INTROS + MONTHLIES

[trainmasters]

Who: Everyone
When: Day 51, evening
Where: the Aurora

[It's evening, and as the stars come out you get that text again:]

WELCOME NEW HEROES

[This round's newbies are waking up in their rooms, in the usual nondescript undies or team pyjamas.

Outside, the fog is gone. In its place is a pleasant evening, its beauty enhanced by tiny, softly-glowing flowers along the jungle paths. Unfortunately, should you peer closer toy may notice these flowers have blackened, curled leaves -- and the scent that wafts up when you step on them will either heighten or dull one of your senses.

But hey, why go in the jungle when you could eat questionable snacks in the lounge again? This time there are towers of round chocolates in varying colours, and sparkle blue and white snowflake decor on the walls and hanging from the ceiling. In typical Star Prince and Knights fashion there is a lot of glitter, and the chocolates definitely have a magical side-effect: in this case, transformation.

☆ Blue-wrapped chocolates cause your character to shift in age. They may get older or younger, and this transformation may be purely physical or may include mental shifting as well.

☆ Silver-wrapped chocolates cause your character to gain animal features -- anything from cat ears to fully becoming a cat is acceptable, and any animal real or mythical is game. It won't change you to a size that doesn't fit in the train, though.

☆ White-wrapped chocolates cause a transformation to a different physical sex.

☆ Black-wrapped chocolates cause you to take on the form of another person -- someone on the train or someone you remember from elsewhere. It won't turn you into anyone you don't personally know, however.

These effects wear off within a few hours, and you can combine more than one. Enjoy your icebreaker and make that fresh meat feel welcome!]

[[OOC NOTES: As the monthly prompt, the flowers will continue until next month's placements. If you have any questions, please ping the mods via the q&a. Thank you!]]

Comments

[daydreamshimmer]

Definitely not Midgard. Outside has weird stuff going on, which, could have been on Equestria. But humans certainly don't. And this train is definitely build for human proportions. There are also people who I think are....not human? I'm a little vague on your variations. And at least one dragon who is far nicer than anything of what I think of for dragons.

I'm actually unsure if he's why my body was different. There's a whole thing, but the human body can't use most of my magic, and considering how easy shapeshifting magic is here, he could have changed me or, you know, left a note on me buying something. Someone else had to point out that possibility. Who knows how long it'd have taken for me to figure out the Spark shop could do that.

Memories are his fault for sure though. [And at the question of earning, her horn glows and words are written out in the hair in red and orange sparkles.] This list is in the lounge car. They're tasks we can before with other people to earn sparks. [And there's a list of all the general and team tasks.] Five hundred each to earn a memory that must be view publicly. Each task is a hundred to two hundred. Unless you win a trial, which is five hundred.

As for earn freedom? Save the world, I guess. People have only been here less than two months.

Well, duh, that was my first thought. Either he's well intentioned, but hiding things, or he's manipulating us for his own goals which could be be who knows what on the morality scale.

Unfortunately, I can only tell you so much. I know a lot of Equestrian Magic, but Harmony magic is one of our most powerful magic for a reason. It operates on rules that are a lot harder to understand and only some people can even wield it.

I might be one of those people, but the magic runs on an instinctive enough level that I didn't retain that knowledge, but that's just a theory on some magic I can do that I can't explain.

[bestbrotherever]

How very odd. I would assume that you were turned human so you could make use of the facilities as intended, but you say there is a dragon, and it was not turned human...? As for beings that look human but are not, I believe I can confirm that we are not turned into humans.

[He goes quiet.] Not only must you purchase your own past, but you must reveal it to everyone in order to regain it... That is quite the cruelty. And yet the Prince does not inflict it on anyone. There seems to be little reason in his choices, other than reminding us that we are in his power. [Little hypocritical, Loki, since plenty of people would say the same thing about you, but he believes that he does make sense and if others can't figure it out that's their problem.]

Those tasks... they do not seem overly onerous or harmful. Many are things that most would do without any incentive. Another oddity...

I thank you for enlightening me about this place and its Prince's whims. I am glad, at the very least, to learn that my team senior is no fool. [He says that with a genuine smile.] And I look forward to discussing magic theory. Perhaps a new perspective will be what you need to understand your Harmony magic better.

[daydreamshimmer]

That would even be necessary. I mean, the chairs are a probably, but the rest? Eh, just a little tall and height doesn't matter to a unicorn older than five. But it's possible I was human when I was taken, I'm in some....weird situation.

[Frowns, looking him over closely.] ....yeah, I have no idea what's different. What are you then?

Yep. Especially since we could get it privately if we spent two tokens so it takes twice as long as to remember everything. And even if for some reason that WAS necessary, having the display in the lounge makes it pretty obvious he wants it to be seen by all. [So much bitterness.] Some can't remember, some don't have powers, some aren't changed at all, it all feels more like a game to throw us all off so we can't rebel effectively.

Ah, yeah, THAT would be the catch. I mean, all these being 'bond magic' is already suspicious because it is easy and not really necessary to care about people, that's weird, but that is the thing. It's not all sunshine and rainbows.

There are trials. Which, sometimes yeah, are things like icebreaker bingo or build a robot. Other times?

People die. [And her expression is just. Stonefaced.] People get hurt or killed and they suffer pain pointlessly. Even if they revive the dead, even if there's healing pods, it's all just....a practice in sadism.

[bestbrotherever]

[Loki raises an eyebrow.] Your kind use magic so effortlessly that even children could adapt perfectly to a setting intended for beings with hands and only two legs? [Solar Flare, you keep getting more and more interesting.]

I am a god. [He states it simply.]

[He shakes his head, partially in sympathy and partially disagreement.] That does not entirely make sense. If he wished to prevent us from rebelling, then I would have lost something. Perhaps he is not as competent as he seems, but I do not think that is the entire answer. There is more going on.

[Despite Solar's description of the death games, Loki grins. Mirthlessly.] Ah, and there is the poison in the feast. But again, more mysteries. Unless this Prince is entirely capricious and equally enjoys seeing his captives playing games and hurting each other.

[daydreamshimmer]

Well, some magic. [And she's going to grab a couch cushion in a telekinetic hold.] Telekinesis is a basic bit of magic. Most any spell needs 'focus magic on a thing' and 'move it' is a fairly simple manipulation that it could happen with a surge of magic even if it lacks control. It makes it easy to tech foals. Most unicorns only know telekinesis and one and two other bits of magic, to do anything truly fancy takes a lot more studying. [And places the cushion back on the bed.]

Huh. That puts us at one and a half then. [Pause.] I may need your help with a....project later.

A rebellion needs numbers, especially when powers of a god have been taken before. For that to work, something has to be of equal or greater strength. One person with immense power won't do the trick and frankly, the personality types around here are enough to make it hard, let alone lack of power or memories all over.

He's not the sole trial runner. There are others. Or maybe they're his puppets and he's that way. Either way, he doesn't have a leash on those under him or he's lying to us about there being more than one. But that's what I mean, either he's well intentioned and hiding things, or he's got darker dealings going on.

[bestbrotherever]

That may be simple, but not many other Asgardians bother to master even the most simple magic that they should all be capable of.

I assume you are one of those who choose to study magic in order to push your capabilities to their limits?

There is a... demi-god here? [Another Asgardian? Or half-Asgardian? Someone who might know him? But he doesn't know of any half-Asgardians.] Well. I cannot promise my aid, but I shall give it all due consideration.

Do not count out others in a potential rebellion. They may not be capable on their own, but with the right motivation and guidance, even lesser beings can take down the powerful.

But we do need to know more. About what kind of man this Prince truly is, what else he he can do, what he is willing to do. Are you on good terms with any who have been here longer than your nine days?

[daydreamshimmer]

Telekinesis is too useful to not learn. It also allows for some fine tune work that doing it the Earth Pony way would take ages to ever master, if possible at all.

That I did. That's the funny thing about this whole loss business. I can retain knowledge necessary to use skills. So spellwork I can remember, but not when or how I learned it.

Hmmm, not quite. Though I met the team itself. There is another god around and they're the ones I'm helping with a project. Having someone around who remembers things could help, especially with magic expertise.

I would be the half. I'm not sure what the deal actually is, but the magic that might be harmony magic is definitely not unicorn magic. It's been twice now I've tripped into doing something that's been a fun combination of powerful, unique by Equestrian Magic standards, and stupidly dangerous. [There is a very put upon look for that part.] But it's made wings pop up twice and I know it's possible for a pony who obtains unique magic to ascend to alicornhood. Which is an immortal of great magical power, traits of all three pony tribes, and a connection to a fundamental force of the world, AKA a god.

It's been both fascinating and extremely confusing.

Oh, I'm not discounting potential. I'm discounting terrible personalities. The train is full of people who do not have themselves together even beyond amnesia. It'd be easier to herd a group of cats.

And then there's the optimists...

I am. Really, the only people I've talked to who are newer are on this team and the dragon and I think someone on Ginger. But the Prince isn't around a lot. It's hard to get a read on a guy whose just never around.