June Intro: Let's Sea How Far We've Come

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: JUNE

Who: Everyone!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr as the island of Ziziphus begins to crumble
When: June 4th and onward
Where: Ziziphus and Ensō...and Monsun
Warnings: Mark as needed!

Ziziphus: At The Start Of The End Of The World
Since Bliss's destruction, the extensive root network they've threaded throughout every inch of the island of Ziziphus has begun to crumble. June 4th marks the beginning of the inevitable collapse of the island as it starts to sink into the sea...coincidentally coinciding with the arrival of LifeAftr's newest adventurers. Between the dead trees surrounding Bliss's empty husk, great cracks in the earth start to widen, the dead god's absent root system leaving vast gaps underground which simply cannot support the life above. It almost sounds like thunder rupturing from the ground itself, wild tremors preceding each vicious boom until gaping chasms lay between venturing parties and the safety of the mana pool - only water waits below, for those unlucky enough to lose their footing.

And if the immense pull of mile wide chunks of landmass sinking beneath the waves isn't enough to suck you down, the heavy rain of debris from Ziziphus's rapidly destabilizing edges will certainly help. Want to avoid a watery grave? What you need to do is simple:

Escape.

Sorry, newbies. If you showed up on Ziziphus, you're in for a very athletic entrance to LifeAftr.

Monsun: Just Like Every Other Morning Before
Adventurers aren't the only creatures on Ziziphus attempting to outrun its collapse. Creatures great and small, from the largest spindlank to the smallest tigerlily will be heading south in an attempt to escape the worst of the quakes. Unlike offshore adventurers, however, these poor creatures don't have a mana pool waiting for them to escape through. Their extinction, it seems, is imminent.

Unless you have something to say about it.

Already exhausted from their attempts to get through to and then actively dispose of their fellow god, the Storyteller will break their traditional manner of communication to announce a potential solution to this problem with a single broadcast to the Stones of Far Speech in a strained, weary tone:

"The mana pools on Monsun are now open. If you are willing, save what you can."

True to their word, characters will discover that the island of Monsun will be accessible once more for a short period of time. From prey to predator, obstruction to catastrophe - multiple species of flora and fauna can still be preserved, should you choose to do so.

Be wary of the psychological effects of both sides of the island. Those who are new to our setting and wish to explore, the island of Monsun has a peculiar side effect to its stark divide: the eastern half is rich in resources, but brings out the very worst of you, while the western half is a tumultuous wasteland that accentuates your best qualities. More information on said island can be found on its entry on the Locations page, or its introductory info post.

Due to these efforts, the Storyteller will not be available for contact from the 4th to the 18th of June. Item Requests will also be unavailable at this time. They will, however, make a rather strained announcement to ensure all are aware that access to both Ziziphus and Monsun will cease on June 10th.

Ensō: I Wonder What It Means If It's Gone
The native fauna of Ziziphus aren't the only ones on the move, it seems. Those who wander the shores of Ensō will be delighted to witness the appearance of creatures akin to both turtles and dugongs drifting through the waters, gravitating around the island's eastern coast, rapidly gaining in numbers over the following days.

Kaleidoshells have been unlocked in the bestiary!

With spring close to ending in the archipelago, these peaceful creatures are looking to make good use of their natural nesting areas; hope you're open to sharing the beach for a little while. While a few braver individuals will make their way to the shores between C4 and D1 to begin digging nests, the vast majority won't be coming to shore quite yet.

They do, however, make a very fine sight around the waters of Ensō, especially in the evening. Luminescent, their rainbow patterns glow underwater, drifting mood lights for the increasingly warmer evening breeze.

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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.

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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

[onegreeneye]

"...What's that supposed to mean?" Ginko does not like where this is going. Like, enough so that he's subtly looking for escape routes already.

He doesn't like to assume that people have bad intentions, but two years on that damned peninsula made him a little more used to being prepared for the possibility, and... this seems like a good time to be prepared.

[cacoethes_mori]

"It means I have a plant you need to take someplace that isn't dying." Foster cuts to the chase for once in his entire life. Maybe a thank-you should be passed onto Herbert West, somewhere out in the multiverse, but then again..... maybe that's something better left alone.

Foster does pull up to a stop, though, as the earth shakes and the sand and stone along the chasm crumbles into the waiting sea below.

"I know how, and I know you know how. That is how fate works."

[onegreeneye]

...Is that really all he wants? Part of Ginko still doubts it, but not even he can be sure if that's based in reality or just a trick of his own mind. So he watches Foster, carefully, and his angle toward him.

"...First off, what plant?"

He's not touching that talk of 'fate' just yet.

[cacoethes_mori]

"This one!" Foster says, like they're not an entire island full of plants. What he means is the flowers around them--brightly coloured blooms of varying hues,

"There are others, too... it just depends on how many you want to save." He pauses, making eye contact before pointedly glancing away--still smiling.

"Of course, I understand if you don't want to gather up any of the red ones."

[onegreeneye]

Ginko's expression darkens, just for a moment. It's close to the kind of quiet disapproval Foster is probably used to seeing from him, but there's more of an edge to it now, something that runs deeper than just a display of vague irritation.

"...If you want to transplant them, I don't see why you need my help with that. It would be more efficient if we focused on different areas." With that, he moves to leave, trying to step around Foster. Now isn't the best time to try and hold a conversation with a guy who seems intent on mocking him.

[cacoethes_mori]

"I don't know how to transplant a flower," Foster replies, neatly cutting Ginko off--well, not neatly, really, it's more like he moves, his back end sidestepping in an erratic, gestural way and it happens to blunder him back into Ginko's path.

In contrast, his words, his sentences are very specific--even pointed.

"But you do."

It's not entirely true that Foster doesn't know how to transplant a flower. He did it once before, with the mushi weed Ginko's echoed self had been growing. But he'd had an accomplice then.

And he wants Ginko as an accomplice now.

[onegreeneye]

Ginko's first inclination is to tell him that it's not that hard, you just dig around it and take the surrounding dirt with the roots. And that might as well be it - it's not like he knows enough about these specific plants to have any more pertinent knowledge.

But... as annoying as this guy might be, it's not enough for Ginko to be quite willing to keep refusing to help him with something as simple as transplanting some plants.

Dammit.

He lets out a slow breath through his nose, then looks at Foster. "...Fine. But we'll need to move fast."