♥ February (Nalom) Event Log

[hugtopiamods]

February Event Log
It's the last month devoted to Rawna, and winter is winding down. You'd think that this would matter to them, but none of the priests of Rawna seem to care at all. If asked, they will simply explain that they are "fasting"... not for food, or entertainment, but their capacity to care. The 3rd and final month of the dragonlord emphasizes the apathy aspect of the god's alignment, and followers are encouraged to just chill and not let life bother them for a while.

This doesn't seem to have stopped the rest of the community, however. Seems they've caught wind of there being a particular fluffy holiday taking place in the second month of the year on certain worlds and have decided to adopt it for themselves as something of a test drive. Nalom is usually so boring, after all! And if it helps their unfortunate trapped visitors feel a little more at home, well, they're happy to give back if they can. Thus, there are fresh displays in local businesses, custom shops, and pop-up cafes, offering discounts and deals for people who shop or dine together. You are the only ones who can support the gods in these dark days, and you need a partner to do that! So this month they are celebrating YOU.

Happy Va... Valen... Saint's... happy Nalom!

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❥ PROMPT I: They Call Him Lakemin, King Of Soft Hugs

Once a day, all through the city, there will be a distinct robot wandering through. It's large, looks almost like a marshmallow, and seems to be there just to hug your character. Isn't that sweet? If you find him in inclement weather, he'll happily keep you company, even keep you warm or dry if necessary! Really, though, you can find him anywhere. All hugs are sweet and soft, though those less… hug-inclined… may receive a surprise embrace instead. If you don't like it, he will be very apologetic! They're testing a new technology, you see. What technology, you might ask? Well, let's see how it goes first. Just enjoy the good squishes for now.

When you return home, there's a small weather-proof box by the door. Opening it, there's a small plush of this Marshmallow-bot with a name embroidered on it. Only problem is, it isn't your name. Whoops! Someone must have been in a rush to deliver these and put them in the wrong place. Time to find who this plush belongs to, maybe they'll have yours! Or maybe they can direct you to the right person. Either way, what is there to lose? Nothing, of course! There's just the strange compulsion to see to it that this plush get home and you pass on those warm, cozy, hugs that Marshmallow-bot gave you.

❥ PROMPT II: This is How You Valentine

The information that the residents have received about Valentine's Celebrations might be a little… iffy… or at the very least sporadic, but they're trying a few experiments to see if it'll help get people in the mood. The following changes can be discovered around town, with varying effects:

• Conversation hearts
Found in display bowls at the counter of local businesses, characters who eat these candies find their vision becoming rose-tinted. Quite literally. Colors aren't erased by it but there's a definite effect as if they are seeing the world through some kind of film filter, the shade of which can vary depending on the person. Maybe you see different colors! Maybe you see some bizarre kind of Snapchat filter. Maybe you see dialogue appearing in text bubbles now. The effect can be alleviated/cured (at player's discretion) by leaning against someone for an extended amount of time, which is convenient, because the sudden shift in visuals can make you feel a little dizzy.


• Roses
A few members of the community council are handing out flowers! These aren't naturally grown, of course, as with how delicate a process is it they don't want to jeopardize the botanical gardens by removing an excess of them. However, these are made out of synthetic silks but smell like real ones and have just as soft a feeling without any thorns! Isn't that nice of them?

When your character receives one, they're filled with the gentle, warm sensation of being in love but without falling hard. And they'll want to share it. People who share similar features to your CR, even if it's something subtle like hair color or a piece of clothing, will jump out as someone to share this flower with. This comes with the urge to express some unfortunately cheesy lines about the other person… and while they don't have to be romantic, even the most platonic of lame comments can get you in hot water. Hope the rose is worth it!


• Wines and Fruit Juices
What goes with cheesy compliments better than wine? These are found only in the temples, and with a priest always nearby to ensure no one is drinking the alcoholic drinks underage or becomes too inebriated to be safe. No matter how it looks or smells, these will taste just as your character likes and will always be the perfect temperature! Handy! But boy, after even a small glass, it sure does feel like cuddle weather, doesn't it? Don't worry though, it isn't anything that would make your character get too inappropriate or do anything outside their comfort zone. But boy, wouldn't it be nice to lay your head on someone for a bit?


• Chocolate truffles
Good morning! Every residence will wake up at least one day with a small box of chocolate truffles in a box at their doorstep. Some are plain, some decorated, and the decorations range from simple white chocolate drizzle to fancy elaborate planets or galaxy speckles. No matter what the flavor, there's an urge to share them with someone. That's all! Go and spread that chocolatey delight! It's extra-satisfying to feed it to them yourself, for some reason...

❥ PROMPT III: Kreative Kompetition

No matter what the month, the world still spins, and businesses run, which means that the VR Cafes have been working on new games. This time, the theme is friendly competition! The following games are now available at the local cafes:

• Kart Racing:
Pick a kart and get out there! You'll be provided with everything you need, of course, since even virtual reality observes safety requirements. On the track, you'll be able to pick up comically large and squishy 'weapons' and obstacles. Nothing that will hurt but a cream pie to the face sure does make it hard to keep up! You can race against friends, strangers, or even find yourself in a whole grand prix.


• Kapture the Flag:
You and your opponent are tasked with capturing the other's flag. No holds barred! You can move and hide your own flag, plant traps around it, even carry it around with you! Can you find a way to disguise it? That's an option! Whatever you do, once your opponent gets it, you'll receive a message alerting you that your flag has disappeared. Don't let them get it back to their base!

Once a game has concluded, win or lose, both players will be rewarded with coupons for a free meal for two at one of the local cafes around town. Matching up the coupons gets a bonus dessert! It's not necessary to match them, but why wouldn't you?

❥ PROMPT IV: Gentle Trembling of the Toes

In the last few days of the month, something begins to happen: a very gentle rumble reverberates throughout the city, an earthquake small enough to not cause any damage, but large enough to be felt. The timing of it is sporadic, but it happens once a day. The sensation will typically last for anywhere between 10-30 seconds before dissipating as if it never occurred at all.

Around town, characters may also notice something curious- each time one of those tremors occur, many of the robotic residents in town will immediately stop, find a partner, and link arms while standing back to back with one another, clinking their heads together. They stand that way for a while, even after the tremors subside, until at last they say their farewells and move on. If asked, rather than alarmed, the town natives are tentatively optimistic, even excited in some cases: the quakes are a message, a gentle warning, but of what they don't yet know. It's been so long since a public declaration from their deities was made, due to their diminished presence in the world and the decline of the planet. The priests are especially eager, bustling about in their temples trying to prepare for whatever might happen, but no one seems to know exactly what, or when, the next step will occur. The doors exiting out of town are being reinforced, and the guards have doubled up their patrols and will be especially vigilant about explorers going too close to the walls around the city. Most people at least know this much: do as they do, when the tremors hit, and you'll understand a little better.

Characters that link up for long enough during one of the quakes can receive one of following messages in their heads:
1) "Change is coming." this message is passive, almost like a greeting.
2) "We thank you for all you have done." this message is softer, almost apologetic.
3) "We shall do all we can to keep you safe." this message is gentle, almost parental in its affection.
4) "Share your bounty and your joy." this message is kind and encouraging, tugging you toward people you may not have met yet.
5) "Remember to keep the balance." this message is plaintive, but without urgency.
6) "Do not approach the walls." this message is LOUD, insistent, and the most frequently transmitted.

The voice that conveys these messages is a collective of multiple, speaking in synchronization but at inconsistent volumes. Multiple links (eg. different threads) can receive multiple messages, and characters do not have to hear the same message as their partner.

This occurrence is also ONGOING. The quakes will continue until it is announced in the near future when they end. Stay tuned!

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This event (aside from Prompt IV) will run from February 11th to 25th. Click on each prompt's title to see the text. If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread on the Plotting Post.

Comments

[mortalcoil]

[Not thinking about the fact that she'll have no idea what he's saying, he shoots her a surprised look and gestures something--brushing one closed hand across the together and then holding up one finger--but the sudden motion of turning his head throws his balance off.

Teetering to the side, he makes an automatic grab in her direction to try and catch himself.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Even without knowing what he's saying - the peridexis is whispering something to her in the back of her head, but she's not fully focused on that just now - she's still willing to catch him.]

Ah-!

Sorry, I'm- I couldn't read that. That's a real bad case of vertigo you've got there though, isn't it?

[mortalcoil]

[There is such a frustrated sigh when she has to catch him again, and this time he doesn't immediately shrug her off. The indignity of being steadied is still less than the humiliation of falling completely over, so he'll settle for the first option.

Clearly annoyed, he points across his eyes. His vision is all screwed up.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[That, at least, is still plain enough to Nita.]

Eeesh. Let's get you lying down somewhere, then.

It's supposed to wear off in a few hours, too.

I'll walk us slow, okay?

[mortalcoil]

[Ah! That reminds him of what he'd been trying to say before he'd tipped himself over again.

However, he's a little lost as to how to convey what he wants to ask without signing or having an easy way to write. All he's got is emoting--blinking and pointing at her a few times and then drawing a finger back over his shoulder in a sort of 'go back' or 'before' sort of motion.

It might be totally confusing but he needs to at least try and figure out why she sounds like she knows what's going on here, because he sure doesn't.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[There's a pause before Nita infers what Coil's trying to get across. Go back - back up a bit? It's a familiar phrase.]

Yeah, you're not the first person I've seen like this this week. Something to do with the candy.

[She screws her face up in a wry look.]

Apparently Nalom's analogous enough to February that the natives are trying to replicate Valentine's Day... and given what the special drinks were like last month, dizziness-inducing candies aren't that impossible in comparison.

[mortalcoil]

[Being that he neither spends time around other people when he can help it nor has a great interest in food, he'd somehow missed most of both of those rounds of insanity. He hadn't drawn the connection at all.

So, at the risk of knocking himself off balance again, he rolls his eye.

After pointing at their surroundings with his free hand, he forms a sign that is much easier to follow than some others--smacking the backs of a couple fingers against his forehead for 'stupid.']

[unfavorableinstigation]

[And sure enough...]

Oh, yeah.

I've been in a place where the zaniness was a whole lot less optional, though.

Having actual cupids chase you kinda puts things in perspective.

[mortalcoil]

[Despite the awkwardness of them being so close, Coil points at her with a sharply raised brow. Hard to tell if he's just surprised by what she's saying or if he's commiserating, but he's interested in it either way.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita's not entirely following, but!]

... Okay, yeah, that's kind of a weird anecdote, isn't it?

Guess you wouldn't have heard of Nautilus either, right?

[She's pretty sure they've had a version of this conversation on the Network - he's been in places outside of his home before too!]

[mortalcoil]

[He shakes his head to confirm that as unfamiliar. Then, he first points to himself and then up at the sky... and realizes that isn't nearly enough to convey what he means, and so then extends his arm up all the way to point way up high.]

In which Nita is good at charades, if not actual sign. XD

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita follows that gesture up.

Flying, maybe? No-]

You were in space?

[mortalcoil]

[Ha! He's impressed. He didn't think she'd get that one.

He nods. He doesn't know what Nautilus is, but he's been in space.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita ends up grinning, glad she's understanding him.]

I've been in space, myself - not for either of the places I wound up in, just back home.

[Nautilus and The Between were... their own things, really. Beyond space, but time still existed.]

[mortalcoil]

[Now that they're talking, more or less, it's easier to forget how dizzy he is and ignore the fact that he's still needing to lean on someone in order to walk.

His brow lifts in interest, and he a motion with his hand like something zooming up through the sky, wondering if she was in a spaceship.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita shakes her head.]

Spaceflight hasn't become a regular thing for everyone on our Earth, sadly.

[It's a real shame!]

So if you're going up there by yourself, you have to use a transport wizardry for it, and make sure you know exactly where you're landing.

And bring air.

[mortalcoil]

[His brow raises in surprise as he has never met anyone with that kind of magic before, and it honestly sounds rather alarming to him. He can't help but remember his first reaction to seeing the empty, fathomless black of space, and how much it had reminded him of certain fears of his...

He ultimately frowns and shakes his head. No thank you.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita snorts.]

It's not like we can do that here. We don't even know if this planet's got a moon.

[Which... is strange, in retrospect. So much data about Aellyn, lost. It's depressing, really.]

[mortalcoil]

[He blinks and draws a question mark in the air. No moon?? He hasn't exactly spent much time outside here at night to see for himself, but that seems crazy.]

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita nods.]

If it's in the history texts, no one's found a mention yet.

The whole city's surrounded by - encased in, really - a barrier; what we've got right now isn't actually the sky.

[Mindblowing, isn't it?]