November Undercurrent: And We Give Thanks

[lifeaftr_mods]

NOVEMBER UNDERCURRENT

Who: Everyone!
What: Have you told someone you loved them yet?
When: November 3rd to November 20th
Where: Everywhere!
Warnings: Nothing of note; please mark if anything comes up!

Take Me Back to the Reasons Why
The Water wishes to demonstrate their power to you, as well as just what they mean, when they suggest that they require your cooperation. They are going to bring back the harvest island of Nuidan, a generally fondly remembered island that explorers have encountered in the past. What's more, they're going to require your help to do it.

Starting November 3rd, characters will discover a simple strip of dark leather among their belongings, meant to be worn around the neck or wrist. They can disregard it, of course, but if they attempt to discard or destroy it, it will always find its way back to them, no matter how improbable this might seem. How strange...

Perhaps even stranger is the sudden appearance of a smooth slab of stone, half-submerged in the waters just off of Ensō's coast. It's an altar, and around its edges are a series of deep notches, as though something is meant to be inserted into them. In its center is a pool of water, though it curiously doesn't seem to reflect anything.

The purpose of this will only really become obvious once the month goes on. Characters will find themselves to compelled to be honest with the people around them as to why they care, why they appreciate them as people, or what they like most about them. This compulsion can vary wildly and at the player's discretion, from a gentle mental pressure to an unstoppable force, and anything in between!

The bottom line is that every time one admits to some feeling of gratitude, no matter how small or big, their little plait of leather will receive a crystal from the interaction. All crystals will be roughly the same shape, but they may vary in color, pattern, and texture. Some might be simple sticks of quartz, while others might be comprised of myriad, ever-changing swirls of color. Again, the only limit here is your imagination. Now the presence of that strange, altar-shaped stone in the water might make a bit more sense. Those notches in its sides are the perfect size and shape to fit a crystal smoothly into any one of them. The more grateful interactions one has with others, the more crystals they will gather, and the more they can fit into the altar. As more crystals are fed to the altar, it will start to glow. The pool of water at the altar's top will start to reflect the likeness island of Nuidan in increasing clarity, as though one is peering at its likeness in a snowglobe. What's more is that the number of crystals in the altar will very obviously affect Nuidan's state: very few crystals will make the island look as though it is mostly wilderness only a handful of structures in dire need of repair, while a great deal of crystals will cause the island to look as though it is thriving, in full bloom, and in more need of harvest than maintenance.

But, ultimately, the state in which Nuidan returns to you is up to you...and how far you're willing to go to express a little gratitude. Don't worry if you don't know anyone, either - this marks a great opportunity to start doing nice things for people, even if you don't know them! You've got most of the month to get to know each other, after all.

Don't think you can get away with heaping compliments on your closest friends and companions, however; variety is the name of the game here. While you can collect all sorts of crystals for personal use from repeat interactions, you can only feed one crystal to the altar per person. That is to say, Character A can be as grateful to Character B as they like, but only one crystal from each character can be delivered to the altar. If they want to procure more for the altar's purposes, Character A will have to have a positive interaction with Character C, and so on.

Take Me Back to That Big Sky

Of course, there's a lot going on in the background as well. You're free to use this log as a catch-all for the duration of November's Undercurrent Event, as well as the other minor events listed on our Monthly Rundown post. You are very, very free to let your dreams about creepers and baby lorbies become reality, and you are always free to create your own individual logs and posts as needed.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them over on our Monthly Rundown post!

November Timeline

[ ♆ ] November 3rd: "And We Give Thanks" begins and lasts until November 20th
[ ♆ ] November 4th: "Aw, Man" begins and lasts until November 12th
[ ♆ ] November 11th: "The Lorblings" begins and lasts until November 25th
[ ♆ ] November 20th: Nuidan returns to the archipelago
[ ♆ ] November 21st: "Return to Your Roots" begins and lasts until November 30th

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[hyperlit]

how to work together

[How to trust implicitly in the heat of a conflict so immense that one cannot second guess whether it is a wise thing to take a fellow soldier's hand, but can only do it and have faith that it will proceed to an agreeable end result. That sort of faith - that is not something that comes naturally to a creature who is used to fighting most of their battles alone.]

[But they've never really been alone here, have they?]

[Not really.]

[lesbeau]

[That... actually kind of takes her by surprise. It's not something she would have said about herself at the start of her journey, where she was always looking over her shoulder to see what would go next. But the thing about Beau is that when she needed help, it always came. Something worked out if she liked it or not. So she just... did.

Hearing it as some kind of good thing just feels foreign, but Beau knows they're not wrong.]

Oh. Uh. Glad it helped. You shouldn't have to do everything alone if you don't have to.

[She pauses, just a moment, before muttering a finisher--]

'Sides, you.. didn't have to come get me. But you did. So.

[hyperlit]

do not leave allies behind

[That's just common sense, after all. They've had allies before, but the very first one that they can ever recall having - the first one that was not a god, in any case - did not have support, and so they died in the rain, succumbing to illness and injury, alone but for their silent fellow drifter.]

[They don't intend to allow the same failure to occur again. Not again.]

proud to fight beside you

[lesbeau]

[The edge of her mouth ticks to the side, a little grin of something that feels more genuine than she can explain.]

Yeah, well. Wouldn't take you along to do crazy stuff if you weren't really good at it. So I am too.

[They can watch her six anytime-- besides, they've already technically stabbed her in the back, so there isn't really a "down" to go from here.]

[hyperlit]

thank you

[The gratitude is sincere, even if it is a little awkward. They're unused to these sorts of expressions, both in receiving and in delivering them.]

nature of the battle
requires a little

[What's the word she used?]

"crazy"

[lesbeau]

[She laughs, almost moving to slap them on the back and then rapidly backpeadaling on that. Right, she needs to not slap them into unconsciousness. They can still have a hearty shoulder pat while she makes sure she isn't dealing a d8 of damage on accident.]

There we go! Just keep swingin', you're good.

[Beau returns to weaving the crown, but doesn't exactly stop talking.]

Hey, could you handle being thrown somewhere if we did it right? Once chucked our rogue into destroying a guy, wondering if you'd be down.

[hyperlit]

[They tense very slightly, but do not refuse the contact. She knows to take better care than most. And, even if it's yet another reminder of their vulnerability, that around them certain punches must be pulled, that they cannot take the brunt of certain actions the ways others can, the twinge of frustration is smaller than it would be.]

[Besides, this question is one worth considering. The Drifter's eyes narrow very slightly.]

possibly
would depend on circumstance

[lesbeau]

[Sorry, Drifter. She's trying to remember they're quite contact averse, she's just very touchy. At least she figured out how to pull her punches in a situation where they got a few more tries at the whole "life" thing. The answer excites her though, and her eyebrows climb as she gets to start actually thinking about this.]

Usually it's a way to get across somewhere faster, like-- there's a big enemy coming, so you get tossed and then you can put a sword in their face.

[Actually wait, here's a question...]

Can you do flips and stuff? I know you're really fast but I don't usually see you getting really parkour out there.

[hyperlit]

[Hmm. The Drifter considers that for a moment before eventually deciding on the most honest response.]

have not tried

[No, wait - that's not the case. They have tried in some circumstances, but those have been few and far between. Not anything as fancy or superfluous as flips and somersaults, perhaps, but they have occasionally engaged in more unconventional means of self-transport.]

cross gaps
scale inclines
could try

[lesbeau]

[That honestly feels weirder than the alternative, and she tilts her head as she thinks.]

Well, yeah, but if you're working with speed you wanna use that. Charging right at something is good, but you're harder to hit if you leap up and spin kick them in the face. Don't you use like, velocity when you hit stuff? Stop me if I'm wrong, just like, thinking out loud here.

[hyperlit]

chain dashes

[They've never had to deconstruct the scientific basis of how they move. Now that they have to consider it in a broader fashion, however - ]

balance of steering and momentum
lower strength level not optimal for hand to hand bludgeoning

[She's one of the few people they don't mind admitting this to, largely because she's seen them in action. She knows their strengths and their flaws. Momentum can power a strike, but they'd really prefer their sword - it'd be just as likely to injure them as it would their opponent otherwise.]

[lesbeau]

Ohhhh. Huh.

[Still, all things considered, she's strong but not... hefty. Yasha and Jester are strong, tearing storm grates off walls and lifting Beau off her feet. She's just fast. Practiced.]

You tend to fight slow stuff? Or fast stuff? Because if it's also fast you don't have to be strong to use their stuff against them. Flip it right back in their dumb face. You kinda did it to me before.

[She has a lot of experience in their combat-- and maybe is curious if there's something she can impart to keep them safer.]

[hyperlit]

both

[She isn't...wrong about that, exactly. They shift slightly, their gaze diverting and skirting away before gradually it rolls back to her with a lack of clear purpose that isn't generally like them.]

purpose of
"parkour"?

[They've never needed it before. They're not even really certain that they've grasped the full meaning of the word, though they suspect that given the context, they know enough.]

[lesbeau]

[A grin snakes across her face that can only mean mischief. You've gone with her weird plans before, right Drifter? What's one more explanation?]

It's so you don't rely on raw strength. By hitting the right points, you just use momentum, and it makes you less tired. Takes practice, yeah, but I bet you could do it.

[She pauses for a moment, like she's hesitant to ask.]

I mean, I could teach you. If you wanted.

[hyperlit]

[The only indication that the offer has surprised them is the blink of their eyes, the slight tilt of their head as they consider that. To learn something like that might be, potentially, useful...but the idea of doing so while asking for nothing in return has an innate wrongness to it.]

[After a long moment, the Drifter withdraws one of their guns from their cloak and holds it up, flat in their palm.]

could teach to shoot
in exchange

[That would only be fair. Wouldn't it?]

[lesbeau]

[For once, she isn't looking for a bargain or a barter. It's not good of her to give away information, but this is... for a friend. A good reason. A reason she wants to give.

But her face still lights up at the prospect, a grin pulling at her lips.]

Sounds like a deal. I help you get all flippy, you help me have something to handle range. Say that's good for us, yeah? When do you wanna start?

[hyperlit]

[There. That's a useful trade, isn't it? They learn something, and she learns something. Perhaps they ought to inquire for another gun from the Storyteller, one she could use.]

anytime
whenever is most convenient

[They answer more or less immediately.]

[lesbeau]

Uhhh, then anytime. Here, how about this- I do my workouts in the morning. How about we meet then, get you through some flippy shit. Then we clean up and go fire things at other things.

[Which is basically just a suggestion for daytime. She figures it's equally as hard to shoot a gun in the dark as it is to do a backflip.]

We can figure it out.

[hyperlit]

amenable to this

[It's not like the Drifter has a set schedule. Or...they do, kind of. A little bit more than they did, anyway. Either way, it's something that can slot neatly into said "schedule." The schedule is a loose one.]

[lesbeau]

Cool. Meet on the islets at sunrise? I'm over on 1. We got an extra house kind of that we can use. I mean, I'll be there, you can just like... yeah, you get me.

[hell yes hell yes HELL YES FLIPPY BIZ. She can't wait to see Drifter become a parkour champion.]

[hyperlit]

ok

[They are as professional and distant as ever, but there is a subtle pinching to the corners of their eyes that indicates that, for whatever it's worth, they're pleased to take her up on it.]

wrapped i think!

[lesbeau]

[She nods and resumes the task at hand, letting those words stay with her. Things to learn, huh?

Well, it's a nice thought to keep. For now, she's gotta get this weaving done right. She's sure Yasha will love these.]