INTRO LOG

[cyclists]

Week Zero
32 in Competition

The transition from unconsciousness to the waking world is practically seamless. Though you're certain this wasn't where you meant to end up, for a few brief moments it's hard to grasp the situation and take in your surroundings.

A soft twilight lights your way, casting a glow over the sprawling village that fans out around you. Just outside of the large meeting hall you'll find yourself awakening among several others who have found themselves in this place. There's a sense of peace that looms over the area, the only sounds being the cheerful chirp of a stray bird or two and the babbling brook that runs through the village itself.

Stand up, dust yourself off and set out. There are plenty of places to explore and should you venture far enough you'll even find several little houses throughout the village. It may take some time, but as you check out each house you'll soon come across something that belongs to you...along with something that doesn't. It seems that this new residence is yours to share. As for the village itself, the other buildings appear open and well-stocked, providing you with a variety of amenities to utilize. The paths leading out of the village, however, are guarded by four ornate wooden gates. No matter how hard you try, they will not let you past. It seems that the time isn't right yet.

Speaking of, the only way to truly track the passage of time is by charting the movements of the sun but that can prove to be quite difficult as well. As the sun dips below the horizon and the night sky fills with stars, the bell at the shrine rings out to signal the end of your first day. No one else has arrived. It's only you and these strangers for now.

It seems as though you'll have plenty of time to get acquainted with your fellow companions. Make yourself comfortable; when the time is right, answers will appear.



Welcome to the soft intro of Subdivided! This is your intro mingle and the current conditions will last through the weekend until Monday, June 3rd at which point the weekly log will go up. Your characters will not know anything about the partner system, how powers work or any plot-relevant information until Monday. However, characters are free to discover their power through trial and error and will have access to their item from home immediately.

Please note that an additional top-level to introduce NPCs and Game Mechanics will go up on Sunday, 4 PM EST.

main navigation.

locations ✧ powers ✧ profiles
private conversations ✧ audiences ✧ faq

Comments

[globs]

a

[ Cinnabar lives on an island with exactly 27 other gems. The island isn't very big. The only animals that still exist are insects and jellyfish and molluscs; the only people that exist are the gems. This is all they've known, all that's ever existed in their world for their entire thousand-year lifespan, and, like all gems (or almost all of them), they're all right with things staying the same.

In other other words, Cinnabar is about to have a mental breakdown.

They have no idea where they are - and they have no idea what these animals that are like-gems-but-not-quite are, and they don't know how they got here, and they are, quite frankly, scared. Terrified. It's hard not to notice them when they step outside - their unnaturally slender, ethereally beautiful shape, the blood red of their eyes and nails, and the crystalline strands that make up their hair, refracting the rays of twilight into a hundred sparkles of color the moment it touches them. But the moment eyes turn towards them... ]

S... Stop... Don't look at me!

[ ... they shout with a tense expression, and instantly dart off into the village, their heavy footfalls surprisingly fast. ]

b

[ Where did Cinnabar go?

Well, they might be hard to miss, but they're surprisingly hard to find once they've run off. Anyone dedicated to canvassing the area, though, may eventually come across them in the hot springs area. Not in the springs, of course - tucked away into one of the alcoves, hiding in the shadows. They're sitting down, with their knees hugged tightly against their chest and their head down against them. Their shoulders are quivering slightly, although they're not making a sound.

At least they don't seem to have noticed they've been found yet...? ]

c

[ wildcard option!! They are seriously not moving from that spot until someone forces them. After that, they'll mostly come out at night, and will probably try to keep their distance from everyone... but you might be able to find them looking at the koi pond or the farm animals with a sense of wonder. ]

b

[nonbelligerent]

[... hm.

shess stops a careful distance away from them, since he doesn't want to scare them. there's a pause, before cinnabar might hear an artificial voice, coming from shess's tablet.]

Are you all right?

[globs]

[ they've never heard a voice like that before, and it sets them on edge even more. They jerk their head up, light scattering with the movement of their hair, and fix Shess with a fierce glare. There's a silvery liquid rimming their eyes, just like tears would.

He looks so strange. Tall, and solid, and soft enough that Cinnabar didn't hear his footsteps. Nothing about him is familiar, outside of his shape. They pull their legs in tighter. ]

What do you think? [ huff. ] Stay away from me.

[nonbelligerent]

[...]

I know this situation is frightening, but I'm not here to hurt you.

c

[omegathree]

[Val is also far more comfortable walking around at night. Not that he's allergic to the light, but.

Either way, he makes it to the koi pond.]

I haven't seen you yet.

[globs]

[ they start getting up to walk away before he even gets to the koi pond - they don't like interacting with others, especially with the humans, who make them uncomfortable just to look at. It's a sensation they can't quite describe. In any case, everyone is better off if they keep their distance. Unfortunately, he decides to strike up conversation before they can completely leave the area. ]

Then you should have kept it that way.

[ they're starting to get sleepy away from the lamplights of the village, anyway... they haven't been able to draw out any mercury to reflect the moonlight like they used to. They never thought they'd want to call out their poison... ]

[omegathree]

[Val is not human, though he's pretty convincingly human shaped, if it wasn't for his ears, fangs and the weird red circle on his chest.]

We all seem to be stuck here together now. It's not a bad idea to learn who our neighbors are.

b

[foodbin]

[She didn't try to follow them when she saw them run away earlier, but when she comes upon Cinnabar at the hot springs as she's exploring... Emma hesitates, not wanting to startle them, before moving close enough to be heard, but far enough not to crowd them. She doesn't want to give false platitudes of everything being fine, but all the same, her voice is soft when she speaks up.]

Hey there.

[Before continuing, she waits to see how they'll respond.]

[globs]

Go away.

[ they only lift their head a little, one red eye peering out over their knees at the newcomer. What are these things? They're not Gems, and they're not Lunarians, either.

(If they'd looked at the profiles, they'd know, but they didn't want to go in there with so many other people around.) ]

[foodbin]

[For a moment, she looks like she's going to comply, before she hesitates again.]

Sure, but... You want me to bring you anything? I found a kitchen a while ago if you're hungry.

c

[twinsightful]

[It's dark and he doesn't feel like spending a lot of time in his house because Lili's a menace, so it's back out to the garden he goes. He's actually wandering toward the koi pond when he spots Cinnabar there, watching the fish and not moving. Kaoru figures maybe he should leave them alone, but at the same time he's never quite seen someone look at fish like that.

...except maybe Tamaki, but that idiot hardly counts right now.]

Have you ever seen these before? [They're not that special, are they? ...Kaoru's busy watching the fish too though. So maybe they are.]

[globs]

[ ugh... they thought most animals went to sleep at night. Why are there still people around?! They should have left when they heard him coming, but his footsteps were quiet enough that they weren't sure... They're not used to people that aren't several hundred pounds of rock. ]

No. [ a pause. then, somewhat defensively: ] So what?

[twinsightful]

[Oh. Prickly rock. He doesn't seem that perturbed though he does take a step back when they reply. They remind him of someone else, actually.

(By himself, at least, he feels less inclined to needle at them.)]

Nothing, nothing. [He looks at the fish again.] They're called koi. If you wait long enough, sometimes you can pet them.

a

[compendiem]

[ Oh geez, okay. Minato blinks in surprise at that outburst, but he dutifully casts his eyes to the ground. That doesn't keep him from not following Cinnabar, though-- or more like, their shadow-- almost compulsively, he runs after them. Hands in his pockets, as you do. ]

I won't, promise. Is this better?

[ The not looking... while still chasing... ]

[globs]

[ oh god they're being CHASED NOW AAAAA ]

Why are you following me?!

[ still running!! Maybe they should fight?! Are they in danger? That thing doesn't look like a Lunarian, but -- who else would do this?! ]

a

[fujino]

[When you don't sense pain, one's emotions and reactions are also stunted. There are only a few stimuli that can stir something within Fujino which has her rely on her sight. The person with the vivid and glowing red hair akin to crystal catches her eye in a manner of speaking that she can't help but remark in awe.]

... Pretty...

[Oh, but there they go. Were they frightened? Did she do something? Fujino blinks before turning to walk after Cinnabar into the village, curiosity getting the best of her.]

Ah, wait!

[She attempts to muster some urgency in her voice as she cradles her side where her "wound" is with one arm.]

It might be dangerous.]

[globs]

[ walking won't be fast enough to keep up with them, unfortunately... although they also don't know where they're going. Everything around them is totally unfamiliar - they've never seen an entire building made of wood - but they don't stop to pay attention to that, nor to heed her warning. They just need to get away, and be alone.

That said... it's not hard to tell where Cinnabar's gone. Their weight means they've left footprints in the dirt where they went off the road, and there are scattered globules of a mirror-silver liquid every few feet clinging to the grass. It all leads to a small thicket near a tree - where, if one looks, Cinnabar can be found, resting their back against the bark, that same silver liquid streaming down their face from their eyes like tears. ]

b

[leaberator]

[ he's not exactly looking for people, and it's only sheer habit of looking at what might be lurking in the shadows (be it monsters or an ex) that he catches sight of cinna. who is looking.... kinda... pathetic.

ah, geez. he's meant to be helping people now or something, right? he calls out from where he's standing: ]

Hey, you okay?

[globs]

[ looking pathetic is basically cinnabar's job...

this guy has a lot of crazy hair. He looks like the old Morganite. That's about the only thing they note when they look at him, peering up at him sourly from over their knees. Most of their face is still hidden, but there are what look like tears in their eyes - except the tears are some kind of opaque, silvery liquid, not quite falling the way normal tears do. ]

It's none of your business, [ they reply, looking away again and curling up a little tighter. ]

b

[tothemaxwell]

[Milla is not looking for Cinnabar.

But nevertheless, there they are.

...]

You're the one who ran off from the square.

[matter-of-fact.]

Is something the matter?

[globs]

[ they have a bad feeling about this one... Cinnabar doesn't even raise their head. They just circle their arms tighter, voice coming out muffled from behind their limbs. ]

Leave me alone.

[ they sound like they're crying. Not surprising. ]

c: koi pond

[specialdog]

[ this is the most feasible way for Akane to actually meet Cinnabar, so here she is on an evening stroll when she spots someone...! ]

... It's pretty, huh?

[globs]

[ Geh. This place is way too public. It's too late to run when Akane shows up, but that doesn't stop Cinnabar from getting to their feet anyway. ]

They're weird.

[ they don't look anything like any jellyfish Cinnabar's ever seen... ]

farm animals

[quailvering]

[................... this is not the houses. He said that he could find his way back to the houses alright and apparently he was a liar. he's never been remotely near a farm before but it looks just like the sort of idyllic farm in picture books.]

[it's a little weird to see the chickens going around, though]

[w-well, he just needed to screw up his courage and ask for directions! there's something very weird-looking about this human but, well, he's not a human expert.]

E- Excuse me! [pipes a little voice] Which way are the houses?

[farm animals are a wonderment of their own and now one is talking to cinnabar]

[globs]

[ Cinnabar, meanwhile, assumes that Kazuaki is just another type of chicken. They've never seen these weird, fluffy animals before, and have no idea what to make of them, so the abide by their golden rule: stay away from them so they don't get hurt. When Kazuaki comes close, they get to their feet, intending to put some space between them.

Then it talks. ]

Wha... You can talk?

[ rude ]