middleofsomewhere | Event: Healing Waters

"Good morning passengers, it is day twenty three of the month of Grasshopper. All passengers of the Voidtrecker Express require rest. Next stop Jema’grethy Island. All passengers prepare to disembark."

It is a very strange morning message that rings through the train on the morning of day twenty three but as the passengers of the Voidtrecker Express wake their screens glow with the colour of the void and a holographic screen pops up for them to read.

World #2554098133741: A world once inhabited by an ancient civilisation and now preserved as a historical site, nature reserve and well-being retreat. It is famous for its relaxing hot springs, calming atmosphere and beautiful beaches.

It is a popular void-traveller destination, particularly among void missionaries as a place to rest and recuperate after difficult missions.

The Voidtrecker Express will spend three days here, arriving today and leaving on day twenty six of the month of Grasshopper. The dressing carriage is open for your convenience.

It is time for a holiday it seems!

Preparation

For those who go to explore the dressing carriage they will find a variety of beachwear and wetsuits. One cupboard has a pile of tents and groundsheets in all four team colours.

One cabinet is exclusively filled with beach towels, in a kaleidoscope of colours, designs and patterns. Another is filled with different shapes and sizes of plain towel dressing gowns. There is even a cabinet with buckets, spades and small rock-pooling nets.

It seems they are in for quite an adventure.

Arrival

"Shortly arriving on World #2554098133741. Exit from void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."

The train lurches and rattles as it leaves the void they will get a glimpse of silver-purple sky and a beautiful ocean below.

However some passengers might be a little more than distracted, one staring at that table for a second too long, another seeming lost in thought for a couple of seconds, a longer than normal pause in a sentence. They see a vision, a glimpse of a life that is not their own. Not all at once, but here and there as the train descends to the island.

But then it is gone and things are back to normal. Just in time, as they come to land.

Jema’grethy Island

The train has landed on a grassy ridge, overlooking a beautiful beach of white sand and the ocean beyond. It is warm, but not too hot, a cool ocean breeze cutting through the heat making it pleasant. Behind them is a grassy plain, changing to forest in the distance. There is the sound of birdsong in the purple sky. To the west the land is more craggy, the silhouette of a fortress in the distance. In a word, it is idylic. A sense of peace permeates the island.

A little more worrying is the volcano-like structure in the north. But even a quick glance will show it is not a typical volcano. There is no smoke and the liquid slowly running down it in rivulets is pink and blue.

Exploring the passengers will find beautiful beaches, ragged cliffs to walk and caves to explore. Where it is more craggy the beaches are made of pebbles- perfect for rock pooling.

The place has no people, but it is clearly maintained. The eastern beaches have racks of shallow boats, both canoes and one- or two-person sailing dinghies. There is also a small building in which scuba gear is stored, along with several waterproofed manuals and instructional literature.

Ruins of ancient houses are scattered across the island, but the main settlement is built into a rocky section in the north-west that has been secured with ropes and stairways cut into the cliffs, perfect for scrambles and hikes.

There are no living quarters, but there are sheltered sections with basic toilet facilities marked as camping grounds in five different sections of the island - by the hot springs, within the ruined fortress, beside the harbour, on the eastern beaches, and on the northern face of the mountain.

Hot Springs

To the west are the hot springs. They have both outdoor and indoor areas; the indoor areas being wooden loghouse saunas, changing rooms and storage sheds, whilst the outdoor areas are a tiered series of pools spilling down the side of the mountain and shaded by brightly flowering trees. The waters are hot, mineral-rich and soothing.

Perfect for overly stressed, world weary Void heroes...

(OOC: More setting information is here, please feel free to go wild with the setting and have a fun and relaxing time. You can use this post as a catch all for your holiday or make your own posts on

middleofsomewhere. More information about how the memory event is structured is here!)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"At least a week before I got stuck on the train, for me at least." She laughs, "Gods, but a hot spring--it's been months."

Persephone leads the way, though in a vaguely meandering fashion. Picking the one closest to the changing room seems boring, better to find a perfect one. Unless Minako finds one she likes first, of course.

Minako paused to think about how long it had been for her. It had definitely been a while at least. "You know... if it weren't for the fact we are on a train, I probably wouldn't have been this excited over hot springs." Which was the truth. They are fun, sure but they were easy to find and get to back home.

But on a train they didn't exist. Kind of makes you miss what you had. "How about we find the perfect one, even if it's far in the back...Maybe that would mean people might not go over there."

"Oh I know, you get used to something being relatively easy to get and then you're stuck with a crowded bathroom for months." She shades her eyes to look over the paths, the pools she can see and ones she can just glimpse through the trees and steam.

"Just for us! Well--unless we are not the only ones looking for the best one. What's your criteria? Lots of trees? None? Not too hot?"

"Tell me about it. I never thought I'd have to line up just to use a shower." She paused to think about what she would like... She didn't really think all that long.

"I guess it needs to be just right in terms of warmth, so not to overheat us too quickly."

"So not the ones with too much steam to really see the water, gotcha."

She laughs, angling away from the ones further up the mountain. Those seem like the steamiest. Probably? Wandering down some steps shows them a few more options, all equally warm.

"I think one with a view might be nice? Off to the edge, with not so many trees?"

"Yeah, I mean don't want to overheat or anything."

She keeps following, hands at her side as she looked around. It seemed like the hot springs seemed different, but she soon nodded slightly. "A hot spring with a view sounds nice. If it had been with a sunset may be perfect, but I don't. Think it's a good idea to try that"

"Why not?" Perse looks back, curious. She's gotten a little ahead, so she steps to the side to wait.

"I was thinking of coming back later to watch the sunset."

She tried her best to attempt to catch up for the most part.

"I didn't think of coming back later or something. Maybe I could on the second day."

She soon stopped pointing over to one. "how about that one?"

"Whenever you want! We're here three days, right? Though I guess we'll leave pretty early on the last day. No time for sunsets." Persephone glances at the one she points at and claps, "Oh that's nice! A little view and also kind of the main path. Shall we?"

She nodded slightly. It seemed like they really had found the perfect spot, to say the least. She moved to the side briefly going to check the water with her hand first "Oh, it's just right."

It was enough to at least make the girl a little more excited at being able to go in and with that she started to undress before getting in. Minako didn't even think about if the other would have wanted the other to go completely naked because it was normal for her.

Persephone doesn't even notice, of course you would get naked. It's just Minako and her after all. She leaves her robe folded on a nearby rock and steps in, gingerly at first to test it, then with more confidence.

"I'm going to miss this all. Do you think we could convince the train that we need a vacation every few months?"

"Would be nice if we could. I'll put it on the list of things I want to ask about." She was actually going to make a list, but maybe after this who knows really.

Leaning back, she looked over for a moment "Or we could ask for a hot spring on the train."

"You think the same train that gives us a single shower for 20 people would give us a hot spring?" She tucks herself into a corner, looking out over the trees, "It'd be really nice but I won't hold my breath."

"I mean it keeps giving us new carriages that we vote for...So who knows really. I do agree with the shower thing, but not sure if people ask about getting more of them either." If people don't she isn't sure how the train would know.

"But it just means we make the most of this, so I am sure people will be here a lot."

Event: Healing Waters

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