January Intro: I Know the Winter's Getting Colder

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: JANUARY

Who: Everyone!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: January 5th and onward
Where: Chol and surrounding waters
Warnings: Mark as needed!

The Overview: New Lands
New arrivals will not be waking in the typical hub of activity; instead, they will find themselves coming to on the small island of Chol. While the island's fringes are little more than an unforgiving spread of craggy, canyon-like rock and coastal cliffs, the island dips down to form a fertile divot of edenic woodland in its center. The people living there will even be helpful and polite to you, should you inquire after them.

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!

Icebreaker: This is the Winter of Our Youth
Unless you're someone with a fondness for the cold, you'll undoubtedly be waking with more than a slight chill in your bones. The appearance of the island of Chol has signaled a coming event of great import in LifeAftr, and unfortunately, the signs of that event's approach have already been set in motion. The temperature has begun to drop as the sun's rays begin to die, faster and faster, leading to an impressive cold snap in the ocean waters - particularly those surrounding Chol.

It is for that reason that you won't be waking on Chol, per se. Instead, you'll be waking on a thick crust of ice that's mantled itself over the ocean waters, freezing solid enough to bear your weight...for the most part. The ice won't hold forever; it isn't meant to. If you happen to be particularly vivacious in your waking, or especially active in general, thick cracks will start to spiderweb out from underneath those impacts with low, warning chunks and wrenches of fracturing ice. Better hurry to land soon, unless you care to take a little dip into those freezing cold ocean waters.

Mainland: When We Pick Over the Past
Should you make it to the land of Chol, braving the iced-over waters surrounding its craggy shores, you'll encounter something at least as startling - the people who have elected to set up a rudimentary encampment upon its lands. While a bit on the scalier side, the Jormun are nonetheless allied to you land-dwellers, and will welcome you to the island. Most will be preoccupied with preparations for an approaching siege, but many will comment idly that the cold is a sign of the coming battle. Some may point you to their leader, known to most as Munin, but others will venture hospitality based on the actions of those land-dwellers that came before you, who were successful in allying themselves to this sea-dwelling people.

Those who might have braved the cold a little too fiercely will quickly be offered some rather rough blankets - perhaps more on par with burlap sacks in terms of texture - as well as a hot brew that the Jormun call brrkshavak. Heated to a boil just prior to being served, the drink will be more than adequate in warming your weary bones, though it bodes mentioning that it is both scalding hot and made with a fleshy kind of undersea herb that is akin to crushed chili pepper in taste.

It'll warm you up, all right.

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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.

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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

[encircling]

Yes, that's the right of it. There are other beings around, such as on this island. If you go to their encampment, you will meet them.

[ She takes a proper seat next to her. ]

Every month, there is a storytelling session. You don't have to participate, but it is worth it to.

[budgetmage]

My kind of work isn't very good for stories.

....If I can even do my kind of work here. Which seems doubtful. [ She rubs her temple. Her work means everything to her. What is she supposed to do without that? ]

[encircling]

You are free to tell stories about things that happen to you here. It does not have to be elaborate, really.

[ She raises an eyebrow. ]

Pardon my asking, but... what is your work?

[budgetmage]

[ Isette actually puffs up a bit. ] I'm a professor and head of the Ancient History department at the Academy of Arcane Studies.

[ It's not that she likes to brag, but she is very proud of her position. It's one that she had to work hard for.

Not mentioned: That she's the only member of said department because nobody takes ancient history seriously. ]

[encircling]

Ancient history? Fascinating...

[ Ah, well, color her interested. Someone so learned... she's lucky. ]

I doubt you will have much of an opportunity for that sort of work, as unfortunate as that is. Mostly, we take to exploring the islands here.

[budgetmage]

A-Ah... exploring islands?

I'm well-versed in exploring ancient ruins. Those are... rather different though. [ Deep, suffered sigh. ]

[encircling]

Well... that means you can learn something new while here?

[ She smiles. ]

There are plenty of people willing to explore with you, if you would prefer that.

[budgetmage]

Yes, I would rather have people with me so I don't get. Killed by monsters. Are there monsters here? [ In her experiences, there are always monsters. Especially when least convenient. ]

[encircling]

In some parts, yes. On Enso, you are less likely to run into them, I have found. [ She pauses. Well... she doesn't like people being all on their own, so. ] If you would like, I would be more than willing to accompany you.

[budgetmage]

I'd be glad for company. But first, what is Enso? Is that one of the other islands you mentioned?

Where did it get its name? [ why is that ur follow up question isette, why are you like this ]

[encircling]

The... I consider it the "primary" island. There are islets located to the north, where many of us live.

[ ........ ]

... I am not certain where it received its name, actually. Perhaps you could ask the Storyteller.

[budgetmage]

Ah, the dream rabbit again. [ She would think that they wouldn't communicate with the people here all too often, but she shouldn't have assumed. ]

All right, so Enso is one of the islands, and the main encampments are on smaller islands to its north. Did I [ she shivers from the cold as she speaks ] get that all right?