nomans_land | On The First Day

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On The First Day

It had been months.

Months of terror, of families ripped apart, refugees racing against the Ark in the sky, against the Plants that had once been their only source of survival on the world and had now been turned against them, raining lightning and death down on them like the hand of a vengeful God. Humanity pushed to the brink, fleeing their homes and communities, waves of refugees fleeing across the sands as more and more towns and cities fell to the reign of destruction that had been biting at their heels every step of the way.

And then, as the last descendants of the survivors of the Big Fall clustered in the city of Octovern, spiilling out into the streets, every available, livable space filled to capacity and beyond, what felt like the final days of humanity began. The sounds of artillery fire filled the air, the sight of the Ark and its grotesque ruler loomed overhead, and in the distant sky high above, the previously-inconceivable reinforcement ships from Earth took up orbit around No Man's Land. Throughout the night, explosions lit up the sky, thundering with deafening reports through the air, and yet the civilians below had settled into a still, terrified, anticipatory silence. They couldn't see, from their perspective, the figures atop the ruins of the Earth's space destroyers that had already fallen to the ground, locked in battle for the future of the people far below. But the sight of Millions Knives high above, terrifying and grotesque with the power of the Plants he had absorbed, was omnipresent, a never-ending threat, the harbinger of doom, biding his time until he could make good on his promise to wipe every last one of them off the face of existence.

And then something had changed.

Electrical currents rippled through the air above the downed ship, carrying screams on the wind. To the people below, Millions Knives' massive form had shifted, writhing, bellowing with unholy rage and pain and despair. And then it begun to unmake itself, shredding, crumbling, tearing itself apart at the seams and floating to the ground in tiny, shining, white particles. Tiny, white feathers drifted on the wind, closer and closer before, one by one, they began to settle to the roofs of the buildings, to the tops of cars and to the streets, and to the heads and faces of the humans staring up from below.

The instant that contact was made between feather and skin, a connection was made; between Human and Plant, between each person standing side by side, minds thrown open in bursts of light and expanding consciousness, and through the doors sprang multitudes of memories spanning hundreds of years. Suffering, laughter, pain, sorrow, joy, enslavement, death, pride, love. The Plants had made the connection to their creators - their keepers - that they had been silently pleading for since their first containment, and with it every man, woman, and child on the surface of the world began to see and feel and hear their stories and their cries for help. They did not want this war, they did not want this destruction. They had seen the promises of vengeance and a paradise for their kind atop the bones of humanity offered by Millions Knives and they had felt the hopes and dreams carried by Vash the Stampede of a kinder, more loving world, and they had made their choice.

Of course, but...what would he do at a time like this?

I wonder if he'll laugh again

I wonder if he'll follow his ideals again.

I see. You all know him as well. That young man with a gentle smile.

Little Red Brother.

Let there be love and peace in this world.

In the chaos that followed, as the bodies of the Plants began tumbling to the ground in a writhing mass and the screams of shock and confusion began to rise from the sea of humanity below, something rippled in the air, a last gasp of those silent voices before the connection was lost.

Help Us. Help him. Please.

This was...different. New. As if reality had taken the distraction caused by the calamity below to shift itself sharply to the left, and then snapped. It started at the core of the mass of angelic bodies as men and women began to rush to their aid, a shockwave in the fabric of creation that rumbled silently in the atoms of the world and ricocheted outward, along the ground, through the air, until it had enveloped the entire planet. Time froze for an instant, and to the eyes of all who had the capacity for sight, that leftward shift became manifest, the world doubling on itself as the ground shook beneath their feet.

Wails of confusion and fear rose into the night sky, and for a brief moment, it felt as if the world were about to unmake itself on the molecular level. But then, just as suddenly as it had come, the distortion snapped back into place with a loud, ear-splitting CRACK, and in the stunned silence that followed, only one thing could be certain; things were not the same as they had been mere moments ago, as if everything and yet nothing at all had changed, all at once.

The world of No Man's Land was as it should be, but all across the surface of the planet, pockets of reality had split open, sending the inhabitants of mirrored existences tumbling through wide, unseen rifts. People and places outside of time and space found themselves staggering to their feet in a world that was both foreign and familiar at the same time, found themselves face to face with their own reflection made flesh, tossed about by the pleas of a race reaching across the fabric of creation for aid in putting a stop to a war that had been fought time and time again, across reality after reality, without fail.

Thus began the new chapter in the history of No Man's Land.

[Wherever your character was, whatever they were doing, when the rifts in reality opened, they will have found themselves rocked by a massive earthquake that lastes a few short seconds before settling with a loud crack, like thunder. While no damage will be left in its wake, the characters themselves will realize that though the planet appears to be the same, it will quickly become evident that they are in an alternate reality of the place they call home. Are they standing in the rubble of a once-destroyed city now remade whole? Is the bar they had been taking refuge in suddenly gone, leaving them tumbling to the sand with nothing but their drink in their hand? And what of the friends that had been standing by their side seconds before? This is where your stories begin.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Just when Vash is sure he can't walk any further, the heat lines raising off the sands form themselves into a big building, with a funny tower in the middle. The promise of shade, and maybe people, gets him to slog the last mile or so, the heavy cross-body bag weighing down every step. The thin (and too big) jumpsuit at least has kept him from the worst of the sun, but his very pale face is pink and sweaty, and his spiky blond hair dark with sweat... well, sweat and sand. He fell down once or twice, don't make a big deal out of it.

But now he's here! Wherever 'here' is. ]

Hello? Hello, is there anybody here?

[that-- is a person. a rather young voice. and instead of letting himself be dragged down by despair, hurries towards the voice, calling--]

Yes! I'm here! Wait right there--

[and when he turns the corner that-- is not any of the kids he's familiar with. and his outfit is-- hm]

Are you okay?

[ There's somebody here! With both hands now on that heavy bag Vash hurries toward th-- okay wow that's a big guy! ]

Whoa.

[ He looks like a cowboy, from one of Knives's movies! That's so cool!

Vash drops his bag with a huff and leans over, hands on knees and breathing a little hard. He's been walking a long time! ]

Hi! I'm looking for somebody, can you help me?

[a tiny, tiny smile curls across his face, but it's grateful, too. he looks okay-- it's good to see another soul]

Yeah, I can try. I'm looking for some people, too. My name's Livio. Why don't you set that down and take a rest?

[ The bag didn't start off as heavy, but after a couple of miles it's like it filled itself with rocks! Vash laughs, a little breathlessly, and nods, hauling the thing up closer to the building so he can set it down in the shade. ]

Hi Livio! I'm Vash. Who're you looking for? [ From his pocket he pulls most of a peanut butter flavored ration bar, the wrapper folded down over the eaten end. His expression is apologetic as he holds it out. ] Are you hungry? It doesn't taste very good, but it's food.

[Va--VASH??? he tries not to visibly look closely at the kid-- that isn't the most..common name, right? maybe he was named after....the little face is a little familiar as well...and the mole...

no, no, he isn't going to worry about it]

Nice to meetcha, Vash. Sorry it's under circumstances like this. I'm lookin' for some kids that were at an orphanage in December-hereabouts.

[oh, ration bars, he hasn't seen any like that before.]

No, I'm okay. You go ahead and have it. Are you okay? Are you hurt?

[ His tummy been rumbling for awhile now, so, with an annoyed huff, Vash breaks off a bite-sized piece of that gross ration bar and pops it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing as fast as he can to try and avoid tasting the nasty thing. ]

Me? Nuh-uh. [ Whoops, Rem taught him better manners than that, sorry. He gulps down the gummy mess, and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. ] Sorry. I haven't seen any other kids, except my brother, and I'm not hurt, but the friend I'm looking for is!

[ He points out into the desert, back the way he came. ]

Have you seen a big pile of feathers, bigger than a person? [ He considers that description for a second, and adds: ] It might be mean.

[a big...pile of mean feathers. that's...well, huh. he's relieved this Vash isn't hurt, though, and he's got some sort of food. and he's got a...brother. coincidence...surely!!]

Where's your brother? Nearby?

[his gaze follows Vash's finger]

Like a Thomas? I haven't seen any yet.

[ He shakes his head at the first question. No, he's here all by himself -- this is his important mission! ]

I dunno what a Thomas is, sorry.

[where the heck-- did they just get separated or maybe the brother told him to stay put and he didn't...]

You don't? It's a bird used for transport. They're pretty big.

A bird?

[ He knows when he's being messed with, okay. Nobody uses birds for transportation. They're too small! ]

I guess, sure.

No, no I'm serious. They're huge, and they don't fly. [he's really not!!! VASH]

[ He seems to really mean it? And he has been nice so far... ]

Okay, then maybe? If it's got long white feathers, then yeah!

They come in a lotta colors....haven't seen any with long feathers, though. Either way, maybe we can look together for our friends after you finish eating.

[he's got to take a look around for some water, too]

[ That sounds great! He doesn't mind looking for his friend on his own, but everything's better as a team. ]

Ugh, it's okay, I don't want any more.

[ That nasty thing is getting folded back up and stuffed into his pocket for when he's truly, desperately hungry, and then he's ready! ]

If we find her, you've gotta stay away, okay Mr Livio? She doesn't like people very much, even nice people.

[scratch that, better look for anything non-perishable then]

Oh really? That's understandable. How'd you guys make friends?

I just met her! Like I met you.

[ Are they going inside? He's tagging along right at Livio's heels wherever they're headed, hauling that big bag with him. ]

Did you just show up here too? One minute I was in my room then poof! Desert!

[since it looks like Vash is ready to move on, he tugs his cloak around himself a little more and leads them towards the inside of the now-crumbled building]

Oh, like you met me. I see. I was here before, but it wasn't like this. The others were here.

The kids, you mean? The kids that're missing?

[ As worried as he is for his friend, he's worried for those kids, too! He's okay by himself but maybe those kids are lost out in the middle of the sand, or they ended up in the city full of dead bodies. Little kids shouldn't see that kind of thing, it's too scary!

And speaking of scary... Something happened to this building, wow! It's all messed up! ]

Was it all full of holes before? It looks like somebody shot it up, pew pew!

[ Just like a space laser fight! Or one of Knives's cowboy movies! ]

[he hates this. his feet feel like they're made of lead, his head made of dust. walking back into this-- it hurts.

but he can't think about himself]

It wasn't before, no. We'd patched it up. There-- yeah, somebody shot it up.

[he had]

Whoa.

[ That's kinda scary, isn't it? He was joking a little about it looking bullet-shot, but... but somebody actually blew up this building with guns? Vash's eyes go wide, and he moves to stand a little closer to Livio. ]

So does that mean you're from the future?

[oh-- well, this guy is just a kid. maybe not 'just' but a kid all the same. Livio's got to protect him. so he walks a little closer as well]

Uh, maybe?

Whaddya mean, maybe? If you're from after somebody shot the walls, and the holes are here now, then obviously you're from the future.

[ Duh.

Now, where are they going, anyway? This place looks like chaos! The parts that aren't all shot up are trashed, with stuff everywhere! And some of these clothes that got dropped in the hallway here are pretty small. ...Hey, were these Mr Livio's kids? ]

Mr Livio! [ He picks up a small sock, that fell out of some evacuee's bag, and holds it up for Livio to see. ] There were kids here before too, look!

[Vash sure is a smart kid, isn't he. Livio chuckles at that, and nods, true, maybe he is from the future. he's neither confirming nor denying!

turning back from looking in a cupboard, he turns his attention back to Vash] Ah-- yeah, they lived here for awhile. Must have left it behind. Good find, buddy.

[ There were kids here before. So they must have been chased out when the shooting started! Vash shivers, and tosses the sock back onto the floor where he found it. If he's right, in the future when the place gets fixed up, maybe that kid will get their sock back. ]

Why did somebody shoot at a place full of kids?

oh hi

eeeee hello hello!!

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