⇨ GAME START INTRO LOG!

[ringleaders]

Who: EVERYONE!
When: NOW!
Where: Around the carnival grounds, and in the Cookhouse.
What: Carnival worker orientation, Ringmaster style.
Warnings: Alcohol consumption, maybe drugs. Other things?

BRAVE NEW WORLD↴ ► THE NEW: It doesn't matter when you entered the tent to discuss your new contract with the Ringmaster, you exit it beneath a blanket of stars. Pointedly alien stars at that - currently the carnival grounds are being treated to a show of shooting stars, and what appear to be unnaturally large and living green moons hanging just a bit too close. The carnival was bustling when you entered, but now it's in the latter stages of being shut down for the night. If you manage to find a clock, it states that it's around 8PM. Workers from during the day will be passing through the grounds, attending to various pieces of business. None of them will seem very surprised or concerned by the goings on, though some may be sympathetic enough to pause and answer your questions. If you put some effort into finding out how it became nighttime, you may discover that it's been anywhere from a few hours to 7 days since you originally signed your contract. Someone may explain to you that it was probably some kind of time bubble, meant to keep you out of the way until the Ringmaster had time to deal with you. Every few minutes another new person will pop out of the tent, looking just as confused and under the impression that they had only just finished discussing things with the Ringmaster. Weird. She passed you a note before you left. Opening it up, you'll see you've been assigned a trailer number, and been given the instructions to drop off any excess belongings and do what you can to get settled in. You have until exactly 9:36PM to do so, because that's when you'll be expected to attend what is listed only as "WORKER'S ORIENTATION". This is, perhaps, more abrupt than you were expecting - but what can you do? You're here for the long haul. ► THE OLD: If you've ever seen a mass recruitment before, then this is no surprise. People enter the tent when they're recruited, and then sometimes how up again days later when the Ringmaster is ready for them. She isn't a big fan of wasting her time on individual orientations when she's expecting a crowd. Maybe you're too jaded to all of this to care much, but you'll see the newbies wandering around, probably confused and maybe a bit lost. Maybe you're the kind whose is sympathetic enough to pause your role in clean up and give them some directions, and maybe a word of confidence. Maybe you'll just jeer at them, because you're some kind of asshole. Either way, you expect you'll have the chance to see them later tonight. Whether by world of mouth, radio, or written note, supervisors will be passing out the following message: all workers are to report to the Cookhouse at 9:36PM sharp for "orientation." If you are at all familiar with how things go around here, you probably have a good idea of what this implies. Mandatory Karaoke Night. MANDATORY KARAOKE NIGHT!!!↴ At 9:36PM, the main dining hall of the Cookhouse will be found heavily decorator with various coloured lights and at least one disco ball made of what is ostensibly high karat gems. There are a bunch of cushions and additional seating set up along with the usual tables, and at the head of the call there is a state set up - a karaoke stage. For veteran workers, this is no surprise. Karaoke nights are fairly frequent as activities go, even if they are not usually mandatory. Some of you probably have signature songs already prepared. The karaoke machine is set up with mostly karaoke tracks that would be popular in the 90's and 00's on the average modern earth, with a few that are more recent. It also has some other random stuff from other worlds that people rarely sing because they are confusing and in languages no one understands. Here is a big karaoke list for your inspiration! The more stereotypically karaoke the better. Beyond that, there is plenty of food and snacks that were prepared by the cooks earlier, as well as a bar set up for alcohol and other vices. The selection is, as most things in the carnival, eclectic. Music will be played in between if nobody is singing, and otherwise veterans are encouraged to bring along their own fun and show the newbies a good time. The Ringmaster does ask that vets attempt to be courteous to their new coworkers. It's just being a good host.

Comments

[yellbrush]

Sinu a'manore..

[ the words come as a nearly automatic response. they are reminders of a life years ago, both of the kaldorei she lived with and the sin'dorei which came to the temple. but as her senses finally focus, any nostalgia she might feel is drained away. ]

You reek of death. [ if that isn't enough accusation, her shoulders take care of the rest - drawing in tight, tensing as she braces herself against the ground. she'd felt his presence earlier, when he first made his contract, but this close it's almost overwhelming.

not the best way to introduce herself to her new roommate, but she's not exactly worried about first impressions. ]

[respired]

Fel corruption roils off of you.

[ In other words: yes, and? YOU'RE ONE TO TALK.

Koltira is not presently aware of who she is--or that they're living together. Only that she is a demon hunter, a night elf, singing something that resonates just as much with him as with her. He sits beside her, his lichfire eyes fixed on her blindfolded face.

He moves on. ]

Were you one of the Highborne?

[yellbrush]

[ she grimaces a little at that, but she does not argue the point. ]

No. [ and she is tempted to hammer that point in - no, she is not one of the rats who sold themselves to the legion. but neither is she one of those highborne who stood against it, and out of respect for that she says instead: ] My birth came long after the Great Sundering. That song simply serves as its reminder.

[ his question, innocuous as it might seem, is still treated with caution. she does not relax as he takes a seat, choosing instead to face him directly. in any other circumstance, it might seem like acknowledgment; here, it reads more like a animal readying itself for a fight. ]

And you. What were you, before you were Scourge?

[respired]

[ Well, he knew it was kind of a long shot. The Highborne are few and far between, these days, and perhaps rightfully so. His ancestors had not done right by the world.

At her question, he visibly bristles. Hisses. ]

I am no Scourge. I am a knight of the Ebon Blade, and you dishonor me by suggesting otherwise.

[ DO YOU WANNA FUCKING FIGHT? ]

[yellbrush]

[ HELL YES SHE DOES except for that pesky rule that says she's not supposed to start fights with the newbies. why was that even implemented?? clearly this was an oversight.

she doesn't budge from her spot, facing koltira down with tense muscles and a scowl. ]

Your honor means nothing to me. [ wow, variss. edgy. ] Your Ebon Blade - does it stand against the Legion?

[respired]

[ It's taking a lot of willpower for him not to draw Byfrost right then and there, but he has at least enough sense not to start something right after signing his contract. Maybe a little ways down the line. Like, next week. But not within the first five hours. ]

We serve with as much vigor as anyone else, if not more so. Our dedication is unyielding, demon hunter.

[ He slams his fist on the counter. ]

I am only here because I seek aid to end their onslaught.

i am so sorry

[yellbrush]

[ she reacts visibly to the sound - her shoulders tightening, her scowl drawing into a snarl, her legs tensing as if preparing to leap - but only for a moment, and she is soon back to the way she was before. she breathes deep, focusing herself before she speaks. ]

Then our quarrels mean nothing. [ wow, she's actually trying to take the high road. don't get used to this any time soon. ] If your kind is willing to fight, then we will fight together.

[ variss you were doing so well until the "your kind" thing ]

[respired]

[ He does indeed bristle at your kind, but really ... he's heard worse. He's not bothered by her temper, either; his own is often barely leashed. He knows only a little of demon hunters, having been essentially out of the loop for the past four or five years, but he's as familiar with fel as anyone. Some of it runs through his own body, part of the dark, arcane mix of necromancy that keeps him (something like) alive. He knows what it does to people. What it did to his people.

So he, too, tries for patience. ]

We are all too willing.

[ Because he must fight. Because if he doesn't, there are dire consequences.

He frowns slightly. ]

Have you been with this place very long? Or are you also newly arrived?

[yellbrush]

A year.

[ she tries to return to her earlier position, leaning against the wall, but her calm is visibly gone. her muscles stay tensed, her fingers twitch and drum against her arm; even trying to be polite like this is an exercise around something as wrong as him. ]

Not so long as some. Still long enough.

[ she doesn't bother asking why he came. he's given her enough to work with already, after all - at least she can answer what few questions he might have. ]