Beloved friends, dear acquaintances, and soon to be beloved friends and dear acquaintances! Last I spoke up hereabouts, I believe it was with mention of a party, no? Well, the lot of us are in luck! I've spoken with the Initiative, and not only is such a thing possible, but we've a date and a place.

Clear your calendars, my friends, as this coming Friday, anyone with any sense of the sociable ought to be joining us for a masquerade ball in 1772, France, the Palace of Versailles. Quite a lovely place, I'm given to understand!

Those of you who have volunteered to assist me in the preparations, I do believe that now is your time to shine. And to the rest of you, find something you won't be ashamed to be seen in—and a mask, of course!—and prepare for a terrifically lovely evening, won't you?

( [Private to Samus, Cairistiona, Eddie Riggs and Jaina] )

[[ooc; one last plotting post for this shindig is up here, for new characters that didn't get a chance to hash stuff out last time, and here is a log for setting up!]]

[ When the feed opens it's not quite clear what's holding the communicator as Medusa has both hands visible - clasped neatly in her lap while a chunk of her red hair extends towards the feed, and it might take a second or two before someone watching realizes that what is currently holding the tablet is said chunk of hair. There's also a giant bulldog sleeping at her feet, currently not running rampart around the Hold for once. ]

Greetings, fellow Transports.

As much as I dislike posing a question that has doubtless been asked countless times before - has anyone considered going directly to the leadership of the Initiative for answers? Or, as a less ambitious goal, discovered who - or what - leads the fraction we have no choice but to side with?

Furthermore, this place seems ill-suited for those with any inclination away from pointless violence. I ask if anyone has any experience with politics or diplomacy to share what options you have found here.

[ A slight incline of her head to indicate a preemptive thanks at whoever comes forth before she continues on. ]

Sister, if you are free - we have things to discuss.

[Nananea is smiling pleasantly down into the tablet’s camera. Or at least she’s trying, but even her pleasant smiles show all her sharp teeth. As she begins to speak, she moves all four of her hands in strange gestures, punctuating every sentence.]

Things have been quieted down lately, don't you think? I am quite relieved about that! I think Exsilium is a perfectly adequate place to be at times like these! A good place, even! I hope any new arrivals have been settling in well! If I have not already greeted you- welcome! If you do not recognize me, new arrival or not, I am Kinna Nananea. I am a doctor, currently I am working at our transport clinic-[She seems to cut herself off, as if just remembering something, then grins even more widely.]

But my main interest, my main area of study, is alien culture and biology. My study of humans has gone well! As my study of trolls as well- but I know that these are not the only two species here! I have met several others since my arrival, but I still know so little.

If you are not a human, if your origin is not on this planet, please, talk to me! Tell me anything you think I would like to know! I have no specific questions at this time- because it would take too long to list them! An interesting fact about your culture, your planet, yourself [A double wink] would be a good start. Or a simple introduction. Anything you would like to share- please do!

[She seems to be done speaking for a good minute, but then a thought occurs to her, and she adds one more thing:] Of course, if you are human,I would still enjoy speaking to you!

[ the audio of the tablet is all that clicks on first; there’s some muffled noise, and what is possibly recognizable as the voice of Tidus, depending on who you are, saying something just out of earshot but sounding suspiciously like “don’t think that worked.” What isn’t working, exactly, isn’t clear, considering the screen’s just showing black, but it sounds like something’s being moved, and this time, more audibly:]

Let’s try this one...! [ A click, and the video shows the top of some blonde hair for half a second and a triumphant little noise before it shuts off again, and evidently hands it over to a nearby party. ] Got it?

[ after a sound of being handed to another, some of the excess noise subsides. It seems the person who has received it has a much gentler, delicate handling on the tablet. ] No, that’s not quite right. Here. [ a sound of a button being pressed, and then, the smiling face of a young woman some may recognize as Yuna. She turns the tablet around to show a blonde boy with a quizzical expression. She points to the button on the front. ] It’s this one. It took me a while, too. [ but she’s from a non-tech world, Tidus, you loser. extending her reach, she hands the tablet back to Tidus. ]

Er... Hey! Hi, Exsilium. Tidus here. And - this is Yuna. [ he offers a little wave and tilts the camera towards her a bit. ] Oh— H-Hello. [ boy, he should’ve thought this out a little better, but he’ll carry on fine. ]

( non-IC cut for length! )

[There's only so long Rinoa can go without poking at the network, even if she has had a few dubiously enlightening conversations with various people already. Whether Rika really believed she'd find her friends by using the network, Rinoa really can't say; however, if nothing else showing her face would probably flush out anyone she knows if they're around. Not to mention it really does seem to be tradition to introduce yourself on this thing. Go figure.]

[So she starts up the camera on her device without even fumbling over the controls and then offers any potential viewers both a cheerful wave.]

Hey there! Sorry if this gets asked a ton, but I'm still a little fuzzy on just what we're fighting for. I'm sure they tried to tell me the other day, but it all started running together partway through.

[Too much information at once. Which is why she's spent a while poking around on the network, but honestly she's probably more confused now than she was when she started.]

My name's Rinoa, by the way. I guess it's probably pretty obvious that I haven't been here very long yet.

Light! [ Sure hope you wanted one (1) two meter tall guy shouting over the network today, Exsilium, because you're going to get it. Snow shakes his tablet a few times for emphasis, yelling into his surroundings as much as the screen itself. ] Vanille! Fang! Hope! Sazh! C'mon, someone answer...

[ Well, scratch that. He rubs the back of his head for a moment, before setting the tablet down and turning away. ]

I'm gonna need some help here... Ladies! Mind lendin' me a hand?

[ The feed catches the summoning of said ladies, though the pair are onscreen only a moment before transforming into a motorbike which Snow gleefully leaps aboard. He gives a heroic thumbs-up pose to the tablet before snatching it back up, tossing the (still transmitting) thing into a coat pocket. ]

Haha, alright! Let's get this show on the road!

[It's not long before something else is heard in the distance, a sound akin to a low rumble, or perhaps a growl.

It's all but confirmed when that growl becomes a roar, and a little later, a voice that might be familiar to some speaks up:]

I'll take the sky! We'll cover more ground that way. [Fang adds, in a mutter:] They've gotta be around here somewhere. No way we all could've been separated that quickly...there's something else going on.

[ ooc; TL;DR IF YOU EVER WANTED TO BE ACCOSTED BY A GIANT MAN ON A LESBIAN MOTORCYCLE OR AN ATTRACTIVE LADY ON A DRAGON today is your lucky day because they will be hitting up everyone they come across in addition to answering the network. Tags will come from both in separate threads! ]

[Congratulations, Exsilium, you are now privy to a very close up view of the Avatar's nose for a good ten seconds before she pulls back and faces the camera with a grin.]

Got it. [Throat clear.] So hi. Welcome to the new guys and girls... and other things. You'll find there are some weird things here, but friendly faces are not in short supply, no matter how many eyes they have. It's pretty neat, actually.

I'm Korra, and this-- [camera moves to show a rather large dog/bear hybrid, then back to Korra] -- is Naga. She's a polar bear dog, and we're from a pretty neat world where some people can control an element. That's called bending. It takes a while to master, but it's totally worth it. If you ever wanna see, let me know; it'll be awesome.

Anyway, I want to hear about what your worlds are like, what people or creatures can do there. We're supposed to work together, so getting to know each other's a step in the right direction.

[She pauses, then smirks.] And if anyone wants to spar, I'll be more than happy to oblige.

I ain't gonna bother asking where the hell I am right now or how I even got here. I got the rundown when I arrived so I'll spare everyone having to listen to me beating that dead horse. Glad to see at least someone in this shithole's easy on the eyes, though.

Either way - I can't go around blaming this one on Time Compression. Tch. Who the hell cares anyways? If Time Compression really is to blame for this then- [ Seifer switches up his tone to a low bland one, indifferent. ] -whatever.

Heh, look at me soundin' like Puberty Boy. [ A barking laugh. ] That's rich.

Might as well scope out the place while I’m here, give me somethin’ to do other than sitting on my ass.

[for a moment Castor experiments with the tablet, trying to get it to work. once he gets the little confirmation sound, he looks at himself through it and then sets it on a table across from him. he sits with his hands folded on his lap, perhaps maybe a little unsure how to begin. this is all a little too much to take in]

Ah... [give him a moment. his gaze lifts up to the tablet and he pauses before chewing on his bottom lip] Forgive me, I am a little at a loss of how to take in this.. situation. [it's baby's first war after all!]

I hope I... can be of some use here. [there's a slight uncertainty in his voice and maybe a tad smidgen of a tremble but he swallows down his nervousness and looks to the feed again, cracking a small smile]

M-My name is Castor, it is a pleasure to meet you all. I will do my best to aid in the fight here. If there is anything I can do, please feel free to use me how you'd like.

[This gentleman has already wandered out past the city's walls - he's sitting in some ruins, only marginally protected from the raindrops that drop between the camera on his face. He's a mid-30's average-looking guy - blonde, a little skinny, a day's stubble - but there's a tiny smirk on his lips and obvious amusement in his eyes. He doesn't seem to be bothered by the cold or the rain or the fact that he's in a monument to human destruction. A bastard sword with a white, ornate hilt and set with a diamond is sheathed at his waist.

He looks past the camera, considering his environment, before actually looking into it. Any one who can sense mojo through a camera will realize immediately that this guy is not to be messed with.]

So, they actually ran out of people to fight their war that they had to enlist us. Our varied, ragtag group of folks, newcomers. Feed us with food and arm us. I can't imagine they actually thought this all the way through, did they? I mean, they wouldn't really be capable of stopping an insurrection if we really wanted.

Well, no plans for that. Not yet, at least. For now, I'm ready to just enjoy the weather. Nice day out here. Nice place they got, too.