polymods: (Default)
polymods ([personal profile] polymods) wrote in [community profile] polylogs2021-08-02 02:05 pm

Eternal Summer

POLYMYTHOS: THE ISLE THAT BLOOMS

The Isle That Blooms


Ⅰ. ALWAYS BLOOMING, NEVER HARVEST
July flowers bring, well, August flowers.

Another month has come and gone, and you may have noticed things haven’t changed much. Everything is still beautiful. There are still no signs of babies or prepubescent children or young animals.

In fact, if you’re paying close enough attention, you may have noticed there are no fruits or grains or vegetables that have come from the constant riot of color and pollen. Only flowers, always flowers.

You still have access to the city’s temple and the baths. The High Temple’s doors are open to everyone.

Some of you may still be dealing with the unpleasant side effects of the Ancient’s now dead and gone Flower Oracle, but it should wind down before the end of the month. Or maybe you already faced your demons.

Hiding out in the Temples for the rest of the month is always an option, but be careful not to get too stagnant. It would be a shame if your ScryWatch stays stuck on the same color forever because you, too, decided to stop growing.



Ⅱ. FLOWER MARKET FESTIVAL
CW: Optional Alcohol/Drug Consumption.
You didn’t think the celebrations would be over just because the Flower Oracle came and went, did you? There’s always a new event, a new thing to do, a new way to make some benefit off the Travelers who pass in and out of the Isle looking to take something away from this place.

This month it’s the Flower Market!

During the days, stalls bloom beneath the elevated buildings and in the empty center where the Flower Oracle once stood. There are flowers, of course, in buckets, arrangements, wreaths, crowns, growing in tiny little pots, made into cakes, salsas, and snacks! Artists will find pigments, paints, inks, dyes, and papers. There are perfumes, lotions, oils, soaps, and more. Spices and herbs are abundant; you’ve certainly never seen saffron this cheap. If you haven’t gotten enough tie-dye from the temple, you’ll find beautiful batik clothing, purses, and even jewelry. Everything is bright, everything is for sale.

At night, the stalls are all folded away and instruments come out. Little stalls sell flowery alcoholic drinks and did you know or remember that cannabis is a flowering plant? The locals certainly remembered to make the edibles. Careful, though, drink or imbibe and you’ll find yourself talking about the things you need that you cannot buy. The things you are aching for.

And you won’t stop until someone acknowledges it.

Notes:
1. If you want it and it’s made of flowers, it’s here. No drugs or alcohol during daylight hours.

2. The Temple gives a small amount of spending money daily. Save up and get fancy, or buy a little bit of everything.

3. There is a tiny group of unknown Travelers that show up for the market. They don’t seem to have access to the same network as PCs, but their watches flash green, blue, or purple. They seem to be avoiding PC Travelers and disappear into parts of the Temples that don’t seem to be open to our group yet whenever they get too close.



Ⅲ. POISON GARDEN
CW: Poisons, narcotics, ect.
As you wander the now familiar village, you will notice a new pathway has opened at the edge of the village. It leads to an area with a high stone fence and a heavy gate. A skull and crossbones are painted on the gate in bright white paint, but there’s nothing actually stopping you from opening the gate and walking in.

The garden is beautiful, but surprisingly formal after the chaotic abundance of the rest of the Isle. The paths are wide and there’s space between the plants. Each one is meticulously labeled with a stake in the ground.

Do you read the labels? How long does it take you to realize everything in the garden is toxic or poisonous? There are so many options from hemlock and oleander to aconitum and angel’s trumpet and beyond.

Welcome to a study on how not everything that's natural is good for you as you continue to wander the fractal paths. Of course, not everything that's poisonous has no purpose. By the opium poppies there’s a sign that tells you that you can choose to wander the deadly garden until it kills you or you can own up to a toxic habit or behavior that you need to deal with.

Notes:
1. In theory, a character could wander forever without touching or consuming any of the poisons. For plot/fun reasons, feel free to make it a little more difficult. And remember, some of your characters can be poisoned to death.

2. Acknowledging bad habits or a need for change in an honest way is very likely to result in a shift in a ScryWatch color. Remember, the Ancient is looking for growth and improvement, not moral perfection.

3. Characters can collect poisonous or medicinal plants but will be at risk while doing so.



Ⅳ. FLOWERY FIELDS FOREVER
Maybe you need to get away from the fuss at the market or just want to stretch your legs, but it’s time to explore the flowering landscape around the village. The villagers have baskets waiting at each of the outbound trails with the request that you come back with the basket full in trade for the picnic lunch they provide.

Wander the rolling hills and you’ll find a surprising amount of wildlife for an island without offspring. There are hummingbirds the size of chihuahuas, tiny pollinating bats, nectar eating possums, giant stingless bees, and more butterflies than you can shake a stick at. All of them seem entirely unafraid of humans despite being wild animals. If you get bitten or pecked, it’s your own fault.

As you fill your basket, you’ll notice patterns in what blooms. All kinds of plants bloom outside of reason and season and traditional need because the land is trying to talk to you through flowers. What did you need to hear? The villagers can help you translate when you come back from your adventure.

Notes:
1. The giant orchid mantises are still there! Thank Gideon and Harrow for negotiating a truce, so they probably won’t eat you. A mantis might even have a conversation with you if you ask nicely, (Quentin managed somehow,) and they have their own knowledge and worship of the Ancient.

2. Feel free to use any reference for plant/flower meaning. Here’s one to get started!

3. Don’t get too attached to any of the critters, they will stay here at the end of the month.

Bonus: music to watch the flowers bloom to.


Network · Logs · OOC · Memes · Plurk

helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 02:54 am (UTC)(link)
"I did," David promises. A few times. ANd he loved seeing his boss. But... But it was emotionally complicated and he had an important question to ask Jean-Paul and he wasn't brave about it.

But now he wraps an arm around Carter, hoping to keep him feeling safe.

"I know what you mean. There are people I don't want to see either."
queenking: ([neutral] ew no why)

[personal profile] queenking 2021-08-21 02:55 am (UTC)(link)
-- hey, my bottles.

[Saxsice grumbles a little, but rolls her shoulders back, cracking her neck, then -- transforming, because it's easier to be incognito when you look more or less like a stray mutt. A...big snowy-white one.

Whatever, she can smell better like this, aiming her nose to the ground and approaching the strangers on big, silent paws.
]
unkindled_madness: (talking)

[personal profile] unkindled_madness 2021-08-21 03:03 am (UTC)(link)
What do you even make of someone admitting that they've died before? How could it be used against them?

"To reverse death, I suppose he must be. No magic I know can accomplish that."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 03:08 am (UTC)(link)
You probably don't make very much of someone making such claims. But David's doing it anyway.

"Magics I know aren't good at it either."

Tired of his position, David rose to his feet and stretched.

"I know, it's weird to hear. That's sorta how life works where I'm from. Weirdly."
extrasensory_problems: (Default)

[personal profile] extrasensory_problems 2021-08-21 03:11 am (UTC)(link)
Carter sighs, grateful for David's arm around him.

"I'm glad you understand." He simply says, feeling a little bit of a weight being lifted off his chest. He's felt guilty having such thoughts since first running into Jean Paul and it's nice to be able to not only voice them but have a friend who understands.
unkindled_madness: (no one likes HR meetings)

[personal profile] unkindled_madness 2021-08-21 03:17 am (UTC)(link)
"I've been forced to consider more than one strange possibility since arriving here."

And he retains his skepticism in this case, but given the things he's seen proof of, he can't outright disbelieve it either.
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 03:22 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes, it's frustrating, isn't it?" David sighs. He could use a drink if he's touching on this stuff.

"How about this for strange."

He holds a hand out and a fan made of golden light formed in his hand. With a flick of his wrist David snapped it open and started to fan himself. The evening was still a little warm.
unkindled_madness: (looking down)

[personal profile] unkindled_madness 2021-08-21 03:25 am (UTC)(link)
[Do the strangers have a sixth sense for the approach of other Travellers? There's no urgency to the way they disengage from the market and head towards the local Temple, but the timing is suspect.

Even moreso when Sephiroth comes near to cutting them off, and they redirect towards the High Temple instead. Maybe he should have recruited a third person for this attempted pincer but he wasn't expecting this degree of avoidance.]
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 03:29 am (UTC)(link)
"If you ever need someone to stand between you and someone from back home, let me know. I'm content to be a barrier."

ANd he's enough of a downer when he wants to be that it's even effective sometimes.
unkindled_madness: (pensive)

[personal profile] unkindled_madness 2021-08-21 03:32 am (UTC)(link)
Sephiroth stares at the fan not really in surprise so much as... weariness. It's a pointless little display as far as he's concerned, nothing to envy, and yet, it's another display of some kind of magic he's never seen, much less possessed. He sighs.

"And what is it that frustrates you?"

A simple matter for him to learn any skills he lacks, after all. Or so he says.
hostile_encounter: (58)

[personal profile] hostile_encounter 2021-08-21 04:17 am (UTC)(link)
"So, market for supplies, temple for crafting, then we set the traps and hope." She glances down at her basket. "And We should probably drop these off?"
extrasensory_problems: (laying_down)

[personal profile] extrasensory_problems 2021-08-21 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Thank you, that's very kind of you to offer." Carter says, "And I will do the same for you if you want."
hostile_encounter: hollow-art.com (pic#14601669)

[personal profile] hostile_encounter 2021-08-21 04:24 am (UTC)(link)
Elenore listens with simple interest and a hint of regret. "I should have asked you for some help earlier in the process. Would have made things a lot easier. But thank you."

The assistance on paying back is appreciated, and part of why she's quick to offer free. Still, he doesn't have to and she knows that. "Honestly, I'm good here for the most part here. Plenty to do, basic needs met. But I'm not sure how things are going to go next month? All I've got is my brain and a particular talent with biology. No powers, no magic. Doesn't have to be much, but good will seems worthwhile?"
speed_of_snark: (look up)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:31 am (UTC)(link)
Jean-Paul's faintly puzzled look remains, but his eyes seem to size David up anew. It's a bit of a calculating expression.

"Ouais," he says. "I like to think I do. Now! Something to drink before we die of thirst."
speed_of_snark: (look up)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:34 am (UTC)(link)
Jean-Paul doesn't even bother to roll his eyes.

"Really? Hn. Might have to try it."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
David wants to laugh at the offer, but he nods.

"Yeah, please. And mostly keep me away from them because I'm stubborn enough to just walk into it."
speed_of_snark: (look up)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
"I suppose I'll have to start talking to people in order to score this good shit," he sighs.

Jean-Paul snorts. "You're not useless, old friend," he says, stealing several more bites of food. "None of us are being allowed to punch our way out of things. Fucking Loki is here and HE hasn't gotten out, that really says something."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 04:39 am (UTC)(link)
If only it were magic.

"Me? Racism," David answered with a shrug. "It's tiring at this point. People just refusing to think about other people that are different from them as valuable and really people."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2021-08-21 04:41 am (UTC)(link)
Size him up all you want. David doesn't care. People evaluate him more than enough as it is. He's used to it.

"If this is like the last place, if we die of thirst we'll just be back. But unlike Wade, I don't want to test it."
speed_of_snark: (a smile)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:41 am (UTC)(link)
Well, we've only just met so I can't give you an exhaustive list, but at the moment I think you're lacking a little energy, a sense of adventure.
quire: (cocky)

[personal profile] quire 2021-08-21 04:44 am (UTC)(link)
Judging by the smug satisfaction on his face he takes that to mean he's won.

"It doesn't taste incredible. Sort of like herbal tea and radishes. But it's caffeinated as fuck so. Whatever."
speed_of_snark: (look up)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:47 am (UTC)(link)
That description actually gets Jean-Paul to crack a smile. Congrats, Wade.

Snort. "You're a prince," he says. "By all means, keep babbling.

"And of course I know people. People aren't actually particularly difficult to figure out, it's just they they get all pissy when you say what they are out loud. Although Quire isn't one of mine. He belongs to Logan." Another snort. "You know what? Sure. As long as we're here, you're on X-Factor version 2.0."
speed_of_snark: (a smile)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:51 am (UTC)(link)
"I'm not testing jack shit," Jean-Paul says easily. "You and I? We've had enough dying."
extrasensory_problems: (mmmaaaaaybe)

[personal profile] extrasensory_problems 2021-08-21 04:52 am (UTC)(link)
"Got it. I'll like...urmm pick you up and carry you away back to the temple. And force
you to stay there with me by hugging you." He says, smiling.
speed_of_snark: (look up)

[personal profile] speed_of_snark 2021-08-21 04:53 am (UTC)(link)
"Whatever indeed. Is that what you've bene up to all month? Finding coffee substitutes?"