epidemiology | EVENT ★ MAT GATHERING

EVENT ★ MAT GATHERING

http://www.joemichael.co.nz/photography/#/luminosity/

The investigations in the sungazing log have lead to a number of discoveries, including trace amounts of solar radiation and seemingly temporary lights in the sky that match no known star charts currently in Chantes. On the 15th, Rick will announce via the verdict over the network: the sun isn’t gone.

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Those of you who actually did your job instead of screwing off (and breaking my shit! Yes, I know all about it), congrats. We've made headway on our dumbass situation.

The sun isn't gone (obviously). There are radiation levels suggesting that it's still there somewhere, but it's weirdly faint. Concerning item number one. Concerning item number two: there are lights in the sky but they're not native stars. They're red in the west in the morning, and in the east in the evening. This suggests a solar cycle that we just can't observe (with a western sunrise apparently). There are no moons visible; supposedly there should be two. Go figure.

The most interesting observations came from the storm, during which the "star" readings went off the charts, dawg. All lit up like Christmas and shit.

Hypothesis: the darkness is not because homeboy made anything "vanish with magic," but because he stuck a big "blanket" between the planet and the sky. The "stars" are likely just holes in his dumb bullshit. So let's get this solution rolling so we can get off this godforsaken rock. This is where you losers come in. I need things . . .

The mystery of the disappearing sun might be clear, but that doesn’t mean the problem’s solved. Now’s the hard part: creating something that will dispel the darkness.

Fortunately, with the right ingredients, science might be able to win the daylight back. All recruits will be encouraged to help with some good, old-fashioned teamwork and fetch quests.

SCAVENGER HUNT

The list is as follows:

Iron ore. Collecting it seems easy enough, but a dangerous serpentine creature capable of breathing electricity known as a Behir lairs nearby. If hungry, it will ambush characters and will not stop unless it succeeds or is slain.
Following the rich iron supply, characters will also find a series of winding underground caves and caverns.

Inside are items such as glowing cave mushrooms that are likely radioactive. Blue mushrooms maintain their coloring due to a rare solute in the cave water, helpful for optimizing fuel. Green mushrooms are useless and if you collect them you should feel bad.
Bat guano. Bats indigenous to the caves also seem to be affected by the contaminated cave water, however -- they’re enormous, blood-sucking, and have developed a mild venom. While one bite won’t kill anyone, the bats have numbers, ultrasonic screeches, and bad tempers.
Plutonic rocks. The source of the odd cave life, an ancient scattering of some massive meteorite resides deep inside the cave. They’ve got rich veins and chunks of crystal, the bigger the better. (We’d tell you what these space oddities are for, but we think it’d blow your minds.)
Cave Minnows. The fish inside the cave lakes are easy to spot since they’re bioluminescent, but only the small, quick ones metabolize the correct oils for this project. The large ones will simply try to drag you into a death roll the -- surprisingly deep -- waters.
Glowworms. See those lights hanging overhead? They’re not bulbs, but bundles of strange, glowing cave worms. Reaching and handling them might be tricky, and keep careful watch of them. They’ll burrow into anything, including your packs, your collected materials, or worst of all, you.
Rock salt. Delicious!
Potassium nitrate. This one is easier to find in Chantes itself: an old woman in town has a giant jar of it that she uses for pickling. Recruits may attempt to wile her out of a cup, or steal from the elderly.
Wildcard. If you don't mind volatile reactions, go ahead and science on your own. Or see anything else that might be useful? Grab it and go.

As a side-mission for the cave items, it seems the 15th is also the only day of the year that the night-blooming cereus plants are open around the cavern entrances. These flowers must be handled very delicately or they’ll wither and die, and local insects of all shapes, sizes, and aggressiveness will be drawn to them, so collectors beware. These flowers will have no bearing on the sun solution, but the goblin church will ask outgoing adventurers to bring some back with them. These items may come into play in February depending on IC actions, but otherwise they make for some pretty decorations!

And finally, a big thanks to

ricksybusiness for submitting their player plot and working with us. You go, Rick Sanchez.

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HAWKEYE!!

[Because that's how he knows her best as. He waves, as he screeches way too loudly in a cavern they should probably be more careful in, and approaches her as she sits there with her puppy.]

Are you looking for treasures too? You know, if the treasures were worms and dirt.

...? What's wrong with Hayate?

[Ah, RIP her eardrums.

The shout catches her off-guard, hands stilling as her head jerks up and towards the source of that noise. She doesn't relax until the figure approaches closer, at which point her shoulders relax back down at the sight of the familiar face (or skull, in this case) and she goes back to picking out worms.]

Hello Papyrus. Don't worry about Hayate, he's just being fussy. He doesn't like feeling all the worms in his fur.

[Cue a well-timed whine from said dog, though he does perk up a wee bit at Papyrus' familiar bony smell.]

I didn't have enough space to bring a jar for the worms, so someone else will have to collect those.

[Which is fine, the less she sees of these things the better.]

[ That moment in Riza's life when she actually relaxes at the sight of a running, screaming skeleton.

Still, Papyrus takes a seat with her on the ground, close to Hayate so he can let the small dog sniff his hand, and then proceeds to pet him.]

Oh, you need a jar? Here, I have one!

[ To which Papyrus shrugs off his backpack, and inside there's a pretty decent sized jar. ]

I can carry them for you. Are they all in his fur?

[ He sounds even a touch pitying, plucking a few of the worms off of the dog and petting him softly. ]

[Truly, the world has turned upside down when a no-skin-only-bones figure can put her at ease. But hey, she's friends with an empty suit of armor back home, surely this isn't that different.

Both the jar and the general offer of assistance come welcome, and Riza nods gratefully as he takes a seat next to her, slowly starting to deposit the worms in the jar instead of letting them crawl away.]

Thank you, Papyrus. [As for the worms:] Quite a few of them have crawled into his fur. I won't be able to collect the rest until I've gotten these out.

[What a stubborn dog.]

Well, I'll help! It probably feels gross to have worms on him. I know I'd feel gross. But I also have no skin! So they can't go anywhere on me.

[And while he's pretty disgusted at having to pick them up himself and do this... Papyrus would never turn down helping someone like this. Especially for such a cute dog.]

[Cute dog appreciates your valiant effort. But onwards in this literal deworming operation! Too bad her pet insurance doesn't cover this.

While they work, she looks over at Papyrus, curious.]

Most of the dangers in this cave can't really harm you, can they?

[Surely there must be some perks to being a skeleton.]

Huh?

[ Caves were normally pretty dangerous to everyone, weren't they? ]

I guess, if the dangers involve having skin and organs, they I woudn't get hurt!

[ So the worms, the mushrooms, and the bats are all irrelevant to him. ]

But it's not like I can't get hurt at all.

[ Especially by those Behir, which would turn him to little smiling smithereens. ]

[Smiling smithereens....Papyrus please.

Also look, she's never met a walking talking skeleton before. All the weird beings she's encountered before joining up with ALASTAIR had all been immortal or impervious to damage in many ways, for all she knows he could be exactly the same! (Except, no, he isn't at all.)]

You don't have any sort of magical properties?

[Surely there must be some that keep him....y'know, walking and talking.]

Of course I do!! So many!! Of the magical powers and properties!!!!!

I can defend myself, naturally! But I'm not invulnerable.

[That is so many exclamation points right there. But hey, they're enough to catch her interest.]

Really? What sorts of magic properties do you have?

[Spill the deets, yo.]

Well! I have plenty of different things I could show you! Bone magic! Blue magic! Skeleton magic!!

But I don't think right here and now is the time or place for it. I wouldn't want to scare, and-or overexcite Hayate.

[The blue magic she vaguely remembers hearing about, though the others are news to her. Regardless, he's right - a well-trained doggie Hayate might be, but he hasn't spent his whole life around magic. She smiles wryly.]

You're right. We should focus on collecting these worms first. [With that said:] I'd like to see this magic of yours one day, if you don't mind.

[It sounds cool, ok.]

[ Dropping several more worms into the jar, Papyrus continues: ]

Of course!! I love to educate others!! Especially in things I am already really great at! Magic is one of my many talents!!

I promise, later, I will show you whatever you want to see!

As long as it's not fire magic. I have... admittedly... not quite mastered that yet.

[Saying the words 'fire' and 'magic' are a surefire (haha) way of catching her attention. Hayate momentarily goes forgotten as Riza's head snaps up and her gaze settles on Papyrus.]

You know fire magic?

In the... broadest sense possible...

[Like he said. He's not good at. He mostly uses the stove if he has the choice, because of how bad he is at it.]

[Look, he can still do it though, and that's all she cares about it.]

Can you set things on fire then? Or can you control its movements?

... More the first thing than the second thing...

[Boy, he's made a mess before with that...]

[There's an audible pause after Papyrus speaks, the silence mostly filled by the squelching of the few remaining glowworms and the tinkle of Hayate's dog tag as he vigorously shakes his fur. Finally:]

Would you be able to teach me?

[Be her fire magic senpai. And accidentally set everyone on fire with her, nbd.]

O-Oh...

[So what's why she asked. Not only is this the type of magic he's least experienced in, but...]

I... While the Great Papyrus would love to teach you...! I don't... think I can. The only reason I can use magic is because I am magic. I'm made of it, as is every monster! It's just a part of me. I don't think I can teach a human how to do it. I know there are humans here who know magic, even though I don't know how they can use it, I know some humans are capable of it! But... unfortunately, this is not something I can help you with.

Edited 2016-01-25 03:28 (UTC)

[To say that the news isn't disappointing would be a lie, and traces of it flicker across her face before she composes herself and pulls out a small smile.]

That's alright. [And, followed up by:] Thank you for explaining why.

[Not that she fully gets it, but the fact that he'd even bothered to instead of just flat-out rejecting her request earns him brownie points. Besides, there's no time to linger on the rejection when there are far more interesting things at hand.]

Are you really made of magic though?

[And he cheers up a bit once he sees her smile back.]

What I can do, is ask the humans I know that know magic if they can teach you instead! I'll want to make sure it's okay first, before I tell you their names though, just in case! But don't worry, I won't forget!!

And yes, I am!

[Papyrus, you are way too good for this world. It's heartwarming and a little saddening at the same - she doesn't ever want to see his enthusiasm dampened or crushed in any way.]

Only if you'd like. I can find another way around it. [AKA just wander off into some secluded area and try not to accidentally set anything on fire.] It sounds like you've made many friends here though.

[ Oh, if only she knew......................... ]

I do "like"! I think magic is a wonderful thing for humans and monsters to share!! And it's fun!

I like to think I have! Although maybe not all of them know we're friends yet, making friends on the surface is a lot easier than I thought it would be!

[Shhhhh don't ever tell her. Though here's another thing she didn't catch the first time around—]

—Surface? Did you live underground before this?

Oh, uh-

[ Man, this is like the hundredth time he's given this away by accident... Not that he's keeping it a secret, but "you lived underground?" is usually followed up by "why?" which then leads to that big long story about how horrible humans were to monsters, and it never made anyone feel good. ]

Yes, I did! As did all monsters! Yep! ...Wowie, there sure were a lot of worms on this little guy!! Maybe I should take these jars out of here now, since they're all full!!

EVENT ★ MAT GATHERING

INTERLUDE

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