hugtopia_logs | ♥ August Event Log

orange flowers in a field under a blue summer sky

August Event Log
The first month of the offworlders being in Havenwell has passed, the welcome party over, and the native residents are starting to get back to their usual routines while the new arrivals are perhaps starting to find theirs. The month of Achtom has started and with it, a crisp summery heat. The skies are gorgeously blue and dotted with high fluffy clouds that never seem to threaten rain - so long as the weather stays controlled. Businesses are picking back up, the natives starting to cater once again to flesh-bodied people with varied amounts of success. The VR cafes are featuring more helmets so even more people can play along with the ever expanding selection of games. Overall, it seems like Havenwell is quite the peaceful city.

And then...

the silhouette of a man staring down at a crowd of rats

❥ PROMPT I: Where's the Pied Piper?

It starts small at first as most things do. Astute observers might notice that the statue of Ainea in the town square and in her temple is brighter than the other gods' statues. Her colors are a little more vibrant, like they've been given a fresh coat of paint. Then, little things in characters' houses seemingly start moving of their own volition to other parts of the house and go temporarily missing. Search as you may, you just can't find them - until they suddenly they show up again where you least expect with tiny little teeth marks in them. The corners of books and furniture get chewed on. The pillowcases and bed frames get nibbled. The edges and hems of clothing get a little frayed without you noticing when it happened.

Then, the squeaking starts up at night. It's innocuous at first, one or two here or there in the house, just barely noticeable by most. Over time, it gets more insistent, longer, louder, until, by the end of the month, it's difficult to sleep at night for all the noise of chattering and squeaking throughout the long night hours. Trying to find the source is a surefire way to drive yourself mad, but it seems that sleeping in the same bed with another person makes it a little easier to bear, especially if you hold hands throughout the night.

And finally, mice start showing up - pink and purple and of various sizes from panda mouse tiny to chihuahua-sized rats. They pop up in kitchens, in bedrooms, in the temples that don't belong to them, at businesses, in the labs, along the streets and in the city squares. They're in your new favorite chair, popping out from cabinets and drawers, and scurrying from under sofas and beds. It seems the only place they aren't is where they're supposed to be - Ainea's temple - and that's a big problem. Her temple priests are out in the city, begging residents both robotic and flesh to peacefully and carefully capture the creatures and return them home to the temple. They pass out soft woven reed baskets to any who agree and thank all participants heartily for their help.

❥ PROMPT II: We Didn't Start This Fire

Throughout the month, pockets of the city experience magnificent dry lightning storms. Before each onset of the storm, an immense clap of thunder booms across the entire city like a siren and the natives hold their figurative breaths until the first strike rains down. A peal of lightning, searing hot, strikes the ground or hits the spires of nearby buildings, cracking stone and leaving nasty burn marks behind. Each storm is only 4 to 5 minutes in length before they suddenly disappear again, but in those few minutes chaos reigns. For anyone unlucky enough to get caught amid one of these storms, take cover! Residents throw open doors and push people inside, even shielding the offworlders with their own bodies if necessary to keep them from getting harmed.

When the lightning and its sonorous booms pass, residents scurry out to repair the damage. They'll be asking nearby offworlders to help as well with patching the stonework or removing broken debris. Most importantly, they put out a call for help in putting out fires that spring up after each storm. Their metal bodies can't withstand the heat for long without melting and the water is dangerous to their circuitry. After the fires are put out and the damage repaired, on occasion, residents will ask for the somber help of pulling a native robot unlucky enough to take a direct hit from the lightning to a local repair shop. Strangely, the natives don't seem sad when their friends and family can't be repaired, and instead start gathering up objects from home to take with them to the temples along with the bodies. When asked, they say it's to pray for a rebirth and go on their way.

a row of contestants before a game show host

❥ PROMPT III: Let's Play the Friend Connection

With all the craziness going on, some people might just want a distraction. A lot of Havenwell's natives certainly seem to think so. Despite everything, the Entertainment District is as bustling as ever and this month the offering is to participate with a friend or group of friends to play a game called: Friend Connection. Rather than the usual plug in and sit configuration, this time the VR cafes have been reorganized into 3 meter by 3 meter square pads with no chairs or furniture available. Players plug in or put their helmets on and they're instantly transported to a garish neon-lighted stage with multicolored spotlights that show a floating, legless robot with a rainbow bowtie and a magnificent mustache. The robot's LED face lights up into the approximation of the :D emote and then a disembodied voice comes from speakers overhead:

"Hail, well met, and welcome to the hottest game show around: Friend Connection! As the studio audience already knows, this game is simple! You and your new friends compete to complete more challenges than the other hidden team. The more fabulously you and your team completes each task, the more points you'll be awarded. At the end of the game, the team with the most tasks cleared and the highest point value will be declared the winners and take home some fabulous prizes. On today's team is..."

And the robotic host waves an arm to a scoreboard behind it, showing your names. The heading "Other Team" has ???? underneath it and a list of challenges is revealed along with a burst of applause. The list reads:

Play Twister until someone falls! The longer you go, the more points you win!
Help each other do a handstand! The Wheelbarrow is acceptable too.
Recreate your favorite scene from a romantic movie. Take, for example, That Scene from the hit movie, Skytanic! Or hum along to this song as you and your friend make some pottery together.
Create a complicated Best Friend Handshake consisting of more than 5 moves and do it together 3 times without messing up!
Answer trivia questions about each other and your worlds while holding hands and staring into each other's eyes. The more questions you can answer, the higher your points!
Do a trust fall into your friend's arms. The higher or further you fall, the more points you'll earn.
Play two truths and a lie with your friend. If you can guess correctly, you'll earn points for your team!

Are you ready, contestants? You have 20 minutes. Good luck!

At the end of the game, the characters are declared the winners by a slim and, naturally, exciting margin of just one point! And their fabulous prize......? The friendship they earned along the way! Congratulations, players! And don't worry, when the game ends, you'll be in the exact weird position you were last in as the helmets turn off. Hopefully you aren't still in those weird Twister positions because everyone can and has been able to see you. Yup, the entire time.

❥ PROMPT IV: Comic Logic

As Lasdia comes to a close and Achtom begins, characters will start noticing something odd happening. Throughout their day as they go about their daily routines, helping people out or trying to find their missing items, the natives stop looking at them and start looking above their heads. In fact, as characters meet one another, their attention may also be drawn vertically above their companion because floating above every offworlder's head is a faint white cloud. Whenever they move, the cloud moves too. Attempts to dispel it by magic or physical means does nothing and it seems like you can't touch it at all.

It's annoying isn't it? Or maybe you're feeling quite curious about this phenomenon? Or maybe it scares you? Whatever you're feeling or thinking, it shows up in that cloud clear as day. It's not every thought or feeling that shows, but it's enough to be disconcerting, and any attempts to control what appears will fail. Like it or not, you're now broadcasting your innermost self to the world.

...For a time, at least. Over a period of time, smart characters might notice that after prolonged physical contact with another person, the cloud fades away and stays away for an undetermined amount of time. Sometimes it's an hour, sometimes it's a day, sometimes it's only 5 minutes, and then it begins to reform again. Whatever it is, it's here to stay, so good luck keeping your secret inner workings, well, secret.

This event will run from August 9th to the end of the September application period, September 9th. If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread below.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Indeed.

I certainly have no regrets.

Yeah. Guy like that meets the no regrets criteria, for sure.

[Kai went back to that last bit of hair-- almost done now.]

... You, uh, weren't still there, were you? When you came here.

No. I escaped and Tibarn found me. The duke subsequently perished.

[ between ike and tibarn, duke tanas had no hope. ]

Good.

[Which one? Both.]

[ he nods. ]

Things have improved since then. I know it but it is hard to forget.

'Course. That stuff ain't easy to shake, even if everything else is dandy.

[Having completed his task, Kai reached up to gently pat Reyson on the shoulders.]

I'm afraid I'm fresh out of deserving assholes to punch though, which, y'know. For the best.

[ reyson rises to his feet, his wings flaring out briefly. ]

It is fine. I'm not looking for anyone to fight my battles.

[Kai sat where he was for the moment, just watching those wings.]

Yeah. I just mean for all that stress relief. Guess we're going to have to opt for the suffer-free versions.

[ bemused. ]

Like pillows?

[He grinned.]

Or shouting.

Maybe pillows while shouting.

I doubt that will be very effective.

I mean we’re not talking little shouts here.

[Up he goes on his feet, making a motion to his middle.]

You gotta really get in there and yell from deep down ‘til you’re almost hoarse. Just get it all out of you.

I don't think I'm capable of that.

How come? I mean, it's kinda hard to do it that hard if you're not actively upset, but most folks can shout.

I can shout!

But it probably would not sound much like one.

[Kai gave a flippant little waved of his hand in front of his face.]

Doesn't matter. [What... did that mean though, not sounding like one. Anyway.] The point isn't about what it sounds like.

Are you sure?

[ reyson knows he can't do any kind of . . . manly shouting. ]

A shout's a shout. This kind's just for you.

I would do it out on the mountain where nobody could hear me and tell me to cut it out.

Why a mountain?

[Kai considered it for a moment. There was an easy answer (which was an honest one), but there was another one that Kai wouldn't have normally said.]

It hurts less to be alone when you're the one that decides to be that way.

[He grinned.] It's a good place to practice being a hermit, and I kinda hoped it'd calm me down afterwards.

I have never considered that. For a long time, being alone wasn't a choice I made.

[ it was a choice forced upon him, over great loss. ]

[He nodded. Saying 'same' felt wildly incorrect, since they had such vastly different reasons. It really wasn't the same at all, if there was any sort of weighted comparison going on.]

I'm glad you're not entirely alone anymore.

It doesn't work for everyone.

[It... probably didn't work for him either, if he was out there shouting his frustrations away.]

As am I.

But perhaps there are benefits from it. I rather not lash out in anger.

Mhmm. But that's why you go and scream or beat up something that can't feel it, so you can control where that anger is going.

[ he nods. ]

It is worth a try.

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