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

[the_word_is]

[Maka grins, giving the other girl a thumbs up. But then, she glances down at the water.]

Is there higher ground?

[catpiper]

['Higher' is subjective. 'Further' is the more accurate term and honestly, Ren's sort of gambling the same issues won't happen over there.

And really, how much higher could the water get? It has to stop eventually, right?]

I don't know.

[Do you trust your life to this useless child??]

But it's a good place.

[the_word_is]

It's flooding

[Nope, sorry, not a good place.]

[catpiper]

The islets aren't. That's what I heard.

[It's safe, for now!!]

I can take you to that place.

[the_word_is]

[Please do.

Maka can survive a flood, if she has to, but she doesn't like it. Her last experience with flooding was more than difficult, and while she's not recovering from dengue fever and the trauma of dying this time, she'd still rather not be anywhere near a flood.

So she smiles, and switches to sign language.]

Thank you

[catpiper]

[And Ren has.....no idea what just happened.

She's never witnessed anyone using sign language before. To her, it looks like Maka is just moving her hand.]

Do you want to hold hands?

[She's dumb.]

[the_word_is]

This means "thank you". [She says, and then demonstrates the sign again.]

[catpiper]

[WILD.

If this is how Maka likes to say 'thank you', then Ren will absolutely do her best to remember. She tries to mimic the simple gesture back to her and kneels down to show Pumpkin as well.]

This is 'thank you'. That's what she said.

[As if an octopus cat needs a lesson on sign language. Whelp. He's getting one.]

[the_word_is]

[Ren is adorable. That's the cutest thing that Maka's seen in years, and she giggles silently as Ren kneels in the water.]

[catpiper]

[A laugh is a good noise!! And she's happy to hear it. That makes showing Pumpkin this sign worth it, even if he can't understand. Or maybe he can? Cats are smart.]

Are there more words like that?

[Like the 'thank you' hand gesture.]

[the_word_is]

[Maka nods, grinning. Then, "yes" (easy enough, a fist making a movement like a nodding head).]

[catpiper]

[This is great? She's thrilled and mimics the gesture. Yes. Thank you. This is good.

What's the sign for rising water though? That's gonna be needed pretty soon and it's only when the ocean laps at her feet again that she decides to stop harassing this poor girl for more signs.]

We should play this game somewhere else.

[IS IT A GAME?? It is now.]

[the_word_is]

[Oh, right. Maka... might have been so concentrated on making a new friend that the actual danger of the situation escaped her notice.

She points in a big half arc, with a questioning expression. Where should they go?]

[catpiper]

[A smart child would know to go higher. But she knows safety is in the Storyteller temple and what lies beyond, so that's where she's gonna go.]

You go through the water in that place-[A pause, as she points towards the temple ruins]-with a flower.

[Yeah. Makes sense right?]

It takes you somewhere safe.

[the_word_is]

[Somewhere safe?

You know, this girl reminds Maka a lot of Patti.

She smiles and nods, and gestures for Ren to go first.]