Event: Worldhop #1 | Part II

[trainmasters]

Who: EVERYONE
When: Day 54, sunset
Where: all around Origin Star

At first, when all the totems have been deactivated and everyone has returned to the Aurora, it seems like the dire situation has still not been resolved. The sky is still dark, the miasma still floating through the air.

But then, after an hour or two, you hear the clear ringing of a bell-tone, as you've heard every time Origin Star's Prism has reached a new level of purification. If you happen to be on the beach, you'll see it too -- glowing a paler and brighter green and sending off waves of white light.

Out on the Final Island, another scream resounds. In the distance you see tendrils rising, massive vines lifting and curling into the air like tentacles. They grow, and grow, and grow, into monster of unimaginable size, screeching all along, the concentrated remains of Malice on this Star. They lash out, bridges across the sea coming right at all of you!

But before they reach the shore, the Prism shifts fully to white, and light explodes from it, bright and warm and full of square-shaped sparkle. The darkness in the sky recedes, and as the pink-and-golden beams of the setting sun touch the island, the monster screams one more time, and then... dissipates, leaving behind it a picturesque scenery, white stone ruins surrounded by jungle and dotted in colourful flowers.

On your island, equally wonderful things are happening. Any remaining emotional effects you may be under fade, and the monsters in the jungle transform back to their original shapes as normal flora and fauna. The jungle blooms in front of you, becoming a visual feast of flowers, birds, and butterflies, and off towards the remains of the town you hear the sounds of people.

In fact, some of those people are appearing right around the train -- showers of sparkles coalesce into the forms of living people, some with many wings and some with a deer's body. They're confused and alarmed at the moment, but alive and whole. Even the girl that was brought back from the far island is waking up, and within the magic bottle you found on the third mission, echoes of a soul can be sensed by those with the power to do so.

You receive a message on your Chain:

☆: Hey, look at that! You did it!
☆: That's one Star down, nine or so to go!
☆: As a reward, we've programmed in a new Bond for each of your teams, so check the board in the lounge to see those. We'll also be giving you a new train car, so keep an eye out for that announcement!
☆: Unfortunately, you can't rest on your laurels too much. Take tonight to get some rest and take in the fruits of your labour, and tomorrow morning we'll head to the next location.
☆: And, to be more formal... Congratulations, Heroes of Distant Stars. Through your efforts and your bonds, you've restored love and peace to this sector of the universe. I, Cardamom, Prince of Stars, my Circle of Knights, and all the people living in this sector, thank you with all our hearts.
☆: Now, let's party!

As of now, you may earn sparks via your new team bonds, which are displayed in the lounge with all the others. For the evening, there'll be free sweets and champagne in the lounge car. It has no special effects and is just good plain fun! You'll also hear cheerful electronic pop playing from the intercoms all over the train, because your patron is Like This.

Speaking of... after a bit, Cardamom will be hanging out in the town handing out food and supplies to the people and explaining the situation to them, if you wish to join him. You may also speak to Lily, the girl brought back from session 2. Thyme will be around as well, but he'll be busy helping the townsfolk settle, so won't have a toplevel in this post.

Additionally, after a bit, the next train upgrade suggestions gathering will appear, so make your wishes known!

Comments

Please Help!

[daydreamshimmer]

[She's keeping stuff close to her mostly from exhaustion, but she's an empath/telepath thing and a high magic user. She knows when there's been a shift in something and]

[There is a message on everyone's Chains.]

Solar Flare: I need help as soon as possible.
Solar Flare: 80H, Eliza, you two especially please respond.
Solar Flare: I have a soul in a bottle here and I need a body he can inhabit.

Re: Please Help!

[bowtiedbones]

Eliza: give him to Cardamom

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: Can Cardamon be trusted with this? I made a promise. I'm not going to get a third chance at this.

[bowtiedbones]

Eliza: if he doesn't know what to do with him, he'll tell you
Eliza: but it was his team that made the healing pods
Eliza: and his team that could pull us here
Eliza: If I put him into a body, it's going to be a painful, short, and terrifying inhabitance. I work with corpses.

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: An artificial body might be the thing.
Solar Flare: And there's a chance I can do the soul transference myself with the guidance.
Solar Flare: I can reach mind scapes, at least, and when you're a soul, what else is there, but what's making up the mental and emotional?

[bowtiedbones]

Eliza: Does he want to come back?
Eliza: Is he unready or unwilling to pass on?
Eliza: A soul that doesn't have a perfect match with its body will tear itself apart to flee it.

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: He was murdered.
Solar Flare: He's Lily's friend, the girl I brought back from the tower.
Solar Flar: When I brought up the possibility, he seems hopeful.
Solar Flare: I know what he looks like, and cosmetic transmutation is easy enough, we can make it look like him.

[bowtiedbones]

Eliza: where is his corpse?

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: ....
Solar Flare: He was buried right before the Malice hit, there's a good chance his corpse is still there.
Solar Flare: As long as Malice didn't disrupt it too much, we can get it!

[voreaciously]

Lorelei: That is going to take time, depending. If you need fully-functional body, I do have parts, but I would imagine he would wish to look like himself.

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: He didn't think he'd have another chance at life, but I can try to ask him.
Solar Flare: I can also do some transmutation magic, so appearance alterations is possible as long as I have a good base.

[voreaciously]

Lorelei: How does that magic function?

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: Understanding the chemical make up of the original object and altering the atomic components to something else. Some things are easier than others, but a cosmetic shift is almost nothing at all.

[voreaciously]

Lorelei: Do you have a method of ascertaining the original form?

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: I know what he looks like, yes.

[voreaciously]

Lorelei: Then it should be theoretically possible.

[daydreamshimmer]

Solar Flare: I can do a test on a smell piece of the outer shell, but as long as you know what it's made of, it shouldn't be any trouble.
Solar Flare: Could even make him artifical fur and everything.
Solar Flare: In theory I could help you speed up construction though it does mean doing something....weird.

[daydreamshimmer]

[OKAY, BECAUSE EVERYONE KEEPS ASKING.]

[She will pull the bottle out of her bag, and hold it close, reaching out for the soul.]

Briar, can you hear me?

[Though at least this time, her Element of Harmony is fully in tune with her desires. This is an act of empathy, of wanting to help.]

[hot_mess_express]

Hello?

[Apparently, he can hear her! Though his voice sounds kind of far away...]

[daydreamshimmer]

[A sigh of relief.]

Hello Briar. It's me, Solar Flare. The pony.

We've gotten rid of the darkness. Lily is with the village right now, helping those who have been purified.

....

Everyone has been asking me if you still want to come back. We've got a couple of ideas in the works, but I thought I should check one last time....

[hot_mess_express]

Come back?

[There's a long pause...]

...I think it's too late for that. Isn't it?

[daydreamshimmer]

Only if you don't want to.

We have a few ways that could work. We have a few people here with experience in giving souls a body.

If you want to stay, there's a good chance we can make it happen.

[hot_mess_express]

I...

[It's hard to say. The desire to live is there, of course. To go back to the way things were. But he's dead, and there's an equally strong pull to move on, now that he's not dwelling on things anymore.]

I guess if I could help, I should.

[daydreamshimmer]

Lily would like that, I think. There is a lot of work to be done.

We can find your original body. Don't worry, we'll find a way for it to be....you know, not a skeleton thing. We can also put together an artificial body that looks like you.

[hot_mess_express]

It might be weird to be in a different body. ...But if Lily's there, it'll be fine.