voice + text

[theferryman]

[You feel it before you hear it: an uncanny sensation like you aren't alone, like someone just out of sight has fixed their attention on you.

They're not hiding, though. The Ferryman is simply speaking, directly into all of your minds, as clear as if they were standing right beside you.]

It's starting.

Sorry. Was hoping you'd all have more time to rest before we got going. But when it's time, it's time.

We're going to Cross. Not now, but soon. You'll feel it when the moment gets here. And you need to be ready for what that means, when it does.

It's a dangerous journey. There's still a lot of yourself left to lose, even if it doesn't feel like it now. That's my role here. I can guide you through it. Keep you safe.

There's a cost. You'll have to give something up, a part of your life Before. A face. A feeling. A memory. That's your toll to Cross. You pay it to me, and you won't get it back.

You don't have to pay. But if you're not with me, I can't keep you safe. You'll have to make The Crossing on your own. And if you do, there's a chance you lose a whole lot more than what the toll is asking from you.

There's some time left still. You don't need to decide now. But you do need to decide. You'll find out soon what sort of toll The Crossing is asking for, this time around.

Come find me if you want to talk. I'll be where I always am.

[The connection is tenuous; message delivered, The Ferryman's voice fades from your mind. If you're quick, and you concentrate, you might be able to grab on long enough to ask a question or two more.

Otherwise, all that remains is the object that purports to connect you with the other souls, all tasked with making the same decision. Whether it's a page or a screen, there's a new message for you:]

A toll to be levied for safe passage
from the cavern to ǝɹǝɥʍǝsʅǝ

Hear a voice that causes you pain
words spoken with rage or grief or envy
fueled by hate or love or suffering

offer it to The Ferryman
and let go

---

[ ooc | And we're off! Remember: The Ferryman is (for now!) the only one who can communicate to everyone via voice; the rest of you are stuck with text! The only exception is if characters try to hijack the fading connection to talk with The Ferryman one-on-one; there's a header for those questions here.

Otherwise, consider this a mingle! Chat, threadhop, go nuts. ]

Comments

[ghostmoder]

[He tilts his head, as if to mull that over.]

Eh. Guess not. [He taps his temple, to indicate the message he's also assuming she received, just like he did.] Kind of an asshole move not to lead with this, if you ask me.

[He smiles loosely, and waggles his own device at her: a flip phone with a squat, but surprisingly detailed, screen.]

Ain't all a crapshoot, though. Helped me find you, didn't it?

[urtitan]

[She returns a faint smile. In the situation they're in, his practical attitude remains a godsent, something that helps her anchor herself.]

...

It doesn't seem like we'll return here once we 'cross'. I'll leave my map behind for those who come after us.

[Just like that, she's relinquishing the efforts they've made. If they can help future souls who arrive on this dark shore orient themselves more easily, at least there's that benefit. Should Yusuke or anyone else want to make a copy first - be it via photography or other means -, or course she won't object, but she intends to rip the page from her book and pin it somewhere in the cavern city.]

[ghostmoder]

Don't gotta ditch it right away. We don't know how much longer we'll be stuck here for.

[It's kind of her, though. Thinking of the people who will come after them. He's inclined to think most people wouldn't do the same thing — but then, there's been bits and pieces left for them, too, haven't there?]

But yeah. Maybe before we head out. Least we can do, right?

[urtitan]

[Frieda has long oriented herself towards serving the greater good - during her hidden reign, and even before, when she knew nothing of the world yet and believed the people of the Walls to be the only ones left alive. What's one person's shortened life span in exchange for humanity's freedom from the titans? Alas, it wasn't meant to be.

She nods - for the time being, she'll hold on to the map. If none of them can copy it with some advanced technology, perhaps there'll be enough time to do it manually. Redrawing what's already there won't be as involved as the actual mapping, trying to determine locations, distances and angles in relation to each other.]

I think we should speak with the Ferryman. I'm sure most of us have further questions about what the Crossing entails.

[Are there limits to the toll - a minimum, a maximum? What are the dangers that await those who attempt the journey unprotected? Where will they end up once it's over? What becomes of those who lose too much of themselves?]

[ghostmoder]

[His mood sours quickly, and obviously; he's never been any good at masking the in-the-moment shifting of his emotions. He straightens back up with a sigh, turning to look back towards the River, where he knows the Ferryman still is, keeping their light.]

Who says they'll even be straight with us about it? They're callin' it a choice, but they obviously want us all to do the same thing.

[urtitan]

[Like a mirror, Frieda's expression likewise turns sullen.]

You're not wrong. I just hope that there's a reason for it - benevolence or mercy... something other than benefit and gain.

[She's still feebly holding on to her idealistic preachings, even now. After all, if everyone treated each other with kindness and compassion, wouldn't paradise become reality? This place there in certainly isn't it, but if they prove their goodness, perhaps they can reach it, somehow.]

[ghostmoder]

[For what it's worth, his expression turns briefly contemplative — maybe conflicted. He thinks about a girl stuck on a street bench, soul so fixated on a guy who barely gave her the time of day that it left her frozen, unable to go back and unwilling to go forward.

For all that he's been straddling the line between the human world and the spirit world, he still doesn't actually know what "moving on" entails. Who's he to say this is really all that out of the ordinary?]

... I dunno. They just got blinders on sometimes, y'know? [Paperwork and procedures, judgments and ordeals. Sometimes it's not malice, just inertia.] We gotta be careful, that's all I'm saying. Make sure we know what our options are.

[urtitan]

[She nods. Nebulous as the Ferryman's guidance may be, any attempt at gathering information will be better than sitting around consumed by worries and fears.]

We need to get a better idea of what exactly the danger is - the terrain, or creatures, or something else? -, and of the nature of the toll. I'm sure some of the others will be going to the Ferryman, too.

[A group discussion might help her (and her companions, at least those similarly lost as her) get clarity of what to do, she hopes. Of course, a glimpse into their communication devices will soon tell them that Kel had the same idea.]