exploration mingle: branching out

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: exploration mingle: branching out
when: August 15 - October 15
where: the quarantine, the delta, the jungle, and the forest
warnings: threads may contain violence, body horror, and discussion of injuries and illness; please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

branching out

One of the major and most highly-valued cultural concepts in Riverview is that of exploration, expansion. Especially now that, with the recent influx of new arrivals, as the portal kicks into high gear for reasons not entirely known, the Inhabited City, already comfortably full, is rapidly becoming overpopulated. With all the refugees from other worlds pouring in from day to day, the city's safe space and resources are being taxed to their breaking point.

Right now, exploration and expansion is key, and the government is really focusing on exploration objectives, in order to unite citizens in expanding, securing, and supplying the city for everyone's benefit.

the story so far

Exploration & Expansion Progress Report ● Plotting & Questions ● Reward Submissions ● First Teams

It's normal to see drop-ships hovering in the sky over the Quarantine, of course, since the city is not self-sufficient just yet, and receives regular shipments of supplies, technology, merchandise, food, books, movies, and all sorts of other things from the Capital World. However, the number of drop-ships coming down has recently started to triple in frequency.

On August 10th, an announcement started being run on the Quarantine's networks, television stations, and on digital display boards throughout the city explaining the situation - Mayor Dichard explained in an official mayoral address that the Quarantine is in the process of taking in refugees from a planet in the solar system which recently became uninhabitable due to a massive natural disaster. Hundreds of people are flooding the city, and many of them are wounded, sick, or otherwise in acute distress.

How is a city already stretched to the limit for population capacity going to handle all these new arrivals...?

how it works

● ADDITIONAL OOC INFO: The refugee aliens are called the Frysh; they are humanoid mammalian and have a similar internal physiology to humans, however, they look somewhat insectoid, with mandibles, slightly shiny skin that is smoother and harder to the touch than human skin, and delicate wings that aren't capable of carrying the weight of the body (they cannot fly). Their skin ranges from pale to dark gray, and they have mottled or spotted/freckled markings in a wide variety of warm earth tones on their faces, necks, backs, and the outside of the thighs; their blood is dark rusty brown and slightly more viscous than human blood; eye colors are very widely varied. Average height is 6 feet, and doesn't vary based on sex (the species has male/female/neutral). The aging process is similar to that of humans, and refugees come in all ages. The species is very high-tech, but the tech is mostly related to entertainment rather than weaponry, medical, etc. as the planet the species lived on was quite utopian and basic needs were always taken care of by tech that was left on the planet when it was destroyed.

● Phases: Each prompt is a different phase of the operation. Characters may partake in whichever part of the operation they choose, whether it is a large and prominent part, or a more of a backseat or support role. Characters may participate in as many phases as they wish.

● Completion: When the next exploration mingle goes up, the mission featured on this exploration mingle will be considered complete, and game canon, providing the entry has 200+ comments on it.

● Thread Rewards: For this mingle, I have created five different items as rewards - two for the first prompt, and three for the remaining three. Any character participating in a completed thread with at least one other character, for any phase prompt by October 15 will be able to pick a keyword corresponding to one of these rewards when they submit the thread at the link above. Every character participating in a completed thread will be eligible to receive an item. Completed threads must take place on this entry.
ETA August 20th: New characters who complete a thread on August's Test Drive meme with the Tent City prompt, and who are accepted into the game are also eligible for a thread reward for Phase I only.

● Entry Reward: The reward for completion of this month's exploration objective will be expansion of the City, a more reliable electrical and power grid, and some new setting features as the Inhabited City grows in size.

phase i: tent cities

Unfortunately, this influx of refugees is going to be causing a serious overpopulation problem - for now, since it is summer, the new arrivals will be housed in makeshift tent cities set up in Riverview Central Park as well as other smaller parks around the city, any spare empty lots, along the banks of the river, and in a few of the sports fields. The resources of the city are going to be taxed to their limit, and while the Capital World will be contributing funds and helping to get together building supplies, Riverview's intrepid citizens are going to have to find ways to supply more space to build shelters for the refugees, and more power to supply the electrical grid in the city.

However, it's not just the explorers that are able to help out with this particular problem. Any citizen who wishes is more than welcome to attend the tent cities where makeshift field hospitals have been set up with as many medical amenities as possible. While serious and life-threatening injuries or illnesses are taken to the Riverview Hospital, people who need first aid or more minor or moderate tending can attend the field hospitals and recover in their temporary homes. Volunteers are requested to help with many different tasks - medical staff to help heal the injured and ill, anyone capable to cook and serve at soup kitchens, members of the Perimeter Guard, police, or other capable fighters to secure the tent cities and make sure there's no violence or theft happening, and drivers and laborers to help bring supplies from the drop-ships and other parts of the city to keep the tent cities supplied. Of course, there are going to be a lot of other jobs that come up on the fly, so everyone is welcome.

phase ii: the delta

With fall rapidly approaching, and with it the colder weather, it's urgent that housing is set up for these new arrivals, and with new housing comes a need for more electricity. The electrical grid is already stretched to its limits with the current population in the city, and is essentially being held together with duct tape and hope - with all these new arrivals and their needs, there's no way the current grid can handle it.

Thankfully, during a recent exploratory fly-over, an electrical installation set in one of the massive waterfalls near the edge of the Abandoned City was noted. While at the time it seemed too far away from established civilization to risk a large expedition, things have changed with the new influx of refugees, and the installation seems like the best hope to bring more energy into the city. Characters who participate in Phase II will be taking watercraft down the river to the delta just above the waterfalls, finding the installation, and checking to see if it can be restored to functionality so the power it generates from the waterfall can be used in the city.

The dangers faced by people taking on Phase II will be primarily related to the long trek needed to get to the installation, down the river - a relatively straight-forward, old fashioned adventurous exploration mission. While using watercraft will help speed up the process, the river is heavily populated by monsters and predators who have flourished in the absence of civilization. Expect mutated piranhas, crocodiles, carnivorous fish, and just about anything else that lives in or near a river to try to take a swipe at the teams making their way to the installation. Once inside the installation, there will be the hazards associated with a damp building that hasn't been used by people in over a decade - it's in poor repair, will have structural damage, and the likely-malfunctioning tech means that electricity and water are almost guaranteed to meet at some point. This prompt would be well-suited to engineers, skilled laborers/construction workers, and fighters; people who can fix the damage to the installation and those who can protect everyone along the way.

For any thread completed under this prompt, whether or not characters made it to the delta, all participating characters will receive rewards.

phase iii: the jungle

The second line of exploration will be into the jungle north of the city, where fly-overs have located a series of skyscrapers and flat ground, overgrown with plant life and obviously left empty since quite a while before the Abandoned City was left behind. Despite being long abandoned, however, the buildings and land seem to be pretty well-preserved and would be usable with a bit of work and maybe a touch of magic. With the flat area cleared out, it would make a perfect helipad for transport and with a temporary fence that could be easily built up after the area is cleared, this could be the start of a smaller city that could eventually be connected by transit or cleared land and fences with the Quarantine proper! Adding this extra space would easily house all the refugees and some of the excess population from the Quarantine, which would be a major advantage for everyone in the city.The government wastes no time in dispatching teams from the Perimeter Guard and welcoming the inclusion of regular citizens with a taste for exploration, to head out into the jungle and see whether this could be a viable solution.

But why would what looks like such an easy area to inhabit have been left alone and outside city walls for so long?

Well, exploratory teams will soon find out - as they make their way through the jungle toward the buildings, characters will start to notice that the animals and monsters in the jungle are getting increasingly...strange. Rather than otherworldly creatures that still make sense, they look like weird, mutated combinations of animals, a mashup of teeth and eyes and fur and scales and claws that don't belong together. As the teams move further, they'll start to notice that some of these creatures are taking on plant-like qualities as well, vines winding into flesh and extending like tentacled appendages from monsters that are increasingly larger and more misshapen. After a point, they're almost incomprehensible blobs of melded flesh and plant life that can't move, can only sit and snap or swipe or grasp for prey.

It isn't just the monsters either. The trip out to the skyscrapers will take at least four days on foot for the fastest and fittest people in the Quarantine, and going by foot is the only way to get there, considering there's no cleared space large enough to land craft, and due to the unknown nature of the area around the skyscrapers, magic is not to be used to travel there. Day One of the trip will be pretty normal, aside from the surroundings starting to get weird, but on Day Two, characters will start to feel and see changes. Whether they're taking on physical traits of other members of their teams, or the creatures and plants around them, they will start to subtly change, whether it's eye or hair color, scales or claws or even superpowers or abilities, they'll start to 'trade' traits with people and creatures around them. On Day Three, it gets significantly worse, with characters starting to meld together with animals and plants around them, becoming more and more amalgamated with the world around them, whether it's vines under their skin or growing a tail, or any combination. By Day Four, characters will be experiencing intense changes to the very fabric of themselves, their physical bodies morphing and twisting into things that are completely alien while their minds stay mostly the same.

The level of transformation experienced and the amount of physical pain and damage that the transformation causes to individual characters is up to player discretion, and characters that feel unable to handle the effects of the jungle route are more than welcome to turn back whenever they want. However, if any teams make it to the skyscrapers they will find that the buildings are inhabitable and the area would be easily cordoned off with fences, though the buildings are covered with mosses, fungi, and leafy herbs that seem unaffected by the mutations. Teams will find that as they turn back toward the city, the effects wear off as they leave the area, in exact reverse to how they appeared.

For any thread completed under this prompt, whether or not characters made it to the skyscrapers, all participating characters will receive rewards. The first team that makes it to the skyscrapers, collects samples of the fungi and moss, and makes it back to the city should respond in this thread to receive the "solution" to what is happening in the area and how the area can become inhabitable.

phase iv: the forest

The jungle isn't the only option for new areas to inhabit. The same fly-over expedition covered the deciduous forest to the south of the Quarantine, and discovered a sprawling, walled compound, overgrown with thick, lush vegetation. The compound seems to have its own water sources, an orchard, garden areas, and places to keep farm animals, as well as ample space where wild game can roam - just about any herbivorous creature you can imagine seems to have found a home here.

The most important part? Despite looking like plain old tall, thick stone walls that could easily be stomped down by some of the bigger predators in the woods, they are obviously doing their job. There isn't a single break in the walls and despite being in ill repair, the whole area looks pretty safe. On top of that, it's big enough to house the refugees and then some in relative comfort and self-sufficiency, enough that they could easily survive long enough to build a safe method of transport out to the compound so residents there could access the city with ease.

Just like the jungle skyscrapers, though, one wonders why no one is living there anymore. Unlike the jungle, however, the day-long trip out to the compound is relatively uneventful. Besides the usual predators in the area, there's nothing untoward, no unspeakable horror like what's going on in the jungle. At least, not until the team makes their way to the compound and opens the heavy gate to let themselves inside. Once they're there and exploring to make sure the area is safe to inhabit (a task that will take at least four days considering the amount of ground covered by the compound) is when strange things start happening.

It starts on Day One, with team members noticing strange apparitions out of the corners of their eyes. Like ghosts, they flit in and out of peripheral vision, make the sound of footsteps behind the person on night watch, touch an explorer's shoulder from behind when they're not looking, and immediately disappear when looked at directly. On Day Two, the apparitions will start to stick around longer, and look familiar, with explorers seeing things that trigger bad feelings, like fear or anger or grief. By Day Three the apparitions will be an almost constant presence, hovering around, visible to everyone, exposing the worst of every member of the team - images of dead loved ones, the scent of perfume or death, the sounds of an explorer's most guilty memory, all of it is there, ready to expose their darkest secrets to everyone around them. On Day Four, the apparitions will start to become more than that, physically attacking characters, enticing them blindly into dangerous places, and otherwise trying to kill them.

The types of apparitions experienced and the amount of exposure of dark secrets is up to player discretion, and characters who are unable to handle the events unfolding are more than welcome to leave and go back to the city. Teams that remain in the compound and explore for the full four days will eventually find a building near the center of the compound, with heavily riveted metal doors that have the words "Central Hub" spray paint stenciled on them and complicated electronic deadbolt locks.

For any thread completed under this prompt, whether or not characters made it to the Central Hub, all participating characters will receive rewards. The first team that makes it to the Central Hub and gets the doors open (in whatever way possible) should respond in this thread to receive the "solution" to what is happening in the area and how the area can become inhabitable.

phase v: wildcard

Have an idea for a mission-adjacent plot, or want to make up an unexpected plot twist or problem and solve it with your character? Just write up a starter, and don't forget to give yourself credit by submitting it for the Progress Report.

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: Daniel Gstir; image ii: Steven Cormann; image iii: Tom Nemeth

navigation

Comments

[enveloped]

[So much for casting. Time to take matters into his own hands. Literally.

Hands take Athena and Jeff's hands as soon as they're within arms reach. Except they aren't Cam's hands. Those are clasping onto the gun. They're Zil's hands. Smoky, but strong in their grip. At the very least, they're all sticking together until this madness stops.

He shoves the butt of his rifle through the nearest shade, a young girl standing far too close to Athena for his comfort.]

Leave. All of you. Before I set this place on fire to see how tangible you really are.

[The most vivid shade, the one who spoke to him, is rapidly becoming more visible. Not solidifying, so much as... entering the spectrum his eyes (or mind's eye) are capable of seeing.

Cam squints. Making out his facial features. He (it) does look familiar.

Then it hits him.]

Jeff, is that... you?

[bardish]

[ Okay but thank god one of them is capable of action right now, because left to their own devices, Jeff and Athena would be done in by their own emotions. Bards, man. They really do earn their reputation.

Jeff lets out a startled cry when he feels a hand take his, thinking, for a second, that it's another specter. Instead, it's... a shadow. Cam's shadow, and he's grateful for it, and for Cam, in this moment. At least one of them has the balls to strike back against the shades, because it sure as hell isn't Jeff.

Speaking of... Why is his asshole shade still lingering? Stronger, more solid than the others. ]

It, ah... Yeah? Thaaaat's me. I mean. Was me. But that thing has a mind of its own, I swear!

[ Please don't think Jeff believes everything it says. He only believes... some of it! ]

Ahh, you're getting it now, aren't you? [ That's the specter, leaning into Cam's space, turning to whisper in his ear: ] Don't I still owe you a private song?

[citharede]

[ Athena flinches when the shadow takes her hand, then flinches again when Cam drives the butt of the gun past her and into Bev. That gets the girl to disappear, at least, or it seems to.

Athena isn't sure any more. There's flickers at the edges of her vision, things she doesn't want to look at--

Before I set this place on fire and-- ] No!

[ Not to Robbie, not when she hasn't done anything wrong, she hasn't even said anything like the other ghosts or apparition or whatevers.

The shadow still has its grip on Athena's hand, which is just as well, right now. Robbie's there, just out of reach, looking so real.

Don't I still owe you a private song?

She finally looks away from Robbie at that, confused, but then Robbie's there again, between her and the men. ]

You don't have to go with them. You can come with me instead.

[enveloped]

Fuck off.

[The younger, meaner Jeff is different from the rest. More solid, somehow. Almost tangible. His voice goes into Cam's head, as if it's being funneled through his ear directly into his brain.

Twenty-something years ago and he still can't forget that night. Least of all when it's staring him in the face.

It couldn't have been Jeff.

But it is.

Cam shakes his head, fingers touching against his palm to keep his shadow more solid than the spectres. He won't let go of Athena's hand. Or Jeff's.

Not even as his younger self stares Cam in the face, and makes him feel impossibly weak.]

They're not real. None of this is real. They're all illusions. Projections from our own minds. I've known wizards who can spell this kind of trick.

[But never this powerfully, or vividly, or from so many targets at once.]

[bardish]

I know. It's just-- [ Jeff presses his palm to his eye, rubbing it, as if that'll will away the specter of his past. No luck. Still there. ] They're getting stronger. We've gotta find Hank and...

[ He looks over at Athena, momentarily distracted from Cam and Past Jeff. With his free hand, he takes hers. ]

Athena? Stay with us.

[ And then he's distracted by his own voice, gaze shifting back to Cam and Past Jeff, ghosting (hah) its fingers up Cam's cheek. ]

Awww... You still think about me. I'm really flattered, Blue Eyes. [ It slides its arm around Cam's shoulders, and it might feel real, at least for a few moments. ] I remember you, too. The dorky little virgin in the club. You waited allllll night.

You thought we were gonna be like Danny and Sandy.

What the fuck... [ Jeff's looking ten kinds of confused, and he lets go of Athena's hand long enough to swat at the stupid ghost. It catches him by the wrist, just for a second, before going all incorporeal again. All its attention is still zeroed in on Cam; it barely spares Jeff a glance. ]

It's cute how he's been playing innocent, huh? Like anyone can forget eyes like yours.

[citharede]

[ Athena is looking past Robbie, now, back and forth between Cam, Jeff, and Other Jeff. ]

What's...?

[ ...going on. Something is happening here, something big, and she has no idea what. But she can sense the danger. She knows that thing is whispering in some emotional language she can't translate, some language that belongs to the adults.

She feels the brush of fingers against her cheek, the trace of a thumb across her mouth. ]

Focus, lover. Let them deal with it. It doesn't involve you.

[enveloped]

I don't. I didn't. It was one night.

[He can't even convince himself.

Cam feels... A lot of things. Too many.

The touch of it makes him shiver, his hand shaking (almost) invisibly around the rifle's grip. The sensation somewhere between a nightmare and a dream.

Cam doesn't show his mental panic. Not exactly. It's Zil who loses composure, becoming more smoke than solid. The weight and grip of his shadow's hands increasingly dissolving.

He looks at Jeff, and there's caution in his eyes.]

Do you remember me?

[bardish]

[ The thing laughs, light and laid back, too much like Jeff. Yeah, that says enough about how much it definitely isn't convinced by Cam's protests.

Jeff blinks, perplexed and kiiind of horrified. Why is Cam listening to the ghost of his past? ]

Remember you? What're you talking about?

He's lying. But what gets me is... why you thought you stood any chance at all?

[ A beat, then it shrugs. ]

Ah well! It was fucking hilarious, y'know. You looked so stupid, standing around, trying to pretend you hadn't been stood up. [ It laughs again, hyena-like, before stopping and looking at Athena. ] I guess you had to be there.

Cam, remember-- it's not real. None of these things are real.

[citharede]

[ Athena's hand slips free of the shadow's. She doesn't move, feeling out of place here, feeling like she's standing on the edge of one of those knock-down drag-out fights her parents used to have over her.

Then her shades are back, this time faint as wisps, their voices filling her ears. She can barely tell which one is which.

You're right, you know. You don't have a place here.

Trying to fit in where you don't belong and never will.

Just go, just let them do whatever the fuck it is they're gonna do and go home.

I'll show you how to get there, lover. I'll take you all the way back through the woods. I'll keep you safe.

She closes her eyes. ]

You're not fucking real, you're not fucking real. [ She blinks back tears, looking at Cam. ] They're fucking... they're fucking not real, Cam. They're trying to fuck with us. Remember? You said it.

[enveloped]

What it's saying is real. We've met before. A long time ago.

[His face is on fire. The heat so intense it's dizzying.

Anger. Humiliation. Pain. Because even after all these years, it still hurts, and he feels so fucking stupid for it. Cam's seen and experienced so much in his life, disasters, violence, tragedy, how can that one night still affect him?

The truth is, he'd never felt smaller in his life. Even in the middle of a war-zone he was someone.

Cam rubs his face with one hand, blocking his eyes. Zil disappears altogether.]

There's no reason you would remember me. I don't think you even asked me my name.

It doesn't matter anymore. Ignore what it's saying. Let's just... move on.

[bardish]

No we didn't. I would've--

[ What, remembered? Obviously not, if what Cam's saying is true. But he can't believe their paths would've crossed before... Right?

With a snort, the shade jerks a thumb in Jeff's direction. ]

Honestly, between you, me, and everyone else here: you dodged a bullet with this junkie piece of shit.

[ Oops. Another secret out. To Jeff: ]

And you dodged a bullet with this one. [ It pats Cam on the shoulder before moving to Jeff. ] Virgins. You know how clingy they get.

[ Annnnd to Athena: ]

You're kinda the third wheel here, huh? Bet you're used to that. The little girl noooobody wants.

Well.

Have fun with your camping trip, guys.

[ It grins. Then, in the blink of an eye, it's gone.

Jeff exhales, like a weight's finally been lifted, and he scrubs his face with a hand. What should he do now? Apologize for... god, the list is so long now. He swallows, then casts Athena a concerned look before taking up one of the packs. They might be moving on, but this isn't over. ]

That thing was lying, Cam. I promise. [ Maybe not about them meeting before, even if Jeff's trying to rack his brains to remember when it could've been, but... The rest. The claims that Jeff remembers everything, or that he did... whatever he did... on purpose. ]

[citharede]

[ The little girl nobody wants. Hearing that in Jeff's voice, even a fake Jeff, is like a quick stab-twist to the gut delivered with a smile.

She silently picks up another one of the packs, Robbie's voice still quiet in her ear.

I'm here, babe. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere. You know I've always wanted you. Remember what I used to say?

Under her breath, quiet enough that she hopes the men won't hear: ] Home is you and me.

[enveloped]

[Cam clears his throat. Focus. He has to keep it together. Not just for himself, but for Athena and Jeff. The people he's come to regard as his own.

He shakes it off. Emotions can come later. When he has the luxury of crying. Right now, only one thing matters. Not losing anyone.

Cam's eyes cut to Athena. He lifts his rifle and fires two shots into the air.]

Everyone, if I could have your attention. Please. Until we're out of here, I'd like you both to follow my orders, as I have the most relevant experience to our current predicament, and I'm not as far along in whatever the hell this is as the two of you are.

Jeff, can you pull the rope from my bag. Tie it to your belt loop. Then take that rope, give it about three yards of slack and tie it to Athena's.