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⏴

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

This is a question better suited for the FAQ, since it isn't specific to the mingle itself. If you can post it over there, we'll also repost the answer just so that it can be more easily referenced for others.

As for the answer: the bots will allow themselves to be dragged around and will offer help to those who ask for it, tidying as one might request of them, however they will not move into a residence. They have other bot duties, and will eventually need to return to their power stations as well.

[ the scarf will be hanging nearby, accelerator could just yank it down and mind his business, and upon inspection he'll learn that it hasn't suffered any major damages, realistically none at all. ]

Hmph.

[ there might be a chocobo feather laying on it, but that's to be expected from when it sat down on the fabric.

the bird is causing a little temper tantrum, hopping up and down, walking loudly behind the glass doors. it hasn't begun knocking things over yet, but it'll get there.

even so, shadow will follow alongside accelerator to make sure the scarf is up to his standards. ]

No oaths. You don’t have to make promises to be kept fed. [Something passes across his face (dc: 16).] Give me just a moment.

[He walks slowly over to the birds. They watch him approach but he smells like greens and moves carefully and slow a lot like they. Must be safe then. They let him close in. He kneels down and plucks greens from the ground and offers them.

Right then and there he becomes a friend. He passes them leaves pats their beaks before he rejoins Knife.] All set to head in now?

[The birds resume eating from the ground but cast hopeful looks at him.] I’ll be back in a minute, my dears.

[Feathers are fluffed. A Calvary Captain has to keep his skills sharp.]

( there's just a slight air of annoyance on her face over his little comment about her age— it's always an annoyance for someone younger to be reminded of it, even if she was only months from being an adult after her time in etraya. still she doesn't say much, thinking about his statement before she rolled her shoulders a bit. )

Your not wrong, I just think the fall is more exciting than spring. Leaves are falling from the trees, changing colors, the weather is starting to get cooler but still warm and all the holidays are nice.

( and maybe she's just thinking about her father and how wonderful spending the holidays with him was. a bit bittersweet really. )

So how are you finding Etraya to be anyways? Not like that crazy world we all got dragged to huh?

( his question was a bit strange because really— who wanted to be responsible for a large bird and all of its needs and necessities when they had missions every month? especially like the last one that took them all out of etraya for an entire month.

but that was the blissful ignorance that came with being new, and she wasn't sure if she should be the one to burst his bubble. so she kept a hand on her hip and simply nodded. )

Yeah most of the time, though you newbies got brought onto that crazy world before here right? Well at least some were. I'm Heather by the way, at least you guys get fun birds to mess with this time.

( their scowl is met by a rather mocking face of her own— eyebrows scrunched up and her body leaned in to really get a good look at knife. they truly were like a racoon just clawing away at whatever garbage there was but unlike them, they were no where near successful in their scavenging adventure. )

No money? Excuse me, no one uses money here.

( they used points technically but she wasn't aurora and she wasn't taking them. she took payment in the form of favors or supplies instead. )

Must be new here huh? Why don't you come inside and wash your hands and I'll make you something. That way you don't look like a feral animal dumpster diving around here.

( despite having resided with a crew of individuals that could be considered heathens [especially by the shepherd], inara was quite the spiritual woman herself. she had often used her religion to guide herself in life, to remain in control when situations became difficult and tensions rose between her and her clients. now in a strange world like etraya, she turned to something to stabilize her and keep her balanced. she was truly out of her element here and far from the comforts she had come to rely on.

so eventually when she saw there was a monastery here [unaware of its connections to dimitri's world], she made her way towards it and found solace in simply sitting around in it, reading from a bible she had picked up at the library. although it wasn't her religion, it reminded her of her world and she couldn't help but indulge.

that is until she heard a sound. )

Oh? Is someone there?

( she rose up from her seat and turned to see dimitri, hand touching something that caught his attention. )

I apologize, I didn't realize anyone else would be here.

[He honestly anticipates the blame to be put on him again, hands balling up into fists, ready for a fight. It's their favorite thing to do when things go wrong and he's around. But they instead confess it was them that didn't do enough. An admittance? Whatever he had planned to say gets lost as keeps staring at the other. That really came out of their mouth.

That really pisses him off. How many times did he try to tell this idiot, to stay with her, spend whatever time he had with her. Why was he the one who had to comfort and stay with her? All that time they wasted doing what? Might have not even matter in the end, if he understands the decision of who leaves or stays has always been out their hands. What he'd do, just to have another moment with the Maria he knew....Sure, this one's Maria cared for him, but it only made him miss his even more. Now left with these unwanted thoughts and feelings that should have been meant for the one before him.]

Finally realize after it's already too late? [He didn't need to add insult to injury. He knows the other will beat themselves over it without his words, but his hatred got the better of him. What did he have to suffer for? He could say more, he wants to say more, hands shaking in rage as he tries to contain it. But he just lets out some air instead, turning away as he starts speeding off again. There is no point in insulting them further. They got their one question answered and they can wallow in the suffering of their own making.]

maybe let's not kill the angry bird at this time

it was born pissed off. i wasn't paying attention when i encountered it

( now here came an excellent and pivotal point meant to truly test heather. should she lie and scare claudia or use the truth to her advantage to mess with her? with a pensive look to heather's face, she shrugged a bit and decided to do a mixture of both. )

They don't usually send us to other worlds for these kinds of things you know? Usually they bring the bleakness here. Sometimes the food and beverages they offer us have things in them to mess with your mind you know?

( it doesn't happen as often anymore but it happened to heather once and that was enough to spook her. )

For all we know these birds could turn evil all of a sudden....

Thank you very much!! This is super helpful 😊

Thank you mods for indicating this for me! I've moved my question here for archival purposes 😊 Also a helpful answer—thanks again!

Must we go that way?

[ blaze peers down the gap between the walls. shadow's silhouette is quickly disappearing, but she's uncertain how capable this bird is of flight. it's eager, certainly, but its hesitation to jump tells her enough.

peering at the bird momentarily, she'll make up her mind. ]

If you insist.

[ with that, she'll lead the way—leaping not down, but across the gap between the buildings. then back again. she bounces back and forth between the walls like a ping pong ball, before finally coming to a stop as her feet gracefully touch the ground. then, she's looking up. to where the chocobo waits. ]

[ blaze nods at his words, but they don't exactly answer her question. ]

Yes...?

[ not exactly very forthcoming with information here. but the way blaze sees it, they're all fighting the same battle—there's no disadvantage to working together. ]

[ hmm, it seems that his even if his words can be tempered, he has such a courteous demeanour that his manners can't be taken from him completely. is that so? but blaze is more than used to this; it's hard for others to let their facade drop around a princess, and while she hasn't mentioned this... perhaps he's some kind of nobility?

more importantly, what she has to say about this: ]

Likewise. And I appreciate you holding back your excellent manners for me.

[ she's still smiling now, waving her hand a little dismissively. ]

I prefer to speak to others as equals, where possible.

The chocobo in question gives a happy "Kwe-e-eh!" and bounces a little, before sidling up in fron to Mayu and dropping a wing. That bit was entirely the bird's reaction, although Sleeper enjoyed it. There is something about the thrill of excitement, even somewhat second-hand.

"We won't let you fall. She likes the idea of company, as you can see."

[ oh, this is actually exciting for the bird who can't fly, and instead jumps to follow blaze where its talons dig into the wall to keep it from sliding down too far. it's sloppy jumps, but the bird does make it down with a jump and warble.

yaay, praise it!

looking towards blaze, the chocobo walks over with a peep, whistling as it bounces again to show that it's happy.

now she has to lead the way, where did shadow go! ]

They consider how to answer that question. "It's proprietary technology from a company in my world that calls themselves the Life Foundation. It's a containment unit."

It's their earliest coherent memories, watching the people around them from the tube, learning and developing their own identity and preferences. Their tail swishes in agitation.

"I think it might be the same one I lived in until I had to go rescue my parent from his kidnapper."

"Any powers that may or may not have originated with a radioactive spider are strictly inherited. I much prefer to bite than be bitten."

A beat.

"I could have taken one. It's the rest of the flock that made things complicated."

"Don't worry. Most people don't even know the sequels exist. They stop at the Wizard of Oz and conflate everything with the movie," the cat replies, amusement clear on their kitty features.

"They look like giant chickens. Forgive me for wondering if they taste like one, too. I won't eat anyone's pet. I'm not in the habit of eating anything I've been introduced to."

[Well, isn't that interesting?

Crane maintains a facade of stillness and calm, keeping his thoughts at a professional distance. Raising the issue immediately upon meeting would raise questions. Better he introduce it gradually into other conversations at a later date.]

It sounds like a stimulant or some kind of psychedelic.

[He pauses for a moment, thinking.]

I assume the problem is psychological?

Edited 2025-05-01 22:01 (UTC)

[ Everyone in Gotham perches on ledges, don't they? ]

Yeah, he just repeatedly walked into your hand. Hard enough to rebound. Happens to me all the time.

[ Big Bird sorta tweaks his interest, and Tim narrows his eyes at the guy. It's not that it's an odd reference; it's just one Tim hears more for something else (someone else). ]

Biiiig leap to insane, but let me know if you're going to take over a city park. Or kidnap attendees for your tea party. Or follow me around with droids like a creeper for months. Technically, that one is happening here, but that's on Aurora. Point is: I'm from Gotham. I know what insane looks like, so unless you're going to throw a costume on the bird and call him your finchman, we're okay.

[Maria doesn't have to think twice about her answer. the picture could be horribly drawn and Maria would be happy. it was just the fact that Laura wanted to draw her at all.] I love it.

Can I hug you?

[she really wants to hug Laura now but she'll ask permission before she does it.]

[They're like two freaks in a pod.]

Perhaps. But what you call a narrow perspective could be interpreted as a necessity for clarity and efficency. Working within such a rigid framework does encourage creativity and innovation.

[Pending's eyes wince. Sure, just slap a huge, red-lettered sign on me that says "NEW GUY" already! Whatever!]

If...that's allowed. [without people pitching a hissy fit over it.]

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

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APRIL MINGLE

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— Garreg Mach Monastery

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So how alike would you say Titans Jason looks/sounds to Comics Jason?

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