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Tour of Myon

Posted: Fri May 06, 2011 10:52 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
You may remember that about a year ago, there were several tours of various conworlds around. And now one's come back, this time after I have made some adjustments. I think the main reason why the tours died last time was that there were too many of them at once... 4 along with a 5th that never really got started... It gets confusing having to keep track of so many things all at once. Hopefully it will go okay, and this time I'm posting it here where it won't get pruned. It makes more sense being here anyway, nothing's really quick about this.

This tour, like my previous one, is of the Rebublic of Myon (Foolkruul For Myonur / Rumaci ëd Myon) I'll ignore pronunciation for now, lets just assume the characters know how to pronounce the words. I'll provide pronunciations for something if you ask, or if it is important, like the name of something of note.

Image

Map of Myon, showing major cities, bodies of water, provinces, and nearby countries. (In English... mainly.) Note that the province of Galaenþer Island is on another planet, and thus not on this map. Click for bigger view.

Myon is somewhat larger than the size of the United States, though with a smaller population, only about 156 million. The currency is the Mun, which is used in all of the countries of the Mïyan Union (Unïmïyan [ˈun.ai.ˈmai.jan]) which are all of the countries on the planet Mïyan except for Granar. The Myon dollar is also used, but it is being phased out. (1 Myon dollar ~ 1.2 (US) dollars and 1 Mun ~ 1.43 (US) dollars)

The tour will start in Galesfe City, spending a couple days there, how long depends on what people want to see/do, after that the group will take a train to Amiton, stay a little while there, then take a plane (or another train if you want) to Myon City, the capital. Other destinations/extensions may be added if you want them

Note that there will be considerable differences in climate along the way. While Galesfe City ([ˈga.lɛs.fɛ]) is tropical, Yintar-Yanar ([ˈjɪn.taɹ.ˈjːa.naɹ]) is more temperate, and the mountains between there and Amiton ([ə.ˈmɪt.ɔn]) get quite chilly even in the summer. (assuming we even go to the mountains, we'll probably just ride though them, and get some interesting views from the train) Amiton is semi-arid, Myon City ([mjɔn]) is sub-tropical. Time of year is mid-spring. As for general clothing styles, it is preferred for women (or those who appear to be women) to wear skirts/dresses and for men to wear pants/shorts, but this is not usually required, and other than that, general style is modern Western.

I'll have 2 characters here: Lyhoko Eruf, ([ˈljoːko eɾˈuf]) the tour guide, and Misa Antacar, ([ˈmɪsə ˈantakˈaɾ]) a tourist, so I can add some more variety.


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The meeting room appears similar to waiting areas at Earth airports, the main difference is that all the seats notably have tail holes, and there are several different sizes of seats, including some that look more like stools than chairs, without any sort of back rest, though these aren't that common. The room itself is quite large and open, and the walls appear to be metallic. On the north wall several posters with ads on them are visible, such as this one, (Though realistic instead of a SimCity 4 screenshot... It says "We will take you places", by the way) and the entire west wall has windows that go from the floor all the way up to the ceiling, which is about 12 feet (3.7m) high.

The room is on the second floor, and outside several planes are visible, a mix of some that look similar to Earth jumbo jets, and several that look more like the Concorde. Off to the right a large concrete wall, roughly 10 stories high, is visible, from this angle once can just see past part of it, showing the wall to be partially surrounding another part of the spaceport, and a single starship that appears to be a cargo starship blocking further view into the enclosure. To the left the ocean is barely visible past the parked planes and some farms are also just visible between the spaceport and the ocean. Several clouds drift overhead, but otherwise the sky is clear and the sun is visible to those near the windows.

Back inside the building, several people are walking by, 1 of them is human, though 2 of them are considerably taller than the human, and both have green skin and a tail. A fourth person is about half the height of the human, and appears to be covered in brown and gray fur, at least where clothing doesn't cover it up. However, the area is mainly quiet with not much activity other than the talking of the tourists and other passerby.

A moderately dark skinned person with waist length dark brown hair who appears to be human is sitting down in one of the chairs. She appears to be female, though she has a completely flat chest. She is wearing a purple short sleeved shirt along with a relatively short white skirt, and enclosed brown shoes, though the rear of them is open. She is also reading some sort of magazine, which is written in some sort of language that has a logographic script that is written vertically, and bears some resemblance to Chinese, but is more angular and less detailed, almost as if were carved in stone.

Another person, who also appears to be a flat chested female human, walks over from somewhere else. She also has waist length hair, that is a dark blue color, though it appear to look at least somewhat natural. She is wearing a plain white dressy shirt with short sleeves, along with a gray pleated skirt that stops just above her knees and black shoes with ankle length thin white socks.

"Ama, my name is Lyhoko Eruf and I will be your tour guide during your stay here. Is this everyone for the tour?"

The dark skinned person then stands up, putting aside the magazine, before bowing.

"It is a nice greeting, Lioco Nan." (ˈljo.ko ˈnan) She says. "I am Misa Antacar."

------------------------------------------------

Everyone will appear to have come off of/out of a plane, starship, or transporter regardless of how they actually got here.

Magic does exist, though is only known to exist in a limited form, (telekinesis, telepathy, and other similar things) and is not referred to a magic, instead it is known as abilities or (less commonly) powers. It does not affect technology unless it is specifically used to do so.

Please start with a post saying if and how you are participating, and a bit about your character(s), so I and the other participants know who we are dealing with. Feel free to use any species, as long as it is reasonably sized compared to a human. (The infrastructure is designed for species with an adult height of around 3 to 8 feet tall.)

You can join in at any time, we'll just assume you were always there but just didn't say anything.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sat May 07, 2011 5:42 am
by Astraios
Ooh yay, a tour! I'll definitely join in again, though I can't decide if I'll play as a Kaglú or something I've not worked on as much. Hmmm. Probably the latter, as I was Kaglú last time I was in Myon. I'll only have one character though, having two got a bit confusing (though that may be because I was playing in all of the tours at once...).

So, I'll be playing as Saba Aspur Duldura (/'saba 'aspuɾ 'dulduɾa/), a young male Visuhi from the planet Orbi (/'ɔɾbi/). He is 19 years old in human years, but 20 in Orbian years (not a very important difference, but there you are). He's pretty much humanoid, but not human; standing 6' 5" tall, he is naturally tanned, his eyes are dark, and his hair is a deep reddish-brown. His nose is flat, his lips are full, and he has slight epicanthic eye folds. He's wearing open-backed sandals (like flip-flops with a strap over the arch of the foot as well as between the toes), short grey jeans and a black T-shirt, with a thin zip-up jacket draped over one arm.


---

Entering the large meeting room, the first things Saba Aspur notices are the colourful advertisements covering one of the walls. He stops for a moment, checks that his ID card and travel papers are still in his shorts, then sets off to investigate the posters. About halfway there he is distracted by a flash of green to the left, and he studies the pair of tall aliens surreptitiously as they pass him, going in the opposite direction. As they leave his line of sight, he sees what appears to be a young Visuhi girl sitting alone in one of the many chairs reading a magazine, but the magazine is written in an unfamiliar script.

Then, looking past her to the massive windows on his left, he changes course to take his first proper look at the outside - a welcome sight after four days in the empty blackness of space. Next to the window, the girl now behind him, he lets his heavy suitcase fall to the floor with a thump and a sigh of relief, and stretches the cramped muscles in his left arm, looking out at the planes.

For a moment he tries to find the starship he arrived in, but can't see it - perhaps it's hidden beyond that concrete wall. The sun comes out from behind a cloud, and the light glints off the distant ocean. "Aa," he murmurs. "Hayda sarangya." Ohh. I love the sea.

He hears a female voice behind him, speaking in the vernacular every self-respecting interstellar traveller speaks, or in his case, takes an intensive crash course in. What luck that he has a gift for languages.

"Ama, my name is Lyhoko Eruf and I will be your tour guide during your stay here. Is this everyone for the tour?"

He thinks for a second. Oh, of course - 'tour guide'. He turns to see the now standing girl put away her magazine and bow to the first speaker, another girl resembling an Orbian, but with paler skin [AN: I assume that Lyhoko Eruf does indeed have paler skin, since Misa Antacar is noted for having dark skin].

"It is a nice greeting, Lioco Nan. I am Misa Antacar."

Mildly surprised by the adult voices coming from what look like young teenagers, he surmises that they can't be Visuhi at all, or even Orbian. He heaves up his suitcase from the floor, and walks over to them.

"Hello," he says, dropping his suitcase with another thump and standing expectantly close to the paler woman*. "Are you the tour guide? I am Saba Aspur Duldura, from Orbi."

---

*How foreign would it be to Myonians to touch faces together (i.e. like kissing on the cheek but without the kiss) in greeting? If it's entirely socially unacceptable, I'll assume that Saba Aspur knows this already and isn't going to try it.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sat May 07, 2011 6:46 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Oddly quiet here...

A bit of an additional description of Lyhoko and Misa:

Lyhoko: Lyhoko is 5'2" and appears to be human. Lyhoko has waist length dark blue hair, enough so that it is easily notable as a shade of blue in the light, but it appears black in less well lit areas. Lyhoko has a small, almost flat nose and dark blue eyes, similar to Lyhoko's hair color. Lyhoko's skin is light, but slightly tanned. Lyhoko has moderate epicanthic eye folds.
On a side note, my username here is from this character, and not the other way around.

Misa: Misa is 5'3" and also appears to be human. Misa also has waist length hair, only it is a darkish brown color, and a similar nose to Lyhoko. Misa's eyes are brown, somewhere between her hair and skin in color. Her skin is quite tanned. Misa has no noticeable epicanthic eye folds.

Incidentally, because of the Muphridians, numerous languages known as the Muphridian Languages have been scattered about the galaxy, all descended from late Old English-early Middle English, and slightly modified. Most of these languages are at least partially mutually intelligible, but somewhat less so with Modern English. (Someone knowing English might be able to understand someone speaking a Muphridish Language, but the other way around is unlikely, due to English borrowing a bunch of Latin and Greek and other words)

Astraios: Close facial contact like what you describe is mainly limited to those who are close, like boyfriends/girlfriends, or close family.

I'll hold off for a bit in starting on the actual tour, in hope that more people show up. Also, you are allowed just to ask questions without actually roleplaying, if you don't want to/don't have the time.


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Lyhoko is momentarily alarmed by Saba Aspur's close approach, but then remembers that not everyone has the same beliefs of personal space.

Nice to meet you, Misa Antacar, Saba Aspur Duldura. [ˈsabə ˈaspuɾ ˈdulduɾə] I am not familiar with anywhere named Orbii.

Misa then looks out the window at the starship enclosure.

"What is the wall for?" Misa asks.

"Which wall? The ones by the parked starships?"

"Yes, those."

"They were built back when starships still used antimatter, so if something blew up the blast wouldn't take out as much. Nothing ever happened though, and now they aren't needed anymore, but there were judged too hard to take down now, so they were just left there. There's another one that you can't see from here, its there were most of the passenger starships land, the one you can see from the window is mainly just cargo ships."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sat May 07, 2011 8:03 pm
by Astraios
Maybe if there's fewer people interested this time we'll get more done.

What does "Lyhoko" mean?

Were/Are the Muphridians Old English-speakers who got stolen from Earth or something?

And that's cool, he will presumably have been told that Myonians wouldn't do that during his flight.


---

Remembering vaguely something from a culture class, Saba Aspur moves a few inches further away from Liyōko. "Please, call me Saba Aspur. Orbi is the name of my planet - I don't know how far the Miyon /mi'jɔn/ would measure it, but it was a very long journey for me. It's funny that you didn't know of it, since our species look similar. Adult women from Orbi have a little difference in body shape and are taller though."

The darker woman, Misa Antacar, turns to the window and asks about the concrete wall outside. Liyōko replies: "...There's another one that you can't see from here, it's there where most of the passenger starships land, the one you can see from the window is mainly just cargo ships."

"Ah, that must be where my starship landed then. I couldn't see it from the window earlier. What sort of cargo is mostly transported?"

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 3:51 pm
by Nannalu
I love a little RP on boards. I haven't worked much on Sel much but I'll use one of my old conpeople in a new Aguk sense.

I will be playing as Ihlana Sakuħe [iɬänä säkɯħe]. Ihlanu is a traditional Aguk woman. She is around the earthly age of 20 and she is around 6"6, an average Aguk height. She is a ghost white coloured skin but it is dyed an indigo dye colour with lactarius indigo mushrooms. She has no visible eyelids only a clear eyelid that shields the eyes - her eyes being mainly pupilous and a very small ring of grey iris around the enlarged pupil, the schlera being invisible from view. She has no nose apart from two miniscule verticle slits representing nostrils. She has very long waist length external gill stalks lined (much like axolotls) with short pink "hairs". She has a a 30cm (1 foot) neck which is endowed with beautiful brass ring all the way up her long neck to her jaw. She is wearing a woven multicoloured inca-like poncho to keep her warm in the Aguk mountains, she might need it in Myon! Underneath she is wearing a red linen shirt with rolled up sleeves to the elbow and the bottom seams have slits and the hem in lined with beautiful little braids. On her lower body, she is wearing a pleated woven kilt-like knee-length skirt that looks very uncomfortable and itchy. Bangles are worn on the wrist by the dozen and many bangles and chains are used on the ankles. A plaited brown belt is worn around the wait and a sheath and money bag are attached to it.

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Ihlana emerges from a crowd of people near the gate exit into the waiting area. She can see outside via the large glass window, the clouds being very thin and the sun bursting out from a stringy blue canvas. It reminds her of her village back on Sel. She slides off the large golf-like bag with the tightening strap at the top that was caressing her long ridged back and drops it onto the floor and she continues to observe the airport below..

She can hear a group of people talking behind her over in the seats about tours. Ihlana assumes that they are the tour group. She grabs her satchel but her left hand and she slips it onto the shoulder.

There seems to be a man and two women. They seem to notice her as she approaches, the paler woman speaks,

"Hello, my name is Lyhoko Eruf, I am your tour guide for today, why don't you take a seat and we can wait for more tourists," at this, Ihlana takes her seat and she introduces herself to everybody;

"Hi everyone, my name's Ihlana :) and I've come from Sel," and they all start to chat about what's to come.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 4:46 pm
by Astraios
@Irma: What does Ihlanu (or Ihlana as you've called her in the non-AN bit of your post) do with her gill stalks? Do they stick out very far sideways? Can she move them? Arrange them stylishly? Her species sounds interesting. :D

Oh, and psst - you're not really supposed to change what the other characters say/do. :)


---

At a small, metallic jingle behind him, Saba Aspur turns to see a tall, long-necked individual in bright colours sit down nearby. After a moment's hesitation, he deduces from the style of the outfit that this is a female.

"Hi everyone, my name's Ihlana and I've come from Sel," she says with a smile.

"Hello, Isana ([i'sana]). I'm Saba Aspur, from Orbi."

Then, realizing he hasn't yet asked, he turns back to the other tourist. "Misa Antacar (/'misa anta'ʧaɾ/), where do you come from?"

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 5:03 pm
by Nannalu
Oh crud. They hang down, and yeah you can style them kinda, I guess.
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Ihlana sits down on the floor, unlike the others and listens,

"Hello, Saba"

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 6:16 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Well, that is true, if there isn't as much talk we could get more stuff seen...

Lyhoko is simply the Zukish spelling of the Japanese name "Ryouko," which seems to mean "refreshing child."

The Muphridians were originally Zukes (the green aliens with the tails) who were taken from the planet Maiyan by the Hasiq roughly 10,000 years ago. More recently, the Muphridians cloned Old/Middle English speakers on Earth, and placed them on various planets across the galaxy, while also adopting the language themselves. None were placed on Maiyan, (though the language was taught to a group of Zukes, who later split and ended up forming Glump and Granar) the humans now on Maiyan were originally from the planet Teera, which is in the same star system as Maiyan. (Empress Taalri of the Muphridish Empire was the one who began the project.)

Hey! More activity! Yay!


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Another person, definitely different from the others, soon arrives.

"Hi everyone, my name's Ihlana and I've come from Sel,"

Ama, Ëslana. [isˈlana] Lyhoko says.

"Please, call me Saba Aspur. Orbi is the name of my planet - I don't know how far the Miyon /mi'jɔn/ would measure it, but it was a very long journey for me. It's funny that you didn't know of it, since our species look similar. Adult women from Orbi have a little difference in body shape and are taller though."

"The average FTL speed of a Myonian passenger starship is roughly 60 light years per day, if that helps in seeing how Myon ([mjɔn]) would see the journey. I don't know how far away Orbii is though, so I couldn't tell. Incidentally, there are humans on various other planets in the galaxy, most of which we don't even know about, that the Muphridish Empire spread about."

"Ah, that must be where my starship landed then. I couldn't see it from the window earlier. What sort of cargo is mostly transported?"

"It varies, finished products, raw materials, pretty much anything that you can transport and need to transport is transported." Lyhoko replies.

"Misa Antacar, where do you come from?" Oops. It's [ˈantakˈaɾ], not [ˈantaˈcaɾ]... I've changed it in the inital post.

Misa was initially slightly confused at the question, as well as the mangling of her name. 'Clean? And I already said where I was from?'

"I am Misa from Antacar. Misa [ˈmɪsə], misa [ˈmisə] means something different." And it's a bit of ambiguity in the romanization of Ancaron...

After determining that everyone was there; Misa, Saba Aspur, Ëslana, and several others, Lyhoko turned to address the group. Remember that you can take one of the unspecified people whenever you want to join.

"Make sure you have your luggage, and I'll lead you to the bus that will take us to the hotel where we will be staying in Galefe City."

Misa grabs her two suitcases and appears to effortlessly lift them, one with each hand.

The group then follows Lyhoko away from the sitting area, and into the main hallway, which extends for quite a distance in both directions north and south, after a little while Lyhoko then leads them though an opening in the wall into another room, this one smaller, with two escalators and an ordinary staircase. They head down two levels, and while there are further stairs and escalators leading further underground, they get off here and leave the room and enter a large underground parking garage. Numerous vehicles are parked around, and numerous columns are visible. The group then heads over to a bus marked with the words "Myonfeurn" and above that, "Zeðawnimyonen." Several doors on the bottom of the side of the bus are open, revealing a basic cargo storage area. On the right side of the bus a door is open leading to the passenger compartment, the bottom of the door being roughly level with the curb, and a ramp is visible just inside the door.

"Anything large like suitcases that you don't want to carry onto the bus go in the storage underneath, there are smaller storage areas in the passenger compartment as well, where you can put stuff like purses or bags."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 7:43 pm
by Astraios
RE: Muphridians: That is totally awesome! :D

Also, I'm having déjà vu about the underground carpark from my last visit. :)


---

"Hyumans ([çu'mans])? Are you not Miyon?"

The dark-skinned woman looks confused at his previous question. "I am Misa from Antacar. Misa ['mɪsə], misa ['misə] means something different."

"Ah, I'm sorry, I misheard, and then misunderstood. There is no difference between [ɪ] and in my native language, (AN: Yep, he's a linguist) and I thought Antakar ([anta'kaɾ]) was just a name. Are all names like that in Antakar - one name and a toponym?"

"Hello, Saba," says the colourful Isana. Breaking into a smile, Saba Aspur says: "Why, I didn't realize we knew each other so well, Isana! Please, call me Saba Aspur. Using just 'Saba' is a little too intimate to sound quite comfortable in a stranger's mouth."

Liyōko switches into tour guide mode, and instructs the group to follow her to the bus. Saba Aspur bends to pull his heavy suitcase up from the floor. As he straightens with a grunt, Misa lifts both of hers, each as bulky as his own, with apparent ease. Sighing, he swaps it over to his dominant hand, and follows after the guide.

At last, but not soon enough, they reach the escalators and he drops the suitcase again for a brief respite. Finally he can look around without fear of whacking someone's shins with his luggage, and he wastes nothing of the opportunity, even twisting around completely to watch a trio of very short, grey-furred people ascend in the opposite direction. He looks sideways at Isana, noticing for the first time the long pink appendages on her upper body. Two floors down, and they get off, and head towards one of the parked buses. Carefully Saba Aspur reads the two words on its painted surface, written in the letters he learnt months ago. "Zedavnimyonen Miyonverun ([zɛdaβnimjɔ'nɛm mijɔmbɛ'ɾuŋ]). I'm sorry, how is that said? And what does it mean?"

Liyōko indicates the storage space underneath the bus, and Saba Aspur, with a dramatic sigh of relief, drops his suitcase with yet another loud thump. He sits on his heels beside it, unzips it, and removes a smallish shoulderbag. Folding his jacket into a tight roll, he slips it into the bag, along with his ID card, travel documents, and money, before standing back up and putting one arm through the strap.

"How far is it to the hotel? Are we staying near to the city centre or far from it?" he asks their guide, as he heaves his rezipped case into the bus.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 7:54 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Misa never said this: "Clean? And I already said where I was from?"

Misa just thought it, hence the singe quotes.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 7:56 pm
by Astraios
Don't confuse me, dammit! :) Well, edit button here I come.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 8:00 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Now it's in italics. :P

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 8:41 pm
by Christopher Schröder
Ooh, another one of these things! I think I shall throw another unfortunate clockwork planet-dweller into it! This time, Miss Lillia Belmont somehow manages to find her way there, and, as luck would have it, she never lets surprising things get the better of her. She stands about 5'2'', which is quite short where she comes from, and possesses a light, delicate-looking frame. Her eyes are grey and look out through round, rimless spectacles, and her hair is long and blonde. Her complexion is very pale, as she, like one in every two hundred or so of her kind, is affected by leucism. Her clothing looks as though she woke up and decided to look anachronistic for the trip she had no idea she would be taking, as she is wearing a dark red coat which goes down to her knees over an equally-dark blue dress with white lace about the collar, which is fastened with a bow, and the hems of the sleeves and skirt. Under her left arm she carries a folio of some sort, and in her right hand she holds a rather ornate broom that looks more like an antique than a thing for sweeping the floor. She makes her appearance stepping out of a broom closet (or the nearest equivalent) as though there were nothing at all strange about her doing so.

She sees arrayed before her a number of peculiar people wearing all sorts of queer things, and so moves in closer hoping to discover something about where she is and how, exactly, she might enjoy her stay in this world. Lillia has already determined to write a travelouge, and shall not be worried about how to get back home, for she knows some way or other will present itself eventually. Her most noticeable trait is her tendency to do nearly everything with magic, in which, since she was observed to have a talent early on, she has been drilled for a number of years. She is not, in fact, very good at doing anything without it. In her world, magic is best done by actually tapping on or touching the thing on which it is to take effect, and is cast from calories, meaning she eats a lot more than people expect her to. It is possible for her to project magic further out, but this is difficult, wastes energy, and is only done with highly-standardised spells, of the sort which are generally used only in self-defence or in certain technical applications. The word for magic in her native language is Sorcellerie /sɔʀˈsɛ.lɛ'ʀi:/, which she would Anglicise as "sorcellery" given that the word "magic" is not used to describe abilities similar to hers in this world.

She does not really say much, but rather listens and learns a few names — there is a very tall woman with very peculiar features and who appears to be quite blue named "Islana" /ˌɪz.laˈnɑː/, a dark-looking young man named Saba Aspoul /sa'bɑː as'pu:l/ who insists upon being called by both names, and a pair of short, dark haired people who appear to be called Lioco /liœu'kœu/ and Misseu /mɪ'sœː/.


'Pardon me, Messieu Aspoul /mɛ'siœ as'pu:l/, but might you tell me where I am?' is just about the only thing she says, and she is looking straight at him when she asks it.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 9:07 pm
by Astraios
"Pardon me, Messieu Aspoul, but might you tell me where I am?"

One of the other tourists? She knows his name, so she must be with the tour, but she doesn't know where she is. Maybe she's just very forgetful.

"Please, call me Saba Aspur. You're in the city of Galespe (/ga'lɛspɛ/), on the planet Miyon."

The group sets off towards the escalators, and he picks up his suitcase and follows, throwing a question back over his shoulder. "Are you lost? Who are you? Come and ask our guide."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 9:19 pm
by Christopher Schröder
'Calling you by your name is too familiar for me, Messieu, I'd rather not presume so much,' she answers, and she has a rather affected-sounding accent and tends to stress words strangely, and then continues, 'oh, but where are my manners? My name is Lillia Belmont [lɪ'lia bɛl'mɔnd], and I stumbled into this place quite by accident, though I've determined to write a travelogue since I'm here now and all. Gallespet [ˌga.lɛs'pɛː] seems a nice enough place, or it should be if it were not apparently so dreadfully hot.'

Lillia seems, however, to have an aura of cool about herself, and looks perfectly comfortable despite all the clothing she is wearing. She then somehow stuffs the broom into the satchel she carries, along with the burthensome folio, despite the bag appearing to be much too small to hold the one, much less both things. Then, she takes a pad of paper from it and begins making notes on everything, including her misspelling of everybody's name.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Sun May 08, 2011 10:27 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Time to dig up the weather report again:
Current conditions: Temp: 65F/18.3C, Humidity: 84%, Sky: mostly sunny
Inside conditions (bus): Temp: 72F/22C, Humidity: 65%
Inside conditions (Galesfe Spaceport): Temp: 73F/23C, Humidity: 55%

The Myonian word for "humans" is "shyuumanz", pronounced [ˈʃjuːmn̩z]

The closest equivalent to a broom closet would probably be a janitor's closet


------------------------------------------------

"Hyumans? Are you not Miyon?"

"There are three species from Maiyan: Zukes, Gaxikaen, and the Hasiq, though the Hasiq have left." Lyhoko replies.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I misheard, and then misunderstood. There is no difference between [ɪ] and in my native language, (AN: Yep, he's a linguist) and I thought Antakar ([anta'kaɾ]) was just a name. Are all names like that in Antakar - one name and a toponym?"

"Yes. My name is a special case though, Nacran like myself have names based on the planet we are from. Non-Nacran names just show the region they are from on a planet." Misa says.

Misa notes the new arrival, but says nothing, assuming that she is part of the tour. Why is he... no, judging by the culture here that would be she wearing such odd clothes? And carrying a broom?

"Zedavnimyonen Miyonverun ([zɛdaβnimjɔ'nɛm mijɔmbɛ'ɾuŋ]). I'm sorry, how is that said? And what does it mean?"

Zeðawnimyonen ['zɛðawn'ɪ'mjonɛn] and Myonfeurn ['Mjɔnfɛɚn] both mean Myon Tours, the first is Zukish. (The second is Myonian.)

"How far is it to the hotel? Are we staying near to the city centre or far from it?"

"The hotel is relative near the city center, next to Galesfe Central Park."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 3:45 am
by Astraios
"There are three species from Maiyan: Zukes, Gaxikaen, and the Hasiq, though the Hasiq have left."

"Why did they leave? And the other two are the green and the furred people we've seen, then?"

"Calling you by your name is too familiar for me, Messieu, I'd rather not presume so much. Oh, but where are my manners? My name is Lillia Belmont, and I stumbled into this place quite by accident, though I've determind to write a travelogue since I'm here now and all. Gallespet seems a nice enough place, or it should be if it were not apparently so dreadfully hot."

"Oh, I understand then. Would you prefer I call you 'Mesiya Belmonda' ([mɛ'sijə bɛl'mɔndə]), instead of 'Liliya Belmonda' ([li'lijə bɛl'mɔndə])? If you're writing a travelogue, why not come along with this tour? We're going from here to another city in a few days, and then after that to the capital city of Miyon. It isn't hot, in fact it's quite pleasantly cool."

"Yes. My name is a special case though, Nacran like myself have names based on the planet we are from. Non-Nacran names just show the region they are from on a planet," says Misa in reply to an earlier question.

"How interesting. I don't believe there's parallel on Orbi, though there are different naming customs between the different people, of course. My name is a Visuhi one; we are given two names, of which the first is a more familiar form of address, and the two together are used in polite company. Then my last name, Duldura, is the name of my grandmother."

Looking back at Liliya Belmonda when she doesn't reply for a moment, Saba Aspur notices that her belongings appear to have disappeared, and she is left with just a small bag. Deciding not to comment, as she doesn't appear at all perturbed, he heaves his own heavy case down the escalator after the guide.

At the carpark, Liyōko answers both his questions: "Zeðawnimyonen and Myonfeurn both mean Myon Tours, the first is Zukish. The hotel is relative near the city center, next to Galesfe Central Park."

"Yes, I see they both contain the word 'Miyon'," he replies. "And that is good. Is it safe if I'll want to go out at night? What is the nightlife like here?"

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 1:14 pm
by Christopher Schröder
"Oh, I understand then. Would you prefer I call you 'Mesiya Belmonda' ([mɛ'sijə bɛl'mɔndə]), instead of 'Liliya Belmonda' ([li'lijə bɛl'mɔndə])? If you're writing a travelogue, why not come along with this tour? We're going from here to another city in a few days, and then after that to the capital city of Miyon. It isn't hot, in fact it's quite pleasantly cool."

'You may say whichever you're more comfortable with, though if you called me messieu, I'd have to think you thought I were a man, which I am not. Why do you add an extra syllable at the end of my name?' After she says this, she seems to scrawl down a few things in a notebook she has just acquired from... somewhere... while nobody was looking. The writing resembles Spencerian script, and, though the language in which she is writing looks as though it could be English, upon closer inspection it clearly is not. The paper is unlined and has a faint yellow to it, and the ink she uses appears to be dark blue rather than black, and it looks to be some sort of faux fountain pen.

----

Lilia continues on with the group, and says rather little, but appears to be taking copious notes on the way everything looks, as though she has never seen anything like it before. One of her notes reads something like this: Ther eincelig wer threy Kijnder en Mion, eund Ijren wern ijn Zoukenner, ijn Gacksikeaner, eund ijn Hassicker..., though the rest is covered up by one of her sleeves as she continues writing.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 1:31 pm
by Astraios
"You may say whichever you're more comfortable with, though if you called me messieu, I'd have to think you thought I were a man, which I am not. Why do you add an extra syllable at the end of my name?" She produces a notebook and writes.

"I shall say Liliya Belmonda, I didn't realize Mesiya was gender-specific. And I do apologize if I'm not pronouncing it right - my native language doesn't allow a word to end with /d/, and I find it difficult to do in fast speech."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 7:23 pm
by Christopher Schröder
"I shall say Liliya Belmonda, I didn't realize Mesiya was gender-specific. And I do apologize if I'm not pronouncing it right - my native language doesn't allow a word to end with /d/, and I find it difficult to do in fast speech."

'Oh, well, that's alright, we normally throw out the 'd' /de:/ if it comes after a vowel and does not come before another, and we normally do the same thing with 't' /te:/, but both tend to like to stick around after 'n' /ɛːn/ and 'r' /e'ʀɑː/ and a few other letters. The letters 'g' /ʒe:/ and 'k' /kɑː/ seem to fancy doing the same thing, too!' she answers, though looks a bit taken aback at a term of address being gender-neutral, and then she writes more in her notebook, adding something which looks rather like this: Et sieumes ther bies Lieugen en whilk Gier na hieuden tha Genre von ijn Werde! Fantcien-Gier tha!

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 8:16 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
Current conditions: Temp: 65F/18.3C, Humidity: 84%, Sky: mostly sunny
Inside conditions (bus): Temp: 72F/22C, Humidity: 65%
Inside conditions (Galesfe Spaceport): Temp: 73F/23C, Humidity: 55%

Gaxikaen is pronounced [ˈgaxɪkaˈɛn]. Or maybe [ˈgakɪkaˈɛn].

Just assume that <x> is never /ks/.

In some ways, what Lillia (or is it Lilia?) is writing seems to be closer to Myonian than English... Aside from using strong noun dative endings with weak noun plurals... Or at least the first part does.


------------------------------------------------

"Why did they leave? And the other two are the green and the furred people we've seen, then?"

"They left around 10,000 years ago, to let the Zukes and Gaxikaen grow more naturally. And yes, the Zukes are the green ones and the Gaxikane are the furry ones." Lyhoko replied.

"What do you know of the Haisq?" Misa suddenly asks.

"Wha? They moved to the star Eurenda A, [ˈɛɚɛndə a] a nearby red dwarf that is a binary star to the sun here and claimed a planet there, and later expanded to several other nearby stars. The Hasiq themselves have 4 legs and 2 arms, and look somewhat like the centaurs in Earth mythology, at least in basic body shape. The hasiq are black and scaly and have a somewhat elongated head, and a bulge in place of a tail."

"Thank you, that is all I needed to know." Misa replies.

Misa then looks at the one who is apparently named Lilia Belamonada? [ˈlɪliə bɛˈləmɔˈnədə] No, Lilia Belmond, [ˈlɪliə bɛlˈmɔnd] and wonders where her broom went, but decides that it isn't important.

"How interesting. I don't believe there's parallel on Orbi, though there are different naming customs between the different people, of course. My name is a Visuhi one; we are given two names, of which the first is a more familiar form of address, and the two together are used in polite company. Then my last name, Duldura, is the name of my grandmother."

"The people of Antacar are all pretty much have the same culture, it's been that way for thousands of years. Though the culture itself has changed somewhat. I don't know of any naming patterns like that as of now, but there's probably some group somewhere in the Ancaron [ˈankaɾˈon]Empire that does it similarly."

Later on at the bus, Misa pulls a smaller bag out of one of the suitcases before closing the suitcases and tossing both suitcases into an empty part of the storage compartment.

Saba Aspur then asks "Yes, I see they both contain the word 'Miyon', and that is good. Is it safe if I'll want to go out at night? What is the nightlife like here?"

"It should be safe as long as you stay out of the deeper parts of the Ugute'inkka, [ʔugutɛʔɪnkːa] the Underground. Those parts are mainly mechanical stuff anyway. There's plenty of places to go around above ground or in the safe parts of the Ugute'inkka, just remember you have to be 24, or at least appear to be I suppose, to get alcohol, and smoking is banned."

Once everyone is on the bus, the driver makes sure all the doors to the storage area are closed, before getting on and closing the main doors, which close with a slight hiss. There is a slight realignment of the floor as the bus stops kneeling, and then the driver takes the bus out of the parking spot and around a corner onto a 2 lane underground road, the bus remaining almost completely silent during this. The road heads up a small hill and into daylight, and a second 2 lane road is visible to the left, and several cars head down it in the opposite direction, towards the parking garage, apparently this is a divided highway. Farther to the left another road is visible with an entrance into the spaceport building, apparently for quick pickups, behind the building, also to the left another starship enclosure is visible, as well as an enclosed elevated tram line that curves around behind the starship enclosure. To the right there are some farms as well as a moderately sized solar power facility, and ahead the other road curves and has an overpass over the highway with onramps and offramps, and behind that the highway enters a forest. As the bus reaches and passes the overpass, two towers are visible slightly off to the right, one blue, the other black, the black one appears unfinished at the top. However, they aren't visible for long as the disappear behind the trees as the bus enters the forest.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 9:04 pm
by Christopher Schröder
Oops, typo, the name is spelt with two l's, to note that the vowel preceding is "short" rather than "long". If the 'x' is /x/, she would likely mishear it as /k/, or possibly /g/, though such a word as 'Gakicaheyn' would sound highly-unnatural to her, and so she would probably end up writing something like 'Gaschican' (plural 'Gaschicaner'), which still looks funny to her.

Lillia writes more notes on the things she hears, including the fact that black scaly centaurs live about a star called Erlenthe, and that these are the Hassicker mentioned earlier. She also makes a note that it is, of course, safe to go out at night, though something called "elcowoll" is restricted to those above the age of twenty-four, and rambles on a bit about how strange-looking everything is.

When the time comes to board an autobus, Lillia notes that it looks very different from the ones to which she is accustomed, and she then speaks toward one of the small, long-haired people, whose name is apparently 'Mijce' [mi'sɑ:].

'What, exactly, is 'elcowoll', and why is it restricted? Is it something that can make one ill if one is too young? And what is 'smoking' in this context?'

She looks thoroughly puzzled.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 3:58 am
by Astraios
"They left around 10,000 years ago, to let the Zukes and Gaxikaen grow more naturally. And yes, the Zukes are the green ones and the Gaxikane are the furry ones."

"That's interes-," Saba Aspur is cut off by Misa's sudden question, and Liyōko's reply prompts him to ask another. "What is a sentor /'sɛntɔɾ/?"

"The people of Antacar are all pretty much have the same culture, it's been that way for thousands of years. Though the culture itself has changed somewhat. I don't know of any naming patterns like that as of now, but there's probably some group somewhere in the Ancaron Empire that does it similarly."

"There are no regional differences at all? That seems unusual to me. How many are you?"

At the bus, Liyōko says, "It should be safe as long as you stay out of the deeper parts of the Ugute'inkka, the Underground. Those parts are mainly mechanical stuff anyway. There's plenty of places to go around above ground or in the safe parts of the Ugute'inkka, just remember you have to be 24, or at least appear to be I suppose, to get alcohol, and smoking is banned."

Saba Aspur's face falls momentarily, before he replies jokingly, "24? I wish I'd known that before I arrived, I would have brought my own! How old would you say I look? Would my height help? I don't smoke though - it never really became popular in my country, because it was too dangerous AN: he's talking about smoking torga, which can be fatal in doses of over five grams per day, but is still the main thing to smoke on Orbi."

Everyone gets on the bus and takes a seat; Saba Aspur sits somewhere in the middle, on the right. The driver gets on, closes the doors, and they set off with only the barest hint of a noise. Gazing out of the window at the farms, he asks, "What produce do those farms produce? Livestock? Grain?"

The road descends into a forest, and two towers appear in the distance, before being swallowed by the trees. "What were those towers, over in that direction?" Saba Aspur asks, waving a hand vaguely off to the right.

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 3:10 pm
by Lyhoko Leaci
"What is a sentor /'sɛntɔɾ/?"

"A centaur is basically a human torso and head and arms on the front of a horse's body, with a horse being a relatively large 4 legged animal which is commonly ridden or used to pull objects." Lyhoko replies.

"There are no regional differences at all? That seems unusual to me. How many are you?"

"There is some variation but for the most part, everything is similar and change is slow and everything is centralized. There are around 50 billion inhabitants of the planet Antacar itself." Misa said, before Lilia asks her a question.

"What, exactly, is 'elcowoll', and why is it restricted? Is it something that can make one ill if one is too young? And what is 'smoking' in this context?"

"Me? It's a type of drink that can cause confused thinking if you have too much, and the smaller someone is the less they need to drink to cause problems, so it's more problematic for young people. As I am Nacran, I am immune, though. Smoking is not something that I am familiar with, but it involves sticking a tube of some sort with specific plant material inside of it in your mouth and lighting the other end, and then breathing in the smoke, or something like that."

"24? I wish I'd known that before I arrived, I would have brought my own! How old would you say I look? Would my height help? I don't smoke though - it never really became popular in my country, because it was too dangerous"

"That's 24 in Maiyan years though, just so you know. A year is roughly 319 days long, so 24 Maiyan years is just about 21 Earth years. You seem to be old enough, at least judging by your height and your appearing to be human."

"What produce do those farms produce? Livestock? Grain?"

"It depends on the farm. Livestock, grain, fruits, vegetables, they all can be found in the area. Gutarxa [ˈgutaɹxa] farming takes place in the forests in the hills though as they are quite large, and that is their natural environment." Lyhoko replies.

"What were those towers, over in that direction?"

"Lkety [ˈl̩kɛtj̩] and Polarka [ˈpolaɹka]towers, Lkety tower is the one on the river, Polarka is currently unfinished. They'll be easier to see once we reach the river."

Re: Tour of Myon

Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 6:28 pm
by Astraios
"There is some variation but for the most part, everything is similar and change is slow and everything is centralized. There are around 50 billion inhabitants of the planet Antacar itself."

Misa turns to Liliya and Saba Aspur widens his eyes at her back for a moment. 50 billion people on just one planet? "Is overcrowding problematic for you then? Or is it a big planet?"

"That's 24 in Maiyan years though, just so you know. A year is roughly 319 days long, so 24 Maiyan years is just about 21 Earth years. You seem to be old enough, at least judging by your height and your appearing to be human."

Making some quick calculations in his head, he replies, "I think I'm old enough in that case, or so near to old enough that the difference is insignificant. If I get asked for ID, I will simply explain that 19 Orbian years are longer than 24 Mayyan years."

"It depends on the farm. Livestock, grain, fruits, vegetables, they all can be found in the area. Gutarxa farming takes place in the forests in the hills though as they are quite large, and that is their natural environment."

"Gutalha /gu'talha/? What kind of livestock is it? Only species native to this planet, or others too?"

"Lkety and Polarka towers, Lkety tower is the one on the river, Polarka is currently unfinished. They'll be easier to see once we reach the river."

"What are they for? Residential, commercial, an attempt at the planet's tallest tower?"

---

More déjà vu at the towers. They're still unfinished after a year? Dear me, but the Myon are slow builders. ;) :P