Newbies + Monthly Prompts!

[trainmasters]

Who: Everyone
When: Day 47, morning
Where: the Aurora

[It's that time again: this morning, you're awoken by the jingle associated with an official message from your Chain -- the usual "newbie time" balloon animation and text:]

WELCOME NEW HEROES

[This round's newbies are waking up in their rooms, in the usual nondescript undies or team pyjamas.

Outside, the cold snap has broken. It's back to jungle warmth, though the sudden change in temperature appears to have caused a thick fog. So thick, in fact, that you can't see more than a few feet in front of you -- and it doesn't burn off with the daylight.

For the next few days, Origin Star will be lost in the mist, and should you venture too far, you may be too. Because out there in the humid dim are willow-the-wisps, faint lights in the fog that will lead you to perilous terrain or into the jaws of beasts.

Sometimes, you may also hear a voice -- a distant song from across the sea, in the direction of the corrupted island. If you get too close, long and spindly arms will reach out of the water and pull you down, for a kiss from a scaly human-like being that sucks all the emotion out of you and leaves you feeling hollow and lacking empathy for others. The cure is time -- you'll be better in a day or so, but you can speed it up by basking in the warm feelings of others.]

[[OOC NOTES: As the monthly prompts, the fog and mermaids will continue until next month's placements. If you have any questions, please ping the mods via the q&a. Thank you!]]

Comments

[bowtiedbones]

Okay. Um, well, that happens to a lot of people here. You'll start remembering things soon.

[like where that arm went]

[beeknighted]

Oh.

I see.

That's good.

[bowtiedbones]

Yeah. It's not fun but it's um, manageable? And it's really easy tasks to earn them back.

[beeknighted]

What kind of tasks?

[How do i regain memories and also limbs]

[bond]

[bowtiedbones]

Actually, answering that question is one of the tasks. Our team, Thyme, gets points for "teaching and instruction," so that's 200 sparks for both of us already. For every 500 sparks you earn you get a memory back, and for every 1000 I earn I get an ability back.

Other tasks that we can do for about 100 sparks are comforting someone in distress, giving a gift, showing physical affection, making a gesture of gratitude, or defending someone. Other teams will have speciality tasks like decorating things or doing dares with them, but the important thing is that for any task, it has to be deliberate. If you hug someone without remembering that it can count, then it won't count.

We can also get 200 to 800 sparks from trials, and some days we'll get 300 sparks just for something weird happening outside.

Re: [bond]

[beeknighted]

. . .

I have many questions.

[bowtiedbones]

Ask away.

[beeknighted]

What's your name?

[bowtiedbones]

My name is Eliza. Our other teammates are Felix and Cat— We have a small, totally optional! tradition of giving sabertooth tiger-inspired nicknames to Thymes that can't remember their names.

[beeknighted]

[Sabertooth tiger inspired?? Those sound like house pets tho.

Well maybe that's what she considers a housepet, it takes all types.]

Matching names sounds sweet.

[bowtiedbones]

Would you like one?

[beeknighted]

[Nods]

I don't know many tiger names though.

[bowtiedbones]

We haven't had anyone take Tiger itself, yet. There's also Blade or Dagger after their teeth, Grace from the species name gracilis, and Fate from the species name fatalis. I can't think of any good variations of populator, but there were sabertooth tigers besides the Smilodon genera! If we branch out there's names like Maxmilian, Swift, Lynx, Nano, Mao, Machai, Barlow, Dart, Yoshi, or Roar.

[surprise your new teammate is a NERD]

[beeknighted]

[my teammate is SO SMART AND COOL]

Those are all really good! You know so much about tigers.

[bowtiedbones]

Thanks! I read some refreshers at the library, but it's also part of my job to know. I do a lot of research on one of their competitors.

[beeknighted]

What is your job?

[bowtiedbones]

I'm a necrozoology student, which means I practice necromancy in the support of paleozoological research. Big extinct sabertooth tigers fall right in my area of expertise!

[beeknighted]

[...Tilts his head]

Are there any of those here?

[bowtiedbones]

Yes and no! We don't have actual machairodonts, but we do have a very close lookalike. The ones here differ in that they have six eyes, horns, and they're extant.

[beeknighted]

They're still around? Co-existing with us that easily?

[bowtiedbones]

They're around, but they do try to eat us when they see us. I should mention that only the people on this train right now are the only people on this island. The original population is gone.

[beeknighted]

...Did they all get eaten?

[bowtiedbones]

Um, some of them, probably. Some escaped, some died in warfare, some were corrupted into monsters, and others were consumed by the Malice when it took over this star. You lost your memories as an effect of pulling you out of the Malice.

[beeknighted]

[OH THAT'S A HORRIFYING BUNCH OF WORDS YOU JUST SAID]

Wh... What, is the Malice? How...

[bowtiedbones]

Well... Was there a message on your phone when you woke up?