Event: Healing Waters

[voidtreckermods]

"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!)

Comments

[iamnotgod]

Edge's jump-and-landing was met with applause; robotic, yes, but enthusiastic at that!

"I suppose straight climbing would be the place to start."

Fortunately this place looks a bit more stable than where he'd been climbing with Mami - though the problem there had been the foundation for the stairs, not the bare rock face itself.

"On your mark, or mine?"

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"On yours," Edge said, rolling his shoulders as he loosened himself up for some real speed.

[iamnotgod]

Webmind couldn't roll his joints in precisely the same way, but he did his own 'limbering up' before lining himself up with Edge against the cliff face.

"Three... two... one. Start!"

Time to climb!

[onehandsomeslickninja]

With a grunt, Edge leaped forward, quick to start scrambling up the cliffs. This might not be anything but friendly, but Edge was a competitive soul!

[iamnotgod]

And while Webmind himself was not looking to break any speed records, he had no plans on holding back.

Finding a few appropriate hand- and footholds to start, he began to make his own way. But would it be enough?

[onehandsomeslickninja]

Mostly that depended on how reliable Webmind's body was. Edge was skilled at climbing, but still human; he had no ability to calculate and still could suffer from pain and exertion. But one way or the other he intended to put up his best fight!

We can flip a coin for this, if you'd like; I'm okay with Webmind not winning here. XD

[iamnotgod]

While Webmind could make his own footholds, at worse, he was also heavier than Edge, and even being able to see ahead to construct the best path didn't guarantee he'd have the best path.

But there was enough for him to make it to the ledge, as far as Webmind could see. If it wasn't fast enough, well; it wasn't as if he did this on a regular basis.

rolled a d20, it came up 17

[onehandsomeslickninja]

In this case, experience and a stubborn refusal to be shown up seemed to carry the day, if just by a little -- Edge grabbed the ledge and heaved himself up onto it, rolling onto his side and then up to his feet, just before Webmind could.

excellent!

[iamnotgod]

"Congratulations," Webmind stated, once he was certain he himself had cleared the landing and that he was stable.

"You were seven-tenths of a second faster than me. Should our next round be on the stairs, or did you have something else in mind?"

[onehandsomeslickninja]

Hmph. Should have been better.

"The stairs works for me! I think you may have this one though."

Shall I roll a d20 this time?

[iamnotgod]

"The only way to know is to try."

Of course the empiricist would say that, however. Allowing the both of them some time to get into position for this next round, Webmind again began:

"Three... two... one."

Yeeees!

[onehandsomeslickninja]

And on Webmind's mark, Edge took off at speed, scrambling up the stairs as fast as he could manage.

And the answer is... 16!

[iamnotgod]

As Edge predicted, Webmind did have an advantage on the more even stairs - but it was not a perfect prediction.

After all, it was a fairly straight shot up, if one ignored the occasional debris to stumble upon... And Webmind could only adjust for those obstacles so much himself.

[onehandsomeslickninja]

A little advantage was enough, when they were otherwise well-matched. Edge skidded to a halt just a hair behind Webmind with a frustrated noise.

[iamnotgod]

"It was a shorter amount of time between us," Webmind remarked.

"It could likely be bested. Another round?"

He won't ask if Edge would prefer a break; it didn't sound as if that would be appreciated, at the moment.

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"I think we've gotten our measure." He'd come out even and would tire while Webmind did not, so pushing forward was not to his advantage.

Anything to happen next here, you think? Or is this heading towards a wrap?

[iamnotgod]

"Of course."

Webmind nodded.

"We can always revisit the matter - here or through some other measure - at a later time."

Not too much I don't think

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"On a different world in different circumstances, maybe. Hopefully not in the middle of combat." Which was always a possibility. They'd have a mission sooner or later, after all...

Aye. Wrap can happen any time, then.

[iamnotgod]

"Competitions enacted in combat are best considered after the fact."

No sense keeping score when you were meant to be saving lives, after all.

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"But we can do some friendly training, right?" Because Edge still had a lot of energy to burn!

[iamnotgod]

"Of course. What sort of training did you have in mind?"

This was an island for relaxation, after all - and if that meant burning energy, that's what it meant!

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"I think I can learn some things watching you do some climbing. And the reverse is probably true, too, right? So!" Edge motioned to the cliff face again, grandly.

[iamnotgod]

"That does sound like it will be quite illuminating, yes."

Webmind nodded.

"Lead on, then. And- what do you prefer to be called?"

'Edge' isn't exactly on the roster, and despite knowing the face Webmind has learned better than to assume.

[onehandsomeslickninja]

"Edge, of course!" No need to involve royal titles or anything. He's a casual king!

[iamnotgod]

A nod.

"Very well, Edge. On your mark, then..."

Not a race, this time; just timing.

It was going to keep being an exciting afternoon!