lifeaftr | February Intro: Chasing Kairos

February Intro: Chasing Kairos

INTRO LOG: FEBRUARY

Who: New arrivals, and you!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: February 4th and onward
Where: Monsun
Warnings: Mark as needed!

Monsun, for the uninitiated, is an island divided in two, separated by a ribbon of flowing river. To the east, a rich deciduous woodland and perfect temperature heralds a plethora of resources at your disposal, at one singular, significant cost: your very worst traits will manifest the longer you remain in the area, until, by the twenty-four hour mark, you're living your absolute worst self.

By contrast, the island's western region is a harsh wasteland, a swathe of desert with hardly any shelter from the unrelenting sun and arid heat. Most everything here wants, in some way, to kill you, from the landscape to the fauna. Ugly storms and predators run wild, but the benefit is probably exactly what you think it is: namely, that your best traits manifest more and more strongly the longer you remain on Monsun's western half.

You, you lucky band of newcomers, are going to be arriving on one of two sides of the island. Whichever one in which your character wakes is up to you - though they're certainly welcome to head either direction, once they get their bearings.

Monsun, B2: Desert Air Won't Drown You Out
A craggy stretch of desert borders Monsun's northwest coast. Parts of the sand here, the further north you head, seem to have gone suspiciously slushy or boggy...though that might be the beginnings of an oasis that looks like it might be present on the region further up. Or, possibly, something else entirely.

It'll probably be hard to tell when you've got a mess of your own to contend with. Namely, the presence of a predator that's going to be making life quite...difficult for you, the longer you remain.

Nova Scorpions have been unlocked in the bestiary!

Nova Scorpions are about one meter in length and have a large stinger to match, with a golden carapace that makes them near-chameleonic when it comes to blending in with the sands they so favor. They are nocturnal by nature and tend to burrow into the sand and form lairs with others of their kind. Occasionally, one might encounter a scorpion carrying its young on its back.

By far the most dangerous thing about them is their venom, potent enough to floor even the most powerful and even those of the nonhuman persuasion. They can be, potentially, milked for said venom if you're in need of a powerful toxin to lace your weapons, but it's recommended that you make sure the scorpion is very thoroughly dead or well on its way before doing any harvesting of its resources. You know. Just to be on the safe side.

The good news, of course, is that your better traits will be amplified the longer you stay on this side of the island. If you don't mind the danger, you're far more likely to earn yourself some help here than you are on the other side of the island.

Speaking of which.

Monsun, C1: So Scared of Overgrowing Youth
By utter contrast, the rich woodlands of Monsun's east give all the appearances of being the best sort of welcome one could ask for. With the island's coast lining the region of C1 to its north and a deep, beautiful green swathe of lush deciduous undergrowth swarming throughout the entirety of the area, one could almost call it idyllic.

One thing is certain: it is very, very beautiful. The presence of so many growing things make it a glorious contrast to the island's western half. And in C1 in particular, there's no shortage of resources. The odd berry bush, the abundance of trees that can be harvested for lumber, if necessary...and the presence of some very odd, but nonetheless potentially adorable little creatures known as mosslings.

What may initially appear to be a tuft of particularly springy moss will, on closer inspection, prove to be something a little bit more. Mosslings are practically indistinguishable from the surrounding landscape unless one is keen-eyed enough to pick out the twin yellow points of glowing eyes nestled among the leafy orbs of their bodies - or unless one happens to spook one by accident, prompting it to scurry hastily away. They are extremely peaceable, extremely docile creatures, though they can make traversing the landscape startling on occasion, for the faint of heart. Aside from potentially edible, leafy flesh, they don't have much use in the way of resources, but they are quite harmless!

You, on the other hand, probably aren't so harmless. At least, not the longer you stay here. If you don't start forging your way west, or weaving your way to the island's single mana pool - located on E3 - to get off of it entirely, your very worst self is going to be manifesting, along with all your worst and least desirable qualities. Prone to violence, cowardice, jealousy, or paranoia? Better hope no one else is around to aggravate those traits, because they're not immune to Monsun's psychological effects either.

The only danger here comes from within. But the worst things usually do.

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

I thought it was worth trying to see if it could still be healed. No dice, though.

[They lift their hands away.]

I follow the Way of Empathy, so I can relieve others of their injuries. Kind of a long shot, I know, but... better to have tried to take action than to have just watched, right?

[It smacks of something important and potentially significant, though Way of Empathy sounds pretty indicative all on its own. The intent there can be guessed at, is the point.]

Even though it was just trying to kill you. And probably would not have stopped.

[Credit to this side of Monsun; Wash just sounds confused instead of scathingly judgmental.]

Did you have a plan that didn't involve just waiting for it to stop doing what it was doing?

I guess I coulda tried knocking it out.

But... I don't know where I am, and I don't have any means of getting back to where I ought to be, so... it seemed better to just wait it out. Nobody has to get hurt that way. Once it figured out it wasn't getting a meal, it would have left. It's hunting, not mindlessly destroying. Right?

[Ah, yes, the tried and true turtle school of survival: just scrunk yourself up in your armor real good until the predators fuck off. It may well be naivety on their part to assume that this scorpion is just an animal (albeit a very large one) and not a willfully murderous death machine, given how little they know of their current environment, but it's probably abundantly clear by now: Eska assumes the best in everyone they meet. Even arachnids.]

You can't know that. It might've been...a lot of things on this side of the island are hostile.

[Innately so, as most of those happen to be direct forces of nature. Storms, whirlwinds, earthquakes - to say nothing of the apparently single-mindedly destructive things that like to live here.]

They don't necessarily just want to eat you. Sometimes they really do just want to kill you.

Oh. Huh.

[They should probably look a little more alarmed that they risked serious bodily harm. They should definitely look a little more alarmed, honestly. Eska, that's not an entirely healthy level of Enlightened Tranquility.]

Then thank you for worrying about me! It takes a real brave soul to face a potentially mindless killer for a tortle you've never met.

I thought -

[Turtle? No. No, they definitely said "tortle." This is now the second time they've said it, and the first time he could've chalked it up to being in the heat of the very combative moment, but maybe not. They're bigger than your average turtle, so - ]

You're a tortle? That's your...species?

Yep!

[Announced brightly and delightedly.]

I mean, I'm definitely not a human, right? But don't feel bad if that's a new word for you. Most people I run into have never seen anything like me before.

...Um, sorry, the armor makes it a little hard to tell. Is it rude if I ask what you are?

No, it's fine. I'm. Here. Let me just -

[A minute, while he thumbs at the releases on his helmet and then, with a soft hiss of an opening seal, pulls it off to reveal skin the color of bruised copper, spattered in equal measure with a powdering of freckles and interlacing scribbles of scar tissue, hair that's gone a darkening gray at the roots and tapers into an achingly vibrant blonde.]

[His helmet hair is terrible. He pushes back the oddly flattened bangs, which does nothing to make them look any less unkempt.]

Human. I get that not everyone here is, but I'm not nearly that interesting.

You're absolutely interesting! Your markings are lovely!

[Wait, wait, "markings" is more of a scales-feathers-fur kind of... what's the word humans use?]

Freckles! Sorry, sorry, freckles. You look wonderful, is what I'm getting at. It's really great to meet you, mister...?

[Another blink. That's...definitely a first, in terms of reaction. He's never been told that he's interesting, much less that his freckles are...lovely. In the absence of any readily accessible way to deal with it, he just tucks his helmet underneath the crook of one elbow and again tries to do something to tame the seemingly inconsolable mess of his helmet hair with one hand.]

Washington.

[He drops the preceding Agent by habit now. More often than not, it's likely to raise questions that he no longer wants to answer.]

You?

Eska.

[Announced warmly, accompanied by a wave of one of those big, splappy paws.]

Are you thirsty? Hurt? Need anything? You did me a real helpful turn, Washington, so I'm here to return the favour. Just consider me your supportle tortle.

[Their beak opens a little in a wide grin, like they're waiting for him to laugh at that super good and clever bit of wordplay. They're totally bonding right now.]

Your -

[He almost misses the wordplay, and it's just kind of a shame that Wash isn't the sort of person to laugh at much of anything. But with his helmet off, Eska gets a real good look at the slow contortion of his features as he processes that, and tries very hard not to smile.]

[It's just so earnest.]

It's...fine. We help each other out here, since we're all stuck.

[Every time someone has to bite back a smile around them, their power only grows - because each time someone bites back a smile, they only get even more endearing and wonderful. You fool. You've activated their trap card, and now they adore you.]

That's a really wonderful way of looking at the situation, you know? It's not every day I show up somewhere and get a welcome this warm!

...But I'm still not one to accept freebies. Even if I can't do you a solid right here, right now, I'll have your back sooner or later! Better get used to it. We're friends now, and it's Official Absolute Real Law.

[Again, this might be the strangest exchange he's ever had, based purely off of the fact that people he meets are never this friendly, and what's more is that they're never this eager to go and announce that they're friends. It took him entirely too long to reach a point where he could say it without feeling like a traitor or a liar.]

[Friends.]

Friends.

[He repeats the word slowly in an effort to process it. It's slow going.]

That's...fast.

Oh, no obligations meant, Washington! You don't need to think of me as a friend in return. I just... should it not be fast?

[They hold their hands up, equal parts reassuring and offering a shrug.]

You don't need to justify caring about people. You helped me, I like you, we're in this situation together... that's plenty, isn't it?

No, it's...fine. I'm just not - it's just really -

[How does he put this into words? He's not used to people just saying yes, we're friends. It tooks a not insignificant amount of time for things to progress to that point, where people are fine with saying that we're friends. It comes completely out of left field.]

It's fine. Don't - worry about it. [He needs to salvage this situation and redirect it back to something he knows how to handle.] We should probably just get moving before more of those things show up.

[They don't push it. He's flustered. It's not like he doesn't have a good point, too: it's very possible that there are a lot more scorpions where that came from. They nod and brush the sand off their plastron, scanning the dark, still dunes all around them.]

Of course, of course. Um... do you happen to know the way out of here, or should we just pick a direction and start moving? I've usually got a pretty decent internal compass, but this is all totally new to me!

[Oh, thank god. Moving on from the discussion of friends and who owes whoever what is...preferable. Talking logistics is a much more comfortable state of being. Get down to the fundamental, the logical, that's easier.]

[He could almost sigh in relief.]

It's fine. The main issue so far is...well, getting to the other side of the island, which is where the mana pool is situated.

Is that all? We can handle that! We walk now, when it's not too hot, and we avoid more of the sand lobsters. Totally doable, right?

That's not the hard part. The hard part is once you're over there. It's...basically, it's the opposite of this place. Nicer, environmentally, but it tends to make you not the best person to work with.

[By which he means, it's very likely he might end up shooting someone. He'd really rather not do that, no matter how many of his close friends are people he's shot at one point or another.]

Oh. Ohhhh. Don't worry about that, Washington. I promise I'll still like you, even if we can't be at our best.

[They say, as if rejection is the scariest possibility and not "literally going to shoot a man."]

We can go quick, and maybe it won't be so bad, right? I'm sure all the sides of Washington are worth knowing.

It's not you I'm worried about.

[Without his helmet on, they can probably see his grimace, the way his eyes crease at the corners.]

It's physically easier, at least. If we move fast, there's no reason we can't get off the island and back to the mainland. It's not...like this place.

...It'll be fine. If we can avoid scorpions, we can avoid everything else too. And, uh, worst case scenario...? I can suppress people's hostility for a little bit, if I'm lucky. I can make sure nothing happens.

["If I'm lucky" probably isn't the most reassuring bit of word choice, but better to be truthful in all things. Human will isn't something that can - or should - be suppressed that easily, even in situations where doing so might actually be safer.]

What's the mainland like?

Ensō. It's where most of us end up, since it's the one island that never goes anywhere and - wait.

You can suppress people's hostility?

[It's a good thing they're on this side of the island - that helpfully cuts any paranoid, preemptive hostility that might've been a bit more typical for one Agent Washington, who instead mostly looks surprised. And maybe a little scared.]

Yeah. It's one of those Empath things. It doesn't always work, but when it does, I can make a ceasefire happen long enough to run away or agree to talk things out. Ooh, or suppress any magic-induced charm or fear! That came in super handy when we had to deal with a sea hag this one time. I've been thinking that it might be a good idea to use it if Eustace's violin tries to Command one of us to do something again, because I don't think Cash liked that at all, but... you definitely don't know who any of those people are, whoops.

Um, anyway, point is... yes, sometimes!

February Intro: Chasing Kairos

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