DECEMBER MINGLE

[etrayamods]

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: December 21st - Early January
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: Newcomers, a surprise gift from Tatianna, and a visitor!
NOTES\WARNINGS:

⏵ arrival ⏴ Welcome to Etraya! Arrival goes as expected - characters awaken on hospital beds and are offered an explanation of their situation: that they have arrived in the city of Etraya, and they are their world's only hope. They are welcome to wander the hospital if they would like to - the upper floors are mostly empty, full of pristine hallways and numerous rooms filled with supplies, cots, and things one would expect from a relatively average 21st-century hospital. The lobby is filled to the brim with tables of freshly baked goods. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" banners are taped to the walls, and several other typical birthday decorations can be found in this area. A few of the baked goods tables are lined with massive cakes covered in unlit candles, just waiting for someone to grab a lighter and sing off-key. Is it anyone's birthday? Who knows! The companion bots seem to believe it's every new arrival's birthday and will greet them as such - with friendly waves and cheers as they make their way to the lobby. A coat rack is situated by the doors leading out of the hospital, covered in warm clothing that fits the new arrivals just right - whether it's to their preferred style or not is something else entirely. Some of them appear normal enough. Others? Well. They can't all be perfect, now can they? Outside the windows, the grass is covered in a couple of inches of loosely packed snow. We hope you enjoy your stay. ⏵ an unexpected gift ⏴ Out by the hospital stands a tall, decorated tree covered in candles and golden pinecones with a handsome, red velveteen tree skirt. In front of it are a few oversized wrapped gifts for show- and atop one of those sits a familiar woman. Or unfamiliar, if this is your first time. It's Tatianna in a slutty Santa outfit with a big ol’ burlap sack. “Hey, I got something for you,” she says, digging into the bag and rummaging for a moment. She produces a painted egg and holds it aloft. “It’s your Winter Solstice Egg! This is the egg holiday, right? Wait, shit. I’m mixing them up, aren’t I? ...Well. It’s a little late to change it. Here you go!” How one treats their egg is fully up to themselves. They can choose to ignore it entirely, or destroy it and leave the yolk and innards to rot on the ground. They can hand it over to someone else or care for it as if it were something precious. No one will prevent them from doing whatever they please with it! ⏵ naughty or nice ⏴However, how they treat the egg will define how the egg treats them in return. Those who keep the egg and tend to it will get the benefit of being able to watch it hatch seven days after they are handed the egg. Eggs that are treated with attention and love may yield a loyal companion, or a weapon of choice that always returns to its owner, while neglected eggs may yield a curious, cursed trinket or an animal who treats its new owner very much the same way its owner had treated it before it was born. Please submit an egg request below for what items you would like your character's eggs to hatch into! Please note that these cannot be things that would be applicable in the game. Those whose eggs are destroyed or forgotten will simply get the gift of... nothing! ⏵ free your spirit ⏴ With the winter chill gripping the air, a mysterious figure makes their presence known in Etraya - a towering, horned creature dragging a massive sack behind them. 𝓐 𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖘𝖊 𝖇𝖚𝖎𝖑𝖙 𝖔𝖓 𝖑𝖎𝖊𝖘 𝖍𝖆𝖘 𝖆 𝖜𝖊𝖆𝓴 𝖋𝖔𝖚𝖓𝖉𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓. Regardless of a character's strengths or weaknesses, they will find that when Krampus raises his massive sack over their head, they are powerless to stop him from catching them. Those capable of great magical feats or other supernatural abilities will sense something... otherworldly about Krampus, but will not be able to place the source of that sensation. Once within Krampus' sack, they are welcome to fight, but escape is impossible. It will feel as if Krampus is dragging them over every rock possible, dragging the sack in through the rivers to the point it soaks through and drenches them - potentially almost drowning them. When the sack opens, they will find themselves in an impossibly dark space. Around them are others who have also been captured and dragged here by Krampus, trapped in small cages hanging from a massive, wiry tree. Krampus will return often, banging clawed hands and birch rods on the walls of the cages and knocking them into one another. 𝕮𝖔𝖓𝖋𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖘𝖘𝖘𝖘𝖘. The whisper resonates through the darkened area, regardless of Krampus' presence. Confess your secrets, and be freed. Otherwise? You'd better hope someone figures out where Krampus has set up base; those who refuse to confess may find themselves stuck here forever. ⏵ NOTES ⏴ Krampus' base is under Etraya! Deep within the catacombs, he has set up multiple cages to capture those who inhabit Etraya to punish them for their naughty habits. Fighting him is possible! Defeating him by means of combat is not, however, possible. Think of it like fighting a god: Krampus creates the rules in the space around him, including who can use what ability. For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ. ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

[ascarylady]

[ Rare and dangerous. A true believer, ah, that gets Sevika to finish off her beer and sigh. ]

One of the few left. The years have whittled our little rebellion down to, what? Me? The boss. His kid.

[fortitudosalutis]

It's never easy, fighting the good fight.

[ He hefts the bottle again, watching the vodka swirl. ]

Even harder to find one in the first place.

[ascarylady]

Wouldn't be the good fight if it were an easy one...

[ She looks thoughtfully into her empty mug, wondering. Should she bother getting a second one or should she get something harder? Hm. ]

What about yours? Is your world worth the effort?

[fortitudosalutis]

[ Carver snorts at that. A bitter sound. ]

God, no.

[ They're ants on a corpse, fighting for scraps. He knows how it ends. The inevitability of it. Once, he'd believed they had a chance. That they could cut a new shape out of what remained, build something for themselves. Not anymore. ]

But I owe it to my sister if she's still alive, and we've got dead to bury.

[ascarylady]

[ Okay, that manages to catch Sevika off-guard. Why would this place bring anyone from a world not worth saving to... save their world? She looks up from her empty mug, eyebrows raised. ]

You're a pretty loyal brother if you'll bother with this crap for her. [ That much is fair enough, but still. ] Why isn't your world worth it?

[fortitudosalutis]

Pretty sure I’m dead, [ he adds, which is half an explanation. These things happen. He takes another swig of vodka, in the meantime. ] I’ll never betray my sister.

[ This, he swears on more than just his soul. He’s let her down too many times but he’ll never betray Leah Shaw. ]

It’s an evil little shithole filled with evil little people. Nothing worth keeping except my sister.

[ascarylady]

Yeah? Good enough reason as any... Let the rest rot.

[ Evil little shithole with evil little people. She doesn't want to compare that too much to her own home, especially since she does want to save it, evil people and all, but it isn't an unknown sentiment to her. ]

[fortitudosalutis]

Amen, [ he agrees, hefting the bottle again. He’s going to be good and drunk soon. A sin, Carver knows, but sometimes he can’t stand his own company and so compromises are made. ] Least here there’s booze.

[ascarylady]

Maybe a little too much booze.

[ This isn't about to stop her from sliding her mug back under the tap and pulling it to refill. It was why she took a seat behind the bar, after all, for the easy access. ]

You going to be okay walking home when you're done with that?

[fortitudosalutis]

Eh, maybe.

[ That'll be something he repents for later, Carver decides. He eyes the bottle, then sets it reluctantly down. He's not so far gone he'll finish the entire thing in one go. He will, however, take it with him. ]

I'll be fine. I can still see straight.

[ And if he can't, that'll be his test. ]

[ascarylady]

[ Does a hangover count as repentance? Because that's as close as Sevika will get to that. ]

Right. [ If he says he'll be fine, she'll trust it. It's not exactly her business, anyhow. ] Well, I'm here all night if you want to company. I plan on going through the backlog on this network before I head out of here.

[fortitudosalutis]

[ There's a moment, however brief, where Carver wonders if that's an offer. Company can mean a lot of things. He wonders if he wants to go there. Watches her for a moment, and decides he doesn't want to go there. It means things if you let people close the distance. It feels like a betrayal of the commander's orders. He knows what happens when you trust outsiders. He likes Sevika's company, however conditional it might be, but that doesn't mean much. Shaw liked Dixon, and look what that got them.

It's not worth it, even if he's just going out to be with his ghosts again. At least he knows where he's supposed to stand with the dead.

Carver takes the bottle, hefting it distant thanks. ]

I'll remember. Let me know if you find anything interesting, will you?

[ascarylady]

[ An offer from one survivor to another, someone to sit with and drink in relative silence, but one that's easily turned down and then picked up again later. It hardly bothers Sevika. Ultimately, they're still strangers, and she has the luxury of being a bit more trusting than he does.

Instead, Carver will get a nod. If he goes, he goes, bottle and all. ]

Seems like a lot of idle chatter so far, but if I do, sure.

[fortitudosalutis]

Never know.

[ He hefts the bottle in almost salute. A moment later, he's just gone. ]