lifeaftr | 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

[There's a girl crying on the shoreline.

They don't know what happened to get her into such a state, but there are creatures here- beasts, not monsters, that wouldn't hesitate to attack. Perhaps she's hurt. Perhaps she's sick.

Or maybe, she's just new and overwhelmed. They know they haven't seen her, before. She's young. And so, Chara doesn't hesitate to approach, carefully crouching a few feet away and softly clearing their throat to get her attention...when she's ready to give it, that is.]

[Eventually she does lift her head. Face still tear-streaked, a bit red with the embarrassment at feeling so exposed, getting caught in this personal, vulnerable state. But she bites back any kind of defensive comment she'd like to utter. She takes a deep breath - or at least tries to, but hiccups in the middle.]

Wh-who are you?

["What do you want?" is also swallowed down, though her tone still probably implies it.]

[They understand. It's why they make no mention of her current state, answer calm and careful.]

My name is Ch-Kidwun. I thought you might like something to eat.

[Xion... doesn't rush, pushing herself up straight. It... hunger just felt like such a plain, mundane thing to worry about right now. She remembers though, being sick, and finding out that Ganondorf had hurt Reno and Shion, and wanting to do something so much until Reno himself had shut her down and all but shoved her back to bed.

While she knows that she wouldn't have been able to stand up to Ganondorf herself (and that Reno knew it too) she gets the memory's message: You have to take care of yourself if you want to be help to others.]

I guess so.

Okay. [They stand, hesitating for a moment, before slowly offering a hand, if she wants the help up.]

I left my things by the flowers- they're not far.

[She hesitates for a moment, before accepting the hand up. Even for someone Chara's size, she's not heavy. Almost unnaturally light, even.

They do pause at Chara's directions, though, uneasy.]

Flowers? Are... there flowers on this side?

[Because she doesn't want to go back to the forest side any time soon.]

Of course- I brought them here myself. [Her weight isn't something they can comment on- as unused to maintaining contact as they are. As soon as she's upright, their hand drops, even if they still attempt to keep their smile reassuring.]

They're from my world, actually. I was hoping to grow them here.

[Xion visibly relaxes.]

Oh, okay. Sorry, I just... I don't want to go back to the other side anytime soon.

[Still feeling embarrassed and maybe a bit vulnerable for having admitted that, she busies herself with brushing sand off herself, even if she knows - from many beach trips - that it's a rather pointless endeavor.]

Understandable.

[If the multiple warnings they'd received thus far are correct, then they sympathize. For now, however, they lead the way across the loose soil and stones of the river's shore, gear and flowers coming into sight as they turn round the bend.]

Please do take care not to step on them, by the way. They were costly to acquire.

December Intro: Don't Come Home for Christmas

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