etrayalogs | APRIL MINGLE

APRIL MINGLE

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: April 25th - Early May
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, spring activities, and feathered friends!
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.

However, if they are arriving from Aphaia, it's a little different, though mostly through means and familiarity. They will still show up in the hospital of course, but how can vary. Either through Aurora offering a portal for escape, their own demise (however it might have happened), or even a simple blink of their eyes and they're in the hospital. They had been given the briefest explanation last time they were here, but at least Aurora can better answer their questions now. No time constraints nor rushing them off to a dying world, this time!

In the hospital's lobby are several party tables set out with miscellaneous baked goods: croissants, cookies, breads, cake slices, as well as tea and coffee to accompany them - or hot chocolate, for those who are opposed to the other offerings.

Outside the hospital, spring is sprung, it is warm and comfortable. Flowers have bloomed, and everything is in a sharp contrast to Aphaia—there is life within the bubble, and even the myriad wildlife seems to be basking in the glow of it all. Almost as if a celebration of that life itself.

Bees are buzzing, birds are—warking?

⏵ Birds of a Feather ⏴

Etraya has always had its interesting assortment of critters, but there seems to be a particularly colorful array of birds wandering around. Those familiar would know they are named Chocobos, those less so familiar, well, these are some strange looking ostriches, or whatever large bipedal bird equivalent fits. While the birds all seem to be of the same species, there are certainly some variety in their features. Some with friendlier faces and others looking a bit more eagle-like.

They are not particularly congregated in any one spot within Etraya, seeming to stick to groups, while others don't, yet even some are accompanied by newly hatched chicks. The observant might be quick to notice that their colors dictate some level of behavior, or even where their little groups mingle:

Colors	Behavior and habitat
Yellow	Can be found just about anywhere in Etraya, they don't necessarily stick to self-made groups, and typically are more likely to be friendly to people. However, if they are in the company of a newly hatched chick, they can become wary, though easily won over with some greens.
Green	These Chocobos are mostly found in grassy or woodsy areas, almost always in pairs, and sometimes found in the trees themselves. They are more wary than their yellow brethren, though if they see someone struggling or in danger, they are quick to offer assistance in what way they can. Doting like motherhens.
Blue	Most often found by bodies of water, these Chocobo seem content to keep to themselves. Three to a group, they are not so easy to approach without being noticed. Their skill and love of water is clear, however, and it's not unusual to find them flapping about or swimming. Though they may flee to the water if you spook them.
Brown	The most skiddish of the Chocobo, they can be found throughout Etraya, though further away from anything occupied by people. They stick to groups of four, though they have a clear leader who sports blue and green feathers, but seemingly is not of the other two types. Should they catch sight or sound of someone approaching they are like to run off, or they might attempt to defend themselves.
Red	There seems to be only one of these running around. Highly aggressive to anyone who dares to approach it. Best to avoid it. Very likely to hurl comet-like balls of fire your way. Untamable.

The birds all favor these strange cabbage looking plants that can be found out and about in the wilds of Etraya. Some proving a little overeager in their voracity to eat the leafy greens. One should be careful, with those large beaks of theirs.

⏵ Gift Hunt ⏴

It isn't only the birds that have shown up out of nowhere. Small to medium sized boxes, wrapped as if they should be under a tree, and maybe not hidden in a tree, have also appeared. For whatever reason (possibly the same reason eggs were given out over winter) there seems to be gifts hidden all over Etraya! Some in more difficult to find locations (in trees, on top of a roof, on snake island), while others look as though whoever "hid" it gave up halfway through and simply dropped it on the ground and put a leaf over it.

For those who need a little extra help, well, certainly your fellow Etrayans could lend a hand, however there are also perfectly capable birds about for those still left wanting. Certainly that blue chocobo could assist with crossing the river to obtain that perfectly balanced gift on a rock! Or what about that green chocobo roosting in a tree not too far from that gift stuck in the branches because it has entirely too many ribbons?

With that said, there might also be some dangers in trying to take one of the myriad gifts from a chocobo's nest, especially if there's a chick presently sleeping next to it. Perhaps befriending them would be a good idea first, besides, isn't friendship with a big bird the truest gift of all?

On the tag of each and every gift box says the same thing:

To: You
Love: 💋

Each gift has a random assortment within. Some contain candy, others contain alcohol, make-up...maybe even a pair of socks, very perfunctory gifts with very little thought or feeling put into them. However, there is at least one gift that is personally relevant to each character in Etraya. This item will be the equivalent of a 5 point AC reward, and does not have to be found by the person it is intended for.

What better way to break the ice than to give someone their gift which you opened!

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Welcome to Etraya newcomers and happy spring to everyone!

It appears that someone is trying to correct her previous mistake of handing out eggs during the winter holidays, and now there's a hunt for gifts accompanied by a bunch of lovely birds to help out!

Some notes in regard to Chocobos:

-Each color can be tamed except for the red one, he's a free spirit. Should someone wish to harm or attack this chocobo, let us mods know. There is only one of him, after all.

-The others will just take various amounts of work to win over, however, but they are loving and cute companions for those who are willing to put in the effort! And who knows, maybe more colors could arise with time and patience...

-Feel free to pull from all the designs of chocobos throughout the Final Fantasy series. If you fancy FFXII's, for example, there are some that look like that. Variety is the spice of life!

Concerning the personal item, be sure to plot out and get permission when finding someone else's item. This is meant to encourage possible new CR and mingling, but the choice of the item should ultimately be within the hands of the player who is receiving it.

If you are uncertain if your item is appropriate for the reward cost, feel free to ask here!

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⏴

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No, not at all.

[That's what she starts with, anyway. She regards him curiously. He's extremely tall and green, it's hard not to stare. But Claudia doesn't ask about it, not right away.]

Aphaia... that place was dying. I saw someone vanish in front of me for having a low "score". That's what I meant.

[Laura looks a little self-conscious as she steps back, so that Maria can fully look at her hard work. A nod follows as she wipes some chalk dust off on her jeans.]

... Do you like it?

[It's strange, but she's never worried about this kind of thing... ever.

She just hopes she had done a good job.]

[Pragmatism does make conducting business a breeze. Trading skills and information, acquiring resources for his work, it makes life efficient. He brings his hands into his lap and folds them over, denoting that absent-minded gesture the other made but saying nothing.]

Then perhaps you might know whether there is anybody worth watching?

[Is anybody in their community predisposed to violence that is entirely unproductive? Is there anybody who needs to be controlled? Is there anybody who has been an unruly little shit?]

[Laura closes her book, keeping one finger tucked between the pages to keep her place. She'd already read the first few chapters with Accelerator, but — the idea of books and the way people write words that effect people has captivated her into rereading. Assessing him with a stoic expression, she gives a nod.]

I am Laura.

Does someone need me?

[... She hadn't considered that people would talk about her amongst each other.]

( posh and refined, he immediately caught inara's attention. harold's manner of dress from down to his shoes all the way to his top hat truly set a proper mood, one that drew her right back to him. he was a friendly face in a sea of confusion and uncertainty and while they had failed in finding the flash drive, that was in the past. at least that was the vibe inara got when it came to this place—

one mission after the other. perhaps she was wrong but eventually she would learn the true inner workings. )

Observant as always Harold, good to see you again.

( and much like his own polite tone, she was equally respectable with no indications of anything more than wanting to be his friend. with a soft smile she looked up at his hat. )

Did you happen to find that here out of sheer good luck, or how did you manage to find something so posh?

[Suppressed anger. Smothered rage. Crane understands both emotions: he is accustomed to swallowing them down his throat and stomping them out of his patients. He is almost insulted at the attempt to hide them from his gaze. But they only recently met so this young man has been given no opportunity to learn.

His own emotional control is flawless. He hums to himself, offers a gentle raising of the brow and nothing more.]

It's been on my mind since I became aware of seasons as a concept.

[Human behaviour is equally repetative. But perhaps he is speaking too deeply about a subject not everybody is willing or able to understand.]

I've always been too willing to indulge my mind when it comes to thinking about such things.

( her look of apology is immediately met by a soft smile from inara and although she's disappointed by the bird leaving, all she could do was hope it lingered around.

immediately upon her question, she rose up from the rock she was seated on and began to walk over towards maria— a soft saunter in her step as her dress flowed from behind her. in this time she observed the other women, noticing all the little details about her immediately. )

It's quite alright, they seem rather flighty anyways. I did actually, I was curious to see what was in the gift. Have you had any luck getting any?

[ yeah, he's throwing an oversized bird through the window, watch out and don't get squished! ]

[ shadow could find them easily, the only caveat is that he doesn't know that he has to wait for knife to take that form. if they take too long and shadow doesn't find them on the third day, they should pray shadow doesn't find them at all. ]

Insufferable, if you wish to die so badly, I'll do it for you.

[ with as much as they speak about dying, then shadow can put them out of their misery. ]

[ each one thrown in his direction are easily dealt with, one fizzes out once shadow hits it hard with the back of his heel, another is grabbed with one hand to snap it in half that the energy phases out and another he grabs just to siphon into his body with ease as he closes the distance on the other.

it's when he disappears and returns for the punch, shadow's senses are sharp, and he leans back dodging the swipe only to grab the other's wrist with his hand so that they both go rolling onto the ground. he doesn't let go at all, when he feels the ground on his back, and then he has the other on his back... the rolling only subsides once he has the other hedgehog against the ground in place.

drips of blood fall from his chest onto the other. ]

You.

[ a fan favorite everyone, the only word shadow tends to call anyone, but it doesn't hold the tone of him being slighted. there's something else to those words.

his eyes meet with theirs, he notes the length of the bird's talons that scratched along his face appears to be deep, but it should heal. ]

We have business.

[ he's old and doesn't know how to use it, but will he say that? no, instead he stares at the other as though he's being an annoyance. even if shadow asked him a question, he didn't expect him to be so bad at answer a simple question. all he had to do was explain what blond hair, blue eyed girls he's seen along the way.

unfortunately, he is using what's been given to him.

scott crossed his path for a reason. ]

Then what?

[ hypothetically if that earpiece fails, then what does he do next, what is available to him afterwards? ]

Tell me who you've seen.

[ he is touching at the earpiece showing that he'll use it. ]

( all she could do to his comment was tilt her head to the side as her wide eyes observed him quietly. she had no true opinions or thoughts on him just yet, far beyond what she saw and took from the time they danced together. whatever he had lurking in his mind was his to keep—

but there was always a strange energy or vibe to him. she wasn't sure what to make of it. )

To keep us placated? This place has us proving our worlds are worthy of being saved and yet I have yet to see a prison or a detainment center for when the 'guests' step out of line. Makes you wonder....

( she wasn't fully aware of it yet, but good and bad were truly just loose terms here. )

[they roll their eyes and look over their shoulder back at him.] Talkin' about the odds doesn't mean I wanna play them, you know! I'm in no hurry to croak, okay?

[Though she had promised not to interfere with Heather, it certainly seems as though she doesn't consider Heather approaching her to be violating that promise.]

I have no reason to violate Aurora's trust.

[She remembers Vincent's warning. It pains her to keep things from Alessa. But she doesn't plan on speaking her thoughts on the situation.]

Are the worlds we're sent to all as bleak as Aphaia?

[aAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA--]

D'AH-!! [uncannydodge.jpg

their boots skid on the tiled floor as they catch themselves with their fingers all Naruto-style, watching the poor, wretched creature struggle and flail for purchase.

This rude motherfucker wants to KILL me!

biting back on barking out some expletives out the window, Knife growls, grabbing up their junk and beating a hasty path down one of the corridors further into the hospital. either they find a birdless exit or they hole up somewhere Jurassic Park-style. if that little red-and-black punk wants to wrestle with these critters, that's on him! Knife's OUTTIE.]

[blink.

oh. right.

...fuckin'...what was it again?]

...Pending. [beat. nod.] Hi.

[this is a normal name to have. it's way better than when Knife spent a year or so pretending to be a kid named Pocket. upgrade, even!]

The red ones are particularly dangerous?

[She can't imagine why, but she believes him.]

What makes them so difficult to approach?

[So she knows what to avoid. She does watch the brown chocobos with interest.]

They respond to treats? I know horses are rather fond of apples.

( it was a complicated thing being a teenager and full of rage— more so for someone like heather who had gone through what seemed like multiple lifetimes of anguish, pain and suffering. her distance was nothing against maria, simply a time of rumination and reflection for the young girl, still debating on what she was going to do about claudia.

today, naturally, she had been stalking the woman but for the first time in a while she found herself finally distracted from her woes. it felt normal again to just be next to maria, looking for something as simple as a gift. )

They really had to stick it high up in a tree didn't they?

( she meant aurora mostly, but she was no longer speaking poorly of her(?) these days. )

Alright you distract the bird using some of those greens. I think I saw them nibbling on it a bit.

( arrivals typically come around the same time of the month, and they usually arrive all at the same time - which means it's easy for damian to track down when people have arrived and to make his way to the hospital to look for familiar faces. with grayson now absent, his job has become significantly more important than it had before: whereas the responsibility for greeting others had typically fallen onto his eldest sibling, he's now gone.

so it falls onto robin.

robin, who lingers in dark corners covered with his cloak, watching as others walk through hallways, trying to get their bearings in this new universe. and it's during this that he observes someone else watching others. robin has situated himself in the cafeteria, on top of one of the higher storage shelves, hidden in the shadows enough that most wouldn't notice his presence.

and as the man watches people exit and enter, robin watches him, eyes narrowed under starlite lenses. )

[A very annoying bird. It's lucky it's a bird and not a person, because his patience is being tested. Accelerator watches the chocobo sit down on the scarves, sighing heavily, and takes several steps backwards so it can't reach the food. If it wants to eat it's going to have to get up.]

I see.

[There is, at the very least, a gentleness to her as she speaks, even though she's still off. She's also not wearing any shoes with her formal dress. It makes her stand out.]

Yes, I'm new here. Aurora recruited me while the situation in Aphaia was unfolding. Were you present for that situation?

[Despite her young age, it's clear Claudia doesn't see Laura as someone who is helpless.]

[ He gives Jason a look. He told him Joker was dead. He told him Joker had gassed him before his coming to Etraya. No more victims - he'd believed that too, naively. But there were more victims. There'd always be more.

That's what I thought, he nearly says. But he doesn't say anything at all. ]

[ it is an annoying bird, especially as shadow watches accelerator struggle to get the creature to move. it does wark at the food, wanting to be fed, but since the other seems unwilling, it's when the hedgehog looks at the other take a few steps back.

the creature pushes itself up, turning around to stare at the scarf, but takes a wary step forward. ]

...

[ shadow looks to accelerator and then to the two scarves. he doesn't move at all because the chocobo actually looks in his direction to see if he even attempted to. it's almost like the bird doesn't trust that they're both here at once...

...

but the food? ]

[ what a moron.

the hedgehog crawls back through the window, jumping down onto the ground with the unconscious chocobo that lays there. it doesn't move at all, but it's still breathing, and with it still alive is shadow closing the distance to question his next choice of action. if they can get this chocobo to tell the others to leave, it might be smooth sailing but that eccentric orc has disappeared.

it's fine, even with them gone, the hedgehog is already looking to see if they had dropped that ball of leafy greens. needed that. ]

Only fools would subject themselves to the unfortunate odds.

[ and shadow only plays to win if that wasn't obvious, but they won't keep the other from leaving. this is progress in a way if there's anything that can be found within those robots, he'll be able to learn if antigone is capable of doing so. ]

Three days.

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APRIL MINGLE

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hospital, wildcardish.

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