DOWNTIME MINGLE #3

[synfluxmods]

DOWNTIME MINGLE #3

CONTENT WARNINGS: natural disaster, forced scenarios.

▶ 001. A JOB WELL DONE.

As Outsiders head back from Okinawa (or, perhaps they are already back, characters were able to leave Okinawa through the dataportal whenever) with plenty of coconut crab and mutated fish, Outsiders can expect to have the cafeteria filled with crab and fish food for the next.. well, undetermined amount of time. The power outages have been restored on the LILITH base, and while Outsiders have been enjoying their change of pace in Okinawa, there has been some celebratory news across the Outsider's ocular implants. It looks like it is a message from the big guy himself! Whoever that is. Wasn't his name.. Eiji something? Elijah?

"I'm not going to waste my time with introductions, because we have more important matters to discuss. First of all, good work. Second, while we have been met with several successes, don't let it get to your head. Third, continue following the lead of Yamakawa. ... This is why I don't do celebratory speeches. CODENAMES MONEYBAGS, DUELWIELD, BUSTERMOVE, CHAINSAW MAN and CURSE... great work. You'll see the rewards of your hard work momentarily. Report to me for a payout."

The announcement won't leave an Outsider's implant until it has been read, but just as the voice said, Outsiders will find a Sampo themed pachinko machine installed by the cafeteria near the vending machines. It looks like it's ready to be played! Why not give it a go? Because who wouldn't want to see this charm willingly.

A lot of toy companies are also wanting their skin in this game and have introduced the set of several actions figures based off Yzak and Dearka's gundams, which can be seen distributed on base. The caveat, however, is that you will need to build them piece-by-piece. Alongside this, there will also be Denji-themed plushies, even if it looks like a cross between a dog and human.

Thanks to Choso, hair care on the base has also gotten a lot better. Due to sponsorships, Outsiders are readily able to access more shampoo and conditioner options. Though, maybe thanks to the pictures on the bottle— buns are now trending.

Maybe give the pachinko machine a spin? Or try Choso's brand of shampoo your team's wing communal shower?

▶ 002. TRADITIONAL TANABATA.

The sun is hot but summer is traditionally festival season in Neo Tokyo; these old traditions have managed to hold up in this gritty society in attempts to keep a positive morale, so some citizens and organizers try to keep the tradition going and lift spirits by celebrating local festivals. Many districts and neighborhoods have their own festivals as well. One day, you might stumble onto a shopping district’s wind chime festival and the next day, you might find flyers for a neighborhood’s morning glory festival.

The largest festival of the month is the Tanabata festival. Since the holiday falls in an odd weekday this year, the main celebration is held the next weekend. Civilians and Outsiders can find various shrines, shopping centers, and community buildings with bamboo branches on display with holographic slips of paper that alternate colors. Characters that pass by may submit their wishes on their implants; a new way to keep the old tradition.

On the weekend, some stalls have been set up for people to celebrate. Attendance is low because of the heat and due to a food shortage, the options are lacking. However, there are plenty of games such as a toy shooting range with laser guns and kaiju targets. There are also goldfish catching games where people can catch a cheap goldfish drone that can “swim” in the air and water and shoot bubbles. As a bonus, LILITH will provide Outsiders with an outfit upgrade to help lift spirits. The outfit consists of a traditional summer yukata or jinbei.

Fireworks have gone out of style due to attracting kaiju attention. However, at the festival’s end, there is a drone light show. Hundreds of customized hummingbird drones take to the sky and create elaborate illuminations and shapes in the sky while music plays.

▶ 003. DR. RATIO'S RENOVATIONS.

Festival season means LILITH also has to get in on the action, and while a certain Outsider named Dr. Ratio has raised concerns over the stated of the LILITH base Library, LILITH has actually listened to his desperate plea to renovate the library. What a perfect opportunity for LILITH to use the festival as a way of raising funds so they don't have to dip into their kaiju payout funds (and pizza party fund.) It's time for LILITH's annual SUMMER FESTA. Every year, LILITH comes together with local organizations like fire stations, police stations, clinics, and nonprofits to promote public safety and awareness. It's a one day festival where people can get information about what to do to stay safe not only during kaiju attacks but in their daily lives. The funds raised at the festival will go to training, supplies, research, and maintaining services.

As usual, LILITH is raising money for disaster relief supplies and renovation projects across Neo Tokyo. Per request, LILITH has agreed to set aside some funds to help renovate the facilities on base, including the library. However, they will task the Outsiders with raising the money.

It's a festival so how they raise the money is both up up to them or they may take the suggestions according to their team placement below. Either way, Outsiders are required to work with other people on their same team but they're encouraged to make it fun. Set up game stalls, sell food, do performances, and ask for donations to raise as much money as possible for their projects. The team that raises the most money is promised a prize while the losers will be punished. Here are the team suggestions below and some of them may have some new, modern twists:

Everlight: Kingyo-sukui, which is goldfish catching with a paper scoop. Managing the takoyaki stands.
Revelation: Yoyo-tsuri, fishing for water-filled balloons with a “fishing pole” with a paper string. Managing the mask stands.
Brimstone: Shateki, shooting at targets for prizes. Managing the sparklers stands.. sparklers shouldn't catch kaiju attention, right?
Redemption: Wanage, ring toss. Managing the onigiri stands.

Outsiders will be given a week to prepare for the festival and they only have a single day to raise funds. In the evening, the winning team is announced: Revelation. All team members will receive can badges and a pizza party. A special donation will also be made to the library on their behalf: A stack full of self help books, yes, REAL books and not holograms or digital books, such as "Overcoming Your Depression for Dummies" and "How to Make Friends 101." Thank you for your effort, Team Revelation!

As for the losers, they will be given options: Sign up or the final fundraising event of the night or help clean up at the end of the festival. The final fundraiser is a punishment game where volunteers from each organization are dunked in tubs of water or pied in the face. It seems like a certain person (Seok Dang) was supposed to be LILITH’s tribute but he is nowhere to be found… maybe one of the other losers will step up and take his place to be dunked in water or pied in the face? Characters may also sign up a loser character without their consent. Come on, be a good sport!

▶ 004. MONSOON SEASON.

Despite the celebrations and attempts to raise morale, the heatwave persists in Neo Tokyo and with it, the problems from the beginning of the month. Food continues to go bad quickly and while fundraising attempts have provided some relief, the city is huge and shelf stable supplies begin to run low again. The energy crisis improves slightly with blackouts occurring less frequently as emergency personnel attempt to intervene. Though the weather is dreary, the renovations must press on! Fortunately, most of the things to do around the Library consist of staying inside. Dr. Ratio has given the following orders which Outsiders may help with in the Library:

- Install better lighting.
- Organize and add more books.
- Set up and secure tables and chairs.
- Add couches to once section of the library to convert it into a lounging area.

Characters may work together to help, or maybe they prefer to laze around and give the newly renovated Library a test run!

After a few days, finally, the rain meteorologists have promised arrives. The skies darken and heavy rain falls on the city which brings much cooler temperatures. People stay inside more often as it becomes too inconvenient to go out when the rain and wind are so strong. The rainstorms grow stronger and eventually become fully fledged storms. The ground shakes from thunder and lightning strikes light up the sky.

Everyone’s ocular implants will frequently give warnings about the weather. LILITH will task Outsiders with assisting across the city. Help evacuate citizens to higher ground during flash floods. After the storms subside, help clear the streets of debris and trees. Some neighborhoods will lose power because of lightning strikes and need their generators restored. However, every time they finish their tasks, a new storm will occur a few days later and they’ll have to repeat.

At first, it seems like the typical summer storm season but meteorologists become concerned when more storms begin to happen without following clear weather patterns and even the locals remark the season seems very active this year… could it be another kaiju? The last time Neo Tokyo had floods, it was sea water, but this is caused by heavy rain. Like clockwork, LILITH's investigating team is on the lookout for energy from a rift or any leads to what could be causing all of the heavy rain. Outsiders are instructed to keep an eye out for any emergency messages.

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

Welcome to our third downtime mingle! While we would typically have a texting prompt, we instead have player plots for this event! Thank you Abbel and Eski for the Tanabata and festival player prompt and Sky for the Library renovations plot! We appreciate Eski for spending 500 bonus points to provide everyone with something to wear for Tanabata. For the character-run stalls as part of the renovation prompt, players are not limited to the suggestions given by the mods and are free to come up with their own stall ideas. Additionally, for characters signing up other characters for the dunk tank, please make sure you get OOC permission from their players first.

Please note also we have added new rewards: the Poison Dagger, Cat Ear Visor, and the Elemental Swords now come in the models Ice and Lightning. Please see the REWARDS page for more information.

All tags on this log are worth 2 points.

EVENT BREAKDOWN (CLICK TO EXPAND)

1. A JOB WELL DONE: The kaiju heavy hitters get recognition with.. a pachinko machine and shampoo sponsorship? Outsiders can react to their fellow colleagues about this development, or maybe even talk to the winners themselves around the base.

2. TRADITIONAL TANABATA: It's Tanabata season, even in a post-apocalyptic world! Put on some old, traditional attire with your friends and enjoy a drone show.

3. DR. RATIO'S RENOVATIONS: LILITH has teamed up with the local safety personnel to get in on the festival season. Characters are encouraged to fundraise for renovations at the LILITH base Library. Teams may also visit other teams events and stands to donate, partake in, and.. maybe deliver some competitive harassment.

4. MONSOON SEASON: With the weather being hot and renovations needing done, LILITH works together to improve the Library. A few days later, the weather gets suspiciously intense and Outsiders are instructed to help civilians with power outages, flash flooding, debris from heavy wind and rain.

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Comments

[gorb]

( It sounds almost normal until she mentions the cannibalism. Geto makes a small noise of understanding, sipping his ramune carefully. )

I take it you find this place a relief then.

[bemist]

For a few different reasons, yeah. So far, no cannibalistic restaurants. Or trains that keep you technically trapped there for hundreds of years. Or people handing out messages that ranged from having you stand on one foot for an hour to killing the next three people you saw with a wrench.

[ Perfectly serious. ]

[gorb]

( He's silent for another long moment. )

Yes, I can see why this would be preferable. The monsters aren't that difficult, and some of the stranger occurrences aren't as harmful.

[bemist]

Exactly. I'm a little tired of following someone else's orders again, but at least the circumstances aren't as awful as they could be.

[ Though it also means she can roll with a lot. ]

[gorb]

It's surely saying something that being held against our will with something implanted into our heads is not as awful. But what, I don't know.

( He'd still prefer home, but that's a dead ( ha ) end for him now. )

[bemist]

That it's still more freedom than most people in the City will ever know? That it's not the first time I've been tampered with and forced into a situation that didn't even pretend to be altruistic, maybe?

[ Can one chug a ramune, she's doing it. It's not that much liquid, it's fine. ]

[gorb]

I'm not judging. Your world sounds terrible.

( He's surprised she isn't doing leaps for joy. )

[bemist]

[ Does she look like she would ever leap for joy about anything. ]

Yeah. Don't be too hurt if I don't extend an invitation anytime soon. It's only partially you.

[ This is a joke, maybe, for all that her expression doesn't change. ]

[gorb]

( She at least gets a snort of amusement out of him. )

I'll bear that in mind. But do I at least get some points for the ramune? Do you like it?

[bemist]

It's not bad. It's kind of refreshing, actually.

[ So yes. Geto can have his points. ]

[gorb]

Then good, I'm glad.

( See, even genocidal cult leaders can be nice sometimes! )

[bemist]

[ That sure was a sentence!! ]

Rather, now that I've had it, the idea of this sort of thing having terrible flavors really has an extra weight to it.

[gorb]

They didn't have octopus. I checked.

Not that I would have subjected you to it.

[bemist]

Would you have subjected yourself to it again?

[gorb]

No.

( He takes another sip of the strawberry one to chase away the memory of the taste. )

I don't enjoy eating anything that tastes unpleasant. If I can avoid it I will. ( Consuming curses does that to a man. ) I'd probably rather none at all than the weirder flavours.

[bemist]

That makes two of us. I didn't have much of a choice, growing up, but when I have the option, I'd rather have something that doesn't taste disgusting.

[ her bar is low. ]

[gorb]

( A little similarity between them then, Geto doesn't ponder on it for too long. Instead he only hums. )

At least you're in a place that you don't have to settle for something awful. I hear the cafeteria food is fine.

[bemist]

Yeah, I don't have any problems with it at all. [ With a light shrug. ]

And if I don't have to pay for it, so much the better.

[gorb]

Well then. Small mercies.

( He doesn't eat there but that's besides the point, really. )

[bemist]

[ Ah, your close-mindedness. ]

You've got a different preference?

[gorb]

I don't like eating anything that someone else has made for me.

( NEVER MIND THAT HE'S CURRENTLY DRINKING A SODA, THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT. And also he knows it's foolish, he's well aware. )

[bemist]

... Poison risk?

[ Well, that'd be understandable-- ]

[gorb]

Something like that.

( He's sure explaining his aversion to anything non-shamans had touched would have her believing certain things about him. She wouldn't necessarily be wrong but he's more interested in flying under the radar for now. No genocidal or simply disgusted comments here. )

I simply like to be careful. The body is a temple, after all.

( And his is rotting. )

[bemist]

[ It wouldn't be the first time she's encountered genocidal or prejudiced weirdos. It won't be the last time, either. But for now, he can keep his secrets. ]

I guess that's one way of looking at it. My body's not quite as treasured.

[ Well, it's also not her original body, but the few bodies she's had have all been put through hell. ]

[gorb]

There's always a time to start.

( Wisely, like he is not an exhausted husk himself. ) Ah, but I suppose it is less important here. At least you are able to relax a little.