lifeaftr | December Intro: Don't Come Home for Christmas

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December Intro: Don't Come Home for Christmas

INTRO LOG: DECEMBER

Who: Everyone!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: December 3rd and onward
Where: Monsun
Warnings: Mark as needed!

The Overview: Uncharted Waters
Stay alert, new adventurers; instead of the white-sand beaches of Enso, you will instead be coming to on one of two sides of the relatively uncharted lands of Monsun. Most of the information regarding this peculiar land can be found in the informational post linked, but as a quick-and-dirty rundown: Monsun's western side is a hot wasteland of a desert prone of disasters and mishaps, but will affect your character's emotional and psychological state in a positive sense, while its eastern side is a verdant forest filled with endless resources...as well as a tendency to bring out the absolute worst of your character.

To start with, all new arrivals will be showing up in one of two squares that characters uncovered last month! We are leaving it up to player discretion as to which side of the island your character arrives on, but bear in mind the psychological repercussions!

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

Monsun, C4: These Are Your Good Years
You wake to the hot sun steaming overhead, rapidly drying your clothes and belongings, waterlogged from washing upon this desolate shore. The heatwaves shimmer at your vision, distorting your view of the horizon. But if you really squint, it looks like there might be something dark green fringing that pipecleaner skyline, like a lush woodland awaits you on the other side of this desert nightmare. A mirage, maybe?

Whatever it is, you don't get very long to contemplate it. Beneath your feet, the ground has begun to shake as a many-headed horror erupts from the earth. Great streams of pale sand slough from its dry, scaly hide as multiple horned heads unfurl in a hissing inflorescence. The creature's eyes are all pale as grubs; it is quite blind. But that does not mean it cannot smell you.

Boasting both a thick hide and a chitinous coat of sandy-colored scales that blends them perfectly with their surroundings, Sand Hydras sleep several feet under the sand until they sense the vibrations of potential prey aboveground. While they are significantly smaller than their mythological counterparts - they can only span eight to twelve feet in length - Sand Hydras are cunning creatures nonetheless with a number of heads that can vary from one to as high as ten. Their weakness, on the other hand, is simple: water burns them like acid. It seems they may flourish only in any moisture-poor environment.

Assuming your character lasts that long, remember: as physically destructive as Monsun's west may be, your character's most admirable traits will be amplified to their fullest potential by the twenty-four hour mark.

Monsun, D3: Before You Bury Yourself Alive
Those waking on the eastern side of the island, on the other hand, will face a far more pleasing tableau. The temperature is perfect, the sun shines modestly through the canopy of deciduous greenery above your head, and the air is thick and sweet with the smell of fresh fruit.

That's right - within minutes of their arrival, your character will discover several plants laden with fresh wild blackberries.

Should that temptation arrest their attention, should they be vulnerable to the foibles of greed or hoarding or paranoia, your character may very well wish to keep this treat to themself. Or...perhaps not. Perhaps they'd much rather search out a fight, or try to steal someone else's supplies, or embark on a poorly-advised mission to swim out into Monsun's surrounding waters.

For that is, after all, the catch: as physically soothing as Monsun's east may be, your character's most hateful traits will be amplified to their fullest potential by the twenty-four hour mark.

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!

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Whatever for? I want to stay here."

The arm that pulls back is surprisingly strong. He was, after all, the precursor hero, only written in legends and so on. And yeah, he's weak to greed, so badly weak to greed that it's taken a potent effect immediately as he snaps another berry off of the tree.

"Customers will gravitate to this side of the island, and I have wares to sell. If I can't clear out my backpack by then, what's the point? I need to get new things, things suited for island survival. Don't you understand? Well, maybe you wouldn't-- you were never a merchant."

"I don't care."

And the arm that pulls back again is decently strong. And, strangely enough, his fingers may seem a lot longer then they normally are. Hun. Also not good.

Try to appeal with something else. "There is another side to this place." There, see? More stuff on the...okay, it's bad but not like this.

And it's probably better for Zacharie to take this option. The Batter's other solution is...more of a headache.

Nope, he is staying stiff in the ground and he won't move and you can't make him.

"I'm willing to bet this is the far more social side of the island! Say, why don't you show me where the villages are? Where people live? I know most people can use a bat for self defense, but the ones I have won't help me adjust to life here at all. I could make a pretty penny, if there's currency--"

Zach has the ability to choose now, and he's choosing to be a huge pain in the ass.

He's stopped paying attention to what Zacharie has been saying for awhile now. Which is kind of unusual for the Batter, who listened but often chose what to take away and leave in a conversation. He can still hear Zacharie, but...

It's still there. Something unseen wraps around his upper arms and the Batter ---

He flinches and lets go of Zacharie's hand.

The purifier isn't going to give a warning about what he's going to do next. And if Zacharie doesn't dodge, he's going to find out what it feels like to be cracked over the head with his own baseball bat. The Batter is aiming to knock out rather then kill, but he can't promise it won't hurt at all.

Well, there is absolutely nothing you can say to a baseball bat in the head that doesn't result in you falling over and going unconscious, aside from death, but at least the Batter held back this time. Hopefully he doesn't loot him too while he's utterly goddamn unconscious from his first act of physical violence.

Batter.

God damn it, Batter.

He's not sorry.

But rather then focus on that, the Batter will simply drag Zacharie off somewhere else, so no looting. It's a lot more rocky and hot here - desert and all - but for now the greed and the...other thing will taper off eventually.

Zacharie actually won't wake up with too badly of a headache however. Save With First Base is pretty useful, even if it's probably weird that the Batter would do that.

He's still here, by the by. Zacharie's not rid of him yet.

Zacharie wastes no time checking his bag, sighing in relief when his things are intact, and slapping a luck ticket on his neck. The headache eventually vanishes but not the anger.

"Tell me, what gives you the right to hurt your dear friend, amigo?"

He's allowed to sound threatening now! What a delight. In fact, feeling his first pain was fun too. All of these new sensations!

Sound as threatening as you want Zacharie. He doesn't care.

"We needed to leave and you wouldn't."

He wasn't kidding about that. It would have not ended well if they had stayed, or at the very least the Batter stayed. Something else could have been done about it but that was the fastest method.

You're welcome.

"Hmm? Why is that? I want a good explanation because that's one luck ticket I'm down."

He hates wasting his wares-- he already gave some Belial's meat to someone who was clearly not right in the head, as a cure to madness.

"This place manipulates emotions. I would have killed you if we stayed too long."

That's not the whole explanation but it's the only one the Batter would give. And yes, fine he'll make up for the Luck Ticket. Reaching into his backpack, the Batter holds out one Ticket out to Zacharie.

...yeah that probably gives credit to the whole 'manipulates emotions' bit.

"Ah, a status effect, then."

Zacharie calms down considerably. Those can affect him now, can't they... so it was marked by geography? Still, as much as he wanted to sample food (for real, not gnawing on a branch), this place seemed desolate. His hand reached up and rubbed whatever was underneath his mask. Zacharie is human, despite his... unfortunate appearance.

He's surprised to take the luck ticket from him, but doesn't refuse.

"... generosity? Ah, so you found some freedom after all."

"I haven't."

Emotional manipulation, remember? Although it says something that this island can drag that out of someone like the Batter. Perhaps it was something within him a long time ago and existed in the bottom of his soul, but who knows?

The Batter certainly isn't going to examine it.

"Are you..." No. He shakes his head. "There is another island where this doesn't happen."

"Am I what?"

He's not going to let the Batter go of any loose threads of conversation, which means they'll be stuck here longer. "Another island where what doesn't happen? You killing me when the sun goes down? I should hope so."

"You look very nice as a corporeal human. I'm assuming you don't get many compliments because of your eye situation, but for me it's very--" He makes an OK hand sign to hammer in the message.

Speaking of eyes, the Batter has to resist the urge to roll his. They may be on the nicer side of Monsun but that doesn't mean he still can't express when something is stupid. Also only one person has seen all of his eyes open at once so far and hasn't said anything about it.

And the less said about it, the better.

"The emotional effects do not happen on the other island. And I won't now."

How nice....?

[ Aww, it was a big secret? He supposed eyes and teeth would be. After all, what Zach had under the mask was enough to make several stomachs turn.

Hm. Another island? ]

Okay, so...

How do we get there?

Edited 2017-12-06 04:09 (UTC)

[Yeah, because he like advertising that he has four eyes and sometimes looks like a freakish monster to people depending on their perspectives. That's not even getting into what the Batter looks like to himself.]

Mana pool. I'll show you.

[Once you're ready to go, anyway.]

[ He's ready.

There's no one to sell to around here. No one to even buy from. The Batter wouldn't even be that nice to indulge him... ]

Mana pool... now that sounds normal. [ Without a hint of sarcasm. ]

[You routinely break the 4th wall with the grace of a rhino in a China tea shop Zacharie. A Mana pool isn't that weird. But up and at 'em.]

This way.

[Mind, it is quite a bit of a walk. Still they'll get there and one thrown flower into the pool, they're back in Enso. No more emotional stuff to deal with, just the usual deserted island. If the Batter goes back there, he'll probably go alone.]

[ No, that's why he said it without a hint of sarcasm! That sounds like something in a video game. ]

Hey... why is no one here?

[ If this is the main island, then-- what gives? ]

They are elsewhere. It's a big island.

[Really big. He probably should talk about the dangers here but that can wait a little.]

You can go back the same way we came.

[If he wanted to in the future.]

Sure... [ He rubs his thick neck as he looks around. The temple is right by here, so he's quick to point it out. It looks Plot Relevant. ]

What on earth is that?

[Very Plot Relevant. The Batter looks towards where the merchant is pointing.]

It belongs to the Storyteller. They are the God of this island.

And what does a God do, hm? Are they like a puppeteer, or are they more laid back?

[ A very important distinction to make, since a puppeteer could control your movements, and a god could change your entire world. ]

They are not like the Puppeteers were.

[They didn't control him. True the Storyteller had set them all somewhere that ended really, really badly for everyone involved, but they apologized to them all for it.

Ruled the island but didn't directly control the actions of those here (at least after that). But the Storyteller didn't let the Batter go either.

It's...strange.]

...

So you truly are autonomous...

[ He makes a guess, on a whim. ]

You must not have a lot to know about living alone, right? You've never had the experience!

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