EVENT ★ ZETA-12 WEEKS 3 + 4

[futurologists]

ZETA-12: WEEKS 3 + 4 After making their way through the biting cold of the tundra and the forest's deadly chasm, team Audentes reaches the swamp. Once there, their squidges will begin to transform. For each choice your character has made, select one squidge evolution. Please note, you must have submitted your choice to the threads in the previous logs in order for your squidge to evolve. For those who crossed the ice, there are two options. If they succeeded, their squidge has taken on one of the following features: fluffy fur, the ability to freeze small things with their breath, or small foxlike ears. If they fell through the ice, their squidge has one of these: fins, minor hydrokinesis, or protective scales. Those who chose to walk around the ice, whether east or west, will have squidges with one of these attributes: faster speed, climbing ability, or goat-like hooves. As for week 2 choices, everyone who soothed their squidge will find them with one of the following: small wings (able to keep them about a foot off the ground at most), a calmer demeanor, or the ability to soothe fear by touch. For the grouping crew, one of these: the ability to heal small wounds on other squidges, long ape-like arms and hands (for hugging!), or a beautiful singing voice that can act as a beacon for other squidges. Squidges that were forced to cross will have one of: increased independence, clawed fingers, or sharp teeth. These evolutions may take place at a rate of your choice. Please note that apart from these changes, the squidges will not be undergoing any further physical development (size, etc) for now! THE SWAMP (WEEK 3) The swamp is damp and spooky, filled with rotting logs and large, spindly trees. The water level dips and rises, making traveling slow and difficult; at some points, there is no dry land at all, so recruits will either need to wade or find some other way to get through the murky water. Some of the fallen logs may create a series of interconnected bridges if you're nimble enough, but be wary not to put too much weight on the rotten parts of the wood. Because there are no animals on this planet, recruits won't need to worry about mosquitos or crocodiles, but still be wary of dermal vines, which continue on from the forest, as well as something lurking beneath the water: in deeper portions of the swamp, recruits may run into a gangly, humanoid creature with gnarled fingers and a body made entirely of vines and twisted roots. The creature makes no sound and does not breathe, but it moves quickly and can shoot a cloud of powerful neurotoxin out of its maw. Make your choice: You can attempt to fight the creature, but not all attacks will be effective and you risk injury to you or your squidge. Outsmarting is possible as well -- as the creature has no eyes or ears, it senses its victims through heat. Do with that what you will. Finally, you can choose to wait for someone else to do something and ride their coattails, as long as you’re okay with living with that. Please indicate your choice here. After a week, the scenery begins to shift, lightening up as trees become fewer. Welcome to the grasslands. THE GRASSLANDS (WEEK 4) As opposed to the swamps, there are few hazardous plants in the grasslands. The most dangerous are more annoying than anything else: fluffplasters, the hairs of which become sticky and eventually harden like cement if they’re disturbed. For the most parts, the grasslands are grass, grass, and grass, with little variation in appearance. In fact, it’s kind of hard to tell if you’re going the right way, or if you’ve been here before. Everything sort of looks the same. The other flora found are happygrass, which has a short-term calming effect on anyone who ingests it. On the other hand, beebulbs, long, spear-like stalks whose bulbs contain a delicious liquid which invigorates the drinker upon ingestion. Too much either way can lead to laziness or hyperactivity. A geared up squidge is a happy squidge most of the time, but there’s also the possibility of heightened anxiety. The weather is pleasant for most of the journey, but near the end, the wind picks up and a storm begins to brew. The wind whips around and, while it’s very difficult to travel through (and very frightening for squidges!) it’s still possible to walk through. The choices are these: Characters can keep going against the wind, although they’ll need to be wary of flying debris and their squidge’s fear. They can also choose to find shelter nearby -- there are several trees on the way that can be hidden under, a large cave many people can fit into a distance into the storm, and characters can also set up their own shelter. There’s less possibility for injury and squidge crying, but the tornado will put them back for hours; those who power through can talk their squidge through it, but they’ll still be a bit unhappy. Please select an option below to determine the future of your squidge. Whatever choices the team makes, they’ll eventually all reconvene as they set up camp for the last time before they hit the desert. OOC NOTES This log ICly and OOCly covers two weeks! Characters may proceed at whatever pace they'd like, but going too quickly or too slowly will mean they travel alone. (And those going too quickly will probably have to contend with screaming squidges, who prefer to travel at the speed of an easy plod.) New characters will find one of the unbonded squidges toddling after the group takes a shine to them. A squidge will imprint on them very quickly, then refuse to leave their side or rejoin their unbonded friends. Direct questions about the Zeta-12 mission here. And don't forget about the bounty board! Please remember to select your choices in the threads below! How you choose will determine how your squidge grows. Please choose before July 21st, 12:01 AM GMT!

Comments

[soru]

[ the excitement is already palpable; he swears he can taste it, a thrill in the back of his teeth not unlike biting into foil, like a lightning charge in the air. (or it could just be the actual storm outside, whatever)

plop, there goes the one pack, plunked down into luffy's waiting arms. ]

What if I'd forgotten to give your things back, too? Then you'd be out a whole bag.

[ his tone is chiding of the gentle sort, but his smile is nothing less than a grin, big and broad and toothy like he'd learned from luffy himself. carefully, he reaches down to the squidge latched to his leg, a little lemon jelly limpet watching the goings-on with wide bead eyes.

what is this on its noggin? tied on with care, but still too big and floppy for 'meppo's smaller head? ]

I kept it safe as I could.

[ it's a simple matter to pull the little string bow keeping it in place, picking it up by the cap and lifting it off the squidge's head. (to small complaint, an indignant little chirp and a wave of an arm)

you wouldn't call the way he holds it out 'reverent', but it's a very near miss. ]

[nishishi]

Well, then you'd have twice as much stuff to carry! There's no food in there, you know, you'd just be giving yourself extra work. [He wasn't allowed to carry any food. Sanji wouldn't let him, and Nami kept him away from their rations when it was bedtime.

It was terrible.
Coby's chiding tone only makes him puff up indignantly, but he loses all the hot air he has for the subject when Helmeppo the squidge walks up to him in his hat.

Ok. That's cute, even he has to admit.

And not only that, but the way Coby hands him his hat... He can damn near feel the respectful air the action has. Even if he doesn't show it when he takes it from his Marine friend, plopping it on over his head.]

Heh. Looks like some Marines are worth counting on, after all.

[soru]

Don't let Garp hear you say that.

[ it would mean the end to them all in short order, but he says it with no small amount of fondness. at his feet, 'meppo pipes up, all high-pitched and warbly, a squeak of assent reeking faintly of 'or you'll regret it'. ]

He'd have a lot to say about a pirate waxing poetic about islands in the sky. Something about 'how can that be possible?' or 'that grandson of mine doesn't know what he's on about'.

[ his voice pitches low, gruff, in what passes as a ridiculous impression of the vice admiral himself. ]

[nishishi]

[He WAS going to reply with something loud and annoyed, like 'I'll let Grandpa hear whatever it is I wanna say' or something of the like. But the absolute minute Coby starts to imitate the gruff old man....
That's just about it.

Luffy wraps both arms around his stomach, leaning in with a really loud, boisterous laugh. His head tipping down with the sheer strength behind it.

He reaches a hand over, CLAPPING his hand onto the others' back.]

JUST LIKE HIM, THAT SOUNDS JUST LIKE GRANDPA, COBY'S GOT IT DOWN PERFECTLY!

[WhEEZE.]

[soru]

[ a lesser man might have stumbled with that clap. a lesser man might have gotten real friendly with the cave floor right about then; this small captain's boisterousness was nothing to sneeze at.

luckily, coby is not quite that lesser man. he briefly considers how strength seems to be an inherited trait in garp's family. he also briefly considers how he prefers this to garp's haymaker-backpats. these points of thought are brief by nature, seeing as he's too busy grinning ear to ear to give them proper consideration. ]

I've had practice!

[ boy has he ever ]

[nishishi]

Mmm, Aa. You have, huh. [He thinks about that, tipping his head back a little. The thoughts certainly aren't deep, but at least they make enough sense.

Coby was a marine, and Coby got STRONG in a really short time. He was also with Grandpa at Enies Lobby, so...]

You trained with him?

[soru]

I did. From the moment he took us in. Between him and his lieutenant, we were kept pretty busy.

[ translation: rest? what rest? who needs rest when you can work from sunrise to the dead of night? that's ridiculous. you're ridiculous for thinking so. pah. ]

If I recall correctly, he trained you as well.

[nishishi]

[Yeah, Grandpa was like that. He didn't believe in taking it easy, and often fell asleep standing up because he didn't know how to slow the fuck down.

Ah, family.

Either way... Luffy puffs his cheeks out.]

Yeah, sometimes. He'd show up at the bandit hut every now and again and would fight with me and Ace and Sabo.

[He crosses his arms.]

Maa, but I trained more with Ace then I ever did Grandpa!!