Brave Galaxy is set in a world loosely based on Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail and Eden’s Zero. It is a PG-13 or so rated space fantasy RP, and uses a combination of character statistics, which can be acquired via roleplaying and events, and creative freedom to help direct players’ characters. While there is a main storyline, which can be found in the events section, characters are free to interact with others and their environment however they see fit.
Explore the galaxy. Overcome the obstacles in your path. Shape the future of humanity.
Post by Reya Starlyght on Jul 30, 2019 18:15:10 GMT
Oh, the Alliance and their grandiose prose, always focused on a distant future instead of remaining in the present, speaking of times most alive would never see come to pass. Their mission was to protect natural and legal rights, that much was certain given how many times it was mentioned in the Alliance's charter alone, but such goals were often lost when one only ever viewed the bigger picture. On its own it wasn't necessarily a condemning characteristic, but why a bunch of... well, mortals, as much as he hated to think of them that way, were so concerned with details that had the possibility to change at a moment's notice Leo had never really understood. He certainly wasn't, at least not with a laser focus, and provided things didn't go horribly wrong he would live to see the days they plotted for. To presume one could predict the future was sheer arrogance, no one had foreseen the Blight and the failures of humanity to stop it, and there were countless other events he could rattle off in his head but spared the time in doing so. Even this Alien Inquisition: Elseima's previous pleas had been ignored until they had an influence on the greater galaxy. The term inquisition itself was not something he was fond of, but that was another story for a different time, one coated in dust as it were.
Still, Leo couldn't deny that he was intrigued by what the newest race introduced to the galaxy had planned, and although it seemed to be a one-sided antagonism he knew better than to presume such based off of one encounter. Certainly, Khix'eks and his merry band of infiltrators had attacked the president of the Federation, a momentous feat truly, but their intent hadn't been lethal. He smiled for a brief moment, a degree of anticipation building within as it would be more than likely the mission at hand would open up opportunities for... interrogation. His surroundings cleared him of such thoughts, however, or at least one individual in particular did, Blitz Ranfen. While they had only had two outings with one another, Leo already had the feeling that he wasn't much for forcing answers out of others, whether they be alien or not. Who knew, though, sometimes people were surprisingly apathetic given certain circumstances.
Ignis Vorago was their destination, a planet neither Leo nor Eris had ever visited, though from the reports it seemed like there wasn't much to see anyway. Its temperatures were too extreme even for permanent settlement, but still it apparently harbored an alien outpost. Perhaps they chose such a location so it would be easy to destroy and therefore erase evidence? Otherwise, he was guessing the aliens' physiology was adapted to a wider range of climates than the average human. He was more so curious about the latter than the former, having had quite bit of time to mull over the physical characteristics he had witnessed at the Independence Gala. His mere observations had not been enough, however, hard evidence was required to make any further conclusions on their anatomy. It at least seemed humanoid, but that was only going off how he and others had eliminated the various guards.
Soon, the snapping open of the cockpit door was heard, Eris emerging from it. "The navicomputer is saying we'll be there in about an hour," she announced, then sitting down next to Leo on their bed. Having elected to take one ship instead of two, given Vorago's temperamental nature, they were all gathered on board Blackjack, Leo and Eris's fairly innocuous-looking transport which was modified for combat capabilities. What was once the cargo hold had been re-decorated as a small apartment, and while it was not their formal address given how often they traveled it might as well have been.
"Well then, I guess we have some time to kill. Want a drink or anything?" Leo offered, gaze falling onto Blitz.
Blitz stared quietly out the starboard-side window, gazing out into the void of space as they traveled to their destination. Their mission had ties to the intruders who had interrupted the main event back at the President's estate - aliens. Blitz was admittedly curious about them, as he had initially assumed humanity had run into aliens before - it had been 1000 years, after all - but to his surprise, it was the first time seeing an alien for everyone that day. Though not like ones of non-human origin were entirely uncommon, Blitz thought to himself. There had been a few with 'mixed parentage' back on earth, just no one who was fully of a non-human bloodline. Suppose we'll have to play this by ear and see how it goes, he mused to himself.
The problem was that the organizations wanted them to bring one back to more or less interrogate to learn more about the alien species. Normally, it's possible they might have just invited one of them over for some questions, but the incident at the Gala had destroyed any chance of resolving this with diplomacy alone, so they'd have to take at least one prisoner to get information from. Blitz brushed aside any thoughts of what might happen to said prisoner, reminding himself that they had attacked first, and made it very clear they had no love for humanity. And if this outpost of sorts was indeed a staging ground for something bigger, all the more reason to get information while they could.
A nearby door opened and let through a familiar pair - Leo and Eris. He'd accepted their offer to join them on this mission, seeing as he was one of the few who'd fought the aliens at the Gala, and he'd formed a friendship of sorts with the duo, even if they did continue to play a lot of things very close to the vest. "I wouldn't mind wetting my whistle while I wait - what have you got to drink?" Blitz said. He usually wasn't one for drinks, but this was a long flight, and the planet was going to be toasty, to say the least. Hydration was a thing.
As drinks were fetched, Blitz said, "I hope this mission goes smoothly, and that ideally, this outpost is a misunderstanding or something from those fellows at the Gala, who I'd hope are a splinter group. That would be a lot of convenient outcomes in a row, but the alternative reminds me very strongly of the attack on the Memorial events right before the second Boscan War started, and NOT in a good way." That was another advantage to hanging out with Eris and Leo - he didn't have to keep referring to the second Boscan War as the "Great War" to avoid getting looks, as they were aware of it as well. Now that I think about it, I wonder if they even have records of the first war, given how much happened in the second one, he thought to himself.
"Mmm, let's see," Leo trailed off, hopping off the bed and travelling over to a nearby cabinet next to the refrigerator. He opened it for half a second before a bottle fell out of the cupboard, Leo catching it just before it hit the ground. 180 proof whiskey, chances were Blitz didn't want something quite that strong. The other panel he opened luckily didn't result in any other potential catastrophe, although it certainly did display their habit of hoarding liquor. "Okay, yeah, you might just want to take a look yourself. There's also beer and wine in the fridge." Shrugging, Leo poured himself a glass of what was in his hand, glancing over at Eris who repeated the gesture before doing the same for her.
Once they were settled down, Blitz opened up the conversation on a pretty obvious note, relating to the task at hand. Sometimes such pre-meditation could be dull, but aliens were not a subject they had gotten bored of yet. So much to learn, so much to process, the mere thought was tantalizing enough that speaking of it was not something that could simply be auto-piloted. "Perhaps so, although to be fair humanity has a high chance of reciprocating regardless of how splintered they are. Unfortunately, many view other races as a... single entity, rather than just as diverse as themselves," he commented. "I would hope the Independence Gala doesn't turn out to be like the Memorial Day attacks, because it would imply a higher up in the Fioran government plotted the entire thing."
Eris grinned for an ever brief moment despite herself. "You have to admit though, the irony would be great if that were the case: an event supposed to celebrate the breaking away of corruption attempting to restart the cycle that got us here in the first place," she said, downing her drink in one go before serving herself another. "I would say we got lucky with the gala, it was clear the one who orchestrated it only wanted to send a message. This outpost likely won't view our intrusion in the same light."
Leo sighed. "A bit disappointing, I must say. Khix'eks's theatrics were almost entertaining, if it hadn't been for the fact that he was trying to kidnap Argall, of course." No, there wasn't an almost in his mind, the alien infiltrator's scheme had indeed caught his attention for its audacity, for the way it had worked so well in stirring the Earthland nations into action. It had been a performance that part of Leo had admired, but it would be best not to share such with Blitz. Though he did figure his allegiance was clear enough, given that they were all on the same mission together.
After a near-miss with a bottle almost crashing to the floor, (narrowly averted by Leo's reflexes) Leo suggested that Blitz have a look and pick one out for himself. Blitz glanced at the selection before selecting a lower-grade proof one from the selection with a slight laugh as he closed the door. "I doubt anyone who you deem a problem - in terms of guessing your age - would be able to browse your drink collections, but you might want to consider updating the labels on some of these," Blitz said, adding a few cubes to a glass and pouring a bit into a glass. "The 'proof' rating stopped being used a few decades before the Blight. Got replaced by that 'alcohol by volume' stuff. I don't know the exact year it happened, but I do know that most of the ones I recall seeing before the Boscan War happened had either both listed, or just the volume alternative." he added, taking a sip. While he didn't mind a polite drink, he didn't want to risk anything before a mission. Not that it mattered much - given the changes to his form over the years of transformations, he likely could have chugged the 180-proof without much in the way of side effects. But he thought it best not to develop habits.
Blitz paused at Leo provided his own viewpoint on the Gala incident. "Well, not so much in the 'hints of corruption' thing so much as a sign of things to come. Remember, the side-effects of that incident was what caused the pressure to start a war with Bosco, instead of letting them start the war that time around. Relations aren't great, but I'd rather avoid another war. It would be unfortunate on several levels to leave the battlefield, sail through space for a thousand years, then crash land right in the middle of another battlefield."
Blitz clarified a further point: "Correction - we're lucky that their idea of sending a message was non-lethal. If memory serves, the splinter faction that attacked the Memorial event was also trying to 'send a message', and had a very different interpretation about how to go about sending said message."
"As for our dramatic friend, no telling if we'll see him or not," Blitz continued. "While he doesn't seem the type for doing stuff in the background - at least after that flashy display at the Gala - it's also possible he volunteered for the more active roles. If he ended up our prisoner, I'm sure the guilds would be more than pleased."
Post by Reya Starlyght on Aug 4, 2019 21:00:47 GMT
They both started laughing as Blitz tried to explain the change in laws, Leo shaking his head. Of course he didn't bother to keep track of most of Fiore's regulations, but nothing in the cabinet was anywhere close to as old as the man was suggesting. "We only own... six things and a handful of pictures that are from Earthland, three of them are pieces of jewelry and the other two and a half are swords," he said, counting on his fingers. "There's both labels on most of them, if there's not... well the bottle in question may be slightly illegal. I would stay away from those, they have some more... esoteric ingredients."
Eris smirked as he finished. "We should probably keep most of those at Sunfall, now that I think of it. It's been a while since there's been any use for them here." He moved his head back and forth for a moment, considering what she said before shrugging. It didn't really matter to him.
"The splinter faction was also encouraged by Stefan and his friend General Garrus Ashram of the Imperial Army to attack during Memorial Day. The entire Second Boscan War was initiated because Stefan wanted it to happen, I'm not sure if anyone has told you that yet," Leo said, tapping his fingers on his now empty glass. "To be honest, though, the fact that the attack was non-lethal is almost more concerning. Memorial Day was a terrorist attack, we've seen them before, undoubtedly we'll see them again. This... was more calculated. They studied, they knew Argall would react in the way that she did, they knew how to strike Fiore down without any true injury. It was careful planning that led them to act the way they did, which means they have known of humanity for far longer than we have known of them."
Concerning indeed, that the nations of Earthland would start off at such a disadvantage. The saying of 'in order to defeat an enemy you must first know them' certainly rang true in the current state of affairs, and it was not a good thing for the defending side. It was why they needed to gather as much information as possible in their excursion, Leo reminded himself, otherwise they would be caught off guard again, and probably in a far worse capacity. The Independence Gala had been a declaration, and now what remained to see what exactly that declaration would entail. He doubted Blitz's wish of a peaceful settlement would come true, but perhaps that was just his nagging pessimism making its mark.
"If anything, he'd be on the receiving end of whatever this outpost's purpose is," Eris suggested as the man brought up Khix'eks.
After some more conversation, an automated although smooth female voice came in over the intercom. "Disengaging warp drive in two minutes." Eris got up from her seat and moved toward the cockpit, where she sat down in the pilot's chair and placed her hands on the controls. He followed after securing some loose items and sat down in the seat to the right, though not moving for any of the buttons on the dashboard, or at least yet. They both buckled into their positions, Leo pointing Blitz toward one of the two passenger's chairs folded up against the wall.
"It could get bumpy in the atmosphere; you're not going to want to be bouncing around the cabin, I'll tell you that much," he offered, before turning back to the window as they dropped into sub-light speeds. There was always that rapid feeling of suddenly going millions of miles per hour before quick deceleration, but for the most part the schematics of the ship averted it. More importantly, however, before them lay the view of Ignis Vorago, and quite beautiful did Leo find it, actually. Even from space, the roiling magma of its massive fissure could be seen, and just imagining the destructive force it could muster was enough to draw him out of the present for a moment, before swiftly being pulled back into it by Eris's request to activate the scanners. "Sorry," Leo murmured with an odd look from her, before flipping the switch on.
Leo explained that very few things made the trip from Earthland with them, and that the bottles without mixed labeling might be non-regulation, to say the least. "You misunderstand," Blitz said, taking another sip, "I don't know the labeling policies of the galaxy as a whole, but I DO know the policies back in the day. Which means that a scant few travelers from the Exodus might also remember, if their parents brought, say, a bottle of their favorite for the celebration when they landed. And thus, it might result in them guessing correctly, despite having incorrect reasons for that guess. Granted, what I've proposed is very unlikely," Blitz admitted, "But in fairness, your 'age' only needs to be discovered once by the wrong person for it to be permanent. So what I'm saying is that you technically have TWO reasons to keep the single-style labels in the back." Blitz said with a slight grin.
Blitz sipped quietly as Leo mentioned the Memorial Day events. "To be honest, I didn't know that Stefan encouraged the attack, but at the same time, I'm not terribly surprised. As for Ashram, if he encouraged that violence, well, he's not a problem anymore - one of the last memories I have from Earthland was killing him on the battlefield. Tough bastard." Blitz muttered. "As for our new extraterrestrial companions in the galaxy, they might know a fair amount about us, but until we ventured from Earthland, assuming their race DID explore the galaxy, we weren't exactly hard to find. As for non-lethal, I'm glad no one died from it, but the way the last one was approaching the President wasn't a 'hey let's shake hands' sort of approach. Nothing good would have occurred had he gotten too close."
As the voice on the intercom let them know they were on approach, Blitz drank the last of his drink and set the glass into the small sink, the ice making a slight clink against the glass as he moved over and sat down in the passenger seat and put on his seatbelt. "Rest assured, I'd rather not bounce around the cockpit." he said with a slight grin.
As they came out of the warp, he saw Leo glance at the fissure across the planet, before getting a look from Eris, and it occurred to Blitz that it was the first time he had seen his new friend actually get lost in the moment, instead of hovering aloofly above it.
They both chuckled at Blitz's reasoning, before dismissing it for other topics. Yes, they could do a better job at concealing the truth, but every waking moment spent doing so would get tiring quite fast. Plus, it wasn't like there weren't records out there that accurate, it was just that they were buried under years and years of others. They had already faced some of the worst that could come from those who discovered the reality of things, and although the various instances had been horrible they were prepared to deal with them again. Or, at least, they liked to believe so.
However, as the conversation continued, Leo let out a low whistle as the man mentioned he had killed Ashram. "So, you're the one who did it? We have detailed accounts of how Stefan met his end, but his partner has always been... a bit of a mystery. Too much chaos on the battlefield, and when the missiles struck, well, there were more pressing matters," Leo said, omitting the fact that they had both been there to storm the traitor king's castle, witnessing it all unfold. Oh, what an exhilarating, once in a lifetime chance that had been, and he made no exaggeration with such a saying. Uniting together to establish anarchy, the Federation just loved to gloss over that part nowadays. A shame, for the real story was so much better than the propaganda.
As he toggled the button on, a series of diagrams were overlaid on his half of the view port. Tectonic plates, magnetic fields, rotation and revolution, he minimized all of it in favor of the life form scanner, hoping it would work to detect aliens. They had seemed alive to him, at least until they had been dealt with, but obviously technology did not exactly work the same as a biologically magical processes. Within a few minutes of waiting, a cluster of blips appeared on the screen, all in the same area of the planet. Eris quickly locked in the coordinates, though it was merely for navigation as she maintained manual control of the starship. "Seems like the Alliance's intelligence was accurate after all. The atmosphere is reading...?" she asked as they entered the upper atmosphere, Eris quickly skirting the edge of a storm with a maneuver that almost put them hanging upside down.
He pulled up the respective chart, scanning it for a moment. "Oxygen is fine... but the ship's picking up a lot of sulfur dioxide. It might pose a problem to Blitz," Leo answered. She nodded, continuing to steer Blackjack's descent.
"I'll try to land as close to the outpost as possible; based on the Gala the aliens breathe similar if not the same air we do. They don't seem to have any defense systems engaged, so that's a plus." Within a few moments the alien's base was visible, it indeed appearing quite alien. Black spires protruded from the tap, and it seemed as though the place was sunken into the ground nearby, it only being a narrow strip of land between fire and ice. A hundred or so meters away in the same narrow area was where their ship touched down, them both quickly unbuckling and reaching for their weapons on a table in the hold. "I've heard this ground isn't all that stable, so we should try to get in and out as fast as possible."
Blitz rolled his eyes slightly at their combined chuckle. If they wanted to take risks, however faint, with their identities and ages, that was their decision. They just seemed awfully unconcerned about someone managing to draw conclusions from that alone, given how tight-lipped they were about their longevity being a big secret. Still, I promised not to tell what little I've pieced together, so at the end of the day, it's their call.
Surprisingly, it appeared that they didn't actually know how Ashram met his end, thanks to the chaos of the war itself and the Blight that it unleashed. "It wasn't easy, I'll say that much about him. His physical strength was downright absurd. In the end, I had to team up with Aiden - knight commander back during the War, he was overly professional, but no less skilled for it - and use one of my inventions to alter his axe to be nearly 600 pounds, then hold down Ashram while he swung to cleave him in two. Unfortunately, it meant that I got hit as well, but not nearly as bad as Ashram did, but still packed a punch. Would have left a scar if Ashram and his armor hadn't taken the brunt of it."
As they approached, a number of sensors lit up, Leo pointing out the one involving the atmosphere, which admittedly was fairly important - they had to be able to breathe, after all - and Eris mentioned sulfur dioxide. "I've got a device or two that should be able to take care of that, but I'm more curious as to why volcanic levels of sulfur dioxide is a problem for me, but NOT for you two." Blitz said pointedly, well aware this was likely another thing to do with their lifespans.
They touched down on the planet's surface in the narrow strip between the scorching heat near the fissure and the frigid cold of the other side, the only part of the planet that was even close to hospitable - he agreed with Leo's assessment of the planet being a bit unstable in terms of ground, however. "The constant shifts in temperature must cause fluctuating changes in expansion and contraction, which would put a hell of a lot of stress on the ground. I'm almost impressed the aliens found a patch of it sturdy enough to construct a base on top of it."
"Impressive. I can see why you're holding a bit of a grudge over losing your abilities, now," he remarked in response to Blitz's retelling of Ashram's demise. Had it been the right time and place, Leo would have inquired further about the events of the battle in general, but he had a feeling the man probably didn't want to recount all the gory details of the war, considering how recent it likely was in his own mind.
They both remained silent for a few moments after Blitz posed his query, before shrugging in unison. "Poisons, toxins, diseases, chemicals - our biological processes are adapted to a world we'll never know. It's the same reason why there's so much liquor in those cabinets," Eris offered, not going into any further detail and hoping Blitz wouldn't ask anything else. He would likely be met with silence anyway, there were certain things Leo and Eris had generally agreed upon as being acceptable to talk about and those that were not. Tritaihatreis was firmly on the latter list, for a plethora of reasons. One of them, although certainly not the most significant, was simply because it was complicated to put into words, especially Fioran words.
They soon debarked from their ship, being embraced in the air that to them only had the faint smell of singeing, not entirely unpleasant either. Then terrain in the area did seem relatively stable, as Blitz had mentioned, but it would still be best to navigate with some precautions concerning the ground below them. Every few meters Eris tapped the earth with Benediction, checking to make sure it didn't pull away burning hot. They were able to cross the stretch without incident, however, ending up on a platform that was large enough to land a small vessel, what seemed to be the entrance to the outpost being found nearby. No guard waited on duty, likely due to the conditions of the atmosphere, further causing Leo to believe humanity and the aliens at least had one need in common. What else they would find remained to be seen.
Leo and Eris approached the door, though it was more circular in dimensions than a typical one would be. Perhaps it was an airlock of sorts? The handle on the thing was merely a bar, one which Eris twisted downward and with a pop did the hatch open, revealing another one on the other side of the lock. Once they were all inside, she would close it, then take out a handheld scanner. "The levels here are nearly identical to the standards of humanity's planets," she stated, before starting to examine the other hatch which seemed to be a bit more complicated in design.
"Going from that level of strength to my current level was....a considerable shift, I must admit, and hence my frustration over it," Blitz admitted, "Even if I'm aware that I can regain that strength, given enough time. Just going to take some getting used to."
The duo went silent for a few moments when he posed the question of why the sulfur dioxide was a problem for only him, before Eris mentioned that poisons and other harmful toxins didn't affect their bodies much, thanks to an adaptation while exploring. Blitz glanced between them before letting out a small sigh. "Ya know, for a pair making very sure to keep certain things secret, you guys drop a considerable number of accidental hints." he said. "I'm guessing the reasons for that aren't ones you want to share, so I won't pester you further about it."
As they disembarked from the ship, a faint aura surrounded Blitz - so faint it was nearly impossible to see unless you were very close, like trying to spot a soap bubble in the wind, but it quickly covered Blitz's entire body, allowing him to breathe unhampered on the surface as he followed behind Leo and Eris, letting her lead the way by testing the ground with her staff - he could fly with his transformation, but aside from the odds that he might need it later, that would be a rather overt way to approach what could be the vanguard scouts for an invasion.
They walked up to the fort - which, interestingly enough, had no exterior guards, perhaps due to the atmosphere - and opened what resembled an airlock door, and climbing inside and letting it fill with air from within the fort before Eris used a device to test the air, which seemed comparable to humanity's air needs. "Let's hope their tech is compatible as well," Blitz said, edging carefully past Eris to reach out and place a hand on the door, blue circuitry lines running down Blitz's hand and across the valve on the door, before retracting as the valve made a 'ka-chunk' noise within the door as something moved back, Blitz grinning as he turned the valve. "Ha - the design might be different, but it uses similar bolting mechanisms. We should be careful from here, though - unlike outside, I very much doubt they didn't bother to man the inside of the fort."
