(no subject)

[queendaze]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 15
Where: YOUR NEW AREA??
What:

[If you weren't present for the memo, you receive a letter under your door that informs you of your eventual departure to greater pastures... so to speak. The experimental venture to seek out if it's true that labyrinths are affecting the land above it with their releases.

At some point today, your employer gives you a small crate—they'll either hand it to you in person or leave it in front of the door of your room. They, or their note, will jest, saying that, just because you'll be out of town, it doesn't mean you still don't work for them. And yet, they insist that this is a gift for you to keep. After all, it's not like your employer can tag along and sell things to an empty town. Well... In time, they say, with a laugh. If you're reading a note, there is no laugh, but they do write "lol."

As long as you aren't too distracted, you'll have plenty of time to pack your things. It's not long before everyone's mode of transportation arrives: it's a large, wooden "train" that consists of three carriages connected by oddly flexible, iron bars. There are no tracks to guide it: just two horses with very large hooves and burlap drawn along their faces. One could think that two horses wouldn't be capable of pulling such a nonsensical contraption, but here they are, having just pulled this large thing along rather smoothly to the edge of the town... across the sand, of all things, too.

Inside each car, you'll find that each "booth" has been carved meticulously from sturdy wood. The scent of woodstain is present, but weak, indicating that it's a very fresh coat. The seats are also made of wood, and look more like benches. Thankfully, with storage under your seat and overhead, you won't have to sit with anything on your lap. Better yet, you might get a window seat for you to watch the surroundings as they pass.

You, the other explorers, as well as the Scout Leader and her Scouts, all fit aboard this odd little train, and a large, heavy bell sounds right before the train is pulled into motion. It creaks as the horses tug it along effortlessly. The scenery outside your window depicts the coastline. It seems like you won't be far from it. For an hour or so, you have this lovely sight to behold as the train simply glides over the terrain.

Suddenly, everything outside the carriage is shrouded in a haze of flying dust. It feels like you're riding over rocks now. You can't even see the sun anymore, and it should still certainly be out because you haven't been on this thing THAT long. The air has immediately become thicker, too, making it a little harder to breathe. Yet, the Scouts don't seem troubled, and the horses pulling this train--bless their hearts--persevere without any trouble.

Eventually, you arrive.

The Scouts don't have any unloading to do—they're already set up, so they give you your tents and rations (cans and instant food that should last a week, unless you're a big eater,) lead you to the Base Camp area, then follow their leader down the road to their makeshift headquarters. The Scout Leader doesn't make a grandiose statement—actually, she didn't do much talking on the train either. For some reason, she's quiet, and maintaining eye contact is difficult for her today.

So... you have tents to set up, along with your own belongings and the crates you got from your boss. And, well, there's not much else to investigate unless you want to toy around with the ruins, mistaken a mirage for something you thought was real, or check out that junk pile. Or bug the Scouts.

The air is thick, and there's a slight chill in the air... ahh, at least the sky is lovely. It's a bright blue. There's not a single cloud to be seen, and not a single sun to be seen either! Nope. You don't see the sun in the sky. At all.]

((You can totally approach the Scout Leader if you want—she's being quiet for IC Reasons and not "I don't want to play her" reasons, rest assured! In fact, now that she's here with you guys, you can always address her whenever you'd like—just make a post addressing her, or ping me somewhere to let me know that you want her in your thread. She can also put you in contact with the Queen! SO, FOR THE CRATES:

Garrison: a whistle, half a dozen flares, a clipboard and pen, and a couple pairs of handcuffs... wait, is that pair fuzzy?
Bakery: the box has an apron, a pair of mitts, and several packs of "INSTANT--ADD WATER!!" cupcake mix. the rest of the box is full of sprinkles.
Library: a giant OVERDUE stamp, a blank notebook, lots of sheets of paper, some pens in a rainbow of colors. also, a blanket.
Weapons: a toolbox full of the necessities, and a knife. and a small axe. the rest of the box is full of nails of varying sizes and degrees of rust.
Flower: blank cards and envelopes, a small watering can, and the rest of the box is full of unknown/random seeds.
Boutique: did you ever want socks that match underwear? well. you got it. you get several pairs, actually. also a small sewing kit and some spools of thread.
Clniic: a basic first aid kit, a mouth mask, surgical tools, and... the rest of the box is full of random pills that supply various effects.))

Comments

[whopraysfor]

[someone hauled all his stuff with him, plus his crate, and is now having to unpack it and put it in his tent. He's also wearing a jacket, and has a shirt tied over his mouth and nose.]

Okay, next time I need an actual scarf.

[he certainly has enough stuff that maybe he should have thought about that]

[glorious]

[seems to have settled for holding a piece of cloth over his mouth]

I think they should have made scarves standard issues if they intended to bring us out here.

[whopraysfor]

Yes. I wonder if we can ask the Scouts to send back to town for some.

[glorious]

I imagine we'd need to. There doesn't seem to be much in the way of food here either.

[ninetyninelives]

[huddled in the Library blanket in the door to his tent]

This place is a wreck. Can someone help me get my eye back before I get sand in the socket?

LATER THAT DAY

[soulute]

[it should be almost evening, and yet, the sky's still very bright like it's midday. in fact, it's still completely clear, devoid of any sun, too. huh. in any case, even from the base camp, you can hear the strumming of strings. someone's playing a song.

it sounds... awful. flat notes. parts where the music suddenly falls out of tempo and rushes to pick back up, making this attempt at a song sound sloppy. notes that are clearly out of key or incorrect. let's not forget the occasional screech from a note that's too high. ow.

follow this noise to the ruined temple down the road, and inside you'll find a man, sitting atop the boulder inside, wearing a black hat and a black cloak over some plain clothing. judging by the lute in his hands, he's the source of this ruckus. but, there's one more thing... the man is transparent. you can plainly see the wall straight through him.]

Ha-ha! I do think I'm improving quite a bit. I've even attracted an audience.

[...referring to you, of course]

Re: LATER THAT DAY

[ninetyninelives]

You're practicing?

Re: LATER THAT DAY

[soulute]

Practicing? Hmm... I do suppose that I am practicing.

What about you? Are you practicing?

Re: LATER THAT DAY

[ninetyninelives]

Practicing what?

Re: LATER THAT DAY

[glorious]

[I can only imagine how you sounded before.]

Have you been playing for long?

Re: LATER THAT DAY

[soulute]

As long as I can remember... hmm, which would not be very long.

[glorious]

[...why do I have a pair of fuzzy handcuffs?]

[evervigilante]

Going to be busy later?

[glorious]

I...wasn't exactly planning on it.

[looking at all the other garrison supplies in his box]

...I'm assuming there was a mistake and that my employer didn't intend to send me these.

[ninetyninelives]

[why DO you have a pair of fuzzy handcuffs]

Um.

[glorious]

[...]

[ . . . ]

[tosses it back into the box without a word and closes it]

I may have received a package intended for...someone else.

[prismbloom]

I'm not sure how effective those will actually be...

[glorious]

I'd rather not find out.

[whopraysfor]

Whoever packed the boxes has an interesting sense of humor.

[glorious]

"Interesting" is...a word for it. I suppose.

[just going to drop those into the box and hopefully never speak of them again]

[prismbloom]

[ Instant cupcakes... well, you can't have everything, can you? ]

[ninetyninelives]

Are they really instant?

[prismbloom]

I haven't tried them myself.

[ but why not! Adding some water to the packet and-- ]

It really is instant.

[glorious]

[but do they taste good?]

[prismbloom]

[ offering him one fresh instant cupcake. it even has frosting! ]

They're not terrible. Here, if you're curious.