Had to make a few judicious edits. * I almost didn't realize that the boy was named Bergson Somerset. I initially called him Justin. * My description of Sophie was added to make the text flow better.
Ed moved up the stairs in the stadium, with long lines in front and behind him. Finding a seat would be difficult. His eyes rapidly scanned each passing row, estimating how many people would take up each row to determine whether a seat would be available. Suddenly, one showed up, and he moved for it. Ed narrowly cut off someone going for the seat and sat down next to a girl. As he settled in, he angled his head to look at her from the corner of his eye.
She was beautiful. With soft golden hair glimmering in the light, a kindly face whose eyes spoke of intelligence beyond her years, and a figure to die for, there really wasn't anyone else he would rather be sitting next to.
Writers who go on about "love at first sight" don't really capture what a man feels in that moment. Reality is sillier, yet at the same time more poignant. The emotional side of Ed decided that sitting next to such a lovely girl could only be Destiny. Coincidences didn't happen; she was Fated to be his girlfriend someday. But his rational side slapped him upside the head and ten ways to Timbuktu for thinking such ridiculous nonsense. She probably already had a boyfriend. Who was he kidding? Pretty girls never stayed single for long. And even if she didn't, she probably wouldn't like him, or they wouldn't be a match. Chances were slim to none that he'd ever sit next to his Soul Mate by chance.
Still, it couldn't hurt to be friendly with her, right? You never know. Maybe it is destiny, and you just gotta seize it by the horns. Test the waters a little. He was about to strike up a conversation with her when he observed the boy sitting on her other side make a move on her. The boy reached out and touched a lock of her hair, an intimate gesture that she did not immediately repulse.
As I thought. She does have a boyfriend. He was about to give up when it occurred to him that chances were also slim that she'd find and sit next to her boyfriend in a crowd like this. He did a double-take. Her body language was closed off, not receptive to his advances at all. Could it be? This was his chance! He could be her Knight in Shining Armor and save her from the nasty man! Maybe this was Destiny after all!
But this was not the time for grandstanding gallantry. He had to handle this situation with care, lest he create more enemies out of thin air. Ed shivered when he thought he could see himself in the other boy's shoes. Had not he, as this boy had, got excited by the prospect of meeting a pretty girl? Could not nervousness have prompted such indelicate behavior in any other person? Armed with a modicum of empathy, Ed concocted a plan to rescue her without arousing enmity in his opponent.
"Joe?" Ed declared, pretending to recognize the boy. "Um, what? Me?" The boy looked behind him, thinking Ed was addressing someone else. Think fast. Ed "realized" that this wasn't a friend and feigned embarrassment. "Oh, sorry, I thought you were someone else. My name's Edward Valentine. Call me Ed." The boy laughed. "No harm done. My name is Bergson Somerset. Nice to make your acquaintance." "Likewise." The two guys offered a mutual two-fingered salute. Ed turned to the girl and introduced himself. "And may I learn your name, Miss?"
"Did you remember to pack enough pairs of socks?" "Yes, mother. Seven pairs. Underwear too." "Bible?" "Brought it." "Tablet and phone?" "In my bag and pocket, respectively." "Engagement ring?" "MOOOM!"
Gwen batted him upside the head. "Don't mom me, cheeky boy! But I jest. Study hard, be good, and don't marry anyone until you graduate. Can you do that for me?" Ed nodded. "Yes mom." "Good. Get going. You don't want to be late, or I'll have your father personally head down there to whoop your butt. Love you, kiddo." "Love you too, mom!" Ed got in the taxi and waved as his mother disappeared from view. A pang of loneliness struck his heart. He was in for a very long four years. Would he find any friends there? Could he handle the work? Doubts filled his mind, and he shook his head to clear them away. He would succeed because he had to succeed. There was no question. Ed pulled out his phone and distracted himself with inspiring music by Tom Bergsen until the taxi came to a halt.
"We're here," droned the cab driver.
Ed paid the man and stepped out. Before him, the shimmering glass towers of Purcell University stretched out before him, while thousands of aspiring students crowded around the entrance. Butterflies formed in his stomach as he took his first steps toward the future. With the school map loaded on his tablet in one hand and his travel bag in the other, Ed weaved his way through the crowds to the stadium, where the entrance ceremony would begin shortly.
As the heir to the prosperous Valentine household and son of the famous ambassador Gwen Valentine, Edward's prospects looked bright. People thought he would live out his life comfortably and bask in the wealth of his family's vast fortune, and in the fame of owning the company that gave so much to the independence war effort. However, for reasons yet to be elucidated, he left all that behind to become a Star Trader. With the level of sheer freedom afforded to citizens of the Crescent Empire compared to the rules of his household, he's in for a bit of a culture shock.
@ineffable On January 1st, year 3000, the Crescent Alliance declared its independence from the Terran Empire. Four years later, the Alliance won the war, drafted a constitution, and formed into the Crescent Empire. In the decades after, tensions cooled enough for international business to become feasible. As our students learn the tricks of the trade and enter the world of merchants, they will come to find that their clients across the aether are in much worse shape than they ever realized. Can these up-and-coming citizens of the Empire heal the war wounds between nations inflicted by their parents? Or will the allure of the dollar cast a shadow over their young hearts? _
This is the OOC thread for Star Traders. While this thread is primarily for ineffable and me to plot out the story, visitors may post comments about the RP here too if they like. Stories of heroism that don't involve killing someone are rare and new territory for me, so feedback is appreciated.
@ineffable, don't forget to Subscribe to the thread like I almost did. :P
@Mixcoatl Sounds like Dr. Smith from Lost in Space, who kills the real Dr. Smith and takes his identity so she can escape with the other characters. That would be interesting.
If there is any part of the lore you would like to change (or take issue with), everything's negotiable. I'm more interested in the romance than in the sci-fi.
Btw, the main reason I'm going with a cliche "arranged marriage" trope is it neatly packages two solutions together: 1. It allows us to tell the story of a couple already in a committed relationship. There are quite enough falling-in-love stories in the world and not enough about people trying to maintain an existing relationship. 2. Our characters can't know each other already. How can they when the players don't even know each other? We'd have to retcon and go like, "Of course, she knew he tended to do that." The alternative? 7 years together, and they barely know each other? Not buying that.
While Erudessa had signed up to join the first ever colonization effort, the selection process seemed more like a speed dating system than an emigration interview. At first, the interviewers focused on her science credentials, and they appeared impressed by her research in olfactory healing, but they revealed their true colors shortly after their eyes glazed over. Their questions turned to her personality - "What do you find attractive in a man?" "Tell us about an average day in your life." "How are you with children?" Her answers must have been adequate, because she got an email notice of acceptance a few days later.
The launch ceremony began a week later. She almost didn't make it in time - the lab director gave her cleanup duty before closing time, and she arrived five minutes early panting and out of breath. Unfortunately, the lines were not as kind to her, and she found herself standing awkwardly during the speaker's introduction until a kind group of people ushered her into a seat. "Thank you," she whispered to the pretty redhead next to her. "A pleasure. Name's Judy. Judy Rawling. Nice to meet you." "My name is Erudessa Durvain. The pleasure is all mine." They bumped fists and directed their attention up front.
The speaker had just finished telling a flat joke, earning similarly flat laughs. "...so anyway, I suppose you're all wondering about last week's interview. This Colony Project, hosted by our amazing sponsors at SpaceRoid Incorporated, will tackle three goals: To test the effectiveness of the Council's terraforming efforts, to show that Crescent citizens can adapt to any environment they find themselves, and to establish a firm cultural foothold for the future. To that end, we have taken the liberty of matchmaking single men and women who are compatible in both personality and career. You are, of course, free not to enter into any relationship, but you will still be paired with a partner for the duration of your stay, and the Ministry of Culture recommends entering a union for pragmatic purposes. Return transports will be provided in case you ever wish to return. I'll let our other speaker fill you in on the details."
As the next speaker made his points, Erudessa couldn't help feeling a little excited. God knew how long she'd been looking for a spouse. She'd employed dating sites and professional matchmakers, but until now, she'd been unable to find a single promising man who wasn't either turned off by her intellect or her high social status. But here, not only would all that work be done for her, but he was likely to have similar employment. Erudessa and Judy shared a hi-five.
"...and that's all, folks! A psi-com will issue you a number, and your match will have the same number. When a staff member calls your number, step forward and board the shuttle."
The psi-com droned out a number in her mind. Number twelve.
An attendant called out the first couple. "Number One! Step forward Number One!" A man and a woman stepped out of the crowd. Erudessa bounced on her toes as she awaited the fateful number twelve. Here goes forever! __________
Welcome to The Faraway Land, an original sci-fi/fantasy series set in the far future. This scenario will lean toward sci-fi. Both our characters are citizens of the Crescent Empire, an advanced spacefaring superpower that recently gained independence from the United Nations and settled a habitable world on Alpha Centauri. The Immortal Council is the highest ruling body in the republic, made up of the seven most powerful men and women in the universe (whom we will NOT be playing in this RP). Each Immortal can wield incredible magic, able to shape whole worlds to their whims. One such Immortal terraformed Aion into a habitable world over the span of about ten years. However, terraforming is thought to draw the attention of higher powers, because it always pans out unpredictably, and brand new species of plants and animals appear that no one introduced to the environment. For this reason, settling a newly terraformed world is fraught with unforeseen hazards, and our characters are among the first colonists to set foot on the world.
The challenges of frontier life are best tackled with a trustworthy partner, which is why the Ministry of Culture recommends bringing a spouse. You will play the role of a male selected to match with Erudessa Durvain.
Erudessa Durvain is a scientist, as you may have guessed from the intro. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Percille University with a doctorate in Arcane Healing (so in D&D terms, she's a cleric), and is employed as a researcher in Luther & Von's R&D divison (a prominent Disease Management corporation). You'll find her to be mildly sassy, cheerful on most days (even without coffee), and a stubborn lover.
I should probably discuss politics briefly, but I know the subject is touchy these days, so it's entirely optional if you're interested. This is where most of the real sci-fi kicks in, and may or may not be reflective of how real life operates.
The Crescent Empire is a Federation, divided into States by continent. The federal government tries to keep as low a profile as possible, involving itself in state and individual affairs only when absolutely necessary. State governments, however, vary wildly in public policy, ranging from small-government capitalist to outright communist. People are free to live under whatever state government they choose, so long as they're willing to pack up and move there. Public debates are a popular form of entertainment, made considerably more exciting by the recent legalization of dueling. This is the main reason politicians tend to be upstanding citizens - if they're not, they get called out and shot in the Central Arena on Crescent Prime (Alpha Centauri b).
In the gaps where municipal, state, and federal governments lack control, corporations run the show. Unlike in 21st century America, where corporations were thought to be puppeteers corrupting politics for their own gains, here in the Empire, they hold little sway in the political sphere, thanks to a few judicious amendments to the constitution. Because of their tremendous positive impact on the national economy, they enjoy a largely positive reputation in the empire, and are responsible for running most of the empire's functions. The colonization program is sponsored by a corporation, SpaceRoid Inc., and their partners at Tron Aerodynamics are responsible for providing the shuttlecraft.
Technology is so advanced that it strays into the realm of magic. With a vivid imagination and a handful of psionic dust (dubbed "Seed"), one can create anything with only a thought. In practice, however, this is considerably harder than it sounds, and a combination of high-level artificial intelligence and molecular computing simplifies the creation process to manageable levels. Some intrepid businesses have turned a profit by creating stand-alone programs and devices that automate magecraft entirely. For example, there's a phone app that cleans your clothes for you. You get the idea.
Out on the frontier, there's no telling what hazards we'll face, and all the trappings of civilization we've come to know and love will not last. Our characters will be forced to rough it without the support of their mother nation, and may come to depend entirely on each other for survival. The ending, should we reach it, will be the dawn of a new civilization.
That Elizabeth Warren's alleged race would have any influence at all is a disturbing thought - it means her heritage was important to at least one or more people.
Scrawl Banditta,
ConductorCore,
SilverPaw,
Rin,
ineffable,
Shadows Demons,
Lord Zee
