Intro Log: Puddle Jumpers

[hadrielmods]

Who: New arrivals and everyone else!
What: The intro log for September
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: September 10th-13th
Warnings: Fresh meat, lots of rain and angry ogres

If the rain on your face isn't enough to wake you up in the colosseum, maybe the thundering footsteps and- well, thunder- is. The first thing that you may notice is that it's incredibly wet around here, with winds that could knock you over if you aren't careful and thunder that brings with it a torrent of constant rainfall.

That's all fine though, because the gods saw fit to help you out on your way in and now everyone will be waking up wearing a rain coat! These coats are a little odd, and some of them are downright silly, but we trust that you'll make do. Of course, a few of the raincoats have additional sleeves, neck holes, and entirely too many buttons as well- but hey, it's the best we could do.

Wait, what was that about thundering footsteps? Oh right, as you're navigating your new fashion choices, there are some monsters afoot who will want nothing more than to grind you into a pulp and eat you- well, if you're organic, that is. If you're not organic, then they still want to grind you to a pulp, but maybe not so much the eating part.

Ogres are from many fantasy stories, but these in particular are from the Dragon Age series. With incredible strength and stamina and massive horns, fangs, and a bloodlust for violence, these monsters won't stop until everyone around them is a blood smear on the ground. They're also not too happy about this rainfall either, so be careful not to slip in the puddles as you run away from them!

Once you've splashed around a bit, feel free to run off into the stormy abyss of our islands. 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 September 10th-13th.
► 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

[sallyfaced]

[Certainly cranes his neck up when he realizes the other person in this...place, is 6'8". Not only is she tall, but Sal is a bit unusually short for his age. But she didn't seem aggressive and so he still remained apologetic - less so, after her words, actually.]

Huh. I guess you're right. [But this place...it looked like a temple, so...] Still, I hope I wasn't like, intruding.

[whip_poor_will]

[He "hopes"... If he had any idea where he was, Ravine would almost find that to be a terrible joke.]

This is a public place. You are free to "intrude" as you would like.

[Ravine is just drifting. She doesn't want to end up in someone else's home, unconscious.

[Or, well, as conscious as someone without a body can not be.]

[sallyfaced]

[He could argue against that - having this nagging feeling that he should be asking permission or something to walk in here, either because he's obviously in some kind of temple or because of the woman, despite what she says, but he won't, so he'll just nod his head thankfully and chalk up his weird jumble of thoughts to being rattled by...everything. He has no idea how anything works right now so he's being overly cautious. Still, something felt out of place, he just didn't know how.

Him. He's out of place, isn't he?]

I just needed to get out of the storm and get my bearings for a minute. That's easier to do when you're not about to be picked up and thrown around by the wind, you know?

[whip_poor_will]

[In all fairness, the temple has seen worse days -- but then, it has without a doubt seen better as well. That was long before the likes of everyone here came dropping in from the Door.

[But that is neither here nor there, is it?]

It certainly helps, yes. When you are not being the subject of interest to ogres as well, that is.

[Not that Ravine dropped in on the Colosseum to confirm the new monsters, herself. She hasn't gone anywhere near the place save for this temple. She just knows, sensing their life from here. Unfortunately, her knowing has gotten a little more muddled since lending a piece of her own soul to a couple individuals in need lately. Oh well.]

[sallyfaced]

Ogres? Those really big scary things?

[Not that they aren't incredibly threatening but the name makes them slightly, slightly, less so, if only because Sal was under the impression they might possibly be something far worse. Still incredibly terrifying, 0/10 would never go near ever again.]

I thought they were like, demons or something.

[whip_poor_will]

[Ravine arches a brow.] Demons...?

[That almost makes her laugh, oh wow.]

Of course they are not. Demons are something else entirely, but not ever monster that comes here is one. That is not to say we are devoid of their lot...

[Unfortunately.]

[sallyfaced]

[Sal rubbed at one of his shoulders absentmindedly. He doesn't like the way that sentenced ended.]

It's been kind of a theme with me for a while, so it's hard not to look at a hideous creature I've never seen before and not think, 'hey, that thing might be a demon finally about to devour my soul' or something. I'm glad it wasn't.

[He's going to gloss over that in favor of asking an important question, though.]

Buuuut, now I have to ask...are they a frequent problem here?

[whip_poor_will]

We have encountered our fair share of demons here, but only a couple have ever been a consistent problem.

[Ravine herself, having been a Shedim temporarily when she had lost control -- no thanks to Confusion. As a default, however, she would not put herself very high as a threat to the living.]

[sallyfaced]

"Our fair share", huh?

[That sounds unsettling to him, but he'll try not to dwell on it too hard.]

How do you deal with them here?

[whip_poor_will]

A thorough extermination, most of the time. Others... Well, I have ways of dealing with demons.

[The bone scythe may not be made specifically for combating malignant forces, but it's a convenient tool for those purposes.]

[sallyfaced]

[Whoa, that's kind of intense, and not just because she's really, really, tall.]

I guess it's good to know that there are people here who could deal with that kind of thing. So far things sound like they could be worse.

[Nice people and people who can take care of demons. That's what he managed to gather so far and it's not bad. Of course he's sure he barely knows the half of it.]

[whip_poor_will]

[Ravine's height isn't the most imposing thing about her, but it certainly doesn't help. But dressing like normal people is for squares, and it's not like she puts on "real" clothes, anyway.]

Oh, they could stand to be better, although I doubt many would settle on even a marginal improvement from the gods of this place. I believe they are oft to get more condemnation than necessary.

[sallyfaced]

[He's not one to really notice 'odd dress' himself, considering. The fact that he's generally pretty small makes the height difference the most notable thing to him, truthfully. But she seems pleasant enough to him - being intense isn't necessarily a bad thing in his eyes.]

Oh, yeah, the gods. [That feels really weird for him to say in this context.] Do they get a lot of flak?

[He assumes that's what she's saying.]

[whip_poor_will]

[Ravine forms a wry smile.]

What god does not? Even the worshipped will have non-believers. In this case, there are many.

[But! A more serious answer this time:] Yes, they do. Unnecessarily so, I personally believe. They are not all at fault for who comes and goes, here.

[sallyfaced]

[He supposes that makes sense.]

Huh. Guilty by association, huh? [The mentality, he means.] I can't really blame people if they're confused and scared with only one source to blame. I'm sure it's not simple as that, though. From either side.

[He'll give everyone a chance. Why not gods?? That's a strange thought he'd never thought he would have, but another day ending in 'Y' he guesses. Point being, there are always so many sides to a story.]

[whip_poor_will]

More or less. [In mentality, Ravine would agree.] And no, it is not so simple. People need the gods for food and shelter, and in exchange the gods gain strength from their emotions, oftentimes influencing their minds and physical state and surroundings in order to inspire the feelings a god requires. The problem is the mere fact that it was not a consentual arrangement... and most are unlikely to have agreed, anyway.

[She can appreciate the fact that the kid is taking this in stride. It's such a drag trying to calm frantic people down.]

[sallyfaced]

Yeah...that file thingy I found on my phone said something like that. [The welcoming guide, he means.] I can't say I was looking forward to being dragged out of my home into a literal and metaphorical storm, but you know, can't be helped.

[At any rate, he can understand why people would be angry. Maybe they'll come around eventually. Maybe they'll be proven right. Who knows?]

[whip_poor_will]

I must say, you have a rather wholesome way of looking at it.

[Not many people would take the "it can't be helped" approach when they end up here, but. You know. That can't be helped, either. Some like to think that they have more important matters to return to than others. The fact that time does not pass at all makes that concern superfluous in Ravine's eyes.]

[sallyfaced]

There's no use dwelling on it too much, right? The only thing to do now is to figure out how to move forward.

[It's not as if Sal is completely immune to dwelling on things. There are things he can't quite shake no matter how hard he tries, but he can still try and not let it get him down to the point of stalling him completely. He won't begrudge those having trouble accepting their situation either, though. He knows what it's like to be lost and scared, and even angry with the world, despite how he may seem. He's always been empathetic.]

[whip_poor_will]

Correct. On the other hand, I have met plenty who do not share the same sentiment, although I am certain that they have their reasons.

[Reasons that Ravine is going to have a harder time sorting out the easy way now. Good thing she does not lament staying out of people's heads if she can help it. It's just that, this time, she can't, and that is fine as well. That piece of herself went to something of worth -- to give a dying man some extra time to live. He may not agree, but that is of no consequence to her at the end of the day.]

[sallyfaced]

Hopefully they'll come around. Or find some way to cope.

[He also quietly hopes no one is angry to the point of violence over it. In a situation like this, with so many different types of people...well, it's a frightening thought for Sal in particular.

Suddenly, he snaps his fingers.]

Oh! I'm sorry. My name's Sal. What's yours?

[He feels kind of rude having come out of nowhere with a bunch of questions and no introductions.]

[whip_poor_will]

[Unfortunately, violence tends to be the coping mechanism of many here, if they manage to cope at all. Ravine doesn't blame them, but that doesn't mean she appreciates or is on board with the idea. Violence is not becoming of her. It could do more harm to a reaper than anything else, in fact.

[Ripped from her thoughts by the sudden introduction, Ravine's brows lift slightly as she stares down at the boy. When she is so often privvy to names before they're even spoken, she forgets to name herself for their sake. Even the playing field a little bit for the more paranoid.]

Ah, yes, my apologies. I am called Ravine. [Because "Yehudit" is long dead and gone.] It is a pleasure; we do not often see your "type" here.

[sallyfaced]

[Sal smiles in greeting, not visible on his face but heard in the tone of his voice, more upbeat now.]

Nice to meet you...Ravine. [He was just testing the name out, since he's never heard it before. Cool!

Then his tone gives way to a confused one.] What do you mean my "type"? Like...really short?

[He's sure she obviously doesn't mean that, but he couldn't resist cracking a joke when he thought an uncomfortable moment was going to follow.]

[whip_poor_will]

[Even without being a psychic, Ravine has a natural intuition to read the levity behind the "mask".

[Sal's question then merits a muffled chuckle.]

Oh, of course not. In fact, a friend of mine is just a hair shorter than yourself. [But Atem is probably used to everyone being taller than him.]

What I mean to say is that we are not often met with those who let harsh winds so easily brush off their shoulders. [The idiom is a little off, but the idea is still there. Ravine's just made it her own.

[She smiles, then adds:] Or those who are acquainted with the dead.

[sallyfaced]

Oh.

[Wait a minute.]

Acquainted with the dead? [He's not sure he would put it that way, but he thinks he understands what she means. It's not wrong, honestly. He does spend an awful lot of time around them, after all.] How can you even tell?