Oddballs' Introduction

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Aug 19, 2022 2:04 pm
OOC:
I guess the journey was lonely enough, Oddball will go for a more talkative trip to the base, that's ok, right?.
"Yeah dude, a long journey on a pod.. but you know, that funny smelling sleeping air works fiiiine. So I didn't feel like a long trip dude... Good they need me, those guys are the station were full with negativity. They would talk behind my back, that's not cool man." *caughs*

After hearing about suicidal missions and James... "Sorry dude, never met this James, your friend, must be a cool guy." And in a curious voice "Nor I've met a lizard-dog-thing, but sounds dope man! I'd looove to meet those guys. Just, not on suicidal missions, you know, I'm an engineer, I build staff..." *caughs*
Then, to the second guy "You got your lungs fixed? Niiice... mine are just ordinary lungs, you know? How long it took you not to caugh anymore?"
Aug 22, 2022 5:44 am
OOC:
It's fine. You can explore how you like. Also it is good for me to think about more info for my world/scenario.
"Yeah, James is a pretty chill guy. Though he have his own bad habit of leaving his snack trash in random places. I guess I will also miss that about him now.

As for the lizard-dog, that thing is indeed interesting. I heard it was a non-local animal that some rich government type had. It is now an open secret that such alien creatures survived our dark age. The vet doctor though, he is a pleasant man, though didn't make much friends. I guess working with animals is preferable to dealing with the competive and cold nature of our community. I am not sure how it is at your previous work place, but our staff relationships have turned into something like gang cliques."


"Yeah, we mechanics and vehicle opperators had to look after each other in case some troublemaker think we Tox-Breathers are menial pushovers. Oh, you're wondering why some of us don't cough from this air? You just have to deal with working outside without using clean oxygen supplies for a year or so. It is not our business to know what waste chemicals are in the air that our Forefathers produced here. It is good enough that our insurance covers for any health issues we might have when we get to live old enough. But, I suppose that is not the case for you. Bro, turn on the air filter for our guy."

The driver nods and close the windows shut, and turn on the air conditioner that makes the air comfortable inside.
Aug 22, 2022 10:28 pm
"Soooo this lizard-dog, a non-local animal..." Oddball sounds a bit confused, he knows tech a lot, but not much about animals *caugh* "...that survived your dark-age, but is not yours... or ours?... sounds crazy man! Sounds like, there may be some surviving lizard-cats too, or lizard-rats,... hmm... or lizard-folks... if they exists, I mean, the lizard-folks, do you think they would enjoy some cormic herbs? That would be aaawesome dude, riiight?" *caugh*

Then he seemed confused again, a bit lost in thoughts...

"What were we talking about?... oh, yeah, competive and cold nature of our community, yeah, I remember them... I had to leave them man, too much negativity. But you guys are coool!" He finishes that last sentence with a wide smile.

After a minute, when he noticed then closed the windows for him... "Oh, the fresh air! Where were you hiding it? Thanks dude!"
Aug 24, 2022 2:33 am
The men seem to look at each other for a moment. One squinted his eyes at Oddball, but eventually shakes his head. The driver gave a chuckle instead.

"Oh, hah hah! You are a funny man. Cormic Herbs you say? Sounds like they would be better than the weak whiskey they sell here. And as for where the fresh air is from, our engineers have found a way to purify the air through some kind of chemical-mechanical filter in a machine. Don't know how that works exactly. Too bad only a limited number of such filters are made for now, otherwise we could have just started terraforming this place. Oh, and the name's Boris, and the others here are Vince, and Antonio." The thick bearded driver gestures to them.

Vince looks up and rubs his pointy beard. "Hmm, you don't look too bright, mister. Not knowing your history. But I'll help you out.

Long ago, our Forefathers are a bunch of badasses. They got to travel through space with super advanced technology and meeting other life forms. I like to believe they met sexy alien babes out there..."


Antonio sighs at the explanation.
"Bro, the sexy aliens are just part of the space effort propaganda. My granddad told me them xenos are nasty freaks. Not in the fun way. They have ray guns that fry your brains and mouths that suck your blood."

"Wait, isn't that something from an old film?"

"Huh? Oh, so that's how my old gramps made it sound like he actually saw them..."

"Anyways, too bad the ones our Forefathers found are actually genocidal dicks. A big war happened and it ended up to be us winning. But being the dicks that they are, the aliens have screwed over our Forefathers by making their technology disappear. But not all of their fun stuff are gone. Fast forward a thousand years to now, the alien lizard dog thing is a surviving evidence of that. Who knows what other secrets our government have kept hidden from us..."
Aug 24, 2022 12:12 pm
"Yeah man, Boris, man, I tell ya, my herbs are waaaayyy better! As soon as I get a place of my own, I'll invite you some. And Vince and Antonio too! We, you guys bring some music, we'll paaarty bro!"
OOC:
Hey, what kind of skill roll should Oddball make to see if he knows how to make or repair those air filters? Considering he is an space engineer, I would guess this is definitely whithin his area of expertise. He WOULD like to be able to help with that in the future.


"I know some history, and a lots of stories not reeeaaaly history *winks* hahaha... with some badasses grandfathers, super dooper tech, flying cannons all over the space shooting meteors and rainbows and green pigs and yellow zebras, and black-eyed baloons celebrating birthdays in empty ballrooms, and pink giant aliens farting sleeping darts..." For a moment he just laughs as if remembering something else he didn't mention.

"But, like history history, and like government history, booooring dude. I fix things, you know? I do tech, I do math, I stay possitive, and I fix things. We mechanics will always stay together, right? And I like your car!" finishes with a smile.
OOC:
Shall we arrive to the base soon?
Aug 25, 2022 5:05 am
"Nice, a party... we haven't had one in awhile, since we dont get many things to celebrate. Plus we don't really want to spend our hard earned credits willy nilly." Antonio says.
OOC:
You won't be making skill rolls. However, you may get to roll for saves if there is any danger to the action. As for helping with creating or repairing the filter and the like, I'll say he can do so, at the cost of some time or other resources.
At the explanation of the wild things Oddball have seen, Vince grew more concerned and confused until Boris laughs again.

"Oh ha ha! Your herbs must really bring you to some crazy places! Sounds like you had some adventures of your own. I too like to try going on the same trip you're going. Er, on my off hours that is. And in private too, don't want to get into trouble with the nosy higher ups."

Vince and Antonio starts nodding as they begin to understand what is going on. Meanwhile, Boris continues.

"And that's right about us needing to stick together. There isn't much crimes and stuff going on, but we can tell when the general mood is worsening. That all started when we found that we share our world with a creepy face on the ground.

And thanks for the compliment! Our trucks are designed to be adaptive and cost efficient for travelling over this grey desert. This model is one of our simpler ones. Just you wait till you see our latest version with the most advanced sensors and engines..."
OOC:
Oh sure. We can move on the scene if you like. It will be like the post I made earlier.
Aug 25, 2022 11:36 am
Ed, seeing that now Vince and Antonio are starting to understand his conversation with Boris, feels relieved... otherwise he may had had to explain more than he would feel confortable.
"Yeah man, you get it Boris! Way to go! In off hours and in private too, sure man! However it suits you dude." Somehow, Ed already knows his own limit for 'on-hours' feeling good and creative without compromising his mechanical or designing skills, and almost never goes beyond that.

"I'd looove to see those trucks too! I'm all into engines! I looove good machines, really man, I do, all my life, for real!... Will we have time to see them when we arrive to the base?" Says excited as if he was already imagining the most perfect, efficient, and beautifully designed truck ever in history of mankind and beyond.

"Oh also wanted to ask you guys, who run the base? Are there like bosses for different areas and stuff, right? Are they cool like you guys? Yeah, if they are bosses, they are probably all serious and stiff, maybe not as cool as you, but maybe coolish in their own bossy way", then he starts to laugh openly, being cool in a bossy way sounded so contradictory he just laugh at his own foolishness... or maybe not that much, who knows, maybe they are like helping and training everybody around and keeping a nice place with nice habits, hopefully Boris or Vince or Antonio knows.

"So, no crimes here, that's good! It is a small community after all, criminals would be easily spoted and teeeerribly disposed of, right?... But, what about mood worsening, and that creepy face you mentioned? that sucks dude! Sounds full of negativity, nooooot cool man. If I see that guy with the creepy face, I would... I would... invite him for a ride in that coooool-super-engine-adaptive-cost-efficient-way-better-than-my-space-pod truck you mentioned, or invite him some herbs!! Yeah man, that's relaxing! No more creepy face, just chill out and smile, right?" and he feels happy, as if he had just solved the whole creepy face issue for everyone in the base, and he loved to help people and solve issues, he is an engineer afterall... haha, ignorance is a bliss, until reality chatches up.
Aug 26, 2022 9:08 am
For the question on whether they have time to see the trucks, the men admit they won't know if they have time to do tours when they arrive, or if Oddball will have someone prepared to meet him.
For the question on the bosses, Boris answers.

"There is a level of staff here we like to call the Higher Ups. There are different types. Some are bossy with how you do your job, and some doesn't care to talk with us. Some are nice to talk to, but some are cunning and will get you in trouble if you hurt their ego.

I know the top guys handle communication with our bosses back at HQ on Darst. They are roughly on equal power with our base's chief managers. The older Higher Ups doesn't want to rock the boat too much, while the younger ones want to wrestle to gain their own control. It makes no difference to me. I don't cause trouble with them, they won't cause trouble with me."


As for the Face, Antonio tries to say something.
"Um, it's not really a person. I heard that the Face is a giant pit on the ground that looks like a face... You know, it could just be a prank or something. I heard some of our colleagues got similar nightmares related to it. I do hope it can simply be solved by positivity. I heard that there is a priest that was recently hired by the Higher Ups to solve the issue of spirituality. This is quite a new thing. Normally HQ will not bother with solutions not based on science, but I guess the nightmares have become too distracting lately."
OOC:
If you want to already, you can move on to this scene:
[ +- ] The arrival to the base
Aug 26, 2022 2:16 pm
OOC:
Ok, let's get to the base.
Oddball meet both Boris and Antonio explanaitions with curiosity and his usual possitive face, a thank them again for the ride and the good chat. And when, at the distance, he sees a guy in a suit and glasses waiting, he shares his expectations on meeting again soon for that tour or to share some drinks, and say his goodbyes "... Niiice ride! Later dudes!".

"Thanks for the reception... emm... " Oddball looks at the name tag for a moment... " Administrator Theo, that's you right? Yeah man, I'm Professor Odlyxacur Ballantschnik, some call me Odlyx, a lot call me Professor, but my friends call me Oddball. They are all fiiine." He stops to think for a bit "Yeah man, Colony Gamma is a great place, lots of friends there, cool people, except for a few liars that create trouble for the rest of us. Those few are full of negativity man, they are building their own doom, I prefered to be transfered anywhere else. So, yeh man, those few are veeery unwanted by the rest, but they can't do much about it." His serious face lasts for only an instant, the he goes on smiling.. "Niiiice!! I enjoy doing stuff, like solving and fixing things, like machines, you know? Those are so cooool!! I don't enjoy lazing around, pfff, that's booooring! Not for me man!"

After hearing Theo's whispering, he answers also keeping his voice low... "Don't know much on Human Resources investigation, but substance or drugs use could be dangerous man! don't recommend those, never, not even to negativity people. But I do recommend having a drink from time to time, or some friendly herbs I know, those are harmless and nice, I can invite you some man, you want some? And I do raise some as hobbie, all natural harvest man, no chemistry involved, want some?" Oddball clearly does not consider his cosmic herbs nearly close enough to whatever is involved in substance use.
As for the offer "I did mention, I like to help people and I like to fix stuff, sure I'll help you finding these substance supply. And I would expect to have a place in which I can carry on my own harvest and never be bothered about it. A two-rooms flat would be great so I can work my hobbie on the second, in a building away from prying eyes, sure that can also be arranged on a low budget, right man?"
Last edited August 26, 2022 2:18 pm
Aug 28, 2022 10:02 am
Theo bites his lips as he listens to Oddball's replies. He takes a brief look around him before speaking again in his whisper.

"I see that you enjoy gardening. While I prefer coffee instead of medicinal vegetables, I could work out something for you. You shall have your two rooms for yourself, but you will still have to settle the costs of them.

I will have your side project be undisturbed, if you do manage to find the individual who have been performing unauthorised chemistry. You may find them to see this as a hobby of theirs too. I will tolerate it if you end up backing out of this deal, but that means you won't earn my favour for finding a space for your garden. No matter how you do it, do know that technically I am not responsible. I couldn't have done this task myself, as I ain't risking my job to do investigations or interogations..."


Before he may finish talking, the sounds of tapping can be heard coming over. As the administrator turns around, he gives a sigh as he recognises the woman that approaches.

"I see that you offered to do introductions with the new recruit. Sorry, but I shall take over from here."
The woman says sharply.
"You sir, I heard your nickname is Oddball, so I shall just address you as that. I see that I could have waited a little longer before I sent out the expedition. The name is Samantha, the Assistant Communications Officer. I was the one who requested for you to come here. I don't know if you consider it luck to miss an opportunity to earn easy money to examine a location for us, but that is the case for now. However, I do have a special job for you too. It is quite risky, but I will compensate you for your troubles."

She looks at Theo, then at the truck mechanics offloading the pod. She then speaks in a whisper. "I can't say too much here. We better discuss this in my office. Shall we go there now, or would you prefer to do it at another time?"
Aug 28, 2022 4:12 pm
Oddball listends carefully to Theo and nods just sligtly enough for him to notice without been seen by other. He knew this deal was not formal, but he is willing to do that. For him, the difference is very clear between some small amount of natural herbs as personal hobby and some chemical product to be manufactured in larger quantities for sale. So he doesn't even blink when Theo tries the comparison. Before the woman arrives, he nods again to reassure him of his acceptance of the conditions.

As soon as Samantha starts speaking, Oddball recognize her hierarchy in her voice and body language.
"Hello man.. sorry, lady! yeah, I'm Oddball thanks for calling me here. Those dudes over there had issues, you know? Not nice people, you know? I know nothing about luck Sammy, I'm an engineer, is see what I see, and I enjoy helping people and fixing stuff, like machines, you know? So, yeah, I can do jobs " he adds with a smile, happy to be useful in the baes "Like common jobs and special jobs, and problem-solving jobs, and like, whatever jobs I see I can solve, or help with. The money usually comes when the job is done, right? so since you called for me... I'll trust you on that part."

After he hears her whispers he starts to doubt why is everybody here whispering so much... not so cool, but let's give her the benefit of doubt, and whispers back "I am thankful that you call for me, might as well follow you right now to you office. But, shall I carry my bags with us? or should I come back to pick them up before I go to my room?".

As he follows her, he looks around to see the garage... he wonders abut the space, the materials used, the distribution of the doors and repair tools and ony other thing around. Then he also sees the people clothing, is it similar to the colony he left? He also looks at the 5 people he has already met (Boris, Vince, Antonio, Theo and Samantha) to commit to memory their phisical descriptions, he even tries to guess their ages for fun.
OOC:
Hopefully I'm not asking too much, but you mentioned to help in the world-building so I thought having a quick couple of lines of description for each could be fun ;)
Aug 30, 2022 2:49 am
OOC:
Yup. You may notice that I will only give names if someone talk to a new person for awhile, and I recycle npcs to be used again if possible. That goes for every detail that a room or person has. If my players fill in details within reason, I don't mind too.
The garage is quite large, similar to an aircraft hanger. Perhaps it could double as one as well. Lots of different sized vehicles, from small carts to large buses with satellite dishes, are parked along the walls, most being covered by sheets of appropriate size. Some are also being worked on, as welding torches and spanners are used by kneeling workers. There are also other tools Oddball may not recognise, perhaps experimental ones being tested. Chains and claws hang from the ceiling, a few carrying bulky engines and computers for later installation.

The doors into the base are double, big enough for carts or forlifts to carry items or lazy staff through. The main doors to the dusty outside are huge, allowing for space craft to enter. There are many other doors to the sides, perhaps for parking more vehicles or other equipment.

The uniform the workers wear are grey and dark blue overalls. Seems to be different from Oddball's previous colony. However, the rocket logo of DOPEA is also there. Perhaps working in an artificial gravity station have different fashions to working on a planet.

Boris is large, with a dark brown "santa clause" beard and slight balding. Probably 50.
Vince is shorter but still tough looking, with a black pointed beard and slick hair. Probably 40.
Antonio is muscular, with a brown mullet and a thick moustach and beard. Probably 40.
Theo wear glasses, and is clean shaven with short black hair. Probably 30.
Samantha wears simple male up, and has brown hair. She is shorter than Theo. Probably 30.
Aug 30, 2022 6:51 am
OOC:
Thanks! That cools cool!
Now, about the action.. if someone can take care of his bags, he'll follow Samantha to her office
Sep 1, 2022 1:33 am
OOC:
I was about to say Oddball has his bag, but he had probably brought more of his belongings that he won't be carrying around with him as inventory.
Oddball's baggages he brought in his pod is now being retrieved by the 3 new friends of Oddball. Samantha suggests that Theo can assist in the delivery of the new recruits belongings, since he is free enough to meet Oddball first. Theo begrudgingly accepts and directs the workers to load the bags onto a cart, with annoyance in his orders.

Samantha will lead Oddball through the door out of the garage. She now acts as his guide, explaining the different hubs and facilities the colony has. Right now, they are walking through a well lit corridor with a few technicians moving about to perform repairs or inspections of the other rooms or sections blocked off by key cards.

Samantha says that Oddball will have his choice of job to work as. He could be a technician who gets to work behind the public space of the base in the sections nicknamed "the Engineers' Maze", where pipes and electrical systems can be assessed.

Or he could be a researcher, who gets to play around with the understanding and improving the new toys the colony has. Of course, it will not be fun, as test after test has to be done on electronics, chemicals, biological materials, space engines, advanced computers, planetary mining and all other things that the DOPEA is involved in developing. The air filtration system that Oddball seen is currently too bulky to be carried on a person, and requires certain rare materials, but works efficiently to supply the air for the whole base and in most vehicles. Attempts to start terraforming the planet may still take several more years to go.

They passed through the Hub for eating, which is a giant glass dome that houses a cafeteria. Tables and chairs are everywhere, surrounded by stalls along the walls.

Then, they pass the Hub for research, where different labs are along the corridor. Some for chemicals, some for robotics, and some for growing plants. There are also clinics for animals and humans.
OOC:
Does Oddball have any questions before arriving to the Office Hub?
Sep 1, 2022 7:03 am
As Samantha orders the guys to take care of his bags, he tranks them. Then he follows Samantha listening carefully about every area of the base.
"Oh man, em, lady, you really got everything working well. I didn't know the base was this biiiigg!! That's cooool!!"
Now, about his job...
"You know Sam, can I call you Sam? I love to help and fix staff, I'd be happy doing either, the pipe fixing and the research. Where do you think the colony needs more help?"
OOC:
Probably Oddball has a slight preference for the researching job, and that would add to his 'genius side', inventing new machines, but I don't know what have you planned for the base... I mean, what is best for the adventure and the story?
Sep 2, 2022 3:04 am
OOC:
My plan is for everyone to try to gather together first, then solve a local problem. Then, you will get to freely decide to do local jobs, or find a mission to do. Note, my idea of a "story mission", will slowly take the party further from the home planet.
"Our base is quite large indeed. The fortunate thing is that the air is breathable, although not completely healthy. The United Advancement's dedication to fuel our space exploration efforts have made our rocket ship production to be much more efficient since several decades ago when we first started. Despite all this progress, I believe we are still in the early stages, and we will truly reclaim what our ancestors have lost within our lifetime. What bothers me is that while the sciences and our organisation is growing nicely, our society and culture is now dragging it down. I'll touch on that more in my office.

As for what jobs you can do, here we manage that and your pay for it, not the HR of DOPEA. I personally don't know what exactly is most needed for now, as seems like everyone likes to have extra helping hands, but not too desperately yet. If you know a job you can do well for the base, you can. Just come to our HR for an interview, and we will assign to you your duties accordingly. Salary will mostly be weekly here."


Eventually, the two of them enter the Hub of offices. 2 stories high, they enter a corridor flanked by rooms for office workers. Samantha leads the way up to second floor walkway, and into a Crimson carpeted office. She goes to lock the door behind Oddball, and goes to fetch a document.

"Alright. Let's get down to discussing what I personally need from you. As I probably mentioned earlier, you came here as per my request of anyone that most affordable to be sent away. I had to pay to have my request be carried out, otherwise it will likely take forever, since I am merely the Assistant to the Officer for Communications.The group that was to help me have already been dispatch off-colony, but for your case, you will be free to decide if you can help me in other ways. Don't worry, I will pay you too when you do. And I hope you too will find that it is important.

I mentioned that the culture of this place is deteriorating. Not only have my boss grown stubborn and ignorant of the people's well being, he is also selfishly keeping his job by requesting the bare minimum of resources each time.
However, that is my problem. For you, there is something worse you have to worry about. We have identified a site about a hundred miles away called the Face. It has caused us a great many problems since its discovery. Mainly, the people have grown distressed, and an aggressive cult for it have been growing. Things may appear running smoothly on the outside, but I can tell things are becoming more sinister. And so, this will be your job from me. I need you to gather as much information as you can about this phenomenon. While I would like to think of our community to be safe, I could no longer say it is so. There had been a fight recently, and I fear more of such violence will come. So, be very careful in how you investigate.

Do you have any questions so far?"
Sep 2, 2022 8:56 am
Oddball looks thoughtful, he tries to make sense out of so many things Samantha said.
"Alright Sammy, I'll go to HR after I've looked around for this culture thing, issue, problem you said, that's cool? yeah? Since you called me, I'll go and dig these things you mentioned before all else. Gotta tell you thou, I'm better with machines than with people... but I'll do my best.
And, since this detective thingy is not related to HR, you have probably thought of some compensation for it, yes?
So... Is there a place I should start digging? Or some initial people you suggest I meet first?"
Sep 7, 2022 3:15 am
"You could visit the priest I brought here. He had been injured badly in a fight with members of the cult I mentioned. The injured cultists are also there too, so be careful. They don't like being called a cult, I think they consider themselves a discussion club.

You could also look to speak to anyone anywhere. Though not all might not be willing to talk. And some might be willing to talk too much. I will leave it to you to figure it out. If you find anything substantial, I will be willing to pay you 100, or even 200 Credits. That goes the same for anyone that joins you in this effort."
OOC:
I am trying to also have other PCs to join you. But the players seem to be missing. Hopefully, they respond soon to how this will go. Otherwise, it may be you alone for now.
Sep 7, 2022 7:34 am
Oddball finds these tasks very much out-of-ordinary.. and he enjoys that!
"Hey Sammy, relax, take it easy, I'll get some good information for you soon, alright? Maybe faster than you think."
He looks like he just figured something out.
" Now, before all that, I need to do something important.. Could you lead me, or show me the way, to my room? I truly need to take a shower, you know? I've been flying for weeks to get here."
Sep 8, 2022 8:11 am
Samantha nods.

"Sure, I can bring you to the Residential Hub. Though, I need to check where is your allocated room on my computer...

Alright, I found your name. Strangely, you have two rooms. I am not sure if you really want that. But I will not judge."


Before she leaves her office, she glances back at a cabinet in the corner for a while before carrying on.
The Residential Hub is 3 tiers of dormitory units. Not too small like a prison cell, but not too big either. Just enough for a bedroom, a living room, and bathroom. The rooms Oddball has are the basic ones. Plainly furnished, with nothing fancier than a minifridge and a single stove top.

When Oddball look inside one, he will find that all his heavy belongings are already placed inside.
OOC:
Btw, small retcon. Oddball will be given 2 room cards from Theo earlier.
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