Intro Log: The Forgotten City

[atlasmods]

GOOD MORNING NEW ARRIVALS This time for real! WAKEY WAKEY. As the storm finally peters out and characters can once again move above ground it becomes abundantly clear that the landscape has changed. Where vast expanses of sand dunes once laid is now the half-buried remnants of what looks like some sort of...city? Full of structures. It stretches so far it's really hard to tell. But there is one thing characters will notice: There are more stasis pods. Revealed by the sandstorm, a whole new flurry of pods can be found scattered on the way to the city (curiously though, not in it. Hurry and wake those guys up! SPREAD THE LOVE. OR ACID. With the departure of the storm there's even more new arrivals to be found besides those fellow travelers of yours! The "Seedlings" and "Cactus" are now both available, the former blown in by the storm and the former uncovered. The Seedlings are generally pretty harmless. They like to burrow into the sand so only their "Leaves" plant-like leaves remain above ground, and they're quite happy to stay that way until surprised. Then they pop up and trip over themselves a little, before slowing down and wandering aimlessly. When they find a patch of sand that looks comfy they begin burrowing back down. Pull or yank on their leaves though and you'll find yourself with a face full of pollen that makes you want to just tell everyone how super-cool they are. It lasts a while, and then you get a fever and vomit for two hours. Good times. The Cacti are much less harmless and just...why would you eat them? Everything about this plant is poisonous, and cracking it open causes a corrosive acid-like substance to spill out. It'll eat through everything but...dirt, oddly. Metals and flesh are like hot oil on plastic. DON'T GET LOST And last but not least: The Forgotten City. Maybe you want to check out the Hull first for some loot, but maybe that's not such a cool idea anymore? Although it looks like the ship's definitely more powered after draining the suits of whoever went in, now it's started to spread and fill the sinkhole the ship's in. Suits can go from 100% to 0% in just ten minutes--not good! Lucky for everyone else, it looks like finally there's some sort of civilization up ahead. Go on and check it out! OR DO. THAT'S OKAY TOO. Go nuts, have fun, and enjoy! (This is the wildcard option) OOC The Flora, Fauna & Resources page has been updated with information on the seedlings, cacti, and crystals! These items are now all available for Discovery, and The Forgotten City will be available indefinitely from now on! Characters can take this time to settle & build up a foundation for themselves, explore the area, and of course, harass those poor little seedlings. We encourage players to make their own open posts for this setting--you don't need to stick to just this intro log! But make sure to make our newbies feel welcome!

Comments

[ex_broach530]

The Bull does pause, with his fist literally raised for another attack (if only he had his sword, he tells himself, he'd Mighty Blow this thing into smithereens.) He lowers it, turns to face the woman who addressed him. She's young, but like the Inquisitor there's something serious about her, that speaks to heavy decisions. And she has a weapon.

Also, he's way more likely to fall in line on the instruction of a woman than a man, for cultural reasons he hasn't quite been able to dig out of his subconscious yet.

"How'd you figure?" he asks, folding his arms and leaning up against the pod instead, more a lazy sort of slump than an arrogant one.

[mousewhisperer]

[ Correct decision though, Max. Who knows what strange intoxicants these plants can be. ]

Try asking someone else, they might have something.

[ That shift in topic is... well, it's rather depressing. ]

Altea was destroyed ten thousand years ago. I'm not sure where it was, relative to this planet - no one is sure where we are, in fact.

[ It could have been right around the corner. ]

[anewhope]

[ There's a puff of laughter, even though it's tinged in relief and despair, over all the time Clark has lost to Doomsday, to Lex Luthor and even though he'd do it all over again, his heart crumbles over the thought of family being so close and too far away to reach.

Not anymore. He loops his arms around Kara, squeezing her tightly. But she can take it. ]

[ex_broach530]

Yeah? Me too.

[ Not downplaying himself at all. But then he is physically bigger than Clark, so that he's stronger than a human must be kind of obvious. ]

Don't suppose you want to go a few rounds. Take my mind off this desert crap.

[sobriquette]

[Like Clark, Jess realizes, which makes her wonder if this girl has all those same powers.

She could tell her, of course, that there's someone else from her planet here, but Jess isn't a tattletale.]

No one knows it, even ones like you.

[Aliens. She means aliens, because Jess still isn't sure how she feels about that nonsense.]

I think someone found maps or charts or whatever, but they're in the ship.

[highflights]

​​[​​ She returns it with her full strength, listening to his heart beat. She doesn't let him go for a long, long time, even though there might be someone nearby or the millions of other thoughts that suggest they explore or sit down together somewhere to eat. ]

​​[​​ She lets go when he does, but squeezes his hand gently and doesn't move out of his space. She's not going anywhere. ]

So you're Clark here? Should I use that?

[highflights]

​​[​​ An eyebrow jumps, but she figures Jess means aliens like her, people who've been on other planets. If there were other Kryptonians, Kara would recognise them. ]

Is there something at the ship stopping us from getting them?

[anewhope]

[ He visibly hesitates. Clark hasn't fought anyone since Doomsday and the implications of that fight were still heavy in his mind. ]

It might be dangerous for you.

[sobriquette]

[To answer, Jess tugs at the collar of her suit.]

Something in the ship drains the power out of these, and you don't want to hit zero.

[anewhope]

[ He seems loathe to look away, afraid that she might disappear, that this planet has been playing tricks on him. ]

Kal is still my name. Use it.

[highflights]

Okay.

​​[​​ Ordinarily she'd try it anyway, but Jess sounds serious, and Kara wants to at least attempt caution first. Alex would, and Alex is far better at these kinds of situations. ]

So, you're human?

[dateme]

You know that's exactly what the last guy said before everything blew up and no one ever saw him again.

[ JUSTSAYING, BULL. There is a correlation there. ]

[thephix]

[That's a bit curious, and Max tilts her head, going over what Allura said about the country? planet? probably planet and trying to put the pieces together.]

You look good for someone going on ten thousand, you'll have to tell me your secret.

[She could touch on the whole planet being destroyed thing, but she figures Allura won't want sympathy from a stranger.]

[highflights]

My human name is Kara Danvers. I've been telling people here it's Kara Zor-El if they really want to know.

​​[​​ She's not him. There's not a part of her that dissolves into humanity. She can't be anything other than Kryptonian, the rest is temporary. She smiles, mischievously, wanting to tease him a little. ]

Don't let my looks fool you, I am older.

[sobriquette]

Much to the disgust of the rest of humanity, yeah.

[It's a joke, or at least it sounds like one, but Jess isn't a stranger to wearing her self-loathing on her sleeve.]

You're not the only alien, and there's some humans who know space travel.

[It's time travel shit, but that's probably not something to just randomly dump on someone.]

[mousewhisperer]

[ Responsibilities are important to keep, something Allura can understand. Her responsibilities to the universe are motivation to find a way off the planet, even though that is not possible at the moment.

So far, none of the others have proven a threat - the environment is providing enough of a challenge in that aspect. ]

There were no others living before us, as far as I am aware. There have been some discoveries that provide evidence of life here. [ Huge skeletons, and now the forgotten city. ] And we have encountered native creatures. But no other people.

[highflights]

​​[​​ the joke flies right over her head ]

So they think you're... not?

​​[​​ who does she have to fight ]

Why?

[mousewhisperer]

[ That's generally not the reaction such a disclosure gets, but it works. Better than awkward sympathy. ]

I was asleep for most for most of it. Some humans stumbled into my castle and woke me up, and the last thing I remembered before that was the destruction of my planet.

[ And death of her father, but that's even more depressing. And if her story is a bit of a cliche, well, she doesn't know that. ]

Where are you from?

[sobriquette]

What?

[She's confused because a) it was a joke and b) who gives a shit even if it wasn't?

This weirdo, apparently. Jess shakes her head.]

Some people aren't big fans of anyone with abilities, but I was joking, it doesn't matter.

[mousewhisperer]

It's important though. [ She steps back, though not far, she just wants to be close to the people she likes. ] It's sad you're here, that any of us are here, but I'm so glad. You're smart and can figure out the secrets, we'll be off this planet soon.

[mousewhisperer]

[ That's a refreshing response, no awkwardness, which is always a positive in Allura's eyes.

Though - ]

Why are you digging for roots, what are you planning on binding?

[ She grew up with advanced technology; the idea of using grass to binding something is more than a bit foreign to her. ]

[anewhope]

[ He blinks, surprised. ]

How? I thought Krypton was lost just after I was born.

[anewhope]

[ He tilts his head at her question as he considers it thoughtfully. ]

I've seen it both ways.

[ Some of the messages that he has (somewhat) translated simply say Atlas. ]

It might be a ship. Or something more. We don't have any confirmation beyond that.

[ c ]

[anewhope]

[ Clark, as always, is a little surprised he's being asked. While not the most diminutive of people, he tries to blend into the background as much as possible. ]

No. The area only became known to us recently. We had been busy exploring the crashed ship instead.

[highflights]

Well... it was.

​​[​​ She presses her mouth into a worried line, looking at her feet. ]

I was thirteen. My escape pod was supposed to follow yours exactly, but the shock waves from Krypton knocked me off course into the Phantom Zone. Two Earth decades later it got free somehow, and I was still thirteen when I landed on Earth. You'd already grown up and become Superman.