Event Post: Everyone Chill

[hadrielmods]

Who: Everyone participating in the event!
What: The event log for Tranquility's resurrection event!
Where: All around the city
When: December 27th-January 7th
Warnings: Absolutely nothing creepy or weird at all.

The revival of Tranquility on December 27th marks a vast - if temporary, and actually completely fake - change to the city. Upon awakening that morning, the inhabitants of Hadriel will find the city changed from its usual broken-down dour cave self into a sparkling, clean, delightful island city. Instead of being surrounded by hard stone walls, the city is surrounded by warm ocean waters and soft white sand beaches.

Gentle waves lap at the shore, the sky overhead is perfect, wide and open. The spires have been replaced by shining skyscrapers, the roads are clear of rubble and paved neatly. The stores are quaint, windows no longer broken, and the items inside have changed too. Instead of simple canned goods and strange clothing, you might find delicate pastries, cool drinks, fresh fruit, and flowy summer clothes to match the city. How nice! How calming, really. Didn't everyone need a vacation? So throw on some flip-flops, grab one of the mopeds that have been provided, and enjoy yourselves!

As the days go on, though, you might notice one or two odd things. Maybe the pretty sun hat you picked up looked, for just a moment, like a grubby old baseball cap instead. Maybe that beach ball is a little heavier than it should be. Maybe the shining wall of that skyscraper feels more like stone than glass. Maybe - just for an instant - the sky above was solid rock instead of the gentle, calming hues of the sunset.

While there is a mild compulsion toward calmness and tranquility, towards accepting the city for exactly what it seems to be, that can be ignored - and the illusion can be broken, if you choose to try. But do you really want to? Isn't that croissant much nicer than yet another can of beans? Wouldn't you rather relax at the beach than run around, trying to convince all your friends that this is just the gods getting inside their heads again in an even more creepy and all-encompassing way than usual?

Come on. Don't be a buzzkill.

► This log covers December 27th-January 7th.
► 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 chill out so much you end up dead, please let us know here.

Comments

[circumitus]

"It isn't," Rey says as she approaches Maketh from behind.

At least this time she isn't kicking the other woman's chair from under her. In fact, the anger that had overwhelmed Rey during those days has ceased to be entirely. This has not brought her much relief, though.

Though she isn't indulging herself in the colorful summer clothes and other trinkets, she is accompanied with a bottle of cold lager in one hand. "Tried going out for a swim. See how far it was possible to go."

While she might not of the party all too eager to leave this place, she had to test the limits of this environment. Enough to tell her that it's an illusion.

[mismanagement]

Maketh puts her hands on her hips with a sigh. Part of her wants to take her boots off and walk on the sand. It's utterly childish, but persistent. She ignores it. "How far did you get?"

[circumitus]

Finishing off the lager, Rey answers Maketh's question by reeling her arm back and chucking the bottle. It sails over the water a good several yards out, before plunking into the sea.

The idea was for it to hit a wall, but Rey doesn't seem very surprised, either. She just gestures in the direction of the littered bottle and shrugs. "Well. Farther than that."

Isn't she so helpful?

[mismanagement]

That's just wonderful.

"I suppose it's more pleasant to look at," Maketh says dubiously. There isn't much of an up-side, otherwise. Or at all.

"Did it just...end?"

[circumitus]

Pleasant if you like looking at a very convincing prop. But Rey decides against being the perpetual buzzkill when she's got one of her own going for herself.

"Something like that. It was just a wall. A really stupid, annoying, invisible fucking wall."

[mismanagement]

"A containment field."

Or something of that nature. Maketh kicks at the sand. It feels real enough. Somehow that's worse.

"Well. It's not killing anyone, currently. I suppose that's an improvement."

[circumitus]

"That sounds a little too technical for this place, but yes."

Though Rey is hardly comfortable with calling it a 'magical barrier', that is probably what it is. Just like how this whole illusion is influenced by something more otherworldly than scientific.

She sighs. "Doesn't seem to be influencing anyone emotionally, either. Don't feel any intrusive emotions, at least."

That she can tell, anyway.

[mismanagement]

Maketh grimaces. She dislikes anything she can't easily explain. "That won't last. It never does. Though I suppose we ought to rest while we have the chance."

Before it gets bad again.

[circumitus]

Rey nods in agreement. "This is Tranquility's thing. Probably supposed to make us feel 'tranquil'," she says, mocking the mere word.

Though Tranquility hasn't shown his face yet on the network, it's an easy enough assumption to make. Every other resurrection followed the same theme.

[mismanagement]

"A drug would have been more effective," Maketh murmurs. All this does is make her annoyed. It's an illusion, another lie to hold them back. "I should be thankful they aren't clever."

[circumitus]

She scoffs. "You should suggest that to him. Am sure any of the budding addicts would love that."

No, Maketh. Don't suggest that at all.

[mismanagement]

"Hardly." Maketh shakes her head. "He might just listen and then where would we be?"

[circumitus]

Shrug.

"Roads paved with shiny happy people holding hands."

Rey, no. No, Rey. You are not allowed to reference R.E.M. and you do not get to make jokes about music that's over 160 years old you are a grandma know your place goddammit.

[mismanagement]

Maketh blinks. "Is that a metaphor?"

[circumitus]

"Was a song. A really, really old song."

Her brother listens to the weirdest shit.

[mismanagement]

"Oh. You like music." Maketh nods slowly. "I remember that."

[circumitus]

To be fair, what sort of loser doesn't like music?

Not Rey, that's for sure.

"Sure. Don't you?" She assumes that they had to have music where Maketh came from.

[mismanagement]

"I like dancing," Maketh answers slowly. "I like where it takes me. And I suppose most of the time that involves music. But I never really...followed it."

[circumitus]

"Dancing?"

Sure, at a glance one would not peg Maketh to be the partying type.

"Guess that counts," she continues. "What type of dance?"

[mismanagement]

Maketh shrugs. "All kinds, I suppose. I meant to teach Lilith some of it. The formal kind, I mean. What we'd do when they made us put on our dress uniforms. There's a certain grace to it."

There was never enough time for that, though. Maketh sighs. "I like it best when there's a crowd. I can...disappear."

[circumitus]

Rey opens her mouth, then snaps it back shut when she realizes that she doesn't have anything particularly graceful to say right away. She is very familiar with the inevitability of loss, but everyone deals with it differently.

"Never done any formal dance before. Haven't gone to many formal occasions in general, though."

Try not to act so surprised.

[mismanagement]

Maketh smiles just a little. No, Rey doesn't seem the type. A soldier through and through, the kind that keeps to the edges unless called up to fight. Someone like her could never have been an officer of the Imperial Court. It's a different kind of game all together, one that Maketh only survived by avoiding the best players. And even in the end, it had caught up with her. The Empire abides neither mistakes or treason.

it's different in Hadriel. Better in some ways. Harder in others. Maketh has learned to survive it.

"No? I don't imagine you would have enjoyed them much. There was always a great deal of posturing. But the dancing -- that was all right."

[circumitus]

Something in Rey's expression softens into one of fondness.

"Not so sure about that. Have been to a couple operas before. Liked it." She slides her hands into the pockets of her cargo pants and looks up at the colorful sky. "Even wore a dress and everything. Sometimes it's nice to pretend to be something you're not."

And a prim and proper lady/citizen of civilized society isn't it.

[mismanagement]

"I always wanted to see an opera," Maketh says, a little wistful. Another reason shed wanted off Lothal so badly. There'd been nothing to do there but dodge rebel attacks or get horribly drunk. "But I suppose you would have looked very nice in a dress."

She understands about wanting to be something else for a little while. Sometimes she gets to pretend.

[circumitus]

Something about the music always seemed soothing to her. Maybe it has something to do with her mother, the woman who created her. The fact that she associates the style of music with the love of someone she never deserved, as it evokes a certain melancholy.

Before she can say anything, however, Maketh comments about the putative notion of Rey in a dress. She gapes.

"Oh, um. Thanks. Probably looked weird wearing one, but... yes, thanks."