EVENT ★ BACK TO THE FUTURE

[futurologists]

BENDED TIME As outlined in the OOC post, things start to slow down and grow quiet in Oska for a few days as the bugs crawl away and slowly disappear. But then the cocoons hatch. Fully grown temporal insects claw their way out of them, each about the size and temperament of raging bulls. They come out far more aggressive and eager to fight, are are willing to take on anything that moves with jaws and claws alike. Except, of course, another insect — when two of them encounter each other, they enter into a mating dance and then slip away into another dimension, leaving behind only the temporary ghosts of years gone by. If you can’t find a way to pierce that thick shell to take one down, better find another one to pair it off with instead. Just try not to get bit while leading them around and find yourself suddenly 5 years old again. The insects aren’t the only thing going on in Oska, though. As it turns out, unicorns really hate this adult form of the temporal insects, and will start kicking their way out of their stalls in the stables to get at the insects in an attempt to impale or trample them. According to Uruz they’re gallant warriors, but not always quite cut out to take on a bug, and can easily get themselves hurt or killed. She would really appreciate recruits taking a moment to recapture any stray unicorns they may come across and leading them back to the stables. Try to avoid any insects on the way, or you’ll find yourself suddenly fighting insect and irate unicorn, which is no one’s idea of a good time. The lake is getting more active, too. All the fighting has woken up something in the depths of it. Dark red tentacles sometimes creep up onto shore — and don’t worry, this time they don’t belong to a sea goddess. The tentacles don’t attack unless attacked, and can in fact be quite agreeable. Nodes along the length of them act as primitive eyes, which see well enough to interact with anyone nearby. They’re also all a little peckish. Toss a tentacle a bit of food and watch it curl around and ingest it using tiny mouths on the underside. It might even be willing to play a few rounds of fetch or slap a bug into the sky for you if you put it in a good mood with a morsel of food. The senior ALASTAIR members can be seen out and about and doing their part, too. Uruz and Dagny fight as a team, centaur and elf, sometimes fighting back to back and sometimes as mount and rider. They’ll stop and lend a hand, but the cats are a little less generous. Cherenkov and Crowley fight inseparably and use magic and science in deadly combination to ward off and destroy the bugs, but can usually only be seen darting on their way from one place to another. They have a lot of magitek to repair in the destructive wake of the insects. Pomarr, neither as senior nor as invested in actively picking off the bugs, offers shelter near a tentacle-free portion of the lake, calling down storms to toss away bugs for her and anyone in the vicinity. OOC NOTES This log spans a week ICly. Characters will find themselves beginning to understand each other again as the bugs first vanish, as the effects of the cats’ work on the magitek pays off. The translation problem will be completely fixed by the time the cocoons hatch. All of the bugs will have been killed or shipped off by the sixth day, leaving the last day before their departure to the next mission blissfully relaxing. Any temporally misplaced recruits will be back to normal by the last day, as well. A reminder to anyone still texting: the texting feature of magitek jewelry operates based on thought! There are no physical keyboards, recruits merely think the message that they’d like to send to another recruit.

Comments

[arcane]

( somehow, arjuna looks more pensive than he does... kind or benevolent, but still, it lasts only a mere moment or two, before he gives a brief cant of his head. ) Soda? ( it takes a few moments for the connections to finally come together. considering he was summoned to america at one period of his "afterlife," he does have some working knowledge of such conventions, only... )

I haven't heard of anything positive regarding it. ( still, he does look back in the direction of the kitchens. ) I am sure there are many substitutes. ( he turns his head back towards loki, almost a bit snappy in motion. as if he were scrutinizing the other. or, more as if he lacked faith in his ability to stand still and not make a run for it when it appeared opportune. ) Follow me.

[badnewsboy]

[ and he was still left with the pamphlet (that he debated keeping, because if it wasn't important to Arjuna, it wasn't really important at all). ]

You've been listening to the wrong people! Soda is the drink of the gods!

[ Loki announces, skittering after him as if he had offered him a tidbit of something other than ... borderline blank. as a child of questionable morality, Loki's learned that his tenacity is as valuable a tool as any knife, just as he readies his poking finger. shown the shred of interest, he clamps his claws in and falls in beside him in step.

well, not really beside.

he hops around, walks backward and flits two and fro behind him. ]

Following!

[arcane]

( drink of the gods... ) That isn't a comparison you should use so easily. ( the expression itself strikes him as being so ridiculous that he can't help but foster more denial and less comprehension. still, he makes sure not to be distracted. not by their speech, or by the shift in surroundings. his peripherals somehow stay fixed on loki. though, even when they focus back ahead, it doesn't mean he's any less vigilant towards the moving form behind him. )

What about tea? ... or sugarcane water? ( can you tell how old he is...


by what he's suggesting??? look, let him live... )

[badnewsboy]

[ Loki stops at the suggestions, his face screwing up into a mess of childish dejection. Arjuna passes him, and then he skitters to catch up, the pinched brows and lower tug of his lips still exaggerated to the point of absurdity. ]

Ew—who wants those things? Old people, probably. [ nail. head. ] Is that what you drink?

[ because this is a defining moment, here. ]

[arcane]

( ...


...


it isn't often that arjuna permits raw and unfiltered emotion to penetrate his features, and yet... he's giving loki quite the stare. it's a mix between disapproval and flat out offense(???). still, he quickly moves to alleviate it. culture shock was natural. or so he's trying to believe past his own sense of salt. ) ...

I don't hunger or thirst. ( that seemed like a ...

safe response. ) But, I thought these may be easier to acquire. ( healthier??? too??? )

[badnewsboy]

[ the look is one that he's used to, and he gives Arjuna the look right back, but half veiled in innocence, and exaggerated by childlike discourtesy. if he was anything, he was far too observant for his own good. where he could be scheming and wicked (not so much anymore, he'd argue), the danger of Loki rested in finding ways to pick people apart. ]

You're missing out. Eating is fun, even if you don't have to do it.

[ well, at least he doesn't find the no eating thing weird. where the Asgardians were gods, they were also far more resilient than any mortals, and they mostly ate for pleasure rather than sustenance. ]

[arcane]

( falling victim to intrigue or curiosity was normal. something he was accustomed to. but, seeking out a form of "entertainment" beyond the boundaries of battle and related areas... seemed a bit too indulgent for the likes of a hero. after all, even his own wish for solitude was nothing beyond self-satisfying, so other concepts of equal pleasure seemed a bit too.... well, too much. either way, he gives a brief cant of his head.

it's the first time he's met someone who spoke similarly. who implied something akin to his own constitution. ) Are you saying you also don't require food or drink? ( he looks genuinely imploring here, his steps even halting just a few feet shy of the perimeter of the kitchens. )

... though, perhaps. I believe if the food of my people were to make an appearance here, I could hardly decline. ( or even receiving alms or some sort, he supposed that's also a situation where he'd have difficulties saying no. though, well, being a masterless servant in general, eating really wouldn't hurt him, however, truth be told.... he was quite stubborn in regards to his reputation. )