seaofhearts | Round 1 Introduction Hub Log

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Round 1 Introduction Hub Log

Who: The Alices and the White Rabbit.
What: What: Everybody wakes up on the first day of the first round inside the World's Hub, greeted by the White Rabbit, who seems largely unimpressed.
Where: The World's Hub.
Warnings: Rabbit is gloomy and has a bad temper and tends to complain a lot. Otherwise, not much.

You entered a closet. You knew that much. You woke up from... somewhere, and you entered a cupboard or a closet and you followed a strange cat with golden eyes. You blink. You feel assailed by the feeling of your body falling somewhere, the sound of heavy machinery--

And then darkness, before... a wooden pathway, and another cupboard, and a boy in a hood. A cat-boy, with golden eyes, much like the one you followed. He cackles gleefully at everyone before disappearing with a meow. The cupboard behind him is locked. Past this area, you find yourself in a strange room of ruined, cracked cobblestone and oddly-shaped lamps. Dead trees line the path. There are old tombstones scattered about. A gloomy boy with black twigs for hair and strange eyes, dressed in fancy, Victorian-looking garb stands in the middle of the room. There are others like you about, you notice. Not TOO many more, but a fair few.

Something about the boy's eyes carry a dreadful feeling. They're red on black. No whites to them at all. He has two white rabbit ears on his head, but one is distinctly torn off, like something had just taken a bite out of it. He looks at those assembled, cocks his head to the side, as if... curious for a moment, before shaking it and then sighing.

"... Ah. Welcome, Alice." There's a pause, as if he's assessing what he's doing. He particularly stares deeply at Clock. "... Oh? No, not at all... well, you're still ▒▒▒▒▒ to me."

A nod to himself, as if to confirm it.

"More pressing... I have a task for all of you. If you could help me with it, that would be most appreciated."

[ OOC: Feel free to respond in either prose or bracketspam. Also, Cheshire will probably have a thread later you can reply to as well. For now, this is the opening log to badger the NPC with questions. ]

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[When one finds a closet in one's entirely white hell-prison, the prison one's known for ten thousand years, one's first instinct is usually to look into it. At least, in Qilby's case, his instinct is absolutely to look into it. If there's something to break up the monotony, of course he's going to walk into the wardrobe and... Fall.]

[Instinct tells him to spring up a portal under himself to break his fall, but it doesn't come. Damn it, this is child's play -- why won't it work?]

[He tries a few more times to make a portal, or to sense the wakfu in the area, or anything while he stands there; people around him might notice his right hand twitching. (They might also notice that it's his only hand; his other sleeve hangs empty at his side. Lucky you, your party member's an old amputee. Honestly, he doesn't think the six others look too respectable either.)]

[Who is this kid? What's with the wabbit ears? His eyes... The way the sclera are flooded black reminds him of something. Part of him is chilled by it, the red and black he associates with the end of the world, but part of him finds it... Interesting. Terribly interesting.]

[Nothing else to do but go forward with it, is there? Better than that prison, better than being all alone in a monotonous hell.]

I'd appreciate if you'd tell me what that task is. [The look he pulls forth is impassive, almost bored; it's easy to fake an unimpressed look when you're used to being bored out of your skull.]

[ This one... this one might be interesting, maybe. But he's not usually curious about others, and the White Rabbit's equally apathetic, gloomy gaze could probably match the other's bored one. ]

Glad to see that you're so eager, then. It's my Keys. They've been stolen from me. Only... no, no, something's not quite right. Where did he put them? Back there? Probably... well, you'll just have to go and get them, Alice. ... Alices. All of you. Go get them.

It's Qilby. [His name, that is. Qilby doesn't seem too bothered at the wrong name, though; is it a title of sorts? 'Alice.' What a strange name. Either way, it's a polite correction.]

[The rest of it, though, makes him have to try really really hard to suppress an eye-roll. Does this kid think he's cute, being cryptic and giving him word puzzles to solve? Moreover, where did he get the energy to make a portal into the Blank Dimension? He doesn't look the type.]

[But appearances can be deceiving.]

Is there any reason you can't get them yourself? And, if I may ask [a matter of politeness, of appearing acceptable; he feels he's perfectly entitled to ask whatever he wants], what are you unlocking?

Alice. You're all Alice. Except for her. She's different.

[ He motions to Clock, and gives a vague shrug. ]

This is the World. It's not your world. Go back, or elsewhere, or anywhere or anywhen, the Keys are needed to unlock the door outside it.

[Fine. Alice. Whatever. The mention of someone different hasn't escaped him, and his eyes flick over to Clock; he'll remember her face. (As if he couldn't. Ha.) He'll figure that out later, though--]

[--Anywhen? The word makes his eyebrows shoot up, makes him crack a little smile with something behind it. Opportunity seen, to go back and fix everything, to take care of Yugo before he could chuck him in prison at all?]

--You're implying you have the ability to 'unlock' [air-quotes with two long fingers held in the air] different points in time, as well as different places. What are these keys made of?

Definitely not something you could classify as physical. The World Keys are special. They unlock special doors only.

[ That's all he's willing to share, for now. ]

If you can get them all for me, you can go home, or wherever else it is you want to go. I don't particularly care; I just need them all back.

'World keys.' [His temptation is to get his hands (hand??) on one himself. If he could get access to one, he could probably figure it out and reverse-engineer it. Knowledge like that... With knowledge like that, something like that, he could fix it all. He could see new places, new worlds, finally, like he's always wanted--]

[But his face stays steady, save that small smile. If he's at all interested past that, he doesn't let it show.]

So, what does retrieving them entail, in that case? Going somewhere you cannot go, I would guess?

... If you're thinking, "I can make something like that," sorry to disappoint you, but you probably can't. Even if you got your hands on one, it wouldn't be possible.

[ How did he guess that? Who knows. ]

The door behind me. There's even more behind it. They're in there. The Hearts of those collected here. That's why they're locked, to keep away people who don't belong in here. Normally the Alice Hearts are shut. But he took them and probably put them inside there...

[Unfortunately, one of the easiest ways to get Qilby to try something is to say 'you probably can't do it.' Goddess, now he just wants to try it more: to see what these keys are, why they are so special!]

[But how did wabbit-boy know that? Is he letting it slip?]

So, if they are the hearts of those here-- [the idea of the inside of a soul being 'physical' is foreign, superstitious, and really obnoxious] --I'm curious. Then, is it all people who have 'keys' in them, or just us... [one two three four five six] Seven?

All of you. Not us guides. We don't count. So yes.

[ That sounds about right. He folds his hands into his pockets. ]

... It probably bothers you, but I guess I can answer any questions if you want. Only a few, though. I don't like bothersome time-wasting, so make them good.

[A presumably soulless wabbit. (If he could use wakfu-sight, he could see, but he can't. It's killing him.) This is his life now.]

Then, no more time-wasting. [Another of those smiles.] Does taking those keys entail bringing harm to the host, or the one whose 'heart' it is?

[Honestly, if it were anyone else, he wouldn't care, but since it's him...]

It shouldn't, I don't think.

[ At least, he's fairly sure. Just taking a Key's never gotten anyone overly hurt... ]

I see. [So it's not something vital, the key; it makes sense that it was placed, rather than innate. He doesn't feel anything different, though.]

[(Yet.)]

One last question, ah... See, I'm not much of a fighter. [He motions to his empty sleeve with his remaining hand. (He knows his way around a fight, though - saying 'I'm not a fighter' is a lie - but without portals... Who knows?)] And I'm not one to believe the insides of people's hearts are exactly benign.

... That I cannot help you with, unfortunately. I know no more about what might be contained inside the Hearts of those gathered here than those themselves. You would have to ask them, would you not?

[ He isn't really sure if you'll be fighting or not, but judging from the one man... he's guessing the answer might be a 'maybe'. ]

It all depends on the Alice. Sometimes the Heart reacts strangely to prying eyes and sticky hands coldly looming over, racking its insides for its secrets. It would be unpleasant, yes, to have yourself torn in two? It may react... violently, it may not. It depends on the person in question.

In any case, it is likely you will be presented with a number of challenges, either of the mind or otherwise. The Worlds are... not forgiving about mistakes.

[Ah. Well, that does make sense, doesn't it? Qilby knows he'll not be so happy about people poking around in his heart.]

[He wonders, with a cold detachment and carefully roaming eyes, what sorts of secrets these others might hide. Perhaps they're the same mundane secrets all mortals have, those 'I'm afraid of something tiny' or 'I hurt someone once' secrets that seem so insignificant. With much less of that cold detachment, he wonders what's inside his own.]

[Gently:] It would be unusual if the labyrinth of someone's soul didn't present a challenge, wouldn't it? It seems we have our work cut out for us. But with Keys that have this sort of power sitting in our souls, we would have anyway.

... I am sure you'll be fine, Alice. You seem like a smart enough man.

[ He'll even give you a small smile. Why? Who knows. It's quite vague and mysterious, as though something is hiding behind those red eyes of his that is... out of sight, unknowable. ]

Besides, he enjoys challenging people like you to games like this. Perhaps you will derive some form of entertainment from the spectacle. ... Or perhaps not. It depends on whether or not you are desperate to hide what lies inside you, doesn't it?

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Round 1 Introduction Hub Log

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