EVENT | LANDFALL | KITHIKA | BOTTLE

[cherrywood]

Characters: ALL!
Date: February 12th - 28th
Location: Kithika, inside the bottle
Situation: The discovery of an artifact from the first war against Malicant reveals the land of Kithika within a dimension of the Death Plane... and just happens to be contained inside a bottle.
Warnings/Rating: Please indicate content warnings in subject headers as applicable.

OOC INFORMATION ♦ CITY OF KEELIAI ♦ INSIDE THE BOTTLE ♦ THE WORLD EATER
Arriving in Kithika is unpleasant for the most part. Transport through the glass vessel deposits you in the middle of a thick and murky swamp, with air so hot and humid it feels as though one is breathing through a wet towel. This is a place of perpetual night and there are no celestial bodies visible overhead through the twisted vines to break up the blackness, making the only light visible that which comes clumps of marsh fungus that emit a steady glow in a variety of muted colours: pale blue, whitish green, watery mauve. The only other light comes from those who can generate it themselves and that will reveal numerous broad-leaved trees, in some places standing too thick to move through. Below, knee-deep water laps in swirls at their legs, accompanied by the occasional slithery feel of something moving in the bracken against wet limbs, gone before it can be identified. A variety of strange noises from creatures of the swamp fill the air with buzzing and hoarse croaking, interrupted by the screech of mosquitoes the size of hummingbirds darting past and hungry for a meal.

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OOC NOTE: Characters will not be able to progress past the Temple and the Grounds for 48 IC hours after which point, the way to continue onward to find the dragon will be discovered. The second log will be posted on the 17th, to help spread out the tagging. Thank you!

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OOC INFORMATION
Landfall Questions | Approved Item Requests | Player Plot - Kryptonian Rampage OOC

CITY OF KEELIAI
Emperor's Orders: Miasma Explained | Marshaling the Forces | A City Under Siege | Halting the Scourge

INSIDE THE BOTTLE
Crossing the Swamp | Decayed Grounds | The Sullied Temple | Stone Idols | Item Discovery

THE WORLD EATER
Battling the Dragon | Soul's Poison | Kryptonian Rampage | The Guarded Pool | Weighing the Options | Aftermath

Comments

[jirk]

"Let me guess. About the whole tower thing?" He sidestepped nearer to a pool of the phosphorescent scum, and shifted his hand away from where he was steadying Rapunzel so he could grab his tricorder and scan it. Just to be on the safe side. There was glowing fungus, and then there was fungus that made you crazy. He's come across both types in his time.

[watcheslanterns]

"Yes," Rapunzel said with sigh. "I was trying to prove that I could take care of myself. That I didn't need to be so protected." She stopped, trying not to reply the last time she'd seen her mother - how cross she'd been...

Jim's tricorder proved and excellent distraction, though. She peeked over his shoulder at the device. "What's that?"

[jirk]

"That's not something you have to prove," he told her gently, adjusting her weight. "It's just something you do. You've been here how many months now? I think you've got the looking after yourself part down pretty well by now." Maybe not perfect, but she was still young. Chekov was older when they went up against Nero, but he was military and had been for a while. Rapunzel didn't have that. Doesn't seem to have ever had any kind of support system or network that he'd been able to discern so far.

Still, at her question he lifted the tricorder more into her line of sight and wiggled. "What, this thing? Science in a can, basically. It's awesome. You wanna try?"

[watcheslanterns]

Despite the dank mess of the swamp, Rapunzel couldn't help being warmed by Jim's words. It was still a strange experience to have so many people have confidence in her - to not doubt her abilities, that is took her by surprise every time. She mumbles a quiet "thank you" before taking a close peek at the tricorder.

"Can I?" she asked excitedly.

[jirk]

He held it up for her to take. "Be my guest. Red button analyzes whatever's on the screen, it can tell you things like whether or not it's hazardous to humans, what the chemical composition is, that sort of thing. How's your chemistry know-how?" Probably minute, possibly non-existent. And that's ignoring entirely the sort of world she's from. Rapunzel has the mind of a scientist, although it's possible she's not aware of it. Constantly curious and questioning everything around her? Yeah. He should really send her to Chekov.

"We're looking for this fungus, which'll give you the reading EC-791. An unclassified species."

[watcheslanterns]

"Chemistry?" The word was foreign to her. Though, whether she knew it or not she had some practical skills in the area thanks to proficiency in baking.

Rapunzel freed up a hand and took the device. Holding it towards some of the pond scum. She pressed the red button and watched in awe as the screen reacted, scrolling information on it. She never ceased to be amazed at the new machines that were introduced to her.

"Hm...that's not it," she said when the correct number didn't appear. "But that's really amazing! How does it know?"

[jirk]

"Chemistry is-- huh." He's never actually had to explain it before. Not the entire concept. He runs Kyle through some of the finer points once in a while - guy's gotta learn somehow - but this is like coming across someone who doesn't understand... well, air.

"So it's a science. With it, we study the way that substances interact with each other right down to a molecular level. So... like. You bake, right? Well, baking is chemistry. You mix ingredients together, they interact with one another-- like how yeast makes bread rise, and baking soda makes volcanoes? Yeah. And the tricorder? Picks up on those molecules, and identifies them for us. Pretty awesome, right?"

[watcheslanterns]

"Oh!" Rapunzel let out a gasp of understanding. Obviously she still didn't understand the details of the science, but Jim's explanation at least made it a tangible thing for her.

She focused on the tricorder again, wondering how something so small could do something so big. "That's really amazing," she said. "People must know so much more where you come from. I can't even imagine what it must be like."