Round 1 - Preparation Stage

[gameannouncer]

Introduction
There was a drum roll and as you entered into this world. You are surrounded by cheering crowds, bright lights and cameras. You have just been announced as a tribute for a specific district and this begins your adventure into the Games Arena.

There is a lot to do before the Arena opens. The audience must be informed of all your vital stats so they can place their bets. Are you going to win because you're the strongest? Are you going to win because you're sneaky and smart? You won't see any of that however. The next few weeks are going to be filled with the following:

[Please thread below in any or all of the locations. It would help if the subject of the top level comment could list where the tribute is just so it makes it easier for other characters to tag in.]

Training Arena
There is everything that you could ever need in the training area. There are teachers around 24/7 who will be more than happy to teach you the skills needed in the Arena.

Such as: hunting, wilderness survival, tying knots, camouflage, botany, weapons use, general fitness experts and anything else you believe may be required.

It might save your life to go to at least one of these tutorials. There are also gyms and equipment which will help you focus on specific skills such as climbing, swimming and anything you may think of. 

In this Training Arena, you will have access to any weapons your character may have back home in canon. They will only be available in the training arena so you must leave them behind when you leave here and when you make your way to the arena. 

There are also public and private training facilities so you can choose whether you want to show everyone your skills or hide everything until the arena stage.

Rule: Any tributes that physically attack each other before entering the arena will be punished upon the games beginning. This is announced to the tributes as they are released to their own devices.

Publicity Shoots
It is up to your prep team to make sure the public love you. That's what they get paid for. As Battle Royale is school themed, you will be taking lots of school based photo shoots in the following uniform:


Look familiar? Well, in this game it doesn't matter whether you're in the white or black uniform so take your pick at whatever you think will look nicer. These will be the uniforms that you enter the arena in. This may be your last chance to look pretty and your last chance to be remembered.

Private Dorms
At the end of each day, you have your own room to retire back to. Each district has an entire floor to themselves and each floor has two giant dorm rooms.

There is room service for each dorm room and you can order whatever you want. Really, anything. You're about to go to your death so you might as well enjoy the remainder of your life. You are free to go to each other's rooms if you want to visit. Make friends, make enemies, or scout out your competition.

These rooms are state of the art. You have a large shower where it feels like the water is coming from multiple directions and a range of fancy soaps, shampoos etc. You can even choose to have a bubble bath if you want.  The bed is large and covered with the blankets and sheets your character most adores. There is also a giant wardrobe with any outfit you would like to wear available at a touch of a button.

Each tribute will also have 2 avoxes following them around when they are in the private dorm area to get them whatever they need and clean up after them.

Private Social Area
There is a living space with games, other hobbies and an eatery for people who don't want to eat in the solitude of their dorms. But why aren't you in the training hall trying to make sure you stay alive in the arena? This is where you'll find out the gossip of where you are, what's going on. You can speak to your prep team to learn about why you're here, what your role is and the fact that you're probably going to be dead in a month. And probably at the hands of the person eating at the next table and smiling innocently at you.

Other
You are welcome to create anywhere else you want to be. Want to watch a movie? Go ahead. Want to visit a library? Yeah sure. The Game Creation team have designed a little city for you to play in before you enter the Arena so if you are certain that an extra day in the training facility won't make you live much longer anyway? Might as well go out and enjoy yourself. It's on me.

Note: Wherever you are or whatever you're doing, there is a chance that your actions will probably get broadcasted to the public on TV.  

Comments

[99purroblems]

[She's taken aback for a second; she really thought that perhaps this human adult, strange as it was to believe, might be a friend. But Nepeta knows how to deal with grins like that, and she just smiles in return, bright and cheerful and friendly and baring very sharp wildcat teeth.]

There doesn't seem to be much I can do here, but when we see each other in the figurative circular melee container, let me know if there's anything I can do to return the fafur!

[bakegarasu]

Sure. ... I don't exactly have a problem with you, but... well. I have a city to get back to and defend.

[99purroblems]

Don't worry. I'm not offended! I have people who need me, too, and I am battle-capawble.

[...Okay, yeah, now she's fronting a bit. Terezi and Vriska and even Tavros do this all the time, though, so as long as she can maintain her confidence, as long as she lasts enough to keep Karkat safe...

She maintains her smile, flips her hair casually off the back of her neck with her hand.]

The mighty huntress simply sees no need to be unfurriendly to her oppawnents befur the match.

[bakegarasu]

Exactly.

[He'd rather kill the people in charge of this, but... well. He doesn't know if he can get back if he does.]

Mm. There's a lot of kids here. Whoever set this up is pretty twisted.

[It'd be different if they were mostly adults...]

[99purroblems]

Um.

You lost me-owgain, but I think it's just another one of those mewtual alien cultural diffurences that I'm not going to understand even if you explain it.

[bakegarasu]

... Usually kids are considered even worse targets for violence than most people. That's about it.

[99purroblems]

Oh. Huh! See, I'm purretty sure young trolls and wigglers are thought to be fur less valuable in general on Alternia. They don't have much to contribute, you know? So we have lusii and drones to take care of us until we reach meowturity, but lots of us get culled befur that happens and it's not a big deal.

[bakegarasu]

Yeah... not so much with humans. I've never been totally sure why, just that it's a thing.

[99purroblems]

I think I'd like to visit your world. I mean, to meet humans that aren't like...these ones.

[Quick glance at the training area, then a shrug.]

It really sounds like a fun place.

[bakegarasu]

I guess? I can't exactly travel anymore. I'm not supposed to leave my city.

[99purroblems]

Do you like it there? Your kitty. I mean city. Sorry, that one was a stretch.

[bakegarasu]

I do. I've lived there my whole life. It still needs some cleaning up... but it's my city and I wouldn't trade it for any other.

[99purroblems]

...

I sort of know what you mean.

[bakegarasu]

You have a place like that too?

[99purroblems]

No. My planet was destroyed a little while ago.

[She sounds a little wistful about it. It's a sad thing, and she's not going to pretend it isn't.]

But I still have people like that. Ones who aren't purrfect, but whom I wouldn't leave fur anything.

[bakegarasu]

... Oh. I don't... have people like that anymore.

[There's a slight note of sadness in his voice, but then it's gone. No. He's not supposed to feel anything.]

[99purroblems]

[It doesn't matter if he feels it or not, because Nepeta certainly does. The loneliness of it. What it must mean.

She starts to ask something, stops herself. Starts to say something else, but then just looks down, biting her lip.

Eventually, she moves to be right in front of him and then sticks out her hand.]

I need a lot of cleaning up, too, but you can be furriends with me. All the way until we can't anymore.

[Her eyes are sharp yellow, determined. She's being sincere, for whatever it's worth.]

[bakegarasu]

[Friends. How long has it been since he's had a friend other than Reiji?]

[... Well. Never, really. He had a gang - sort of - and he had family and 'family', but... friends are a little bit of a foreign concept.]

[But Reiji would want him to try, even if he'd laugh at making friends with an alien girl half his age.]

[He takes her hand carefully, shaking it.]

I'm Otoha, by th eway.

[99purroblems]

[She giggles a little and shakes his hand right back.]

Like I said, I'm Nepeta! Nepeta Leijon. Furmerly of Alternia, currently repurresenting District Seven, whatever that means.

[bakegarasu]

District Ten for me. I'm from Shinjuku, which is near Tokyo, Japan, on Earth.

[99purroblems]

I'll make sure to look it up when I get there!

[bakegarasu]

['If', he wants to say, but doesn't. They both know only one person can win.]

Yeah. There's plenty of stray cats around there too, if you like them.

[99purroblems]

[Little gasp.]

I love cats.

[How EFUR did he guess?]

[bakegarasu]

I sort of figured. The will of the city takes the form of a cat sometimes.

[99purroblems]

The will of the city?