July Intro: Upsy-Daisy!

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: JULY

Who: New arrivals, your lif᷆t̕i͗n᷅ģ f̧̞ͅr̡̦̃ḭ̅ͭe̩᷅̂n̟̣̤d̨̬̏, and you!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr, and everyone makes a new friend!
When: July 5th and onward
Where: All over Ensō
Warnings: Mark as needed!

Like a Bat Out of Hell
At this stage, the appearance of new arrivals to Ensō's shores is hardly a surprise to anyone but the arrivals themselves. Whatever mysterious force is responsible seems to have taken a vaguely nostalgic route this month, depositing the new and unconscious across the shoreline of the beach closest to the tumbled stone bastion of the Storyteller's temple. At first, that seems to be all there is to it. The arrivals stir to the smell of salt and the summer sea air, and the cycle of questions, searching, and settling begins.

For about five minutes. Perhaps ten.

Almost like an afterthought, something else shows up, plummeting straight out of the sky and landing with a veritable explosion of water some hundred feet from the shore. A large, rectangular shape breaches the surface after a few moments, bobbing, cork-like, in the foam-crested waves before ever so slowly beginning to sink into those aquamarine depths. For those familiar with such objects, it makes for a rather odd sight. That most certainly was an elevator, or you can be...fairly sure it was?

Give it another minute, and you'll be certain. The elevator streaks out from the ocean like a creature possessed. Maybe, in those split seconds prior to its approach, you'll be able to note the elevator's distinct features: a disturbingly smiling face on its doors, and a set of teeth framing a very organic mouth.

Meet Upsy, your lifting friend. In case it wasn't obvious by now, Upsy is far from a conventional elevator by any standards. What's more, Upsy has not taken to LifeAftr as well as some others. Armed with the ability to move in any direction, the rogue contraption takes no prisoners - by which we mean, they take as many prisoners as possible. Upsy proceeds to swoop across the shoreline, combing the beach in the most haphazard and patternless path possible, scooping up anyone slow enough to be caught in their maw. Once you're caught up in their jaws, it comes down to the winds of fortune, in regards to wherever Upsy proceeds to spit out their cargo. While the journey itself will be rough and...sticky, it is not inherently dangerous.

Hopefully, the same can be said for wherever you end up Ensō hosts a great deal of predators, environmental hazards, and worse. Though you could always end up belched into the ocean. Hope you can swim!

When the Metal is Hot and the Engine is Hungry
Upsy’s reign of terror isn't restricted to mere adventurers. Those with livestock or animal companions may be in for a small shock or, perhaps more likely, a very large one, when flying elevator sucks up those cuddly critters with a grin and spirits them off into the great unknown.

Though your phoenix, chocobo, or tigerlily may not be where you saw them last, you can at least be assured that they are still on Ensō. All you need to do is round them up. And if this isn't good enough news, well...at least you don't keep bludrocs.

Whether you're out searching for an animal or not, be careful traversing Ensō for the next three days. If Upsy is empty, they'll most certainly snap you up. And if they aren't? You may find anything from birds to horses spat out at you.

The velocity of these organic projectiles tends to vary. Dramatically. Upsy's reign of terror will end on the evening of July 9th. At that point, the elevator will fly off to greener pastures...and our RNG spreadsheet for potential encounters in future. Sweet dreams.

---

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 )

Comments

Lillie | Pokemon Sun/Moon (Games) | OTA

[flower_of_innocence]

i. pure morning, pure oH GOD WHAT IS THAT (Along the beach; warning: will be warped to another tile if in contact with Lillie)

[Awakening on a strange beach, to the scent of salt on the breeze and the warmth of sun on her face, is not new to Lillie. She tries to cling to the remnants of her dream - a talking rabbit, and such a strange explanation... - but part of her knows that there's more pressing things in the waking world. The young girl pushes herself up slowly, reaching for her hat and brushing the sand off of it. She can feel a heavy weight on her back - a knapsack of some sort - and when she slides it down her shoulders she sees her name stitched on the front.

A cursory glance at the surrounding beach tells her she's not the only one arriving on the island and, more importantly, that Nebby has already escaped and is toddling towards the water gleefully.

Lillie sighs. It must be a day ending in "y".

Standing up and gathering up both her belongings, she makes her way carefully towards the pokemon, who is now joyously splashing in the shallow tide.]

Nebby...you're going to be all wet. Come here, it's safer for you-

[What in the name of all things is THAT?! Lillie shrieks in panic, scooping up the wet pokemon with zero regard for the sand and water splashing up her legs, and sprinting down the length of the beach away from that god awful elevator. Running in flat shoes in the sand proves to be difficult, and she finds herself tripping and stumbling and, finally, falling. Clutching Nebby to her chest, she stares in horror at the gaping maw approaching her.]

HELP!

ii. this kind of heat is for lizards, not lillies (Enso G2; mountain temple)

[Maybe the elevator from hell spat you out here. Maybe you were touching Lillie when Nebby warped her out of the way. Maybe you're just exploring. No matter what brought you here, you can expect to hear a startled yelp as a young girl in a white dress scrambles to her feet to get off the hot rock beneath her.

If you came here with her, you may note that the little cloud-creature in her arms has gone almost completely still and silent - a far cry from the energetic thing you saw moments before. It's still breathing, but it's clearly knocked out.]

Oh, Nebby...! You shouldn't have done that...

i

[lightlessfuture]

[ The Knight is doing their usual wandering when they hear a cry and what is that.

Whatever it is, it's clearly hostile and angling to attack someone they haven't seen before, so they dash in to at least attempt to get her out of the way of its first charge.

Which really just results in Lillie being flying tackled by a small, masked figure. Whoops. ]

[flower_of_innocence]

[Lillie is far too distracted by the murder machine bearing down on her to notice the Knight's approach, but she feels the impact of a tiny tackle well enough. This...is a mess. And if she had the time, tears would come and she would cry because what does one even do when they've been ripped from their world and tossed into the path of this abomination and then tackled by a small masked creature?

Then there's a strange, echoing cry, and neither of them are on the beach anymore.

The Knight and Lillie will both find themselves laid out on the hot rock of what appears to be a temple in the mountains (Enso, G2). Lillie's eyes are closed, her hat is askew, and the cloudy creature in her arms is still and silent.]

[lightlessfuture]

[ They raise their head, recovering quickly from the disorientation (not that different to dream travel) - but ah, they know this place. Quite well, in fact. They hop up and brush a bit of sand from their cloak, before gently shaking Lillie's shoulder.

It's hot, after all. It's not good, to lie here too long. ]

[flower_of_innocence]

[It's a strange combination of deja vu and the Knight's persistent shaking that wakes her up. She feels the heat on her side keenly through the fabric of her dress and it takes a minute to register that it's hot but once it does-]

Oh! Ow!

[Lillie sits upright and tries to stand, struggling to keep both of her bags on her shoulders while holding Nebby. She manages, but loses her hat in the process. If she notices the hat floating gently to the ground, she doesn't show it. She's fixated on the creature in her arms.]

Nebby...thank you so much, but you shouldn't have done that...

ii

[catpiper]

[What the heCK is that elevator? She hates it? She hates it. Stop scooping up her cat!! Stop scooping her up!! This is horrible. This kind of technology should be limited to buildings or something. Not islands. Someone, please, wreck this thing already.

Which is to say, she was spat out awhile ago and decided to hide behind a rock ever since. Horrible. It shouldn't surprise her when someone else appears, presumably carried over here as well, even if she can't see it in the distance. Weird? Scary? She hates all of this. This girl's voice came out of seemingly nowhere and she peers over the stone to get a better glimpse of them, their surroundings, and quietly says-]

You should hide over here.

[flower_of_innocence]

Oh...?

[Lillie looks up from Nebby to Ren and tries to smile reassuringly. It probably comes across as incredibly unsure and nervous because, well, she is. She wasn't entirely sure where she was before being warped, now she was just completely and utterly lost.]

I think we're safe here...I don't see that awful elevator anywhere, at least?

[Even as she says it, she walks over to the rock where Ren is hiding and tentatively crouches down. Just in case.]

[catpiper]

[Did she not get tossed out by the elevator? That brings up 9000 more questions and she's not sure if she can handle another weird traveling appliance. Did she come here via toaster? No, it's fine. She's going to ignore that in favor of checking out the knocked out creature she's holding. That's easier to deal with. ]

We should wait here for awhile and then we can try to go home.

[Which may have a different meaning for this new girl.]

Is your friend okay?

[flower_of_innocence]

Nebby is...it should be fine. It just exhausted itself. [Lillie sighs, holding the little cloud-creature closer despite the sweltering heat.] It's done this before...

ii.

[fireindreams]

[Grimm has not run into that demented elevator again so he was exploring. The worlds he traveled to were of dead lands and kingdoms and possess very little life. Just enough to help him finish the Ritual that called the Troupe Master to them, so an island full of life and light is quite new and a source of curiosity for Grimm.

The girl's cry attracts his attention and Grimm makes his way to the source. The beings of this island were strange to him - none of them were anything like the bugs he met and knew, like those of the Grimm Troupe. Regardless one appeared to not be doing well and there is no reason for Grimm to not lend a hand.]

Is your friend quite well?

[flower_of_innocence]

[Lillie jumps a little at the voice. Is her friend well? The last time this happened the poor thing couldn't move for ages. But it had bounced back remarkably well a day or so later. She turns to face Grimm and forces a nervous smile. What a peculiar creature...but then, she'd recently awoken from a dream involving a talking rabbit with antlers.]

Nebby is...alright, I think. It exhausted itself saving me from that horrible elevator. Hopefully it just needs to rest...

[fireindreams]

[Ah, he had not meant to startle her. Grimm's appearance was strange but the same could be said of Lillie and everyone else here in his eyes, aside from a certain silent bug from his own world.]

That elevator certainly reigns an irritating form of terror, does it not? [Upsy has not endeared itself to Grimm, clearly.] But I hope that it is only a rest your friend needs. They certainly deserve it after dealing with the creature.

[Honestly, it really seems that no matter the world it's always the smallest that attempt and succeed in saving others.]

[flower_of_innocence]

It's done this before, to save me from trouble. The poor thing couldn't move for days after that...

[She shakes her head sadly. She doesn't want to think about it. About what pushing itself meant for Nebby. Instead, she changes the subject:]

Um...my name is Lillie, by the way.

A.

[mamaterasu]

[Ammy has probably fought this infernal terror-beast five separate times today, but there doesn't seem to be an end to its assault of the newcomers. The wolf is getting tired, she'd running low on ink, and low on patience especially. One can only be gobbled up so many times before they're ready to do a murder. She's never going to tease Issun about this sort of thing ever again!! ...Maybe. Probably not.

However, the metal monster has the wolf to contend with when it bears down on a poor, young girl. Here we go again, but this one looks like just a child, and clearly unable to defend herself like some others can. Putting every ounce of force into her legs, the wolf speeds over the wet sands like a streak of white, flowers blossoming in the wake of her swift paws, petals blown clean off from the gale she creates. Just as Upsy looms over Lillie with its mouth gaping wide, the wolf paints a trail from her reflector to those open jaws, and fire streaks from the paint as if it were black oil, right into the maw of the hellevator.

Choke on that hot tamale, you spicy son of a bitch.]

[flower_of_innocence]

[The world seems to slow down as the white wolf appears between her and the eldritch abomination. Then, just as suddenly as time slows, it explodes into motion and flame and heat. Lillie curls in on herself, shielding Nebby from the...everything. It's all overwhelming and incredible and-]

Pew!

[As Upsy reels from the attack, Nebby begins to shake. A lot of thoughts strike Lillie simultaneously: Oh boy, not again. Is this poor wolf too close? Maybe she should try to shoo it away before they both get warped. Does she have enough time?

Her indecision costs them both, because her fingers barely brush Ammy's flank and the words "Watch out" are still on her tongue when there's another flash of light and they are Elsewhere. Upsy is left deprived of a "meal" and with a serious case of burned mouth.

Ammy and Lillie are left laid out on the hot, open stone of the mountain temple, just outside of the building proper. The little Cosmog has gone still and quiet. Whoops.]

[mamaterasu]

[This feeling isn't new. The feel of drifting though mist, or through a swirling pool of water, while colors blur together all around you. It's similar to her Whirlpool and Mist Warp brush skills, but it's been so long since she's used either that she still feels a bit disoriented after. Shaking the dizziness from her head, Ammy half expects to still be on the beach, but only a distance away. No, they've seemingly been warped somewhere else entirely - somewhere not too familiar to her specifically. The hot stone hurts her paws, and she quickly finds a more cool place to sit, licking at the pads covering her feet.

That is, before she carefully goes to check on the young girl and her...um. Hm. It looks almost like some sort of cloud. Or...or a piece of the stardust river, given life and form. Curiously, she sniffs the creature and gives it a gentle nudge with her nose, then looks at Lillie with a whimper. Is it alright?]

[flower_of_innocence]

[Years of reading pokemon body language make it fairly easy to discern what the wolf (pokemon?) is trying to say, but it takes Lillie a moment to answer because she really isn't 100% sure. The last time this sort of thing happened, Nebby couldn't even move, for a good day or two. It had bounced back well, sure, but how many times could it do this before it...No, she doesn't want to think about that.

She stands up from where she's been deposited and dips her head a little bit in a shallow bow of thanks, for saving her and for the worry.]

Oh, don't worry about us - we'll be fine. Thank you so much for saving us from that awful thing...[And don't think she didn't notice you making a beeline for the shade earlier!!] Let's get you out of the sun, the heat isn't good for your paws.

[Lillie pats her thigh gently in what she hopes is recognized as a sign to follow as she makes her way to the nearest building and the shade it provides. They can figure things out from there, without Ammy dancing from foot to foot to avoid burning herself.]

ii. WHAT UP HOMESLICE BREAD SLICE DAWG

[holdmyhand]

[ Luna? Has been running since this whole thing started. Since Upsy began their reign of terror and sucked up someone nearby-- and then just flew off. What? WHat?

Needless to say she was caught almost immediately, and spit out nearby some time ago. This is, uh, this is wild. Luna shifts her bag on her back and treks through the growth surrounding the mountain temple, when Lillie's soft words waft through her ears. Her heart thuds an irregular beat and she quickly makes her way to the doorway of said temple, looking in with sweat dripping down her brow.

Here, her hair has had time to grow. She may even look a little taller-- she's been here for a whole year, after all. The glow in her eyes, however? Still there, and active, and gods, is that Lillie?? ]

...Lillie?!

HOHOHO IT IS I, AND IT IS YOU, AND IT IS THE GORLS

[flower_of_innocence]

...Luna?!

[Lillie's head snaps up and when her eyes confirm what her ears are telling her, she gasps. Even as her heart soars, her stomach drops. It's so relieving to know she's not alone, that Luna is here, and in that moment she knows everything will be okay - but at the same time, Luna is here, and not home in Alola, and that is scary.

And she looks different. As if she's been here some time. Lillie is rooted to the spot, unsure of how to respond to this situation. Relief? Joy? Exasperation that the island stole them both? And who else? Was Hau here, too? So many questions paralyze her that finally she just shuts off her brain and stammers out:]

H-Hello...how- how long...are you alright...?

[solperierat]

[It's probably not a good idea to be flying when that...thing is running amok. But Ed is one of the few people that can scan around the island for anyone lost fairly easily, and he's not inclined to let a little thing like danger stop him from doing what he can.]

[(Nevermind that he's already been eaten and spat out three times, he's gotta keep track of his animals, damnit.)]

[Hard to miss a bright flash like that from the top of a mountain, though, and Ed quickly veers over to see what's going on. He swoops down to land a fair distance away from Lillie, then jogs over.]

What happened here?

[flower_of_innocence]

[Lillie blinks in surprise as Ed lands. Oh...What a remarkably strange looking person. He can talk, though, and isn't outwardly attempting to eat her, so despite her initial startle she manages to regain composure fairly quickly.

She looks down at the still creature in her arms and sighs. No use in hiding it, really. It doesn't look like she walked here and something clearly happened to Nebby. Something which she wasn't 100% sure it could bounce back from, despite past experiences. When she looks back up at Edward, her eyes are full of sadness.]

We were attacked on the beach...Nebby used its power to save me, but it dropped us here and...well, I don't know where I am, and Nebby exhausted itself...

[It's all a bit much, really.]

[solperierat]

It teleported you?

[That's...well, okay, given the circumstances it's a pretty obvious option, but he wasn't expecting that. Ed kneels down and frowns as he looks at the little galactic cloud, ears pricked forward with interest.]

Well, you're on top of the mountain at the middle of this island. There's a pool nearby that can teleport the two of you back to the Temple near the beach or over to a set of islets with some old houses on them--if you want I can show you how to use them.

ii

[journalname]

[Wow. That elevator thing was...definitely a thing that happened. Yes.

It was alarming to begin with, but Asgore's out of it now, and unscathed except for a little dusted fur from being dropped unceremoniously out onto the ground. Standing, he brushes himself off and goes to try and figure out...where he is and all that. He's not overly fussed; he'll make it back.

Meanwhile, other people continue to fall victim to the Demon Elevator. Asgore's not going to approach immediately - he knows that he can be intimidating - but still:]

Excuse me - are you okay?

[flower_of_innocence]

[Lillie looks up, and then up further because wow he's tall compared to someone as small as her, and blinks in surprise. He's...not something she's used to seeing. Almost like a pokemon, actually, but clearly dressed and speaking like a human. Boy, world-hopping is wild.]

[She regains her composure once his words sink in and she looks down at Nebby before answering.]

I'm alright, thank you...But Nebby exhausted itself saving me again...

[And really, she never knows if it will bounce back. Sure, it did previously, but how many times could it...before...well. She won't think about that right now.]

[journalname]

Oh, dear.

[He frowns, peering down at the...monster? Probably not; monsters of his own kind aren't common around here, and he'd be surprised to see one arriving with a human friend.]

Would you like me to try healing them? It is not very helpful for magical exhaustion, in the case of my own species, but it may have some effect.