Character Cruise

Welcome! You've entered the latest of the casual Character Development Threads. For those of you who don't know what these are, the CD Ts are shared stories/writing exercises in the form of a play-by-post game, intended both to flesh out the participants’ characters and develop their skills as a writer.

No formalized sign-up is necessary – if you wish to participate, just jump right on in. It's suggested that you read at least the OP and the last couple pages or so for a recap, but if you're still lost, or have other questions, then feel free to ask for further clarification in the Discussion Thread.

As this is a casual thread, violence is (generally) prohibited. Unless you're certain they're capable of behaving themselves, it might be a good idea to leave your aggressive or otherwise violence-prone characters at home. The casual threads more or less focus on character interaction, rather than having a set goal that may or may not put a character's life at risk.

The setting of this particular thread is on an inter-dimensional cruise ship. The ship has various facilities to make the trip enjoyable for your characters, if the rich ocean views aren't enough for them. It should be noted that the first couple pages take place on the dock rather than on the ship itself, but don’t despair if you’ve missed this part and still want to join - the ship will likely be taking several stops at other docks over the course of the thread, or you can simply write your character as if they were on the ship all along.

To prevent confusion, here’s the Dock Map◊ - The map of the ship will be forthcoming once the thread gets to that point.

That should be enough introductory banter. It's time to get this show on the road...or rather, get this ship on the water.

---

It had been a few hours of driving for her, but Talitha Davis knew when she had found the place she was looking for. At least, she was pretty certain that the places cruise ships were docked tended to be well-documented. Even from her vantage point out on the road, she could see the huge boat sitting in the bay. She maneuvered her car into the dock's parking lot, trying to find a decent place to park it for the five days or so that this cruise was going to be taking place. It was much easier said than done – much like any other popular attraction, the lot was packed. Luckily, she managed to find a spot that was shaded and close enough to the check-in center for her liking.

After parking, she picked up the brochure that she had left sitting in the passenger sitting and looked it over again. As if she needed any more doubts, the fact that the ship in the brochure and the actual ship here were identical dispelled any further worries that she had found the wrong cruise, if such a thing was possible. Looking it over further, there were a few things on it that aroused her curiosity.

Like any brochure for an event such as this, this one spent a lot of time going over the ship's amenities, and how this cruise promised to be “five days of leisure and excitement.” That wasn't what she was worried about. No, what really caught her attention now was the title and tagline: “Open Space Inter-Dimensional Cruise: We welcome travelers from all worlds!” What the heck did that mean?

She assumed at first that this was a themed cruise, built around the concept of outer space. However, a quick glance at both the ship in the brochure and the actual ship didn't really confirm that was the case. At least, if this was a space-themed cruise, she thought that the organizers would at least make the ship look the part. Then again, maybe all the festivities would be waiting until the cruise actually got underway.

In any event, the fact that this parking lot was packed meant that it was reputable, anyway. Perhaps she shouldn't worry too much about what the title and tagline meant and just focus on enjoying the vacation. After all, she did work hard to make sure she could actually get here - it took a lot of convincing to get her parents to agree to this vacation, and even more convincing for them to let her go by herself. She was optimistic that her efforts would be rewarded, anyway.

Talitha set the brochure back down on its seat before getting out of her vehicle. She patted the pocket on her jeans to make sure she still had money on her before opening the back door of her car and taking out the other things she had brought with her: the duffel bag containing her clothes, the backpack containing the books she had decided to bring, and the bag with her laptop in it. She then closed the door to the car and locked it before picking up her bags and arranging them in the most comfortable way she could manage.

She adjusted her glasses a little bit before looking over the check-in center, and at the other people planning on joining in the cruise. Looking at them all, she could see why her parents were so nervous about letting her go by herself - this was indeed a large trip for a teenage girl’s first time flying solo. Was she worried? Not particularly - she didn’t think the other patrons would think much of her. She was, after all, just an ordinary teenage girl. Right?

She shrugged and adjusted her load a little bit before heading into the check-in center. She’d have plenty of time to mull over her thoughts later - for now, she had business to attend to.

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!

Jane caught herself on the floor, Okay, she thought as she got back on her feet, Odd dimensional portal leading to a room with wooden floors. Not something you see everyday, eh J'tan?

She waited for her brain to receive the usual response back from her alien friend but she didn't hear one. She thought aloud once more, J'tan? yet there was still no answer. She turned round back to the vertical pool of strange energy that brought her here, she didn't recognise anyone else in the crowd. She called out, "J'tan!"

There was no sign of him, Jane was on this one alone. For a second nervousness crept up to her, before she recalled the reason why she came here in the first place; A time for relaxation. Maybe some time away from saving the galaxy while having a mental argument over which one of them pissed off the threat that week would do her some good. She sighed, leaning against a wall and taking in the smell of the old world when it was still fresh.

Does my translator still work here? Better check, Jane cleared her throat and gently sung, "No, nothing at all." Yep, still works. She had her bags, summer clothes and her usual knowledge of this part of history, all she needed then was a name. A real one.

She lined up to the check-in desk, she looked at all the computers being used and wristwatches. The faint smell of exhaust from the car park. A big grin invaded her cheeks, Wow. I'm in the past. It took a while to sink in but- Oh, who could I meet? What could I see? Oh I wonder if I'll-

She reached the front of the line when she was still deep in the gushiness of her mind, the receptionist clearing their throat. "Oh, sorry."

"I take it you're here for the cruise?"

"Yes! I was kinda surprised by the. . ." Jane forced herself to blink, she didn't quite catch on to the dizziness brought on to her a minute ago, "transport."

"Name?"

"Jane."

"Surname?"

"Oh, right. It's uh, T-T. . ." Her eyes quickly darted off to the side as she spotted a couple of people with incredibly orange skin. "Tanner! Jane Tanner." The smile returned. She could be someone, if only for a short moment of make-believe.

edited 31st Aug '12 6:33:20 AM by darthnazgul

My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.

Ulrich lazily flipped on his blinker, barely slowing enough to avoid taking the turn on two wheels. The volume was up loud on the old stereo, and his left hand drummed against the outer door between bass pulses that rattled the cheap paneling. He barreled around each curve in the long driveway, glancing around impatiently for signs of the dock. His GPS had turned him around twice now, and he leered through the treeline, as if daring it to produce any scene other than-

The dock. Finally.

He wove his way through packed aisles for nearly five minutes before settling for a spot on the outer edge of the lot. He was thankful he'd chosen to travel light, even lighter than he usually did— he stopped to heave only one large duffel bag from the back seat. Then he moved to the trunk, prying up the liner to reveal a long thin box, black and nondescript. It was something he'd never had to hide back home, but traveling anywhere farther than the corner store without it was out of the question. Not bothering with secrecy given his distance from the dock, he stuffed it into his bag and was off.

His trek to the lobby was filled with thoughts of irony. Here he was, about to embark on a "vacation" his friends had collectively mandated. Was that really a vacation? It was a trip around several distant lands, but hell, he couldn't remember ever having stayed at home— any home— for more than six months at a time. So was this a vacation?

Ah well, he thought. Either way, a cruise was a cruise, he supposed. Everything was paid for. He remembered what Harrow had told him, his smirk reeking of vodka and recklessness:

"When you have a duty and the skills to match, sure, you're never short on work. But when you have the right contacts, and those contacts have the right patsies, you're never at a loss for fun."

How dare you disrupt the sanctity of my soliloquy?

A green scooter came driving up next, and stopped in one of the parking spaces. The figure driving the scooter tried to get out, but accidently hit a button labeled "Eject" by mistake. All of a sudden, the figure was launched into the air via the seat.

However, said figure, who was a brunette female, was then floating down using a green winter-style hat as a parachute, which had a peace sign on it, with three dots above said peace sign, almost looking like an animal pawprint. She was also wearing a patched up t-shirt (The patches are for decoration), blue shorts, and sandals. She also, for some reason, had bandages on her face, and a couple on her arms and legs. Her name was Whitney.

Landing safely on the ground, she sighs. "Well, this is one way to start a vacation... Now where's all my stuff?" She says, before noticing all her belongings were launched into the air when she hit the eject button by mistake. (Thankfully, everything was still inside.) "Oh, crap!" Whitney yells out as she starts to try to catch her belongings...

edited 31st Aug '12 2:39:33 PM by DiurnalBrocolli

Just floating around...

The Dimensional Portal doors opened, and out tumbled a load of luggage.

A few moments later, their owners stepped out onto the clean lobby.

Jonathan Feller looked around his surroundings. Clean, shiny wooden floors, warm lights, comfortable chairs. It was polarizing to see the difference between this and from where he came from. He turned around to see his companions step out of the doors, with the rear brought up by Cain Stellark, who immediately flopped down on one of the chairs like a pile of old clothing and sighed in relief, not caring for the moment that he was leaning uncomfortably on his wing.

Then Haruka, Gabrielle Davidson and Andrew Moore were picking up their luggage and setting the others upright. Despite the assortment of carpetbags and suitcases-on-wheels, they packed light.

Pick up your stuff you lazy bum. Haruka nudged Cain's knee with her carpetbag.

"Lazy bum"? What happened to Sephiroth Mc Beanpole?

Haruka rolled her eyes and started wondering around. That girl cannot stand still, Jon thought to himself.

"So," Jon drawled towards Robert, "What now?"

Robert shrugged, and said, "Best if we check-in first."

Ugh, this was hard to write, even though I really wanted to write this. All the characters will have physical descriptions at some point. Cain Stellark now has wings thanks to several Noodle Incidents where the characters were attacked. Better if someone came up to him and asked. I'll Probably edit this as I catch mistakes.

edited 31st Aug '12 3:46:24 PM by Tehpillowstar

"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond

Okay, everything seems normal so far. Talitha thought as she made her way over to the check-in center. She didn't see anyone who looked really out of place; though she supposed that was probably due to the fact that she hadn't gotten into the check-in center yet. Then again, the building didn't look particularly odd either. If the cruise's tagline was actually meaningful in any way, how were these supposed "other world" travelers supposed to get here? Would they just fall out of the sky?

She decided not to think about it too much and just focus on getting through the line so she could get on the dang boat. She was about to do just that when she heard someone yell "oh crap!" When she turned to find out who yelled it, she noticed another teenaged girl in a rather interesting predicament: her belongings somehow had gotten themselves flung all over the place.

Talitha raised an eyebrow. But, what do I know?

She could just ignore this little incident and go back to what she was doing, but she couldn't help but feel that would be awfully rude of her. Then again, she didn't know this other girl, and she wasn't usually the sort of person to randomly help strangers. She was also quite loaded at the moment.

She thought about it for a few moments before sighing, dropping her bags off by the doorway, and heading over. She might as well be a good samaritan and help the other girl out. Who knows, maybe she'd make a friend out of her - always a good thing, provided that this other person didn't have a negative reaction to...screw it, this wasn't the place to be thinking about that.

"Excuse me," she said to the other girl upon arriving at her location. "Would you like some help?"

I've decided to just post Talitha's physical description in the Discussion topic, since I don't think I'll get the chance here. Also, I'm assuming Whitney's a teenager - correct me if I'm wrong.

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"Sure!" Whitney replied as the two caught the belongings. Soon enough, they caught them. "Thanks!" said Whitney, and offering her hand for a handshake, but a second after that, a pair of shorts landed on her head.

Just floating around...

Jane went outside to breath in the ocean-fueled air, she still had time to kill before boarding the cruise. As she took in the surroundings and view of cars she was used to picturing in a museum, she spotted two people off to the side gathering up belongings that had scattered everywhere (including the sky, which made her wonder how the person they belonged to arrived).

They seem to be doing okay but it wouldn't hurt to offer some help. Jane walked over to them and guessed that the young woman with the strange hat was the one that owned the mess floating to the ground. "Hey, need a hand?"

My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.

Removing the shorts on her head, Whitney replies. "Yeah, we could use some help. Blame my scooter, the merchant said that an eject button was a good deal at the time!"

Last post for tonight

Just floating around...

Within the USS Enterprise... oh, wait, wrong story.

"Ne, Kami-sama, is life supposed to be this dull?"

Technically, within the residence of the Yamagora family, one Katsukano "Katsu" Yamagora was busy reading a book when he heard a knock on the door. Blinking in confusion, he looked at the clock, noting that it was almost midnight. Had he really been drawn into the world of literature again?

Putting the book down, Katsu got up from his bed and walked to the door. As he got to the door, he opened it up and saw his less than amused mother glaring daggers into him.

"Uh-oh... I'm gonna need to really cut down on the voice acting while reading my books."

Some time later...

Now, in the dead of night, Katsu was unable to get to sleep and had his books taken away from him to try getting him to sleep. Well, his mother didn't know this, but there was always one book that would help him go to sleep that she never knew existed!

As he got the book out from underneath his western-style bed, he opened it up to the first page... and then all was white.

—-

Katsu awoke from his trouble with only a slight headache, but was wearing his normal clothing for going on a trip to Okinawa. He then yawned a bit, thinking this was a dream, and attempted to turn over in his bed...

only to fall and land on the parking lot for his troubles.

"DAMMIT ALL TO HELL!!" he yelled rather angrily... actually, scratch that, he was pissed off. "Alright, whoever the joker is behind this shit is gonna get a one-way trip to the Morgue for this one, YOU HEAR ME?!"

With nobody to hear him, Katsu sighed before he noticed that he had some stuff with him, actually.

Taking the time to gather his things, he walked on over to the waiting area, with the line already forming, and asked the person in front of him, "Hey, what's the big deal with this place, anyway?"

Technically speaking, I had a thought for what to do with Katsu's mother, but I lost it while I was AFK for a while due to external circumstances. Now that I lost it, it'll come back to me later, hopefully. Now... who wants to volunteer being in front of Katsu?

edited 31st Aug '12 8:11:44 PM by Xamusel

Talitha went about helping this other girl with a rather odd look on her face. Out of a sense of politeness, though, she decided that it would be better if she didn't ask about it. Upon finishing, she accepted the handshake with a friendly smile on her face.

"You're quite...." her voice trailed off as the shorts landed on the other girl's head. "...welcome." Okay, this girl must have been one of those clumsy types. Talitha normally wasn't extremely bothered by those sorts of people, but she was going to get annoyed if this little scenario wound up becoming commonplace.

The voice of another woman caught Talitha's attention, offering the same sort of assistance Talitha had offered a few minutes prior. While they had handled it well enough, extra help was always nice.

"If nothing else, the thought is always nice." she replied, turning to face the newcomer. She promptly got confused again when the other girl mentioned having an eject button on her scooter. "...Eject button?"

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!

Alice stepped through the portal as if it was the most routine thing in the world, her small, but by how she was having to lug it, extremely heavy suitcase by her side. She looks as if she's dressed for work, small heels combined with a grey skirt and a buttoned up suit jacket, at her side she holds what appears to be some sort of tablet computer, impossibly thin and bright about the length of her forearm. She walks directly towards the counter, stopping in front of the counter, having to look up slightly at the average height female attendant before her.

"You're here for the cruise?"

Alice smiles, her face is oddly symmetrical, "I've been looking forward to it." She places the tablet in front of the attendant. "I have my tickets here," a reservation pops up on the screen, "ID," some sort of identity card follows, "Oh and then complete analysis." The tablet brightens up and a projection is brought forth, a perfect six inch version of Alice. "Will you need a retina scan or....." the attendant looks at her oddly and the year dawns on her and she laughs, "I forgot the era didn't I."

"Well then Miss...." the attendant blinks a few times at the ticket, "Analyst, here is your room key and such. Do you want anything taken up to your room?"

"Oh I can handle it. Have a nice day!"

Alice walks away, a slight spring in her step, it's been a little over year since she had a break this long let alone this exciting.

edited 1st Sep '12 12:01:04 AM by Aqueos

Bet you didn't see that coming

Jon walked over to the Check-In and got into line. A young woman in business attire was in front of him, fiddling with some kind of tablet. It looked all really high-tech, but he tried not to stare at it. He glanced back at his friends, Cain now leaning forward, resting his chin on his arms, looking exhausted, Gabrielle opening the door the leads to the outside. Mingling perhaps?

[Outside] Gabrielle sees two girls, one trying to pick up her scattered belongings. The other one seemed to be in a state of disbelief. Another woman came over to help, and Gabrielle followed.

"You guys need any help?"

"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond

-Outside-

"Sure! We can always use the help!" Whitney replies, as they continues to pick up various belongings of hers.

Just floating around...

-Outside-

As Jane picked up some of the scattered clothes, she joked "You sure it wasn't your luggage that had the eject button?"

Already her hands were full of the person's belongings, so it was a good thing that this extra person came along to help. She thought to herself, How much stuff can one person on a scooter need? Better not trip over all this.

"Uh, where's your bag?"

edited 1st Sep '12 11:02:02 AM by darthnazgul

My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.

-Outside-

"Right here!" Whitney says, producing a suitcase from behind her, straight out of thin air.

Last post for now...

Just floating around...

Outside (Parking Lot)

Yet another person had decided to come over and help. Talitha didn't bother responding to this one - the girl who was the one being helped covered what she wanted to say more or less perfectly. Admittedly, she was finding it somewhat amusing that this scene was becoming one of the more popular places here, and she hadn't even gotten on the boat yet.

"As long as we're here, we might as well introduce ourselves," she said, glancing at the other people. "My name's Talitha Davis."

edited 1st Sep '12 8:57:31 AM by Yomegami

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!

-Outside-

"I'm Jane," Jane was about to reach out her hands until she remembered what she was doing so she simply gave a small nod, "Jane Tanner." Hey, Jane smiled at her revelation, that actually has a bit of a Western feel to it. Note to self; buy a duster ASAP.

"Pleased to meet you all."

edited 1st Sep '12 6:44:31 PM by darthnazgul

My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.

-Outside-

"I'm Whitney. Whitney Morgan, to be exact." Whitney said, while putting belongings into her suitcase.

Just floating around...

Outside (Parking Lot)

Gabrielle looked up at Talitha, stood up straight and smiled. "Hello, I am Gabrielle Davidson." She stuck out her hand in a greeting, "I came with my friends. Doesn't this cruise seem exciting?"

"Life is eternal; and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." - R. W. Raymond

Outside (Parking Lot)

"I'm expecting as much, but I guess I'll see when I get on the ship. I haven't even checked in yet," Talitha replied, putting the belongings she had gathered into Whitney's suitcase. "I was about to, then I decided that it would be awfully rude of me to not help Whitney."

She glanced at the boat. "This isn't the sort of thing I was expecting to run into on my first solo trip, honestly. For one, I'm surprised they build scooters with eject buttons."

edited 1st Sep '12 5:01:53 PM by Yomegami

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!

-Outside-

"Yeah, tell me about it." Whitney said, as they put the last of her stuff into her suitcase. "Now, then. Where do I check in at?"

Just floating around...

-Outside-

Jane quickly looked around to be sure there was nothing left and put the rest of the belongings back, "Yeah, it's in that building over there. They had a wooden floor in there, talk about fa-" Crap, still common place in this time period! What to say, what to say? "Homely. Quite homely." Well played, me. Well played.

"Ship looks expansive enough," She steered the topic elsewhere, "haven't traveled by sea before, so it'll be a good break."

edited 1st Sep '12 6:45:08 PM by darthnazgul

My name is darthnazgul and TV Tropes has ruined my life.

-Outside/Check In-

"Thanks, guys. See ya in a few!" Whitney said, as she went inside to properly check in. She reached the front desk, and pulled out her ticket. "Whitney Morgan, please." Whitney said to the girl in the front desk.

Am I doing it right? I never went on a cruise before.

Just floating around...

Outside (Parking Lot) -> Check-In Center

Talitha watched Whitney leave. "Well, that's been taken care of. I'm going to follow her example and get myself checked in like I should have a while ago. Perhaps I'll talk to you guys again later."

With that, she went back over to the spot where she had placed her belongings, picked them up and arranged them again, and then went inside. The first thing she noticed was that this place was very crowded. That was to be expected - it's a cruise, after all. Certainly, there had to be a fair amount of patrons. Either way, she really had no reason to not get in line, so she did.

While waiting for her turn to show her credentials, another strange thing caught her eye. There was an odd set of doors sitting directly opposite of the normal door. At least, Talitha thought they were doors. They looked like doors, anyway. However, she couldn't remember seeing a door that had nothing but shifting darkness on the other side of it. Perhaps these odd doors were the means by which the "other world travelers" mentioned in the brochure entered? Either that, or they were some really interesting decorations.

She decided not to think too much about it. After all, the line was moving quickly. She'd be checking in soon enough.

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