Introduction!

[utopiamods]

The tram quickly arrives at the academy station, and the students onboard are ushered off and directed to the front lobby of the school. They can't miss it; there are signs up pointing toward the main entrance, reading "New student orientation" in big, bright letters. If anyone should care to move off the path, try exploring somewhere else, a teacher will conveniently appear to shoo them back toward the lobby, assuring them that "all your questions will be answered inside".

The lobby is big and spacious, looking more like a university or perhaps a fancy international hotel than a high school. There's a woman sitting at a desk ready to check everyone in, but she's not important right now; what the students should pay attention to is the large flat-screen TV set into one of the walls. As soon as everyone has gathered inside, it clicks on and starts to play a prerecorded video. A cheerful woman appears on-screen; when she speaks, she's so chipper you might just feel your teeth starting to rot.

"Good afternoon to our new students here at Utopia Academy! Thank you for choosing to enroll with us for this, our first semester of the new year. Our battle system is the best in the world, set up for you, our students! I hope that you all had a fun journey here, and that you've all made some new friends! You're going to need them soon, so keep them close, okay?

"Now, I'm going to explain the rules for you. Make sure to listen carefully, and remember, you can find all of this and more in the Exaclan manual!"

A map of the academy appears on-screen. The woman stands green-screened in front of the map.

"Our academy is fully integrated with a virtual network that includes several layers of tactile, empathic holographics geared toward the battle game Exaclan. Exaclan is a game fought between groups of Players using their respective Weapons; if a Player wins a battle, he or she takes possession of the opposing Player's Weapon. This way, Players can own many, many Weapons. Collect them all!

"As for the Weapons, you might be wondering where those come from. Well, as it turns out, only a few of you are going to be Players. The rest of you are Weapons! Players, if you equip your custom-fitted Exaclan gloves, you will be able to unsheathe your weapon from the chest of any Weapon you own."

Meanwhile, behind the woman as she speaks, a stylized cartoon sequence plays out in which a man in knight's garb pulls a sword from the chest of a woman in an elaborate princess gown.

"Now, since you're all just starting out here, you don't own any Weapons yet. In order to take possession of a Weapon, you must ask permission, and then promise to own and protect it. This is very important! Be nice to your Weapons, and in return, they will bring you to victory!

"The items you draw out of your Weapons' chests aren't real; they are part of the holographic Exaclan system. Each person's Weapon will be different, and they aren't just guns or knives, either. Their form is partly determined by the Weapon's personality, but it's partly randomized. Maybe you'll get lucky. Maybe not. It eliminates natural advantages!

"Now, like I said, the Weapons aren't real, but the damage you do in battle is real. You will feel every blow you take from an opponent's Weapon, and physical damage done to your Weapon will damage the person you drew it from, too. So be careful, or you could cause serious damage!"

The woman holds up one finger, grinning ear-to-ear;

"If you win a battle, ownership of the Weapon you fought against transfers to you. You also earn one Token, and you earn an additional Token for every five battles you fight, whether or not you win. Tokens can be used to buy Upgrades, Link Charms, Memory Charms, and Legend Fragments, so do your best to earn as many Tokens as you can!

"Oh, right, about the Memory Charms... you're probably wondering why there are some things you can't remember. That's just a little precaution we took to make sure that you would participate in Exaclan. You've each been stripped of ten memories: Some of them are very important, but some of them aren't. You can purchase a Memory Charm for five Tokens, which means to regain all of your memories will cost fifty Tokens. Ah, there's a catch, though: You can't use the Memory Charms you buy. You have to give them to other people. So get along with your fellow students and make as many friends as you can, okay?

"Now, if you have any other questions, make sure to consult your Exaclan manuals. They will tell you more about the rules of Exaclan, what you can and cannot do with your Weapons, and so forth. Following this video, the list of Players for this Round will be displayed. Anyone not on that list is a Weapon for this Round. Sorry!"

The woman holds one hand up in front of her face apologetically, but continues smiling as ever.

"In conclusion, welcome to Utopia Academy. Let's all do our best and achieve utopia together!"

The video clicks off, replaced by a pale blue screen stating the following:

PLAYERS FOR ROUND -2:
Dave Strider
Gino Weinberg
Grenn Atair
Koharu Izaki
Molly Hayes

((OOC: Feel free to post reactions and general mingling in this post. From here on, you're free to make posts, fight battles, attend class, etc.! If you have any questions, get in touch with a mod.

Edit: A mod mistook how much Memory Charms cost. They're five tokens, not ten. Oops! So the post has been edited slightly. That is all!))

Comments

ROOMING NOTIFICATIONS - !IMPORTANT!

[utopiamods]

A chime sounded from the lobby counter, and one of the receptionists leaned forward to speak into a microphone.

"Dormitory allocations are now available. Could all students please come to the desk to receive their room number and keys."

After a moment, she repeated it, just in case, and then settled back into her previous prim posture.

Re: ROOMING NOTIFICATIONS - !IMPORTANT!

[summerstars]

She had just been here. Couldn't the receptionist have thought of this when she was there? Of course, maybe she should have remembered to ask, too.

"Umm, eh. Hi. About... the rooms?" Oh yes. Grenn gritted her teeth and tried to not shift in her seat. She couldn't even pop out a question to something that they'd already made an announcement they wanted people to come up to get information for.

[utopiamods]

"Ah, Ms. Atair again." The receptionist ran one finger down a clipboard, then disappeared from sight for a moment as she fetched a set of keys from a drawer. "You'll be in our White dormitory, room 1-A."

She swivelled her screen around so it was visible from the student side of the desk, and indicated one of the four rectangles in a semi-circle around what would presumably be the central building. "Just here."

[summerstars]

Studying the screen, and recalling the map from earlier and the way they'd taken from the tram, Grenn nodded.

"Okay, thanks." Taking the keys, Grenn was about to turn around and leave when she actually came up with a question. It only took a bit to get her words in order, even.

"Are they group dorms?"

[utopiamods]

"Rooms are fitted for five students, but we aren't expecting more of you for some time," she said, without missing a beat. Again, the clipboard came out, again the finger traced down. "Yes, you will be sharing with a Ms. Izaki."

[greennotgold]

"Dormitories?" Fletcher repeated as he stepped up to the counter. He peered up at the receptionist.

[utopiamods]

Another of the receptionists leaned over the counter, and smiled at him briefly.

"The younger Mr. Tringham, is it? Let's see..." She and her co-worker conferred over the clipboard, "You'll be living in Pale dormitory. Room 1-A. Would you like directions?"

[greennotgold]

How did she know that? A shiver ran up his spine at the comment. "Um-- y-yeah... Which way is it? Is my brother staying there too?"

[utopiamods]

"Your brother... Ah, no. Here he is, in the Red dormitory. Room 1-A, again."

Re: ROOMING NOTIFICATIONS - !IMPORTANT!

[thatguywhohasablog]

"Yo." Dave leaned against the counter with an obnoxious nonchalant coolkid salute of unrivaled caliber. "So what's up with this dorm business? You packing us in face to toes like underpaid Victorian factory workers or what?"

[utopiamods]

"Your room should suit the needs of a student," the receptionist's expression was momentarily strained, but recovered with admirable speed. "Dave Strider, yes?"

[thatguywhohasablog]

"Dave Motherfucking Strider," he corrected her. "The middle name's important, you've got to remember to enunciate it properly. That part's in your records, right?"

[utopiamods]

"I'm afraid not." It wasn't entirely clear whether sarcasm was just lost on the woman, or if she was taking major steps to ignore it completely on account of her job, "If there's a problem with your information, you can fill out a request form from tomorrow."

[isur2ndprincess]

Yuki walked over to the receptionist, she figured that she would most likely have a different dorm than the one at her version of this school and it was best not to leave it up to chance.

"Excuse me, I'm Yuki Yagizawa which dorm am I in?" Though she vaguely wondered if she would be spending more time injured in the hospital wing than in her own room as usual.

[utopiamods]

"Yagizawa... Ah, here you are. You'll be in our Red dormitory, room 1-A."

[isur2ndprincess]

"Thank you," she smiled politely, "Can you point me in the right direction please?"

[princesspowerful]

Molly cautiously walked over to the lady, she was a bit wary about this place. Why would anyone want to take her and make her go to school? But hey, free place to sleep and they probably had food too!

"Where's my room?"

[utopiamods]

The receptionist was clearly in her element, having read her clipboard several times by this point. "Molly Hayes? You're in our Pale dormitory, room 1-B."

[princesspowerful]

"How do you know my name?" Her eyes lowered, she didn't like this place anymore.

[bitofafiction]

Sherlock wanders past the counter only after watching several other people do the same.

"Sherlock Holmes. Key, please," he says, briefly but politely.

[utopiamods]

"Of course. Holmes... Ah, the White dormitory, room 1-B." The receptionist handed over his keys with a smile slightly more tired than she'd had at the start of the day. "Do you need a map?"

[bitofafiction]

"That would be helpful, thank you."

Not that he needs one, in principle, but it might come in handy as a reference.

Re: ROOMING NOTIFICATIONS - !IMPORTANT!

[veepofchess]

Lelouch led Euphemia over to the counter so they could get their dorm room assignments. "The dormitories are across campus. But we need our room numbers and keys first," he said, joining the lineup. He glanced around, to see if there were any obviously Japanese students nearby.

[themerryway]

She follows him quietly, looking around the room at all the different people, all the sights there are to see. "Ah," she says. "I see. I hope our rooms aren't too far from each other."

[utopiamods]

A number of the students were, in fact, Japanese. As was the receptionist who beckoned them forward.

"You two are together? That makes things faster," she gave them both a smile, and quickly located them on her list. "Euphemia li Britannia, you'll be in room 1-B of our Red dormitory. Lelouch vi Britannia... ah, just here. your room is in Black, 1-B." she paused, and glanced up at them, "Siblings? How nice that you're both at the same school."

One of the other receptionists had by this time collected their keys and two of the maps, and placed them within reach on the counter.