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kaisou2022-07-03 11:00 pm
July Event Log
July Event
Dominant Element: Water
Waning Element: Fire
※
Summertime in the city continues! Throughout the month, the daytime hours will be scorching hot. Not only that, but due to the water element being in effect- everything will be miserably humid, making everything feel much worse. Make sure to dress for hot weather, or hide yourself away in an air conditioned building. The nights will be cooler and give some reprieve, but even then the humidity will be sticking around. About once a week, the city will experience a heavy thunderstorm. More on those in a bit!
Freedom & FireworksAs June ends and July begins, the Pride flags are put away for an absurd amount of red, white and blue ones. Like any American city this time of year, Kaisou has plenty to do for the national holiday. All over the city you will see the classic red, white and blue. Blue Fish Lake Park is having a summer block party to celebrate the holiday. You can go there to hear some live music or play some games like cornhole (where you stand at a distance and try to throw beanbags into the hole), three-legged races, or tug-of-war. There's also plenty of delicious grilled and barbequed food to be had, such as hamburgers, ribs, shish kabobs, potato salad, shaved ice, and of course the coveted mac and cheese.
If you're truly brave enough, there's a chili cooking competition you can enter. Just about every other entry comes from an ancient secret family recipe and they are insistent it is the best. At some point, the competition will get so heated a large fist fight will break out over whether beans should be in chili. The goose will attempt to knock over your pot of chili before it can be judged. There are tears shed. You suspect the grand prize winner bribed the judges. Regardless of your behavior, you manage to make several enemies.
Of course, no Fourth of July is complete without fireworks. And boy, are there fireworks. So. Many. Fireworks. The city will have its grand firework show over Blue Fish Lake, which is an impressive and professional display of pyrotechnics. But the fireworks don't end with just the professional show, as there's plenty of private residents playing with their own sets of explosives. While Kaisou has some laws on the books about many types of fireworks being banned, it's obvious that a lot of people completely ignore that law. Smaller fireworks and sparklers can be purchased in normal stores, while the bigger grade stuff can be found in more shady shops. Some vendors in Undertown will even sell enchanted fireworks that'll do more specialized imagery and movements than normal fireworks. Grab some fireworks to blow stuff up for freedom yourself, or find some earplugs - it's gonna be a loud weekend.
Stardew Valley and the Kanto regions can still be visited throughout the month, though there isn't anything new going on with them. Still, sometimes it's nice to retread some familiar ground.
Storm SeasonWith the spirit vein's summertime shift to the water element comes Kaisou's infamous storm season. About once a week, Kaisou will be hit by a heavy thunderstorm. Shortly before a storm arrives, storm sirens (warning: loud alarm sound) will sound off to warn citizens of potential danger. From there, characters will have a few precious minutes to seek shelter if they decide to do so.
True to their name, these storms will feature constant heavy lightning that can strike you if you aren't careful. Sudden heavy downpours will immediately soak anyone still outside and cause flooding in some areas and basements. Be careful not to drive into any standing water on the roads, as some flooding spots can get deep enough to submerge a car. While there's thankfully no tornadoes this year, there are strong straight line winds that can get up to 100mph, meaning they're strong enough to knock over trees, throw around lawn furniture, and damage the sides of buildings. And if all that wasn't enough, there's baseball-sized hail that'll easily take out a car window or cause some serious damage if it hits you.
These storms will only last a few hours, but they can cause plenty of damage. Power outages caused by down powerlines are common, causing blackouts in numerous neighborhoods from several hours to a full day before the lights come back on. The Zodiac building where otherworlders stay will also be susceptible to these blackouts, and anyone who decided to take the elevator during a storm will find themselves stuck in there for a half-day. Beyond that, there's plenty of volunteer and odd job opportunities focused around cleaning up fallen branches and other debris.
Commence the Beach EpisodeOn the morning of July 8th, Zodiac will send out an alert:
ALERT: SHIFTING GATE LOCATED ON KAISOU BEACH.
Element Classification: Water
Danger Level: Low on the mainland, high on the sea
Designation: El Nido
A new gate has been detected off Kaisou Beach. Initial scouting reports that the mainland is a peaceful beach resort, with plenty of amenities and less humidity. There are rumors of more dangerous elements should you take a boat and sail away from the mainland. Zodiac is unable to confirm what those dangers may be, so take precautions should you decide to do so. Zodiac is not liable for any injuries or deaths that may occur if you leave the mainland.
That said, Zodiac will provide compensation for any investigation reports or valuable items obtained in the realm.
If you swing by the Zodiac Headquarters, the mood of the office is rather relaxed. Some of the staff are talking amongst themselves visiting the realm to get a free vacation - it's not often you get a realm with few things trying to eat your face! If you ask about what happens if you leave the mainland of this realm, they will say that reports are full of untold dangers and bad luck. But what else can you expect from a high sea adventure? Professor Willow doesn't have much to offer, other than speculating if there's sea monsters in the water. Mostly he's occupied with data he's been gathering from the Kanto Realm. Seems pokemon are his first and always love. But as usual, you'll be able to rent out weapons and equipment from Zodiac.
The gate is a hard one to miss. While Kaisou Beach is packed this time of year with regular folks that are trying to cool off in the summer heat, off to the side there is a very noticeable rock formation that wasn't there before. The passage underneath the arch glows a tropical blue color and seems very inviting. Sure enough, that must be the gate. The normal people on the beach don't seem to notice its presence in the slightest, and it should be easy enough to slip past them to head into the realm.
El Nido: A Tropical ParadiseUpon entering the gate, you'll find yourself on a white sandy beach. While it's still warm, it's not the stifling humid heat that blankets the city. Instead, it's an ideal summer temperature, perfect beach weather. The skies and oceans are both an intense blue, the kinds of shades you see on postcards, with white fluffy clouds on the distance horizon of the ocean. Something about the entire scene already feels like a wondrous reprieve compared to previous realms.
As you walk along the beach, you'll come across a village resort. Rather than humans, the village is populated primarily by anthropomorphic birds of various types that are no bigger than waist size compared to a full grown adult. They welcome the visitors warmly, with happy chirps amid their words. They're used to humans visiting their place, so they have set up human sized lodging for people separate from their village to stay if they like. Payment wise they don't ask for much, mostly just things like birdseed, fruit, small rodents, interesting sticks, and other things birds enjoy. Overall they're a friendly and kind flock of birds, mostly interested in making sure your stay is a great one. However, if you do anything to mistreat the birds- you will quickly find yourself being swooped at and attacked by multiple birds.
The lodging is what you'd expect from an idyllic beach vacation. Despite this place being run by a bunch of small bird people, the human rooms are surprisingly modern, with proper indoor plumbing and electricity. There's a restaurant with all sorts of delicious tropical dishes and drinks (no bird meat though) and you can get room service for some extra birdseed. It's an extremely comfortable stay with varying room sizes, though due to the number of people visiting, some of you may end up getting roomed with another person. Or two.
As for activities, there's plenty you can do. You can go swimming in the ocean, even borrowing scuba gear so you can do some scuba diving and check out the gorgeous coral reefs around the island. You can go hiking and survey the breathtaking flora and fauna the land has to offer. You can stay close to the resort and treat yourself to a spa day by getting a relaxing bird-given massage or sitting in a hot tub. And don't forget fun beach games, like playing volleyball or making sandcastles. Or if you venture a little farther, you will find an amusement park situated on a pier over the ocean. You can ride the Ferris Wheel or the small roller coaster, eat carnival food (again, no bird meat), or play carnival games for fun prizes such as stuffed animals or t-shirts.
This is truly an idyllic, wondrous vacation. For once, you guys are getting nice things!
Yay a Pirate Adventure!Too bad some of you refuse to just have nice things huh.
While you're staying in the resort, you may hear rumors floating among some of the birds, especially if you ask what lies beyond their island. They will say there's rumors that there's amazing treasure out there, if anyone is brave and strong enough to seek it out. However, if you press more about it, you'll find out that no one's actually ever returned from sailing out into the sea, so it's impossible to know if the rumors are true or not. They do try to caution you that it is very dangerous to go out there. Also, to try to avoid the pirate ship that sits on their shore, because obviously a pirate ship must have dangerous pirates aboard.
There's only one way to find out, right? As luck will have it, if you wander past the amusement park, you'll find a seafaring vessel next to a dock. It's a large pirate ship, one that is surely large enough to sail out on the ocean. It's the ship that the locals told you to stay away from, but surely it wouldn't hurt to have a look right? Characters who are 15 years or younger will find themselves unable to board unless they're accompanied by another older character - which also might be a telling sign. If you go on the pirate ship, the ship is somehow fully stocked and ready to go on an adventure, despite no clear sign of any crew. In the captain's quarters, there's a treasure map with a route that'll take them to some marked treasure as well as a small chest full of golden coins and gems. Below deck, they will find that there is plenty of food and drink to be had, as well as an entire wardrobe full of classic pirate clothes.
But be warned, trying to take anything from the ship will seal their fate. As they do so, they'll feel a burning sensation somewhere on their body as a skull-and-crossbones tattoo appears. They will also now be magically unable to leave the ship. After about 12 hours from the first person to try to take something, the ship will begin to set sail out into the ocean that so many people tried to warn you about. Looks like you signed up for a pirate adventure, whether you wanted to or not.
Oh No a Pirate AdventureThe pirate ship voyage will last about a week. Characters with the pirate mark will be forced to see it through to the end, even if they attempt to teleport out of there. The ship is enchanted to run itself, but there's books and guides in the Captain's quarters to teach how to run a ship in case you don't trust the ships autopilot. It might be wise to read up on that. Characters can still connect to the Libra network, but any other internet access will be cut off. Also you should take care not to waste your battery - as there's no electricity on the boat.
The trip will play out as followed:
Day 1: Smooth sailing! Characters will have time to adjust to their new sea life.
Day 2: The characters will make landfall on their first island. It's a barren dessert island, full of caves and quicksand. Near the shore, they will hear the call of sirens (img cw: nipples). These siren songs will be alluring to anyone who are attracted to women, making them fall into a trance. If you get too close to the sirens, they will attempt to drown and eat them.
Day 3: More sailing! The sailing is going through some choppy waters, with fog causing the visibility to get worse and worse. Halfway through the day a ghost ship tries to attack yours with cannon balls. Work together and fight them off before they sink you to the bottom of the ocean.
Day 4: You arrive at an island covered in bones. As in there are bones everywhere. Of course, there are many living skeletons here who will come out of the bone piles and try to murder you.
Day 5: It's smooth sailing until late into the day, when a kraken appears and tries to take down the ship. You can try to fight it off to buy time for other crew to make it to the lifeboats, but the sheer size and strength of the beast will eventually prevail- snapping the ship in half and dragging it down into the ocean. Try your best to survive by grabbing a lifeboat or using some ship debris to float.
Day 6: By morning, the now-shipless crew will wash up onto the shores of a new island. Unlike the last two islands, this is a tropical island that's full of life. It's the island that the treasure marked to have the treasure. Spend your day trying to gather what you lost and recovering. Traveling around the island is impossible to do all in one day. They will get halfway around before they need to camp for the night. You'll also have to be mindful of food and water, as all of that was lost with the ship.
Day 7: On the final day, they will finally make it to the other side of island and the spot of the treasure. Luckily there's some shovels nearby. Do some digging and they will unearth a treasure chest. Inside, there's various types of fine jewelry that is enchanted to give the wearer underwater breathing, and plenty of gold that when split among the crew - will give them each about $500 worth. There is also another ship on the shore here, one that looks just like the one you lost. This ship will sail once everyone is aboard, and take them back to the mainland by morning.
Those who were on the pirate adventure will find themselves returning safely to the resort. The bird people will be thrilled of their return and excited to hear of their stories. The tattoos appeared may begin to fade once the adventure is over, freeing them from the curse. Or if you rather, they can keep the tattoo on them for the memory.
The resort itself will be open for any and all visitors until the end of the month. Zodiac as well will be happy to pay you in compensation for any items you bring them. All ends that ends well, it seems.
The dominant element this month is Water! Anyone with an affinity to the water element will find themselves boosted throughout the month. This could mean a boost to their power, having more energy, feeling more inspired with creativity, having better luck on different attempts -- the boost can manifest in all sorts of different ways. By contrast, anyone with an affinity for Fire will be experiencing the opposite. Perhaps their powers will be weaker, they have less energy, they're having a creative block or general worse luck - again it can manifest in all sorts of way and players are free to play with this mechanic as they'd like.
This event is meant to be a low-key fun event! Have your character go on a very dangerous pirate adventure, or just relax in the resort! Anyone who goes on the pirate adventure will get a piece of jewelry that lets them breath underwater, and $500. Totally worth that level of danger right? Totally....
The original OOC plotting post for this event can be found here.
no subject
[He's about to continue when the sound of banging cabinets can be heard from the kitchen, and he groans.]
One sec.
[Yoosung moves to the kitchen, fetches Rika the Meowth, and returns carrying her. She looks dejected as he sits down on a cushion on the floor with her, letting Katsuki have the couch to himself... Except then he's joined by the actual cat, who curls up on the back of the sofa.]
I didn't know there were such a thing as realms until I wound up in the Kanto Region and accidentally caught this one.
[He points to the pouting, cross-armed Meowth in his lap.]
no subject
Zodiac will let you know when they open. You'll get an alert on the app. Expect them to try to rope you into going in. It's your call what you wanna do. But you should know some of them have been really dangerous.
no subject
That smile flickers at Katsuki's words, though, as he thinks back, absent-mindedly playing with one of Rika's paws to keep the pokemon occupied while in his lap. (He could put her back in her PokeBall but he always feels a little guilty doing so. Surely she gets bored in there by herself?)]
Oh, yeah... I think I remember people talking about that when the app first appeared on my phone...
[He remembers something else then, and takes out an interesting looking phone from his pocket, with an already customized front plate.]
Ah, do you know if anyone else was given a new phone? This new one showed up for me and it looks kinda weird...
[And yet he's already been using it.]
no subject
Not specifically phones. But random shit? Yeah. I ended up with a pair of pizza heelys.
[He has a sudden thought and...]
You haven't been using it, right?
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The guilty look on Yoosung's face after he asks that question is probably answer enough, but...]
N... Not exclusively? I mean I'm still using my regular phone too... But I was curious about the other one and it has the Libra app on it, so I can use it to ch--
[He stops abruptly, and releases Rika off his lap in surprise, eyes squeezing shut and a hand brought to his forehead. There's a vision in his head of being in a chatroom on a completely different phone, chatting with friends he's never met but he recognizes their avatars from other flashes of memory he's been getting. This one is the most intense yet, as he can feel the surprise and alarm in his own body that he would be feeling in that situation, when someone new arrives in the chatroom when it's supposed to be private. The stranger says they found the phone, and it had the chatroom on it already.
When the memory fades, he's breathing a little harder.
Rika was apparently so startled by the happenings that she's run off to another room to hide.]
no subject
But he is disracted by Yoosung getting his memory flash. He watches him quietly until he's sure Yoosung is aware again. Some of them can be intense. He knows that first-hand.]
Oy.
[Tone gruff, but not cruel. Words short and to the point.]
Close your eyes. Slow, deep breaths. In and out through your nose.
no subject
It wasn't like it was a traumatizing vision or anything, just intense? All of the feelings. It felt important, moreso than the glimpses he's gotten previously.]
Ah... Sorry... That's never happened before...
[Opening his eyes again, he pets Hana and the feel of her soft fur and her breathing and purring under his palm also helps calm him.]
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[He watches Yoosung carefully. Waiting to see if he plans to explain what he saw or if he'll move on. It's interesting hearing what people see. But he's not going to push it.]
no subject
[He looks down at Hana as he briefly recalls what he'd seen, frowning a little as he pets her.]
no subject
[At least Yoosung seems to have settled down now.]
You talked to anyone on the app about what's going on yet? What to expect?
[Does Katsuki need to get him filled in a little bit? He doesn't like people getting blindsided by the Zodiac insanity. Not when some parts of realms have been dangerous. Even deadly.]
no subject
He looks up at Katsuki again, trying to stop spacing out and focus on what he's actually saying.]
The app... Oh! The Libra app! Um I've talked on it a little bit but I don't remember talking about memories or anything...
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[Katsuki was there for that. He played in the soccer game that decided their fates. He watched people die and it's an experience he's not keen to relive.]
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S-someone said something about that.. when... when the app first downloaded... Is.. is that true then? W-what... What happened?
no subject
[He's not trying to scare Yoosung. But he should know what's involved here. He should know the risks.]
The ones who go in have our reasons. No one will try to stop you. I'm not trying to stop you. But people should be informed. Zodiac... you can't trust them to keep you safe. They don't give a shit about our lives.
no subject
There are tears slipping down his cheeks, and he brings a hand up to his mouth as he finally nods.]
Everything... Has gotten kinda weird s-since the app first showed up... But I wasn't expecting... Ah, sorry...
[He laughs nervously as he apologizes for crying, reaching up to wipe at his eyes.]
no subject
It's a lot to get your head around.
[He's quiet a few moments and then...]
Dynamight. My username on the app. If you have questions later. Or if you need help in there. If we don't all watch each other's backs, no one will.
[He remembers being powerless. Watching people die. Not again.]
no subject
He sighs and nods his head in response, dropping his gaze and his hand to stroke Hana's fur again. In the quiet interval that follows, her gentle purring is the only sound next to the tapping of rain at the window and a soft rumble of thunder in the distance.
Yoosung lifts his gaze again when he hears Katsuki speak next, his tears stopped falling now but his eyes still a little watery. He can't help but smile though at what he says.]
Yeah... Thanks. Thank you. Um, mine's ShootingStar. It's... That's what Yoosung means. In Korean.