#◈ ISOLA EVENT / SHORE.

[bxsiliisk]

@kleinstar

The sky is blue and the ocean is so clear that he can see the small sea creatures swimming about. His toes are buried in the wet sand and his buttoned up shirt is currently unbuttoned. He's letting the breeze dance around him.

"mmmm, I do smell a storm coming." He alerts Eiden after a moment. "We should start looking for a place for cover."

[daxned]

@bimeval

No words, just a little girl sighing. Whether it's out of frustration or annoyance is unknown. She didn't MEAN to pick a destination actually. It all happened by accident when she nearly dropped her phone and she wanted to prevent it from happening.

The Sapling rubs its small body against Dam-bi's leg. The child scoops it up into her arms and looks around. Frustration and annoyance, whatever overwhelming feeling she has does simmer down when she looks into the crystal clear waters.

...

"Let's go." Though, at the corner of her eyes, she spots a smoke not too far from where she is.

Of course, Dam-bi has to go and investigate. There's a familiar presence there.

[isolaradiale]

This is an event rerun. For more information on how to participate, please check our EVENT RERUN GUIDE! If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask!

(full size comic image can be found here!)                                          ☆               ☆                ☆

“And… that should do it.” Caelum sighed, punctuating his words with a few taps of the keyboard and putting his drink back down on the desk.

“Look this over for me?” “Do I look like Bellatrix to you? You think I can just read code with my own eyeballs and say whether this should work or not?” “I wouldn’t sell yourself short.” He answered with a wry smile. A nice way of saying Aspidiske wasn’t getting out of this one, she regrettably realized. Moving from her spot with a groan, she propped her elbows against the back of the old man’s desk chair with a bored expression.

“Yeah yeah, looks great--Hold it. This isn’t even the same thing you were typing twenty minutes ago.” “Ah, very good! See, I knew you were capable of reading it with your eyeballs, as you said.”

“You think you’re funny don’t you, Grandpa.”

Gritting her teeth to block out the sound of a hearty laugh, she scrolled through each line, reaching a couple times to tap something on the keyboard in front of him.

“...What’s that line there.” “A choice bank.” “What for?” “I thought it might be courteous to allow them to decide where they want to go.” “Why.” “Well, if people choose an environment they like, they’re more apt to explore it, yes? Why choose someone who isn’t equipped to handle it?” “Because it’s fun watching them squirm, that’s why. I’m changing this.” “Hey--” “Oh nooo, I’m gonna hit Run! Ohhh nooo!” “Now see here, I--”

The next sequence of events all passed within seconds. Caelum’s fingers hit ‘undo’, Aspidiske moved to push his hand away with her own and deployed the RUN button with the other. Both collided with the glass on the table, knocking its mostly full contents onto the desk. A mixture of ice and sweet liquid flooded between the keys and into the cracks of the dashboard as Aspidiske pulled her companion backward sharply, saving him the sting of electric shock. The monitor split into several bright, jarring colors before attempting to pull itself back together, and numbers and symbols jumped from place to place before everything went blank for a few agonizing seconds. Both exhaled when the monitor whirred back to life, with the following prompt flickering and glitching across the screen.

                                        [ OPERATION S.H.O.R.E ]                                             [ STATUS: ACTIVE]

Not too long after that ordeal, the click of the intercom and a long, disappointed sigh cut the silence. The deadly even voice of Pleiades spoke into the room. “You two. In my office. Now.”

                                            ☆               ☆                ☆ Your phones switch on by themselves; the cafe televisions turn on, the daily news changes, your phone calls all display the same message over any visual media they can. But the person who appears in the broadcast is an elderly man, sitting at a table in a semi-professional manner, and a smaller woman behind him cackling.

“Hello! Hello, good evening, everyone. This is the first time we’ve met like this, ah? It’s good to see you on a personal level--” “As personal as a giant broadcast can be.” “...Ahem. You can call me Dr. Caelum. Behind me is Aspidiske.” “Don’t drag me into this, old man.” “I’m here to report that there are several islands off the coast of Spirale that have recently cleared from the mist. Given what happened a couple months ago when a mysterious object appeared, we’re unsure if the GPU has a hand in this or not. I’ll be frank with you, my friends, there aren’t enough of us to explore the islands ourselves. That’s where you all come in, I hope!” “Not like you all have that much of a choice, after all. Cooperation is key, or something, something...” “On your devices, I’ve sent something of a ticket for your island excursions. There are four that we’ve monitored in total, so you have the option of being transported to any one of those. Once we’ve collected enough information on the islands, we’ll bring you right back, safe and sound. We’ll be here, monitoring your progress as--”

From off-camera, something seems to spark and pop menacingly, along with a hissing noise that makes the old man lose a bit of color.

“...Well, I trust you’ll do fine! If you’ll excuse me.”

He grabs his cane, and with a bit of effort, Caelum rises from his chair. Aspidiske takes the seat in front of the camera.

“Uh, guess that’s one way to get the job don-”

The monitors cut the broadcast abruptly, and on your devices, a prompt appears.

[ Welcome to Operation SHORE: Surviving Hazards Of Relaxing Escapes! Please choose your island destination: ]

Haugst Isle

Resources: Plentiful (manufactured)

Shelter: Provided

Danger rating: High

Tags: Monsters, Prison, Laboratory

Nommin Isle

Resources: Plentiful (natural)

Shelter: None

Danger rating: Low

Tags: Tropical, Deserted, Beautiful

Foss Isle

Resources: Plentiful (natural)

Shelter: Minimal (caves)

Danger rating: Moderate

Tags: Volcano, Dinosaurs, Jungle

Volaat Isle

Resources: Moderate-Low (luxury)

Shelter: Moderate (abandoned ships)

Danger rating: Low

Tags: Sunken ships, Storms, Small

(Detailed descriptions of each island can be found Here!)

Upon choosing your destination, your phone screen will glitch out for a few seconds, and you’ll suddenly and instantly vanish from your place in Spirale. As soon as you disappear, you reappear on the island you chose (or perhaps a different island than what you picked altogether) with your island-issued cell phone as your only belonging.

                                           ☆               ☆                ☆ 

So, what’s happened?

Your characters have suddenly appeared on one of the mystery islands outside of Spirale, and must survive and thrive on the island they’ve chosen/landed on. This includes things like finding food and water, making shelter, and fending off the elements and creatures that you encounter during your extended stays.

Am I limited to one island?

Nope! Due to the system shorting and glitching out on occasion, it’s entirely possible for your character to wind up on a completely different island in the blink of an eye. It’s also possible to build some kind of raft or ship and sail to one of the other islands! (If you know how to sail and the weather is kind to you…)

You can also use means like flying, freezing a bridge, riding a dolphin, or whatever your powers would allow you to do to get from one island to the other.

HOWEVER if you sail too far away from the islands, you’ll run into the mists that usually surround Spirale, and you’ll succumb to the safe effects they have under normal circumstances and sail right into Davy Jones’ Locker… (...and die.)

How do I get back to Spirale?

It’s impossible to get from the islands to Spirale by any means of transport (sailing, flying, teleporting, etc.)

However, if you’ve met a grisly end and died on one of the islands, you’ll respawn in Spirale, and won’t be able to return to the islands.

Do our phones work?

They sure do! You can even still use the internet on them, if you’ve met the rank requirement to get it. They charge with solar power and are waterproof, but they won’t survive being smashed or broken, so don’t do anything reckless with them!

Do I have to go to an island to participate in the event?

Not necessarily. As long as you have a thread or drabble that’s related to the event, that will count toward participation. (For example, if your character in Spirale City were to make a phone call to another character stuck on one of the islands, that would count.)

Do I have to explore and survive and put my muse in danger?

Not at all! This event is designed to be versatile; you can take the opportunity to build from the ground up and bond with your friends (and enemies?) and have a laid-back vibe if you want. You can have a dangerous expedition to find resources and shelter with peril at every corner, too. You can even ignore the survival aspect and finally have that cool one-on-one duel with your rival atop a rocky cliff during a lightning storm where no one will interfere!

You can help or hinder anyone who arrives on the island and make new friends or enemies. You can learn to fish, hunt or forage for food. You can play in the ocean or run for your life. It’s up to how you want to play the event!

Do drabbles count?

Yup! A drabble of 500+ words will get you credit for this event.

Is there an event reward for this one?

The reward is the friendships you made along the way… and maybe a cool sea shell.

How long will the event run?

This event will run until Friday, June 9th, at 11:59:59 pm EST!

[amoirsetpacis]

★ --;; Oh. This is. Definitely not where Vash wants to be right now.

He's not sure what caused the glitch, why he's suddenly here instead of back on Nommin where he was supposed to be; all he knows is that there's rain pouring down in sheets, soaking him through down to the bone and plastering his hair against his forehead, the nape of his neck. A pleasant cool-down from the summer sun this is definitely not.

It's through the downpour that he can see some huge... building? not far off, all grey concrete blending in to the rain, only illuminated by a distant flash of lightening. There's a lot of concrete everywhere, it looks like, rubble from who-knows-what littering the underbrush. And it's as a sound he cannot name rumbles in the wake of thunder that Vash realizes he is alone when he very much was not just a few moments ago.

Vash is alone with six bullets and something very much not human sounding in the not-so-far-off distance.

He'll take his chances with whatever the building is.

The door is heavy, made out of a metal he doesn't know, and it takes a good bit of his own strength to pry the thing open. It closes behind him with a much too loud clang, echoing through hallways damp enough that they're very little of a difference from the weather outside.

"Man," he sighs through his teeth, cringing as the sound continues to echo. "This probably ain't the place for bein' so loud, either..."

@deathpacito

[cladinivcry]

@elfcast

"Am I glad to have run into you, Marci." Truly, but while they're happy to have, they're also a tad bit concerned. They don't show it in the way where they're hovering over Marcille, but they glance over the half elf, seeing if she were injured or not.

Even if she were, she'd heal herself right away wouldn't she?

"How long have you been on this island?" This time though, reaching over Indigo grabs Marcille's hand and pulls her into a room a little in urgency. Marcille probably heard it too. The sound of footsteps echoing down the hallway a little distant away.

[apexquartz]

"So those are dinosaurs?"

She's pointing to a herd of long-necked behemoths peacefully demolishing a forest's worth of trees.

"You're telling me Earth used to be full of these monsters, but then they replaced them with worse animals? Whose idea was that?!"

[bigshot]

Even on a island as beautiful as the one the Stars have centered their latest experimentation around, the jungle can be foreboding. Thick foliage blots out much of the sun and filters through treetops to paint everything a rich green, the occasional ocean breeze rustling brush and trees as though some wild animal lay in wait just out of sight. As far as the eye can see, save for the direction of the beach, there's only more greenery.

A flock of tropical birds suddenly takes flight from somewhere far above, scattering leaves and twigs, startled by something still unseen. A moment of dead silence follows, the jungle itself seemingly holding its breath as though waiting for something to happen.

The only sound that remains is that same rustling and the distant churn of the ocean's waves against sandy shores.

Abruptly, something drops from a tree to the forest floor with a thud- and it's just a coconut...

... followed by a very small man.

"H EL L O [[Client Name]]!!!!!!!"

"WE'>VE BEN TRYING TO [[Reaching Out To You]] CO NCERN1NG YOUR VEHICICLE''S [[Extended Warranty]] !!!!! !!! !! "

[inheirit]

⠀⠀⠀ON ⠀⠀a technical level, this should be considered a success. The island is beautiful, any threats seem to be as practically nonexistent as her phone promised, and she's finished a shelter that's structurally sound. With perfect timing, too, as those clouds look a bit stormy on the deep-blue horizon. If this were a wilderness test, she'd pass with flying colors. And yet, there was still one thing she couldn't possibly overlook...

⠀⠀⠀❛ ⠀... This shelter is hideous. I can't let anyone see that I live here, even temporarily...⠀ ❜⠀

[anghexescu]

@hollowfaith

Text: Aurelius I wanted to speak to you, but hadn't had the chance after the ball.

Text: Are you by chance on one of those other islands?

Text: Are you safe?

[wldrose]

@directorowo

"....Is this some kind of joke?" She's a little annoyed, mainly because she already looks the part, right? The eyepatch and all. OF COURSE she's glitched to the shipwreck. "Tch, all I'll need is the captain's coat or something." Whatever.

Once she's climbed on the ship, she's checking out ahead, seeing if she can spot anything or anyone coming their way. "The coast is clear. No one's around but us." For now at least. "Owo..." When she turns, she notices the other digging in the sand...looking for something maybe? "Th'hell are you doing?"

[eiternal]

🗲 "Is food truly that much of a concern?" Ei didn't require nourishment, but she still liked to eat. And it seemed that while Miko and herself had ended up on Volaat Island, they weren't the only ones. They'd found a place where others were aggregating, and food seemed to be one of their biggest concerns.

The Archon raised a hand towards a nearby bed of rocks, where she was certainly a number of edible critters had gathered. A lightning bolt fell from the sky onto those rocks, drawing to the surface, and cooking, plenty of crabs. "Will this suffice?"

[inkyara]

Sou spent hours a day scrounging up sticks and bark, snapping vines and tying his would-be lumber together. He'd hoped to find something special by following a river bank. He followed the sounds of rushing water to that of a waterfall, seeking shade from the sun's rays on his skin. Great dangers lured fools in with beauties like this sight, and he wasn't alone. He wrapped his slender arms around himself and his splendid inventory protectively, but that stature... ... ... how familiar, and what a small world.

"Ms. Reyes... ... ...?" He kicked a pebble with his sand encrusted shoe, "I'm not intruding, am I? It's odd running into you in such serene places." His languo hair stood up in the slight breeze, clearer to see without his usual sleeves. Of all things, he shivered despite the heat.

@cladinivcry liked for a starter!

[daxned]

@eusyram

Dam-bi leans forward to get a better look at the photo shared on Mary Sue's phone. Ah, this is someone she recognizes! "You know Eiden." She isn't surprised. Eiden was someone that got along with just about anyone he met.

"Have you met him in any of the islands or is this your first island." Dam-bi moves away from the lady and approaches the giant shipwreck. She's seen plenty of boats back home, but nothing like this.

[originskey]

Sure, he could start hacking away at this palm tree for some lumber and dull his sword, or...

[ Grave! ]

He could summon razor-sharp stones underneath the tree, uprooting it altogether and letting it fall over using its own weight...

Battle magic had its practical uses, too!

[amoirsetpacis]

★ --;; Since Wolfwood had shown up on the island, since the air between them had been cleared, that old guilt that had long ago settled on Vash's shoulders about exactly what the two of them were, what they could be, whether or not Vash deserved to even hold something so precious beneath his ribs, had long since been done away with. It had been easily cast aside with lopsided smiles and gentle words and loving hands, by routines that had become old hat having a new and beautiful light draped across them with brilliant, soft warmth.

That's not to say it can't be replaced with other forms of guilt, needling and insidious and wrapping their tendrils slowly around those bright moments until it becomes too suffocating to ignore.

Vash hasn't been sleeping. At least, not in the way he had been as of late-- soft and lazy and slow to rise, nerves and thoughts sluggish like warm honey. Instead he's back to those long nights spent staring at the ceiling, at the window, woken up by whatever stray sound might wander a bit too close.

He's jumpy, and that makes Nick visibly worried about him, and that makes Vash feel awful. Some sort of horrible ouroboros- a cycle Vash knows he has to be the one to pull himself out of in the end, just like he's done so many times before, if this guilt is ever to dissipate.

So when the text message comes through about what is ostensibly an island vacation, Vash snatches up the opportunity like it's his own golden ticket. Something to physically separate the both of them from this awful cloud of worry that's been hovering overhead.

He's already got the goods secured before he even goes to ask.

"Nick," he says, plopping down next to him and curling into his side, "You still haven't seen the ocean, right?"

@punisheye

[cladinivcry]

@enchaint

"If you look at it at a different angle, this is like a vacation isn't it?" Did Indigo just make beach lounging chair with woods, vines, and leaves? They're just relaxing under the sun. "You should join. I made an extra. I don't think the storm is gonna hit yet, so we got time to just relax and process everything."