mapping party redux

[rebells]

Who: mapping party! (late signups for mapping party can go here)
Where: the near western side of the island
When: Day 85
Open/Closed: semi-open! feel free to mingle/run into mapping party at any of the locations. if you would like to be in mapping party, signups are above!

[So maybe you were invited along on this expedition by Jay or a friend. Maybe you heard a telepathic message a couple days ago looking for people with scouting and mapping skills and answered the call. Maybe you just happened to be in the area. Whatever the reason, there's a small group of people and dragons assembling on the beach near the huts, and Jay appears to be in the center of it, checking that everyone he's expecting is accounted for.

They'll be going by air to map the near western coastline and circling back around to camp, touching down every so often to look for landmarks and other potentially useful areas on the way. You're welcome to come along, if you can bargain yourself space on dragonback.]

Comments

AT CAMP - SETTING OUT

[rebells]

[Mingle, introduce yourself to people you haven't met yet--there are quite a few coven members assembled near the beach today--or try to find yourself space on a dragon or Pokemon.]

[rootandbranch]

[A DRAGON IS HERE. he's enormous and stretched out in a lazy sprawl across the sand of the beach, eyes closed, taking advantage of the organizational efforts of everyone else to soak in the sun while he's waiting for passengers. there seem to be two options to snag that requisite space on his back: wake him up and introduce yourself politely, or just climb onto him like he's a glorified jungle gym. which to choose...]

[rootbound]

[hm

sits higher up on the bridge of his nose, where the scales are firmer, and tickles the soft part with all his fingers...]

[rootandbranch]

[...Geir wrinkes his nose and draws his head back slightly

it's coming

A TINY SNEEZE]

MEADOW

[rebells]

[Not long after setting out, they'll come across a meadow with a strange type of flower--it absorbs the color of liquid that touches it, so some flowers may be colored, but most are transparent like skeleton flowers. The stems are very thin, but sturdy, and could potentially be used for weaving.]

[potentite]

[Once Jake figured out the way the flower works, he was entranced. So, using his magic, he managed to find a paint set and has been dabbling at making flowers with dozens of colours. A rainbow of flowers in fact, all in glasses and mugs of different sizes, just whatever he could find to hold them and the coloured water. But he seems so happy dipping them.]

[rebells]

[Jake, you dork. Jay looks both baffled and amused.]

Enjoying yourself?

[imsorey]

[Sorey watches quietly for a few minutes, observing with bright and interested eyes before finally speaking up and reaching for a flower]

Where'd you get all of these colors from?

ABANDONED HOUSE

[rebells]

[They may also stop at the abandoned house on their way out to visit parts unknown, since it's at least a source of shelter and many in the mapping party might not have been. There are a lot of different rooms, some still containing clothes and a few household supplies, and a garden that's now being maintained by Haru.]

FURTHER OUT - FERTILE AREAS

[rebells]

[The terrain, as they go further out, becomes very grassy and hilly, with a thin, sandy beach along the coast. There are many trees, some thin Scandinavian birches, others thicker and barked.

This area has extremely fertile soil and a variety of foliage and flowers--some very odd indeed--ponds have large flowers floating on them and trees are covered in blooming flowers. Some even contain types of fruit and nuts, though whether or not these are entirely edible isn't known.]


((You can contact the mods for fruit/nut effects, or just make them up!))

[rebells]

[Someone is up in a tree tossing down sweet-smelling nuts in thick, wrinkly shells with a stripy pattern--better to find a taste-tester closer to camp, but in his mind there's no point in not taking some of a potential food source back to see whether it's edible or not. He's not watching where he tosses them especially carefully, so you might get hit if you're not watching out.]

[spaceforged]

[Jay isn't watching but Shiro is. Just in case they're messing with poisonous nuts or so, he changed to lion form. He's below, metal jaws open and catching the falling nuts.]

Just toss them down this way. See anything else up there?

ABANDONED (?) BEACH HUTS

[rebells]

[Even deeper in the area is "another collection of overgrown beach huts. They seem oddly placed because of how floral the area is with no beach anywhere, but they aren't an unwelcome find. These huts are less like huts and more like tiny houses.

There are 5 of these and each can fit two people, albeit not super comfortably. They appear to be lived in, though there don't appear to be many items inside them. Characters can find survivalist foods and items sparingly, like canned foods or powdered milk.]

[rebells]

[Jay emerges out of one of the tiny hut-houses carrying a hunting knife and some cans in the other.]

This place just keeps getting more and more bizarre.

[imsorey]

[Sorey pokes his head out of the hut next door, inspecting a can of powdered milk and trying to compare it to the cans that Jay has.]

No kidding. It makes me think that there was a group of people here before us, if there are things like this lying around.

[spaceforged]

[Five huts. Well, more like tiny houses. He clears some of the overgrowth away to get a better look at them. They don't seem to need repaired.

He opens the far left one and steps inside. When he emerges he has a puzzled look on his face and a small hand lantern with a half burnt candle inside.]

...this is odd. There's signs of living here but, I couldn't find much. There's no signs of a struggle or flight.

[lunala]

[Moon, having just hopped down off Nebby to take a look, frowns at the candle.] Do you think they all went somewhere? Maybe we should wait before we take anything.

WATER SOURCE / WATERFALL

[rebells]

[Circling back around, close to the water source nearest camp is a "small waterfall. The mouth of the waterfall ends into a smaller stream, but there is a beautiful rock shelf located behind the waterfall that can hold about four people."]

[rootandbranch]

[all the flying in the thin sharp air has given Geir a healthy thirst, and when they settle down to investigate this water source more closely, he shakes his passengers off gently and plunges directly into the stream. it hardly does more than damp his belly, but it's refreshing enough, and he can shove his face directly into the waterfall from here. anyone who's taken advantage of that shelf in their exploring are suddenly face to face with a monster mouth.]

Hi!

[oneandmikleonly]

[there is a much smaller dragon crouched on the shelf back here, basking like a huge cat. what. he likes water it's not a crime

he also springs up much like a cat when Geir's giant head comes through, startled]

Aaaah! --oh, it's you!

[imsorey]

[there is a very small squishy human there and he practically jumps right off of the shelf when Geir's face pops through]

--Hi!

[it comes out as a startled squeak]

THE MOUNTAIN CLOSEST TO CAMP

[rebells]

[They'll also circle around the mountain closest to camp on their way back, and may find any of the following things:

1. A lagoon that's "small and picturesque, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in farmable resources and beauty. A species of fish can be found swimming around in the waters, as well as a variety of turtles, frogs and other pond creatures. It may have been part of a garden or other standing structure at one time as evident by a large stone bench placed to the side of the lagoon itself."

2. A strange split in the side of the mountain. "The split is about 7' wide, 6' tall and goes about 30' deep. Inside is a dark cave, though the walls are lined with a shining green gemstone. They're easy to pull out with enough force, and there are about 1000 covering the walls, each about the size of an average human palm."

3. A small hole in the side of the mountain. "This hole is about 5' high and wide, and runs through the mountain clear to the other side. There are various smaller hole entrances inside of the tunnel, though they are about the size of a fist and can't be entered or excavated. The sides of the tunnel are stone."]

2

[rootandbranch]

[as they finish up their trip on the southwestern slopes of the mountain, Geir abruptly gets visibly more thoughtful, pausing to glance at (or stick his nose or claws) into the various caves they pass. while he doesn't even try to enter most of the smaller holes they encounter, when they reach one with a green glitter inside, he stops short to rush over to it with a betrayed little cry.

he tries his best, but no go-- he's not even close to being small enough to fit in there, and his claws are in a terrible position for gaining the leverage to pull the green stones out of the wall from outside. but they're shiny rocks, you guys! SHINY ROCKS.]

Wait, wait! Everyone come look at this one! Noooo...

[spaceforged]

Hang on, hang on. [The cry brings Shiro back to Geir. He stares at the hole that's too small for a dragon but big enough for...well almost anyone else.]

What did yo- [He pauses when something green glints in the cave. Wait.]

If you'll move over I can get in there.

1

[lohengrins]

[ the lagoon captures quite a bit of his attention. percival can be seen thoughtfully peering into the pool of water, eyes flitting over the fish it harbors. suddenly, a turtle crawls into his hand, and he smiles the slightest bit. ]

If only I had the time to study each and every one of these creatures. We should start documenting them — creating names for what we uncover.