lifeaftr | May Intro: I'll Be Scrolling Through Your Shrine

INTRO LOG: MAY

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

With potentially odd dreams connecting you to people you've never met, in addition to the dream-lecture only recently received from a horned rabbit, LifeAftr surely doesn't need to try to be disconcerting upon arrival - and yet, it somehow continues to go the extra mile. While new arrivals will find themselves upon the now (mostly) safe shores of Ensō, there is one, small problem with where, precisely, they've happened to appear.

Chamber of Glyphs: It Was Written On Your Wall
Within the temple of the Storyteller, one may find a very special room. Betwixt the reality of waking and dreams, the Chamber of Glyphs appears to hold many unique features that allow it to appear wherever one may seek it, both in waking and sleep.

It is not, however, a good room to arrive within. Those seeking out the newest members of LifeAftr's adventuring party - and those who are simply looking to draw - will be greeted, upon entering the Chamber of Glyphs, with the most alarming sight. The small pile of backpacks, unattended, might be the first thing you notice, as well as the fact that they all seem to be adorned with names of those you might not know. Or the names of those that you do, but haven't seen in some time. Perhaps you met them in a dream...

And those of you who are newly arrived, you'll be able to see them searching. Unable to break the barrier between you with sound, you might feel the urge to wave your hands for attention, attracting searching eyes to the walls. Walls that you are now a part of. Hopefully this reduction to the second dimension is only temporary.

Those who took part in April's Test Drive Meme may have the benefit of familiarity, for what is etched onto the walls of the Chamber are never lacking life, regardless of the matter used to draw, paint, or sketch those contents.

With maneuverability somewhat akin to a sidescroller - always left or right, up and down, but never outward - the variety of scenes, animals, places, objects, and more are simply all the more to your advantage. Leap to the vantage point necessary to be noticed, as your fellow adventurers may be able to help you out of this predicament with a simple offer of their hand to tug you off the wall. It's an easy solution to your predicament, at least! All they need to do is take your hand to free you from your two-dimensional containment.

If it proves more difficult...well, at the least they know you're there to point out thanks to a very tired Storyteller, who will be certain to let anyone in the vicinity know that you're in need of help within the Chamber of Glyphs, before one of the many, many monsters that have been scribbled onto stone lay claim to you instead.

What kind of monsters, you ask? All of them, of course.

Ensō: Rain Hell
But maybe you don't wake up written on the walls! Maybe you're just relieved to get unstuck from those walls and need a breath of fresh air. Or maybe you don't have any reason to go poking around in search of new arrivals at all. That does not mean, however, that you won't be encountering a new arrival of your own in the interim.

The sky is clouded over and gray, despite the sun overhead and the generally warm weather. The nights are filmed over with a screen of pale dust. This has little to do with the forecast and more to do with the volcanic eruption that occurred just a few weeks prior, on another island in the archipelago. You don't need to worry about the nature of the ash still drifting on the wind currents - aside from the more standard obstruction of sight and airways, it is, at this point, more or less perfectly ordinary. Though if you've got some fragile lungs, you might want to stay out of it as much as possible.

More important is the creature that the hazy cast of ash and dust has coaxed out of hiding. Perhaps you've heard of it in folklore: resplendent with dark gray, furry wings, and glistening red eyes. Or, perhaps, you're less fortunate, and you've no cultural experience regarding the strange monster known colloquially only as...Mothman.

At over seven feet tall and with a wingspan of about fifteen feet, the Mothman makes for far more fearsome a sight than it does a threat. For all intents and purposes, despite the devilish red of its glowing eyes and its large, hairy stature, the Mothman is ultimately quite harmless. It does, however, tend to inspire paranoia in fear in the hearts and minds of those it encounters. And this smokescreen in the air has created the perfect environment for it to hunt.

It doesn't want your flesh, or your bones, or anything so base. It only wants your mind, in a sense; your fear and whatever primal terror it may ignite by preying on your paranoia. It will stalk you, rustling the leaves behind you, snapping twigs to your left, allowing you a glimpse of bright crimson eyes before dispersing into the surrounding, ashy murk. The good news is that once it has you scared, it has no intention of sticking around - and its wings makes it incredibly fast, when it wants to be. Anyone who attempts to attack it directly will discover just how speedy it can be, assuming that the air from its wingbeats don't end up pinning you flat to the ground from the sheer force.

The Mothman can be killed, most likely...but there are a lot of you, and only one cryptid for an entire island. It's not likely to want to stay in one place if it feels it's outnumbered, or that it's about to be attacked by someone who isn't so easily stricken by the fear and suspicion it endeavors to ignite. Those who wish to escape it can at least take heart in the fact that the Mothman abhors open spaces, largely preferring the sanctuary of woodland and greenery; all one has to do is reach Ensō's shores to be largely safe from its influence.

Though you could try killing it too, of course. If you wanted.

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'm right here."

Genji doesn't get struck by the scalpel, which is probably lucky. It looks like it would hurt. He also can't blame the man for his lashing out - fear makes people do...dangerous things. Terrible things. Ridiculous things, too, if the paper bag is any indication.

Still, he's not one to judge.

Unfortunately, having the source of the voice revealed to him does not do anything for his frayed nerves - which is why Faust has now whirled around, reeling back with his scalpel in one hand like a professional javelin thrower, and launched it forth with killing intent!

"BEGONE, DEMONSPAWN!!!"

He realises far too late that his intended target looks nothing like the creature that's been haunting him. In fact, they look like nothing he's ever seen or heard of in his life - even compared to the other more bizarre individuals he's met here on the isles!
And he just threw an oversized harpoon at them. Oh dear.

Geez, you could cool it with the dramatics. Genji's just out here trying to be nice.

But the scalpel thrown like a javelin doesn't bother him. Genji raises his blade, deflecting it aside to crash among the trees. His reaction times are quick - inhumanly so - and it's not the first time someone's attacked him on sight.

It probably won't be the last.

"Are you done?"

On the one hand, the suspicious individual appears wholly unharmed by Faust's brash actions, which is relieving.
On the other hand?
WHAT.
WHAT?!

"-How did you...?! A-are you okay...?"

The sudden lack of weaponry sets in immediately, and the good doctor makes the executive decision to prioritise strength in numbers over five feet worth of thick steel being tossed aside like a fallen leaf. But don't think he's forgetting that any time soon, Genji.
A twig snaps somewhere in the brush behind Faust, causing him to jump and spend several seconds sending looks between the foliage and the strangely construct-like individual...before making a break for the newcomer, if only because there's now decisive evidence this isn't their doing.

"Listen! We need to get out of here, right now, it's not safe...!"

"I am fine," Genji says like he didn't just do something that might have been impossible for someone to do. He's learned a few tricks from Overwatch, one could say. He tilts his head when the man rushes nearer - geez, he's tall - and hums thoughtfully.

"Do you mean because of the creature that lurks in the shadows?"

"Yes, because of the creature that lur-!
WAIT, YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS?! Why are you still here?!"

Who willingly subjects themselves to being hunted down by a horrifying stalking monster?! Faust can barely restrain himself from grabbing this...individual...and shaking them by the shoulders! He settles for further gesticulating, as if some hand motions will make his point easier to comprehend, but doesn't get very far before the trees behind him start rustling.

"-! Damn it, just start running and don't look back!"

He's beyond terrified of this abomination, nerves whittled down to nothing from the constant paranoia and glimpses of the creature, but the knowledge this other person could also be in danger gives the good doctor just enough courage to try and stand his ground...if only to buy the stranger time. He turns his back on Genji, inexplicably producing his giant scalpel back from within the depths of his suit, and takes up his fighting stance.
It's a very shaky, unbalanced stance, but it's still a stance nonetheless.

"Of course I know," he says, sounding more amused than terrified. He's been in these woods for a little bit. A creeping shadow that spreads feelings of dread and despair isn't easy to ignore.

He doesn't run when Faust tells him to, instead watching the man. He doesn't want to reach out to him, because that's likely to get him attacked again, so he simply cocks his head and calls out to him. "I do not think this is something you can fight."

May Intro: I'll Be Scrolling Through Your Shrine

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