Eternal Summer

[polymods]

✖ 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

Comments

Elenore Evans - OC

[hostile_encounter]

II. Flower Market
During the day, Elenore alternates between staked out a tent of her own in the flower market and wandering the stalls. A month of exploring and experimenting have resulted in a variety of clothing, all dyed a reliable shade of black or grey, and a variety of weird herbal powders all carefully labeled in her very linear script. She's mostly offering trades of information or plant material as opposed to selling her products, all too aware that they will be leaving at the end of the month and there's only so much time. Even less that she'll be able to carry with her.

At night, though, she'd certainly be open to getting a drink with someone, if only to enjoy the music.


III. Poison Garden
Elenore has spent the last month split between trying to find the most interesting and useful plants on the island and trying to make them useful. Of course, she's going to take her gathering basket and open the door marked with a skull and crossbones. It's like it was practically begging her to come in.

She never even notices the garden swallowing her. Why would she possibly want to escape when the good stuff finally showed up? She's got her rubber gloves that cover her to the elbows and collection materials that vary from cloth bags to sealable bottles, and you can bet your sweet aunt Maybel that Elenore is carefully collecting materials while deliberately ignoring the fact that this appears to be someone's formal garden. It's rude and likely unethical, but she does not give one damn.

It might help if someone told her she was trapped, though.


VI. FLOWERY FIELDS FOREVER
By this point, Elenore knows how to travel in the hills. She's marked out paths of her own to get to a few very interesting plants. But this invitation by the villagers to go out and collect is new, and a little bit suspicious. Definitely not the time to head out alone. Spotting a person who looks like they're about to head out, she gets their attention.

"Hey, it's not good to go alone."

III (cw: vomiting)

[what_fourth_wall]

A man in a red and black mask wearing a toga sits up suddenly from a patch of greenery near Elenore. Upon closer inspection, it is obvious that his proportions aren't quite right. While he is no longer the teeny tiny body with the huge bobble head, he is still a body that doesn't really fit the head size. Look, it takes time to regrow a whole body, alright? Also, his healing factor may not be working entirely up to code here, but that really isn't something he's admitting. Also, he's still abusing the everloving shit out of his own personal deus ex machina.

Like for example.

"HUUURRRGGGGGKKKKKKKK!!!!" Deadpool sits up and projectile spews a bunch of bloody vomit everywhere.

"PTEH, PPTEH, ugh, vomit tastes so bad, ugh, I hate throwing up, ugh." He wipes at his mouth with the back of his hand. "Contrary to popular belief, even if you have an amazeballs healing factor, poison can still suck. It just doesn't kill you. Unfortunately. Experiment failed. And here I tried to help the Ancient One out and sentence myself to die for corrupting the youth and their accompanying friendship bracelet colors."

With a wry look he holds up a plant, then tosses it away. "There's so much that I don't know. But now I know one more thing. Hemlock suuuuucks."

CW: attempted suicide

[hostile_encounter]

Nope. Elenore does not like the sudden appearance of any unexpected person, especially not a masked one interrupting her work. She slips the specimen in its container and starts to back up. No reason to make the potential violence easy.

...Or, apparently, limiting how much exposure she's going to get to that fountain of blood and poison spewing from his mouth. That is just profoundly foul, and how did it make it out of the mask on his face in the first place? A little splatter is going to require a bath and some laundry. She should probably be more concerned about his survival, but there's a limit on what she can do with the tools at hand.

But he keeps talking. And complaining. And not dying? After consuming hemlock?

"...Why are you trying to kill yourself, again?" Because that's the thread to pull right now.

[what_fourth_wall]

"Because I'm as wise as Socrates, clearly."

He pushes himself to his feet and makes some futile efforts to try to brush away what remains of the vomit. It's a trade secret how he vomits through a mask, BUT...it's still not his favorite thing. It's pretty gross, actually. He pulls off the mask and tosses it over his shoulder, and reaches under his toga and pulls out another one to put on.

"Also, nobody would take up my request to test the notion if we could die, so I decided to give it another go in this fancy lethal gard-" He pauses and scratches. Then scratches some more. And some more. "AH FUCK I PASSED OUT IN SOME POISON IVY FUCK FUCK FUCK"

He sproings out of the poison ivy, his skin covered with red bumps and dances around for several minutes swearing profusely until it fades away. Once he's not laying in it, his healing factor makes short work of the irritation.

[hostile_encounter]

"Socrates was executed." Look, she doesn't know him well enough to comment on his intelligence, but she's definitely getting an impression of his choices so far.

...Wait, maybe she does know. Just a little. The whole trying to get people to die thing, the mask, the fascinating reaction to poisons all add up. "You're Deadpool."

Well, fuck.

Flowery Fields

[unkindled_madness]

It's very nice to have pants again, without having to touch those tie-dye monstrosities. He may have even said 'thank you.' But, she wanted more than gratitude, as any rational person would, so it's time he hold up his end of the bargain. If she doesn't want to go out into the fields solo, he can play the part of bodyguard, complete with machete tucked into his belt. He won't actually carry the basket unless she foists it off on him though.

"Do you believe it's any more dangerous now than it was?" He's skeptical, but it's a genuine question. If someone's sighted something besides the mantises, he'd like to know.

[hostile_encounter]

A month of exploring the isle has given Elenore a bit more strength and stamina than when she started, but there are multiple reasons she wants support on this journey. And only one of them is wanting any kind of protection.

"More dangerous? No, but there's no such thing as a straight line out there, and it helps to have another person for reference."

[unkindled_madness]

Sephiroth shrugs, because it's certainly not something he's bothered with, but he supposes not everyone has a sense of direction. He can hope for some sort of fight, but he wasn't expecting this excursion to be particularly engaging.

"...if that's what you require."

[hostile_encounter]

Elenore has some theories about the nature of this particular Isle and how it responds to her particular brand of poking. Should she possibly mention it to Sephiroth before they head out? Almost certainly. But what's the point of spoiling the surprise?

"We'll see how it goes!" And with a chipper attitude that would shock any of her colleagues from home, Elenore plunges into the undergrowth, clearly not sticking to the path.

IV - Because Flowers

[helpdesk_hero]

She wasn't the only one who knew how to travel the hills, and David was by no means unfamiliar with them. Sometimes wandering in nature to get lost in absolutely messed up horticulture was the best way to not think about other things. Even the strangeness of being offered a basket didn't stop him. Though a voice called out and that made him stop.

In spite of himself he couldn't resist the first response that came to his mind. Too many video games he guessed.

"I'm taking this," he said as he gestured with the basket, as if that might be a replacement for a weapon. "It'll be fine."

[hostile_encounter]

The hint of recognition of a meme she managed from memory (how long has it been since she had access to some kind of computer?) makes Elenore smile. It's the little things in a weird environment.

"Not quite a substitute for a decent sword. Or a flame thrower and a hazmat suit." She has her own basket, of course, why not take free food? But there are some of the tools she's pulled together for practical uses in it, including a machete and elbow-length rubber gloves. "I'm pretty sure I saw some giant hogweed out there yesterday. So, either I'm really annoying whatever governs the presence of plants on the island, or not all the messages are friendly."

[helpdesk_hero]

David was a child of the computer generation, of course he spoke in meme. Spoke them quite very easily and he was happy to provide a joke. Especially with the sword reference. Good, he had reaced in a way to amuse.

"See, I'm not getting the whole FPS or Post-Apocalypse vibe right now, so flamethrower and hazmat seems a bit overdone."

He hasn't bothered with the machete or gloves though. Clearly he's not properly prepared, or so it would seem.

"Messages? These are meant to be messages? I'm getting really annoyed then for seeing so many plants good for headaches."

[hostile_encounter]

"Clearly you've never dealt with giant hogweed," she shivers slightly at the very specific sense memory of the photosensitivity-induced burns from her first encounter with the plant in the wild.

She looks at the basket and the villagers sending people out into the wild, and again wonders if her experience has been different than most. "Yeah, there's something about meanings behind the plants you see? I don't know. Could just be a superstition, but the landscape seems kind of mutable in a way that implies some kind of interference."

VI. FLOWERY FIELDS FOREVER

[quire]

"You don't look like an old hermit, but... if you're about to offer me a sword I wouldn't turn it down." Perplexing or frustrating as it is he offers nothing to help explain what he might mean by that, under the assumption that anyone who utters such a warning knows exactly what they're doing.

"What's the fear anyway? It's a field full of flowers. Do you need an Allegra?"

[hostile_encounter]

She offers the extra machete she'd brought down as bait for anyone she can rope into traveling with her.

"I don't really have many pollen allergies, but I'm not a big fan of dealing with photodermatitis, and I definitely spotted some giant hogsweed yesterday. My guess is that's not the only really nasty plant around."

[quire]

"Well ok. But it's not like we're dealing with triffids here right? You're just talking about lie poison oak and something with thorns. Right?" He's good at being excessively glib about most things, but the prospect that any of these plants pose an actual threat is interesting enough that she'd made him genuinely curious. "What's hogsweed do?"

[hostile_encounter]

"Well," she considers how candid to be, and settles on the fact she's already given him a machete, "I think we have no way of knowing. The island isn't literally big enough to have every kind of blooming plant, right? But I've found flowers that are extinct in my world, and things that definitely didn't come from any taxonomy I know of. So, I suspect the island makes flowers based on the knowledge and experience of its visitors. So, it's reasonably possible there is a human-eating plant out there."

Given the huge amount of speculation she just put out there, the reasonable scientist in her feels the need to follow up slightly. "Though, giant hogsweed only has a history of leaving people who mess with it painfully scarred and potentially blinded." She somehow manages to still sound enthusiatic.

flower market

[wwrench]

If it's camouflage Wrench is after, he'd be better off sticking with the ostentatiously-dyed clothing granted to him at the temple. The bursts of vibrant color don't contrast with the backdrop of this island the way the black garb does. But he'd found himself immediately drawn to the offer, and now as he wanders through the vendors' stalls, the dyed fabrics once again catch his eye.

He pauses in front of Elenore's booth and flicks through a few pairs of long pants thoughtfully. It isn't too long, however, until the little vials catch his eye. He picks up one or two, reading the script and turning them over. After a time he bats his hand in her direction. It's unnecessary, since the ScryWatch will handle the translation without needing her attention, but old habits die hard.

You a doctor? It's apparent when he signs that his left hand is stiff and immobile. That, like the scar across his palm, are his gifts from the Oracle.

[hostile_encounter]

It's pretty easy to recognize Wrench as one of the Travelers from her group even if she doesn't know him specifically. If he goes for the pants, she'll give them for free. Goodwill is more important than money at this point.

The shift to the vials changes her attention. Does he have a specific need or is he just curious? She's already set to pay attention when he bats his hand. Learning that the ScryWatch translates is interesting, but not so distracting that she doesn't make a face with his question.

"Not in a legal medical sense?" How much does a person want to say in their setting? Well, the chances of it coming back to bite her are small. "I've got a background in biology, chemistry, and helping vigilantes piece themselves back together."

He can decide if that counts for himself.

[wwrench]

The last in the list of her credentials counts the most. It's not that the others aren't more impressive, but knowing what she does for others tells him more about what she's likely to have encountered than anything else. Wrench can't call himself a vigilante. He's probably the opposite of that, as evidenced by the orange glow of the ScryWatch he keeps referring to for their conversation. But it's exactly the level of care that he's gotten used to over the course of his life.

You have anything for this? he wonders, and holds his left palm up so she can see the slowly-healing scar that stretches the breadth of it. It's frozen. I can't move my fingers. I don't mind reopening it and flushing it out, but I don't want to make it worse. Nor does it look infected, despite his complaint.

[hostile_encounter]

There is exactly one situation where Elenore is willing to easily puncture her personal bubble easily, and that is during the curiosity of a problem to solve. So hopefully Wrench can handle her coming over to reach for his hand. Poking and probing the injury definitely gives her a sense of the injury and lack of movement of his fingers.

"There does seem to be something in the wound. Either a foreign body or maybe some significant encysted infection. My suggestion is that you don't make the attempt yourself. I've got decent equipment for this procedure, including painkillers."

II

[howlett]

"Turned out good, huh?" he asks running a fold of that dark fabric between his fingers. This is what she was cooking up when they crossed paths in the kitchen.

"What do you want for them?"

[hostile_encounter]

"I'm pretty satisfied all considered." She's also glad to show the end result to one of the people who witnessed the early stages. Especially the man who had brought up some questions she hadn't had a chance to ask yet.

"No charge to Travelers in our group."

[howlett]

"Reminds me of dorosome," he says, looking a little nostalgic about that. Or at least lost in thought. "It's an old Japanese dying method. They'd use iron rich mud with yeddo hawthorn to make black linen. I always liked the way it faded to that kinda... warm charcoal colour. Lot like this. It's nice."

He looks pleasantly surprised by that, but quickly he's shaking his head. "This took some work. Lemme give you something for it? What do you need that I can getcha?"

[hostile_encounter]

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?"