Welcome to the Character Development Threads! These shared story exercises allow you to develop your characters in a setting shared by other authors and their characters. No sign-up is necessary; simply look over the last few pages and hop on in. If you need questions answered or a recap, head over to our discussion thread
and ask; we’re happy to help. There's also a trope page (with location descriptions and other info).
Archipelago is semi-casual — no violence on the central island, but the rest are fair game. Other islands are built on-the-fly by the tropers whose visiting them, but you should probably grab a few others before having your characters head off — there's not much point wandering an island alone, since this is supposed to develop characters by bouncing them off one another and putting them in unusual situations. Be sure to communicate with the tropers you go with so you're on the same general page.
With thanks to, among many others, Gault, who came up with the initial idea, Nrjxll, who wrote the first draft I shameless ripped off, and the various people who contributed to the trope page location descriptions.
[[Current Time: Early Morning]
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL INTRO FOR THIS THREAD
This has made the hub island something of a designated neutral ground for various strange characters and dimensional travelers. A small cluster of buildings has sprung up near the one natural harbor and its dock: a couple of bars, a couple of casinos, several shops, and even the cheap but comfortable Pax Island Hotel. This is not a tourist trap, though, as much as amenities for the visitors that come here for various reasons. The Hotel's entrance leads out to a central square, with a shamelessly cheesy tiki bar calling itself the Big Kahuna and the Pax Island General Store being the most obvious, though not the only, services.
Inland, the island is covered in jungles that rise steeply into a central mountain, covered in ruins that don't seem to exactly match any of the local cultures. Apart from that, though, they're harmless and unrelated to the area's strangeness. The population on the island, humans of mixed origins, are quite used to the strangeness of their island, staffing the amenities and filling newcomers in but otherwise keeping to themselves.
Beyond this hub island, the archipelago grows more mysterious and dangerous. Fogs often cover the ocean, and compasses and other forms of navigation don't always work right. There are at least a half-dozen other islands at any one time, but that's all anyone can say for certain. The docks on the hub island offer numerous boats for visitors to travel to these islands, either under their own control or with the aid of a local sailor. Of course, there's always an element of risk involved with visiting these islands, because you never know quite what you'll find. One rule has proven consistent, though: any truly catastrophic event on an island tends to result in it vanishing into the fog, never to be seen again.
edited 27th Jun '14 6:59:52 PM by KillerClowns
[Near Headmaster's office]
Jackson looked at Howell and quirked an eyebrow. "If you're trying to give me puppy dog eyes, you're doing a bad job at it..."
Before he could say anything else, Duckie showed up. When Howell introduce him as his friend, he shot him a glare.
"First of," he said, "We are not friends; we just met. I was sent to bring him back to his sister. And second of all, I'm not a duck 'most of the time'. I'm a human being that got transformed. Third, I am seriously running out of time here."
[Near Harbor]
Thomas turned his attention back to the conversation, but didn't have much to add other than, "And if you see Jackson or Howell, can you check on them?"
[Town Center]
Nathan nodded; Rachel, like Joseph, were one of the few people he could still remember from what he originally dismissed as weird dream.
"Y-Yeah! Rachel! I met her a long time ago, though not in the city." he said, before asking, "Are you her sister or something?"
"And did you and Ms. Rachel get out the city ok? No trauma or injuries?" Adam asked.
George blinked. Just how many people did these two meet at that University...?
Harbor -> Town Center
Hayate nodded. "I will see what I can do." He stood up and turned in the direction of the restaurant. "I shall return shortly."
With that, he headed off.
Town Center
Selena shook her head. "No, we're just a pair of people who found each other and decided to stick together. I don't think we even look that much alike, infections aside."
To Adam, she said, "We both made it out all right, if a little spooked. Last I checked Rachel's just fine; she was with my parents last I checked, so hopefully they'll all be fine until I can figure out a way to get back. While I'm on the subject, it seems you seem to have gotten out okay as well. We both got a little nervous when you and Joe just up and vanished like that."
Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Docks Near Harbormaster's Office)]
Howell grinned up at Duckie. "See? He's friendly."
He rolled back over onto his front to face Jackson directly again, frowning in confusion. "About the second thing, isn't that what I said? And the third," he glanced over towards the beach, where his sister stood in the distance, much more visible on the open beach than he was up on the elevated dock, hiding behind the masts of the small sailboats, bobbing in the water between them, "I can see Iris right over there, and she's not melting yet. You've got plenty of time."
Howell rolled onto his back again, although this time he kept his eyes trained on Jackson, so there really wasn't much point unless his back was itching. "If you really can't wait to see me back to my sister," he said from his strange position, "then I'll tell you the small favor I'd like you to grant me. Don't tell my sister that you met me here, okay? Give me ten minutes head start, and then tell her that you saw me going into the Big Kahuna; that's a restaurant we were at earlier. That's where I'll meet her. Okay?"
Raising his head to look back up at Duckie, and despite the man having little to no investment in what was going on, he explained, "See, that way she'll be relieved to hear that I'm all right, then she'll get over her relief on the way to the restaurant and she'll be really angry when she finally shows up at the restaurant, but because it's so public and cluttered, she won't be able to throw me across the room and she'll have to hold off until we can get back to the hotel, and by that time she'll have simmered down and she can just give me a talk like someone who isn't crazy. It's foolproof!" he thrust his arms out as he said this, as though he were making a snow angel.
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Beach Near Giant Robot)]
"Better yet, tie Howell up and drag him back here." Iris said, then waved the fox goodbye. "Good luck, anyway."
She turned her eyes back to the giant robot's legs for a few seconds, and at Forsythe, who had decided to reappear. Glancing back at Thomas, she asked, "Hey, feel like checking out what's going on over there? I mean..." she offered a downcast half-smile, "there's not a whole lot to do now besides wait, is there? Oh- or," she raised an eyebrow, "were you wanting to talk more about, uh... being hopeful?"
this place needs me here
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Docks Near Harbormaster's Office)]
"Well, I'm on my way there anyway. I assume Claire 'threw' some money at you, but we still caused this mess."
Duckie reajusted his hold on the screen and took a sip from the shake. "I'm actually in a hurry, but it could take me ten minutes to get there. The screen feels a little heavy."
[Pax Island ~ Jungle]
Aseyu smiled and said, "ah, thank Suela!" She took a seat on the rock Joseph has used to sit on, holding her foot out, and said, "appreciate it. I'll buy you a new shirt, I think. Least I can do for this bit of first aid." Then she paused. "Wait... 'several tons of rubble?' If you don't mind my asking, how did that happen?" She smiled playfully. "Sounds like you've had a bit more adventure than you've let on..." then she quickly added, "but of course, if you don't want to say, I won't pry."
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Beach Near Giant Robot)]
The creature leaped gracefully from the water and began to subtly change its shape. By the time it had landed on the mech's legs, it had taken on an arachnid-like form, with only a thin, gossamer shell protecting it from the elements. It them began to climb, continuing to scan as it went, heading towards the thrusters. It seemed unperturbed by the massive heat its target was generating despite having no apparent defenses against it — or for that matter, against a prod with a sharp stick.
edited 7th Apr '14 8:00:12 PM by KillerClowns
[Pax Island ~ Jungle]
"Oh, it's no biggie, really." Joe said, eying his shirt for the part that he would miss the least. "I've got plenty of these back home anyway, although... I guess they don't all fit so well." He decided to just go for the bottom on the front of the shirt, holding it up and shrugging before biting at it with his front teeth, which were comparatively sharper—or at least pointier—than the back ones. "Eh, thil no viggie." he said, gnawing at the fabric, which was fortunately rather thin and cheap; he was able to chew a decently sized rip into the shirt. The rest could be done by hand.
He did what he could to dry off the excess saliva on the part he'd just chewed, giving Aseyu a sheepish smile and a shrug, saying, "Sorry... I, uh... didn't think you had any scissors." Using the rip as a starting point, he tore off a decently-lengthed strip of t-shirt. In fact, he tore off a little more than he had intended before managing to disconnect it completely from the shirt. Better safe than sorry...
Joseph held it up, examining it as best he could in what small level of moon and starlight that the jungle would permit.
"Yeah... about that" He mumbled, "I guess you could say I've had some adventure recently. Bit of a nightmare too, but maybe that's just what adventure is." he shrugged, "Anyway, it's not that I wouldn't tell you, it's just that it's a bit of a long story, and I don't know where to start with it really. It was pretty much all of yesterday, and... geez, yesterday kind of ended up leaking into today. I haven't been to sleep in nearly 24 hours now, though don't let it worry you, it'll have no effect on my unprofessional medical practitioner skills."
He knelt down, saying, "Kick me if I'm hurting you." before pressing the center of the shirt strip to her wound, and wrapping the ends around her foot, tightening it a bit before tying it into a simple knot. "I will say this though, it was rubble from a bank that I lost my last shirt to. I dropped it when the bank was still standing, and left it behind so I could get out before it fell to pieces." He shook his head slowly. It was hard to believe all the things that had happened to him in that past day. It felt like his brain was already trying to forget it.
this place needs me here
The future of warfare in UC.
Forsythe spent several seconds staring mutely at the creature's transformation. "I'm pretty sure that's technically impossible," she muttered.
What the Taurus was outgassing was simple superheated oxygen. From where it was coming wasn't immediately obvious, but something with sufficent technical background could probably guess since it was taking in seawater as well. The Taurus was cracking seawater into oxygen and hydrogen, and retaining the hydrogen for fuel.
Nous restons ici.
[Big Kahuna]
"I can keep you company," Kina said, "I don't really have anything else to do at the moment."
"So... anything else you wanted to talk about?"
[Ocean >> Harbor/Docks (closer to the giant robot)]
The purple yacht began slowing down, approaching an empty pier, docking against it gently.
It was medium-sized, with a variety of standard radar and communications antennas on top, darkened windows lining the three visible decks. example yacht, about the same size and design.
◊ Its running lights turned off once it arrived, only small lights illuminating the decks and a ramp leading onto the pier remained.
Once the ramp had finished extending, three people exited from the yacht, all looking about high school age.
The first was a young woman, Hisami, dressed in an extravagant costume, vagely resembling traditional Japanese attire. It had a diagonally-wrapped top, with large pants/trousers on the bottom, all made of multiple layers of ornate purple fabric, with a multitude of frills and streamers. She was about 5'2"/1.58m (about the same as Kina), and had long black wavy hair, about shoulder length. "Ahh, pretty nice evening. I'm going to check out the town, you two goofs do whatever it is you do," she said, walking briskly towards the town.
The second was a young man, Takuya, about 5'7"/1.7m, dressed in a white lab coat, with a black t-shirt on underneath, and jeans. He had wild-looking spiky black hair, and was wearing safety goggles as well. "Of course!" he said, as Hisami left. "Anything on sensors?" he said.
The third was another young man, Yuuta, the shortest of all, only about 5'/1.52m tall. He had brown hair in a ordinary parted style, and was carrying a backpack almost as large as himself, filled with a variety of strange-looking scientific gadgets. He was also holding a scanner-looking gadget, with a variety of antennas sticking out from it. "I'm detecting a large mech, and some kind of alien, possibly others as well," he said.
"Well, of course I can see the mech, sheesh," Takuya said, "did you bring the first contact kit?"
"Of course," Yuuta said, "I even have the 'Visit Earth' travel brochures."
"Excellent! Let's go see investigate the situation!" Takuya said, as the two of them walked along the beach towards the giant robot.
edited 8th Apr '14 6:31:24 PM by Sonzai
Danger: Intense gravimetric distortions nearby. Please reverse the polarity on your deflectors now.
[Near Headmaster's office]
Jackson blinked.
"...Ok." Jackson said, "I don't trust that this man will bring you there in time, considering that he practically kept you away for hours, which caused this damn search. Plus, there are several problems with your 'foolproof' plan."
He tapped his webbed foot.
"If I did go through with your plan, your sister would have even more questions. She'll wonder why I didn't just call you over and bring you to her—like I was suppose to. AND, most importantly, if we did go to the restaurant and you're not there, she'll quickly realize that I lied to her, toyed with her feelings, and, again, failed to bring her brother to her."
He glared. "All that your plan is going to do is make things worse for the both of us. Why can't you just do a SIMPLE thing and go to her and tell her 'Hey sis, I'm here, and I'm sorry I made you and everyone else worry'?"
[Near Harbor]
Thomas shrugged. "Well...I'll be very honest; I'm a sappy dude. Huge idealist. Of course, I'm aware that not everyone shares my ideals." He glanced away, giving somewhat of a sad smile, "...But...that's understandable."
Deciding to quickly change the topic, he looked back at Forsythe and the (now transformed) creature, feeling nervous.
"Y-You really want to check that out?" he asked, "Are you sure about that?"
[Town Center]
"That's good; glad Ms. Rachel's ok." Adam said, looking down. "Sorry for disappearing like that. Jackson and I were looking for Owen, and then a gem from his boot sent us here. We still don't know why."
He smiled.
"But it brought me back to my dad and brother, so I'm not too upset."
Nathan patted Adam's head, then asked, "So, did you end up here at random too?"
edited 8th Apr '14 6:38:28 PM by Masterofchaos
The future of warfare in UC.
[Harbor - Near Robot]
"Do I want to? No, not really." Forsythe replied to Thomas. "Do I have to? Probably. Unless it goes sizzle in a moment."
Nous restons ici.
[Pax Island ~ Jungle]
"Damn," Aseyu said. "And here you are thinking you're un..." she paused. "Can't be." What were the odds he'd bumped into WARD? Unlikely. But not impossible — it'd be just like them. "Never mind," she said. "Appreciate the first-aid. This'll hold, and I should be able to swim fine without it." Then she tilted her head, studying Joseph. "Y'know," she said, "there's some ruins in this old jungle I was hoping to check out. If you've developed a taste for adventure — or, dead gods, you just need a way to kill some time — we could go searching there tonight or tomorrow. I mean, between demolished banks and enigmatic doors, you're clearly tougher than you think."
[Harbor - Robot]
The creature was no more able to immediately identify the connection between the pumps and the oxygen exhaust than a modern layman would be able to identify a hammerstone on sight, and so deemed further examination necessary. There was another "technically impossible" shift in its shell, this one more subtle. Then, quite stubbornly refusing to sizzle, and managing to ignore the significant pressure working against it, it slid into the thrusters, scuttling towards the fuel cells.
edited 8th Apr '14 8:17:58 PM by KillerClowns
[Pax Island ~ Jungle]
Joseph's eyes fell to the ground, which he frowned at tiredly. After a moment, he shrugged, saying, "If following everyone else's lead and being able to run slightly faster than a slug is being tough, then sure, I guess you could call me tough."
There wasn't a whole lot of confidence behind his words, but then, Joseph didn't feel very tough. Thinking back to the 'tough' things he had done in the city just felt depressing. He didn't feel tough, he just felt lucky. Lucky enough not to be in the path of an explosion. Lucky enough to be rescued before doom descended upon him. Lucky enough to fall into the company of those that he'd met before. And he knew there were people in that city that hadn't been so lucky. So 'tough' as he. His frown deepened, and the edge of his mouth twitched a bit. Why did he think of that? Why did his mind deem it suitable for him to bear that kind of knowledge? How did it benefit him in any way?
He sighed. No wonder he was feeling so backwards.
He'd been staring at the ground for too long, and felt slightly guilty when he glanced back up at Aseyu. "Ruins sound fine by me." he said, speaking fast as though to make up for his long silence, "I mean- yeah I've been awake for a while, but I still don't feel all that tired or anything. Plus I kind of like this... area. Habitat. What's the word? Never mind." He shrugged, "I guess I could pass out at the drop of a hat still, but heck, you could probably just shake me until I wake up and I wouldn't really mind."
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Docks Near Harbormaster's Office)]
Howell dropped himself flat against the docks and heaved a large sigh, shutting his eyes for a few seconds. During that time, he pushed himself back up into a sitting position, raised his shoulders, and put a sideways fist against his chest, before finally opening his eyes again.
"Backwards." he stated, letting it hang in the air for a second before continuing, speaking in very quick succession. "Because Iris will go ballistic over this thing that is my fault but was not my intention, and I'm sure she'll blame more than just this on me. If she was your sister, maybe you'd understand. I'll be sitting in the restaurant before you can finish explaining to my sister that you saw me or someone who looked unmistakably like me stepping into the Big Kahuna but you were too far away to reach the door before it closed, which was too difficult to get open because you are a duck. She'll be happy enough just to hear that I'm okay that she won't bother asking any more questions. My plan is still foolproof, and I'm going to the restaurant ahead of Duckie, not with Duckie." as he said this, he turned his head to look up at the man, continuing with little pause, "Sorry Duckie, I'd love to help you but I've got to get to the restaurant fast and without being seen by any more talking ducks. It's a matter of life and death. Life and death. Life. Death."
Having said all that, Howell finally stopped to take a proper breath.
"So you'll help me out, won't you?" he asked, looking back at Jackson. "Also, you have really nice feathers."
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Beach, a Small Distance From Giant Robot)]
Iris's glance of interest at the colorful creature slowly became a stare of abject horror as the thing shifted and began scuttling up the robot's leg. It was still a fascinating sight, but Iris never really cared for spiders— at least not the ones that were the size of a dog and capable of scaling a large machine and... from the looks of it, disappearing somewhere inside.
"No. No no no, I've completely changed my mind." She declared, slowly turning back around to face Thomas, before shuddering. "You know, sappy sounds really interesting right now. Super interesting. God, I hope there aren't more of those in the water." She shuddered again.
A different noise then caught her attention. She glanced back in the direction of the robot and it's new stowaway, only to discover a rather large boat pulling into the harbor.
"Shit, a boat! Well that's certainly worth checking out. Let's just give the robot a wide berth, eh?"
edited 9th Aug '17 11:00:32 AM by Ryuhza
this place needs me here
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Docks Near Harbormaster's Office) heading for Robot.]
"I'm in a hurry then. So thanks for the help. Break a leg."
Duckie crouched down to come a little closer to the talking duck, "Jackson? Keep on duckin'."
Duckie headed for the beach in a brisk pace. He knew that Iris was there somewhere, and he might have to talk with her. He thought about what he would say and how he would say it. Hey, I know nothing about this Howell, never seen that lizard, Sorry for abducting your brother, we have returned him now, Just bumped into your brother, he's at the...
[Harbor (Purple Yacht)]
A single young woman could be seen on the lower deck of the yacht, not having departed with the others. She looked to be smoking a cigarette and leaning against a wall. She didn't approach or look at anyone or anything in particular, but would probably answer if one were to approach the boat. She's there if anyone (Iris or Thomas most likely) want to approach the new boat, as the other three have left it.)
[Harbor (Near Robot)]
"Darn, well, that alien went right up the thruster from the looks of it," Takuya said as they walked close to the robot, but keeping a bit of distance. "If only we had a way to contact it, or the mech itself. It's pretty large, I wonder if any of its crew is around, unless it's autonomous, of course. Anything on sensors?"
"Lots of strange readings, but nothing specific with this passive scanner," Yuuta said. They are certainly close enough to be heard by anyone near the robot, and are available for anyone to talk to.
[Town Center, heading to the Big Kahuna]
"Nice little town they have here," Hisami said to no-one in particular. Maybe I'll check out this restaurant here first, she thought, heading towards the Big Kahuna. She's available for anyone to talk to her who is heading to or near the Big Kahuna, and she'll be there on the next post otherwise.
Danger: Intense gravimetric distortions nearby. Please reverse the polarity on your deflectors now.
Attitude is prohibited
[Nulbarak Island]
Tamara had, initially, been rather surprised by the lack of reaction to her belligerent attitude. "Uh," She said, a bit uncertainly. "No, don't worry, you won't feel anything. You'll see a bright flash, but that's all." She said, as she moved her fingers up to Layi's temples. The spell only took a second and, as Tamara had promised, Layi wouldn't feel anything. The effects were fairly dramatic, though. Suddenly the dim moonlight was more than enough to clearly see details, even in shadows. "It'll also stop your eyes from readjusting." Added Tamara. "So don't stare at anything too bright."
Afterwards, she turned to Kevin. Even though she was still upset about earlier, no-one had said anything provocative, and she wasn't confident enough to actually start a fight herself, so she resigned herself to being moody and having a bad attitude...
But before she could give Kevin the boost, Askeda spoke up, and some conflict immediately became almost inevitable. "Unrelated? Fuck you!" She said, whipping around to face her. "You've been on my case since it happened, which was hours ago. Don't act like I'm the one bringing it up." She put her hands on her hips. "You clearly think I'm an idiot - you told me 'to my face that you don't think I'm capable - and it's obvious you don't want me around, because you've been insulting me ever since. But when push comes to shove, and it's convenient for you, suddenly you're more than happy to use me? To accept my help?" She scoffed. "Since you're so fucking capable, you can just help yourself. I'm sure you'll manage." She crossed her arms. "Alternatively, you could just get off my back - permanently - and maybe apologize." She shrugged. "Then I'd gladly help you."
[Aurora Motel Room, Marla's room (Morning)]
"Spoilsport!" Said Sam, with a melodramatic frown. "Oh well," He said, with a sigh. "We were going to meet eventually, anyway..." He smirked at Azatha. "But I bet you knew that already, didn't you?" He chuckled. "Oh, and we're here because this guy" He motioned to Kunstler. "is pretty good at dice games... Oh, and also, he wanted closure, or something." He shrugged, then leaned in closer to Azatha. "I let him win, though!" He whispered. He leaned to the side on his cane and grinned at her. "But I bet you knew that too, didn't you?"
Looking over at Kunstler, he continued to grin. "Why, this is only a few Terran Hours ago! Just a bit after sunrise!" He glanced out the window and briefly stopped grinning. "ish..." He added. "It all depends on how, exactly, you would define 'a bit' in regard to time... Heh heh..." He spun in place, looking all around the room, and then spread his arms wide as he stopped. "Your daughter, she's clearly been here recently. But where-oh-where could she be?"
Not entirely dead.
Big Kahuna
Kaguya was fully expecting Kina to want to leave. She was prepared to say farewell, then go back to staring out the door while waiting for someone to show up. She was completely used to one-shot conversations with people she'd probably never meet again, and as per usual for things Hayate set up this was going to be no different. Suffice to say, she was surprised when Kina decided to stick around instead.
"Um...." she started, looking down at the table for a brief moment and feeling rather awkward. After a moment or two, she looked back up at Kina. "...Thanks. I appreciate it." She sighed, before looking down at her hands and starting to fiddle with them. "Unfortunately, I'm just as lost for conversation topics as you are. I'm not that great at small talk, and practically everything I'd feel comfortable speaking about with someone I just met has already been said. Unless you want to hear about how Hayate-sama and I got here, but that story's rather boring."
She looked like she wanted to say something else. In fact, she really did want to say something else. Somehow, some part of her doubted that Kina was staying here just because she enjoyed Kaguya's company. She almost felt it just as likely she was only staying because she was a princess and didn't want to disrespect royalty. The fact that she just said she had nothing better to do didn't help matters. At the same time, though, Kina wasn't exactly a normal girl herself. They did share at least one common interest. So maybe it was just her being stupid and worrying about nothing. Still, however, that feeling was a hard one to shake.
In the end, she just sighed and fell back into silence, letting her hands fall onto her lap.
Town Center
Hayate's trip from the harbor back to the town did not take him very long. He was moving at a fairly quick pace, but a relaxed one. He was not overly concerned about Kaguya; he trusted her to do exactly what she said, and she wasn't the most outgoing of people as it was from what he knew about her. He just wanted to ensure that this trip would not take very long; it was a simple matter of making sure Kaguya was all right and whether or not Howell had gone back to the restaurant.
He slowed down when he reached the town proper, if only so he'd be more able to see the restaurant and not immediately run by it. It was this action that allowed something else to catch his eye. In this case, it was a human; a girl who appeared to be somewhere around Kaguya's age. He still had yet to introduce Kina to Kaguya, so pairing them up was the farthest thing from his mind at that moment. If anything, he was more focused on her improbably fancy outfit; from his distance it looked almost like the outfits of the Youkai Court. However, she looked a little too human to actually be a member of the Court (barring the possibility that she was a rokurokubi, a futakuchi-onna, or possibly even a bake-gitsune in a human guise) and furthermore was much too young.
His interest was piqued, but at the same time he still had a duty to fulfill. He glanced over his shoulder back in the direction he had came from; he did say that he would not be gone for long, and had every intent on keeping that promise. Of course, that begged the question of how long "long" was. Perhaps the two of them were even heading to the same place, and he could talk to her while he was going to check on Kaguya.
In the end, he couldn't resist the temptation and trotted up to her. "That is one fancy outfit you have chosen for youself," he said as soon as he was close enough.
"For what it's worth, it was pretty obvious that it wasn't your fault. You don't seem like the sort that would just ditch us," Selena said, "Also confirms my suspicions that it was more magical craziness getting in the way. Though given the difference between that city and this place," she motioned in such a manner to indicate the island as a whole, "I imagine it was probably benevolent that time. Got you and Joe out of there before any more shit hit the fan."
Then, back to Nathan. "'Random' is a good way to describe it. Rachel and I were back at my parents' place to catch a breather. I decide to go outside for a little bit, just to see if the coast was clear. I open up the door and head out to find myself standing outside that building over there, for no real reason." She jerked her thumb towards the building in question.
"Which brings me to my next question: Would you have a better idea of just where this island is, in comparison to the rest of the world? I just got done asking the clerk in that fancy hotel about it, and his answer wasn't all that helpful. I was going to head back to the building I just mentioned, then I ran into you."
Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
[Aurora Motel Room, Marla's room (Morning)]
"Yeah, probably," Azatha said to Sam, answering all his questions, "and of course I have full surveillance on my fortress at all times. Not to mention I'm fairly certain you don't have the proper permit for that rift in the space-time continuum either. Those things can be hazardous to your health."
"However, I'll be nice and not cite you, if you answer a couple questions," she said, "I'm not terribly interested in interfering with this temporal field-trip here, but I would like to know: just where do you get your power from, and how much do you have? I can offer generous compensation if you'd be interested in a power transfer."
[Heading to the Big Kahuna]
"You like it?" Hisami said, stopping next to Hayate, "it was the least-dressy thing I had to wear here." She smiled and said, "and by the looks of it, either I'm overdressed, or you're underdressed." I've been on this island less than five minutes, and I've already run into a bake-gitsune, she thought, it's like I haven't even left home. Those with supernatural senses may be able to realize Hisami was quite a bit more than she appeared to be, but still seemed human physically. An interesting encounter, she thought, but I still have to find Kina, I hope she hasn't gotten herself into too much trouble out here.
"Either way, I'm Hisami Minamoto, a pleasure to meet you," she said, giving Hayate a small bow, "do you live here, or are you visiting as well?" Name in western order.
[Big Kahuna]
"Yeah, me too," Kina said, "maybe something will happen soon?"
This is awkward, she thought, I don't just want to leave her by herself, and I don't really want to be alone right now either, but this is just silly.
Kevin doesn't have anything to say at the moment, he's terrible at drama. :P
Danger: Intense gravimetric distortions nearby. Please reverse the polarity on your deflectors now.
[Harbor (Near Robot)]
Claire was already waiting at the beach when Duckie got there. It seemed like it was to late to use the screen, but she thought they should try it anyway, so she said nothing.
Duckie took another mouthful from the glass and sat in down in the sand, puching it down slightly. He walked into the sea with the screen. Sat it up close to the robot pointing towards the spidery thing. The screen lighted up and mimicked the colors and patterns the now formerly jellyfishy robot had done. Duckie walked back to Claire, picking up the glass on the way.
"So now we just wait?" he asked.
[Near Headmaster's office]
Jackson sighed. At this point, there was no way he could get through this kid. He doesn't get it...
"Fine." he said reluctantly, "I'll do it. BUT, if we head there and you're not there, you better pray I don't kick your ass when I turn back into a human, ok?"
When he mentioned his feathers, he quirked an eyebrow. "Uh...ok...? What are you trying to imply here, kid?"
[Near Robot]
Thomas looked at the boat, also curious. It was much better than checking out that...thing from the water.
"Yeah," he said, "Let's hope there's not another one of...whatever the hell that is."
[Town Center]
George tapped his chin.
"Hmmm..." George said, "Well, we weren't given much of a description either, other than the fact it's pretty much in the middle of the ocean. I doubt it's anywehre close to a city; I mean, after all, when we got here, we had to travel by boat."
edited 10th Apr '14 8:10:36 PM by Masterofchaos
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Docks Near Harbormaster's Office) —> ~ Path Back to Town (En Route to Big Kahuna)]
"Good! Good good!" Howell's eyes lit up with a smile. "It really won't be a big deal for you, so don't worry."
He got to his feet and brushed his jacket off a bit, then picked up his hat and coat, slinging the coat over his shoulder and putting the large hat back on his head for a moment, before frowning, pulling it off, and letting it hang on his back.
He looked back down at Jackson, and explained with a shrug, "I'm not trying to imply anything here except that you've got nice feathers. Compared to all the other ducks I've seen, it would be fair to describe your feathers as 'nice'. I guess you might say you were lucky that you didn't end up with mean feathers instead."
With one last glance at the beach, Howell stepped past the duck and walked down the length of the dock until he had reached proper land. A good distance away from Jackson, he turned back to face the duck, tapping his mouth thoughtfully for a few moments, before tipping his head up and calling out.
"If I'm not at the restaurant when you show up, how would you manage to kick my ass? It's a good question! Adios!"
With that, he waved, flashing a smile that was big enough to be seen clearly, even from where Jackson was standing, then he turned around and began a mad dash for the town.
Hopefully Jackson wouldn't spill the beans to his sister over one little joke. Perhaps he'd hold his tongue for fear of Iris finding out that he let Howell go in the first place. Then again, Jackson didn't seem like the most lighthearted or jovial of individuals. Better to hurry, just in case.
[Pax Island ~ Harbor (Beach Near Giant Robot)]
"All right, come on then." Iris said, beckoning Thomas to follow as she headed back up the beach, eyes moving between the yacht and the giant robot, scanning for any signs of the colorful creature that had crawled inside.
As she passed by Forsythe, she glanced at the robot, and the small crowd it had amassed. "Ooo, yikes... you'd better get that thing back in order again soon, before it becomes a tourist attraction. Or even worse, a public jungle gym." She wasn't really paying attention to the crowd itself, since none of it's members were Howell, and so she didn't quite catch the sight of what would be a very familiar cat waiting next to an unfamiliar man.
"Hey, sorry if I gave you a bit of a hard time earlier— I mean, I'm sure you're not worried about getting your feelings hurt, but..." she paused, thinking for a moment, "...well, I've just been out here for a while, and not for my skin. I guess I'm a little stressed out. But it looks like you've got plenty of your own problems here, and you don't need me to bother you with that kind of crap." She fell silent for a second. "Good luck, anyway."
edited 10th Apr '14 9:56:56 PM by Ryuhza
this place needs me here
The future of warfare in UC.
[Beach - Near Robot]
"Well..." Forsythe spent a moment searching for a curse sufficient, and then gave up and waded into the surf.
It wouldn't have been possible to get to the fuel tanks this way; the creature would have ended up only a few feet in, probably near the converter, before everything channeled down to only a few centimeters in diameter. The other, much more serious problem was that the system was designed to prevent ingestion of debris that might damage it and while active would periodically power up the magnetic ducting intended to contain drive plasma and "flush" the system, making it impossible to maintain a grip on anything unless prepared.
Forsythe meanwhile was climbing the rope to the cockpit again, with surprising dexterity considering the suit she was wearing.
Nous restons ici.
[Nulbarak Island]
Askeda didn't glare at Tamara. She didn't start shouting or waving her hands around. She didn't look shocked or drop her jaw. She simply gave Tamara a blank look, then flared her wings and said, "Fine, then. Do your thing to Kevin and let's get going."
Inwardly, she was seething. She could understand a lot of what Tamara was saying, but her conclusion was just so petty. Apologize? Sure, easy. She'd even mean it. Apologize and back off a little? After a bit of thought, Askeda had decided that, yeah, she could do that. But apologize and back off permanently? Not on her life. Basically, don't criticize me ever. Yeah, right.
Besides, she'd done enough late-night hunting and her arcanoception was pretty developed. She could "see" well enough in the dark. Granted, actual night vision would've been much more useful — particularly because of its larger range — but she could live without it. Arcanoception was omnidirectional, anyway.
[Beach - Near Robot]
"Maybe she's the pilot?" Takuya said, watching Forsythe. "I'm going to ask and see if she needs any help getting up there, you check out that flashing over there."
"Sounds good," Yuuta said, "call me if you need any equipment."
...
Takuya walked along the beach until he was as close to the rope as possible without going in the water. He then called out to Forsythe, "hey! Do you need any help up there?"
...
Yuuta walked up to Duckie and Claire, and said to Duckie, "hey, are you trying to contact that energy alien we saw earlier?"
edited 13th Apr '14 7:31:51 PM by Sonzai
Danger: Intense gravimetric distortions nearby. Please reverse the polarity on your deflectors now.
"Well, whatever it is, right now we're really just waiting."
"It made a lot of Visible light but no other electromagnetic radiation. So we're trying mimicking the light, but now when it's inside that thing," Duckie stopped the sentence there, the light could obviously not reach inside, no need to point that out.
"Anyway. Did you hear you hear that music?"
edited 13th Apr '14 11:27:25 PM by m8e
[Nulbarak Island]
"Classy," said Askeda flatly. "Having a massive, freely distributable advantage that you consider not giving to your allies because of some other stuff — completely unrelated to this, might I add — that didn't go well."
She massaged her head, trying to figure out how she should phrase this. "Look, so you weren't good against that crab earlier. So what?" She flared her wings. "This? You can do it. It works. This is good. And we all want it, and it'll help us all, so you literally have no good reason to keep it to yourself."