[OPENING] island hub - day 1

[spellbindmods]

Who: All Characters
Where: Main Hub
When: Day 1
Open/Closed: Open to All

TDM threads can be considered canon if you so choose, they contain the power that you apped with and both parties confer that the thread is canon.

For characters that were on the TDM and who were not accepted/didn't app, these characters will be considered dropped characters that were magicked away.

Night has fallen upon everyone. It's thus far been an eventful day -- you've met some new people, discovered some new aspects of yourself that weren't there before you appeared here (however that might have happened). The original inhabitants of the island have been working hard to prepare a few things. One activity might have been one you were a part of, but there's still time to get your hands dirty. A ▢ Brie has rolled out a large copper pot and created a pit on the beach. It's unrealistic to think everyone can subsist on the few foods she's collected from other words and boar jerky alone. She's got a few boar carcasses sitting on the beach that need attending to as well. Your characters can help feed themselves and others, and here's what needs to be done: Fire needs to be started for cooking the meat AND a large bonfire for light and warmth. The large copper bowl needs to be filled with water. Crabs need to be bravely collected from the bath house for boiling. The boar needs to be either cut up for kebabs or stuck through. Does your character know anything about spit-roasting? Any other helpful magical skills are welcome to help make food. Post feasting, there are dozens of crabs and a pile of roasted boar meet that are up for eating. Even if you didn't offer to help in making any of the food, they're open to eat it -- even if the true helpers may give you dirty looks. The boar is fine, if not a little bland and chewy, but it's probably better than the jerky. The crab is delicious, if not a little tasteless...there problem with the crab isn't exactly the taste, though. B ▢ The crab isn't a species that's immediately edible for most species, though your character will grow to get used to it eventually. For now, the meat isn't settling well within your character's system. Your character will experience sweats, a high fever, blurred vision, potential vomiting, hives...it's very obvious their body is rejecting the unfamiliar meat. This may also cause a bit of an issue with your character's powers. They're still getting physically and mentally acclimated to these new changes, so expect their telepathy and magic to go a little haywire.

It's almost completely dark outside when the next event of the evening happens. You're living your life when you see it out of the corner of your eye -- it's absolutely hard to miss. What you see is a large lit caravan, larger than even an army tank. It's bright white and shining, covered with golden, ornate details that emanate an even more dazzling sparkle. The entire thing is aglow, and it's quickly coming towards the large bonfire that's been made. It's not rolling across the sand, but instead it's floating, and so is a matching trunk that's sailing along next to a figure beside the caravan. C ▢ A tall, slender woman has also come along with the large caravan, quickly opening the trunk that eventually lands on the sand with a large thud. She's handing out sacks, very similar to the ones previously in the large lobster cage. These contain a parka, a type of candy of your choice, a bottle of water, a large shard from a broken mirror and a letter rolled up and bound with a roll of twine. There are two other thread options associated with this prompt: Genette's top level and her telepathy training post. Around the same time as Genette is handing out this new little goody bag, you suddenly receive a telepathic message. It might seem a little strange at first -- but on that note, what about tonight isn't strange? D ▢ The telepathic message your character will receive is a simple one: Hello. It shows up in text form across your character's line of vision and it doesn't go away until they respond back, though the message that's sent out won't go to the original telepath. Instead it will ping pong to a random person in the group. You've made a new friend! After you've met Genette, she's also got a few more supplies that she pulls out a small door in the base of the caravan. She's insistent that you only get two items, since there aren't exactly a lot of them to go around! E ▢ The last of the starter supplies are being handed out, and these are items that are more cumbersome or rare -- they may not be immediately useful for your character, but maybe you can make use of them somehow, whether eventually in another world or with your power. An electronic/technology: these can be as obvious as an MP3 player, as useless as a garage door motor or as scandalous as a Hitachi Magic Wand. If it can be powered by electricity or batteries, there's a tub of them. They're also partially charged if they don't need constant electricity to work. A fashion accessory: there are a lot of these, surprisingly. Flower crowns, belts, bras, shoes, earrings, other types of jewelry. Your character can look cute while suffering from crab vomiting. Books and stationary: maps of various worlds, books written in a myriad of languages (maybe even one you recognize!), writing paper, ink pens, gel pens, stickers. Any kind of stationary can be found here. Other household items: this can include cleaning supplies, furniture, and other miscellaneous goods. These won't be personal affects from your character's home, but they may be useful! Feel free to come up with unusual or alien items -- these have come from all over the universe, remember!

As the night winds down, it's recommended by Brie that you should probably go to be in your hut -- or at the very least get somewhere inside. There are a lot of people around the camp, however, so it's no surprise that there are a few people waiting around to get their fill of food and supplies before heading to bed. The noise of the new members and the light of the fire have attracted a very large pack of boars, who you'll later find make routine trips to the beach every night. Boar mating season has made the wild hogs rather testy, and the smell of food -- even if it's their own boar brethren -- have made them even more volatile. F ▢ If your character isn't quick to get inside tonight, they're likely to get a boar charging at them. The chances are doubled if they happen to be holding onto a food item. Female boars can leave a few bruises and trample you, but beware the males -- they've got tusks. However, it's not like staying up at night doesn't have its advantages. Once midnight hits, another species of animal makes its regular rounds across the base camp. In the sky, characters can see an Aurora Borealis-like sight. Instead of being dancing green and blue lights, however, the reality is that they are a massive species of space worm, and hundreds are wiggling past on their way to travel back home. They're shimmering and in every color imaginable, lighting up the sky with their magnificent hues. G ▢ The space worms operate outside the natural barrier of the hub, but they still are in close enough proximity to shed a film as they travel. If you're still awake, boars or no, you'll be in the middle of a shower. The film sheds from the worms and enters the atmosphere, creating multi-colored, sweet-smelling mists of worm water vapor. Worm water vapor is kind of weird, but it's also pretty cool. It's also calming, and that's a bonus. Inhale too much and you might become a little too calm.

Comments

[oneandmikleonly]

d
Hello? What is the logic behind mental speech being translated to a written form like this, anyway? Are we able to archive these communications somehow?

e
[none of the books are recognizable to him; neither is much of the technology. but he does pick up a couple of the books that looks a little bit familiar, rifling through them and the maps and text they contain. he's clearly interested, but...]

I can't even begin to read the writing on these -- is anyone able to help translate --?

g
[at first, when the worm mist starts to fall from the strange lovely lights, he looks irritated by being sprayed with something unknown -- you can see him make very purposeful warding gestures with his hands, only to look even more irritated when they have no result.

(he knows he's lost his powers, but he hasn't tested what he does have yet. the scramble of people and unnexpected changes have been enough to deal with today.)

as the calming mist starts to take effect, though, his expression smooths, and he actually looks kind of zen for the first time today.]

...I suppose, out of all the ways to end a strange evening, this isn't so bad.

wildcard

[other? you can hit me up at brightwinged as needed!]

~~ E

[witchofwishes]

[The books catch her attention to. And even she is at a loss for some of the languages in them. And some she only recognizes from other people's travels and the gifts she's been given back. How interesting... But there are a few she can read. This one here is in Japanese. And this in Chinese... and here are a few in English.

She glances up, having just browsing through the maps now, at the request for help. She might not fare any better but why not at least give it a try?]

Here, let me see... Which one are you trying to read...?

Re: ~~ E

[oneandmikleonly]

[he jumps a little when she answers (it's going to be a while until he loses that reflex every time an apparent human speaks to him), but after a moment, offers her the one he has. there are maps in it too, not like Earth's, and the script looks a lot like Arabic without actually being that; trying to translate into that directly would create gibberish.]

Oh, ah--this one--

[witchofwishes]

[At first glance it does seem familiar. Arabic, yes? But upon attempting to translate the first couple of words she finds that while similar it's not what she assumed it to be. How perplexing... It's so close. Even trying to rearrange the words she thinks she's able to translate doesn't produce any fruitful results.

She tried.]

Ah... I'm sorry. [And she is. After eating up a bit of his time and having nothing to show for it.] It was very similar to a language I knew but... [She shakes her head.] But clearly something quite different.

I guess it was rather silly to assume one of my worlds languages would be on a map that is quite clearly not my world. [She offers a soft laugh.] But I guess you never know until you try~

[oneandmikleonly]

No--please don't apologize? I really appreciate the help, and even knowing that it has a similarity to a language you know may be an important clue!

[what an earnest young man]

Perhaps there's another book here that will help decode that language, or--some of the others. They're worth keeping for later reference, at least!

[witchofwishes]

[Earnest indeed! And he's right. Maybe they can find something similar. Or maybe that's just a very different version of arabic than the one she's familiar with. Maybe there will be a similar map with a more familiar text. It's worth keeping that idea in mind.]

This is such a jumble of books though... I feel like if we could organize it more properly it'd be easier to sort and figure things out. Better yet... I wonder if there's a library around here. There was a mansion when I first arrived but I can't remember if there was a library...

[She was rather busy in the wine cellar and didn't explore everything like she probably should have.]

[oneandmikleonly]

[yuuko knows where her priorities are at. as it is, she talked to the right person for library-finding. accounting for libraries? one of those. nerd is the word]

As it is, I wound up not seeing the rest of that place--I found the library there first, and then ran into someone from home, so it got a bit complicated. None of the books there were understandable to me either, but you may have better luck?

In fact, maybe we should bring these there so all of them are in one place...

d

[p_mortem]

It's kind of useful. Faster to read than to say out loud. Like subtitles in a movie.

[ and he can talk to anybody without having to get out of bed, telepathy is wonderful ]

[oneandmikleonly]

Ah, well, I can't disagree it's useful, and versatile. But what on earth is a movie? And this is -- we met today, yes?

[the uncertainty isn't because he's forgotten Minato; he's just having trouble adjusting enough to immediately tell who's sending him a thing.]

[p_mortem]

A movie is... It's not important.

[ He's just too lazy to explain, it doesn't matter. But Minato also has no idea who he's talking to, with this sort of telepathic text not having the convenience of a return address like phones do, so. He'll play it safe and reintroduce himself, hoping Mikleo will do the same. ]

I'm Minato.

[oneandmikleonly]

[the mental 'font' Mikleo is using increases a little in size; excited to recognize the name, but restraining it]

Ah! You're from earlier! It's me, Mikleo -- you were able to settle in okay for tonight?

[p_mortem]

Hi Mikleo. And... sort of. I haven't met the boss yet. Or know what I'm supposed to do. So I can't settle yet.

[ Once he does that, he's going to sleep forever and not wake up until they're all dragged to another location. The dream. ]

[oneandmikleonly]

Yeah, I got interrupted before asking her where to find this mysterious overlord, or whatever they are. If you're really restless, we could take a look first thing tomorrow, though I'm not sure how much luck we would have. You should probably try to rest tonight, though, it's been a really long day. . .

[fuss, fuss]

D

[yokunaru]

No idea.

[If even the short text sounds a bit curt to him, like Mikleo had caught the other in a bad mood, he wouldn't be too far off the mark. Almost grudgingly, Yuuri adds a moment later--]

Didn't even think mental speech was possible until now. I'm not really an expert.

[oneandmikleonly]

[he tilts his head a little in surprise, unseen -- wasn't Yuuri the one who'd said hello? (it wasn't, but he hasn't grasped that yet.) how oddly abrupt -- though it's harder to tell tone in text, of course. he tries to pick his words carefully for the reply.]

I'm not...not used to it, but usually only a few people can hear it, and it's just by voice. There is one lady who's been here a while, though: perhaps she knows a way to block off some of this, or it's going to get overwhelming fast with how many of us there are.

[yokunaru]

[Overwhelming... though Yuuri's been confused about the headache he's been nursing since he got here, he has noticed it got worse as soon as more of them had gathered in the same area.

His reply is a lot more tentative this time.]

Do you think being overwhelmed could result in something like a headache...?

[oneandmikleonly]

Yes. . .you're not the only one with one. There's been more people to socialize with at once today than . . . well, ever, for me . . . is it something like that?

I hope you've found a house to yourself, if that's the case. Ah. I can stop chattering if it's making it worse. . .

[the font also trails off smaller towards the end, unsurety; he'd like to keep tabs on someone who isn't feeling well, but absolutely not at the cost of making them feel worse.]

[yokunaru]

Really? Other people have them, too? [He's a little relieved that he isn't the only one who's struggling.] I don't think I've talked to so many strangers all at once before either, but... it's more like the more people around, the more my head hurts.

[A pause, like Yuuri's thinking about it.]

No, it...helps, I think. Talking to one person makes me focus on that instead of everything else.

[oneandmikleonly]

All right.

. . . mm, this is only a guess, but it might be related to whatever ability you've got, if it's working exponentially like that? Mine's. . .I'm pretty sure it's just a stress headache.

E

[he_smol]

I take it you aren't familiar with these languages? What kind of books are you interested in? I could help you pick one out for further study.

[ Thankfully there seem to be some written in a language he can recognize. He pauses to pick one up, thumbing through the pages. ]

Though I must say I'm rather relieved to see these books are nothing like the ones in the library...

[oneandmikleonly]

I was hoping for anything that helps give us more information about this place, or at least the ones with maps -- some kind of navigational aid, when it comes down to it. I presume we can't just stay on this island forever.

[that's a big presumption, but he's got to try for some optimism]

I'm not familiar with any of these, though, no. It's a good thing there's something allowing all of us here to understand each other, at least.

[he_smol]

I've scoured the library best I can and unfortunately I've been unable to find any books that contain maps... nor can I make sense of whatever pictogram language they seem to employ here.

[ But hey, someone else might have better luck looking through the higher shelves. ]

At the very least, all of us can communicate verbally... though I do wonder. You must use some other form of writing if nothing here seems familiar, am I correct?

[oneandmikleonly]

You checked it that thoroughly already, huh? I was thinking of bringing these back there so they're all in one place as a resource...

[he clicks his tongue at the second remark; he had been wondering about that too.]

Yes; I'm able to read and write a couple of languages. Nothing showing up in these, though. Did you want to see if the effect on our communication with each other extends to our writing?

[he_smol]

As thoroughly as I could.

[ Read: just the shelves within arm's reach. ]

If you do wish to bring those with you, I'd be willing to assist you... though it might be best if we wait and make sure everyone has looked though them to begin with.

[ There's a small thoughtful hum there. ]

Testing our forms of writing should be worthwhile. If you can understand me despite not having a common writing system between the two of us, who knows what else is possible?

[oneandmikleonly]

Yes, of course. On the off chance someone can read one of these, it would mean we return there with a starting point already.

[he smiles, just a little]

The magic here is a lot more varied than at home. Let's see about the writing -- there were some notebooks in the pile, weren't there?

[it's easy enough to take a page from one of the ringbound ones, as well as a pen]