introduction log.

[falsitates]

JUNE 1, 2021

The first day of summer - it’s unbearably hot. Temperatures are high and relentless, and without a single cloud in the sky, the sun blazes down heavily on the unlucky few stuck outside.

Weather predictions warn of an intense heatwave that’ll last all week long. The young and elderly are advised to stay indoors and hydrated, and anyone with the symptoms of a heat stroke is urged to head straight to the city hospital. Schools are temporarily closed until new air conditioners can be installed, and businesses come to a slow grind as many call out sick from heat exhaustion.

The city warns that it’s going to be a long seven days.

  NEWCOMERS

You wake up.

You’re left to your own devices. You have a vague memory of the last few moments of your time back in your world, in familiar surroundings, but you’re now somewhere new. Whether you’ve awoken on an unknown rooftop, in a stranger’s bedroom, behind cell bars, or under six feet of water - you know that you’re no longer at home.

You’re on your own for the time being. You must escape whatever predicament that you’ve found yourself in and find answers to your own questions. What brings you here? How did you arrive? What happened to your friends and family? You have an hour to explore and speak with the people of this world before your time runs out.

Something then vibrates in your pocket.

  RESIDENTS & NEWCOMERS

Your phone vibrates.

It buzzes incessantly until you pick it up, but when you look at the screen, it’s blank. It will not turn on, no matter how hard you press the buttons. It’s possible that it overheated and shut down, but it’s unusually cold to the touch, almost as if you’re touching a brick of ice. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, white text appears on a black background.

Decryption confirmed.

Condition green.

Booting program.

The screen goes dark once more. Seconds later, new words are typed.

WELCOME TO [ AVA ]

→ MISSION 001
HEAD TO THE CITY CROSSWALK BY 1500. FIND THE [ OTHERS ]. YOUR REWARD WILL BE ANNOUNCED THEN. FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION.

  WELCOME TO [ AVA ]

You can't avoid the mission; you don't have any choice. Any attempt to ignore or avoid it is futile, as convenient coincidences occur all around you as a motivator to go.

Did you have work? For some inexplicable reason, your shift has been cancelled. Were you trying to get some rest? The fire alarm went off and you were evacuated from your home. Did you attempt to travel to another part of the city? The sidewalks and roads have been closed due to a sudden blackout.

No matter what you do, you are compelled to head to the city crosswalk.

For the middle of the afternoon, it's unusually quiet and empty. Despite the heat warning, there should still be more than just a handful of you and a few others, but you won't have the time to ponder about it. Your phone finally reboots and appears to be back to normal - or so it seems. You've got a new app.

[ AVA ]

It's an icon with a white eye. It stares at you, and the screen remains frozen until you press it. It then starts the initialization process.

WELCOME TO [ AVA ]

PEACEFUL DAYS ARE OVER

ALEA IACTA EST

The text vanishes, revealing the app's interface. It's an online social media network with public forums and private messaging, but it's completely devoid of content. It currently only contains the user profiles of those who have signed up for the app, and you are one of them. Your full name, date of birth, personal address, height, weight, and a mugshot that you don't recall taking are all listed on your profile.

You quickly discover that you have no way of deleting or even editing your information. You can't even get rid of the app. The option simply does not exist.

Minutes after opening [ AVA ], you receive a notification. There have been two new forum posts. MISSION 002 and MISSION 003 are the names of the new threads. You open them to read.

→ MISSION 002
NEWCOMERS, WELCOME TO VITAE. YOUR GOAL FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS IS TO SURVIVE. IF YOU ARE ALIVE TO SEE THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH, YOU WILL BE GREATLY REWARDED.

→ MISSION 003
RESIDENTS, BE AWARE OF YOUR ENVIRONMENT. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO LEAVE THIS CITY. ONLY TRUST THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW. YOUR COMPENSATION WILL BE PROVIDED IN TWO WEEKS' TIME.

These threads allow you to leave comments. What do you do now?

Comments

[morient]

Yeah, you can use the guest rooms.

[ Noah brings Jun to another wing of the mansion. The guest room is just a bedroom, but it's well maintained and there's an attached bathroom as well.

When Jun opens the door, he sees a tall woman with white hair talking to Noah. She has her back to him, so Jun could listen to them talk without being noticed. ]

- bringing strangers to the house without notice. You know how important safety is.

Mom, he's not a stranger, he's from my class. What if he gets heat exhaustion in the dorm and no one's around? He can't go back to Japan on short notice either. It'll just be during the weather and he's well behaved.

[ Noah's mother sighs, though she seems convinced for now. ]

Alright. Just during the weather then.

[ Noah brightens, but not by much - it seems that his polite and mild-mannered attitude is a very ingrained part of his personality. He gives the woman a hug ]

Yay! Thanks mom. Oh! He's done changing I think...

[ Noah's mother turns around. She has the same deep blue eyes and white hair as her son, though she doesn't look that old. Maybe it's the skincare routine? She's definitely dressed in the same refined manner as her son, though she doesn't have any jewelry except for a crescent moon necklace. If Jun looks around, he might notice various moon motifs in the mansion's decorations. ]

Hello. You're Jun, yes? Noah likes you a lot. Try to rest up, the weather is dreadful these days.

[ She gives Noah a pat on the head ]

I'm going back to the office. Take care of yourself alright?

[ And she's on her way back to business. ]

[whiteshroud]

[He thanks him again before heading into the bathroom. From there, he changes into the clothes that Noah provided, washes his face to get the sweat off, and checks the seal mark on his arm before carefully covering it up with the sleeve of the tee. He also takes a moment to try to call Kou-- but the call fails to connect. Damn.

That disappointment passing, he'll finally come out of the bathroom in time to witness this scene. He's...a little stunned honestly. It's one thing to tell a quick fib to a maid, but to have this guy argue for him to stay. He really didn't expect this kind of treatment.

He's quiet as it all transpire, only giving a nod and "yes ma'am" when his mom addresses him. It's only when him and Noah are alone does he speak up again]

...You're doing an awful lot for a guy you just met...

[morient]

I know.

[ Noah turns serious once his mom leaves earshot ]

But I can't leave you stranded in an unfamiliar place. Plus, there's been a lot of strange things in a short period of time before we met. You heard how Iris doesn't even notice that thing in the sky... I'm worried.

[ Zeke said they might be up against something much bigger, too. ]

To meet the 'others', and survive. Even if I don't believe what horse crap the app says, I don't want you to faint and get into hospital with only a foreign ID. It'll be a lot of legal trouble and I don't want to spring it on your parents.

[ Not everyone is as rich as the Ebalon family, that's for sure. ]

You will be nice, right? I'm trusting you on this.... This isn't a threat from me, but if you do end up doing anything weird, the maids will come after you.

[ This is true. The Ebalon servants all know martial arts. ]

[whiteshroud]

[Well...that's a very logical argument. He can't deny a lot of the points, and it does sound like something himself or Kou would do. Still, he's getting used to people actually looking after him.

All he can do is relent.]

...Yeah. I'll be nice. [No need to send the maid staff!] Thank you, Noah. I'll find some way to pay you back.

[morient]

It's okay. I'm just doing my part.

[ He's trying to be useful here. Though, a sudden bout of vertigo makes him lean on the wall for support. ]

Ah... I should probably sit down somewhere... d'you want to go to the lounge with me?

[ It's a place for guest reception, so it's less awkward than going to someone's room. He figures he can get to know Jun a bit more before he leaves the other youth to his own devices.

The lounge also has air conditioning, and it's decorated in a more casual manner. There's also a full moon plaque hanging on one of the walls. Noah texts one of the maids to bring some water over. ]

So.... you're in school, right? How's it like in Japan?

[ Noah's mom would be more satisfied if she saw hardworking kids. ]

[whiteshroud]

[He watches the guy need to lean on the wall for support- once again not looking well. Was he sick with something? Should he say something...?

Instead he just nods. Maybe it's best to just go along with it. Whatever was going on with Noah, it didn't seem to be new. He sits down in the lounge. Considering how busy his day has been between everything that happened back home and now this, it feels surprisingly good to be sitting down in a comfortable chair.

...Though man, this family has a serious moon theme going on. What's with that?]

Aha- yeah! I'm a second year in high school. What about you?

[morient]

[ Oh you know, sometimes noble families just get obsessed with their crest and have to display it everywhere. ]

I just started university, though with the weather, I have to take classes at home.

[ Yeah, he thinks it's a good decision to give Jun a place to stay. Vitae isn't a crime city, but having a minor out on the streets is questionable at best. ]

I guess you can go to school here too if you want...? I'm not sure how though...

[ Surely Jun is not going to run around the streets like a hooligan. ]

[whiteshroud]

Oh, so you're older than me!

[A university student even! He can't say he's spoken with many of those before.

But right school. He actually liked school, but it was mostly because of his friends. Considering his life career was already set in stone for him, its not like he cared about going for the sake of a diploma.]

Haha...School would be nice, but I think I should focus on finding a way home first. [...] And probably getting a job, so I'll be able to support myself once this hot weather passes.

[You know, since he'll be out of here and on the streets then]

[morient]

Getting a job, huh... I don't suppose you have your passport with you?

[ Do people usually carry their IDs on their person? Noah does, but that's also because his card contains information for paramedics if he loses consciousness in public. ]

You could get something part-time. I don't know if people here will hire minors full-time.

[whiteshroud]

[he sighs] No...I left that back in my apartment. [In Tokyo] All I have on me is a school ID and my phone.

[Since yeah he was just attending a concert back home, not traveling internationally]

Part time's fine. [Kou does part time work! But what kind could he do...] Hmm...I got a job offer from a maid cafe once, maybe I should try applying to one here.

[uh. that escalated.]

[morient]

Maid cafe....?

[ Now that gets Noah to look at him quizzically. ]

Are you sure? That seems a little... I dunno... [ isn't it a job that requires you to hit on people? he's just a little worried. ] Would you be alright?

[whiteshroud]

[....]

I'll adapt.

[He does what must be done ]

[morient]

[ That's not very reassuring at all... ]

If you're sure...

[ Not like Noah has any better ideas, so he'll have to agree. ]

[whiteshroud]

[Jun shrugs]

If I'm to support myself, I need a well paying job. And since I don't have a diploma, a maid cafe is probably the easiest way to do that legally.

I'm sure it won't be so bad! I just have to serve coffee and wear a dress! I could do that.

[morient]

[ .... 💧 ]

Okay. If anyone gives you trouble, just let me know.

[ He might not be able to do anything physically, but his family is pretty prestigious. ]

[whiteshroud]

Haha, thanks Noah. You're awfully kind.

[This guy is willing to do so much for a stranger...he really did have to make sure he didn't bother him and to pay him back somehow]

So tell me about yourself. You go to university, but what do you like to do?

[morient]

Oh, I like to read.

[ That's a very normal hobby ]

I'm studying to become a pharmacist. I'm kind of sick all the time, so I want to help others who might have similar problems.

[ Noah is at heart just a very kind person. He doesn't have the haughty air of stereotypical heirs. Then again, he's not the successor, so... ]

[whiteshroud]

A pharmacist...that's a very noble pursuit.

[At least, he assumes so from what little he knows. Seal Knights don't usually need medicine thanks to their healing power. And even if he did...well, the pharmacist in Morimiya was a known Nemesis agent - and therefore the last person Jun would trust with his medicine.

But he had no reason to suspect Noah was affiliated with that side of the world, so he's willing to take what he says at face value. He's a kind boy that wants to help people who suffered like himself.]

Do you read for fun too? Or do you have any hobbies?

[morient]

[ For a rich scion, Noah is extremely non-shady. But that's also a double edged sword, as he's quite trusting of people who needs help. ]

I can't go out much, so things like sports are out of reach for me. Reading fantasy stories is fun though. It's just interesting to see other worlds, even if they're just a story.

[ He is surprisingly not a gamer, though that might be because of his noble upbringing. ]

[whiteshroud]

Hmm....I could relate to that...

[It was a huge reason he was so into stories. There was a certain level of escapism to them. Stories always work out nicely.

But if Noah likes fantasy stories, then maybe....]

...So...are you into anime?

[morient]

[ what's anime... oh yeah. the cartoons ]

You mean the TV shows? I've heard of them, but I don't usually watch things. Mom said it was bad for my grades, so I just read books instead.

[ There's no TV in his room nor in the lounge. ]

[whiteshroud]

[ 💧 ...]

O-Oh, I see...

[That sounds like propaganda, but he knows better than to try to argue against someone's parent. Guess no anime for him while staying here...great.]

[morient]

[ Noah doesn't miss Jun's awkward expression. ]

Do you like anime?

[ Well since Jun isn't studying, he supposes it doesn't cause any issues. ]

[whiteshroud]

[Caught...]

Yeah, I do...but it's alright. I don't mind following the house rules.

[morient]

If you don't go to school, you don't need to worry about grades right?

[ Hah. ]

The rules just apply to me, anyway. Mom wants me to be a good student. [ So he's very hardworking. ]