change, and everything would remain as it was for the rest of eternity. For good or ill."
"And when time breaks, well.....that's when things get really interesting."
"That's where this story begins - with a break in time. A crack in the fabric of reality. Well, eight of them, to be precise. And it's into these eight portals that eight poor souls, victims of nothing more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time, found themselves falling - slipping between the gaps in space and time, to find themselves in a world completely alien to them."
"But, while they passed through relatively unscathed, the eight souls - or 'Travelers' - were not entirely untouched. Yes, some would find themselves possessing gifts and powers beyond their understanding, but these changes would be minor and unimportant compared to the fact that, as far as reality and time are concerned, these Travelers should not exist."
"Fate. Destiny. A future. Every creature in existence, living or not, has their actions and choices set in stone from the moment they are born. All, that is, apart from those who suddenly find themselves cut off from the march of time. These Travelers, these creatures who should not be, have no Fate. No Destiny. Instead, they have something nothing else has: Free Will."
"To put things simply, they can do whatever they wish. Maybe they seek knowledge? The truth about what happened, what broke time itself, and a way to return to the time and home they once knew? Or perhaps they do not care about the past at all? They want instead to forget about their past lives, and think only of the future - to fight, and conquer, and achieve power that would make the hearts of men tremble in fear!"
"Or, maybe they just want to go off and do their own shit with colourful ribbons and dancing. That's an option too."
"Regardless, it all boils down to this one, simple thing."
"If you were given a brand new life, a completely clean slate from which you could start again and do whatever you wanted, then the question to be asked is obvious."
"What choices would you make?"
Percival, Nuligan, April, Soren, Han, and Lars
The truck repaired, and their respective adventures completed, the group piles back into the vehicle and return to the road. Most choose to take the opportunity to grab some rest as they rumble down the dirt-covered path, passing through the grassland that Soren and Han had explored not long before. Chris is especially quiet, head down as she dozes in the corner.
But then, after a while, her head abruptly pops up, an idea seemingly striking her. Moving towards the front of the truck, she bangs on the wall separating the back area from the driving cabin, Jake's gruff voice greeting her in reply.
"Excuse me, Mr Caulfield? I was just thinking...this'll be the first time these guys have ever seen Aytmos. Do you mind if we stop and let them get a proper view?"
"Hah, want to give 'em the full tourist works, eh? Sure, we can do that. I'll let you know when we're close enough..."
And sure enough he does, pulling the truck to a stop barely twenty minutes later. At an enthusiastic Chris' insistence, the group clambers out once again, following her instructions not to look in front of the truck until she says so. Then, on the count of three, they finally get a good look at what all the fuss is about.
The first thing they notice is that they're at the edge of the grasslands, the treeline returning just a couple of hundred yards ahead of them. But that isn't the main thing that attracts their attention.
Rising far above the treeline, in the distance beyond it, is quite possibly the single largest thing any of them has ever seen! It's easy to see why Han and Soren mistook it for a mountain earlier - but, now that they're closer, they can finally see it properly. This thing sure as hell ain't no mountain.
It's....a tree.
And despite the distance, it's clear that this tree is abnormally large. Standing at least a mile high, the top branches of the great oak simply disappear into the clouds above. Even standing what must be a good few miles away, the trainers feel like nothing more than miniscule ants compared to the...thing rising before them. And when they peer closer, they see....are those....buildings?! On the branches!?!
After a few seconds of quiet staring, Chris speaks up - a hint of pride in her voice.
"Yggdrasil, the Great Oak. Home of the Sky City of Aytmos."
----------------------------
An hour later, the truck rumbles to a stop for the last time. Following their little sight-seeing stop, the group had clambered back into the cargo area, as Jake drove them closer towards the distant treetop city. They don't get another chance to look at it until they clamber out again, this time finding themselves in the shadow of the gigantic wooden behemoth. The ground is surprisingly flat, considered the great gnarled roots jutting out of the earth around them. And the tree itself towers above, dwarfing everything with the sheer vastness of its height.
"End of the line boys. And ladies. 'fraid this is as far as we go."
"I don't think we can thank you enough, Mr Caulfield. For everything."
"Ack, it were nothing. Don't sweat it."
Chris doesn't say anything back straight away, instead staring into the space behind Jake, seemingly deep in thought. And when she does reply, there's a noticeable change in her demeanor - as if a particularly pressing thought had just suddenly passed through her head.
"Say...how would you like us to help you unload the truck? And transport everything up to the Market - since I'm guessing that's where you're going next. You know, as a final thank you for everything..."
"Oh, you don't have ta do that! Me an' Joey have been doing this fer years. We can handle it on our own, no trouble."
"Eh....to be completely frank with you, I actually have another reason for asking. You see, none of these guys have the proper access documents yet. And you must know how slow those bureaucrats at the main elevator can be. I thought, if you could get us on the delivery elevator..."
"Ah. Say no more, my dear. I get'cha. Leave it to me..."
As Jake hobbles over to talk to an official looking person nearby - and Joey wanders off to grab something called a 'loading cart' - the others stretch their legs and take in the new surroundings. They're currently in some kind of sandy parking lot, surrounded by a low wall topped with a chain-link fence, which contains many other truck-like vehicles manned by a variety of ranchers much like Jake, in the middle of offloading their goods. Most of the closer buildings appear to be a mix of offices and warehouses - some of them are a bit dusty, but in general they're mostly in good condition.
Beyond the fence though, all the buildings seem to be in a significantly worse state. The majority being dilapidated wooden shacks and mud-covered houses squatting in the dirt. Some are even built directly into Yggdrasil's roots, blending in perfectly to the tough bark of the tree.
Looking up, they see that most of the city - or at least, the non-slum areas - actually lie in the branches of the great tree above. Vast metal platforms and street-sized walkways hold the entire thing together, like some sort of intricately woven tapestry of wood and metal. Seemingly, the only connections between the ground and the branches above are two tall spiraling metal frameworks, which Nuligan quickly recognizes as futuristic elevator shafts - one running up the side of the huge tree's trunk, while the other sticks out of the top of the largest warehouse.
While they wait, absorbing their bizarre new surroundings, Chris continues to stare off into nothing, brow furrowed....before abruptly turning and addressing the group.
"Alright, my bosses know we've arrived - they'll be sending someone to meet us at the Market Place, once we get up to the Branch District. Seemed easier than waiting for them to come down here, or clear us for access through the main entrance. And after we meet them...well, I don't know what's going to happen then, honestly. Guess we'll just have to wait and see..."
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