(july intro log) WELCOME TO THE CONTAINMENT ZONE! (for real this time.)

[vestigemods]

JULY INTRO LOG

► PROMPT 1 ► WAKING UP

Whenever you're from or wherever you were, you awaken now with the mildest of headaches in-... oh, this is new. For some people, you wake in a cabin - in a bed, on the floor, amidst boxes in the basement - and for others, you wake up somewhere else entirely. Off in the woods. Between aisles in a run-down gas station. Lying on a branch ten feet up a local tree. Perhaps even on a leaky boat out on the middle of a lake. It's mid-morning, and across the nine square miles of containment zone, a little under two-dozen people are waking up just as you are. I'm sure you'll run into some of them soon enough.

This might be your first time waking up where you don't expect to be. If it is, consider yourself lucky to have missed what came before. For those have been through a Loop or three (or five or twelve), you'll find that waking this time feels different. It's as though you've woken from a dream - and that's what those memories feel like, trapped in the semi-tangible realm between dream and reality, though if pressed you can probably discern that they were undeniably real. (Or perhaps you can't - or perhaps some of the memories are missing altogether. This is hardly a precise science.)

Somewhere in your vicinity (in your hand, in your pocket, on your chest) is a smartphone, if you're able to recognize it as such. The models tend to vary, but they all share the capacity to connect to what seems to be an overarching network, able to connect to others with similar devices via text, voice calls, or even video messages.

But the phone is likely the least of your concerns, at least for now. More pressing is where exactly it is that you've awoken and whether or not you've woken up alone.

PROMPT 2 ► THE CABINS + LAKE

As many as a dozen cabins sit in the general vicinity of the lake, some along the shore and some a bit farther back in the woods. Perhaps you awoke in one, or perhaps you're stumbling into one after dragging yourself out of the lake or through a couple of miles of woods. Either way, you're in perhaps the best place you might have ended up. The cabin's amenities are sketchy but functional, and the kitchen is stocked with food...

And let's not forget about the pamphlets.

On at least a couple of nearby tables or countertops sit a handful of them, fanned for display. They're vividly colored, depicting what you might recognize as the landscape outside, and the title reads: THE CONTAINMENT ZONE AND YOU! Within these pamphlets, a conversationally cavalier voice explains a bit about the Containment Zone, which (as it turns out) you're stuck in right at this very moment.


"THE CONTAINMENT ZONE AND YOU", summarized


• Where am I?
  Earth. Well - an Earth. Definitely not your Earth. if that creates more questions than it answers, glance to your left and right and ask any follow-up questions to whomsoever seems least confused.


• Why am I here?
  To feed the elder gods with your death and/or suffering in order to prevent any more of an apocalypse than we already had.


• Can I leave?
  Voluntarily? No. Involuntarily? Probably not.


• What do you mean, 'death'??
  Oh, calm down. You'll come back.


• I have very important shit to be doing/people to be saving/weed to be smoking back home!
  Lucky for you: If you go back, we'll put you back right where and when you left off. You won't miss a thing.


• Isn't that how you break time!? I'm pretty sure that's how you break time.
  Only if you remember this place and/or what you've learned here when you get back. Which you won't.


• Supplies?
  Cabins and gas station.


• Cabins?
  Yours. Pick one.


• Lake?
  Safe. (For now.)


• Moon?
  Haunted.


• Who even are you?
  Call us the Technicians. Individual identities don't matter. We may give you sweets and toys but we're not your friends.


• Do you at least negotiate?
  We'll consider it. Depends on what you're asking for. And, of course, on what you have to offer.


• Wait! I'm (insert emotions) and have more questions!
  How unfortunate. Expect your next pamphlet in 4-6 weeks.




Well, that certainly is... something. Lots to discuss, lots to consider. If you're the get-right-to-business sort, that could easily occupy you for a good long while.

Alternatively: It's a hot day, and you've just ever-so-conveniently learned that the lake is 'safe (for now)'. Why not go for a dip to clear your head? The water is actually impressively clear, offering visual reassurance of the lack of abject horrors lurking below.

Those who do swim find that the lake is, as promised, mostly innocuous. 'Mostly' being the key phrase, as anyone who swims out close to the center will find it getting more and more difficult to stay on the surface. As if you're getting heavier and heavier, or your limbs are getting weaker and weaker. It isn't enough to drown you (probably), but you certainly might find yourself considering how peaceful it might be if you let yourself sink.

These thoughts are simple enough to push away in much the same way you might push through the heaviness of your limbs. One could consider it more a warning than anything: Even that which is 'safe' should be treated with proper caution. (Quick and senseless deaths are junk food to the elder gods - tasty but unsatisfying.)

PROMPT 3 ► THE GAS STATION

At the south end of the containment zone sits an old gas station, run-down and overgrown at first sight. It sits alongside a cracked asphalt road, one which (as you might discover) bisects the containment zone from the east wall to the west without a single other building in sight.

You may have woken up here, or perhaps you found it at the pamphlet's behest. Either way, it's a discovery that you'll thank yourself for many a time as throughout the next few months here, for reasons that become apparent the moment you step inside.

In sharp contrast with the outside, the inside of the gas station looks... well, like a functional gas station should. Floors and surfaces seem recently-wiped, shelves seem stocked and organized... It's enough that if you're familiar with gas stations as a concept, you might find yourself reflexively glancing around for an attendant.

But no attendant seems to be present. Just shelves and shelves of goods - perishables and nonperishables, first aid supplies and whatever else one might expect to find at such an out-of-the-way pit stop, all ready for the taking. You might even find an extra surprise. Oh, and let's not forget a nice array of THE CONTAINMENT ZONE AND YOU! pamphlets on the check-out counter, in case you missed them back at the cabins.

Maybe you encounter someone here - are they friend, or foe? Maybe they're as lost and confused as you are. Maybe they're reaching for that last fucking can of Spaghetti-Os and you're serious about your fucking Spaghetti-Os. At least one person is definitely waking up in a gas station fridge... Maybe you're lucky(?) individual who spots them and has to decide whether or not you've discovered a corpse where the soda should be. The world (or, at least, the gas station) is your oyster.

PROMPT 4 ► THE WOODS + BARRIER

The vast majority of the containment zone is covered in evergreen forest, populated with wildlife that look and act disarmingly normal. It may, in fact, be a nice quiet place to stroll in order to clear your head. While large swathes of the woods are moderately dense, there are a number of paths to make your way along should you choose to. Birds sing overhead, deer occasionally bound across the path ahead... If you didn't know any better, you might be able to forget that this isn't a normal stretch of woods somewhere not far from home.

But nothing in the containment zone is truly harmless. The blackberry bushes that line many a cabin (you remember, the ones that make your mouth and tongue go numb?) are out in force in the woods, and out here they're even more of an infernal menace: While the cabin variety only cause havoc when ingested, so much as a scratch from the woods variety's thorns will induce a tingling numb in the affected area that lasts for the better part of an hour.

And let's not forget the lovely field of "wildflowers" that definitely aren't not infested with poison ivy. It's a shame, really. The flowers themselves are quite pretty, an array of pastel blues and pinks and oranges. It's almost like a painting, if touching that painting happened to make you itch, burn, and blister for one-to-two weeks.

But why are we talking about flowers? What you're truly interested in is the containment zone barrier, aren't you? That's fine, you're bound to encounter it out there somewhere. It's invisible until you touch it, at which point a honeycomb pattern ripples out from the point of contact. As a general rule, the barrier gives back what it gets: Place your palm on it and you'll receive a faint uncomfortable buzz. Run headlong into it, and it will ricochet you multiple yards back into the woods.

The barrier stretches all the way around the containment zone without a single break or point of yielding. No further buildings can be seen beyond the barrier, nor any real sign of civilization at all save for the gas station's road stretching past the barriers and out of sight. The only thing of passable interest is the somewhat concerning tree sitting at the far end of the field across the street from saud gas station, at least two-hundred yards past the barrier. At this distance, it's a bit tricky to make out what flocks in the tree's branches. Those have to be birds... right?

► MOD NOTES ►

• This log takes place from July 4th onward, arguably through whenever the event goes up - though you're welcome to toss up your own logs in the meantime. I'm gonna troubleshoot the HTML to leave a space for IC dates, but I didn't want to waste any more time on that right now.
  
• Vestige is now open for business! You're welcome to post logs + network posts of your own, post memes on vestigechat, whatever you want.
  
• This log is functionally intended to be a tour of the containment zone for new characters and players, with dashes of mild horror or discomfort along the way. Don't worry: The actual horror is rolling in later this month. (I'm tagging this under 'event' anyway, just to keep track of it.)
  
• You can literally have your character wake up wherever you want within the containment zone, even if I didn't list it. Go nuts.
  
• It's worth noting: None of the cabins are recognizable as the precise one from the TDM loop, nor is the forest fog still present. The forest is recognizably the same flora/fauna, but that's about it.
  
• You're welcome to include a network post with your top-level (or to put it up on vestigenet as per usual) - but don't forget to consult the NETWORK: USERNAMES ARE FUCKY drop-down of July's Infopost before you do!
  
• Direct any and all questions at Trace on plurk/discord or (for slightly slower answers) this top-level.
  
• My deepest most heartfelt apologies for the lateness, I failed to factor in my own godforsaken attention span.
  

Comments

[lethechained]

[ Naminé nods almost immediately, lips pulling into a frown. ]

Yes - one.

[ Although there are some who might say that she counts herself, being a Nobody. ]

But it wasn't any kind I'd seen or even heard of before. It was like a bat, but-- angry, and much bigger. If I hadn't had help...

[ Well, she probably wouldn't be around to tell about it. (Respawning aside, of course.) ]

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ Like a bat. A vampire? ]

Assume it attacked you. What did it do?

[lethechained]

Mm-hm.

[ She confirms it with her mouth still firmly pressed into a pout, half from concentration as she focuses on the memory and half because it's obviously not a pleasant one. ]

Well, first it tried to jump on me from the rafters. I noticed it in time and went through a door, but - when I closed it behind me, the creature started to break through. It-- was even able to turn the knob.

[ Which is more that can be said for a lot of Heartless. The kind of monster without basic intelligence is considerably more familiar to her than one that can plan. ]

After that, we ran into the woods... [ The recollection grows gradually more obscure thereafter, which prompts her expression to scrunch even further as she hunts down the details. ] It followed us, but once it got hurt it ran off somewhere. And I don't-- remember what happened after that.

[ Which she doesn't particularly like having to finish with, if her expression is any indication. ]

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ Witness accounts are usual vague and unclear, so it's not surprising that hers is too. Doesn't mean it's not annoying. Sounds like it was a fairly intelligent creature, though, capable of turning knobs and aware of when it might not be worth the chase. Could be a katakan.

Or, given he doesn't know where he is, it could be something he's not familiar with. Something from very far away. ]

Intelligent, then. Good to know.

[lethechained]

It seemed to be.

[ She looks rather preoccupied as she runs back over the memory again, quicker this time. It's fuzzy in a way she's unused to, a way she doesn't like; her expression sours a little further, and she sets the issue aside. ]

But I haven't seen it since then, and that was a while ago, in that strange cabin. It could be anywhere by now if it's still on the loose.

[ Which is yet one more unpleasant thought on top of a lot of other rather concerning aspects of this situation. Lifting her head a little as her eyes raise toward him, she considers what more she can do to assist. Top of mind is-- ]

Would you like me to draw it for you?

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ His eyebrows rise in genuine surprise. From the vague details, he'd assumed she didn't get a good luck at it. If she feels confident enough to draw it, though, that's ... great. ]

Yes.

[ He could say please or thank you or, like, anything nice and pleasant. But no. ]

[lethechained]

[ Naminé doesn't seem to notice his surprise overmuch, her mind already on the task at hand. ]

All right.

[ Head turning, she briefly scans the counters, but it's clear she's already made note of where to find what she's after. A few steps bring her close enough to take up a pen and locate a small pad of sticky notes, which she sets to scribbling on the front page of. The memories are already fresh in her mind after her recalling them aloud, and it doesn't seem to take her long to get started.

And maybe someone else would struggle with the details, but for her it's as easy as tugging her own memories into the light the same way she did with Sora's. Her sketch quickly takes shape, and presently she holds it up for Geralt to inspect.

It's considerably more developed than the drawing she found in that creepy basement. This illustration, despite the fact that it's made in a simple, almost caricatured style, has an uncanny sense of truth to it; the real thing would be quite recognizable from such an image. ]

It looked like this. And-- oh.

[ She falters for a second, then pulls the drawing back to add to it. When she holds it up again, there's a similarly simple figure next to the creature - only this one is Naminé herself. For some reason, her eyes are shut in the drawing. ]

That's me. So you can tell how big it was...!

[ Compared to her not exactly impressive stature, that is. ]

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ The expression on his face is something close to disappointment, but hopefully she doesn't think it's directed at her. He'd just been hoping that the creature would be familiar, and while it looks not too unlike a vampire, it also doesn't look like one at all. Could it be related to them? Or it might just be something else alltogether.

Either way, it's clearly not from the continent.

Then, he reaches out a hand. ]

Mind if I take that?

[lethechained]

[ The girl doesn't know quite what to make of the look on his face, given how little she knows of him. Uncertainty begins to sneak into her expression as she regards him, eyes somewhere between curious and self-conscious. But at least he asks for the drawing, and that's suggestion enough that it might serve its purpose. ]

Not at all.

[ She gives a narrow shake of her head, then glances down at the pad of notes. Although she can tell it's made up of separate papers, she still gives it a briefly surprised look as the front paper comes off with one sticky edge. Her preferred medium is usually your standard paper - but it's not an overly alarming thing to learn on the fly and she wastes little time in taking a careful step or two so that she can hand the drawing over to him, now that it's been separated from the pad. ]

Here. I hope it helps. [ Or rather-- ] Although it might be better if it turns out that you don't need it.

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ He mutters a 'thanks' that's barely audible, pausing for a moment at the stickiness he can feel on his fingertips. This place is becoming stranger and stranger.

At her last words, he snorts quietly in wry amusement as he puts the drawing in his satchel. ]

I don't know. Means it's still out there.

[ Maybe nowhere near them anymore, but then it's gone somewhere else. He knows how to deal with things like that, whereas most don't. It's a problem. ]

[lethechained]

You're welcome, [ she responds, more audibly than his side of the pleasantry but soft in its own right. Her hands fold together as she watches him tuck away the drawing, her fingers lacing thoughtfully when she perks at his comment. ]

Oh...! That's true. I suppose out of all of us, you're probably one of the most qualified to handle it, since that's your job.

[ Assuming he's any good at his profession, which she has seen no proof against. Her mouth purses slightly, contemplative, as though whether or not she ought to hope that he's the one who gets jumped by a vicious monster is something that actually requires consideration. (Presently, she decides against it.) ]

I guess I just wish it would leave everyone alone, [ she decides, ] … but I don't think any of us are that lucky.

[ Since, you know, they ended up here in the first place. The little shape of her mouth grows subtly more downturned, an outward sign of her continued thought. ]

If it does find you, do you... have anyone with you to look after you? To help you fight, or in case you get hurt.

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ If any monsters were to attack, he'd prefer it if they attacked him. Because, as she said, he's qualified to handle it. Even when they're unfamiliar.

Anyone to look after him, well ... Jaskier can't help him fight, but he'll sure insist on helping him if he gets hurt. His lips press together into a slight grimace, then he nods once. ]

I do.

[lethechained]

[ Although he's given the affirmative she was hoping for, Naminé fixes him with a curious look, head tilting at the sight of his grimace. That's a funny reaction on his part, and she purses her mouth trying to understand it - although she's not about to rule out the altruistic reason that this isn't exactly a place one wants to bring company to. (Not company one likes, anyway.) ]

That's good. Is it a friend from home, or... [ Someone he wasn't happy to see? Nudging that possibility aside, she finishes after a beat, ] … A new acquaintance?

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ There's the typical knee-jerk reaction reaction to deny that Jaskier is anything like a friend, but at this point he's just ... too tired to bother. What does it matter? ]

From home.

[lethechained]

Oh, [ Naminé says, with a subtle uncertainty in her tone. Still trying to work out the meaning of his response, ]

Then is it - someone you don't...?

[ She trails off, half because it feels rude to ask and half because she's begun to recognize her own prying. Self-consciousness begins to quickly leak into her expression, prompting her shoulders to rise subtly. ]

-- I'm sorry. [ Her apology is genuine, despite the fact that she was technically asking after his wellbeing with the whole 'do you have backup' thing. ] That isn't really any of my business, is it?

[ Abashed though she is, she appears to feel as though she owes some kind of explanation. So, with a bit of hesitation, ]

It's just... you made a funny face when I asked about them.

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ The face doesn't even have anything to do with the ways Jaskier sometimes annoys him, really. It's annoying when Jaskier insists on being helpful, not because it's a bad thing to be, but because it just seems ... wasted on someone like him. ]

Don't worry about that.

[lethechained]

[ 'Don't worry about that' doesn't satisfy her curiosity, and no matter how much she chides herself for it that inquisitive feeling doesn't entirely go away. But she's a well-behaved girl at heart and it really isn't any of her business, so after a negligible beat of reluctance, she complies with a final (yet somewhat uncertain), ]

… Okay. If you say so.

[ Which doesn't actually preclude her from eyeing him a moment before finally glancing away. All that monster business seems to be sorted out - since he's got someone to look after him already - and briefly she considers leaving him to his business. Up until she remembers what he had in his hand earlier, that is, and perks slightly, mouth rounding. That's at least one avenue it seems safe for her curious nature to pursue. ]

That thing you got out of the freezer earlier... that was ice cream, wasn't it? I've never seen that kind before, but they seem to have a lot of types here that I don't recognize...!

[coolmotivestillevil]

I don't know what it was.

[ So if she says it's ice cream, whatever that is, then sure. It's ice cream. ]

[lethechained]

No?

[ Brows raising, she hesitates, then takes a moment to run the memory back through her mind. It definitely looked like ice cream, so even though she second-guesses herself, it does occur to her that maybe he's really just unfamiliar with that type of foodstuff. It'd be in keeping with his reactions to a lot of the aspects of this place. Head tilting, ]

What did it taste like?

[ More evidence is required, clearly. ]

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ He shakes his head. ]

Didn't recognise the taste. It was strong.

[lethechained]

[ 'Strong' isn't a word she's often heard used to describe the taste of ice cream, so naturally Naminé looks a little perplexed about this. With her own experience in the matter limited and secondhand, she feels a bit thrown off, but-- that just means she's got all the more reason to work it out. ]

Was it... too sweet?

[ That'd make the most sense, really. ]

[coolmotivestillevil]

No. Like someone had seasoned it with too much pepper.

He doesn't know much about cooking, but he knows what pepper tastes like. It wasn't quite like pepper either, but it's the best way he can think of to describe it.

[lethechained]

[ Naminé has heard of at least one peculiar flavor, but, ]

That-- doesn't sound right.

[ It sounds pretty gross, actually, which is an unfortunate thing to have to think about any kind of ice cream when it's such a sentimental topic for her. ]

May I see it?

[coolmotivestillevil]

[ Rather than say anything, he gestures towards the counter where he left the package and steps aside. ]

[lethechained]

[ Although she takes his gesture for what it is, there's a momentary pause before she actually steps forward to move past him. She hasn't lost her sense of caution entirely, but her hesitation is transparently brief; she doesn't anticipate he'll cause trouble while her back is turned.

Picking up the pack with a delicate touch, she examines the label on it, murmuring the name under her breath. She's got very careful fingers, and peels back the wrapper slightly to inspect the contents without actually touching them. Mouth pursed thoughtfully, she turns back to face him with the snack still in hand. ]

It does seem to be ice cream, but I don't recognize the flavor it says it is either. [ And though she's not all that eager to go putting foreign foodstuffs in her mouth, this is an investigation she's got to get to the bottom of. Since they'll have no choice but to eat the food from the gas station eventually anyway, ] Is it okay for me to try some...?