Welcome.

[trustfellows]

Rise and shine. There are a few things that matter right now - the fact that you're waking up in an unfamiliar but decently comfortable bed, the fact that you don't recognize the room you're in, the fact that you seem to have some sort of headache... Nothing severe, mind. Just the sort of odd, heavy fuzziness that comes with having slept far too long. You don't really remember where you were immediately before this, not upon waking. Something will come to you eventually if you think long enough, however - a couple of seconds of consideration will bring to mind a place, a memory, a recollection of where you were and what you were doing. It probably wasn't anything that would result in you being here, though. Welcome to Graceside Preparatory Academy. You may want to pick up the key to your room before you leave the room, but don't worry too much - your door won't lock automatically, so you won't be locked out if you've forgotten to pick it up. It seems you're not alone, either; the hallway outside your room is most likely full of other confused people by now, and should you turn around to look at the door of the room you just left, you'll find a nameplate with your name printed on it. There's a single word underneath it with no explanation. This is your title, but don't worry about that right now. Depending on when you left your room there may be a clock chiming in the foyer up ahead. It seems like it's seven, though it's difficult to tell if it's seven in the morning or seven at night. There aren't any windows, after all. Should you venture into the room with the clock, you'll find that the only exit is closed - there's absolutely no way to break down that steel bulkhead. It looks like you're not getting out of here anytime soon. The foyer also holds some very interesting information. There's a bulletin board with thirty-five pictures on it. Beside each picture is some very specific and very familiar information. Feel free to examine it. The bulletin board is large enough for plenty of you to gather around and gawk. Don't try to get at it though, that glass in front of it is very thick. If you try to break it, you'll find out the hard way that it's shatterproof. Sorry about that. Perhaps even more of a concern than the glass is the list beside the profiles. It looks like a set of rules. You might want to examine those, though they're not providing much of an explanation for why you're here or how you got here. So relax and get to know your fellow Participants. You might be stuck here for awhile.

Comments

[explosivecombat]

...That is a good question.

[Especially since she hates getting wet, apparently.]

It seems we've a fair amount of military and royalty around, either way. Which is nothing to complain about, granted, but it's something that caught my eye.

[matchbreaker]

And two people with completely impossible ages, too.

[ But she'd noticed that about the military too... huh. She looks at their occupations again. A "Guardian" (why is it in airquotes?) and Amaterasu... that's one of the Japanese gods, right? And then the other's a Queen. Monomania?

... Apparently 233 isn't an impossible age though. ]

[explosivecombat]

Mm, I'd noticed that one as well.

[Actually, 233 sounds entirely reasonable, albeit probably for different reasons.]

I'm not sure what I make of either of them - though the profile on one of them may explain more than the other, with regards to age.

[matchbreaker]

...What, the question mark?

[ she looking them over again. Maybe he means that god thing? ]

[explosivecombat]

Not quite - though it's possibly not my place to point it out, if it isn't immediately obvious to you.

[matchbreaker]

... Eesh, you must be observant. The only other weird thing I can see is that he's some sort of religious guardian I guess.

[ Even if it's in airquotes - actually, to get the effect she makes airquotes herself. ]

[explosivecombat]

[...Huh.]

Is Amaterasu some sort of god, then? It's not one I'm familiar with, if so.

[matchbreaker]

Yeah, she's part of Japan's collection of gods. [ Elda shrugs. She never paid it must mind. The whole Japanese religion(s) thing, that is. That one she just knew through osmosis by living there a few hundred years ] Pretty sure she's an important one, too. I couldn't tell you what she's supposed to be doing, though. Japan's got hundreds of the things.

[ Or at least it feels like it, with all the different shrines. ]

[explosivecombat]

[...See, this sort of thing is interesting for so many goddamn reasons, holy shit.]

I see... I know of a few places that believe in some sort of pantheon like that, but Amestris isn't one of them.

Of course, I can't say I know where "Japan" is, either.

[matchbreaker]

Neither was my homeland.

[ She can't help the mix of bitterness and nostalgia that mixes in her mouth as she says that. She tuts sharply though, moving on from it. She looks up at him and puts a hand on her hip ]

It's that island nation off the coast from the Chinese mainland? Opposite side of the world from Europe.

[ She has no idea where amestris is but it sounds european. ]

[explosivecombat]

[Chinese... Making the country, what, Chin...a?

...He's not familiar with that one either, from the look of it.]

And your homeland...? Where might that be, if you don't mind.

[matchbreaker]

England. Well, way back in the line we were originally from Romania, but the Markers were English as long as my great-grandfather's time, at very least.

[ and in her father's day they did have a villa in the north of France, but. Still, English. ]

[explosivecombat]

I see... Absolutely none of this is sounding familiar to me, actually.

[Like, he doesn't know what to actually do with this knowledge, but it's. Huh.]

[matchbreaker]

Your country didn't sound familiar to me either, honestly. I just assumed it was somewhere I hadn't heard about in Europe.

[ ... But there's no way someone could fail to know what England is. There was a time in the not too distant past it basically ruled the world. ]

[explosivecombat]

It's a fairly recent country, as things go - about three hundred and fifty years, give or take. The countries surrounding us have histories that go back much farther, that much is true, but... Just the same, it's long enough that I imagine we would have been heard of by now.

[matchbreaker]

Definitely, with that timeline. That's long enough ago that I'd have had it in my childhood studies as recent history. [ Mmm. ]

Golly, that is strange. It's basically impossible to be from Earth and have not heard of England either. Sure it's been through a few forms and names - Britain, the United Kingdom, some such - but it's positively ancient, existing in some form or another for over twelve hundred years. There was a time in the not too distant past her colonies all over the world made it so the sun never set on the empire.

[explosivecombat]

Really.

[Holy shit, the military history of your country sounds fascinating.]

I can't say I've heard of anything quite that extensive - "the sun never sets on the empire," how dramatic. Impressive, but dramatic.

[matchbreaker]

Very dramatic, but then... well, kings, queens, and emperors tend to have a flair for such things. The old Roman ones used to fancy themselves living gods, after all.

[ She smugs, grinning. ]

But yes, it's true. They had colonies and holdings dotted across six continents in every corner of the world.