Intro Log: Fly, My Pretties!

[hadrielmods]

What: The intro log for May
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: May 10th-14th
Warnings: Flying monkeys! New friends! Prosthetic limbs!

Here in Hadriel, we do introductions right. That means dumping you on the ground of an old Roman-style Colosseum with a bunch of scary monsters and also a bunch of weird shit. Your monster of the day happens to be Winged Monkeys, more commonly known as flying monkeys, from the Wizard of Oz and affiliated stories!

As you may have been able to guess, these creatures can fly and they're rather intelligent- intelligent enough to wield spears and daggers as crude weapons and strong enough to pick someone right up off the ground and fly with them to a perch, where they'll... you know, stab them with their knives and stuff.

Why? We don't know. It's Hadriel.

Just in case you lose a couple of limbs in the process of escaping these critters, we've got you covered. Scattered around the newbies are prosthetic limbs for various body parts. These limbs are all fully functional, even if they look a bit... odd, so if you've lost an arm or two, or a leg, or even a pinkie finger, feel free to grab one and try to figure out how to use it!

Good job dealing with those monkeys! It's kind of a weird thing to be threatening, but clearly someone was afraid of them once. Once you're done, you can explore the rest of the city! Find a house, a new monster, a project to help with, or simply scavenge for supplies. Good luck, and enjoy your stay in Hadriel!

► This log covers May 10th-14th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► All characters arrive with phones that have network communication and the newbie guide installed.
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!

Comments

[fernbeleafer]

[ a flashback of another child wrapped in vines that keyleth will never forget hits her hard, sending cold terror into her heart. ]

Shit, shit-- hang on! I'm coming, kid!

[ the vines release girl and the monkey (who then yells for backup).

and then something else grabs girl: an impossibly large and ungentle bird's foot which ends in talons the size of her hand. above her, the giant eagle lets out a stutter of painful cries as a series of arrows lodge into her shoulder. the cavalry has arrived, and keyleth must dodge them or let girl plummet again.

so her feet tuck in close and her great golden-brown wings beat twice as she flies toward one of the spirals, girl and girl's monkey in tow. ]

[thelastjoy]

[Girl thinks of the figure's tone as panicking, which does little ease Girl's own fear. It wouldn't particularly matter if the voice had been calming or confident. While airborne, it's hard for Girl to be anything but locked in terror or to think beyond the idea of crashing to the ground. Falling is an all consuming thought, keeping her from noticing the swoop of something feathered sailing toward her.


The talons are a little harder to ignore.

Girl lets out another scream, this one of surprise. She cranes her head to look beyond the monkey'd grip and is stunned into silence. She's seen birds before. Feathered scavengers were one of the few animals still living in the deserts back home. She'd fought them for food, eaten a few when she was lucky enough to catch one. Gatherings of crows had been a sign of the Witch's presence. But she's never seen one so big nor one so eager to be near people.

She stops struggling, blinking dumbly up at the bird.]

I'm losin' it. 'm really losin' it...

whoops i wrote spirals before-- i meant spires! sorry lol

[fernbeleafer]

[ as they hit a smooth patch of soaring, and keyleth can still her wings as they catch the hot updrafts (hey thanks double suns!) she peeks down beneath herself, and maneuvers so that she can see girl past her large, hooked raptor beak.

her grip stays firm, but keyleth adjusts so that her talons are a bit more forgiving where they curl around girl's body. she also uses the opportunity to pluck the flying monkey from girl's grasp to hold it securely away from her.

then keyleth chirps in a manner she thinks is reassuring (or at least happy) before encircling one of the spires, a slow descent back to the ground. the landing's a little awkward, keyleth beating those big wings as she hovers high enough to keep from trampling girl as she lets her go (but keeping a solid grasp on that pesky winged simian... ]

it's fine! I didn't even notice

[thelastjoy]

[Girl remains in her stupor, limp in the eagle's hold until she sees the top of the spire come close. The monkey being moved away draws nothing but a quiet 'oh', confusion blocking her from thinking too hard about the situation. But once she realizes she's near something solid again, she starts to squirm as her thought process jumps back into gear. She's half surprised that the eagle lets her go-surely she's to be dinner- but the surprise doesn't stop her from stumbling away.

She stares up at the bird, breathing heavily.]

Hey now, good bird. You can just go back to your nest, okay? You can eat the furry thing! You don't need two snacks.

[fernbeleafer]

[ the movement is lightning-fast-- one moment the bird is seemingly giving the little beast its freedom as it releases its grasp.

the next, a great sharp beak ends the thing before it can flee. it's brutal, and gory, and a piece of the wild that keyleth cannot deny she revels in. but it's over in a blink! from where it hulks over its prize, the head turns almost all the way around, bright eyes eagerly blinking at girl. the head tilts one way and then the other, and her great body turns in place to face front. her feathers fluff up around her shoulders-- and then she screeches in pained surprise.

amid the feathers, up near her shoulder are still three arrows. the eagle manages to break off a few of the shafts with her beak. she squeaks pitifully, giving a rather human huff of frustration before flattening herself to the ground and trying again. ]

[thelastjoy]

[Girl makes a strangled noise, a scream caught in her throat. She's seen blood, she's seen destruction. She's seen more death than names she knows.

Girl's used to a world where guns ended all. Those wounds would leave gore, sure, but not like this. She's never seen something ripped apart like this, never watched something so brutal. It makes bile rise in her throat. She clasps her hands over her mouth, unsure if she wants to vomit or shriek.

The bird's own screeches keeps her from trying to run. She's never handled another's pain well. Especially, not an animals. She hesitates, taking a step toward the creature instead of back.]

[fernbeleafer]

[ once girl approaches, and keyleth realizes she's trying to help, keyleth stills as best she can. it's tough because now that she's agitated the arrows they're starting to hurt more. that combined with nothing else for keyleth to worry about has her chirping in frustrated pain in her effort to be still.

but girl is easily tall enough to reach the arrows-- it seems most of the giant bird's bulk near its head is in feathers, some of which are as big as girl's arms. the sharp, hooked beak had gouged a few lines into the dirt. but now that it's pressed toward the ground, girl will find that it comes up just under waist height. one eye: a bright yellow, watches her intently.

the eagle gives another chirp, this time an upward scale of soft and hopefully encouraging notes. her wing stretches out and flattens against the ground a little more-- the larger coarse ones revealing some of the softer down below as keyleth does her best to give girl access to help her out. the feathers around her neck give way easily, and it isn't very difficult to find the thick muscle at her shoulder and chest, where the three broken arrows protrude. ]