August Intro: These Days Are Feeling Dark

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: AUGUST

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

Our lucky new adventurers join the archipelago on a new chapter of our journey, with the new island of Nastrandir playing host to their arrival. With the events of last month leaving many questions in those more settled in LifeAftr, all will find they soon have…other things to think about.

New arrivals may awake at either of the locations listed below. Or they may wander!

A4: Show Me Distraction
In comparison to the warm welcome characters experienced on Io, the land of Nastrindir is not at all promising. The strip of coast hosting the mana pool is a scoop of rock and cliff, and rather unforgiving. To the east, however, it looks as though nearby wetlands leave the horizon lost in a foggy haze. The mana pool is generally a comforting, reliable constant on any island...generally. There looks to be something wrong with this one. The rocks surrounding it are blackened, various spots across their surface almost glass-like under the summer sun. After a brief inspection, most will probably gather that the pool has been set on fire in times past.

More annoying still is the tampering that's occured within the pool. The pool is partially obstructed, due to a blockage of tumbled rocks and boulders that seem to have fallen from the surrounding rocky landscape and toppled into the raised plinth. The choking of the mana water will make return trips to Ensō…inconvenient, to say the least. The rocks are an annoyance that will need to be removed before anyone will be travelling anywhere. Also of note are the old statues that stand at opposing sides of the mana pool. In their prime, they may have towered a good fifteen or twenty feet tall. Now, however, one has been tipped onto its side, and there are large, crumbled chunks taken out of the other. Both look blackened, much like the mana pool, as though they were also set on fire at some point in their history. Whatever they may have meant to depict has been lost to time...but the parts of them that have survived look to represent smooth, rounded coils of something or another.

It might feel, to the particularly wary or those prone to paranoia, like these statues are watching you. Like they're representative of something else that might have its eye on you, even now.

Or they might not! It could be all in your head. What's way more important is the local flora in the vicinity. The parts of the land that have soil are currently host to some delightful plants that are known, colloquially, as candyplants. And, yes - they're exactly what they sound like. Candyplants are odd plants that are not unlike a melon vine, except that their fruits take the form of giant candies. The candyfruit is quite edible, though much higher in sugar content than your more bog standard varieties of fruits and vegetables. The variation in the shapes and sizes and flavors is tremendous - some are shaped like fruit, and will have a very similar taste to the fruit they represent. The only exceptions are the ones that look rather like overgrown candy corn, which taste like...marshmallows, for some reason. But they still taste sweet, and they're still full of some of the nutrients you'd expect to find in ordinary fruit!

While candyplants are somewhat less sugary than their real candy equivalents, it's still not recommended that you gorge on them overmuch. They're probably pretty bad for your teeth, if you have any. Candyplants do keep for quite some time, though - particularly if dried, packed in jars, or otherwise preserved.

Candyplants grow in temperate areas near quantities of fresh water - which Nastrandir has in abundance. Most of them grow in shaded, open areas along the ground, like melons; plants that bear smaller candyfruits may instead behave like grapes and other climbing vines, especially when they would be otherwise crowded out by other ground plants. The plants and fruits are quite harmless, though the sweet, sugary smell that tends to linger around areas of rampant growth during hot weather can cause one hell of migraine.

B4: Snakes Are Biting at My Heels
Those who arrive a little ways away from the mana pool or find themselves daring enough to start exploring will end up on the B4 square, which is closer to the swampy environment more characteristic of Nastrandir's inland. The further east one progresses, the wetter and softer the ground underfoot will get, until you're slogging thigh-deep in freshwater algae and muck. It's pretty dirty work, but it's probably more advisable that you go roaming into the wetlands rather than sticking around in the rockier regions. - especially because those regions happen to be occupied.

That feeling of paranoia that may or may not have settled on the back of your neck on A4 will turn out to be justified. Flickers of motion in the corner of your eye, the sensation of something watching you, the clattering of pebbles and rocks sliding down the sloping inclines on Nastrandir's craggy landscape - all signs indicative that something else frequents this region.

And something does. Something large, scaly, and very hungry.

Rocobra have now been unlocked in the bestiary!
The spiny protrusions on this creature's long, sinuous body will make it quite difficult to distinguish from its surroundings; these beasts tend to disguise themselves as the surrounding mountain rock where they live. Mild chameleonic properties allow this predator to blend almost seamlessly in with a rocky environment of almost any texture and color. And, given the size of them, it's very possible you won't realize that you're stuck in one's coils until it's too late.

With thick, scaly hides, large jaws, and venomous teeth, the rocobra is deadly fast despite its significant bulk. Even at their smallest, the rocobra is often as thick as a tree trunk in girth, and can range from thirty to sixty feet in length. Rocobra specialize in draping themselves in a circle, concealing themselves among their surroundings, and waiting for unsuspecting prey to wander somewhere in their coils before drawing tight around them to constrict them into a slow and painful death, so they might be devoured.

The good news is that rocobra only ever hunt and live in solitude; it is highly unlikely you'll find more than one in any one area. Most cannot spit venom, but can deal a paralyzing strike with massive fangs that are just as likely to impale you as they are to poison you. The good news is that they do have a weakness, and that weakness is numbers - when there is more than one target for the rocobra to focus on, it can get hopelessly confused over who it should be striking first, and can be easily distracted and led along by a well-coordinated team or pair. It's advised that you strike it at the mouth, if possible, as those scales can be awfully hard to penetrate.

While the danger rocobra present is very real, that doesn't mean they're completely useless. Rocobra can potentially be harvested for venom, meat, or their tough, scaly hides.

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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

[bibliophilicbells]

[Are those — are those stars in Aziraphale's eyes?

He smiles. Beams, even.]

Oh, I know someone you really must meet.

[But then, a frown.

A rather sad one, at that.]

...once I find him. My — my best friend. [THERE. HE SAID IT.] A demon who goes by the name Crowley. He should be here, too. It seems we were regrettably separated on our journey in.

[eudaimonikos]

[A demonic best friend? It's a little hypocritical of him, maybe, but he can't see why. Must be some story there.]

You're sure he's here? All my humans - my Janet - I was with them when this happened to me, but they're still back at home.

[There's an ache of love there, one that doesn't really show itself on his face even now. Not with someone he's really only just met; it's too painful for that.]

[bibliophilicbells]

[It doesn't show, no, but Aziraphale can feel that love. It pangs directly between his ribs, is strong enough to make him flinch — but he says nothing of it. Merely tucks the fact away for later.

Yes, he thinks Michael and Crowley will get on very well.

Crowley, who is definitely here. Who has to be here. Aziraphale can't even consider, can't fathom, can't imagine a world where they'd be apart — truly separated, for the first time in six thousand years.

He forces a smile.]

Oh, I'm sure. I can feel him.

[He... thinks.]

[eudaimonikos]

[Can he? Michael doesn't feel another demon around. He'd have noticed another demon.

But that would be a cruel thing to say. Maybe Aziraphale is just more attuned to his friend. Maybe not. His doubts can only hurt.]

Well, that's good. I hope you can find him. [more hurty love feelings] Although you should probably try to sober up first. My vessel hasn't worked right since I got here, it needs food and water and all this stuff...

[bibliophilicbells]

Oh, that's what —

[He gestures at the champagne-soaked spot on the ground.]

That's what that was.

[Pause. This Michael seems like a very kind fellow, all things con—wait what did he just say.]

— pardon?

[eudaimonikos]

Uh - you're going to need to eat and drink, and sleep. Not as often as a human, just...sometimes...

[He looks back and forth between the wet spot in the dirt and Aziraphale as he speaks, until he can't let it go anymore.]

What?

[bibliophilicbells]

Well, I already do that plenty, so...

[And now he can do it with even less shame!

So, like, negative shame!]

Wh— oh. Um, I said, that's what that was. I wasn't... [He suddenly breaks into a giggle, realization dawning.] Oh, Heavens, no! I wasn't refilling that! That wasn't to drink!

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael squints down at the mug.]

Do you do that by removing the alcohol on the molecular level? I always just sort of vaporized it. [...] Wait, you can still do things like that?

[bibliophilicbells]

...I'm not quite sure about the mechanics of it, to be honest.

[Aziraphale looks at Michael, looks at his own hand. His fingers. He's tempted to try for another miracle, but —

Well, it'd be embarrassing if he tried and failed.]

It still works. I still work. Maybe I'm just on the fritz. I can still feel love, so that's at least working properly. My wings...

[He trails off, muttering mostly to himself. He can't just bring his wings out anywhere, but he can still feel those, too, fluttering elsewhere out of view.]

[eudaimonikos]

What the hell? All the stuff I make just vanishes after a day! I mean, I think I might still be able to screw with people a little, but I haven't tried it...

[Uggggggh, this is bullshit. He is gonna go to the Storyteller and bitch about this!]

Wait, you can feel love?

[bibliophilicbells]

[Aziraphale tries to reason this out in his mind, thinking: Well, maybe, since the champagne didn't come from here... since he brought it with him...

But Michael asks that next question, and Aziraphale can't help but blush anyway.]

Well, yes. I'm an angel. I'm so sorry, I know those feelings are private, but I can't help it.

[And anyway, that's how he knows Crowley must be nearby. Somewhere. He can feel —





Very carefully, very neatly, he packs that thought away. Later. He can deal with that later. It's fine.]

[eudaimonikos]

What do - oh, no.

[He talked and thought about his friends! Oh no! He's been outed as a big fucking softie!]

I mean, it's...they're...they're very good.

[bibliophilicbells]

[For the first time since arriving (and since he is now sober enough for it), Aziraphale allows some of his True Angelic Nature to shine through. He smiles, all compassion and understanding, and reaches out to gently touch Michael's hand.]

I know. Don't worry — I won't tell a soul.

[eudaimonikos]

[Oh, boy, Michael is suddenly even more uncomfortable with this - ]

I'm not...ashamed of them. Everybody knows, back home, after everything I've done. I just don't usually...

[you know, go broadcasting his feelings to goddamn everybody, it feels like a risk]

[bibliophilicbells]

[Pat, pat. There, there.

Aziraphale draws his hand away and promptly comes to his next realization.]

...oh! I should introduce myself. My name is Aziraphale. Thank you for stopping to speak with me.

[eudaimonikos]

Boy, that got real fast!

[Michael chuckles a little, because holy shit let's deflect!]

I'm Michael. Nice to meet you.

[bibliophilicbells]

[Holy shit indeed. Aziraphale wants to shrug like, hey, what can you do? – but Michael’s name is... well, uncomfortably familiar. He makes a bit of a face, almost reflexively.]

Ah. That’ll take some getting used to.

[eudaimonikos]

What...exactly?

[Reasonably common name, isn't it?]

[bibliophilicbells]

[With an uneasy, borderline-angry grin:] Michael’s one of the Archangels who wanted to destroy me and Crowley. She was – well, working for both sides. I suppose they were in cahoots, in the end.

[eudaimonikos]

...that's very biblical.

[Yeah, he guesses he kinda knew Archangel Michael was like, a thing. Not a real thing, but a thing.]

[bibliophilicbells]

[Simply:] Yes.

[What else would it be?]

I’m a Principality. I was originally assigned to guard the Eastern Gate of Eden.

[eudaimonikos]

[..........]

What, literally?

[bibliophilicbells]

Literally.

[eudaimonikos]

.....okay.

[There's so much to unpack there, he doesn't even know where to start.]

I feel like I should note that Satan's not a real thing, where I'm from. None of that...stuff.

[bibliophilicbells]

[And now it's Aziraphale's turn to ?????]

...then how are you a demon? Who do you report to?