raiamods: (Default)
raiamods ([personal profile] raiamods) wrote in [community profile] ethyraia2021-08-08 03:57 pm

hatching mini-event 003

WHO: All PCs
WHAT: New characters arrive on Ethyraia as MONSOON FLOODS ARRIVE at the Basecamp!
WHEN: August 8-21
WHERE: Basecamp Leviathan & nearby fields
NOTES/WARNINGS: mentions of corpses, flooding, and cult religion


AUGUST MINI-EVENT ❀
CONTENT WARNINGS: mentions of corpses, flooding, and cult religion

Players who participated in our TDM are welcome to keep their CR and the content of those threads. Please make sure to chat this out on the OOC intro & CR meme before making assumptions. This log demonstrates our attempt at approaching engagement aspects within the setting a bit differently and providing people more options directly geared towards the establishment of CR. Let us know how it works for you!

❀ MONSOON BLUES



There are giant thunderheads on the horizon, and the air smells like ozone and petrichor. The skies are black and very little sunlight gets through — but when the sky cracks open along with the newly hatched dragon's eggs on the 8th, the locals aren't up in arms over it. Instead, they are grimly preparing for the inevitability of...

"Monsoon season," Thorkill will explain to anyone listening. "We're all shored up for it this time. Should ride it out just fine so long as we stick together." And the rest of the Adamant's survivors have plenty that the hatchlings can do to help do just that! Hatchlings will be paired up and sent off to help secure the camp: here are sandbags to be made and lined up at the edge of camp to brook the floods, securing non-permanent buildings or structures, and helping to dry or prepare food for longer term storage.

However, Thorkil's engineers insist the washes they've dug should do their job. The tunnels left by the moles are at high risk of flooding and further damaging the entire base's foundational integrity, though, so engineering will be dedicating most of their efforts in the direction of continuing to repair the sinkhole damage.

After a full day of rain, though, these levees and washes aren't feeling quite sufficient. Some of the floodwater is washing into the edges of camp. Don't expect standing water, but it certainly leaves everyone feeling on edge. Most people will still get an itchy rash from contact with any standing groundwater. The particularly sensitive may get blisters! Sunya may also ask for hatchlings' help in distilling the compounds from the Starspire plants that neutralize the acid's effects on skin.

Life around the basecamp:
The weather will worsen over the next two weeks. The winds pick up and some of the buildings at the edge of the encampment get acid-washed. Hope that new community garden that Vidar and Zhongli built is being babysat! The power will begin flickering around the 3rd day of the rains, and on the 5th, the power will cut out completely for 48 hours. Hope you have good night vision! It's rather dark inside the Leviathan, and there are still those pesky shredder mole holes (schmoles?) to contend with. Anyone that can create a light source or is lucky enough to have a flashlight is going to be in high demand!

☆ The power cut hits in the midst of opening night of The Wrath of Ejayla Bon, a play panned as a commercial failure back on Earth that developed cult status amongst the theatre nerds the world(s) over due to its rousing musical features and encouragement of crowd participation. Along with the interactive piece near the end where the villain is (symbolically!) torn apart, there's fun for the whole family! (sidebar: ribbons are used in place of actual gore!)

Vidar has graciously opted to donate one of his Gundam's reactor cores to the NPCS! Given the issues with the power, removing it becomes a top priority during the monsoon! Ian Fowler has been tasked with its removal. Maybe he could use a hand...? Someone to hold the flashlight, bring snacks, etc cetera?

☆ A group calling themselves the Guardians of the Leviathan has cropped up. Part cult of personality, part religious fervor, this group was started by one of the Adamant's survivors by the name of Petra. They claim to have had a different dream than everyone else prior to the Thessyx visit, and they have begun preaching with fervor that Doomsday is coming.

❀ WASHED AWAY


But minor irritation is the least of the camp's worries. On the 9th, after a second day of active storming, Rémi can be heard from a rather alarmingly large radius yelling at some poor underling who seems to have turned tail and ran when the rains started, leaving a group of agricultural harvesters stranded!

Given the reckless action and the danger posed to the rest of the camp as a result of this, Rémi is petitioning to have this person jailed until the process of restorative justice can be started.

The situation feels more pressing when, after three days of heavy rain, three human bodies surface at the edge of camp, washed in by the flood. The remains are old, eaten by the elements, time, and a lot of acid rain. Anyone working at the aid station may be responsible for bringing them back under the cover of the basecamp for burial, and anyone drinking from Thorkil's stash in engineering may hear him telling a sad story of a group of people that splintered off from the Basecamp over a year ago and moved inland. The bodies, he assumes, badly decomposed and identifiable only through genetic testing, are what remains — though he notes that the group was larger than three when they set out, he acknowledges they may never find the others' remains. It's hard not to take this as a sign of what may be to come for the poor missing explorers.

A few notes:

☆ Tensions rise with the water level. As tempers fray, NPCs will be somewhat more testy than usual, and while the goodwill garnered by the PCs is still intact it seems rather less valuable as a currency in and amidst the troubles. No one can seem to decide if anyone should be sent out after the missing group of harvesters.

☆ One of the small congregations of NPCs is starting to get irate about the preferential treatment the Hatchlings are having. These people will be colder, pick fights with the Hatchlings, speak up against them in group settings. They will point out the fact that the Thessyx could have visited at any time over the last three years and helped them and chose not to as their reasoning.

❀ SEARCH & RESCUE

The Zeta Harvesting group is roughly a day's travel from the basecamp, in variable terrain that's prone to wash-outs from the monsoon. The flooding that blocks their way back will be a challenge to navigate, both due to strong, unpredictable currents and the fact that the water does have a mild acidic bent.

Their mission, assigned by the Agricultural group and guarded by Rémi's security volunteers, was to head into the open fields to gather some of the few edible native plants in the narrow window of their growing season. These crops are largely berries and roots that grow under the cover of some of the coniferous trees in the rocky outcroppings nearby. The berry plants and root-plants largely survive by the shade of the trees' branches, but once the flooding starts, there will be no eating them anymore. They'll be washed out and damaged.

Those who were caught in the storm have retreated to neighboring caves, where they are undersupplied and dealing with a bunch of nervous botanists who fancy themselves farmer, all of whom are largely convinced that the caves will flood if they remain here too long. They push anyone accompanying them to try to find a route out of the caves, encouraging their protectors to go out in pairs with the remaining rain shields to scout a safe route home through the trees. Plus, it sounds like something is breathing deep in the caves...

Anyone from the basecamp who volunteers to go seeking the harvesting group that went missing can still communicate intermittently with those stranded, but the comms are spotty. The storm's magnetism seems to be affecting messages, sending them twice or garbled or not at all. Sometimes it sends them to the wrong people altogether, so it's a good time for some fun misfires, or even some phantom messages by the people who owned the comms before! Feel free to have fun with this.

What's more, the road has been washed out by a flash flood — so if anyone who can fly or teleport or has a hovering vehicle feels like going to play hero ... Well, we're not going to discourage them!

A few notes:
PCs are also welcome to have been part of this harvesting mission, which left on August 7th. If anyone wishes to say their character needs a rescue, feel free! This may influence how and why hatchlings might volunteer to go out into the storm to help out! (Note: Newbies will arrive after the harvesting mission has already left, so only pre-existing players can have accompanied the NPCs out. However, new Hatchlings are more than welcome to help out with rescue efforts!)

☆ Standard guidelines for auto-NPCing apply! Feel free to name them, help them or, um, have them dramatically killed! Whatever suits your narrative. Rémi will not be accompanying anyone on this mission, but he will be rather more liberal than normal with his supplies. It seems as if the PCs are starting to earn his trust!

❀ THE TROUBLES WITH QUIBBLES

Monsoon season seems to have kicked off the migratory pattern of many of the creatures native to Ethyraia. A small herd of squirrel-like creatures have taken temporary shelter near basecamp, huddling underneath the junction of dragon wing and body when the rains come on, and they will scatter afterwards. These creatures will not venture into the basecamp properly, but will be seen frolicking on the exterior of the Leviathan and may interfere with patrols done around the premises. They will also be trying to steal food whenever they have the opportunity! Hope you weren't planning on enjoying that... odd, broccoli-flavored... cold gelatin bar...?

Although playful, these creatures may become aggressive if they feel threatened, and it doesn’t take much to startle them. They have a sharp bite that causes many potential symptoms, including a significant drop in body temperature, increased spatial awareness, altered perception of both sound and color, and a short temper. It also seems to enhance feelings of combativeness and a competitive nature in those prone to them, and some individuals may experience nightmares.

But they're so cute, though?

A few notes:
☆ The effects will last 3-5 days. There is no known cure or antidote.

☆ You could always try biting one back...? (mod note: do not do this.)

☆ The creatures will move on in their herd after about a week of terrorizing the local population. They've got places to be!

☆ They would make terrible pets, as their, um, bodily excretions are truly rank, and they will pee on everything and everyone you love. Highly against recommendations.

❀ HATCHING

When the new Hatchlings emerge from their eggs on the 8th, the Adamant's survivors are as ready as they've ever been! Each newcomer receives a bundle from the community outreach group containing non-gendered toiletries and clothing — which is random in both size and style — and some tubes of protein paste. After a shower, the new hatchling will spend a few days quarantined in an area of the Theatre set up with emergency bunking and privacy screens.

Given the weather, the new Hatchlings are mostly trapped in the basecamp. Anybody up for a rousing game of tic-tac-toe? Ensign Ashley Porter will be flitting around introducing himself to everyone and explaining that he's terribly sorry you're all stuck here! He has a questionnaire prepared for your characters that includes a list of their likes, dislikes, allergies, etc what planet they originally come from and their technology familiarity level. He's also designed a technical fluency guide to help anyone from a less developed world adjust! Isn't he just the best!

A few notes:
☆ Your character will at some point be pulled aside and asked about where they're from, what year, any personal information they wish to share, etc. This is not an interrogation, but a friendly chat. Captain Childe has deferred this duty to her various underlings, and she will likely not make an appearance here unless a Hatchling says or does something very interesting or meaningful — if they do, please let us know in the MOD QUESTIONS header!

☆ The NPCs will be as forthcoming about how the Hatchlings have arrived and what they know about the Chrysalis as possible. Unfortunately to both, the answer is 'not much'. They will still try to be transparent about this.

☆ Characters cannot join up with the Security team until they have proven themselves competent and community-oriented to Rémi, but the Engineering division is led by the friendly Thorkil and always needs help. Similarly, the Dr. Hyacinth's Aid Station and the Theatre-cum-Childcare Center are always ready to take on new people! Please read up on these places in the LOCATIONS page if you plan to have your character sign up.

☆ While it's not mandatory that the Hatchlings work, those that don't 'pull their weight' so to speak will find themselves being increasingly shunned by the community, and the quality of their rations and their overall care will decrease. There isn't enough to go around on the best days, much less when someone isn't contributing at all!


unwings: (pic#14232327)

[personal profile] unwings 2021-08-19 08:01 pm (UTC)(link)
Divine revelation often looks like madness.

[ think of basically any prophet in history - they were regarded as insane to much of their worlds during their life, and wouldn't be known for prophecy until far later. then again, some were honest-to-God batshit too, so. ]

Or causes it. The correlation's never been perfectly clear to me.
wittingly: (Wᴇ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏɴ ᴀ ᴅᴀᴛᴇ)

[personal profile] wittingly 2021-08-19 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Nah, I'm good.

( The response is almost instant, a little raspy -- although, that's a permanent aspect of his tone -- and just a touch distracted.

And then he catches sight of the man properly, and the food he comes bearing. It summons up a pretty good question: when is the last time he stopped to eat?

A reluctant second look at the gundam's inner workings, and then he finally peels himself out to drop down to the ground beside him.

Wryly:
)

Actually, now that you mention it...
firelords: (011)

[personal profile] firelords 2021-08-19 10:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Does it matter?

which is as close to admitting that she doesn't precisely know as she is likely to get. the fire nation does not negotiate, nor are they known to ask questions – and, besides, why would they? it is clear (to her) that they are far more advanced than the rest, far more powerful, far better in all the ways she has been taught as relevant.

The war is as good as won now. There aren't very many enemies left alive. Father will end the Avatar, and I –

she trails behind him as he steps towards the bodies, not to examine them, she finds, but to ask for sheets. one of the helpers hands one to azula, mistaken her trailing for an open bid for assistance.

she's holding it a bit lost-looking.


Where do they burn their dead? ⟪ she can, at least, see the value in a proper funeral ceremony for them.
pridecroweth: (pic#15015595)

[personal profile] pridecroweth 2021-08-19 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
I think it does. How would you feel if someone told you your whole way of life had to change, and you had no say in it? Whether it was for the better or not isn't exactly relevant. People should have the right to choose.

not touching that last bit. not many enemies left alive. avatars. her father, again. the lynchpin of all she seems to be saying, and probably not someone sam would get along with at all. when azula is handed a sheet, he gestures her to step to the head of one of the bodies.

Here, toss the other end at me. We'll wrap them. I'm guessing they mostly bury rather than burn — there's a graveyard not too far from here. Though given the storm, neither might be feasible right now.
ulfrkysst: (ásjá angan næ næ næ)

[personal profile] ulfrkysst 2021-08-20 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
[That is not the kind of response she expected, and she raises her eyebrows, expression otherwise bland. Perhaps he's mind-sick, himself.]

"Divine revelation"? You sound as though you believe them.
sunmon: (Default)

[personal profile] sunmon 2021-08-20 04:20 am (UTC)(link)
[ handy.

alina blinks emptily for a moment, then laughs. it's an awkward, stilted thing. the kind that makes it sound like she hasn't done it in a while, and dust is creaking out of her throat. then she shakes her head, dismissing any question about what's so funny preemptively.

it's strangely relieving to have her power reduced to rather handy.
]

Probably one of the kids. They scatter at the first sign of trouble. I wouldn't be surprised if some snuck in here.
skagzz: (oh hai)

[personal profile] skagzz 2021-08-22 12:56 am (UTC)(link)
tea cakes are my third favorite food

u planning to start a lemonade bullet stand so we can make tea cakes together, shawty? i like ur style
annoyware: (pic#14869578)

[personal profile] annoyware 2021-08-23 10:25 pm (UTC)(link)
[Claptrap's eye swivels back to Tina and he, like, hops indignantly. His little clamps angrily planted on... his hips? He doesn't have those. The equivalent of his hips.]

Are you trying to subjugate me? I am a free robot! I don't follow anyone's orders unless she's a terrifying Siren who could melt me with her brain.
spalten: (pic#14544807)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-24 12:43 am (UTC)(link)
[ he looks at her in surprise when she laughs, but hey. at least she's happy about it. ]

Oh, I agree. It'd do them well to be careful.

[ he'll grab a broom to clean up and finish the rest. there's a murmur in the air, worrying about the current state of things. gaelio frowns. ]

... they ought to have the generator going soon, but I can't imagine it's easy for them to deal with this on top of the rain.
spalten: (pic#14544660)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-24 12:52 am (UTC)(link)
Look, rest is important as well.

And it's not exactly five star food, but it's better than nothing.

[ he's reminded of mcgillis, who works so hard and will often forget to take breaks unless reminded. people with such obsessions and single-minded focus will always have such dedication to their work that he finds admirable, but also exasperating. ]
spalten: (pic#14899507)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-24 01:13 am (UTC)(link)
[ pardon????? ]

And who are your brethren, exactly?

[ he seems to him like an alien made into human form and uncertain if he should remain in this skin. in any case, he'll just gently move him away from the kids. ]
spalten: (awkward) (Default)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-24 01:16 am (UTC)(link)
It wouldn't have made a difference because that's what it boils down to.
skagzz: (fuk u)

[personal profile] skagzz 2021-08-24 03:16 am (UTC)(link)
On my planet we murder things to please gods that are actually space aliens with cool boxes of magic weapon junk WOULD U CALL THAT PRAYING SON
skagzz: (mahhvelous)

[personal profile] skagzz 2021-08-24 03:18 am (UTC)(link)
DON'T LIE TO THESE GOOD PEOPLE. I am your QUEEN. [ People are definitely starting to evacuate. Someone tries to calm Tina down, but she hisses at them. Like a cat.

The person scampers away and she turns her attention back to claptrap.
]

Didn't you hear? I'm one of the new sirens. Sweet sixes baby. [ She is not she is definitely lying but Claptrap doesn't know that and sirens are HOT. ]
mylawn: (pic#10433709)

a very late....power shortage....

[personal profile] mylawn 2021-08-24 04:05 am (UTC)(link)
[The gundam itself--or, at least, a robot-like thing of that size brings up some uncomfortable memories for 76. He knows, logically, that it's human-piloted and has no connection to the machines he fought, but seeing that kind of looming shape out of the corner of his eye dredges up an old flight response that he has to work to repress. Seeing Vidar clamber out of it is helpful--reminds him that there's someone inside, controlling it.

He thinks, maybe, he should help, but then he also thinks about how he's the kind of person who would want to do it on his own. He's not sure if Vidar is the same.
]

You want me to get a hose?

[It's not a serious question--76 is standing there watching all this with his arms folded, and it's easy to imagine the slightly amused expression underneath his visor.]
unwings: (pic#14232307)

[personal profile] unwings 2021-08-25 02:19 pm (UTC)(link)
[ castiel is a lot of things, and at times 'mind sick' may have applied, but not at the moment, though the raised brows and skeptics don't seem to bother him. this is just normal angel-walking-among-mortals fare. he's witnessed too many prophecies come to pass to ignore the possibility of one, and it's far from the first time he's gotten strange looks for being, well, strange. ]

Belief isn't quite the same as refraining from immediate doubt.

[ he's not saying they aren't all bonkers, just that listening to them before writing them off as such would be wise. for the chance they aren't all bonkers and there's an actual end times on the horizon we all ought to be aware of. ]
unwings: (Default)

[personal profile] unwings 2021-08-25 03:52 pm (UTC)(link)
Angels.

[ Cas informs mildly, as if this is the most natural answer there could be. 'alien made into human form' isn't that far off, but he's grown rather fond of this skin by now.

as if it needs clarifying - ]
The Host of Heaven.
spalten: (pic#14899500)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-26 03:23 am (UTC)(link)
[ should he be surprised about these turn of events? he saw fish aliens a while back and he's fairly sure a lot of people see his gundam as an abnormality of reality. angels shouldn't even be that much of a surprise.

vidar looks at him curiously. ]


I never knew your lot could be so violent.

But then again, there are so many stories about angels, and heaven, that it's always difficult to figure out what's closer to reality. [ a pause. ] Your reality, for that matter.
spalten: (awkward) (Default)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-26 03:25 am (UTC)(link)
Isn't just prayer another way to communicate to your gods?

Whatever form they take, the methods are more or less the same.
spalten: (pic#14899510)

[personal profile] spalten 2021-08-26 03:27 am (UTC)(link)
Please. This may be, in fact, your one chance to see me go wet and wild.

[ said in such a nonchalant tone. in any case vidar finishes off cleaning the soles of his boots, and now it's time to remove the mud on the sides. ]

How are you holding up?
nonscriptum: except when it comes to sex. actually, sometimes including sex. (I work best alone)

[personal profile] nonscriptum 2021-08-27 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
...uh.

[ Nate wouldn't qualify their relationship of late as being strained, exactly, or even distant, because they're not - it's that Ian has a lot of work to do and Nate is trying to find a place where he fits that isn't just "general guy who will carry your heavy stuff for you." He's also been tentatively interested in their new friends, what with the experience from Hadriel, but honestly, it's a matter of finding the time.

Things are tighter here than they were in New Amsterdam, despite the other issues. Nate bounces back quickly:
]

Yeah! Yeah, um- [ He should be used to this imminent apocalypse vibe by now, but having seen Ian flourish so strongly in much more friendly spaces it still manages to catch him off-guard every time. He nods to the gun. ] Can I come?
wittingly: (I ʜᴇᴀʀ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴠᴏɪᴄᴇ ɪɴsɪᴅᴇ ᴍᴇ)

[personal profile] wittingly 2021-08-27 01:50 am (UTC)(link)
( The request seems to bring him a little pause, and the flickering look he shoots over Nate isn't necessarily cool so much as it is assessing. )

If you want to.

( Is what he finally decides on, because it's the best compromise he can come up with between you don't need to babysit me and not sounding like he just doesn't want Nate to go. As irritated as he's been of late, Nate isn't the source of any of it. He still loves his company, just not the implication his mind's supplying about it right now. )
mylawn: (pic#10436242)

[personal profile] mylawn 2021-08-27 04:58 am (UTC)(link)
Let's not get hasty.

[Equally nonchalant, but to his credit he will take a cursory look around for some kind of water source. It doesn't seem prudent to actually run a hose, given the current state of things (and the general state of resources), but 76 manages to find a bucket, which he fills and brings over--at least now Vidar can clean off the brush he's using to scrub at the mud.

He doesn't necessarily expect to be asked how he's doing, and he actually has to think about the answer.
]

Keeping busy. [76 gives Vidar's muddy boots a nod.] Trying to be useful.

morozova: (pic#14889644)

[personal profile] morozova 2021-08-28 08:27 pm (UTC)(link)
Only the third?
skagzz: (mahhvelous)

[personal profile] skagzz 2021-08-28 08:36 pm (UTC)(link)
chocolate chip cookies are numbah 2 and nothing can unseat the queen of all foods CRUMPETS

PS I will murder anyone who bakes oatmeal raisin cookies no joke one time me'n mr. torgue killed some bandits for that. shit is nasty.

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