middleofsomewhere | Swirling Consequences Ongoing

SWIRLING CONSEQUENCES: ONGOING

QUICKSAND 11-13 ~ TEAM OBJECTIVES ~ LOCATION INFORMATION ~ OTHER DETAILS
COMMS ~ ASK QUESTIONS ~ SHENANIGANS ~ TEAM PLOTTING ~ MISSION TASKS/REWARDS

OVER THE YELLING HEIGHTS...

As they arrive at their destination, the Voidtreckers are quick to get to work into the various jobs that need them. The Blues have slowly but steadily been doing their best to fulfil all three of their tasks. They've worked to locate locals and to get them aid after being cut off, and have been searching for those from other worlds. A few helped with the dralite work, but took priority in helping people and leaving the dralites to others.

Orange have largely focused on collecting herbs, doing some work to help farmers relocate their animals, but only a few helped the dralite with their nests. At least there will be plenty of potions, teas, and craggy leaves to hand out, with the leaves sure to help the stressed out animals yet located.

For the Purples, they've been working well to clear the roads and ruined layouts of farms and villages to give better access around the Yelling Heights. A few have helped in escorting their fellow team members and the locals in getting around.

As for the Reds, they did what they do best: going on the offensive. They've been working to get rid of the voidblobs, but don't have much interest in setting up safe perimeters. A few voidtears, however, have been located, and hopefully that will help everyone push forward in the next few days of the mission.

Overall, the farmers are thankful for the help so far, and a good decent have been assisted. They will help Voidtreckers as they need it, and have tools on hand that can be borrowed. They will be willing to assist with the voidtears, if only able to push back any voidblobs, or to make sure Voidtreckers get back somewhere safe afterwards.

The storms have increased, changing the spotty but sunny days into more rain and wind. The choral singing can be heard more, even if one isn't near a voidtear, causing an increase in animals becoming stressed and spooked. Fortunately, transgates - quick travel gates - have been set up between the Weary Wanderer (near the forest and scrublands), one in the largest village on in the farmlands, and one can be accessed around the scrublands. These will help with some of the travel.

Animals are scattered around the scrublands and fields between farms, some unfortunately perished over the first few nights, but also some safely brought back to their appropriate farms. Adult dralites will be more hostile around people, spreading out father and bothering farmlands, screeching up a storm that stuns most people even from a distance. Their young can still be found, alive or not, and they will leave with either, though with wails for their deceased child. Even capturing them and leading them back into the forest will do some good.

↪ Prompt: There's a farm not too far from the Weary Wanderer that Albany asks for people to go to - some earmuffs can be taken along to help with the sound, along with earplugs. The reason becomes clear as soon as Voidtreckers approach it, where dralites can be circling around it. A woman greets whoever comes - "Thank ya for coming out here, I know you're working hard" - and leads them to the cause.

There's a ditch where trees have fallen, their farm bordering the forest. The cries of younger dralites can be heard, but the adults are squabbling amongst one another, and people who try to approach the fallen wreckage can thwapped at by the adults.

What will be the best course of action? To bruteforce the paralsying wails and peckings and to get at the trunks? Or to pacify these disagreeable winged things? Voidtreckers can also come here and find a displaced person or two taking shelter. (B2, B3)

While a good portion of the roads have been cleared and managed, there are areas away from the Weary Wanderer that need help, where the Ciyesia mountain suffered its damage and plenty of the farm animals and more secluded farmers have been cut off from help. The great chinchillas and the voidblobs are taking advantage of the ruined roads to kill and take animals (the chinchillas), or just to ruin them as they're found (the voidblobs).

↪ Prompt:"We're gonna need all the hands we can get. Can some of your folks come with us 'round Ciyesia? We're having trouble to getting to some of ours in a tricky part, and the animals that way - oh, they're nasty."

There's a trail - or most of a trail - that goes around the side of the Ciyesia mountain, leading over to a smaller collection of hills. While good work has been done on clearing up, around this area there's still a fine slide of rubble that's scattered over the walking paths. Those with sturdy arms are necessary to clear the wreckage, but also to deal with the voidblobs, great chinchillas, and even the dralites in this area, with the latter preferred to be pushed back to the forest. The farmers coming with the Voidtreckers will help to round the animals, but they'll need help dealing with the trouble along the way.

Doing this will help them gain access to a few farms, grateful to find visitors, though their families will be around, trying to deal with trouble. Find them on the road, with animals or in a troubling situation with a voidblob, and do what you can to help. (P1, B1, R1/R3, O2)

While Voidtreckers have worked hard to get rid of them, larger voidblobs have been spotted, and are becoming a bigger issue across the community. Further perimeters will need to be set up to keep them away from the farmlands scattered around, using good coordination to cover as much ground as possible. The voidtears as a result are easier to find, as blobs can be easier to spot if people are on watch, but are tougher than the result blobs: as tall and wide as a newsagent storefront, they will take more than one or two people to deal with them. Their speed can be unpredictable, and they're sturdier than the smaller variants, having a more gelatinous ability to move - even to rise high or to spread out.

It is advised stronger Voidtreckers deal with these - coming in with little experience or just a blade will be dangerous.

↪ Prompt: "We're seein' some of those big boys out around the fields. I'm telling ya, they're fast bastards. Think you can help us get rid of 'em? Anything you need, we've got your backs."

The locals of these lands are doing their best to help the Voidtreckers, as well as each other. Getting word out to the farther communities is hard, but they have set up a system - flags. Flags made out of any bedsheet that can be found, then put up on wooden logs. They're a call for help, being used especially if they spot voidblobs. It's a desperate attempt at communication, but the voidblobs are troublesome - and more so their larger variant. No fence or barricade works to keep them back, and the best the farmers can do is hope they won't come towards their homes when they roll into their lands. It's also worse if there happens to be a voidtear nearby...(R1, R3)

Finding displaced people will be all the more important, though some have been put forward to aid. Glowing marks around the Yelling Height's forest have been put on the tree trunks to help guide people out of the forest easier from different spots, and another Voidtrecker has been encouraged to create crystal trackers, that can be picked up. These crystals will glow the closer they approach a non-native, nor non-Voidtrecker sentient being - which means both displaced people, and the voidblobs.

Sending people home will require the same anchoring technique used during Jinnjar, Diagad, and similar to the recent events. It only takes one Voidtrecker to return someone to their world, hand in hand they will cross a metaphysical void river, seeing flashes of the visitor's world and life. And Voidtreckers will be just as exhausted as they were getting their own returned to the train... Probably best to share this burden out between as many who are willing.

↪ Prompt: Some displaced people have found their way out of the woods, found around the escorts for those keeping check, or even making their way to Albany's inn or a nearby farm. The locals themselves can't help send them home, but they're used to helping outsiders, warming them up and getting them fed. Some will accept help easily, but others are less keen on approaching unknown houses. (B2)

To approach a voidtear will be a challenge, but as they're found, planning a route straight to them that minimises time will help. Closing a voidtear will require more than one person, a small group even - with each getting under a voidtear and then pressing their anchor button. They will need to focus on keeping themselves grounded and to resist the pull of the void, as they offer their own energy in stitching up the tear. For smaller tears two people should be able to close it but more voidtreckers will be necessary for the larger ones. Colours and music entice them, to just give up, let themselves float into the void... They will need to support each other to keep steady.

OOC NOTES

OOC Post ~ Questions ~ Shenanigans ~ Tasks Check-In & Mission Rewards
Notes: A conclusion post will go up on the 26th. Feel free to put toplevels put up at the end of the start log here! Or to re-use portions and to put up fresh posts here. Or to just link them here, have a blast.

Here is a TL;DR of the above tasks: Dralites are everywhere, more aggressive and hostile; farm animals are more scattered and harder to reach, being attacked by chinchillas and voidblobs around scrublands; displaced people need to be found and sent home, and voidblobs now have a larger variant; the voidtears are becoming easier to find, but the effects of the storms are worsening, closing them will be a priority.

Please have your tasks submitted by the 25th to help determine the conclusion of the mission! We will start to count mission rewards around this time too.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It seems the man is confident enough in riding, which is altogether a good thing because the dralite is getting closer and they are going to need to get out of here sharpish.

He began to gallop, through the trees and away from the nest. After a few moments they leave the ground, it was faster to fly after all and a little smoother for the man. He doesn't break the treeline though, not for the first while. He doesn't want to attract the attention of the dralite.

He's headed down, back towards the inn. The man needs medical aid if nothing else.

Wash holds on, focusing on keeping his balance and not squeezing too hard, so it's a few seconds before his brain catches up with his eyes and he realizes-

They're flying. The unicorn is flying. He's riding a flying unicorn.

It's all Wash can do not to throw his head back and let out a full-on Neverending Story whoop of joy. He never expected this to be his life, but for now, he will take it.

It's a short while before he calms down and speaks up - a little reluctantly, but it needs to be said. "We can stop. I think we lost the dralite." A beat. "And also my cat. She needs a chance to catch up."

Edited 2022-04-06 06:09 (UTC)

"Okay. Sorry. I didn't mean to lose your cat. Hopefully she will find us soon." He hadn't been flying at his fastest at least. So hopefully the cat would be able to follow their scent and catch up soon.

"We can wait for her here, I think it's safe enough."

"It's fine - we needed to get away, and she'll be okay." He hopes so, at least - losing a familiar is exhausting, on top of the extra hour he'd need to burn to re-summon her. Not to mention the earful she'd give him if she got waxed trying to chase after him as he flew away on a unicorn...

He slips off easily as they land. "Are you doing okay?" It's not like Wash was the one doing the running - flying - after all.

It's a minute or two before a gray blur bursts into the clearing, skids to a stop, and dramatically flops over, panting. Athena is not happy. Cats aren't marathon runners! What were they thinking!

"I hope so." He hadn't meant to leave anyone in danger. But she had seemed like a strong creature and would hopefully fare well returning to them.

"Yes. You're injured." It's not a question, he forgets to make it into a question, but he can still smell the faint tang of blood. "I have medical supplies if you need them."

Since they would have to wait before getting back to where he could be healed.

Wash blinks - he'd honestly forgotten about the injury in the euphoria of the moment. He pulls up his sleeve to inspect his wrist. It's bloody but already healing. Turns out getting manhandled by a baby dralite is like getting scratched by a particularly rowdy cat: not fun, but easy enough to deal with after the fact. "It's not bad. I'll take care of it when we get back to camp." It's not bad enough to triage in the field; might as well wait until they're not in dralite territory, or at least around other people who can help if angry dralites do show up.

He can't help but shy away slightly from the sight of blood. No matter how much he sees, no matter what terrible things he witnesses there is always that intrinsic fear, that need to get away. An unrest that assails the senses.

"Okay, as long as you aren't in pain."

He tossed his main slightly and went over to Athena, carefully, to check that she had recovered from her sprint. "I'm sorry we left you behind."

Edited 2022-04-07 19:22 (UTC)

He doesn't miss the movement - it's hard to miss something that big startling that near to him - and his brow furrows in concern as he pulls his sleeve back down over the wound. "I'm not. Are you sure you're okay?"

Athena is still panting - she's gonna need a minute after you guys made her run - but she does manage a meow. It's fiiiiiine, she supposes - you did get her partner out of danger, after all. If the unicorn has lowered its head to look at her, she'll reach a paw up and gently boop its nose.

[He huffs a breath at the boop, almost a laugh and nuzzles the cats paw gently. She's fine. Just grumpy. That is good.

It also seems that she cannot talk.] What is her name?

[He looked back at the man and then realised...] Your name as well, if you don't mind...

The unicorn sure did ignore that question.

Okay, then. Wash isn't about to push it. "I'm Wash, and that's Athena. She's my familiar."

Athena just pats the unicorn's nose several times with her paw. He made her run, but she still likes him. She generally likes people who like cats.

"What's yours?" Unicorns have names, right? Is he even allowed to ask?

"Ah. It's nice to meet you both." He let the cat play with his nose, it was probably the least he could do after abandoning her like that.

"Mine is Taiki. Did you want to head to the inn now or do you still have more to do up here on the mountain?"

Athena finally rolls to her feet and shakes herself out, dislodging leaves and dust from her fur. That's what she gets for lying on the ground, huh. Sorry if she makes you sneeze for doing this right next to your nose, Taiki.

Wash needs a moment to blink and process after hearing that name. It's ringing a bell, and it takes him those few moments to place it - it's on the train roster. He'd spent some time studying it to make sure he could recognize his teammates in the field, given that not everyone wears the train assigned uniforms. He's pretty sure he would've remembered seeing a unicorn on the roster, let alone the train.

Unless this is a Last Unicorn thing and he can be both, or either.

...yeah this was not on the list of things Wash was expecting to deal with today.

"I think I'll stay up here. Athena and I will be fine for a bit, and it's better to be around if someone needs help than have to hunt them down later." His injury is nowhere near major enough to stop him, and Athena is watching his back. "What about you? Back on dralite duty?"

He snorts slightly, almost a sneeze. So much dust. He shakes his head slightly, tossing his mane.

"Okay. Please be careful." He tilted his head. "I am. I will find more of them... Hopefully avoid the adults."

But he's not too worried, he can outfly them.

Swirling Consequences Ongoing

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject