April Intro: Better Get to Digging

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: APRIL

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

Waking up to the gentle proddings of what appears to be very curious, sentient trees isn't the worst wake up call LifeAftr has to offer. For our newest arrivals, however, it may be a tad…odd.

Situated in the valley between two mountains, Elower is a scenic village filled with the friendly Roaka, tree-like beings that are rather peaceable and happy to assist those who have just arrived. I'’s a peaceful location for one to start their adventures - though, unfortunately, it doesn't stay peaceful for long.

Cahypdo: You'll Bury Me Low
Those who have explored the new island of Cahypdo in the last month will undoubtedly recall the series of quakes that shook the island throughout March. With the arrival of LifeAftr's newest adventurers comes Cahypdo's largest tremor to date, striking without warning and more than enough force to throw even the steadiest and sturdiest of your number to the ground. With a low rumble, the mountains heaped on either side of the island will start to shed an abundance of slag and debris, pouring down their slopes. Anyone who's scaling those peaks risks being flung bodily off them when the outpouring of shale comes roaring down those mountains, and anyone at the mountain bases risks being crushed beneath.

As one might expect, unsuspecting newcomers aren't all that have been shaken up. Though protected by netting and retaining walls, the cliffs around and above the village of Elower can only take so much pressure before giving way - a threshold that has been crossed entirely. With a sound like thunder, rocks fall.

Everyone dies? Only if you don't act quickly. Roaka housing is sturdy in build, enough to protect a decidedly less sturdy body from all but the heaviest of boulders. Hiding inside any of their village constructs built into the sides of the mountains will certainly save you from taking a new weight onto your shoulders. They will not, however, save you from being buried alive.

For those who become trapped inside any of those abodes, your options appear limited. Work to free yourself, or wait for help to arrive. Though, speaking of help, those outside may think to offer the Roaka a helping hand in getting their trapped people - and yours, at that - a few breaths of fresh air.

Before you suffocate.

Cahypdo: Stay Acting Brave
Such seismic activity will also stir up the local wildlife, of course. Those unfortunate enough to come across them will recognize the restless shark-dragon hybrids, hydrac, now prowling across the shorelines, while the wickedly fanged wabbits will also be far more frequent, traveling in larger numbers in the jungle and at the bases of the mountains. Taking care to avoid them would be wise - though another creature may make that venture much more difficult.

Lorbies have been unlocked in the bestiary! A strange mix between owl and serpent, the recent quake has clearly startled these usually reclusive creatures into the open. Alone, a lorby is a rather skittish animal, prone to hiding from most perceived threats. Useless for food due to the toxicity of their flesh, lorbies do have the potential to be tamed...but this comes with its own risks.

A lorby may be prone to flight rather than fight when encountered solo, but in groups, these feathery critters are far more hostile. A defensive lorby emits a piercing cry alone, but a group is an almost ear-piercing experience, capable of rendering the unfortunate unstable on their feet at best, and unconscious at worst. For the days that follow the severe earthquake that so rocked everyone's foundations, any hope for silence is lost in the infrequent bursts of almighty screeching by colonies of lorbies who have so rudely had their homes overturned and disturbed.

While the lorby is omnivorous, it may not think to take a bite at anything so much larger than them. That doesn't mean that conflict with these fluffy creatures won't attract something much more willing to take advantage of the fact that you may or may not have been reduced to a prone sack of meat. If something else does arrive, you best hope that it's a friendly face.

If you're interested in keeping a lorby for your own, bear LifeAftr's companion limit in mind - two per character, and no more. The lorby is omnivorous and can survive off of most odds and ends: insects, fruits, berries, critters it can dig up in the sand, and more. However, the process of trying to tame a lorby is not always successful. We recommend use of a d10, with the following guidelines:

Rolling a 10: Critical success! This lorby will love and adore you, and may even feel comfortable enough to drape itself along your neck like a beautiful, furry scarf, churring softly all the way.
Rolling 7-9: This lorby will prove high-strung and timid, even if safely befriended, and will take several weeks to warm up to you. But once it does, it's yours!
Rolling 2-6: Failure. The lorby enters a state of distress and starts screaming. Hope you brought earplugs, or you'll be snoozing for several long hours for your efforts.
Rolling a 1: Critical failure. Not only does the lorby start screaming, but its panic attracts a colony of its friends, and they all start screaming too.

Bear in mind that these are only guidelines; you are free to predetermine successes or failures as you'd like, presuming your character can sustain the companion! Our discord channel has a room for dice-rolls, if you prefer.

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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

[motherfucking_ghost]

Uh, it's a deserted jungle island with no electricity with a bunch of weirdos, it fucking sucks, and I'd say at least nobody's shooting at me, but I still got my guns and so does Wash, so I assume you've got 'em, too, and others also have to. And we gotta report to a god rabbit who just wants us to talk about the shit that's happened to us? Because ohhhh, storytelling, like whatever, go invent a tv.

[a_shadow]

[ That's something she'd been concerned about. ]

How...necessary is the storytelling, anyway?

[motherfucking_ghost]

Man, I dunno, I think there's basic stuff thaaaat's kind of compulsory? But you can just...keep talking. And that's kind of like a currency? I've only been here a month, I don't know all the ins and outs.

[a_shadow]

A currency?

[ Of all the things that would perk Tex's ears up. She wouldn't consider herself much of a storyteller, but if that's currency here... ]

[motherfucking_ghost]

What, did your dumb human ears go all deaf? Yeah, I guess you can ask for things if you tell more stories.

[a_shadow]

[ She falls silent at that, considering all the possibilities.

That may be a mistake, because she starts to notice again how tired and hungry she is. She tries to avoid it, not wanting him to notice, but she ends up yawning. ]

[motherfucking_ghost]

[His step stutters for just a second, looking at her.] Are you tired? You're tired and you're showing it?

[a_shadow]

[ Her head whips around to stare at him. Yeah, she kind of hoped he wouldn't remark on that. ]

Just tell me if we're almost there.

[motherfucking_ghost]

Yeah yeah, don't get your panties in a bunch.

...Hey, not that it's not kind of nice, but...is it just me, or are you a little bit...nicer than usual?

[a_shadow]

[ She snorts. ]

I can definitely stop that, if that works better.

[motherfucking_ghost]

No, no, it's uh...it's just...I kind of expected you to affectionately beat my head in. With love. So this is definitely better.

[a_shadow]

[ She shakes her head, rolling her eyes. ]

Just remember I'm capable of it and I probably won't have to do it.

[ She gestures in the direction of a hut up ahead. ]

Is that it?

[motherfucking_ghost]

Yeah! Yeah, that's the Denny. They can cook shit up for you, and there's tea, and there's I think like a blackberry whiskey or something like that? Just don't be an asshole and go crazy with it all.

[a_shadow]

I won't, believe me. I actually would go to bed first if I had the choice, I just know I'll feel better when I wake up if I eat something.

By the way, Washington invited me to live with you guys. I hope you have an actual bed I can sleep in.

[motherfucking_ghost]

Should have room for four, so I'm told. The tigerlily's probably gonna wanna cuddle on you. If you're...prone to bad dream or anything.

[a_shadow]

Tigerlily?

[ She heads in the door of the hut. The smells of food inside are so welcoming. She has pushed all day without eating and she really needs to. Her stomach growls, and she pulls off her helmet. ]

[motherfucking_ghost]

A tiger that's also a lily. It's...weird but won't kill you, so. Y'know. One of the few things around here that doesn't actually want to kill you.

[a_shadow]

That sounds promising.

[ She sits down and orders some food. Hopefully it won't take long to be brought to her. She yawns again, but this time she's adamant about stifling it. Not that Church isn't going to notice. She doesn't know it, but she has circles under her eyes. She does know this body is weaker and skinnier than it was before the coma. Church shouldn't realize that, though. ]

[motherfucking_ghost]

[Sure doesn't.] You look beat. You been pushing yourself? [Which is a stupid question. It's Tex. Of course she is.]

[a_shadow]

[ She doesn't have the energy to roll her eyes. ]

Don't make a big deal out of it.

[motherfucking_ghost]

Look, I'm not, you probably have gotten used to all this! Just... [When has he ever seen her look beat?] I don't want you to throw yourself into overdrive just cuz you're in a new place?

[a_shadow]

[ A glass of water is brought and she puts her hand on it while she answers. ]

Why would me being in a new place change anything?

[ She takes the glass and starts drinking its contents—which turns into guzzling it, because of course.

She puts the glass down when she's done. ]

Don't. Don't say anything else.