Beach Boys [open]

[tongueamok]

Who: Glacius (glacius), Carlisle Longinmouth (tongueamok), and you!
What: Two dudes just chilling in the fun and the sun, minus the sun. Chilling likely literal. Fun debatable. Also, one of them is a giant snake.
Where: All islands, coastal areas
When: May 27th - Early June
Warnings: PG-13ish, probably?




"I still don't believe this is a good idea!"

For anyone who knows Carlisle, seeing him talking to himself -- or yelling, rather -- is probably nothing new; however, for anyone who may stumble upon this scene who isn't familiar with the anxiety-riddled clergyman, he's had better first impressions. He wouldn't want to make one right now, anyway: he's alone on the rocky beach that once led to the caves, his arms crossed as he picks at his sleeve nervously; his hair is a mess, tousled by the winds. Absent are his usual vestments, forgone for the beachwear he picked up last time the city saw so much water, and though it seems he intends to get wet at some point by virtue of his wearing them at all, the way he's standing a good distance from where the tides actually reach says otherwise. His previous encounter with the ocean had been just an illusion, a tranquil sea created by the gods; the waters then had been purposefully calm, a sharp contrast to the uneven waves before him now. The depths of this ocean are terrifyingly real, and likely home to equally terrifying creatures.

In the distance rises a serpentine figure with glowing, green eyes and spines along its head; it slithers through the waves with relative ease. Despite how frightening the monsters of the depths must be, Carlisle doesn't budge as this one looks his way before diving once more. Perhaps he doesn't consider this to be one of them -- he rubs at his arms, his eyes still upon the spot it vanished as he raises his voice once more.

"There could be anything out there!" he insists, his nose wrinkling as a gust of coastal wind pushes against him. His entire form stiffens, his fingers curling in reply, digging into his arm. "Or we could drown! I could drown! It would pull you under, and I would drown, and you'd be lost to the depths, and then we'd both wish we'd just stayed home!"

He is definitely yelling more to himself than anyone else at this point, but the serpent turns back toward the shore regardless, heading straight for him. It doesn't attack, as one might expect, doesn't lash out at the lanky, isolated clergyman from the shoreline -- instead, it snakes its way onto the sand, coils through the rocks, and stops once it reaches him, butting its forehead against his. Carlisle brings his hand up and lets it rest along his partner's mandible as they exchange a few, hushed words.

This might still be a strange sight for anyone who doesn't know either of them; however, some may recognize the sea creature as not a creature at all, but as Glacius, his icy form temporarily adapted to brave the waters of this new world. Though Carlisle remains nervous and reluctant to join him, he has nothing to fear -- no matter what lies beyond the safety of the land, they will face it together. Besides that, Glacius won't let anything happen to his human partner. Carlisle may not be as hardy when it comes to such elements, but anything that should try to attack them from the waters below will find they've challenged the wrong alien.

Giving Carlisle one more nudge for reassurance, Glacius makes his way back into the water, hoping to coax his partner into joining him -- if they aren't stopped by someone who happens up the coast, that is.

[[It's a joint log, folks! Feel free to tag either Carlisle, Glacius, or both as they hang around the coasts of all islands!]]

Comments

\o/

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin stands on the cliff and watches the glimmering serpentine form surface and rise up until its head comes up to eye level with Curufin. The luminous green eyes have a familiar look in them, despite the very different shape of the body.

Curufin breaks into a brilliant smile as he hears Glacius' voice coming from the beak-like mouth of that marvelous snake-like form.

"Glacius, I'm glad to see you! Yes, I'm fishing. We have some caches of food from the Orchard harvest and other sources, but it isn't going to last forever. These fish are fairly tasty. You're fishing too? With that form, you can swim anywhere you like, I take it! Are there interesting and edible fish when you get further out to sea?"

[glacius]

Curufin may be reading human traits onto a nonhuman form there—though the alien has a curved jawline and defined cheekbones, he actually lacks a mouth entirely regardless of the shape he's currently in. If one watches and pays close attention, they might actually notice that his voice rises from his gills, which might actually explain the echoic quality to it. It is subtle but present, making the alien sound almost as if he as speaking from many mouths at once, which makes sense given he has eight gills from which sound escapes.

The alien wouldn't be ruffled by the misconception, though, especially not when it's coupled with appreciation for his physique regardless of form. And no matter where his voice comes from, it still sounds pleased to engage one who has been polite and often even flattering.

"That makes sense, and it is admirable to equip yourself to provide not just for yourself but for others if need be," Glacius notes. "As for you question, I have found that the further out you go, the more dangerous life forms there are... there are some truly unfriendly-looking creatures dwelling in the deep. I have not tried to eat them, given that I am not in the habit of putting myself in the way of potential danger unnecessarily."

There's pause as something occurs to him before Glacius speaks up again. "Though... now that I think about it... if I am to be protecting people from these things, perhaps I should 'test the waters' a bit so to speak. Better to hunt a few of them now to see what they might be capable of when I am the only one at risk." And he's using that term fairly mildly, as he fancies himself as more than a match for wildlife regardless of planet. He just isn't the sort to engage in a tussle unless there's due cause.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ ooc: Thanks for the correction! Curufin will pay more attention in the future. Glacius' voice has entrancing qualities, especially to the ears of one who comes from a family that highly values their auditory sense channels. Curufin has probably been perceiving with his ears instead of with his eyes. And it's true he has a great appreciation for Glacius as a person and an admiration for Glacius' special abilities. ]

"Absolutely," agrees Curufin. "I think it is really important to be thinking, always, of where the community's food is going to come from. But especially in these uncertain times. We don't know how long it will be before the gods take any thought for our food resources."

"You say there are some dangerous-looking creatures in the deeps? Not surprising, I guess. Be careful, Glacius! if you're going to try hunting some of them, I hope you'll make sure you have a clear escape route, and maybe some kind of backup." Curufin is pretty sure Glacius won't be reckless, and he believes the ice-alien is capable at whatever he attempts. He's just worrying a little.

[glacius]

"I'd prefer not to rely on them at all," Glacius replies dully, always up-front about his distaste for the gods—let alone taking handouts from them. He has only done it a sparing few times, and that was at points where he could think of no other alternative; he'd rather come up with his own solutions to problems, like he's doing with their change of scenery.

"Anyways, I appreciate your concern but I am quite certain I will be fine. My ability to liquidize makes it easy for me to slip away, especially in a liquid-based environment. I just have to be careful to not get caught off guard," the alien explains. Worst comes to worst, his partner is the most talented healer that he knows... but he'd rather not make the clergyman utilize those abilities unless absolutely necessary. Better to simply avoid getting injured in the first place, which Glacius also seems fairly confident in his ability to accomplish.

[so_dark_a_road]

"I have the same preference," says Curufin with a smile. "I'd rather not rely on the gods at all. That's why I'm fishing and building a boat."

Glacius is talented. Curufin has no reference for this fluidity of form other than that of his own world, where those who can alter their physical reality are either Valar or Maiar, the gods or the helpers of the gods of Middle-earth and of all of the world of Arda. He had occasion to be particularly aware of the ocean deities, Ulmo and Ossë, who controlled the deep ocean and the tides and could take any form they liked, including that of the denizens of the sea. Not that Curufin actually thinks that Glacius is a god or a demi-god, but to him, the ability to transform is admirable, not freakish.

"All right, if you're confident of your abilities. It sounds as though any sea predator would be hard pressed to catch you!" And of course, Carlisle is looking out for him, too.

[glacius]

"Ah, you know how to construct such vessels?" Glacius replies, in a tone of voice that suggests he'd be rubbing his tapering chin in thought if he still had hands with which to do it. "Are others aware of your talents? It could be a boon in helping to reconnect those who have been scattered across these islands."

[so_dark_a_road]

"I do! And the boat I'm constructing now will be finished in a week. Margaery Tyrell is making the sail, and she's going to help me rig the boat, and she'll sail with me on its first voyage. I can hardly wait!" He sits down on the cliff edge in order to continue the conversation, and looks attentively at Glacius.

"Henry and the rest of the Guard are aware. Henry released me from other Guard duties to free up my time so that the boat project could be finished as soon as possible. After that, I'll explore the islands for the best possible ferry routes, and I and Margaery and perhaps others will provide the ferry service. I'd like to build a few more of this model. to facilitate that."

"But I've had some other feelers for shipwright work, as well." He chuckles. "Trafalgar Law wants to build a pirate ship. Not for piracy, I don't think! He wants to use it to head out into the open ocean and find out what's out there -- and particularly, to find secrets that have to do with the Door. The gods intimated that they would be giving us some information that would make possible such a search, but so far they haven't given us anything. Anyway, I agreed to help build the ship, and I hope to be on that voyage."