WEEK ONE

[killerwaves]

WEEK ONE

29 Vacationers

As much as this vacation was unplanned, hopefully you've found some time to enjoy yourself this weekend as you've settled in. The idyllic beach, all inclusive food, drink, and shopping might be almost enough to distract you from that pesky talk of sacrifice. Vacations really are about letting your worries pass you by. Hopefully you've found the time to set up your U-PINION too, because if you haven't, it's been chirping incessantly since the date turned to Monday. And come Monday at noon, everyone's device will let out a pleasant jingle, heralding several announcements across the screen:

Happy Monday! We've hope you've been enjoying your time at Sungem's Peak. The Mermer (intranet) is now fully operational. Chat with your friends and get recommendations for how to best enjoy your vacation, by:

• Reading about your fellow vacationers via their profile
• Chatting on the network
• Asking honest questions via our anonymous poll system
• REQUIRED: Reading the RULES set by the administrators

We're also happy to announce our reward system is live! Complete tasks to receive special items to improve your stay!!! Contact your administrators for any questions or concerns. We hope you have a wonderful week!

The artificial peppiness of the announcement just oozes out from the U-PINION, and soon thereafter everyone will be accosted by a friendly robot that forces a physical copy of the rules into their hands anyway. Just in case. They'll also present a copy of the tasks this week as well, for any interested parties.

!

TASKS:

Be Nice
Now that you're acquainted, tell another person one thing you like about them, and why.
(REWARD: RARE!)

Let's Play!
Play a game with someone else. Any type of game: board games, card games, or even a party game! (Reward: Common )

Summer Spooks
Tell a two-sentence horror story in person, or on the network.
(Reward: Common)

((OOC: Welcome to Week 1! This is a peace week, so they'll be no case this weekend. However, we have something for you to chew on Saturday, time to be announced later in discord.

We'll also be playing around with the network and seeing what works as far as formatting goes, so thanks for bearing with us! Also please note, that the poll questions are anon, but any answers won't be. ))

MONDAY • TUESDAY • WEDNESDAY • THURSDAY • FRIDAY

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Comments

[hearnoplague]

They specifically said "sacrifice," which is more complicated than just choking someone and tossing their body in a pit.

[ Someone's being a bit pretentious about the murder thing... ]

I still have reason to question why this particular island needs the blood of the powerful to exist, nor do I understand how those administrators got themselves in this mess in the first place.

[finalmix]

Probably killed the previous person in charge and wasn't prepared for what came after.

[ why does this sound like an inside joke ]

[microtransactions]

Well, they did eventually admit there were more of them after I pressed. Or whatever you want to interpret 'it's just the two of us now' as, anyawy.

But you could've inferred that anyway from how they said they 'wouldn't ask us to do anything they hadn't.'

[ he's absolutely fingerquoting around that. ]

[idologue]

The price for their knowledge was paid in blood - Ho-Oh said the same to me. I can't confirm how many lives it took for them to run their experiments, but maybe we do not need to know.

After all, we cannot undo the death that has already occurred.

[hearnoplague]

[ That last sentence earns a second glance from the squid... But he shakes his head. ]

That is true. But now I wonder how that group came to inherit this island in the first place.

[solutionary]

As abhorrent as it is, knowing how many or how the blood was spilled might give a clue to why they need us or how long it has been going on. Nothing good comes from any kind of magic fueled in such a way however.

[hearnoplague]

What makes you say that?

[ He doesn't sound particularly pleased about that assertion but maybe it needs more context? ]

[solutionary]

Powering anything with the life force of others often leads to needing more and more as time passes. Unless you mean the good intentions? [The question is accompanied by Baizhu inclining his head slightly, and Changsheng taking the chance to extend her head closer to look. Mercifully, she doesn't do anything more yet.]

[hearnoplague]

Which is why you regularly bring in new people if you must rely on sacrifices...

[ Scooting a little bit away, why are you staring at him like that. ]

Besides, unless it's different in your world you shouldn't need to sacrifice more to get the same result unless you're doing something wrong. Sure, some sacrifices may yield higher benefits than others, but generally speaking you shouldn't need to... Say, sacrifice two people for something you previously sacrificed one for.

Unless we're dealing with some ravenous predator from the darkest corners of the unknown, that is. That's another story, and one I don't care to deal with.

[solutionary]

...I do think we must be talking about different ideas. [Changsheng flicks her tongue and slides slightly down Baizhu's arm to get closer.] What few things I know of that use life force--and I say life force and not entire sacrifices specifically-- generally have a deterioration aspect included in it. I'm a doctor though, and not someone who tries to sacrifice anything.

[There's a suspicious cough-like sound that comes from Changsheng, before she turns back and loops tighter around Baizhu's neck]

[finalmix]

[ a pause. it looks like josh is Thinking. ]

Huh. Interesting......

[ he doesn't elaborate. ]

[microtransactions]

[ what goes on in that thinky thinkle... ]

Isn't it?

[finalmix]

[ ask him and maybe he will feel like sharing! maybe. flip a coin. ☆ ]

[microtransactions]

[ oh goodie, he loves games. but sure, he'll bite. ]

Penny for your thoughts?

[dupiety]

I drew a similar conclusion and asked them if they had usurped the island from the previous keeper, but they denied it. According to them, the island was "close to" abandoned. Cagey with the details, of course.

[finalmix]

Doesn't really change the fact that they probably took over and then had to figure out that they were in way over their heads?

[ shrugs. ]

[dupiety]

That much is certain, yes. I am merely setting the record straight.

[skyworp]

‘More complicated’? Go on. You speak as if you have experience in the matter.

cw: cult stuff?

[hearnoplague]

Really? Have you not heard of ritual sacrifice before? That's the most common way to go about it.

[ He's speaking awfully casually about this. ]

[skyworp]

Can’t say it’s much of a custom where I’m from.