August Intro: You Think...You Wink...You Do A Double Blink...

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: AUGUST

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

Part I: Get Wrekt
You rouse to a splash of sea salt drying on your skin. A haze of glass-white sand glitters in your vision, dappled by lush palms and thick, curling foliage that disappears into a jungle of deep jade. From behind, crackling wood and sawing rope groan from a mangled life raft ran ashore. A petering wash of tide over pebbled sand fills your ears as you struggle to gain your bearings in a vast portrait of tropical color…

No...no, no, that’s not precisely how this story starts.

Why don't we start over?

You rouse to a splash of sea salt, spraying across yourself and the wooden floor beneath you as it breaks across the edge of the platform. The light as it dances across the sea is blinding, dappling white spots across your vision as you slowly come back to consciousness and realize that - this is not where you last remember being.

The middle of the ocean is likely not a place most recall being at all. As you struggle to fully comprehend the new scenario in which you have found yourself, three things become quickly apparent. The raft you find yourself upon barely constitutes as something that should float, never mind a boat. In the distance, perhaps a few hours away at most, a large island beckons to you, a wide strip of beach surrounded by cliffs making it very clear where the most fortuitous of directions shall be.

Lastly, of course, you’re not alone. Hopefully your new companion(s) are just as keen to get ashore before nightfall as you, or voyaging together will not be the most positive experience. At your side you will find a knapsack, one to every member of your raft party, and upon inspecting its contents, you will discover any rewards you may have accrued - as well as a few other items to give you a fighting chance.

A note to those who participated in the Test Drive Meme: 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.

Part II: Choose Your Own Adventure

By fortune (or misfortune, as it were), you eventually find your feet meeting sand, blessed shore to stagger upon as you shake off your newly found sea-legs. There are those that may find this place familiar, as though it appeared in a dream, though the expanse of shore certainly seems larger. The beach stretches off into the distance on both sides, curving around sharp ridges and cliffs, mist obscuring the view the farther along it goes.

So here you are. You’ve found land. Company. Supplies. The sun is now beginning to trek rather low upon the horizon…spending the night outside in such an unfamiliar land is unappealing at best and outright dangerous at the worst.

There is one silver lining in the midst of this mess. Directly ahead, the beach curves up a gentle slope until it meets forest, some manner of building visible through the trees. Further exploration of this area will reveal a dilapidated building of sorts; the architecture is indiscernible to even the most skilled eye. Despite looking as if it has seen better days, there are areas that offer some form of shelter...and who knows what else. Just because it appears uninhabited doesn’t mean you won’t wind up pleasantly, or unpleasantly, surprised.



So what shall you do from here, traveller? There is land to be explored, strangers to meet, friends to reunite with. Supplies to inspect and plenty of questions in need of being said aloud. Choose your path, make haste, and above all else: survive. And whatever you will, take heart.

Your story is about to begin anew.

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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!

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LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[chummer]

[ At first, Finley only continues to flail. He's seemingly hellbent on drowning. HE DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR HELP, TIM, FUCK O--

After another swig of seawater, however, and he's quickly changed his mind. It burns unpleasantly in his nostrils. This humanoid body is the worst, with its weird sinuses and functions he isn't used to. The Shark-Man clasps onto Tim's outstretched hand and hoists himself up back onto the raft with what little strength he has through the nauseous haze.

He slaps Tim's hand away almost as quick as he'd grabbed it, shoves Asriel aside, and crawls to a side of the raft. Then he retches a couple times, an awful dry, painful noise, before falling back onto his butt. ] Fuck, [ he coughs. ]

I hate this place.

[ Finally, he looks to his two (extremely unfortunate) raft-mates without masking any of the bitterness he's feeling about this entire situation. ]

Do you guys have any fucking clue what's going on?

[postictal]

[He's got no idea what a Kyubey is, but unfortunately, he's got no time to ask for clarification. The drowning man seizes the help offered, hauls himself over and onto the raft, and promptly proceeds to shove them both away.]

[Charming.]

[Tim sighs, sitting back in the raft without much protest. Just his luck, getting stuck here with someone who's about as helpful as Hallelujah was - thought at least not quite as dangerous. Yet.]

Might've been better to ask before you tried going for a swim there.

[And Tim, in exchange, is doing very little to mask his contempt for Finley's life choices.]

[pleasereset]

Hey-!

[Asriel yelps in surprise as he's shoved, but finally settles down again. He still looks a little annoyed.]

The last thing I remember was falling asleep in my house...

[After being forced to eat poison.]

Maybe... it's a dream?

[chummer]

[ The most charming. Can't you tell from the way he spits up saltwater? Try not to be charmed after that display. ]

Swimming isn't usually a problem, [ he snaps back. ] In case you haven't noticed, I'm a shark.

[ Shark-Man. Technically. ]

There's something fucked up about this water. About this whole situation.

[postictal]

[That earns a withering look, Tim's brows coasting down to form a profoundly unimpressed frown. Thanks for completely derailing their progress in figuring out what the fuck.]

I don't think so, kid.

[That's directed at Asriel - he's choosing to minimize actual contact with Finley at the moment. Some brief casting about uncovers a pair of oars, one of which he immediately starts dipping into the water.]

Right now, I think we should try and get to land. How's that sound?

[pleasereset]

[It sure doesn't feel like a dream. It feels more like a Witch's Labyrinth, but he hasn't seen any dangers yet.

Well, aside from the water apparently.]

Yeah, let's go. I don't think we can learn where we are just sitting in a boat.

[chummer]

Sounds like a bunch of bullshit, [ Finley feels the need to chime in. ] but fine. Looks like I'm stuck with you chumps whether I like it not, so.

Give me. [ He makes a motion for the oars, but then impatiently moves to grab one himself. Even if he's an asshole, he's a least not entirely useless. He'll row in tandem with Tim to try and maximize their gliding progress across the water. ]

Who are you guys, anyway?

[ I'll take questions that should have been asked at the start for 500, Alex. ]

[postictal]

[At least he's doing something useful. Tim would roll his eyes, but the energy necessary to complete the motion is more than it's worth - at present, he's mostly focused on getting himself and Asriel to dry land, oar scything through the water in rhythm.]

[Though he guesses Mr. Jump The Shark here can come too.]

Tim, [he says shortly.] And it doesn't matter how bullshit it sounds. It's happening, so we might as well deal with it.