October Intro: Louder than Sirens, Louder than Bells

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: OCTOBER

Who: Everyone!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: October 3rd
Where: Ensō
Warnings: Mark as needed!

The Beach: For All the Rest
The shores of Ensō are far from the tranquil, almost idyllic tropical backdrop that they should be. And so it is that while you fish, or perhaps as you go about your daily business on the islets, the first thing you will note is the persistent sound hammering at the back of your skull.

A drumming.

And it's growing louder.

The source of the drumming will, like it or not, soon become apparent. At the fringes of the trees, wielding slings and hollow, wooden pistols, is a group of large and very displeased simians who have every intent of claiming this spot of beach - yes, traveler, this spot of beach you're standing on right now! - for their own, and by any means necessary.

And they certainly don't look interested in diplomacy.
If you came armed, you might be in luck, because this conflict will require your steady hand in its resolution. If you did not...well, you may be better suited to run, or risk capture at the hands of warriors skilled, cunning, and incredibly vicious. Laugh at their monkey business all you like; they are ingenious fighters and, what's more, they're just as good at killing as they are at capture.

For the uninitiated, this particular brand of chaos doesn't usually sweep across the entire island the way it has. But those who have been here for some time will recognize the monkeys in question, and might even recognize this for what it is: revenge.

Group I: The Squeakquel
Looks like your monkeying around last month has landed you and everyone else in a spot of trouble. The monkeys in question certainly weren't happy to be confronted with others on their lands, nor are they willing to share their territory. While you may have triumphed last time you confronted them, the apes have been planning their revenge in the meantime.

Some of you were unlucky enough to become targets. Overnight, a great deal of them silently invaded the islets. Their blow-dart guns are equipped with a fairly powerful sedative that is more than capable of knocking most living creatures out - and those that were immune were simply snatched up, gagged, and bundled away.

However, it seems that some of their prisoners didn't suit their purposes, for one way or another, and thus weren't retrieved with the intention of long-term capture. Which is why a number of you will awaken in regions of the island that you've already explored.

...the really, really dangerous ones.

Whether it's a Center of Gravity, a parade of centipuppies, a contingent of Lungblossoms, a Fustercluck, or something else entirely, one thing is certain: the monkeys wanted you out of their way.

So get ready to fight for your life.

Group II: Ape Escape
If you're not one of the slightly luckier newcomers that materializes on the shore, then you're one of the unlucky ones that's managed to materialize square in the middle of the jungle. Or rather, in the middle of one of the denser, more populated parts of the jungle. The abodes woven into the canopy are crude, built of mud and sticks, but they're nonetheless sturdy.

And, as an important note - they are also swarming with monkeys. Snarling, baying, armed monkeys. Perhaps they'd be more hostile toward an interloper...if you weren't already in a cage, along with several others.

Fortunately for the newbies, they've all got something the monkeys didn't anticipate, aside from the element of surprise. Most prisoners don't arrive with knapsacks full of newly-acquired gear, and it's a good thing, too - you may very well need it, and the help of the new arrivals, to escape this place. You could always wait for the cavalry to come, but are you really willing to take that risk?

Group III: Pot Luck
As for you, you terribly fortunate third group?

You'll find yourselves suspended in wooden cages as well, though this time, to the hot curtain of whitish steam clouding your vision. It smells an awful lot like smoke down there. An awful lot like something...burning? Unlike your fellows over in the second group, these cages aren't simply a means of containing you, no. These cages are currently hanging over what might be the largest cast iron cauldron you've ever seen. All of this is, of course, for one simple reason:

Some species of monkeys are carnivores.
The acrid scent of smoke is already hot and rancid in your nostrils; the pyre beneath you has been lit, and the hungry flames are beginning to boil the water below quite eagerly. We'd suggest you hurry up in freeing yourself and your fellows - being boiled alive is not a particularly pleasant way to go. At least the monkeys weren't expecting quite so many main courses so soon, which allows you the element of surprise.

---

As a final note to those who participated in the Test Drive Meme, bear in mind that those threads, if all parties involved would like, can be game canon in the form of dream-like memories involving a place very much like this one, though the layout is considerably different.

All new arrivals will awake with knapsacks with their names stitched to the front. The contents of said knapsacks can be found below!

---

Feeling a tad adrift? Make sure to check the Locations Page, which has details regarding the starting areas and a handy map for those who feel better with a bird's eye view!

---

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

i'm so sorry you're stuck with him

[relieable]

[if she thinks she doesn't do well in dangerous situations, wait until Osomatsu wakes up.

which... he will, in a moment. he's having a weird dream, a dream about monkeys. pirate monkeys? that kidnapped him? hmmm... at the edge of his mind, though, he can hear a faint voice, like someone calling to him, telling him to 'wake up, please!'

he groans, rolling onto his back and slowly opening his eyes. he sees the clouds first, then he twists his head to look around. where is he? shouldn't he be in bed right now? in a hut? with his brothers...

his brothers! if they're playing a trick on him...! he sits up, wincing a little in pain because he's a little bit sore, a bit stiff]

Haaah?

they're quite a pair for this, aren't they

[alittleditty]

[Oh thank the Twelve, he wasn't one of those who was impossible to wake up.]

Come on! We... we have to. I think we need to leave!

[Unless he knows what those things are. Either way, given how fast they're being surrounded, they probably need to figure it out fast.]

[relieable]

[Osomatsu blinks sleepily at the girl. ah, he's still groggy, even though he is nervous. what the hell's going on]

L... Leave?

[he turns his head again, and that's when he sees the long bodies. long moving bodies. oh, oh, drat. he's seen centipuppies before, just not so many of them. Osomatsu jumps to his feet, taking several steps back]

How... Did we... [get here, he wants to ask, but then realizes that that is not important. he's got to protect himself, and this stranger] We gotta find an opening!

[alittleditty]

[Okay so... they were bad. And they were in trouble.

She glances around. The centipuppies were still moving, and the gap that was left as she and this Hyurean boy were first being encircles was closing too fast for them to make it in time. ]

D-do you know what they are?

[Trying to figure out what to do... it's like her head is a big fuzzy mess. Like the time the Garleans invaded Waking Sands...]

[relieable]

They're, uh... Some kinda dog-like creature! I don't remember the name. [maybe he never heard it. Osomatsu was having a difficult time remembering anything right now, he was so groggy] I just know they're... They're predators. We gotta get away from here fast, or they'll attack us!

[alittleditty]

[Okay this is going from bad to worse. Twelve already knew how many monsters in Eorzea loved to make snacks out of Lalafellean folk. She jerked her head from side to side, trying to see an open spot.

Then, there-! A gap! It's small and she's not thinking about how long it may or may not last, but it's an opportunity, and given the situation he described, she doesn't want to risk it.]

Th-that way!

[And she's already moving, surprisingly quick for someone so small.]

[relieable]

[Osomatsu's only quick when danger is involved, so he starts to run, as fast as his legs can carry him. he trips a few times, since he's still coming out of his stupor. gosh, why was he so sluggish?

the centipuppies are quick to change course. they move as one, the whole group turning around and chasing after their soon-to-be meal]

[alittleditty]

[As she's running, Tataru takes a moment to glance back, and immediately regrets it. The pack has turned to chase them, and from what she knows about monsters, outrunning them is... a daunting prospect. If possible at all.]

S-someone help!

[What if nobody came? She wasn't brave like the Warrior of Light or Y'shtola or Alphinaud or any of the other Scions. And yet... and yet could she really just do... nothing? Nothing at all?

The pack is still in her hands and she stumbles, slowing down enough that she can riffle through it, hoping for something, anything. Her hand meets the handle of something, and she pulls out - with some difficulty - the hatchet she's been provided. It was almost funny - she'd been thinking about studying botany once things had calmed down and she was able to take some time off to visit Gridania. Now though, the hatchet shakes in her hand so badly she can barely hold it. But all the same she turns around again, still shambling and stumbling backwards, putting it between herself and the centipuppies, and hopefully letting the boy catch up.]

[relieable]

[Osomatsu scrambles to make it over to Tataru, quickly ducking behind her and grabbing at her shoulder]

Wh-what are you doing? We can't fight those things! There's too many of them! [if only he had his hatchet! but his pack is back at the cabin, and he doesn't know where they are, or how to get back to it]

[alittleditty]

[She lets his momentum as he grabs at her shoulder pull her away and turn her around so she can run properly again.]

I... I thought it might m-make them stop-

[Essentially she was bluffing. An intimidate check. Which she, rather predictably, fails dismally.]

[relieable]

[let's be real, here. neither of them are intimidating. one little girl with a hatchet was not going to scare a band of centipuppies. Osomatsu continues to run, looking behind him every now and then to check on Tataru, and the monsters.

he is getting tired, too, so he falls behind, pushing her forward]

Can you climb trees?

[alittleditty]

[It was an idea borne out of panicked desparation, desparation doesn't tend to listen to common sense. As for his idea...]

I can give it a try!

[Growing up in a desert didn't lend itself well to tree-climbing, but they didn't have a lot of options right now. Not to mention even having something of a plan felt better than none at all.]

[relieable]

[there was no try now, only do. Osomatsu begins to run a bit faster, until they come upon a tall palm tree. he stops running, and gets over to the tree, reaching out his hand for her.

if this were another man, Osomatsu would not have helped him. he would have climbed up the tree and saved himself. but this was a girl he was with, and Osomatsu was motivated to help her. maybe not for a long time, but he would for a little while, until his own selfishness caught up with him]

Come on, I'll help you up!

[alittleditty]

[She takes the hand without hesitation, no time to be fussy. The texture was rough beneath her palms, thankfully enough to help give purchase.]

Thank you!

[And now to climb, climb, and keep climbing.]