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

"The train doesn't seem to have a morality filter when it picks us up, does it? Or 'career' filter, for that matter," Nita adds, off-hand.

"The most we can do in the meantime is make sure he's only attacking whatever we're supposed to be fighting when on missions. Beyond that..."

She sighs. "We can do better in terms of trials, that's for sure."

They really can. It's a situation that extends beyond Reno, after all. Inigo still isn't too sure how to feel about everything that happened before, with the little girl and that broadcast.. It still leaves him feeling sick in the stomach when he thinks about it too hard.

So he doesn't. Not right now, anyway, when he already has enough other things on his mind.

He shakes his head, looking at Nita.

"I'm going to keep an eye on him." Granted, not always. After all, he's not near Reno right now. But if he spots Reno doing anything remotely suspicious.. "If he tries anything, he'll have to deal with me."

A sharp nod.

"And I'll be right behind you, you can count on that."

Possibly literally.

Inigo had been a bit more serious than the usual while talking just now. Or at the very least serious in a harder way than he usually displays, since this topic is so important to him.

But all it takes is those few words from Nita. Just something as simple as I'll be right behind you. That's all that's needed to immediately melt the look in his eyes, making it grow softer. Honestly, Inigo had been so caught up in his personal dislike of Reno that he hadn't even thought of telling anyone else, or involving anyone else.

Maybe that was dumb, he thinks now, as he watches Nita agree so easily. Support him without hesitation.

".. Thanks, Nita." Even his voice is softer now, a tad more bashful. "That.. means a lot to me."

Nita nudges him - lightly, not with any true weight behind it. A gesture of friendship, rather than an overly-heavy push.

"Anytime, Inigo. I mean it. Now, let's go see what this place has instead of crabs, huh?"

Was that a deliberate reference to Gyueran? ... No.

Event: Healing Waters

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Are we playing out rock pool shenanigans, or perhaps fading here?

hmm, the thread has already gone on for a bit so i guess we can fade! c:

that's fine! \o This should help to wrap...