logsinthenight | INTRO LOG: JULY

characters: everyone.
location: the harbor, as well as the rest of town.
date/time: july 1-3.
content: beacon's newest batch of residents arrives on the ferry. winters, will, and rastus introduce themselves and explain the situation.
warnings: n/a.

welcome to beacon.

It's dim, and the room won't stop swaying, gently rocking you back and forth. A loud sound startles you fully awake, a deep, moaning call: a foghorn. As your eyes adjust, you note faint red light streaking through the room from a tiny, round window.

You've found yourself in a private room, lying on a bed. The last things you remember are the events that led up to your death. Beside you is a folded tablet and a lantern that glows steadily with a healthy flame.

You're on a ship. And that ship is docking.

Making your way to the deck, and eventually the pier, you find only moonlight to greet you, and a dark forest beyond. There are other people here, each with their own unique lantern, and many of them look just as lost as you are. On the ferry you've just disembarked from, the speaker system begins to play a song.

In the distance, across the waters of the lake, you can see the tall silhouette of a lighthouse, its red light slowly turning.

•••
Winters and Will are waiting for you on the beach. Winters flags you down from where he's standing atop a large rock, surveying the gathering crowd. Will stands next to him, though he's monkeying with his tablet and looks rather bored. He barely looks up as Winters speaks:

"First thing's first: I'm sorry you're here. There's no easy way to break this news, so let's just get it over with, hm? You're dead. Or, ah, you've died. Call this the afterlife if you want, or don't if that ain't your thing, but point is, you're here 'cause you died. Those are the facts.

This world's dead, too. You've noticed by now it's pretty dark, yeah? That's 'cause there's no life here, not anymore. And that lantern you've got? That's your life, so to speak. The flame goes out, you die, and vice versa. Keep it close. Should be easy enough to remember on account of how the sun don't rise. You'll need something to see by.

This place is called Beacon, and that's Lake Red Jacket. Town's 'bout a mile down the road, and we've got a bonfire there, but that's the only other light you'll see in this place. Save for the moon and all, though the sky won't do you much good out in the woods. I'll let Rastus explain the bonfire to y'all.

Ah, right. I'm Ben Winters—Winters'll do—and this here's Will Ingr— What? For christ's sake, Dr. Will Ingram. Likes to think he's the brains of the operation, as you can see. If you've got questions about these tablets, he's your guy. Rastus tends to the fire, and you'll find him in town. He's married to his job in a way. And you may never've seen a person like him back wherever you came from, but don't make a big fuss over it. He's a nice fellow. Mind your manners.

The three of us are leftovers from past resets. We came here on that ferry just like you, but it's just us left now. 'Sides the Lighthouse Keeper, but it'll be a bit before you get to meet her. She's got control over the town, see, and if she ain't satisfied with a group's performance, they get the axe. Town gets reset. If she pulls a reset on you folks, a couple of you might end up like me and Will here, giving this speech to the next crop."

The red beam of the lighthouse pulses over the group, over the trees. Winters glances up to watch it swing out over the bay.

"But don't hold it against her. Ain't her fault we're in this mess, and we've all got a job to do, including you.

For now, concentrate on accepting your lot, yeah? We're here to answer your questions, but we ain't gonna tell you all there is to know just yet. Some things are best learned on your own, and some of it we just don't want to saddle you with yet. There's a limit to how long we can stay here safely, that's true, but thing is, we do got time. Time enough to play this smart. Do better than the folks before us did. Settle in, make peace, explore a bit if you're up for it. Use these first couple weeks to come to grips. You ain't gonna be any good to the town if you don't sort yourself out before worrying about what comes next.

So listen up: You're dead. You died. Whatever your old life was, it's done now. None of us can go back, so all we've got is forward. Welcome to Beacon. Could be worse, yeah?"

ooc.

Hey there, wonderful players, and welcome to In the Night! For this intro log, all three NPCs will be available for chatting with, whether your character wants to make casual conversation or ask questions about all this. The headers on each NPC toplevel are there for easy reference as to what each of them are responsible for, but you're welcome to go to any NPC for whatever reason. You're welcome to assume your character has overheard any NPC conversation to learn more about the game. After the NPC threads have died down, we'll compile the info learned ICly and add it to the game history page. If your character would contribute something specific to the game history records, let us know!

DELIVERIES

The following packages can be found in the cargo hold:

The monthly store restock

QUICKNAV
comms	\|	network • logs • memes • ooc
pages	\|	rules • faq • taken • mod contact • player contact • calendar • setting • exploration • item requests • full nav

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

⟪ oh r'hllor, cast your light upon me, she thinks as the pile shifts and turns out to be some ten foot worth of being, if all of this... pile is the speaker indeed. melisandre has seen a lot in her life, really, much more than some could live through, and still, this... ah.

this gets her goat. metaphorically speaking.

goat gotten (goatless?), she is trying to gather her bearings just as well, but she fails, just a little. ⟫

Hm.

⟪ no, this won't do – she tries again, this time hitting almost the mythical air she usually speaks with. almost. ⟫

We cannot run from our fate, it is part of us, and here, it is what unites us ⟪ finding her stride –– ⟫ –– against the darkness which is threatening to consume us all.

... I suppose that makes sense. No- It does make sense. We're all here through a common thing and something's got to be done. Gotta work together, right?

[ there's something about the lady that catches day's attention. either her airs or her confidence but it makes him take notice. it has daylight's winglets lower down from their original defensive stance to something more relaxed, less threatened.

the fact she isn't visibly reacting to his presence is a nice plus. people not freaking out over your appearance and thereness is something he finds himself appreciating now that he's here. case in point: the dude who's running away at the moment, spooked by the fact he, too, thought the pile was just a pile when he had gone to the bonfire. ]

Are okay with something a little vague or do you need something, um, more precise? I don't mind having a chat but it's just- [ he winces, his servo now moving to press against his chassis where he still expects a large hole to be. ] It's still pretty new, you know?

⟪ she nods her affirmation. there is another thing, too: if they can find common ground in their deaths, perhaps they can find a reason why this is happening to them, why none of them ascended to the hall of light, why, after so many decades of service to her god, he has forsaken her so.

still, her eyes try to make sense of him, though she's quickly coming to the conclusion that he is entirely beyond her own world and reckoning. ⟫

Ah... ⟪ but how to phrase this? ⟫ I suppose precision won't bring me closer to an understanding of you. This is a first, for me. ⟪ A small smile, not uncalculated, to soften her words. ⟫ Ambiguity will serve me just well.

[ and that definitely helps set daylight's mind at ease, shown with how the pensiveness melts away from his expression.

knowing there's no pressure from the nice lady to be explicit, he decides that hey- why not? might as well get it out of the way the first time, for when someone inevitably asks the shared elephant in the room. (the shared elephant in the town, even...?

ack! daylight, keep your focus.)

he gives his answer some thought first, unsure of where to start or what to leave out. ]

I was trying to help someone. [ yeah. let's start with that because, at the end of the day, that's what happened. ] It happened pretty fast and I didn't even think about it.

Turned a corner, saw someone was going to get hurt. Just jumped to help them and... [ he trails off, shrugging. they both know how that ended for him.

he's here after all. ]

... I don't regret it.

Good for the soul to not have regrets, at least.

⟪ Does he have a soul? Well, he speaks, moves, thinks, he is capable of empathy –– truth be told, she has met men, ordinary looking men, who lacked the last trade. Essos was full of slavers, at the end of the day.

A soul he has, then, she decides. No way around it. ⟫

I pray you did not suffer. ⟪ These things matter, right? To people who do not give everything and their last to god? ⟫ Did they live? The person you tried to protect?

Oh.. Um. Thanks, miss. [ he's touched by the nice comment, it seems, with how he smiles a little bit.

but at her question, he suddenly looks very worried as his wings hitch up in shock. as if it never occurred to him to wonder if he had been successful in protecting his friend or not. ] I- I don't know.

[ he hates to use that non-answer when asked something, he really does, but it's also the truth. ] I hope they did. The last thing I remember is my crewmates rushing to all of us. There was a lot of noise and stuff but I think I heard him talk so I hope he's alright.

[ daylight tries to interject some humour into this, not wanting to be a gloomy glida. ] I mean- I think it would suck if they got got like I did. Talk about a waste, huh?

... Though that means they should be here, right? Since we were both there? [ he looks around to see if he can spot them. he almost looks hopeful bow. no doubt he'd like to see a familiar face. ]

I do not believe that this world is quite so forward.

⟪ but then, all of it is just theory to her, too – this place does not operate in the afterlife she has been indoctrinated into fiercely believing in – or, rather, hoping for. priesthood comes with more pains than pleasures, one does wish for an ease to it all, eventually.

no such luck, right now. ⟫

My world is at war, many die each day – yet I have only seen one or two familiar faces. Others seem to be experiencing something similar. I suppose perhaps there could be other groups like ours somewhere beyond these woods, though.

Oh... That makes sense. [ daylight's winglets fall behind him, mimicking his downcast expression upon hearing both her thoughts on whether their friends are here and hearing about her world's current state.

he clearly wants to say sorry for that - he almost does too, going as far to say, 'i'm-' - but realises there's no use for that. they're both here, after all. he tries to focus on what she says at the end.

there's something to hope in that, right? ]

Maybe. [ hopefully? he's not sure if he'll be relieved or worried if the others did follow him in his wake. ] That sounds pretty impossible but we're in this situation, right? There could be a chance that something like this is happening somewhere out there.

Especially with how the lack of light seems to be widespread. Not just localised to our neck of the woods.

INTRO LOG: JULY

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject