November Intro: Red Sun Rises Like an Early Warning

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: NOVEMBER

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

The New Arrivals: Hold My Hand
When you wake, it will be to the lapping of waves, frothed with foam...pulling at your hair, your skin, your clothing. The sand is soft and wet beneath you, but it's several inches submerged. And the longer you stay here, the more obvious it will be that the water level of the ocean ringing this strip of island has begun to to rise, and not merely because the tide has started to come in.

And what's more? You can tell that something else about this entire situation is horribly, horribly wrong.

Perhaps you've lost some special power. Perhaps some piece of your memory is freshly and disconcertingly blank. Perhaps you've just discovered that one of your senses is missing, or that you've been rendered unable to speak, or you've been struck by a debilitating fatigue. Not only are you stranded in some unfamiliar place, stuck on a rapidly flooding beach, but you aren't even doing it in full possession of all your faculties.
For those who agreed to put themselves at a disadvantage for a stranger, these are your consequences. If you're unclear as to the handicap your character has been assigned, if any, please check your initial acceptance notice!

All new arrivals will additionally awake with knapsacks, their names stitched to the front. The contents of said knapsacks can also be found in your acceptance notices!

For All: It's a Long Way Down
The water isn't a problem for the newest arrivals, either. It seems that the waters all over Ensō have started to rise, slowly at first, and then with a steadily increasing rate. At first, you might be forgiven for assuming the tide must simply be unusually high, or maybe that the island's begun to sink. But the longer it endures, the more obvious it becomes that neither is the case.

The water has begun to rise. Something is wrong with the island itself, or the being living on it, and now there is nothing preventing the water's inexorable approach as it steadily washes over and over the mainland. In fact, if you listen closely, you might even be able to hear a peculiar sound tearing over the cold rush of the coastal wind; something akin to a desolate wailing.

Either get to high ground - and quickly - or find out what's causing this. But either way, we suggest you hurry...because there are a great deal of newly arrived, very disoriented folk on the beach that could really, really use your help.

---

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.

---

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

[souris_keteer]

[Once she's up, he lets go.]

My name is Mickey Mouse.

[Hmmm. She hasn't said anything so far, so it's best to ask-]

Can you talk? If you can't, that's okay, we'll figure somethin' out!

[the_word_is]

[She shakes her head, tapping the bandanna around her throat with an apologetic smile.]

[souris_keteer]

All right... that's fine, that's just fine! We have someone here who recently lost their way to communicate too, so this isn't entirely new. Just gotta stick to yes or no questions for now! We can do this!

[the_word_is]

[She laughs, a raspy sort of half-sound as she shoots him a thumbs up. Yes, they can do this. Yes or no questions are good, and he seems so determined that Maka can't help but smile.]

[souris_keteer]

Okay, where to start... Ah!

Are you hungry?

[y/n?]

[the_word_is]

[Is she--

Really? That's the first question he goes for?

But Maka nods anyway, because she is hungry, she's always hungry, she's been hovering right at the edge of starvation for a very long time now (it shows, she's too thin and too small for her age). Her nod is cautious though, like she's not sure where he's going with this question. She doesn't want him to give up his food for her.]

[souris_keteer]

[Look at him, he is ABSOLUTELY going to give up his food for her.]

All right, then let's head for a mana pool! They're how we get from one islet to another. We can stop at my cabin, I always have emergency food tucked away for times like this. Just follow me!

[the_word_is]

[She does follow, a little more at ease at the phrase "emergency food". She won't be taking from his necessary supplies.

Maka looks around as they walk, trying to spot any landmarks or obvious trails. Even if this island is flooding, a flood can't last forever, and this seems to be where new arrivals show up.]

[souris_keteer]

[As they walk, he asks another 'odd' question.]

Do you know what a nar-cissy-us flower is?

[he means narcissus]

[the_word_is]

[Don't worry, Mickey, you've found yourself a Nerd™. Maka nods enthusiastically, because she absolutely knows what a narcissus is.]

[souris_keteer]

Good! In order to use the mana pools, you have to toss in one of those flowers into the pool. It'll take you to any of the islets - once you know about all of them, you can concentrate and it'll take you straight to the one you want.

[the_word_is]

["How many islets are there? How do I know which one to think about? What if I don't think about any of them?", Maka wants to ask. There are a lot of things she wants to ask, but she's gotten used to not being able to ask them.

Instead she nods agreement.]

[souris_keteer]

[And after a few more walks, they arrive at the mana pool! Mickey plucks about two.]

So we'll head for my islet first, since that's where my house is. Long as you stay with me, we should both arrive at the exact same place. And feel free to stay as long as you like - my home is everyone's home!

[the_word_is]

[He's too kind. Why are there so many people who are so selflessly kind? Maka doesn't understand it, she really doesn't.]

Thank you [She signs, even though she knows he can't understand her. Hopefully her expression gets the point across.]

[souris_keteer]

[He blinks, and indeed, he doesn't know sign language yet. But... there's only so much that someone would try to convey despite language barriers, so he takes a particularly lucky shot in the dark.]

If you're sayin' thank you, then... you're welcome! No matter what, you can always count on me to lend a helping hand.

[the_word_is]

[She nods, smile growing bigger at his successful interpretation. Hell yes, she's having success here.]