lifeaftr | April Intro: The Flower Ripens in its Place

INTRO LOG: APRIL

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

A9: Sow the Seed
Unbeknownst to new arrivals, the archipelago of LifeAftr has recently seen the appearance of a new island, as chosen via voting - and they have been unceremoniously placed there instead of upon Ensō, where most newcomers would typically appear. It's probably for the best that the island of Ziziphus is so outwardly peaceful.

There are worse places to find yourself, all things considered. The mana pool glimmers with a greenish light, the stone ring containing that peculiar fluid set firmly into the earth. The surrounding land fits neatly into that general aesthetic: rippling fields stirred by the occasional crisp breeze alternate between amber-golden and rich, verdant green in coloration, and irregular patches of color signify the presence of a great deal of flowers of all sorts.

It's a peaceful scene.

We're sure you're all about to make it go horribly wrong.

B9: Reap the Harvest
For the unluckier, or the more adventurous, something far less tranquil awaits. Perhaps you woke up on this particular map square instead, or you saw fit to journey a little farther, just to see what might happen. In any case, you'll quickly discover that this may not have been the best idea, when an ordinary grassy mound abruptly detaches itself from the ground, hauls itself upright on bristling legs, and starts scuttling near.

SPINDLANKS have now been unlocked in the bestiary.
What might initially appear to be a leafy hillock will very quickly prove to be something far more...mobile, if you get close enough. That clump of grass and red ferns will abruptly hoist itself up on six vine-like tendrils, crawling for its prey like a very large, mossy spider. While it's fully capable of swiping at its foes with its massive, leafy arms, the spindlank's favored method of dispatching its prey is simply to scuttle forth until it's positioned directly above you and drop down. If its weight does not crush you and choking on the clods of earth doesn't smother you, don't worry; the spindlank intends to eat you alive with a set of fleshy jaws set deep in its center, buried somewhere in its underbelly.

For despite their appearance, spindlanks are very much carnivorous. Their size can vary from anywhere between six and ten feet tall when their appendages unfurl entirely. They are, in essence, very large plants, and thus can be easily dealt with, if you can burn them.

Just try not to get overwhelmed.

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

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

[Why these people are so invested in flapping their mouths is a mystery.

Actually, why they do a lot of things is a bit of a mystery. But there's surely some reason why this person is paying a lot of attention to this plant in particular. Given that it doesn't seem to be an immediate danger either, The Liberator emerges from the bushes and comes up beside her, glancing back and forth between Takane and the plant, as if some explanation might be forthcoming.]

[The thing about Takane is that she is most likely to take a course of action that makes the least amount of sense for the situation. Oblivious, she continues to exchange words of pleasantry with the plant for a few more minutes, as if engaged in a stimulating conversation with it, before she notices the presence of the another. She pauses, eyes slightly widening with confusion as she slightly tilts her head to the side in thought.]

Oh dear? I feel as if there are eyes on me...

[She turns her head to see who was beside her, and shows no reaction to the other's appearance. Takane does seem curious about why she was staring at her, though.]

My esteemed peer, is there something you need of me...?

[She echoes a mental image: one of, from her point of view, Takane speaking to the plant. Of course the whole exchange (or lack thereof) is completely silent.

She's cuing in that the people here are not quite as telepathically gifted and adds a couple brief gestures, opening and closing one hand as if it were a mouth 'talking', pointing at the plant, and shrugging.]

[A mere blink of surprise is all the reaction Takane gives to the mental image. It's not something familiar to her, but she isn't particularly uncomfortable. She understands immediately, surprisingly enough, even before the helpful gestures. She nods in affirmation, to indicate she understood.]

Oh, that? I heard once that if one talks or sings to plants, they would grow faster. [She looks up at the sky thoughtfully, a rather vacant smile on her face.] Aloe vera has been very useful for my friends, so I thought I would help accelerate their growth as a token of gratitude. I had tried singing once, to a cherry tree, and did not see immediate results, so...

[Even with context, it still doesn't make much sense, yes. That's just how she rolls.]

[The Liberator cocks her head slightly. Confusing, yes. Along with... she opens her mouth just enough to see a few tiny little sharp teeth and... basically exhale a puff of breath, unvoiced.]

hhh.

[The whole idea of singing is second-hand, gleaned only from Takane's mind, and extremely unclear.

But that's the general idea of it, right?]

[The attempt earns a small, charmed giggle from Takane, and she certainly appreciates the good effort. She just keeps meeting interesting people the longer she's here. At least she seems to be easily accepting that people come from worlds where music and singing were a foreign concept.

Probably because they just escaped from a society where it was completely forbidden.]

Somewhat like that. It's a way to express feelings and emotions combining both words and varying sounds. I don't mind terribly if you wish for me to demonstrate.

[Trying to get to the question at hand instead, she scratches her chin thoughtfully before pointing to herself, then Takane, projecting a telepathic image again: of two people, glowing auras of gold surrounding their heads, expanding to touch each other. Pointing at the plant in comparison, she shrugs.

Plants don't talk, at least not by her standards. Mouth flapping seems like a comparatively weird way to communicate, but maybe she's just overlooking something here.]

April Intro: The Flower Ripens in its Place

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