The full seasonal event can be read here! Below are the main seasonal items for quick reference:
1. A thread reacting to the season's weather in some ways.
2. A thread in the part of the city your character doesn't live in!
3. A thread relating to your vocation.
Of The Season
Quote
"Tell Dr. Nate that Gale sent you, and he still owes me for the mushrooms. Except that it takes you a while to reach the clinic, and by the time you do your fever is spiking, and so instead of the requisite message you instead tell the poor soul who greets you that 'A gale'a m'shrooms sent me cus'a my hands.'" - Zephyr in Oh help me, please doctor, I'm damaged
It should have been midnight, but without the sunlight vanishing over the horizon or the moonlight rising above the sky, it was hard to judge. You just had to trust the clocks and digital effigies that worshipped time, yet they could be changed, and altered with a single switch. Josef felt like he was losing his mind, his eyes glowing in the darkness as his metallic glove shone like a beacon within one of the abandoned structures of the Choke. True, it was dangerous to go scouting about for scrap in the wasted and drowned buildings, avoiding possibly others who had nothing to lose for a few lasti's. But, Josef was dirt poor, like the rest of them and he needed the currency to start up his own business.
His hands went to the miniature sump pump that seemed to have long since broken down, licking his lips, his beard clean but still apparent on his features. At least he didn't smell too bad this time around, the mud and grime of his crawling through pipe-work to enter the city a few days prior long since cleaned. Pulling out a wrench, he began to make short work of the outer shell of the pump, pulling circuitry and the motor free after some more work with his tools. The sounds in the distance were just filled with splashing water and the noise of strangers passing in the dark, trying to get from A to B without issue. His side pouch was filled with another piece of hardware for his dream.
"You know, along with the moonlight and you'd think that they'd make better work on the Plate. Instead of a massive block that causes so many issues. One day, when we harness the power of light, we'll mark history" He whispered to himself, grinning as his eyes filled with an odd ambition. Hearing a noise outside, he tilted his head, his cowl clinging to him. The leather of his duster shifted as he stood turning to aim his metallic glove at one of the doorways. The center of the claw glowing with ominous power, "Someone there? or is it just some critter that needs to be eaten"
Oh the places you'll go, with your eyes so wide With your heart in your hand, and your sword at your side Oh the mountains you'll move, oh the tears you'll cry
"Woah, woah," the girl said as the light hit her. At once her hands went up to show she was harmless as she squinted through the beam. "No zapping. I'm not a threat, promise."
It wasn't sneaking out. Not really. At least that's what Ashla told herself as she pulled the hood over her blonde hair and slipped out the window. Technically she hadn't been told she couldn't leave. In fact, it had been said quite often that she wasn't a prisoner. She had just operated so far on the notion that she should only leave when given permission.
This time she hadn't bothered to ask for it.
If they didn't say no, then it wasn't sneaking out and no one could say no if no one was asked.
Despite this solid logic, she moved as quietly as she could down the side of the house, certain that the answer would have been no. For some reason she was just positive no one was going to give her permission to sneak around the Drench on her own. In the middle of the night.
Soft shoes landed on grass and she was off, slowly and cautiously at first, then into a full run once she had made some distance. She didn't rest until she was well and truly on her way to the Drench.
"You uh... you haven't seen any kids my age around here, have you?"
Oh the places you'll go, little love of mine
(This post was last modified: 07-21-2023, 06:57 AM by Ashla.)
Josef lowered his claw slightly so that the light wasn't blaring at the face of the stranger, also so that he could check out her features clearly instead of marking her as something dangerous. "It is the Drench, few people who roam at this hour aren't a threat. But, I'll take your word for now. Break it and there will be wrath missy" he said in that angel-esque voice that did not match his appearance, half joking, with the perilous tone of someone who had caught way too many teens in the wilderness before. What was she doing out here anyway, in the darkness where squatters would do unspeakable things to her for a single lasti.
"Well, I don't know how old you are, so I can't say for certain and you don't look like a kid. Why you out here?" He spoke up as the light on his metal glove glowed, the fireflies in the jar to his side mimicking the glow in a symbiotic manner. From under his cowl, stared two piercing blue eyes which seemed to have forgotten to blink. Yet, he didn't move any closer to her, nor further away, just stood there. "Shouldn' you be in the light somewhere, like the Neon Alley's or somethin',?" Most youths usually just tricked someone out of booze and got drunk somewhere safe. Glancing about, this did not look like somewhere safe for a party.
Oh the places you'll go, with your eyes so wide With your heart in your hand, and your sword at your side Oh the mountains you'll move, oh the tears you'll cry
"Oh no, not wrath. Anything but." Ashla didn't bother hiding the grin on her face as she spoke and lowered her hands. Shoving them into the pockets of the beat-up jeans she was wearing, she took the chance to take a few steps closer to get a better look at the man to get a better look at him.
"Don't need to know how old I am to make a guess," she suggested nicely, but gave a shrug. He would know if he saw them. "Doesn't matter. Been a couple years. Would have been a bit surprised if they still hung out here." A wistful smile slipped across her face, revealing her too clean teeth. She had taken care to wear some old clothes and there had been plenty of dust and such she could find to dirty her skin. Everything she needed to blend in without drawing too much attention. Except for her nearly-shining smile.
"Was just looking for some old friends. What about you? Not exactly a good time to be scavenging, either."
Josef was wearing toughened jeans, a tank top, and a leather duster with a hooded cowl over his head. His scarred right hand moved to brush the dust off of himself as he watched her close the distance. "If you say so, but keep yourself where I can see you," he said lightly as he knelt again to start dismantling more of the machinery he was next to. "Don't know where your supposed friends are, as this place was dead silent since I came by" looking over at the woman, more girl than that, but still likely to be dangerous, he thought to himself.
"Well, your friends aren't around and likely not for a while" motioning up at the streaks on the walls marking where water had risen for a bit with likely the last few floods. "Also, what would you know about scavenging? I'd suggest chewing on some tobacco, it'd help hide the plater smile", he said as he smiled himself, his teeth weren't as white but still cleaner than most. Though, that was because he chewed on medicinal bark and other things from time to time. "You know, she probably just looking for memories, loads of people lose out with time" he whispered to himself as the glow of the fireflies continued to pulse with the glove. Piping up for a moment as if to continue to say something "Oh right, perfect hour to scavenge, unrest makes it easier to avoid people or so I'm told"
Oh the places you'll go, with your eyes so wide With your heart in your hand, and your sword at your side Oh the mountains you'll move, oh the tears you'll cry
Moving her hand up, the girl instinctively covered her mouth, nose scrunching up as she realized what he was talking about.
"Knew I forgot something," she said with a shrug. Was a bit of a giveaway, but it just meant she needed to not smile too much. Better than chewing something gross. Letting her hand move up to tug her hood off, she let her blonde hair fall out, giving a shake of her head to loosen up the locks from their confinement. Glancing around, she moved over to lean against a wall that wasn't too terribly moldy before turning back to the scavenger.
"Dad used to say it was better to go at dawn. People who are up to no good hunt at night, and everything's too busy during the day. Everyone's in some form of sleep around the small hours, though. Not that he let me go one way or another, so... that's about all I know about scavenging." Not much, but more than some, Ashla figured. With any luck it would distract him from the tell-tale signs she didn't quite belong in the Drench.
At least not anymore.
Not that he didn't stick out a bit himself.
"What's the glove you're wearing, anyways?"
Oh the places you'll go, little love of mine
(This post was last modified: 07-21-2023, 07:53 AM by Ashla.)
Josef chuckled when she hid her mouth if she were older and had broader shoulders, as he removed another capacitor and other electronics from the pump. Still not understanding why she was sticking around, but he wasn't the type to be territorial and so let her talk. Perhaps she was a native, yet, she didn't look like one, not entirely nor did she smell like one. Which was mostly piss and garbage due to the runoff or grime that came with the Drench. "That's the idea, I was told that you can't rob a thief and few people would look for someone who goes missing in the dead of night around here" Not really trying to intimidate, but it may have well come out like that as he gave her an idea of what could happen to those who were up to no good.
"Well, your Father was a smart fella, it isn't good to be roaming at this time of night. So, why are you doin' it? What's worth risking your well-being, down in the Drench?" he said as he began to loosen and strip copper to place into his side bag. "Oh right, natives never approach people willingly in the dark. Found that out pretty fast as they're guarded and don't want to be jumped" he whispered as he stood and stretched out his back, his full height revealed as he looked at her. The glow of his jar filled with fireflies gave a warm tone under its faraday cage.
His clawed glove no longer pointed at anything before it became the topic of discussion. "It is a bio-... you know what, it's just somethin' I built. So did you come around here looking for your old pals cause your lonely? Still have better luck checking Neon Alley, or so I hear. Not been there myself" changing the topic as he didn't want anyone to know what exactly his glove did yet until he patented and fixed up his shop. It was his ace in the hole, though he'd gladly use it to defend himself from assault in this desolate-looking place. He didn't mind the company and his tone was friendly, though still a little curious on what she was doing here.
Oh the places you'll go, with your eyes so wide With your heart in your hand, and your sword at your side Oh the mountains you'll move, oh the tears you'll cry
"Depends on who goes missing, and who knows them," Ashla said as she let her gaze wander around the old building. "Someone important to someone important... and even down here there's important someones... that will get noticed real quick." She couldn't help but wince as she examined the ceiling. A flash of a memory from a few years before slipped through her mind before disappearing. "Don't want to be involved in that. Trust me."
Finding nothing interesting on the ceiling, the blonde lowered her attention back to the man working away.
"Also probably don't wanna ask too many questions," she stated with a playful wink before shaking her head. "This is just when I got some free time. Busy most of the rest of the day, and I wanted to see some people is all. And I know my around here enough that the risk's not so bad. Besides... I've got some tricks." A cocky grin showed off her smile once more before she pushed herself off the wall. "Seriously, though, you built that?" She hadn't gotten a good look at it, but it was clearly impressive. The amount of miniaturization that would go into making a light that compact and powerful...
They definitely didn't have that in the Drench, and Ashla hadn't seen anything like it on the plates, either.
"You'd think that, but I've seen plenty of important people go missing in the darndest places. No one cares until I cut their remains out of carcasses" Shaking his head, knowing all too well that the lost in Palladol had very short lives in the wilds. It wasn't too much different here, except that they would blame whoever was close by or some such, it wasn't his place and he didn't care for such politics. But if someone crossed him, he'd leave nary a trace to be investigated. He kept these thoughts to himself as she rambled a bit, strange girl, he thought as he asked him to trust her, chuckling in response. "Yeah, if you say so missy" shaking his head as he went further over to the other side, checking electrical panels and other outlets for anything mechanical that he could commandeer.
"I'll ask what I ask, I don't care if you give an answer. It's pretty obvious that we're both not from 'round here" He chimed in response as he listened to her talk, Josef didn't mind it and liked it over silence. "Tricks won't save you from the bad..." he whispered half to himself, half to the air as he pulled apart a panel and began to test fuses. "Hm? No, it's proprietary" Josef said defensively with a slight turn, the glove visible with its conduit cables going behind his back to the little jar of fireflies. "What interest do you have in my invention anyway?" He said as he found one fuse that wasn't rusty and took it. As well as taking apart handles and levers as if he were dismantling the building's electrical system. One item at a time. "How old are you anyway? shouldn't you be sleeping for school or work?"
Oh the places you'll go, with your eyes so wide With your heart in your hand, and your sword at your side Oh the mountains you'll move, oh the tears you'll cry
Another shrug from the young woman was all she gave in response. She hadn't said important people, after all. Plenty who wanted them gone, and when they were, it just meant more opportunities. Until that happened, though, it was usually best to keep away from anyone that was important to them.
That's when people got found.
"I am from around here, though. It's just... been a bit." A soft frown furrowed Ashla's brow as she sighed. From here and now she doesn't belong. Now she lives somewhere else and guess what? Doesn't belong there, either. It was a stupid pair of facts, almost stupid enough to make her scream.
But she didn't. She just buried it and took a few steps closer, looking over what she could see.
"I tinker a bit myself. I mean, I'm not good at it or anything, but I'm learning. Trying to at least. Pretty sure it's rude to ask a woman her age, though..." She trailed off as she looked along the cabling. "Wait, you're using the fireflies?" Bioluminescence. That's what he had almost said earlier. Only the concept was...
Well, laughable. So she laughed. The sound was a sharp bark of amusement as she smacked herself in the forehead. It wasn't compact tech at all. "Saints, but you're just channeling their light, aren't you?"
