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

[in4apounding]

»Arrival«
[Well. That was a really weird set of dreams. That almost had to be a dream, right? They'd been talking to the survivors, the one's who'd escaped, and something had gone wrong with the phones- and then she'd been dreaming? It had felt vaguely like her returning memories during their time on the space station, only oddly more surreal in the aftermath. Pyrrha Nikos had been there? But so had numerous other people she didn't know. The studio being defeated, everyone going free- that felt too good to be true, now.]

[And now she was here, being woken up by some. Walking plant people she hadn't seen before. Someplace she'd never been. With a backpack and. A walking flowerpot with a face? She carried it protectively. It was shaped like a friend, she needed to keep it safe.]

Akira? Zombina? Max?

[Something had obviously gone wrong with whatever Miss Skullqueen had been trying. The simulation had been reset. The Champions who'd been there longer had said it had happened a few times before. Maybe this was meant as some kind of punishment for contacting the outside, trying to expose the studio? Regardless, the first thing she needs to do is find everyone else. Anyone else.]

»Bury Me Low«
HOLD ON.

[Or there could be a rockslide. That was a thing that could happen.]

[Penny is currently clambering over a pile of rubble blocking up one of the Roaka homes, dislodging boulders as carefully as she can. Maybe the Roaka that inhabit this place are just simulations, data in a computer without actual life, like the wildlife that had filled the previous simulation, but. Empathy game too strong. There are people or people-like things in danger, she has to help. Nevermind the possibility that some of her friends might be trapped inside.]

[Bianca the Walking Hotpot is hopping excitedly up and down on top of the pile of rubble nearby, occasionally kicking off a small pebble or piece of debris. She's helping.]

»Wildcard«
[Come at me.]

arrival

[antepone]

[ Her first thought is that the girl is new. Why else would she be calling out for people that--likely--aren't here, and carrying a knapsack? ]

Excuse me--did you just arrive?

[ But it's better to ask than assume. ]

Rockslide

[forwearemany]

(Legion, seeing the girl attempt to dislodge rocks, decides to come over and help. They're strong, and heavy, and with the two of them working at this, it should take considerably less time.

Probably a good thing, given that there are people in need of saving.

Admittedly, Penny may or may not find herself a bit distracted by the fact that they are very obviously a robot, not even trying to hide what they are with a Human form or anything.)

Bury Me Low

[cacoethes_mori]

[What she'll hear is the loud, awful sound of hooves and claws on stone--clattering and scraping, not two or four but six limbs, nine feet of centaur (of a sort) on all sixes as he makes his way over the boulders and scree to survey the site of such minor (or major?) calamity.

He was not expecting to find anyone on top of the rubble, however. It gives him a moment of pause.

A rare moment during which she has the opportunity to get the first word in.

Or like... punch this thing in the face.

Whichever.]

Arrival

[tokenflavortownie]

[Pyrrha had made her declaration to explore the new island resolute at the start of the month, and that meant interacting with the walking tree people. That. Went better than she feared.

At least when she hears someone calling out in the Roaka village, she can tell it probably isn't a Roaka. No, this sounds familiar.

Too familiar.]

Penny?

[She knew that dream felt far too real, just like the others that happened from time to time. She'd met Penny, they talked, and she woke up. And now, the fellow ginger was wandering around, with a knapsack on her back, and a... that sure is a flower pot.

Okay, she can do this.]

Penny! [She calls, louder, hopefully less nervous.] Penny Polendina?

Agent Texas ★ OTA ★ Will match style

[a_shadow]

Arrival—

Tex awakens, immediately alert, but not a bit alarmed to realize she's been awakened by a walking tree. After inquiring of the roaka who had awakened her, she learns of the recent earthquakes. She finds the knapsack with her name on it and other associated effects, and begins carrying them. Unlike many of the new arrivals here, Tex had recently been in another world similar to this, traveling on a spaceship called the Moira. She doesn't realize she's been ported to yet another universe—she thinks this is just another planet the Moira is passing by. Though she doesn't know why she awoke on the planet and not in the ship. Nor why she's in her armor, as she hadn't been wearing it when she fell asleep.

When Tex encounters people who weren't on the ship, that will probably pique her understanding of what has happened. Meanwhile, she's keeping a sharp eye out. People who are familiar with current and former Freelancer residents of LifeAftr will probably recognize her armor, and register the fact that black is a brand-new color around these parts.

Bury Me Low—

Tex is protected when the rocks begin to fall, her armor being a sturdy shell in her defense. In addition, when they begin falling she's able to start running on their tops, leaping from rock to rock and even making her way up the slope to get out of the reach of the most danger. Eventually the rumbling stops, and the rock slide comes to a halt. Tex is tired—this human body she was given when she arrived on the Moira is recovering from a recent injury, and she tires more easily than she would like. But she's strong enough to press on and run into the village, calling out to those who are trapped in the houses.

"Anyone in there?" she shouts at a roof line or dormer window. "Everyone okay?"

Wildcard—

(( Think of anything else you'd like to do with Tex? Tag in or run it by me at texelations! ))

Yukio Okumura | OTA

[reflash]

Wake and Quake
[Yukio doesn't have to open his eyes anymore, not since the implant in his forehead and the extra eyes scattered across his skin. He does wake up though, main eyes opening and focus coming back to his vision through the others, tongue flicking out and catching.... very different scents than he was expecting, and Yukio rolls to his knees, summoning his throwing knife to his hand.

The tree-people seem friendly, and not too startled to see Yukio despite his lack of glamour. But this isn't the Summerlands, and he should be in the Summerlands right now. He's displaced, unsettled, and while he seems to have all of his things he can't smell anyone familiar.

There's a few minutes of exploration, of cautiously moving around the small village and quietly looking for signs of familiar faces. If Rin was here he'd be yelling, if Shura was here she'd be lounging somewhere obvious. West would be loud or causing a scene, Carly would be blatantly obvious, Reira would be quietly sitting and watching, Yukio knows the habits of Carnival members right now, knows where he should expect to find people and what they should be doing.

And then his attempt at figuring out what the heck is going on is interrupted by a rumble that grows into a steady roar, and Yukio runs towards the nearest shelter.]

Get inside! [He yells, if it looks like you need some encouragement. If you're not moving quickly enough, you might find your arm being grabbed firmly (and maybe not quite carefully enough) by a clawed hand as Yukio pulls you towards at least temporary safety.]

????????
[No, seriously, ??????

Yukio is trying to figure out what the hell this creature is. Or, he was, at first, but now it's just kind of devolved into a staring competition with a furby.

Yukio has too many eyes to lose this one.]

Wildcard
[The third option.]

Michael | OTA

[eudaimonikos]

a: way down in hadestown

[So. There was an earthquake. And now Michael's trapped in a tree-person house that's been entombed in the earth.

All in all, Michael is fairly calm about this!

He paces around to investigate all the potentially-weakest spots, looking more annoyed at the inconvenience than anything. As far as he knows, it's not like he can suffocate or anything; he just doesn't wanna be stuck in this dumb house.]

Okay. This is fine. Someone's going to come get us out eventually. Just gotta chill out until then. [what's a normal thing to do in this circumstance...] Anybody got a deck of cards?

b: this is the bad place

[After extricating himself (or, more likely, being extricated) from the house he was buried in, Michael brushes himself off and goes to walk around the island some more. Maybe some of his friends ended up here too. Failing that, maybe he can help dig some other people out of the earth or something.

Instead of either of those, he encounters the greatest thing he's ever seen.

His gasp at seeing the lone lorby could be taken as one of horror, except that he immediately crouches down to try to coax the thing over. This thing is already hanging out behind him, so it looks like we're just collecting an army of hellish followers here.]

Oh, look at you! You're horrendous! It's okay, come here...

[He doesn't have any food or anything. He's just waving a hand at it like a guy who's apparently so much as interacted with a cat in his life.]

c: wildcard

[come at me bro]

B

[everylittlesecret]

[Well, Nari guesses someone has to find these abominations "cute". Was this the situation going on right now? Who knows. She certainly doesn't. She's just been watching these fubr-monstrosities exist and studying how to best avoid them.]

Careful. You never know if they might be potentially lethal.

[goat_mom]

Arrival

[Her first though upon waking up is: Oh. That was not a dream. She tries to remember what she dreamed about, but those memories are already escaping her, outside of a few key facts.

She's in another dimension, where time works differently.

Chara is alive.

And Frisk is here with them.

There's no time to waste, she thinks. She has to find out where they are. So she puts her knapsack on and starts trying to find them. One might see an old goat woman wandering through the village, going up to random people and asking:]

Have you seen two children? Their names are Frisk and Chara. They are about [She mimes their heights with her paw.] this tall. They are with a man called Tim?

Bury Me Low

[Fortunately, Toriel manages to avoid being crushed by the boulders. She instead tries to lend her aid, using her strength, to lifting the boulders off the houses and freeing whoever's trapped inside.

She says, to anyone buried under the rocks:] Do not fret! You will be free soon.

[She's pretty hardy, but the more she does it, the more tired she looks, until her forehead fur is drenched with sweat and she's struggling to even lift the smaller rocks. She could use a hand...]

Stay Acting Brave

[Once the rocks are freed and she's met people, she decides to explore the island a bit. She figures she might as well get the lay of the land, if she's going to be trapped here against her will.

When she does, she encounters a Lorby. She doesn't seem at all bothered by its... strange appearance. In fact, she reaches out for one gently and tries to coax it to her, like any other animal. The Lorby looks... unsure, but approaches her slowly.]

Very good. Come closer to me, will you not?

[eudaimonikos]

Basically everything is, if it tries hard enough.

[He replies, not looking up from his attempts to get the lorby to come closer. He wants to looooook at it! Maybe...does he have food? He has this jug.]

Do you want some... [He sniffs it and frowns.] ...I think this is rubbing alcohol.

bad place

[scourgingstars]

[And then there's this amalgamation of malice in an entirely absurd outfit and a hat. This is fine.]

You do realize that thing's liable to sprout a thousand teeth and rip your arms off. Far be it from me to discourage you, but if you get horribly maimed someone's going to lecture me about doing a silly thing like warning people of dangerous wildlife.

a:

[a_shadow]

[ Tex is ignorant of Michael's pacing and bloviating inside the house. She just knows when she's spots it that it's yet another roof line of a place that's been buried in the rock slide.

Tex is tired by now. She's been moving rocks for quite a while. But she's not ready to give up and rest, not yet. She might soon, but not yet.

She approaches the roof line and tries to find a dormer window she can shout through. ]

Anyone in this one?

[eudaimonikos]

No problem, I can make new -

[He glances up, does a double-take, and sits up on his heels.]

- what the fuck are you?

[eudaimonikos]

Yeah! Just me.

[Michael's still pretty chill about this, even if he's pretty bored by this point.]

[atailoftwoworlds]

A - For Castor

[Well, the good news is Zidane managed to quickly dive inside a nearby house and be unharmed. The bad news is that he’s now trapped. Not giving up though, he immediately starts trying to pull the rubble out of the way. However, while he can deal with some of it, he’s not strong enough to pull move the bigger rocks.]

Ugh. C’mon! Move……

Dammit!

[And with frustration, he kicks a rock. Which he immediately discovers is a bad idea.]

Whoaaaaaaaah! Geez!

[As some more rocks start tumbling down in front of him and he just manages to dodge out of the way before they can collapse on him.

Maybe a certain person heard him?]

B - Everyone

[After being rescued, Zidane has no time to rest. He’s grateful to the person who rescued him (well, he owes Castor) but other people are trapped too. So he’s busy kneeling in front of houses, trying to get some of the rubble out. Maybe you’re the poor unfortunate person who’s been trapped.]

Hang on! I’m on it…….oh man…..all right, this might take a while but I’m right on it!

C – Everyone

[Okay what the hell is that creature. No seriously, what the hell is that? Zidane has no idea. But that scream almost knocked him off his feet.

Just as well, the lorby turned tail and slithered away as fast as it can. Zidane manages to get his balance back.]

Phew….man, what a shock. At least it doesn’t seem aggressive though? I think…..?

[a_shadow]

[ Tex studies the pile of rocks. This one's going to be tricky. ]

You might have to squeeze out of a little space. I don't know if I can move the rock covering the left half of the window.

[ The stuff on the right half should be cake, though. ]

[scourgingstars]

...Pardon?

[Ardyn frowned sharply, tilting his hat back enough to look at Michael with decidedly not human yellow eyes.]

Some people at least start with 'hello'.

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael contemplates the space. He might be able to move the other rock, but not from this angle; there's really nowhere to brace himself well enough to push.

Well, the skinniness had to come in handy sometime.]

I'll give it a shot.

[a_shadow]

Stand back until I get the others out of the way.

[ Tex hadn't anticipated how tired this would make her on top of how tired she'd already become, though. She heaves a couple rocks out of the way before deciding that she has to give in. ]

I'm not done yet. Just gotta...sit...for a minute.

[ Ugh, she hates how weak she sounds. She wouldn't have this problem if she was using her robot body. ]

[eudaimonikos]

[That...is true.

Michael's unbothered by the yellow eyes; he's more concerned about, you know, every other thing going on there. There's - it's not a demon like him, but it's also not exactly not. Weird demonic hivemind, maybe?]

...fair enough. Hi, I'm Michael.

[scourgingstars]

Ardyn.

[He didn't really get casual conversation in a general sense, but that had obviously caught him off guard as an opener.]

You aren't seriously going to try taming that thing, are you?

brave

[a_shadow]

[ Tex is still in her armor, even now, even though things seem pretty safe. She's resting on a stone nearby when Toriel approaches one of the creatures that she's seen in the area, and she can't help smirking in amusement when Toriel calls out to it. ]

Watch out, you don't know if they bite.

[everylittlesecret]

True. That's why I only keep a pet cat back home.

[Though house cats could kill their owners.]

Rubbing alcohol tends to be deadly in large amounts, so might want to hold off on that. Animals shouldn't have alcohol anyways.

[eudaimonikos]

Okay, no problem. I'll just wait in my subterranean prison!

[He's not even all that mad, he just can't help but be a bit of a dick.

Michael goes to inspect it. How far's she gotten, can he see out a bit?]