AUGUST INTRO LOG: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

[asgardmods]

Who: EVERYONE
What: the August intro log and first god house competition, More Than Meets the Eye
When: August 8
Where: Gladsheim Palace for breakfast, around Asgard for the game/curse
Rating: PG-13; please take anything higher than this to a private log!

morning: a warm invitation

Everyone wakes up to a friendly invitation to breakfast at the castle with the gods. For most of you, this comes as a message on your bracelet, reading:

Join us at the castle today to welcome some new Wanderers into our midst. Breakfast will be served and a lively game will be available to all of our guests, both new and old.

New Wanderers are curious on their own, and this is the first there's ever been mention of a game. Perhaps it's enough for you to make the trek to the castle, to see what all the fuss is about, or maybe even to see if there's someone you know. Perhaps you want to learn more about the game, or maybe you just want the food.

For our new guests, this comes as a bit more of a surprise. Wherever you were before in your world, without even realizing it, you wake up in a strange new place. No time or space inbetween, just an awareness of There and then Here. A matronly figure tries to explain your circumstances with a sympathetic smile, but ultimately invites you meet them all for yourselves: the Gods of Asgard, and the Wanderers that arrived before you.



The sight that greets you on the castle grounds is a rather festive one, regardless of where you're coming from. Colorful streamers and flags are draped above large tables with room for several guests. Natives bustle about, cheerfully offering food and drinks to anyone that wants some. Everyone is welcomed to mingle and greet the new Wanderers on this bright summer morning.

the game: a friendly competition

Among the brightly decorated tables are ones highlighted in a specific color for a specific god house, and most of the gods themselves can be found sitting behind it with a few of their district's natives. They are here to welcome the new Wanderers into Asgard - but they're also here to explain the rules of today's game. There are coins hidden throughout the city and disguised as mundane items, and the god house that returns the most of their coins will win an upgrade to their god housing! No hints will be given, but the natives are excited to help facilitate the activity and happily invite you to wander through their districts to find what you can.

But you don't have to know about the rules to be playing the game! The coins are already hidden throughout the city, and no one knows what they are until they've been picked up. Whether you're banding together with friends to find as many coins as you can or blindly stumbling over an unpleasant surprise, the game and the curse are in full swing!

evening: a fair prize

At sundown, all of the coins in the city disappear at once, whether they're in your pocket or still disguised as a bowl. Points will be tallied and a winner will be announced (OOCly, on August 17) - but Asgardians are keen to celebrate regardless of who wins a rather inconsequential game. The same colorful display of tables and chairs is still spread across the castle grounds, although now they twinkle with fairy lights haphazardly blinking throughout the air. Snacks and drinks are made available, as well as more dinner-shaped meals for those that request it. Mostly the natives simply want to bask in the strangeness of these Wanderers from other worlds for a moment longer - but they're also eagerly listening to any stories from the day's mischievous game. Relax, enjoy yourself, or again, just stock up on some freely served food. Whatever suits your needs today. Welcome to Asgard, dear Wanderers.

[ OOC NOTE: This is the intro log for August, as well as our first god house competition/curse: More Than Meets the Eye. You are free to play with the curse prompts and searching the city in any way you want! If you would like to submit a map to earn points for your god house, please check out the rules to learn what to do. We will accept maps until August 17, at which point a winner will be announced and members of that god house will be allowed to vote for an upgrade to their god housing. As always, please let us know if you have any questions or need any help on the mod contact page. Enjoy, friends! ]

Comments

[driving]

[ Is it that obvious that something's wrong? Yeah, yeah it is. He still looks lost, his eyes are miles away.

This time, he doesn't even acknowledge Sandy. ] I'm alive, I guess. That's better than I thought.

[ He certainly looks like he's just come back from the dead, with dark circles around his eyes, but he is - somehow - alive. ]

[momsboy]

[ Now that peter is giving the teen a proper look, he can see the familiar sign of someone who's not sleeping well or generally having a good time. He's been there often, still not quite recovered about what happened with Thanos, and it makes shim immediately sympathize.

He straightens a little and then leans forward, arms resting on the table so he can speak to Billy without being overheard. Sandy doesn't move but she still eyes billy with concern. ]

What happened? Are you hurt? I know someone here who is a healer if you need it.

[driving]

I was hurt. [ Okay, Peter's seen him before and knows something's up. He pulls down the collar of his shirt just enough to reveal half of that nasty scar he has where a giant claw nearly went through him.

It's healed. It doesn't hurt. Unfortunately the emotional damage isn't so easy. ] Sorry for painting your ship or whatever. [ It's not an enthusiastic apology, but at least it is one. Whatever happened to him back home, he's at least trying not to be a huge jerk to people who are nice to him. ]

[momsboy]

Kriff... [ It's an alien swear but Peter's surprised stare should be enough to give away what it means. He can't help but briefly think about Ego's light tentacles impaling him in a similar fashion, years ago. ] Who did this to you?

[ The tone suggests that Peter will have a few words with them for Billy's sake. They might not know each other well but this isn't something to treat lightly. What he's not expecting is an apology for an answer and he reaches out slowly to give his arm a comforting squeeze. It's light enough that the younger man can pull away without issue if he wants to. ]

Ships are just things, they can be replaced. Don't worry about it. Skadi is covering it with moss, anyway.

[ She doesn't appreciate the Benatar ruining her park's landscape but at least Peter and her reached a compromise about it. ]

[driving]

Nobody here.

[ Though if anyone's likely to have seen something similar to the beast that killed him, the guy who lives in space is probably up there. He doesn't know exactly what the creature was despite being unwillingly inducted into its hive-mind, but alien is as good of a guess as any. ]

I went home. There was this...giant monster. It was trying to kill everyone. [ He doesn't pull away when his arm is squeezed. He could use some comforting physical contact right now. ] I held it off as long as I could.

[ And he has no idea if it was enough or not. ]

[momsboy]

You went home...I didn't know that such a thing was possible.

[ Either way, Billy is back here so whatever left him to come back wasn't for long. Judging by how things turned out in his world, maybe is for the better.

Peter's familiar enough with self-sacrifice to catch the implication of Billy's tone and read between the metaphorical lines of that explanation. After all, Tony Stark is in the city too and he shouldn't be. ]

I see. You did good, kid. [ Since Billy hasn't pulled away from him, Peter lets his hand moves from the younger man's arm to his back, giving him a small, half hug. ] You did good.