Shore Leave: Geartopia [Open to All]

[cityship]

||Attention all crewmen, shore leave is now in progress, attention crewmen, shore leave is now in progress...||

Stacy's voiced called the entire crew, until all of them were gathered at the Obs Deck. Then, a dossier appeared on the screens, along with the image of a rotating planet.

Planet Designation: Geartopia
Status: Terrestrial, H-class.
Non-sentient life: Extensive flora and fauna.
Semi-Sentient Life: Yes.
Sentient Life: Homo Sapiens, Homo Animalia, Machina Erectus.
Water: 20.6% of the planet's surface.
Climate: Earth-like, Arid desert
Landscape: 70% Desert..
Air: Normoxic concentration.
Air Pressure: 101.3 kPa (kilopascals) = 14.7 psi (pounds per square inch)
Sky: Blue
Sun: A class G2V, yellow star.
Warnings: Wildlife, humanoids and plant-life can be hazardous.
Nomalanga has given us a map with which areas to avoid.
Mission: Shore leave, and preparing for an attack in a few days, planet's time. Nomalanga has promised food, clothing and animals in exchange for your cooperation in aiding her.



Once, long ago, Geartopia was built by aliens visiting the planet and granting intelligence to some native species. Of course you wouldn't know this apart from the giant black obsidian monoliths humming precariously outside of town. They are formed in a circle formation that might remind those who come from earth of Stonehenge, only built out of a much more study device. This is what Nomalanga used to contact you. The rocks cannot be moved and any attacks on them will be useless. The Wild Ones will come out of the forest at night, leaving a trace of plants as they go back and fro their own forest. The technology the elder aliens left them allows for contact with Stacy but otherwise there is nothing futuristic going on on the planet - the aliens wanted it this way and for the most part the population respects this.

All except Snidley and his goons, of course. Thankfully most of them have gone into hiding once their plot was found out. In fact, Nomalanga and those still loyal to her are busy working on making this planned attack, and getting the townspeople ready for it.

You can also find a few remains of their culture scattered around the land in the form of large stone carvings around the town, in between a wooden tavern bar or used as a sort of tribute, covered in dry plants. Most of the area is dry and arid, with very tiny grass and shrubs growing over the hill, and, strangely enough, an area from town that is densely populated by forest. Few dare go in, due to it being the territory of the Wild Ones.

As you walk around, you notice that the technology is steampunk with a cowboy flare; there is one train that comes from the towns every morning at 6am and leaves at 9pm. Horses can be rented for a price (some normal, some like this), chariot rides as well. Gears and dark clothing seem to be the norm, possibly due that their source of leather. The inhabitants are mostly humans, humanoid animals, alien natives and steampunk robots.

But enough of that, let's see what you can do here:

- Saloon and bars of all sizes, most comically named with an object, and a color. You can find all sorts of them across town, but those on the western side are more sympathetic towards Snidley and hate strangers with a passion. Do not go there unless you're ready to fight a few of them.

They do, however, have the best drinks, and card games.

There are hotels with gear pianos playing wistful tunes as you drink hard liquor made from cactus juice, honey and barley. The honey wine is especially prized and costly.

There is also a small carnival with steampunk and old west fair, sugar and cactus fruit pies, whole animals roasted over open pits, musicians, and a single wooden coaster. It's not much, but the food is excellent.

Be careful, however. The cactus fruit does cause stomach aches for most people not native to this world. Think of it much like lactos intolerance. It's a chance you take eating it. However if you do, it tastes much like an orange, strawberry and a banana were put together in a blender.

As thanks for helping her out, anyone stepping into the city is given by the mayoress as part of her exchange bartering price, one cowboy hat (all brown), one pair of steampunk goggles, a steampunk vest, and, most importantly, one part of leathersnake steampunk boots. This is a gift for anyone who is just visiting to blend with the locals and to prove she's honest about her dealings. As if it wasn't obvious after the first mission, in any case. She'll need your strange and powerful manpower in the upcoming days.

And hey, if you're up to it, you can help with a little cleanup. After all most people here don't know your skills. However, it's also calm and quiet in the farms. You want to do some honest work for a day, they'll give you some of their seeds in exchange. The system seems to be based more on services and barter than any money.

There is still currency and Stacy has given you a few golden coins, spend them wisely. A few farms are opened up to sleep for free, if you don't mind being with the animals.

The General store has steampunk items for sale, but most of them are much too expensive for anyone on the ship to by. You can try to barter.

Oh and news travels fast. Cause problems, and Nomalanga won't be too happy about it.

[OKAY ALL DONE GO FOR IT. You are also free to create additional places, to post your own private logs involving the town! Contact me if you need extra information about Geartopia either via PM to things_go_boom's account or by AIM, I'll be happy to answer. NPC goons if you want to do a bunch of bar fights, just think typical cowboy stuff. Shore leave will last until the 31st and players can go to and from the ship to the city each day, so you can have your characters stay for a day or two and then come back.

People in the miniplots, the mini plots will start up in a few days! There will also be a general fight for anyone who wants to join in on the 29th. Thank you and enjoy yourselves!]

Comments

Saloons & Bars

[cityship]

Saloons, bars, cheap booze places, they all bare a similar looks and names, although the ones on the west side of town are a lot more shady. They also offer other comforts, and much harder booze.

Of course you get more chance of getting shot in the back too.

The eastern bars contain regulated booze, entertainment and there's still the old west feeling. Its just much safer there. Still pretty fun and be careful not to drink too much cactus beer! It really hits the spot really fast..

[OOC - Feel free to have your characters wander into any bar you want, give it a silly name and write down of it's eastern or western part of town. Other people can join in and I might drop an NPC or two once in a while.]

The Abney Park Saloon--east side of town

[combustible_me]

After the events of the plot were foiled, Ellyn needed a good drink and a good smoke. Not necessarily in that order.

Quaint music poured out of the swinging doors of the tavern, the sound of a man's voice floating along with it. The pyromancer gave a muted grunt, and stepped up on to the wooden flooring, boot heels clicking as she walked in.

Thankfully, the music didn't stop, though the warthog wiping out a glass behind the bar gave her a grunt. Ellyn's lips twitched, and she grunted back at him. She took a seat at the bar, and after a few minutes' more exchanging of grunts, the bartender sat a half-full bottle of whiskey down in front of her, as well as an ashtray.

She gave him a nod and passed over a few coins, taking a nice, long swig from the bottle, a contented sigh leaving her lips.

[battorch]

Now that everything had settled, Tim was taking a customary sweep around the town. He needed to make sure there were no other troubles around that needed to be dealt with, or else to make sure that none of the more hostile locals were making trouble with the crew (or, frankly, vice versa).

He wasn't overly surprised to see Ellyn, sooner or later, and he decided to make his way over. Maybe he didn't know her particularly well, but communicating with ghosts and then rescuing kidnapped babies together probably qualified as good bonding experience.

Tim gave nothing more than a polite nod to the bartender, and he moved toward the counter, by Ellyn. "Enjoying your break?" he asked, flatly. Just because he was in costume didn't mean he was any better at normal conversations.

[combustible_me]

Ellyn waved two fingers at Red Robin, tilting her head away and exhaling a cloud of smoke.

"How ya doin'? Pull up a chair. 'Course I am, reward fer a job well done, right? I jus' hope they c'n keep everythin' under control now."

She nodded towards another seat at the bar. "Pull one up, take a load off. Lemme buy ya a drink." Ellyn gave a grunt to the bartender, who meandered over from where he was grunting up a female swine, dressed in ruffled violet silk, a closed parasol resting over her shoulder.

"What c'n I do fer ya?" he grunted as he approached.

[battorch]

"Hn. Fair enough," Tim said, and he took her offer to sit, cautiously. He didn't tend to mix well with relaxing at all, let alone bars, but he could stay for a short time, anyway.

He frowned though, at the offer of a drink, and shook his head-- but the bartender was already over. He hesitated for a moment, before he said, "just water is fine, thank you."

Re: The Abney Park Saloon--east side of town

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

Zouichi walked in, spotted Ellyn, and took a seat next to her. "Exciting mission," he said.

Re: The Abney Park Saloon--east side of town

[combustible_me]

Ellyn gave a grunt as Zouichi sat down nearby, giving him a nod.

"Yeah, an' I'll say 'gain that I'm glad you an' Red Robin were on it. Can't imagine th' mess I'd'a made of it all by m'self."

She took a drink of her whiskey. "Still, we done good, right? Restorin' justice an' bein' big damn heroes."

SECURITY DEPARTMENT POKER

[cityship]

Think of it as a bonding exercise.

Re: SECURITY DEPARTMENT POKER

[zouichi.livejournal.com]

Zouichi frowned a little at the cards in his hand. Not bad, but not spectacular, either. Jr. had taught him how to play earlier, so he did know the rules. He just didn't have a lot of experience at playing.

He glanced at the other players at the table, gauging their reactions.

[battorch]

Tim's been working on his poker face for years-- he wasn't going to reveal anything that easily. And also wearing a cowl that covered half of your face helped.

Tim had a decent hand, at least. It was something he could work with-- or at least bluff his way out of this with.

Lone Talon Saloon on west side of town

[notadamnangel.livejournal.com]

Sure he could go to the safer side, but where's the fun in that? Things were much livelier on the west side of the town clearly. Not like he couldn't hold his own in a fight, and he was always on alert anyway. He calmly strolled in, and bellyed up to the bar to ask for some whiskey. Either way this world looked like a good place to put down roots possibly someday. Be a shame to leave.

He didn't glance back, but he did have a mission in mind for a certain friend he insisted on coming along.

/tagging along like a little puppy

[thursdaywings.livejournal.com]

Like a fish out of water, Castiel looked out of place wearing his trenchcoat, but he's keeping close to Dean since he was still unsure of many things, especially when it comes to this so-called 'shore leave'.

"Dean, what is happening now?"

/awww

[notadamnangel.livejournal.com]

Dean smirked over at him, and grabbed him by the shoulder to bring him over to the bar. He then ordered another drink for Cas.

"Right now, *we* are gonna get some drinks, and relax. This is the fun part of traveling through space."

Re: Saloons & Bars

[youmissed]

Drinks. John wanted some alien booze and he didn't care what color it was. He'd even take the blue Star Wars milk on steroids.

It's one of those days.

John woke up knowing it was one of "those days" when he jerked awake from a nightmare he couldn't remember and banged his head on the top of those Stacy nostril-bed things. He remembered sitting there, sweat beading on his forehead and not even sure why he was gasping like he'd run a damn marathon. It didn't get much better than that even on the trip down to this planet, which he tried to explain to Aeryn looked way too much like Wild Wild West to the point he was half-expecting to get jumped by a giant spider or something, and all he got was one of those looks of hers. Like he was losing it again. So John could guess he was crazy for actually seeing that movie. But she was looking at him like he was having one of those episodes and today John wasn't in the mood for it. He made it a point to try to ignore that itch in the back of his head, the whisper of a slithering voice in his ear. The urge to swat it away only grew stronger as they finally stepped out onto the planet.

John made it through the clothes fitting before he announced to Aeryn, "Don't know about you, but I need a drink."

Maybe if he get himself nice and buzzed, he'd be able to shove everything to the side. Focus. Get it under control. John didn't wait for Aeryn to give him her ex-PK stamp of approval -- he headed out to the...actual saloon (oh my god, seriously?) and parked himself right there at the counter with his alien booze.

It's not going to help, you know.

John fumbled with his glass, nearly spilling booze on his crotch.

He turned at the voice in his ear, only to find that everyone was minding their own business and there was no way anyone could've jumped up that quick and ducked back down. Spooked, John turned back to his drink and decided to hell with nursing the stuff.

[bonnypiperlad]

As soon as John set the glass down, the bartender refills it with some more of a liquid that looks almost neon-orange in color. A second glass of the stuff quickly follows - although the bartender doesn't set it down in front of John. Instead, that glass is placed none-too-gently in front of the empty seat next to him.

It stays that way for a good ten seconds or so as Jamie finishes threading his way through the crowd over to the bar and the empty seat. "Thought for a minute I'd not be able to get his attention," he says to John, companionably. Then he takes a second, longer look and frowns. "Are ye alright? Ye look a wee bit pale."

[youmissed]

Oh hey, it's Jamie; kid from the ship; Scottish guy. Mr. Yo-Yo-In-My-Kilt. Or at least he really hoped it was only a yo-yo.

John made a point to show he could exercise some basic motor controls and was extra-extra-extra sure not to go tipping his glass onto himself or the other human. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I'm okay," John repeated, in that way people do when they're trying to convince themselves everything's a-okay. "Keep expecting Clint Eastwood to come strolling in through that door, that's all."

He offered Jamie a sidelong grin. Had the kid seen any westerns? He should. Maybe he could plunk Jamie down into the Movie Education 101 course with Sarah and it'd be two birds one stone for him. So it wasn't the most relevant thing he could do to keep busy, and focused (and keeping it together), but John was feeling like maybe he didn't want to do the logical thing today. Always felt like he had to keep consciously doing it. Tired a guy out after a point. What he wanted to do was have his damn drink and not get lectures.

Thankfully he didn't get the impression Jamie was one of the lecturing type. John swirled his glass before taking a sip. "So, enjoying yourself? I'm still waiting for the part where we get jumped by Ohm or something."

Western Side - The Blue Baboon

[valaunbound]

Well this was more like it, Vala found herself quite at home in the Western side of Town. It reminded her of the bars back on Charos, and the varied and colourful locals only helped with that familiarity. Charos seemed like so long ago now, it was amazing how much her life had changed since then. Hell she was still freelancing for the Lucian Alliance in those days. But of course with bars like this - there were bound to be a few card games going on that she could hustle. It seemed nostalgia was the order of the day.

Vala grinned to herself as she slid into the Blue Baboon and ordered a beer. Time to make her few gold coins turn into a few more gold coins, hopefully.

Re: Western Side - The Blue Baboon

[makeherblue]

The best thing about saloons was the entrances. Doubly flippy doors and it was basically a recipe for a downright lovely entrance(s), if you were into that sort of thing decided once wasn't enough, you absolutely had to have another go at it. The Doctor pushed open the doors, cutting a painfully skinny figure that was less cowboy and more just hat and hair. He doffed and tipped that hat to anyone who made the mistake of making eye contact with him, strolling in and plopping himself down next to the human.

"Water, please!" The Doctor waggled his fingers, as if it was perfectly natural to walk into a saloon from the old west and order only that. He turned. Sniffed. Sniffed again. He frowned at what the human next to him was drinking. "Are you sure you want to drink that?" he asked.

It smelled awful to him! Like old socks dipped in bog juice and then left out to sit. Couldn't she smell it? Made his hair stand on end, it was that offensive! The Doctor's nose crinkled. Maybe she couldn't. Human noses and all that; poor, not-bad-size (usually), but not very good for picking out certain smells. The Doctor stared critically at the beer.

[valaunbound]

"Well I'm not giving it to you." Vala didn't delay in saying as she pulled the glass closer to herself protectively. She assumed the man was ordering water due to a lack of funds, but unlike many she wasn't the type to buy anyone else a drink. Never mind someone she'd never met. Well unless they had something she wanted and she was pretty sure he was from Stacy, in which case it was highly unlikely.

"And I definitely wasn't considering it for perfume either." She had to agree with his wrinkled nose as she took a sniff herself, she'd smelt more fragrant beer. But she could take her liquor better than most, so it wasn't really a concern. She might live to regret that later, but for now she was confident it was no worse than Charosian wine.

"Did you have any other suggestions? It's probably safer than the water after all."

[bonnypiperlad]

Jamie hadn't been intending on winding up in front of the Blue Baboon at all, but during his explorations of the town he had somehow managed to get himself turned around, and well...maybe a little bit lost.

The folk over here didn't seem particularly pleased to see a stranger in their midst, but apart from a few mutterings that he couldn't quite catch, seemed inclined to leave him alone for now. Still, he could feel their eyes on his back as he pushed open the swinging doors and made a note to himself to be on his guard for as long as he was going to be here. With luck, it wouldn't be too long.

However, as he caught sight of Vala, a slight frown appeared on his face. Despite not knowing her very well, he didn't care much for the idea of any lassie being in a place where she might get hurt - and unless he missed his guess, this place had seen a few fights in its day. She didn't particularly look like she wanted to leave any time soon, though. Maybe if he could figure out what it was she wanted here he could talk some sense into her before another brawl broke out.

He sidled over to the bar, ordering a drink of his own. After the bartender turned away, he dropped his voice into a low conversational tone, quiet enough not to draw the attention of the room in general. "Vala, what are ye doing here?"

[valaunbound]

Jamie's got his work cut out for him then. Sense and Vala don't often go hand in hand, and being told not to do something is likely to make her do it just because... twice. She's also likely to laugh out loud at any suggestion that her being female makes any difference to anything whatsoever. She'll be quite happy to entertain him though.

"Oh Jamie. Hello," Vala smiled, wondering if that was some sort of trick question. "Isn't it obvious?"

Silver Skunk- West Side (Feel free to try and get the Master crunk)

[syncopath]

The Master discovered some time ago, perhaps as a side-effect of the resurrection process, that he somehow lost a Time Lord's innate ability to regulate his metabolism. In other words, he can't hold his liquor quite as well as he used to. So for now, he's currently slow-sipping his drink, fairly sure that if he does manage to overdo it that'll be the moment the Doctor stumbles upon him and then he'll never live it down.

Probably for the best, anyhow. He's getting awfully sick of the taste of cactus permeating everything.

Re: Saloons & Bars

[notamoron]

Wheatley stepped in front of the entrance to one of the seedier looking saloons. His little harness was decorated in the provided gear; a cowboy hat, a vest, and boots. And a plastic sheriff's badge.

He'd seen enough Westerns, he knew how to fit in. Step one: Walk bow-legged. He crouched and got into a crab-walking position. Check.

Step two: Spit tobacco. Now, he had no mouth with which to chew or spit, but he had that covered. A little water pistol. The perfect substitute.

Step three: A cowboy accent. "Testing, one two three, yee-haw, headin' to the waterin' hole, there's a snake in my boots," he said in the most offensively stereotypical accent he could muster. Perfect. He was going to fit right in.

And so he walked into the saloon, pushing the doors open with both hands and walking in.

Five minutes later, a badly mangled Wheatley was thrown through the window of the saloon into the street.

"Aw, it was all going so well too..."

[fattynoparents]

And it just so happened that somewhere nearby, a certain dangerous mute lunatic was trying to figure out the best way to dispose of this very much unwanted cowboy getup. She had her own boots, thanks very much, and Chell had never been one for hats, so this was all going to be done away with just as soon as she found an appropriate garbage receptacle.

Of which there were none to be found. She'd just settled for stashing the crap behind a few barrels when the sound of breaking glass caught her attention. Chell poked her head out of the alley just in time to see her favorite Aperture Science Personality Construct skid to a stop in the dirt after apparently being chucked through a window.

How predictably sad.

But sadly predictable.

Despite the better part of her that insisted she sneak off and continue avoiding him, her curiosity always seemed to win out in the end. Besides, she'd just got him those limbs she needed to make sure he hadn't RUINED THEM.

Instead of approaching, however, she stepped out of her hiding place and regarded him with a skeptical glance. WHAT ON EARTH DID YOU DO THIS TIME, WHEATLEY.

[notamoron]

"I don't think they much cared for my outfit," Wheatley said, still in that stupid accent of his.