First Quest [Video, towards the end of the first day of QuestBoard]

[bladeofnymeia]

[A blue Nidoran in a blue bandana smiles gently at you and nods in greeting. You may have met her, you may have not - therefore, she ought to introduce herself before trying an experiment.]

Hello. This is Firoza Istus - you may call me Firoza if you like. I am not good at this sort of communication...but that is going to work to my advantage. I want to share something with everyone.

[The memory that bubbles up is allowed to come freely - it's not nearly as clear or steady as what a Psychic Pokemon would be able to share, but it is intentional, rather than accidental. The image is of a desk, where an attendant lays out thin plates decorated like tiny slides of stained glass, each image unique, and there's a sense of...a task, that goes with each one.]

This is a system we have where I'm from, where people can put in requests for adventurers to do a task, such as protect cargo or slay beasts, or guide travelers to and from places. They are called leves. Similar ones can come in all the time, and like quests are represented by like images. Where I've done much adventuring, in Eorzea, usually they depict sainted individuals of the gods of the realm. In other lands, the system has proved to be very popular, and the images for leves are different - but it is the same concept.

[The memory fades back to the Nidoran, looking contemplative and at peace.]

'Tis reminiscent of that board in town. And...it is welcoming to see. So, I wonder...is there aught similar where you are from? I should like to learn about it, and about all of you in turn.

Comments

video;

[quirkynote]

[A.B.A doesn't really follow, but what else is new? Not that she disagrees, though, she likes the questboard, too. It makes it so much easier to find favors Pokemon want preformed, gets her closer to her own goals. She's not...sure if she can think of something similar back in her world, however.

Maybe a bounty board? She doesn't like that nearly as much...]

Thirty Winters...

[She has much more pressing things to talk about, anyway.]

I see you've survived. I was beginning to think that—

[...wait, what did she say? Firoza? Don't tell her she's made a mistake, especially a mistake that's really hard to backtrack from.]

Uggghhh, how very vexing... I was so certain this time, you even have the correct accent, so how many Nidoran am I going to find before I find the right one?!

[A.B.A....A.B.A, how...how many Nidoran have you bothered so far...?]

[bladeofnymeia]

O-oh...

[Oh no, she didn't mean - A.B.A. thinks that's her name, doesn't she? Oh boy. Oooh boy.]

Well...I am still the same Nidoran you met...and I am still thirty winters. If that's what you wish to call me, I don't mind.

[quirkynote]

Hm...

[This isn't the first time she's ever renamed someone, it certainly won't be the last.]

You're very accepting of change. ...This is favorable for you. Very well then, I stand by my relief in knowing you survived.

[bladeofnymeia]

An adventurer ought to be adaptable. Situations can change in an instant. But in this case...I've never had a nickname like that before. So it can be a nickname.

[Usually it's just "Fi", or "Roza"...some people do "Firo", which is weird, but whatever. To say nothing of various titles foisted upon her, Thirty Winters is quite apt.]

[quirkynote]

[There's a small nod, completely masking the fact that A.B.A disregards anything about a nickname and chooses to believe Thirty Winters is just Firoza's actual name now.]

The Outside World is very dangerous and constantly changing... Being unable to adapt is a death sentence... You're rather wise for your age.

Video

[moondregs]

Ah, hello again. It’s Junpei. We washed up together.

[ His ears twitch nervously at how bizarre that sentence is. ]

I’ve … changed forms since then.

[ Running over her question in his mind he gives a little shake of his head. His impulse response is ‘that kind of thing only really exists in video games’, but he has no clue if that would even mean anything to her. ]

Sorry, I don’t think we have anything quite like that back home. Usually if people want to hire someone to do something specific they’ll look it up … online.

[ Oh. A pause as he realizes that may also not mean anything to her. ]

[bladeofnymeia]

Ah - what were you before? [She's just trying to rack her brain for everyone she encountered while bobbing up and down in the waves...maybe he was...] Was it...the cow?

[Oh wait new thing she's never heard of hold on-] What is an online?

[moondregs]

Y-yes.

[ He’s grateful for the change of subject. The less said about his bovinity the better. ]

It’s a form of mass communication. Like what we’re doing now … although it’s more text based.

[bladeofnymeia]

...You're very different now. I hope the change did not hurt.

[Somehow she doesn't feel like this was that evolution thing everyone goes on about. Why would you go from a cow to a red panda? No logic in that.

wait until she sees a Remoraid and Octillery]

So it's much the same as the questboard...but it reaches a farther audience. Is that the way of it?

[moondregs]

It ... did.

[ Droop go the ears. ]

But it's over now. So, I'm just hoping this isn't a frequent occurrence. I'd rather stick with what I am then change again.

[ To her assumption of the internet, he gives a nod. ]

Yeah, pretty much. Only it's not just for quests, but to share any kind of information.

video

[truthdecided]

[What elegantly decorated plates... Akechi takes a moment to soak them in before responding.]

It's not quite the same, but the Phantom Thieves would take requests to change the hearts of corrupt individuals. I mean that literally, by the way.

[How to put it...]

In short, we'd access a parallel world born of the collective unconsciousness, find a person's repressed self, and steal away their distorted desires.

[At this point, it might as well be 'we.' He helped them during January, so it's not as though it's a lie, even if he hardly feels like part of the group.]

[bladeofnymeia]

...

[So much confusion just radiating off of her right now. You don't even need to see her face to know she's confused.]

I...believe you, but I cannot fathom how that is possible.

[truthdecided]

[Hmm... how to put this into words she may understand.]

To access this cognitive world, one must use a... device, let's just say. That device has a specific function that lets you name your destination, be it the collective unconsciousness or the individual "Palaces" that represent a person's distorted desires.

To enter a Palace, you must know the place that person perceived in a distorted way, the name of the distortion, and that person's name.

For instance, a vile politician may view the National Diet as a ship he must use to steer the country in his desired direction. Thus, in that cognitive world, it is a ship, shaped by his warped perception of reality.

[Here, he'll even project an image to prove his point.]

[bladeofnymeia]

Ooh...hm. Okay.

[It's still a bit beyond her grasp, but it makes more sense when he puts it like that.]

So it's sort of an aetherial projection, then. Of the...collective subconscious...thing.

[truthdecided]

It's essentially a world based on the mind and the collective thoughts and experiences of humanity meld together to create a system of tunnels.

[Would she know what a subway system is? Perhaps leaving it at tunnels is for the best, for now.]

[offtracks]

Ah, well...as a Warden, I guide travelers safely through my given territory! And sometimes we will travel if there is a problem that might require our help, but that's far less often, and usually at the request of our Clan's leader rather than just any individual. It does not sound like exactly the same thing!

[bladeofnymeia]

It does not, but it sounds like a great responsibility regardless.

[A clan leader sounds like something she could be familiar with. Finally, something not totally beyond her!]

If you are guiding people as part of your position...I suppose there are not many adventurers where you are from.

[offtracks]

I admit, we do not have anyone called adventurers...unless you mean people who are traveling purely for leisure? That's also quite rare - most of who I guide are traveling merchants, or members of our own clan going between the primary settlement and outlying ones.

[bladeofnymeia]

Adventuring is not just about leisure. It's about discovery and exploration, and seeking out challenges and sights that only a rare few can say they've experienced. A lot of other things end up falling into place as you go.

[offtracks]

I see! I cannot say that we do have anything particularly like that, but it sounds very interesting!

[Fun, too! But it would also be incredibly dangerous, so - why does he feel like sending a ten-year-old on one....?]

video

[telewarped]

[Though Shoka recognizes the Guildleves right away, it takes her some time to respond. After much deliberation and debating with herself over whether or not she should honestly admit why she recognizes the things, there eventually comes a cautious reply:]

Hey. Yeah, I've seen those where I'm from. The exact same ones, actually.

[She sends back a memory of the leves, very similar to Firoza's own... The only difference is that the image is being viewed through a screen.]

Just... not in real life.

[bladeofnymeia]

[The fact that the leves are being shown through a screen - and she does understand the concept of "screen" and "images on them" - is intriguing.]

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. They're quite beautiful.

[It's a weird response to be sure, but. Well. You just keep seeing weird things all the time, you learn to roll with it while also gaping internally.]

Did you have a favorite?

[telewarped]

A favorite to do or just look at?

[The art is really pretty...]

[bladeofnymeia]

...Both. Both? Yes, both.

i am not a FF gamer i just play one on DW. please pretend this makes sense lmao

[telewarped]

Favorite to do were probably the Confidence ones. The ones where you just have to run around picking stuff up off the ground? Easiest and fastest for leveling.

[Which almost definitely doesn't apply to someone who actually lives the quests.]

To look at... The one with the chocobo on it, maybe?

[A hazy impression of the Sympathy guildleve is sent through the Grumpearl, followed almost immediately by a clearer memory of another chocobo viewed through a smaller screen: the cutesy, 3D model from FanGO. Shoka tosses it a virtual fruit with a flick of her thumb, much to its virtual delight.]