[Anniversary Event Starting Log] I Awaken To Another Day...

[thepull_mods]

Who: Open Log! This means everybody!
When: September 1st, 1918. Dawn.
Where: Farmer Whitty's Squash Patch, City of Missionworth (Ye Olde... Baseball Diamond?)
Summary: Midnight on New Years Eve finds the entire Newcomer Community thrust backwards in time...oh, 95 years or so?
Warnings: A lot of potentially drunk people are about to land facefirst in a field. Once word is out that a small horde of strangers have mysteriously arrived on the island, Military Forces will be rounding them up for questioning. You be the judge of how badly this goes.



Whether right in the middle of a rowdy parties as toasts are raised with complementary champagne, or having a quiet evening at home on the couch, watching GloTV's annual Auld Lang Syne Countdown Extravaganza, a sickeningly familiar tug of a feeling suddenly wrenches in the gut of every Newcomer on the island who has been brought here by Pull in the past three years.

As fireworks sound over AGI tower and the clock finishes striking twelve, the world spins. For a dazzling colorful moment, flashing scenes from their stay in Port roll backwards like rewound film before their eyes. It becomes a blur, the Pull drawing tighter and tighter, ears might pop and there's a very good chance the contents of their stomachs might be turned out.

And then there is coolness, a brisk breeze, morning dew and damp earth beneath them all.

The newcomers are scattered across a planted field of winding vines and colorful gourds, which won't be ready for harvesting for another month or so. Several startled crows are circling overhead, screaming. There are no tall towers on the skyline, and there are more surrounding trees, particularly toward the western horizon- golds and oranges of early autumn.

To the east, a picturesque early 20th century settlement stretches to the island shoreline, already bustling with traffic and construction in the early dawn's light. There is no putrid, sick-sweet rotting smell which normally lingers for awhile in the morning fog, after the lifting of darkness.

Two young boys stand agape at the edge of the field for several moment, leaning over a fencepost, then turn and tear off towards a homestead not far away, shouting for their papa.

Welcome to the City of Missionworth. Look's like The Core's decided to give you all a history lesson for the New Year.

Comments

[darwin_watts]

He's not crazy, swear. He's just very angry, because this was not a good time of life for him. He lived through this once, he doesn't feel he needs to do it again.

"Past, I think. I know this place. Worked here. I just don't know how far back. Clearly before 1918." That was a really horrible year, so he's hoping it was before that. "Can't be before 1916 though." He ran a hand through his hair, letting out a long deep huff of breath. There was no point in talking to the Core. It never answered, but when you had been around as long as it had been, you picked up strange habits.

"It's always the Core's fault."

[ella_of_frell]

The crazy ones always say they aren't crazy. "1918..." But he didn't look old enough to have been alive during 1918! "Wait a second - if you were here in 1918, then -then the Core pulled you forward at some point?" Or he was immortal, but she's not used to that enough to assume such.

She grimaces sympathetically, "So I've been told - problems with people being brought here, and sent back - but what would have made it bring so many to this particular time all of a sudden?" He might not even have a clue, but right now he seemed to know more than she'd expected anyone to at the situation.

[darwin_watts]

He's the one that will know most about the situation, IF people found him to find out. He was pacing a bit, which was a clear sign that he was thinking. It was how he worked.

"Might be 1917. Who knows. I need to find a paper. Or someon--no, that's not a good idea." HE himself shouldn't let himself be seen here, should he. What would happen if he saw himself, seeing as he doesn't ever remember seeing himself before. How confusing.

"I regenerate. My cells regenerate. Immortal, I guess." He waved a hand at this, as if this tidbit of information wasn't important, though it was also important that people believed this was part of his past. So maybe they will listen to him.

"It's always the Core's fault because the Core always has something it wants, or needs. It brings people from other worlds because it wants to. It does things to the city because it needs to, or it's hurt, or it's scared. It brought us here because..." God, he didn't know?! He shrugged, looking up at her apologetically for not knowing. "Because it wants something? Needs something? I don't know..."

[ella_of_frell]

Ella folded her arms absently as she watched Darwin pace back and forth. "THere might be one a bit closer to civilization - near the houses." Though given his reluctance to find someone, maybe he'd wait for a discarded one. Or Ella could try to find one - she wanted to know about that herself.

"Immortal... okay that... explains it then." She supposed. Though she didn't think about the Core being a sentient thing; she'd always thought of it as...well, a machine. "I'd imagine there would be people perfectly willing to help it with whatever it wanted if it was able to communicate, but..."

Speaking of communication: "Who were you yelling at, anyway?"

[darwin_watts]

"There should be. If I remember right, by this time we had news papers. Nothing fancy, but the city was getting big enough to need some form of pushing news around."

And he looked at the group of people. Oh man, what a mess. None of them fit in for this place. At least clothing wise. Everyone of them would fit in fine in Missionworth, if they were dressed properly.

"If it could communicate the way we do, I'm sure it would, but if you consider it and look at past reactions and habits, it makes sense. It's something that has wants and feelings but holds the control and fate of this island." he shrugged. "Or so we thought back then...er, now. Well, maybe."

There were fixed points in time to tell him the years, and he was pretty sure he'd figure that much out. Still, how much time before...

"Yelling at?" He blinked, then frowned, rubbing the back of his neck, sheepishly. "Ah, right." He waved a hand down to the ground. "The Core." Blame it all on the Core, remember. "Pretty sure it's why we're here. You're a newcomer or a native?" He already knew the answer, or so he thought. He recognized the faces of most the people from the Newcomer networks.

[ella_of_frell]

"I'll keep an eye out." She's thoughtful for a moment, considering how he describes the Core. "So, if it's a sentient thing, it could be likened to being like a child. Some of the things it's done, like it's throwing a tantrum for attention - or like you said, it was scared or..."

She shook her head. "This is all too much. How are we supposed to get back to our time?" At the question, she oh'd, "Right - I'm a Newcomer. I just came back a few months ago."

[darwin_watts]

"Yes! Exactly. Like a child, stuck here in the earth and having a small tantrum to get it's own way. I don't know if that's true or not, but if you study how it reacts to things, that's certainly how it seems. An attack on the core sparks earthquakes in the city. Disturb it and the lake goes toxic."

At that second comment? Yea, he didn't know. He frowned, glancing around again. Who might know, and who could he send to talk to them. "I'm not sure. I've never been thrown out of my era before. Other then location, this is new for me as well."

Yep, he was pretty sure most of them were the new newcomers. Made sense.

[ella_of_frell]

Talk about attacks on the core bring up another thought, as she glances up at the sky briefly. "If it's done all that because of attacks on it... what could possibly have happened to it to cause the existence of those ... darkness monsters in our time?"

Then back to Darwin, "I mean, obviously whatever it, hasn't happened yet - there haven't been any monsters around, and they're usually prowling at this hour." She'd assume anyway, since she made a point to not go out at night whenever possible.

"It is... that's ... unfortunate." No way of finding out how to go back home OR to the time they were in before.

[darwin_watts]

"I'm not sure what happened or what it wants this time. But if it's a fit, perhaps we need to make it happy to get back." It sounded dumb as he said it, which made him sigh, shaking his head.

As she spoke about the Darkness he looked at her steadily. He actually wrote the guide on the darkness, so this fact wasn't missed. "That's why I know this has to be before 1918. Or at least before September of that year." he shrugged, looking uncomfortable. Then he pointed out. "The hatch to the core, however, is here so it has to be after 1916...17? Something like that."

[ella_of_frell]

"I don't suppose you have any ideas on how to make it... happy either? Maybe if we can figure out what it wants us to know." Easier said than done. "Or better yet ... what are we supposed to do now that we're here."

"You were here during this time once already, right? Do you remember this far back, what happens that can give a clue?"