collectedlogs | INTRO LOG #1

INTRO LOG #1

Welcome to Collected’s first Intro Log! The information we’ve provided about the setting is not exhaustive - feel free to interact with the setting as you see fit. Rather than have specific prompts, our event posts throughout the game will generally have information listed out like this and players may come up with their own prompts.

If you have questions about the setting or the intro log, please ask them HERE in the comment thread! And most of all, have fun, shoppers.

PROMPTS

The first thing anyone does is gasp for air.

It’ll feel like the first breath you’ve taken in years. That’s right; before you can even become aware of your surroundings, the most immediate thing they’ll process is that you’re in water. Foul smelling water - like rotten eggs and decay. It’s pitch black, and you’re swimming in it with only your head above the surface. If the smell doesn’t deter you, the longer you stay in will; the water stings to have on your skin, chemical in nature.

So - you need to get out. This water can’t be okay to stay in. Once you’ve gathered enough about your surroundings, you’ll see that you’re inside a mall, of sorts. There’s a large (non-functioning) escalator in front of you that will lead you to the semi-safe havens of the second floor - but be careful, because everyone’s going to be gunning for that only exit.

» Once on the second floor, exploring will lead you to a few notes of interest: Long windows and tall glass doors show the conditions outside. The sky is a burnt orange, and there is a thick sort of fog on the horizon. Nothing for miles in every direction - just an empty parking lot, completely devoid of life or any sign that anyone has come across this place in many years. Even so, you’ll find the windows and doors unlocked, so getting outside is easy… the problem is what’s out there.

A trip outside will make it instantly clear why you see no life outside the mall’s walls: exposure to the radioactive sun outside causes your skin to bubble with welts, and the thick, toxic air of the outside is impossible to inhale without keeling over. It’s blistering hot, too. Even non-organic creatures would melt or be eroded by the sun’s radioactive qualities. One thing is abundantly obvious: you cannot survive outside. Not now, at least. Those who receive a burn or other damage from the conditions outside will discover that strangely enough, upon returning inside the mall, the wound begins to heal up on its own. Slowly, and extremely painfully, but it’s healing. That’s strange…

» Another thing of note is that there’s a food court on the second floor. There, you’ll find a variety of abandoned restaurants that have varying amounts of non-perishables inside - canned vegetables and preserved meats, as well as dusty old jars of sauces and the like. There are a few walk-in freezers with hefty locks on them, but if the locks are broken or picked, there’s actually some frozen rations, as well! Many of them are not labelled, so the dining experience will be pretty hit or miss. None of the stoves or cooking appliances in the food court work anymore, either, so you’ll have to get creative when it comes to cooking up these ingredients. (Or just, you know, eat them cold.)

» Throughout the mall’s bathrooms, water fountains, and gym showers, you’ll find that all the water in the mall is suspiciously clean. Like, way too clean to be normal in a place as run-down and clearly abandoned as this. You’ll find that toilets flush completely fine, and shower water heats up (eventually). Should you be grateful, or concerned?

» There’s an electronics store on the second floor, as well, along with a internet cafe. Should you try to turn on the computers in the internet cafe, you’ll find that it only opens to the same forum page: a site called Mall Watch. It’ll prompt you to make an account and password if you try posting to it. In the electronics store, you’ll also find that any phone you forage for and try to boot up will also only open up to this forum page. Weird!

» If you’re looking for a place to sleep, the department stores of the mall still have a variety of furniture sets collecting a lot of dust. Then again, no one’s around to tell you where to sleep - and maybe you don’t trust all these new faces you arrived with. If you’re okay sleeping on the floor of a random store, more power to you.

» You’ll probably want to do something about your clothes that were stained by the black water on the first floor.. try foraging for some clothes! Looking around, you’ll find that some clothes stores have some stock left over, though everything’s generally a mess in clothing stores - it’ll take you some time to find anything that’ll fit you. Looking around enough on this second floor, you might end up stumbling across some of your own belongings or clothing, or those of your peers.

More than anything, the longer you explore and scavenge the mall, you’ll recognize how eerily silent it is. If not for you and your peers here, this place would be totally desolate. Clearly, there’s no one around for miles, and as far as you can tell, you’ll only be able to survive here for as long as the supplies here last. No one’s coming to save you - no one even knows you’re here. In every sense of the word, you are alone.

For now.

NAVIGATION

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ being a non-human among humans is truly difficult...

the difference between "visor" and "blindfold" in this context is totally indeterminate; they give him a flat look for a moment, one slim brow arched, but decide pursuing the subject isn't worth the trouble. ]

Staying around others is too dangerous, [ they begin, with a resigned matter-of-factness. ] You humans are all so nosy. So I had to go hide somewhere. But even that didn't work...

[ pointed glance. ]

[ Yes, that is, indeed, very pointed. 9S doesn't appear all that apologetic about it, though, his nose instead wrinkling a little. ]

I'm not human, if that's what you're worried about. [ (But he is very nosy, perhaps more so than most.) There's a very noticeable pause before he continues, surprise evident in his voice: ] Wait—you're not either?

Isn't it obvious?

[ they are especially sparkly... although they're also looking like they fell out of the dryer at the moment, so. ]

You look like one. You're definitely not a gem...

[ he doesn't look like a Lunarian, either - they would never wear black like that. ]

I don't know. I've never been around humans before.

[ His kind may have been modeled off of them, but that doesn't mean he could say with certainty what they're like. It's true shiny and poisonous aren't what he would expect—no, it's unheard of—but if they had turned around and said they were human... 9S doesn't think he's in a position to refute that.

They're not seeing him for what he actually is either, so they have no room to talk. ]

I'm an android, so I only look like one.

Android...?

[ their brow is furrowed, skeptical. They've never heard that word before.

The fact that he's apparently never seen humans, either, though - that piques their interest. Maybe they're not the only one who thinks this is all bizarre. ]

[ They don't even know what an android is. That's new. What are they, he wryly thinks, some kind of alien? ]

Uh—yeah, mechanical beings built to resemble humans. You are familiar with robotics, right?

[ against all odds, they actually are familiar, although only in the vaguest sense. A wave of surprise passes over their features, and they look at 9S with renewed interest, although (of course) it's muffled by their continued wariness. ]

You're a machine?

[ he doesn't look very much like Adamant - or act like him, either - but they're fascinated all the same. ]

... Are you here to pray, too?

[ There's a near knee-jerk reaction, and he opens his mouth to retort back, but 9S stops himself just as quickly. The visor makes it difficult to read his expression, conflicted as it is, and for that he would be thankful for if he thought to in the moment; instead, he appears to do little more than shift uncertainly on his feet, and manages to at least muster some bafflement over the query posed. ]

Um... pray?

[ To him, that has little relevance to what he is. 9S is fairly certain he's never taken a moment to pray in his life, anyway. ]

Not... really. For what?

For the humans' souls.

[ they sound more like they're reciting something they've heard than something they truly understand, which is because... that's exactly what they're doing. Cinnabar doesn't exactly comprehend what that means; all they know is that it's what Adamant was supposed to be doing, according to Phos (and what little their teacher himself could share.) His reaction to what they said doesn't go unnoticed, but they leave it alone. ]

[ This, unfortunately, answers nothing. 9S' mouth twists, then: ]

I don't know what gave you that weird idea, but androids were built to serve humans, not pray for them.

[ "Serving" wasn't entirely true in recent days, but 9S is one of the rare few privy to that knowledge. But then, there are humans here, now, and despite knowing his life was built on lies, it never meant his innate desires and loyalties ever went away. Perhaps that's why it's so easy for him to answer like this. ]

... It's the same thing.

[ but it seems like he's not the same kind of tool that Sensei is, regardless. They shake their head quietly. The familiar loneliness starts settling in once more. ]

Whatever... I'm not a human, so you don't have to "serve" me.

[ he has no reason to need to stay around them, and put himself in danger... as they pull another piece of fluff from their shoulder pad, they slow to a stop. Adamant is immune to their poison, isn't he...? ]

[ Is it, though? Guess he wouldn't know; 9S is only vaguely aware of what religious beliefs of the old world were, and he couldn't ever say whether they'd apply to an android or not. Heaven, hell, souls—he's pondered over it all and never came to an answer.

So, it's no use debating. Maybe they really do know more about that than he. ]

I'm—fine, I'm not going to. [ They're kind of prickly, anyway, for someone who was so concerned over his well being moments ago. ] What are you, then? Clearly not another android.

[ spoilers: they don't ]

I'm a gem.

[ they don't really know how else to explain what they are, having so little to compare themself to, so that's all they offer for the time being. Something's on their mind, and they continue, somewhat awkwardly. ]

... Are you... What are you made of?

[ if he's made of something even harder than diamond, like Adamant, then maybe he'd be immune. It's a bizarre thought, and one they've never had to consider before - the idea that their poison might not affect someone. ]

[ 9S has half a mind to ask 'like what, a rock?'—and not entirely seriously; he knows those aren't sentient. It's probably just a name their kind decided to take on for themselves. Again, despite how little of the light creeps in toward the back of this abandoned store, there's just enough of it to reflect off their hair and show how, in certain angles, it glistens. That might have something to do with it...

Yet they both appear to have their fair share of questions. 9S is barely about to ask the next of them on mind before he's posed with one right back, hesitant as it is. (Odd that they knew enough about androids to call him a machine, yet be oblivious about the rest. What did this matter for, anyway?) ]

Err... [ And where to begin? 9S lifts a hand and looks it over, as if taking a moment to think about it. ] That's kind of a complex question, but if you want the simple one—a lot of metal and wires, I guess. Those aren't the only components, but I get the feeling there's no point in getting into every little part.

[ joke's on you, 9S...

It would be going too far to say they're hopeful. Metal and wires don't sound terribly resistant to the toxin; after all, they've been around both of those before. But Sensei is made of the same things, isn't he? ]

... And you're resistant to things like corrosion, right...?

[ they're not sure where they're going with this. Are they going to touch him? They don't even know him - of course not. But it would be nice. Yes. That's all - it would be nice to not be a danger to at least one person here. ]

[ And 9S has even less of an idea than Cinnabar does. There's a light cant of his head, a hint of puzzlement, but there's only one way to know what the point of this is. ]

If I were to forgo any maintenance, no—I'd start wearing down eventually. But it'd have to be a long time of me neglecting to do any of that, so a few days of weathering the elements isn't anything to worry about.

I see...

[ and that's all they do. They see it, and they acknowledge it. They wonder if it means anything, or if they're just hoping for the impossible - something they should know better than to do by now. The only way to be sure would be to test it, but that would mean potentially hurting him, and very badly, at that. So they'll have to simply acknowledge it and keep it in mind. ]

... My poison might not be that effective on you, then. But you should still be careful.

So touching it could be risky for someone like me, too?

[ Wow, must be some potent stuff. ]

Well, all right, I won't. Do you plan on holing yourself up in here the whole time then?

[ They freaked out on him just strolling in, so he can't imagine they'll go around walking much with as many others around as there are. ]

[ better to err on the side of caution; that's what Cinnabar's always done. At the question, they sigh, running a hand through their crystalline hair and pulling out a few more stray pieces of fuzz. ]

It's better that way.

[ maybe not in this room, specifically, but away from the others - that's where they belong. ]

Really. [ 9S would go bonkers if he had to stick in one place for too long, but: ] If you say so.

[ As if he's going to be the one to convince them otherwise.They wouldn't be the first hermit he's come across. ]

Oh, by the way—have you found anything... [ He trails off briefly, vaguely gesturing with his hands. ] worth finding in here? Like—I dunno, I'm trying to see if there's any clues as to what this place could really be or why we're here. That's why I walked in.

[ Sure they were sleeping, but just maybe. ]

[ it's fine................. ]

Clues...?

[ Cinnabar glances around the room, briefly, squinting as if something might jump out at them, before responding. ]

I don't know what any of this is.

[ so it's hard to tell if anything is actually worth looking at... ]

[ That makes two of them, at least; 9S can understand being ignorant of most of what this "mall" has. ]

Figures. A lot of things humans kept lying around is kind of weird, anyway.

[ So he only knows a fraction of what they had, but details. He isn't surprised to hear nothing stood out among it all, either. ]

Looks like there's only a bunch of toys in here, though. Apparently those are popular with children.

[ On top of never being around them, he sounds like he doesn't know much about humans or their day-to-day, either. It's oddly comforting, as much as a shared lack of information can be. Once more, Cinnabar wonders if he's related somehow to Adamant. How many "androids" are there, anyway...? Adamant had said there used to be more; it's not impossible that another survived. But they're too anxious to ask. ]

I thought they were for sleeping with. [ Cinnabar is reminded of Red Beryl's little pet project after all those tiny, fluffy Lunarians attacked. This also might be a clue as to why Cinnabar decided to take a nap in that big pile of stuffing. ] ... I haven't seen any "children," anyway.

[ that's a human larva, right? cinnabar has no idea what that would look like... probably just a regular human, but smaller? maybe with fewer limbs...? ]

—Huh? Why would you sleep with one of those?

[ He's positive toys are for playing with, not sleeping. You only needed a bed for that. ]

Why...? I mean, they're soft...

[ ... or so Cinnabar has to assume. They shake their head faintly. ]

It must be something like that.

[ it's not like they have one. ]

INTRO LOG #1

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i'll spare you by not having cinnabar ask what kind of metal

cries thank you

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