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

[mobilized]

[He is Unsure in the extreme. He resists the urge to lean back to accommodate her leaning forward.

He thinks there's like an 85% chance she's fucking with him, but he's not gonna say no, so:]

... Sure.

[thephix]

So far, everyone I've met as been wonderfully helpful and charming. I don't trust it.

[It is, at least, partly the truth. Fuyuhiko hasn't been horrible, but he's been blunt and a little bit of a shit, which seems far more honest to Max than people like Clark and Jim being kind. There's always an ulterior motive.]

[dateme]

[ Oh Fuyu...that reaction is mild compared to the shit Inui usually provokes. He's only got one canon friend for a reason ]

What, you want me to be sad and depressed about it? Fear for my life and stuff? Want me to mope so you can make me feel better?♥ [ he leans in a little, grinning as he stuffs his hands in his pockets. ]

[dateme]

[ APPARENTLY NOT, but that's okay. Inui just laughs and shrugs. ]

Kinda? I didn't fight the giant bug, or even technically fight... But I did nearly get blown up. That was fun. I'm probably gonna have a scar or something later.

[ He'd been caught in the temple by flying debris and while there's still a scab, it's healing and likely will leave a bit of a scar. ]

[heroproceeding]

A scar?

[ Now, you really have his attention. As in now he's back up in that personal space. Inspecting that scab all too closely. Seriously, it almost looks like his eyeball's gonna touch it with how close he is.

But just as suddenly as he's there, he's pulling back and pointing at it excitedly. ] That's gonna be a really cool one! I can see it right now! It'll be just as cool as this one!

[ And there's Zack shamelessly pointing to his own on his cheek. ] See? This is the cool place to get one! Not like Kuns! He got one on his ass!

[ Ass, thigh. Details. ]

[heroproceeding]

Zack nods just a little at the estimate and then again at the mention of life support though this time it's accompanied by furrowed brows. He looks down at his own suit now with that pinched expression, giving it a prod here and a pinch there. Wincing when he manages to pinch himself through the suit.

"For being something for 'life support', it sure is thin..." he mutters, more to himself than anything. "But I guess they did say going out to space without something might'a been pretty dangerous. Guess it's not too farfetched to think that would include other planets."

Still, he can't help but start to do stretches here and there and... everywhere for kicks. Maybe it's just a little easier to focus on that, too. "Sure is flexible."

[highflights]

Of course. Anything we can do to help.

​​[​​ She hasn't even considered what the lack of medical supplies mean out here — better hope none of them get badly hurt anytime soon. ]

[adamance]

[As someone not yet aware of the effects of the pollen, Lexa's eyes narrow as she looks at him, not unlike how a predator might look at prey ... only the prey isn't the type you eat. Just destroy.

This metaphor got away from me.

Either way, Lexa looks vicious.]

What are you trying to get from me?

[ceruleo]

[ Sadly, Lexa's viciousness does strictly nothing to make Lance falter, because he's drugged out of his goddamn mind. ]

A smile?

[ So earnestly. ]

[adamance]

[Ah. Like one of the Sky People. None of her people regularly do handshakes, exactly, and she lowers her gaze to his hand for a moment. Anything else that she could offer (a grip of his arm, for example) would be too ... intimate. She doesn't take it, though. Sorry, Kirk. Lexa's still reluctant to be any less of who she is—and where she's come from.

Still, she'll introduce herself:] I'm Lexa. [A beat. A beat more.] Regardless of the matter of space travel, I believe we have to assume it's happened here. [The hull of a backdrop and the pods themselves are likely proof of that.] But would you happen to know what could involve ... multiple Earths?

[It's the first she's heard of it, but hey—answers. He seems like he has an idea.]

[adamance]

[Does she look like a woman who smiles Lance? How dare you!

Okay, but seriously, she is debating shaking him a bit. Odd things have happened. She feels only a portion of the pain she should feel. Lexa is beginning to wonder if he was bitten by something—or he's just an idiot.

The latter seems ... safe ... for now. But she knows of fruits in the woods back home that, when they go rotten, they make someone hallucinate.]

Who do you think I am? [Yes, it's another question, but it seems like a fine place to start.]

[winscenario]

[ For the record Jim's all for classic fashion, so by all means. The beard would be kind of weird, though. Still, since shaving isn't exactly easy around here... ]

How so? [ A pause, and he feigns a worried tone. ] Oh God, don't tell me I lose my dashing good looks when I'm older.

[ Now, that would be a real tragedy. Jim lets Bones pull away, albeit reluctantly, staring right back into Bones's eyes with nothing but deep affection and admiration. Kind of like a puppy, really. ]

Yeah, you keep saying that. [ He chuckles. ] Even when you were younger. It's so cute.

[winscenario]

You won't hear me argue with that.

[ Not that he dislikes nature by any means, but not like this. He'd rather deal with a whole crew than with being lost in an uninhabited planet, even with both those things being unfamiliar to him.

He raises an eyebrow at Max, looking mildly amused. ]

That's one way of handling it. [ And he can't say he disagrees either. It's not ideal, but they're slim on options. ] Might be complicated if it's a big crew, though. How many people you think there are here?

[winscenario]

[ Excuse you, lots of people would. Jim could probably start a fan club. Obviously he'd be the leader of said club. ]

Why? I feel great. And I think you're great. Is that so bad?

[winscenario]

Wow. Talk about impressive. I only captain the one ship, and it's not even mine.

[ Although he has saved hundreds of thousands or even billions of people in one go, himself. Still, somehow it just sounds all the more amazing when coming from Miles. ]

[winscenario]

[ No harm done, really. Jim just lifts a shoulder in a half-shrug and drops his arm back down to his side with no awkwardness. He's met a number of people who don't even know what a handshake is, and even some who do and wouldn't be comfortable taking part in one. So he doesn't take the gesture as a sign of hostility or unfriendliness, and easily moves on.

He nods when she introduces herself, eyebrows raising a little and head tipping to the side at the question. ]

I can't say how it happened in this particular instance. The only time I experienced it, it was when a friend of mine, from some good years in the future, traveled back to the past. But in doing so he altered certain events and the course of history enough that he created an alternate reality.

Theoretically speaking, though? You can have an infinite number of universes, and infinite possibilities so far as what might happen in each one of them. But traveling across said universes, that's just something else entirely. Not something that can be done in my world, at least not yet. But there have to be universes out there where that's a reality— possibly even commonplace.

[anewhope]

It's not bad as much as . . . completely foreign.

[ There are people who look up to him, but he's quite sure that nobody thought he was great. But then those are the perils of being a Superman. ]

[thephix]

Based on what I've observed so far, two or three dozen, which can be enough.

[It might be difficult if this hypothetical ship full of dickheads is two hundred strong, if not more, but Max thinks it can be handled. Men are just men, after all, and men are good at dying.]

[highflights]

[ Her mouth presses, and Kara inhales through her nose, rubbing at her eyes. ]

Not this world.

[ She won't imagine it. Not when she's only just found him. ]

[highflights]

Sure. My name is Kara.

[ She extends her hand. ]

Do you shake hands, where you're from?

[anewhope]

[ He curls his fingers around her shoulders, his silent apology. ]

Not this one. I can't promise much.

But you've made this real for me.

[highflights]

[ He doesn't owe her an apology. He's Kal, he did it to protect people, and no one has the right to hold him at fault for that. ]

I hate that you were alone.

[anewhope]

[ As tempting as it would be to reassure her, Clark knew instinctively it wouldn't be true and he didn't want to fabricate a story. ]

I made that choice. They weren't ready for me.

[highflights]

They will be, because they're ready for me.

[ She sniffles, and squeezes his hand. ]

[dendarii]

[ Miles does work in less grandiose terms, typically. Although he has stopped a couple wars... ]

Not even yours? What do you mean?