[WORLD ONE | OCTOBER INTRO LOG]

[spellbindmods]

Who: The new coven members and old blood
Where: In and around the hub island
When: Day 92
Open/Closed: Open to All

All characters are told briefly what their powers are by Genette -- no extemporaneous details. For instance, if your character has the ability to detect lies, they'll be told as such -- no warning about limitations, repercussions or the like. They'll also be given a variant of this letter so they aren't totally ignorant of the situation -- though of course adapt this letter to the current setting and surroundings of the game.

This setting may be familiar to you -- maybe you caught a glimpse of it when you first visited. Maybe this is your first time experiencing this weird world and the panic is setting in. If you're totally lost, a tall human woman with a long scroll of paper will stop by to give you the run down. She'll also give you a letter, which may give you more questions than answers since the information is a wee out of date. (Maybe someone else can fill in some gaps for you). What is at first painfully obvious is that you're ill-equipped. Any magic or powers you had previously are suddenly replaced with an empty hole in your being. That's not all that's gone, but perhaps that's what's most pressing. Another thing you may notice is that there are others just like you, wandering around and just as confused. If you feel so inclined, you may want to ask around and see if anyone else knows what's up. A ▢ If one of your characters isn't looking to introduce themselves to others, someone's willing to do it for them. Genette is trying to make sure all newbies are accounted for and have a buddy, so she's grabbing them when she finds them and tossing them at the first coven member she sees. "Hi, so-and-so, this is so-and-so! They're new, so show them the ropes -- be friends, okay?" You get the gist. Your character may be paired up with another newbie, a seasoned character or both! Five times, even! Timelines in RPing are weird! B ▢ Let's say that instead of milling about and doing nothing entirely productive, your character has decided to try and venture off to find a way off this huge floating rock. That's nice -- but be warned that the forest is filled with interesting things. For instance, they've happened to find a hollowed out tree that happens to be where a hoard of land crabs are living. They move fast -- run quick! C ▢ Other characters may want to establish shelter before they do anything else -- and that's their right! The problem is that if your character wants to be well-supplied, they're going to have to do things for themselves. There's something of an assembly line set up, but not a lot has been done in way of making things workable. Genette wanted all new coven members to have a little food parcel to take to their hut, but time constraints, you know? If you want any food for now -- or for later -- you may want to cook some of this (poisonous) eel, salt some boar jerky or cut into one of these rabbits. You've also got some berries to eat in the meantime, if you want something simple!

By the time afternoon sets in, everyone should be a little more adjusted -- or, they should at least be a little more aware of the situation. From there, things still need to be done and exploring is always an option! D ▢ For those characters who want to stick around the base camp, there's something worthwhile in discovering the buildings around the area. One such building is the mansion, which contains extra supplies and a renovated kitchen. The kitchen is now functional with electricity and running water, with a few raw ingredients for making whatever your character would like. It's minimal, but also not totally useless. E ▢ If you mill about too long, you'll be put to work. Run into Genette and you'll be sent to pick western part of the island to look for strawberries, wheat and deer (good luck hunting if your character doesn't have the capabilities, but maybe someone else can help?). Run into Genette and she'll offer your character an ax to chop wood with (is this a wise idea? probably not), or a request to go fishing in either a stream or the ocean attached to the island on the eastern side. Or your character can do both if they so choose...? F ▢ With all of these new people milling about, telepathy is on the fritz again. At least, it certainly is for those who are new! Your character may not realize their broadcasting frustrations to the network, or maybe a stupid secret. Their mental filter is certainly broken, but that's at least a great conversation starter. Night finally falls on the exhausting day, and it's time to rest. Thankfully the island is beautiful at night, especially the sky. The night is filled with space worms, relaxing mist and wondrous sights in the stars. G ▢ Adding to the excitement of the beautiful night, Genette has set up something of a...talent show? In an effort to get new coven members acclimated with their magic, she's asked them all to use their magic in some way -- it may take a volunteer, or maybe they can show it off all on their own. In any case, show me what you got. H ▢ Of course, some characters aren't going to be up for this fancy display and will want to go about their own business. There are plenty of places to sit and stew on this island, both private and in plain sight. The stars are spectacularly bright, and the higher up your character gets the less it seems like night time. If they're lucky, they may catch sight of a shooting star, though it's of course much larger than usual. They're directly in space, after all! I ▢ Wildcard! How will your character interact with this new and unusual world?

Comments

( A )

[reckoner]

[ Show them the ropes, he's told, when he too just arrived. Gaelio thinks to voice that snag, but Genette has already swept away, leaving him with another kid. High school. A quick glance at those milling about, to try to gauge how many were that young, his mouth beginning to part to answer the nicety --

but she goes on. Gaelio blinks, looking back to her, as she... well, he's not really sure what she's doing. Introducing herself, apparently. Not well. ]

Next time, leave it at, "it's nice to meet you."

[ He advises, his expression bland, but his voice lilting with faint amusement. ]

You descended upon this world to grace me with what?

[oceanaria]

I will. Believe me, I will.

[ She's currently considering continuing this conversation while burying her face in hands. At the very least, her tone is more flat than nervous now, so there's that? Maybe she'll be able to actually talk instead of spurting nonsense like she has done just a while ago. ]

Please forget about that part. Especially about that part. It's just a shtick of someone I know. I arrived here like everyone else.

[ Stopping at that, Riko sighs. Explaining it further might make things awkward, so it's probably better to change the subject. ]

Maybe we should move on to your introduction, instead...

[reckoner]

[ How very... expressive. Gaelio watches with dull interest as she speaks through her hands, muffled by mortification. There isn't any need for it, but it does hold his attention. ]

Do you often copy that person when nervous?

[ Sorry, he won't forget it, but it also won't make much difference. Still, it does seem it would be a mercy to let her change the topic, so he does, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. ]

Gaelio Bauduin, as she said. I can't help you. I've also just arrived.

[oceanaria]

No...not really. That would be embarrassing. I'm not even sure why I thought that was a good idea.

[ She wouldn't do this to her poor nerves too often, especially when the chances of being called out on it are so high.

His introduction was kept short which is something she should've done too. Oh well. ]

I don't think I need help...yet. [ At least she's a realist? ] Unless you know how to find a way out of here.

[reckoner]

Embarrassing... are you embarrassed now?

[ Something he probably shouldn't ask, and yet, he just did. Non-stop calling out. Unfortunately for Riko, her excessive initial reaction amused him enough (though his expression betrays none of it), that he's disquisitive. ]

No.

[ He doesn't know a way out. ]

But you might need to be shown around.

[ Which he can't do. Genette should have paid more attention. ]

[oceanaria]

Are you messing with me, Bauduin-san?

[ It took her long enough to notice... ]

You seemed like someone who might know how to escape this place, but I suppose I was wrong.

[ Not for the first time and definitely not the last. ]

I think I won't wander too far from the camp, I mean...the wild animals.

[ Riko would rather not meet any of them again...especially not the boars. ]

[reckoner]

Maybe.

[ Easy admission, just like that, before he moves right along. ]

Are you saying I look competent? Thanks, but I was just taken, too.

[ He knows zilch. But she's a practical sort, if initially energetic. Both knowing whether she needs help (even in as bizarre and theoretically alarming a situation as this), and her own limitations. ]

Yeah. Is your magic unhelpful?

[oceanaria]

Maybe.

[ She should've expected a straightforward answer, yet she is a bit surprised. Not for the first time today, and definitely not the last. ]

Oh, I see. I wouldn't have guessed.

[ Honestly, everyone gives off an aura of being more mature and composed than her. ]

Unhelpful? I'm not sure...everything I draw becomes real, apparently. It might be useful in a way, I suppose. What about your magic?

[reckoner]

[ At his own word echoed back, movement flickers over his mouth, arcing toward if not quite reaching a smile.

That power, however -- Gaelio blinks, intrigued. She may have only been told, and thus unable to test it, but the questions start. ]

Must it be on paper? How close the drawing, and to scale? It could be useful in many ways -- a functional gun, or food, for example.

[ If not to scale, even something like a bed. His power, then, he drops as a clipped afterthought. ]

Illusions.

[oceanaria]

I-I'm not going to draw a functional gun!

[ Scandalized by the idea, Riko takes a step away from Gaelio. It's not only that she disagrees with the idea, but she also doubts that she could recreate one.

Food is acceptable, though. ]

It doesn't have to be. I can draw on any surface, actually.

[ Which makes it even more useful! If only all the things weren't destined to disappear after some time. ]

Illusions. Could you demonstrate?

[reckoner]

Why not?

[ Plain as that. Given the aggressive fauna, the refusal perplexes him. Would a gun not be useful and the easiest new weapon to handle for the inexperienced? ]

Even by tracing with a stick in the dirt?

[ Other materials seem less abundant, but if any surface suffices, she might be able to use the sticks and dirt against rock. Inelegant, but a possible necessity.

As for demonstrating his, Gaelio considers. He hasn't intended to do it yet. That must have been the trick with the boar, what distracted it, but with McGillis -- his own flesh rending, blood and agony, then casting it against him -- something that swept him up, a self-perpetuated assault.

After a too long pause. ]

...I don't know.

[oceanaria]

Because I won't. [ That answer might not be satisfactory enough, so to prevent further questions, an explanation follows: ] I can't draw them is one reason.

I haven't tried that but it might work, I suppose. I've drawn on my hand and it worked, so...

[ Gaelio's reply is quite surprising to her, to be honest. Maybe it's exhausting for him to use it? Or maybe he still needs some practice?

It's always better to just ask, so— ]

Why not?

[reckoner]

[ In fact, despite his persistence to this point, he might have accepted that. Firm refusal has a weighty advantage on mild curiosity. In deference to it, he does not push on to ask whether she would try to learn, whether she would draw them if, with practice, she could.

Gaelio permits that to close, shifting focus to her hand. His eyes drop, glancing. ]

With pen? Was the resulting object proportionate?

[ Could she do it by scratching skin with nail? Would a bird be alive or dead? Too much of a barrage, he suspects, when she's as new as he and couldn't possibly know the limits.

He's kept in line by her own returned query. Now his glance flits to his own hand. ]

I've only done it by accident, so far. I think twice.

[ Can't even be sure of that, but if the feeling of those times was anything to go by -- twice. ]

[oceanaria]

Yes, it was. Somehow.

[ Even with objects appearing after she drew them, Riko still can't really wrap her head around the magic granted to her and everyone. So explaining it in detail is out of the question. Now or anytime soon, honestly. ]

The thing is...everything I draw disappears after some time.

[ That makes it some kind of an illusion, but not really. Riko's not really sure how to classify it. ]

I suppose we both need some practice.

[reckoner]

[ Disappearing objects reduced their utility as food, beyond immediate placation. While digestion may take time, it's a curious thought, that off partially digested material, the nutrients in the initial stages of breakdown and use, fading -- the body again deprived.

However, for weapons or short-term tools, it'd suffice. Too bad about her aversion to guns. Even if the bullet disappeared, the damage would remain, whether death or injury. Concrete things could be accomplished and actualized. Whereas, the one thing Gaelio knows for certain about his granted magic, is that though he can convincingly reproduce the experience of death, none of it sticks, it wasn't real. ]

Mm.

[ Still looking at his hand, contemplating the how, the feel of it. If he concentrates, something simple like an apple, the pulse in his head and nerves. Red shimmers, solidifies. His fingertips seem to curl against the firm skin, and Gaelio peers at the apple now in his hand, lifts it, concentrates on how it should taste before taking a bite. Juicy, right -- a delayed addition.

Something like this. He twists his wrist and the missing chunk, the teeth marks, smooth over, before -- without warning, tossing the apple at Riko.

Could she see it? Would it feel like an apple when she caught it? Only one way, this way to find out. ]

Catch.

[oceanaria]

[ If she only did such an in-depth analysis of her own powers instead of freaking out every five minutes...if only. Whatever Gaelio is pondering about, Riko doesn't want to interrupt him and simply watches him in silence. Why would he watch his own hand for so long? Does he want her to draw something on it, or...

Then, just for a moment, Riko looks away. That's the moment in which the apple appears out of thin air— ]

Is this—ah!

[ In a second, the apple is flying her way. There's not enough time to tell him how rude it is to throw things at other people (something is telling her that he might know that already, though), so it'll have to wait. Reaching out to catch the apple, soon enough Riko can feel it's weight and firmness. ]

Is this...?

[ Let's try that again. The apple looks and feels real to her, but she has doubts. ]

[reckoner]

[ Actually, yes, he would really like her to draw something on his hand, that would be cool an experience. Sadly, it's far from his mind. Or, less sadly, as he's intent on keeping the apple actualized.

Intent on that, and on her expression. ]

I don't know. Is it?

[ What does she see? He won't provide the answer, or what he wants it to be. Though, the fact she reacted to and seems to be holding it bodes well. ]

How does it feel? This might be a weird request, but can you try eating it?

[ ...weirder if she doesn't actually think she's holding an apple... ]

[oceanaria]

What do you mean you don't know...

[ He's messing with her again, clearly!!! But what can she do. Weighing the apple in her hand, Riko examines it carefully. It is not going to change into something else? Did he throw a pear and is now trying to make her believe she's holding an apple or...

Overthinking things is this girl's hobby. ]

Like...an apple?

[ What is it supposed to feel? Riko doesn't know. It's an apple and...that's it.

The request brings a frown on her face. Her mom told her not to take food for strangers. Does that truth apply to some other world she's been thrown into? Who knows. ]

Okay, but if something happens... [ There's nothing she can do about it, honestly. ] Okay.

[ She takes a bite on the other side, of course...! ]

[reckoner]

[ Sort of messing with her.

More instructive if she sees and identifies it without his input. Further, while she would have no reason to lie to comfort him should it be wildly off the mark to her perception, this does help prevent anything like.

It would be more amusing to watch her take this so seriously, staring in such a way at what (he hopes) looks like a common apple, if he himself wasn't concentrating as hard on keeping it actualized. Hearing that it feels like an apple proves relieving. Gaelio nods. ]

Good.

[ As, yeah, it's supposed to feel like an apple and nothing more. And, his magic permitting, taste like one. Difficult to articulate, even understand, just how it works, how he intends to make her believe she tastes an apple. The crunch, the juice, the firm texture. Enough to focus on without trying to add more, like a worm or that pear switch.

Plus, she's been so obliging, a trick would be unkind. ]

It isn't real, if it's not... right. But I'll apologize. How is it?