♥ April (Lasai) Event Log

[hugtopiamods]

April (Lasai) Event Log
Lasai is a beautiful month. The weather is warmer, the sky is a breathtaking blue again, and with the flowers from Ainir growing nicely, the entire city of Havenwell just feels more alive with every breath. It's a time of renewal, of rebirth, of Ainea's greatest strength as her adherents open the temple gates to invite people and robots from all walks of life to enter and share together. What should be a joyous time, however, is suddenly interrupted as the earthquakes mount day by day through the start of Lasai. Those messages that people have been receiving since Nalom? It seems it's time for the gods to deliver on their promises.

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❥ PROMPT I: The Wild Wild West (East, South and North)

As Ainir gives way to Lasai, one morning the earthquakes, which had been growing more frequent again, suddenly mount in their intensity. The entire city is shaking and the native residents cower despite their faith in their gods' protection. The guards along the wall shout alarm and abandon their posts as the walls start to shift under the strain. When the last of them are safely away from the walls, the barrier and the wall itself quivers. The citizens cry out in alarm and fear until they realize that the walls aren't falling - they're moving. And they're moving further out. As everyone in Havenwell looks on, the walls and its surrounding barrier fluctuates and expands, sliding through the city streets as if on hidden tracks, avoiding buildings and ruins, pushing the toxic air and the storm further away. They finally come to rest and snap back into place, new walls rising from who knows where to fill in the gaps. The barrier strengthens and the earthquakes stop, and as the dust settles, a cheer rises from the citizens.

"Praise the gods! Praise the off-worlders!"

Among the din of their celebration, however, other cries start up among the newly incorporated ruins. Cries that sound like howls and screeches, and certainly do not sound human. Grab your weapons and steel yourselves, off-worlders, with the addition of this new space comes the need to clear it of anything potentially dangerous that got caught up in the expansion. Not all creatures you'll find are hostile, but some certainly are. Docile ones might just fetch a nice price from the Research Towers and the Conservatory if you can capture a mating pair.

OOC: These are the creatures you can encounter in the city as you go through to clear it. It's not an invasion level of infestation, as the majority of creatures will prefer to remain inside their known territory beyond the original barrier, but you will on occasion need to take up arms and fight. Next to their names are the frequency with which you can find them, ranging from common to extremely rare.

• Inky Black Spiders (common - hostile): These relatively small, black spider-like creatures have very basic melee attacks, using their fangs and their sharp legs to bite and claw at people. Those who were around in October when the wall broke will recognize them as the most common enemy back then. Their exoskeletons are hard and when they die, they smash into a black goo. They tend to travel in packs, using sheer numbers to overwhelm their prey.
  
• One-Eyed Lizard (uncommon - docile): An iridescent scaly purple and green lizard approximately 8 to 10cm in length from tip to tail. It has a single eye at the top of its head that can rotate to see 360 degrees around it. This creature's main defenses are its tough hide and a spine on the tip of its tail which it whips at predators to dissuade them from eating it. It's more likely to run than fight, however, and can usually be found sunbathing on exposed rock with its eye closed.
  
• "Bone Giraffe" (extremely rare - hostile): A nearly 20-foot tall, long-necked skeleton of a four-legged creature long dead with a single curved horn protruding from its skull and a sharp snout. It's usually found lying in a heap, as if it laid down and died that way. A black seven-petaled flower sometimes (but not always) grows from the skull and beneath the skeleton is an oily black film. Touching the oil slick activates the creature, which draws the oil up into the skeletal cage. Its main attacks are brute force, using its bony legs and neck to kick and slam against its prey, and its acid breath. It breathes a black fume that sizzles and burns anything it touches.
  
• Rive Talon (rare - hostile - medium): In the past these creatures may have been canines of some form, now they seem to have melded with the detritus of the fallen buildings and creatures of the landscape. Extra spikes, ridges, and protrusions extend from its body at odd angles. Many of them are metal or stone, rather than bone. And some of the bones clearly were not originally its own. (Suggested by Sierra!)
  
• Outskirts Hare (uncommon - docile): A shy creature, roughly the size and shape of an earth hare, covered in fuzzy-looking, curly pink hair and cat-like whiskers. Normally quite timid, this creature's poor eyesight causes it to flee when it feels threatened, and relies largely on a sense of touch to navigate its surroundings. Contact with this creature's fur is markedly pleasant, but its skin discharges an oil that causes mild skin irritation on contact when it's nervous. Active mostly at night time. (Suggested by Mel!)
  
• Ansaurini (rare - annoying): a bipedal feathered bird with sharp claws and teeth good for chomping; some possess flight capabilities, but the majority are prone to a lazy waddle. Mostly harmless and deceptively unassuming until you turn your back- and suddenly it's run off with something it stole off your person! They are excellent at escaping, though they can be traced back to their hoard, and if their collection is raided they will make a lot of noise in protest. Just watch your back- they will try again until you leave their territory. Truly, a horrible thing.
  

❥ PROMPT II: Welcome to the (Urban) Jungle

Once the creatures are mostly taken care of and the newly revealed area is deemed safe enough to venture into, the city council will put out a call for those willing and able to assist the natives with a clean-up effort. The city outside the walls is badly damaged, left to the ravages of the time and the ever-present storm, which means clearing dust, debris, and flotsam is a high priority before people can begin to repair the new districts and salvage material or live there. Thick brown vines cover large parts of the city, grime from the storm is caked onto windows, rocks and scattered rotted bones and twisted metal can be found in roads and crashed through buildings. The atmosphere in this part of the city seems to mirror the decrepit state of the land, too, feeling heavier and grayer and more depressing than it has any right to be. Going out with people and helping together, taking breaks to lean against one another tends to help clear away any negativity that this land seems to bring to your thoughts, however. Since it's dangerous to go alone, be sure to take a friend.

The biggest concern is the vines, so natives offer to lend machetes to the offworlders to help the hack them away. The vines look brown and dead, the leaves withered and curled up. When characters hack into them, the vines release a puff of yellowish dust. Inhale the dust or get it anywhere near your face and over time, you'll begin to get sleepy - very sleepy. It's hard to keep your eyes open, no matter your resistance to poisons or magic, and eventually you'll find yourself falling asleep wherever you are. And once you're asleep? The vines start moving, crawling toward you at a snail's pace. Hopefully you did bring a friend because you'll need their touch to wake up and stay awake long enough to get away from the vines before they pull you deep within their grasp.

❥ PROMPT III: Take a Load Off

Not everyone can fight or clean or even wants to do it, so while those who are more suited to being on the front lines are off doing their thing, those who remain behind must begin the effort of preparing everything that people will need to live in these new areas. At the temples and in the main square, the priests have set up large rest areas with blankets and pillows, and are busily putting together repair kits for mechanics and explorers to use as they go through the ruins. Those who want a place to rest that doesn't require going all the way back to their homes might find these waystations more convenient.

At each, characters can find hot soups with chunks of hearty replicated breads and both hot and cold drinks available for any who wish it. They're trying to replicate pain medications and bandages for people who have been injured while exploring or fighting off the monsters who were unlucky enough to be left inside, and will ask you to try it if you're injured. Taking this medication might have some unintended side effects, however, like a feeling of euphoria or delusions of grandeur or even something as banal as turning your hair a shocking shade of chartreuse - the effect, if you want one, is up to you! The rest areas also have robots "skilled" in giving massages that are looking to test their newly acquired skills and with four pairs of arms, they can work on two people at once! In fact, they're rather insistent about giving you a free massage if they hear even the slightest hint of fatigue in your voice and will usher people into their curtained off booths regardless of whether they know the other occupant or not. These robots are still learning though, so anyone curious enough to try may need to work with their partner to give these robots pointers. They're trying, but not having fragile little flesh bodies is a major obstacle in learning how to have a gentle touch.

❥ PROMPT IV: That Which Remains

With the opening of the city, there seem to be a lot of buildings that need cleaning. Some are so dilapidated that they're better off demolished than repossessed, and most are residential and commercial buildings reminiscent of the ones the offworlders are used to seeing everyday in the Havenwell they've all known up until now. However, among the ruins of these older sections, those intrepid enough to venture and explore may find a few unique gems awaiting them. Just remember: the first rule of urban exploration is to never go alone. You never know what might be lurking in those abandoned buildings or what obstacles might be in your way. Doorways blocked by rubble will need more than one person to remove them. Frightened (and frightening) animals might be lingering in the dark. And, most importantly, you don't want to fall through the floor and vanish into a basement. There seem to be quite a few weakened floors out there. In the following parts of the expanded city, characters can find these interesting ruins:

• Northwest: The Arena - In the northwest of the newly opened area, characters can find what looks to be a ruin of a large open air oval building. The building itself is almost 3 stories tall with walls overgrown with brown vines and dead foliage. There are doorways that have no doors, instead being high archways through which people can access in the interior. Stairs lead up into what looks like worn stone benches and down below is a rubble-strewn open area. Part of the walls have collapsed over time but it's very clear this place was used once as some sort of viewing area. It'll take a bit of work to clear this place until it's usable!
  
  There are archways with stairs that lead downward, but you'll need some help clearing away the rubble to get to what's below! If you're successful in getting beneath the arena, you'll find hallways with empty rooms that vary between large enough to possibly be some sort of training room to small enough to be just enough space for someone to put a slim single cot or bed and maybe a wardrobe to have a small private room. Some rooms have rusted metal that may or may not have been weapons at some point, while others have faded wall paintings, chipped and worn with age. It's hard to make out, but with enough reconstruction work, you may just learn who used to haunt these halls.
  
  
• Southeast: The Baths - In the southeast of the newly opened area, characters will find a domed building unlike the rest of the architecture around it. It's extremely large, for one, and squat, while the rest of Havenwell's buildings seem to be lean and tall. The walls are made of the same stone, but the dome above is broken glass. There are several metal sliding doors set in the walls, but many are fused shut with grime and years of disuse. One main door, larger than the others is sightly ajar, however, and with some help characters may be able to force it open.
  
  Inside, they find an expansive lobby with white floors that must have sparkled before all the grime, dirt, and broken glass took over. The dome overhead reflects the light, making the interior of the building as bright as outside. At the center of the lobby is a dry fountain with two broken statues - four armed humanoids holding urns. Their heads are missing and many of the arms are broken and lying in the dry basin. From the lobby there are alcoves in every direction and two hallways that lead further into the buiding in opposite directions. In each alcove are low stone seats and round basins sunk into the ground that are either dry with a black film around the inside, or full of a dark oily substance that's nearly coagulated.
  
  Go down the hallways and you'll find identical looking chambers. First, you enter an open area with broken sinks and mirrors, with stone cubbies on the walls. Then when you pry open and push past the metal sliding doors, you'll find yourself in a wide open semicircular area filled with baths of different sizes, shapes and depths. Some are free-standing stone tubs, others are large basins sunk into the ground, and still others are rectangular and just big enough for one or two people to lie down in. Each of these basins are like the ones in the lobby, either filled with that same coagulated black ooze or dry with a black film inside. Looks like it's time to get cleaning because each basin also seems like they might be able to be retrofitted to produce water perhaps.
  
  
• Southwest: The Factory - In the southwest, closest to the wall, the characters can find an imposing square building. It has small thin windows and boasts a plethora of chimneys and smokestacks on the roof, some of which are crumbling or broken with age and exposure. There are two square doors, both of which are large enough to drive a truck through and made of metal which needs to be pried open before accessing the inside. Once inside, the characters find a massive operation geared toward ore and mineral processing and metallurgical refinement. The machinery is old, but extremely well laid out, as it seems this plant was used to process huge volumes of minerals and ores before being lost to time. There are stations for every imaginable part of the refining process separated neatly so they can work efficiently, but all of the machines are broken or currently inoperable and will need significant work before they can start functioning again.
  
  Explore the refinery and you may still find one or two of the ores lying about. They contain an unknown metal that gleams a slick oily silver. At the back of the refinery is an industrial elevator which is currently inoperational. Peering down through the cracks, however, reveals that the shaft goes a long way down. The view of just how far is obstructed by a shimmering rainbow-colored barrier, not unlike the one that is just outside the walls.

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This event will run from April 15th to 30th, although due to the areas and effects not technically vanishing, feel free to continue playing with it for some time beyond. 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.

Comments

[carbungle]

[Like the barrier... yeah, he can see it now, a glimmering rainbow sheen of mixing colours.]

I could, but I was gonna suggest just going down on my own. [Which- sounds dumb and reckless, so hastily he adds,] Just in case something happens! If I got stuck down there, someone should be here to get help. Unless you can secretly fly, too.

[No judgment if she can! But it's worth asking, maybe. And honestly even with her power, he has some doubts that he'd be able to safely hold on and warp them both without solid ground to drop them down onto if he falters.]

[iustaegis]

[ She listens to his plan. She would have suggested that she could melt divots like ledges into the walls of the elevator shaft, but this is a good plan, too. ]

Mm....

Mind recording it for me, too? Or if you find anything of interest, bringing it back up with you?

[carbungle]

I can record a little. Don't know how well it'd work with the warping, though.

[Going to be one hell of a disorienting trip. Give him a minute to fiddle with his communicator, setting it up to record a video and carefully fasten it into his breast pocket, sticking out at the top so the camera is visible. The trip there and back might not end up looking so great, but he should be able to examine the bottom, at least.]

Anything else you want me to check before I go?

[iustaegis]

[ She pauses for a moment. If whatever is down there is an extended portion of the barrier... ]

If beyond that shimmer you happen to see if there's a leveled opening for the lift to stop... that would be helpful. Or if there are lifeforms you might see past it, or a shaft blast-door, too.

[ A while ago, Magolor had received access to the archives, dropping another myth of this world... The Crawling One, another deity who burrowed into the earth and nested, drawing death to him, and who also apparently turned dirt into poison. She wonders if it would follow that the toxin could be found more concentrated the deeper into the earth one digs. So: ] If there's a crack in the shaft's lining that reveals soil, a sample of that-- from the deepest layer you can find. [ She releases his hand, taking out a vial for him to take.

Is he sure he doesn't want her to go with him... ] Oh. And [ Respectfully: ] Anyone who might have been left behind. [ I.e. rusted robot bodies. ]

[carbungle]

...Right.

[A grim reminder, but a necessary one; this place was abandoned a long time ago, and there's no telling what might have been left behind. People included.

He crouches next to the hole to get the best view of his initial warp target; with the flame at the barrier and it being a good distance down, that leaves very little visibility in between top and bottom. He leans in, frowning as he squints. His power lights up his immediate vicinity, but only from one warp to the next, and on his own it doesn't go much further than that. He's not exactly a walking flashlight... more of a strobe.]

Better send another fire down with me, or your video's just gonna be one big black void.

[With that, trusting her to follow up, he flings his blade down the hole and vanishes into the usual silhouette of blue energy, reappearing about 50 feet down, hanging from the side of the shaft by his sword.]

[iustaegis]

[ She sends a sphere of flame down after him to illuminate the elevator shaft for him. From what she can see still stuck in the elevator herself, it’s not much....

But she trusts him to be careful and capable. This isn’t a battle, she doesn’t expect him to just strike his sword at any random thing of interest down there. ]

Anything?

[carbungle]

Just looks like an elevator shaft to me.

[His words are quick and clipped; he doesn't have enough stamina to hang forever, and he still has a ways to go, so after a brief half-rotation to give the camera a clear view of the scenery, he warps down further. This cycle repeats about six times before he hangs right above the barrier, stretching out to touch his toes against it and testing his weight. Much like the magic barrier at the walls, it doesn't so much as budge.

Satisfied that he's secure, he drops down to land on it, taking his communicator out to call her, since he's far enough down that yelling would be counter-productive; he circles as he does so, still recording.]

Hey, there's a whole lot of nothing here. It's too dark to see what's further below the barrier.

[iustaegis]

[ She peers at the video feed through the communicator.

Nothing... There's nothing. If there would be anything, it would be at the bottom of the shaft, most likely. ]

Any exposed earth from the wall?

[ A soil sample might still be helpful. Or it could not be, maybe even how far down he is isn't even that deep! ]

[carbungle]

Not really. It's one big reinforced metal shaft, cables for the elevator...

[He turns the camera around, setting his hand alight with his own fire (paltry it may be) and moving closer to the walls so she can see it clearly. It's mostly just old metallic bars and plating, reinforced with periodic I-beams for added support, rusted and bent here and there but obviously built to last. He presses a hand against a spot that looks especially damaged by time, trying to bend it inwards, but it doesn't budge so much as an inch.]

It's a lot more stable than it looks. Probably why the whole shaft hasn't collapsed already. That's... technically a good thing, right? It was made to survive a really long time.

[If it was all exposed earth or poorly constructed, they wouldn't have the chance to come down here at all.]

[iustaegis]

Mm. [ She makes a thoughtful sound in response. Built to last... Perhaps this was an older mine. That, or they had built it already knowing that the atmosphere would soon become corrosive. Or maybe the engineering here is just that good. There’s really no way for her to tell. ]

Anything else that you see?

[ If not, their little exploration down it might be over. ]

[carbungle]

I'll give it another sweep, see if you notice anything.

[He walks along the spread of each wall, pausing in corners, poking at the cables, rotating the camera from top to bottom so every angle can be captured. Even if they miss something here, someone much more observant than him can examine it properly (and slowly) later if they have the whole thing mapped out.

Unfortunately there isn't much to be found just yet. It... really is just an elevator shaft, as far as he can tell.]

...Yeah, I've got nothing.

[iustaegis]

Thank you for looking...

[ Ah, well. There might be more to discover throughout the rest of the factory. Maybe if she finds extra materials and wiring, she can make the lift work again.

Pyra moves away from the hole he had warped through so he might return. ]

[carbungle]

Was worth checking, anyway.

[He gives her a few seconds to step back before making his way back up the mineshaft, finally tossing his blade through the hole in the elevator floor and dropping down from the ceiling.

--then the whole thing shrieks again under his added weight, shifting uncomfortably in place. With a muffled curse he grabs her and warps out, both materializing a few feet from the edge of the shaft. He waits, breath held, though for the moment the elevator doesn't fall.]

...Uh. Sorry.

1/2

[iustaegis]

[ So often do they practice with warping together that she's used to the disembodied feeling of flying through space in an instant. That doesn't help with the suddenness of it, though, and when they reappear from the warp as he holds her, she grips his shoulder to prevent stumbling into him.

The elevator dangerously creaking catches her attention, but when it stops her shoulders fall with a released breath. Pyra looks back to-- ... no, up to him, since he is taller by a few inches. Close. And there’s a little scuff of dust on him from his investigation into the elevator shaft.

She's wondered if it's occurred to him yet, that even with that elevator falling, she would have been perfectly fine.... ]

....It... probably needs a little tuning up. That's... [ Slowly, ] all.

[iustaegis]

[ That had been be an understatement, which she would have ended jokingly and with a smile, but now she peers at him.

Did he— just now— he—

...!!!!

Suddenly, she’s beaming. ]

Noct!

[carbungle]

[Her exclamation and the unexpected joy in her voice catches him off guard, and he can only stare dumbfounded at her. He'd done it so automatically that he didn't even realize what happened.]

What?

[iustaegis]

[ He doesn't even realize it-- she wants to laugh again, she is laughing again. Pyra's hand drops from his shoulder, instead reaching to take his hands into hers to give them a gentle squeeze. Her voice is bubbling with excitement and praise. ]

You... warped! Without my help!

[carbungle]

Uh, I did.

[He blinks. Oh. ...Oh!]

I... did! I didn't even... [He glances back towards the elevator, eyes widening.] I've been practicing a little with Prompto, but it's been hit-and-miss. That's... huh.

[iustaegis]

[ He's been practicing with Prompto, which means that this isn't his first time warping with another without her power. Which means he's done this probably again and again. All this time, and she hadn't even know he's come this far!

She laughs, delighted enough to bounce a bit upon her heels. ] Why that expression? [ Is he surprised at himself? Maybe it didn't even feel as if it required extra power on his part-- maybe he's that good at it already. She feels happy for him, proud of him. If he can warp with her without even thinking about it, if he's done this before with someone else, then it shows just how comfortable he is with the task. ] You did it! That's-- incredible... Noct, you did it! [ She repeats, breathless. ] One moment, we were there, then the next--

[ She pulls slightly apart with him, still holding his hands, and spins with him. ] like this!

[carbungle]

[Whoops, and around they go. He exhales a bit of a breathless laugh, turning with her, still genuinely blown away. Before, he'd had to focus each time, really fixate his power on the other person and where he wanted to take them. This is the first time it's ever been as fast and instinctive as how he warps normally.]

You know this is at least in part thanks to you, right?

[iustaegis]

[ The turn finishes, and they're back where they're started. She remains smiling at him as her hair settles down from the twirl.

"You know this is at least in part thanks to you, right?" Looks like she made herself obsolete, didn't she? Which-- was the point. Although with how she thinks of him, she does believe he would hve been able to accomplish this on his own, given enough time. But to acknowledge what he says now...

She nods. Fine, yes, she helped him. ] Guess you can't call me a teacher anymore, can you?

[ Did he ever-- ]

[carbungle]

Hah. Now the student has become the master!

[He grins at her. Has she forgotten already?]

You better not be thinking you're getting off that easy.

[iustaegis]

U-um... [ That grin tho. ] That I'm already your student in other ways...? [ Like managing his magic, pretending that she needs instructions on how to sword-fight, how to act like a "princess" (or a not!princess)... ]

[carbungle]

[Now that he knows about her power, just how much of those lessons are fake...? ...Eh, probably not the time to ask. But he's definitely going to watch during training now. And speaking of-]

Of course. We've got plenty to keep us busy- one success doesn't satisfy the rest. Next we've gotta get you warping, too.

[Plus, one success of his warp doesn't mean he'll be able to do it consistently. It could totally have been pure luck or adrenaline that pulled him through it.]

[iustaegis]

[ He-- she might be mistaken here, but... ] It.... almost sounds as if you have a regiment in mind already!