lifeaftr | Returning Island: Umui

RETURNING ISLAND: UMUI

Who: Everyone!
What: Umui returns to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: January 20th, and onward
Where: It'd almost be beautiful, if you didn't know it could kill you
Warnings: Please mark if anything comes up!

I Found a Plot of Weeds Instead
Perhaps some of you remember the island of Umui...its mysteries, its dangers, its eerie quiet. Almost everything here was both overgrown and Overgrown - remnants of an old civilization were buried beneath layers of the flowers that eventually killed them. And travelers got to unpack and hunt down whatever clues they could find about just what happened to the people out here, until the answer became all too obvious.

When Umui resurfaces on January 20th, you might be startled to discover that everything has become even more overgrown than before. No, really - almost every landmark and building has been rendered more or less totally unrecognizable. It looks very much as though centuries of growth has now overcome this entire area, as though you've left it like this for a period of millennia and not merely a period of months. The buildings have been utterly buried beneath grasses and flowers, and if there were any of those automatons left lying about, they're probably buried pretty deep under the ground too.

It's not recommended that you go digging too deep. You probably don't want to awaken any old strains of the Overgrowth, right? You already dealt with that earlier in the month! And that's the good news in all this. As long as you don't go digging too deeply into the island, you won't have any fear of encountering the Overgrowth again.

Well, unless you're after something or someone in particular. Some of you might remember robotic entity that several of you worked together to save. They're probably underneath all this stuff somewhere, right? Still deactivated, but...maybe there's something you can do to save them...?

If anyone has questions about what you might find if you poking around Umui's landscape, you're free to ask them here! It's worth noting, however, that except for the flora, this place is almost completely devoid of other life. Nothing sentient lives here...anymore.

Buried Deep Underneath the Tree
That doesn't mean Umui is bereft of any of quirks entirely, however. While you might recognize some of the flowers poking up from the humps of moss and greenery, a certain type of bloom is definitely new...and definitely not one of your standard types of flowers, either. If anyone thinks to ask one of the gods about these flowers, they will receive an assurance that they are not innately dangerous - but they are innately linked to the dream island of Mu. They glow with a strange, vaguely ethereal light, and if you get too close, they'll waft some thick spores of pollen in your direction.

These spores have all sorts of ways of latching their effects into you. Whether they get breezed into your mechanical parts, inhaled, ingested, if they land in your eyes, whatever the case - pretty soon, they're going to start working their magic. And once they do, you'll soon find yourself feeling inexplicably and incredibly tired. Inexorably, you'll find yourself settling down for a nap, regardless of whether you're not one for sleeping, or even if you're one who requires it.

The moment you close your eyes, you'll find yourself entering a dream state on Mu, and one that is linked with all other dreaming entities. This means that it's highly possible that your dreams will be bleeding into other people's, or that you may end up wandering into another's dreams. It's very probable, in fact.

The dream-state you enter may vary in depth. You might end up completely beholden to Mu's wishes, or you might find yourself in a vaguely lucid, almost "sleepwalking" state, where in the following effects are "projections" visible to the waking world. Most likely, you'll all be bumping up against one another's heads within Mu's vast and comfortable shores. Whichever of these it is, once you're caught within Mu's grasp, you'll find that it's a trove of memories that await you - your memories. You may find yourself re-enacting them or simply watching from afar...but the same may be said for others who might stumble upon your mind. Perhaps they find themselves in place of another character, or watching invisibly from the sidelines. Either way, Mu tries to make each instance as close to the real thing as possible. When it has completed, it may either restart itself, or simply fade entirely.

Should you be affected by Umui's pollen, any one or more of the following will occur:

[ ♆ ] True Bliss: Mu recreates a memory or a time in which you were truly happy. This may be as simple or as grandiose as you may like, but it had to have really happened.

[ ♆ ] True Judgment: Mu recreates a memory or a time in which you felt exceptionally guilty. And no matter what you do, you'll find that it is impossible to change. Try as you might, you can only ever witness the same end result that has stricken you with so much guilt. And the same can be said for whoever might have gotten caught in this instance, and is watching it happen...

[ ♆ ] True Peace: Mu recreates a memory or a time in which you felt the most at peace, whether with some aspect of yourself or the circumstances around you. Perhaps this sense of peace bleeds into your own consciousness as you witness or act it, or perhaps it only serves to unsettle you...or maybe it affects those who go wandering into your dreams.

[ ♆ ] True Balance: Mu selects a memory or a time in your life...and warps it so that it is experienced in the opposite manner that it was initially. For example: that happy memory of you rescuing a bunch of kittens from a burning building? When you experience it this time, it will be in a relentlessly negative light - you absolute monster, traumatizing those kittens by carrying them through the fire like that! You should have been more careful! What if the fire was your fault all along? That horrible memory in which you slaughtered a bunch of innocent people? Well, it was all for the best, wasn't it? It was good that you did this. You have nothing to be sorry for. There's a bright side to everything - even this.

[ ♆ ] True Fate: Mu creates what it understands to be your final destiny, whether it be the place where our story ends, or the circumstances under which you perish. Perhaps this is something that is known to you, or to others. And perhaps it isn't.

You may pay witness to any one or more of these dream-states at a time. Perhaps you visit the island five times and receive the same "effect" each time, or perhaps you visit only once but find yourself looping through all five "effects" in the same space. The memories may vary, as well; for example, you might experience the "True Bliss" effect three times, and experience three separate happy memories each time. The choice of what your character experiences is up to you!

While there are no inherent risks to this dream-state, it should be worth noting that your body will not be immune to entropy should you stay in it too long. Your body may suffer from hunger or thirst, or require recharging at a mana pool. For the most part, however, the only things you have to fear are the, uh, trauma that this might inflict. Or the trauma of other people seeing some of your most private memories.

Where My Friends Plot to Bury Me
Of course, there's a lot going on in the background as well. Characters are not required to go to Umui; you're free to explore any other minor events listed on our Monthly Rundown post. You are also always free to create your own individual logs and posts as needed!

Also remember that if you died this month, to fill out the corresponding form over on our Deaths page!

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

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( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[They freeze on the spot, sagging against him. His reprimand works. They might be doomed, but that's no reason to drag him down with them, even if they've been doing nothing but that. They can't communicate what they want to him. Can't do anything but either obey or tear themself away.]

[And if they do not do the former, they may potentially doom him with the latter.]

[What choice is there? They will not compromise his safety, even if their own already is.]

[Fine, friend. You win.]

[They go limp. He wins. It's not a great feeling, even as he doubles down and picks up his pace again in response, but Ichimatsu already knows that being a manipulative asshole is one of the few things he's good at - may as well use it for good, or something.]

[Maybe he'll apologize later. Probably not.]

[How about just surviving for now.]

[... he's pretty close to his limit, though. His breathing is starting to get loud, dragging out a bit of his voice with every exhale, and he's not sure how much more stamina he's got. He gulps down a deep breath and says again, in bursts --]

Now take - the damn - sword out, or just --

[He turns the palm near their head towards them, his fingers making a hurried grabbing motion.]

-- let me help, you stubborn bastard!

[Again, what choice is there? They can hardly fight this. They couldn't fight it even when they weren't as useless as this. It feels wrong to accept the aid, but if they do not - if they do not, Judgment will engulf both of them. It is all but unavoidable.]

[They withdraw their blade. The red handle is still and dormant in their hand, but they ignite it with a low hum.]

[And they set it in his hand.]

[Just don't hurt yourself, all right?]

[There's a jolt of satisfaction and relief when the glow of the blade alights in his periphery again - stunted, almost instantly, by the tactile sensation of the hilt being pushed into his hand that follows. Even though he'd asked for it, some part of him had never actually considered that they'd actually comply.]

[Leave themself completely and totally helpless, abandoning everything to Ichimatsu? Only a fool would do that.]

[Or maybe they've just given up from the pressure coming in on both sides. Either way, he'll take it. Ichimatsu grips the handle and whips the sword down and out at his waist, picking up his pace to a full tilt once again, careful not to slash or jostle his cargo in the process. Great, now he's pissed off, scared, and armed. This is usually the part where he finds a table to shit on.]

[Maybe later.]

[He'd love some context as to what the fuck is even going on, but with his friend in their state, he knows he's not going to get any complex answers. Still, 'Yes' or 'No' questions should still be doable. So he uses his newfound, fragile-at-best sense of security to try and root out the core of the problem they're in.]

T-that ugly... shithead's... after you, right?! Any idea w-what it wants?

[A nod at that one, albeit a jerky one. It's after them. And what it wants is simple.]

[It wants them dead.]

[They did destroy it, after all. Or...perhaps they didn't. Perhaps this is an exemplification of their failure to do so. That has not stopped Judgment from wanting to wreak its vengeance on them regardless. It has never needed incentive to see the sufferers of that sickening plague to fall, one by one.]

[They are not so special. They're just one more victim.]

[They can hardly explain this to him without words, though they do try. Draw a single finger across the region of their throat shielded by their cowl, and hope that will suffice.]

[He has to keep half of his attention angled down at them, and when he sees their answer, his next breath comes as a bark of laughter. There's a sneering quality to it, almost gleeful, mostly because that's just how Ichimatsu responds to situations like this.]

[It wants the Drifter dead, huh? And they're ready to lie down and die for it? What a time for Ichimatsu to stumble in and get himself involved. Speaking of --]

Tch... well, it can kiss my ass.

[He grips the sword tighter; feels the buzz of the blade vibrate through his palm. Running isn't working. That's plain to see. That leaves...]

[His muscles tense, differently, the way a cat does before springing.]

[What is he doing?]

[The Drifter feels every muscle in their body, already pushed to their limits, go taut as bowstrings in automatic anticipation. They can hardly ask. They can hardly do anything, let alone communicate much beyond the bare basics. Does he know how to speak in sign language? They don't know. Can't remember who knows and who doesn't.]

[They have to try.]

What are you doing?

[He doesn't. But he feels the tension pull his friend's muscles tight, and he knows that it's a retaliatory response to his own body language. He feels bad about freaking them out even more. There's really no way to say "it's okay" and calm them down, is there? He's not good at shitty little platitudes like that. Especially when he's the one about to disappoint.]

[Ichimatsu wobbles. His next footstep sucks free from the ground with a pop, like he's treaded through black mud.]

[The thing is, he does feels it too: the heavy bog latching into his head with hooks, the sinking desire to just lie down and give up and die. The knowledge that he's worthless and just a burden of complication on everyone he's ever met. Even now, while he's trying to help someone he's finally comfortable with calling a friend, his poisonous little heart stings with every erratic beat because he knows he'll fail.]

[This part, right here, where they run and run and never get anywhere... that's not the Drifter's fault, is it? It's his. This place is affecting him after all, but he hadn't noticed it until now. Huh.]

[Maybe because that's just the background resonance of his life.]

[He slows down again, but this time he's not just being an asshole about it; he needs the air so he can speak clearly.]

... hey. Sorry to disappoint you, but I think this is some of my shit, too. And I'm telling you... we're not gonna fix it by running away.

[That makes about as much sense as everything else. The looming threat at their backs is familiar; the impossible sensation of trying to escape and never making it very far isn't. Judgment made its way back to them eventually, but that was by the Drifter's own hand. It had power over them. They confronted it and ripped it apart.]

[Plainly that's not about to happen here. They can't fight back. Not nearly as well as they should.]

[They look to Ichimatsu with, perhaps, evident confusion, in spite of the glazed quality of their gaze, and how long it takes for them to focus on him. Their head tilts slightly.]

[What do you mean?]

[How are they meant to fix it?]

Returning Island: Umui

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