The Search for the Newcomers, November 2012 Edition.

[stringmods]

Who: Open to Everyone, but only Newly Accepted Characters can start threads.
Where: All around the city, anywhere from the 5th to the 20th.
Summary: Newcomers arrive and by now the Government is more ready and sends everyone out to go people hunting.
Warnings: ARRIVALS. Also assume the first thread is the ones who tell you about the city, and the other tags for the character can be talking with others in the city and learning more about it.

[FOR THOSE IN THE CITY:]
They were getting much better at this, it was for certain.

The COMPS had been upgraded with a new program, HORUS which allowed them to spot abnormalities; if something or someone showed up suddenly in a city that was constantly scanned, then there was a high probability it was a newcomer. There was also a sort of left energy from the travel; the Wise Men called it leftover Magatama Residue, where the magical energy used to pull them to this world and keep the String intact was still faintly present around them. It wouldn't last more than a few minutes, however, and due to the fact they could appear in most parts of the city, it made finding the newcomers was both easy yet frustratingly difficult. As the blips appear on your radar function, they were nice enough to calculate for you the best transport and destination routes to take to get there.

Now it was just left up to chance and make sure you got there fast enough that you were still able to find them relatively easily. For the most part, the fact they stuck out would most certainly help...

[FOR THOSE WHO JUST ARRIVED:]
You're not in your homeworld anymore. That much is evident. So how do you feel? Happy? Sad? Troubled? A little of all three? No matter what, the memories of a butterfly man named Philemon are fading like a dream; you'll remember the details, but perhaps not everything he has said.

There is one word that stays with you, however.

Persona.

So...here to save the city, huh? First you'll need to find out more information. And who knows, maybe a familiar face or two...

[OOC: As stated above, only new characters can start a thread, but feel free to jump in any of them. characters arrive with their clothing and whatever items they had on them the moment they were taken; the remaining items will be later found in their apartments.]

Comments

[bondsofsuffering]

Of course not. Most high school kids probably didn't study that kind of thing, huh? He gives a nonchalant wave. "Well, guess it doesn't matter much anyway. No matter who it is, in the end we're all here for whatever reason."

...A pause, and then:

"Why are we here, anyway?"

[fools_journey]

He continues to look mildly puzzled and curious for a moment, wondering what else Hizumi might know about Jung. But then the pause is over, and he asks his question. Minato shrugs a bit again.

"Supposedly we're here to help this world out."

[bondsofsuffering]

There's another moment of silence before Hizumi gives a small, disbelieving chuckle.

"Help it out? With what? We're only teenagers - do they really expect us to be able to do much?" Regardless of Hizumi's talents, whoever decided he would be a good choice for such a task was horribly mistaken.

[fools_journey]

Minato smiles faintly at the 'we're only teenagers' comment. In his experience, teenagers can accomplish an awful lot, but he refrains from commenting on that aspect, not knowing what Hizumi has or has not been through and not really wanting to open things up to questions about his own past.

"I suppose they do. Personas give you quite a bit of power for fighting, after all."

[bondsofsuffering]

Quite a bit, as it were, but yeah let's not get into that.

"...Persona? Am I missing something here? I don't see how a persona can help you in a battle. Unless... it's another personality you take on while you fight?"

[fools_journey]

He blinks before he realizes that there is a slight confusion in terms. "Ah, no. It's not that kind of a persona. Here, as in my own world, it is possible for certain people to summon a part of their minds and souls to manifest and protect them."

[bondsofsuffering]

...You can do what.

"...Wanna explain that one to me?"

[fools_journey]

"Ah... that's what personas here are - a part of your inner self that manifests to protect you. I guess it's kind of like magic..."

[bondsofsuffering]

"Well, it definitely sounds magical to me."

Even if it did take its name from psychology. But still, he's no stranger to various powers mixing with and even outright disregarding the scientific laws, creating what should normally be impossible.

It's kind of a pain, really.

"So this... Persona thing. It protects you by fighting? Fighting what?"

[fools_journey]

"Um... anything, really. Demons, shadows... It can fight with you, but it also just... protects you."

[bondsofsuffering]

"Demons and shadows... are those things I should be worried about here?" Since Minato had specifically mentioned being protected.

"And I thought it was weird enough to wake up in a completely different place... sheesh."

[fools_journey]

"I don't think there are any Shadows here, but at night you sometimes find hostile demons. If you're careful and don't go out late at night, you should be safe."

[bondsofsuffering]

"Philemon, Personas, Shadows... It's like a psychologist's whacked out dream." Mixed with elements out of a game or a comic. Demons and fightable Shadows? Really?

"Do they only roam the outdoors then? I don't think I'd want to get in a fight with any of those."

[fools_journey]

"Ah, so far as I know, yes. I haven't ever encountered a hostile demon inside. Besides, they put a barrier up around the residential areas at night anyway and patrol the streets... If you don't stay out too late most nights, you should be fine."

[bondsofsuffering]

"I guess that means I can't stay out at night." He actually sounds kind of disappointed by that. Boooring!

"Hey, does that mean they have a curfew here, too?"

[fools_journey]

"Um... sort of. It only applies to the natives who don't have personas to defend themselves with, I think... You could stay out at night, though, if you had someone with you or stuck to the safer areas."

[bondsofsuffering]

And with that, he immediately perks up once more. "That doesn't sound so bad! I was starting to think it'd be like being a grade schooler again. Asleep before ten and all of that." He shakes his head to show his distaste for such a lifestyle. Really!

"Sssso, what kinds of places are open at night? Know any good ones?"

[fools_journey]

"If you like night clubs, there's a lot of them open in the Taurus district, though some are pretty seedy. Also... the Red Light district is in Taurus, too, so... you'd want to be careful where there you go."

But it's not like everywhere in that district is a like that.

"Um, there are also some restaurants that are open late - and some of the arcades are open late on some nights."

[bondsofsuffering]

At the end of the day, Hizumi is wiser than to mess around in the Red Light district. Stirring up some trouble is fun, but when screwing around too much can literally lead to the end of humanity, it's probably best to just leave it be. "Which arcades? Think this one would still be open late?"

[fools_journey]

"I think so. I've come here late a time or two, but I don't remember their hours..."

Not ending humanity is always a good thing, in Minato's books, so perhaps that is for the best.

[bondsofsuffering]

"Well, what do you usually do in the evenings?"

[fools_journey]

"Um... depends on the night. Sometimes I have work. Sometimes I stay home. Sometimes I go out somewhere. A club or a cafe or an arcade. There's one closer to my apartment complex, though."

And that's the one he usually goes to late at night.

[bondsofsuffering]

"Oooh. You should show me those!"

Wait.

"Ah-- Thinking about it, I'll probably have to look into getting a place to stay, huh?"

[fools_journey]

"Sure, but ah - have you gotten your ID card and such yet? They give all newcomers a small apartment to live in, and your apartment number is usually on the card..."

[bondsofsuffering]

"ID card? I haven't even heard about that." He shakes his head. He jerks a thumb in the direction of the dance platform. "All I've had time to do since I got here was play that game. I didn't even realize we're supposed to have IDs while we're here. Then again, it fits if they've already got a system in place for people like us."

And really, it sounds pretty darn convenient. "Am I supposed to go somewhere to get it?"