Event Log: The Beach Episode

[hadrielmods]

Who: Everyone!
What: The event log for the transition to our new planet!
Where: The city, which has now been fragmented onto four separate islands.
When: May 27th-June 10th
Warnings: Surf's up! If by 'surf', you mean separation from your friends, weird sea creatures, and cold rainfall.

The sun and the sand and a drink in your hand- well, it all sounded pretty nice when you voted for the island planet, but ultimately what you're getting is a bit less glamorous.

The transition takes place instantaneously, with very little noteworthy shakeup, though those of you who are particularly in-tune with the supernatural may feel a bit dizzied or nauseated by the sudden movement. And that's exactly what it is: for those of you who are outside, the change is fairly noticeable, as in the span of a single blink, what used to be miles of desert is now rocky ocean. The city is simply in one place one moment, and then somewhere entirely new a second later.

And that somewhere new is exciting! The islands have plenty of landscape to explore and weather conditions to adjust to, fish to catch, and- wait, how do you get to the other islands? What if your friends or your home or the bar is on these other islands? Enjoy having to figure out who is where and how you're going to get by with only a small fraction of the city to work off of- hopefully those boats will come sooner rather than later...

► This log covers May 27th-June 10th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you drown or get eaten by an alien shark, let us know here.

Comments

Curufin | OTA

[so_dark_a_road]

North Island

i. Guard HQ

Curufin stops in here regularly. He can call the other Guards who have ended up on this island with him, but it is good to check in face-to-face as well. The place is the same as always, except. . . emptier. You'll find Curufin making coffee and sketching a map of the island, to scale.

ii. The Firehouse

Since it was on the north shore of the lake, not far from the Sewing Shop, the Fire Brigade's building along with the fire engines ended up on the south shore of North Island, on the curve of the little bay. Curufin drops in here regularly, just to make sure all is well, even though he doesn't think it is likely there will be a fire any time soon. The fire engines will be usable for other kinds of transportation until their batteries run out of charge. Unfortunately, the charging hubs are in the moped lot on South Island.

iii. South edge of the Park, under the eaves of the trees

Curufin and Celebrimbor have been long maintained a workshop here, a cluster of shacks that each has a craft or storage purpose. Now there is another building, a boat-building shed. Inside, Curufin is working on the first of the two boats he promised Henry he would build. He does it in the style of boat-builders of the First Age of Arda -- he has chalked an outline on the floor, and now he's building from the floor up, starting with the keel. Once he has the basic structures established, including the ribs, he starts on the hull planking. This requires him to soak the cut sections of green wood in water or steam them so that they can be bent to fit the curved shape of the hull, and then they are nailed in place. He's making good progress. If he has coworkers, it would be even better. Visitors welcome as well!

iv. Shoreline

He's rather fascinated by the ocean. He once sailed the Arctic waters of his own world, and he has never forgotten the magnificence of the sea. He can be found taking a break and sitting up on the folded and tumbled rocks of the beach, eyeing the nearest island and mentally making plans for rowing or sailing across once he has the first boat finished.

Or he can be found fishing from a cliff top, throwing the fish into a basket, to be shared with whoever needs food. The food sources here are limited. (Though he and the other harvesters did place food caches in Spires Two and Three, and in Guard HQ and in the Armory, and Pell has a garden in the Park.)

Re: Curufin | OTA

[soldier_blade]

Sonya headed to the HQ as soon as she was (more or less) given her assignment. That she wasn't the only guardsmen on the island was something of a relief; for all the gods seemed keen on their safety, organization seemed at the bottom of the list. The more guardsmen being dispersed on the islands, atleast there was a chance to help keep the rest of them safe.

Of course, there was no real means of knowing 'where' the other guardsmen might be, but HQ seemed good as any. Sooner or later, they usually met there anyway, and no other place would serve till everyone was settled.

She entered the building, about to call out when she spotted Curufin at the coffee maker and near some papers. "How're things looking?"

Greetings could come later, right now they needed to get organized.

Okay if we assume Sonya helped with the Orchard harvest?

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin came to Guard HQ as soon as he had made the rounds of the island and finished talking to Henry. And he barely got the coffee perking and had thrown himself into a chair and started rapidly sketching the geography, when the door opened and Sonya came in.

He looked up, pleased to see one of his coworkers already. "It looks like you and I and Ignis are the only Guards on this island. I'm putting together what the others have said, and coming up with a rough map now. We've got a few food resources here, too. Pell and Carlisle have gardens in the Park. We put food caches in both the spires, here in HQ, in the Armory, and I think Oscar left some at the Firehouse. And I am fairly sure there are edible fish off the coast and perhaps shellfish among the rocks. Oh, and my workshop is at the edge of the woods, so I have tools and materials to build those boats."

"I haven't yet got started searching the island for people. I guess that's the next step. What are your priorities?"

we can

[soldier_blade]

All of it was a good start, as far as she could determine. The water in the spirals still seemed to work as well, but she wasn't sure how long that would hold. "Same as yours. Search and get everyone organized. My quarters aren't on this island, so who knows how many others could be displaced."

Though to use the term when they were all displaced on this realm was almost redundant. "Could use HQ as a gathering spot until everyone's accounted for."

The only temples they had on the island were of Rage and Confusion, and like hell did she trust any gathering in there.

nice

[so_dark_a_road]

"True. We may need to find living space for displaced people. I believe there are unused apartments in the spires, as Oscar said when he responded to Henry's Guard summons. A few, at least. We might also ask Margaery Tyrell if she would accept any guests in the Sewing Shop. There are also a few other shops on this island, and perhaps they could be commandeered as temporary shelters. And I agree, HQ would be good for a gathering center. There is also the Armory."

Curufin leaves the temples off his list for the same reason as Sonya does.

"I'm going to build a couple of boats. I've already marked out the trees I'm going to cut, the location for the work, and I have plans. Henry has asked me to focus on this project. But of course I'm available for whatever I'm needed for. Especially if any of the tunnel creatures have managed to come with us. We all had better be watching out for those."

iv.

[roseofthetyrells]

[Margaery couldn't stay in her Shop forever, so she eventually ventures out to explore a little. she's grateful to see a friendly face. she was worried that she'd been cut off from everyone when she found herself stranded on this island away from home.

she goes over to Curufin and sits beside him on the rock]

It's certainly different, is it not?

Sorry, I should have put the Sewing Shop in my toplevel! He certainly would have stopped by.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin hears footsteps and turns around. His face lights up. He makes room for her on the rock. ]

It is very different. I had no idea I'd feel this positive about it. And you, Margaery, how is it for you?

no, it's cool! :)

[roseofthetyrells]

[Error: Irreparable invalid markup ('<small[she>') in entry. Owner must fix manually. Raw contents below.]

<small[she smiles warmly at him in return as she takes her seat]</small>

It is. Highgarden was landlocked and all King's Landing had was the foul Blackwater Bay, so this is my first real time close to the ocean. And, for me? I think I will be far happier when there are boats available, so that we can travel between islands.

\o/

[so_dark_a_road]

It is rather nice to walk by the ocean, is it not? Nice, when the wind blows in our hair. I even like the rain.

We are soon going to have boats on this island, at least! I'm building two of them. Would you be interested in a trip to East Island, as soon as i'm finished with the first boat? Maglor is there.

iii.

[myrealname]

[as Jane is exploring her new surroundings, looking for food at shops, she crosses through the Park.

and sees a cluster of small shacks at the Southern edge and wanders over to investigate.

she sees a man with pointed ears (an elf? or a Vulcan? here, either seems like a possibility) working on what looks like a boat]

Hey. That's gonna be a boat, right?

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin looks up, sets his hammer down and smiles at her. His ears aren't anywhere near as pointed as a Vulcan's, they just have small, graceful tips that faintly remind one of fairytales. Some mortals have ears like this, so it is not so much his ears that make him stand out as not-mortal, but the light in his eyes and the subtle suggestion of otherworldly power that he radiates. ]

It is a boat, indeed! I am hoping to finish it before the week is out. Do you know about boats?

And by the way, my name is Curufin Fëanorion. What's yours?

[myrealname]

[she smiles back, a little awkwardly. she can definitely tell that he's not human, but she's not going to be pushy and ask about it]

I know about the Staten Island Ferry?

I'm Alice. Alice Ayres. I just got here.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ He won't mind if she asks! ]

Staten Island. I don't know where that is. [ He doesn't seem to know any New Yorkers. But he's always curious about other worlds. ]

Pleased to meet you, Alice! You must have arrived before the gods moved us here, then?

i.

[claritatis]

Ignis has been keeping himself busy. Keeping busy is the best defence against the various frustrations that begin to creep in when he sits down for even a few moments to do anything but sleep, and he has been occupying most of his time with the section of the guard HQ that has been put aside for use as a clinic.

The inventory is impeccable, everything as neat and clean as it can possibly be when he briefly leaves to the main rooms and finds some slightly unexpected company.

"Curufin," he greets the elf somewhat perfunctorily on his way to the coffee machine, pouring half a cup and taking a small sip. He grimaces slightly, setting it aside.

Still terrible.

"How have you been getting on?"

[so_dark_a_road]

Continuous activity and lack of sleep, yes, that's life on North Island. Sorry about the terrible coffee, Ignis! XD

Curufin and Ignis seem to be on different schedules, since they haven't run into each other until now. But of course, there is so much to do, and so few people to do it, and they are all running themselves ragged. Curufin looks up from his drawing and sets his own cup of bad coffee on the desk.

"Ignis," he responds. "I'm very busy but doing well. The boat is progressing and I expect to have it in the water soon. Margaery Tyrell is sewing the sail, and she's volunteered to crew the boat with me on the first run. How are you doing? I'll bet Kate's going to be pleased with the clinic space here." He hasn't actually taken a look yet, but considering how thorough Ignis is about everything he does, it'll probably be flawless.

[claritatis]

The coffee here has always been terrible, and it's only got worse since Delight's betrayal. At least she was providing some coffee that was passable.

"Mm. I hope so." Ignis has never run a clinic of any kind, but like most things, he's picking it up easily enough as he goes along. At the moment, without sort of emergency, it's mostly a matter of inventory and keeping everything in order. Keeping things in order is certainly something that he can do.

He taps his fingers against the top of the nearest desk, as if at a loss for what to do and mentally searching for the next task.

"Does Margery have experience sailing?"

[so_dark_a_road]

Delight's Coffee, there's a brand name for you!

And somebody to keep things in order was really needed here. Kate will definitely be proud!

"I don't think Margaery has sailing experience. But she's strong, deft, and intelligent." He laughs a little. ". . . As I discovered immediately, when I became one of her sparring partners! Ikaruga taught her the sword and must have been proud of her as a student. I'm teaching her the craft of sailing, and I'm sure she'll pick that up as quickly as she did the weapons arts."

"Do you handle boats, Ignis?"

iii

[stealyoursoul]

Leo finds himself spending a lot of time in the park. It's far enough away from the water that he feels a little bit better and less miserable than he's been. When he hears the sounds of something being created, he goes into the shed. He glances at Curufin, or rather, just over his shoulder, trying to see if his shadow is that of a sinner or not, but he soon becomes more absorbed in watching the boat being built.

Leo hails from what had used to be the American Midwest, so he's never been anywhere near the ocean, or any large bodies of water for that matter. Frankly, he's never wanted to. It comes from being a monster mostly made up of fire, which meant he was none too fond of the opposite element.

It is a few minutes before he finally speaks. "Think it'll actually float?" Leo thinks on what his adopted older brother Seth promised, that he'd find him a boat so he never had to be anywhere near the water.

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin has left the door of the boatbuilding shed open, just to keep an eye on the landscape, and also to keep the shed aired out. He is steaming sections of green wood in a hand-built steambox and then bending the malleable wood and nailing the curved hull-planks into place.

He looks up when he senses a person in the doorway and smiles. "I'm sure it will float," he answers.

If Leo can perceive the qualities of the person from his shadow, he'll see the shadow of a sinner, all right. It is just that that is all in the past. He is a complex man. (Elf.)

[stealyoursoul]

"Good. We'll need boats if this rock eventually sinks right into the ocean," he says with a gloomy and fatalistic air. If that happens, he's screwed. Sunai can't swim from being too dense, and sink like rocks when put into deep water.

He sees the sin upon Curufin's soul, though what has caused it, he's not entirely sure of. There's always the usual things, but beyond that, Leo doesn't know specifics, not unless he plays his song. Still, it's a little hard holding a conversation with someone that also looks like dinner to a Sunai's eyes.

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin laughs. "I wouldn't be at all surprised if the island sinks! I'm sure the gods would get a wonderful feast out of that, and it wouldn't bother them a bit if some people drowned. They'd just revive them in Hope's temple, or open the Door and get replacements."

The darkness in Curufin's soul is ancient. He himself believes that he was born with a fair portion of the dark element and only after he grew up did he add to it by committing actual crimes. But he's gone to war with beings that are far worse than he ever was, and he knows well how to defend himself against the arcane. His soul would not be easy pickings. However, he has no sense of who Leo is, only that a stranger is showing interest in his boat and an interest in conversation.

"My name's Curufin, by the way."

I. a million years after the fact...

[solase]

Alucard had been directed to speak to Curufin, the shipbuilder, but other than the knowledge that he's in the Guard with him, he has no knowledge of where he might be able to find him. Perhaps that's something of his own fault. He hasn't committed to this position as much as he should have, for a number of reasons, all of which are probably not good enough for his superiors. But that is neither here nor there.

This at least is something that he understands. Ships. The ocean. He didn't really understand how much he had missed it until it is there before him, broad and beautiful. He really can't begin to wrap his mind around how one day he had been in one place and the next day he'd been in another, but at this point he knows better than to try. At least the fates had seen fit to drop his Spire on the same island as the Guard's headquarters.

Which is where, as luck would have it, he ends up finding the exact person he's looking for. Even if he doesn't realize it at first. Studying the map over the other man's shoulder, Alucard can't help but wonder if there isn't a way to make himself a pirate's cipher again somehow, or if it's even worth it for the fact that this world might change again and take the ocean away from him once more.

"It's very good," he comments, idly.

No problem, and welcome!

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin hears a step and looks up from his sketch with a smile. Somehow he and Alucard haven't met one another in person until now, though it is strangely easy to miss a person in Hadriel, even when they are in the Guard with you.

Curufin did see the archived copy of Henry's Guard call post and noted Henry's instructions to Alucard. He realizes he should have gone looking for him, but then he became absorbed in selecting the timber and setting up the saw pit and the shop floor for boatbuilding. After that, the skeleton of the boat began to emerge from the raw materials practically of its own accord. There is a lot of work left to do, though.

"Thank you!" he answers. "A craftsman has to be able to draw up a set of plans, and I like maps, too. I'm Curufin, by the way."

[solase]

Alucard's eyebrows raise slightly at the introduction, one noticeably sapphire-studded.

"Ah," he says, "a man of many talents then. I had not known you would be quite so easy to find, otherwise I would have set out to find you far sooner." He cracks the other man a smile and it lights up his face in the way all of his smiles seem to. Alucard is a handsome man, and a man who has a smile for every occasion.

"My name is Alucard Emery," he says, offering the other man something of a little bow before offering his hand in greeting. "Technically I suppose that it is Captain, but that is neither here nor there. I was told, however, that I should seek you out. I don't suppose you might have heard anything of the sort?"

[so_dark_a_road]

"It's a small island," Curufin answers, with an answering smile. He has an appreciation for a handsome man, there's no denying this.

"Pleased to meet you, Captain Alucard Emery!" He clasps the offered hand in greeting. "I know that Henry asked you to speak with me and give me your best advice on the boat-building project. Can you start by telling me a little about your career, and what sort of ships you've captained?"