[Turlough looks...well, slightly fidgety.]

I know this might be a stupid question. But what all do you give someone on Valentine's Day-either on your world or on Asgard? Dates are out of the question because of her...job, but I'd like to give her something anyway. I've had girlfriends before, but that was ages ago and we didn't really do Valentine's Day like you lot do it. [because whooo aliens!] And when I was on Earth, most of the time was spent in an English public school-not of my own choosing, mind you. [by the little scrunched up expression on his face, it's pretty obvious what Turlough thinks of English public school (it sucks.)]

So while I'm no stranger to the subject of love, I...sort of am to gifts. [it took him a lot of strength to admit that and now he's frowning a bit.] Any help would be appreciated.

 [Everyone will receive the message, with elegant calligraphy, on Day 399 that the service will begin at around ten o'clock the next day.

And sure enough at ten, Day 400, there is a burst of interference and Irving's warm, crisp voice emerges from the static.]

Good morning and welcome to Asgard's Audio Service. I am Irving Braxiatel and this is your community radio. Created by you, for you and with the hope that we become a greater community together.

[Yes, Brax is laying it on a bit thick, but he sounds credible and friendly.] 

It is my absolute pleasure to introduce to you our first programme, courtesy of our local harpist, Maglor. [And the recording made here plays.

Here's the first of (hopefully a good few) radio posts. I'll add a few comments down below with starters about programmes going on and your character can react, add to them, whatever you need. If you want, you can 'ring in' by posting a comment of your own with 'radio station' or 'Irving Braxiatel' or any other contributor you like and the contributor might respond!

More information, as well as a place to ask any questions or plotting can be found here.

Contributors don't need to feel required to respond, though that's appreciated especially first go around and yes, there'll be dead air, so feel free to comment on that.]

[Funny thing about Elektra: when she's not being unnecessarily paranoid, she's reckless. After throwing caution to the wind and sampling this, she's happy for the first time in years. There's a soft smile on her lips as she addresses the camera. She's holding what people might recognize as the note accompanying the chocolate sent out.]

"Where love might bring about sorrow, it also welcomes joy." [She flips the card over in her hand and sets it down offscreen.] It's a nice sentiment. True too.

[A beat.] What do people around here do to make themselves happy anyways? [They can't all be emotionless robots like her.]

[Castle's first broadcast over the bracelet since his return to Asgard is on a rather serious note, which is unusual for him. Most of the time Castle goofs around or would ask the population at large something something silly or pointless just for his own amusement - like whether they'd rather be Batman or Superman. But today, he has a serious question.]

Hey Asgard-at-large. Allow me to introduce myself for those of you who don't know me: Rick Castle. I had been here about a year ago and left but have since returned to you a bit wiser and healthier.

[And happier. He and Kate are engaged now and it makes everything here between them seem so different. The stakes seem higher, but the connection is stronger.]

Anyway, I'm... wondering if any of you have seen a certain person. She's a teenager with red hair, cute as a button, goes by the name Alexis.

[He smiles at the thought of his daughter in spite of the doubt that he's feeling. If Alexis were here, she would surely have contacted him by now. Castle's been back for more than a month. Alexis would never stay away from him for this long, even if she's still mad about his rejection of her boyfriend. But he has to ask, just to be sure.]

If she's here, she'd probably be in Odin. So if you know anyone who fits that name and description, do you think you could direct her to me? I'd really appreciate it.

[One final grin to show that everything is fine here. He's not missing his daughter that badly at all.]

Thanks.

[ Scott probably should have checked the network before appearing on it so he’d know why he's in the situation he is right now, but he’s somewhat disorientated from waking up handcuffed to his freaking bed, so the first thing he does is make a video broadcast asking for answers instead. The fact that they’re comfy, padded handcuffs is more confusing, but all his clothes are on so this can't be sex-related (he can think of two people he wouldn't mind it being a sex thing with but they're nowhere to be seen plus he can't remember how he got here). Little does Scott know, he lost his bracelet and was grey for a while, but Stiles managed to finally find the damn necessary jewellery to survival here, putting it on Scott while his grey self was sleeping.

But Scott’s back to his old self now and the most confused he's ever been. ]

Can someone explain to me why I’m cuffed to a bed right now?

[ Scott looks around the room - which he recognizes as his room, and it’s pink. Thanks for redecorating while he was grey, Rue. ]

In my pink room? [ Scott looks down at the two creatures watching him at the bottom of his bed. ] Guarded by a wolf cub and baby dragon?

[ When the dragon gets closer, Scott sees it’s holding keys in its mouth. What look a lot like handcuff keys. Yes. Scott beckons the dragon over to him. ]

Here - come here, boy! Come closer, come on… [ Except the dragon doesn’t. It tosses the keys into the air and the wolf cub catches it in her mouth. And then there’s an audible swallow. Goodbye, keys. Scott just… stares, and then thumps his head back against the wall behind him with a groan. ]

This can’t be happening.

[ To make matters worse, the wolf cub and the dragon jump on him for cuddles. ]

No way. I’m not cuddling you guys.

[ Except he totally is. He’s Scott McCall, unable to resist cute animals wanting to cuddle him. ]

You both suck. [ The video ends on Scott's sulky, pouty face. ]

After this.

[The video is steady at first, but only for a few seconds because he's trying to tip something up.

Then he's leaning back, to make sure he can get the box into the shot.]

Anyone else get chocolate?

... Anyone who doesn't want theirs?

[Then, he drops the box, turns the bracelet and grins at the screen, niiiice and wide.]

I'll come get it.

[sophie is sitting on her bed in her room, which means that behind her the walls are painted with a mural that looks like the silhouettes of trees in the last bits of twilight. she's a little thing, more hair than girl, and her voice is low and even and calm.]

It occurred to me, in the midst of a conversation I was having with a friend, that most of the Travellers here now likely weren't here when all of this started. Or, rather, when it came to a head the first time, as none of us were here when it started. We've plenty of reason not to trust the gods entirely, but that doesn't mean that the war isn't real or that the threat isn't true.

[she gives a little shrug. gods. what can you do?]

It was over a year ago now, the first Ragnarok, at least as the seasons pass in Asgard. It may have been a prophesied battle, but we weren't prepared, not really. By the end, we were hungry, exhausted, injured. Many died and our enemies were still strong. Asgard should have fallen.

It didn't. Not because of anything we did, but because of Freyr, who sacrificed himself and wiped out a great many of the invading forces, and drove the rest to retreat. You can still see the mark of it out beyond the wall.

Before that, I wasn't sure this was real. I wasn't sure I believed, because it's a rather unbelievable story, isn't it? That those people in the castle are gods and we've been spirited away to the mother of all worlds, that this place, this rather unextraordinary place, as places go, is the root of all things. But then I watched a god die, and that changes things. When someone who believes that they will live more or less forever, who would never grow old or wither away, when someone like that decides to die to try to save something, we should all pause for a moment. We should pause and wonder if there's any greater show of fear in the world than that, and wonder what makes gods afraid.

[she sets her chin on her hand.]

In any case, I've seen a great deal of doubt, and it's understandable. I thought it might help if those of us who have been here the longest might speak about what we've seen. This is a war, it has been here, and it's coming back. And if what we've been through recently is any indication, it will only be worse the second time.

If anyone has questions, I'll answer them as best I can, and welcome others to do so as well.

Just before I get started, just in case anyone wanted to say 'oh hey, Lydia, you're back'? I am but I'm not. I know that I've been here before, I was happily told that, but I don't remember it. So for anyone that did know me you might want to reintroduce yourself first.

Now that that's out of the way, I've been doing some reading. With everything that has happened and is supposed to I want to know what I'm going to be in for. Apparently that's not the easiest thing to do. Not concisely, anyway. But what's a network full of people for if not to help someone out?

One of the gods has died before and it saved us when we should have died. [ That she found out from the network rather than a book, helpful soul ] Have any of the others died or was it just this one? Because I'm assuming that we're still in a war, so what's happened since and why was that incident so different? Cliff notes version, preferably.

[ She'll get the longer version from her books later. Or from this next part ]

And if you did know me before? We need to have coffee. At least say hello.

[ Oh look, it's the not-'Asgardian'!Asgardian! And he holds his hand up, palm outward in silent greetings. ]

Friends, newcomers - [ ...and Malekith... ] - well met. I shall keep brief: we have faced war. And we have had our dead and our wounded to show for the victory.

[ And now, he turns slightly more somber. ]

I do not ask whether you fight for this land or its people, for your pleasure or your lives alone. Whatever your reasons, we do not die here. In this, I think, we all agree. Yet...

[ He has the grace to look sheepish. ]

...apologies, but many of you walk as if targets. You know nothing of battle, and the gifts given to you in this land do not serve. The meager war crafts would be of help to you: shield bearing, the handling of sword and hammer. I do not speak of great ability, but enough that you can bide yourselves the time to run.

[ Firmer, now. ]

So: those who wish to learn, give say of what weapon might suit you. Those who know of battle and wish to teach it, name your skill and offer service. And those who once held sorcery alike to the one gained here, volunteer counsel of how to improve it.

For my part, I wield the hammer. I lack in patience, but do not scold unfairly. What knowledge I have is yours to take.

[ Is the part where he riles half of Asgard done with? OH THANK EVERYTHING, time to offend the other half. ]

Past every man's care, we can seek to defend the city. Who here runs inventory? Have we cannons? Rams? Horses? If anyone wishes to learn, or organize legions - you have my aid in this. There lies opportunity. Another is with our fellows, the grey ones. A frail-bearded man wrote that we do not give them thought or time. Perhaps he is wise, and there is more to be done in alliance.

[ And then he stares at the camera for a long moment of rather stupid blinking, before dissolving into laughter, because - ]

That... was not brief.


[ ooc: woah, tl;dr. iiif you'd like to get involved, just have your character volunteer to teach their faito skills, and I'll have Thor send some/all of the characters who want to pick up said skills their way o/ . ]

[Heyyy Asgard. The background of the feed shows a kitchen- it may be after hours, but that doesn't mean there isn't preparation to do for the next day- and Ryan's leaning back against one of the counters, hair tied back, a streak of what looks like flour on one temple.]

Hey, so, uh... as a lot of you know, Jade used to run this place. As a lot of you also know... well, Jade isn't here. So I sort of took over- I mean, she left the restaurant to me, we're not talking some kind of coup here! Promise. But anyway--

[He huffs out a breath, reaching up to tuck a stray lock of hair back and adjust his glasses, straightening up a bit.]

The point is, I've run it okay so far, but this is- kind of not my thing? I baked here, I didn't handle everything, and while I have somebody to handle the paperwork and get some oversight in... well, I could use more hands, honestly. Especially if you've already got experience, that'd be fantastic- I won't require it, I can teach a lot of this, but it'd definitely help. Besides that?

[A brief pause there, while he tries to figure out the best way to word it.]

I know some of us are, for lack of a better umbrella term here, weird. But if you've got a strange background, if you're used to the more supernatural sort of weirdness or if you come from that yourself- I don't judge on that. Honestly, it's what I'm used to. So don't feel like you shouldn't speak up just because you're blue or something, 'kay? I figure those of us who've been here a while know that's not usually a giant problem here, but I know I've seen some new faces.

[Which means! He brightens there, smile widening a little.] So I should probably mention who you'd be working with, shouldn't I? Um. Hi, I'm Ryan, I'm one of Hel's-- and I have pretty good body control, but I don't use it on people, don't worry about that. I know it's creepy, so... best to have that up-front, I figure. And I've been here for a while now, so if you have non-work related questions or anything like that, I might be able to help? Or at least direct you somewhere better.

...I think that's about it. So! Bother away.

[Four months have passed since his arrival, and reaching that landmark has made him realise that he isn't going anywhere, anytime soon.

Things are changing, slowly, but right now his plans all come down to one problem- a lack of income.]

I'm looking for employment, what do people have on offer?

I'd give a resume, though I doubt it would be relevant unless there is a pressing need to hire those with combat training.