Ask Event Episode I: The Island

[The Storyteller]

You awaken with very dry mouths. Reflexively you reach out towards the nightstand beside your bed expecting to grab a bottle of water to sate your thirst, but instead you find your hand filled with nothing but coarse grains of sand.

Opening your groggy eyes you see you are not in your bedroom, instead finding crystal blue sky above you. The sun is relentless and and its light is disorienting, almost blinding. The sound of waves crashing against the shore suddenly fills your ears.

Standing up, you realize your back is aching. It seems you may have been snoozing on this random beach for quite some time now.

Looking around you see that, apparently, you’re not alone. Several others are strewn across the beach, all coming to in their own time. There is little strewn in the sand. No wreckage, no evidence of how anyone had gotten here or any way to leave.

The air around is noticeably still, not even the faintest whisper of a breeze to fight against the harsh rays of the sun above.

Behind you seems to be only an endless ocean stretching out for what seems to be infinity. In front, a dense jungle with foliage you don’t really recognize.

Your survival begins.​

​

@lizziie @Sreeya @Arcangel @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Ezra Thorne]

“Damn it,” Ezra groaned the moment he realized he was somewhere other than his room. His parents had prepared him for the possibility of getting kidnapped, but that didn’t make it any less horrible. He rubbed his temples, blinking as he squinted into the sun. He heard the familiar sounds of the ocean - as someone that grew up sailing competitively, he was comfortable around beaches and the sea.

He looked around and saw others lying around on the sand. Were they all kidnapped? This sounded like the beginning of a trashy Holo show. A quick glance suggested he didn’t know anyone else, so he reached for his NalPhone.

“Spalexa where am I?”

Ezra noticed he had no bars and groaned to himself. Not bothering to rush to the others - he could tell no one was exactly dying - he got up and started to look for any clues on how he got here.

@Logan

 

[Galek Ordalos]

“Do you have ANY IDEA who I am?!” Galek loudly protested to anyone within earshot, immediately starting to kick and struggle as he regained consciousness. The world around him was completely dark, but the Vice President could only assume what had occurred to him.

Clearly, he’d been kidnapped. As both a member of Royal Blood and a prominent politician, Galek had been trained to avoid exactly such circumstances - but there he was, all the same. Perhaps it was agents of the Empire or Sith. Perhaps it was the Syndicates. It didn’t really matter, in his mind. His people would be searching for him, so it was only a matter of survival until inevitable rescue.

Fortunately, Galek found his arms weren’t bound at that precise moment. Clearly an oversight from his captors. Without hesitation, the Vice President began to pull at whatever potato sack was covering his face. He could hear some distant waves crashing, coupled with the sent of salt in the air, but he didn’t pay any attention to it.

The sound of voices in the distance caused his heart to race. His captors knew he was awake. Were they coming to finish him off? To interrogate him? His thoughts ran wild, and it took a solid ten seconds for Galek to come to an actual, definitive conclusion. He was covered in seaweed.

Slowly but surely, Galek managed to peel the strands of slimey flora from his face and eyes - allowing him to finally make eye contact with the blue sky above. A quick glance around revealed the beach that he laying on the beach, the waves just barely lapping at his toes. He was without any of his finery or jewels, but instead was dressed in a simple white Kurta from lounging in his palace. His dark hair was messily strewn about, sand sprinkled across his scalp and smooshed to half of his face. A fact he failed to notice.

Galek squinted at his surroundings, not the least bit pleased. Dusting off his front, he glanced off into the distance.“Nadira??”

As if his chief assistant was going to pop up through the mangroves.

@Logan @Sreeya

 

[Electra Juvexia]

A screech suddenly filled the air on the beach. "NO!" the Queen of Juvexia found herself in one of her golden, silky night gowns, however neither in her bed nor generally in the Palace as it seemed. Electra hated plenty things, but sand was definitely on the list which only made it worse for her. There was no sign of her Royal Guard, her handmaiden or her sister and she had no idea what was even going on, but her long dug into the sand for a moment.

She frantically glanced around, realizing that the sun was mercilessly shining down on them while the waves of the ocean crashed against the beach. Her mouth was unbelievably dry and as she pushed herself up, she felt terribly disoriented while she hectically tried to brush of the sand.

Was this a dream? Nothing more than another one of her regular nightmares? No. The heat of the burning sun and the sand beneath her feet felt too real and slowly but surely she also realized that she wasn't alone. She smoothed down her hair, trying hard to soothe herself and to keep herself from hyperventilating as she paced around like a lioness for a few moments, collecting her thoughts.

"It's okay...it's okay" she told herself, breathing in deeply as her gaze fell upon a man nearby. She started to make her way over, her thoughts running wild while she tried to seem as composed as possible. "Excuse me...Sir" she wasn't exactly good at being polite or whatsoever, but he looked even worse than her and seemed oblivious about the sand sticking to his face.

"Is there any chance you know where we're at?!" (@Altaris). Judging from his plain clothes, he was perhaps nothing more but a slave of a different system, but maybe he knew his way around. As she afressed him, she noticed that a younger man was starting to wander around in the distance, but she paid him no real attention.

@Logan @Sreeya

 

[Peedunkee]

Peedunkee was sleeping blissfully on the beach through all the noise. He was too busy dreaming about fighting a giant monster in hand to hand combat. And boy was he giving that thing the business. Plenty of blows were in order, elbow and right hooks galore. This giant reptile's arms were disproportionately short and thus had a very weak defense in a bout of fisticuffs. Pathetic. Peedunkee dodged a swipe of its massive tail, jumping into the air and landing on it. Running up along its back to the very top. Taking the beast into a firm chokehold until the monster was taking an extended naptime.

Unfortunately for him his own naptime was ending and so was his power trip. He slowly pushed himself to his feet off of the surprisingly soft ground he found himself on. That was odd. The last thing he remembered he was in a Star Guardians hospital getting treated for self inflicted wounds after a botched kidnapping on Bespin. He swore he could still feel some of those hospital happy drugs going through his system.

Had they kicked him out? Maybe he was supposed to pay them. It wasn't his fault he didn't have insurance. Runaway slave isn't a title that comes with many benefits if any. As he took in his surroundings for the first time he couldn't believe his eyes. Everything was so... cool! He had never seen a place like this. The only planets he'd ever known were Nar Shaddaa and Bespin. This place was even more idyllic than Cloud City!

He turned his attention to the others that seemed to be present in this exotic place and decided he'd ask them about all of this. They all looked very fancy, after all. Fancy people are trustworthy. So without a second thought he ran over to them in all the glory his hospital scrubs provided.

He had to look up at the both of them due to his species' diminutive stature (he himself coming in at just 4'7") and asked nonchalantly with his blue bottom exposed to the breeze <"Hey guys! Where are we? Who are you? Are we friends?"> He said in Huttese, assuming they'd know the language.

@Logan @LadyRen @Altaris

 

[Syrina Ro'shyn]

-Theme-​

Syrina was having the loveliest dream of her life.

Stretched out on the beach in languid shamelessness, full curves were caressed with the sheerest fabric that, if you didn't squint, could be considered halfway decent. Dressed in a t-shirt that was definitely not hers, and worn so thin it showed off hints of tigerstripe through the white fabric, and a pair of leggings that hugged hips just right. Long black mane of perfect curls, now perfectly beachy and tousled, seemed to ruffle more in the breeze as, blearily, green eyes blinked at the roar of surf so far away.

Hmm.. beach vibes...

She grinned sleepily, curling down into her bed and reaching a manicured clawed hand out as though to slap at a white noise machine, when more of the soft, warm stuff touched her hand pads. Huh. She frowned, pawing around for it, feeling an edge of irritation creep up. I didn't think Kane's bed was this...

She sat up groggily at the sound of some voice screeching(@Altaris), and scowled, finally taking in the sights.

...big...

For a moment, she stared blankly at the water, which seemed to slowly lap closer and closer to perfectly manicured feet, and she slowly sat up, running a hand through her hair.

"...Huh. Well... shit."

Looking around, she did see others. One of them even seemed to be looking for something(@Sreeya). Groaning when she realized she couldn't see a ship anywhere, the Cathar realized it wouldn't be very wise sitting here and catching rays, even though the idea was deliciously tempting.

Slowly raising up to her feet, she took a long, luxurious stretch, sighing as she looked down at all the sand, and realized some even got in her mane. "I just got a Zeltronian blowout, too," she grumbled, halfway tempted to pout. But Mama Ro'Shyn didn't raise a litter of quitters, so she would have to set at good example, and start looking for clues as well.

Until a small blue man came running full tilt, jabbering in a language she didn't understand(@Pazaakly). "Whoa there buddy," she intoned in a slow drawl, "can't understand your speech, and though I can appreciate your..." green eyes scanned up and down his scrubs, "thematic attire, some might not be quite open-minded. Need a help tying your... ah... robe?" a manicured hand gestured at his outfit with raised eyebrows, offering a lazy smile. The little dude was one breeze away from a real surprise, and though Syrina wasn't shy with nudity, from what she could tell some others wouldn't be quite so open-minded.

She didn't even have a bloody blaster. But if they were kidnapped... why?

Looking to the Tall, Dark-haired and Probably Too Young For Her guy who was strutting around on the beach, she cocked her head. "Got any ideas how we got here?" she waved a hand around the seemingly idyllic scene, and though she may have seemed like the dullest crayon in the box, the Cathar wasn't a fool. They all seemed to be trapped like her, which either meant they were getting punked...

Or something was seriously wrong with this scenario.

@Sreeya @Pazaakly @Altaris @LadyRen @Logan

 

[Ora Trel]

The sun shone brightly above her, warming the skin on her face and feet as she stared up at a perfect cerulean sky. Adjusting herself slightly, Ora could feel the heat of the sand around her. She was sunk into it just slightly like she'd been lying in one spot for quite a while. In fact, she felt quite warm, warmer than normal. Was it normal to feel this hot and toasty in a dream?

'Oh, hell yeah!' Sitting straight up, Ora gazed upon the vast sea before her with a much different reaction than anyone who was around her. The sea breeze, the sun, the sea... clearly she was having another dream of the Nautolan homeworld, Anselmi. She'd been having a lot of those recently, but she'd never been! This dream in particular was almost surreal in how life-like it was, too. What a treat!

Ora stood up and dusted the sand off of her fuzzy shark pajamas before placing her hands on her hips and grinning out at the ocean. She'd risen just before the others - or at least before the loud ones - and failed to notice them as she had come to by the edge of the scattered group. She didn't look back either; the ocean had her full attention. "Alright, here goes nothing!"

A few slow strides turned into quick ones as the Natuolan woman began racing toward the ocean. She braced herself to jump just before she would hit the water, then leapt into the air with her arms splayed wide like wings. But rather than soar straight into the air to glide above the crashing waves like in her dreams, the woman bellyflopped straight into the water.

With her head fully submerged in the water, Ora regarded the sand beneath her with an expression of utter bewilderment. 'Is this not a dream?' Usually she could fly, the water felt so real, and it was weird that her pajamas felt so heavy like it really was drenched with water... "Shit!" It wasn't a dream, it wasn't a dream!

Ora yanked her head out of the water, gasping for air only to immediately be assaulted by an incoming wave. The Natuolan tumbled back toward the beach where she struggled to get her bearings, pushing her tendrils back behind her back and looking frantically around the beach. It was only now that she realized that she wasn't alone, and relief washed over her. 'Maybe one of them knows what's going on?' A few shouts of indignation later though, and Ora wasn't so sure if that was the case.

"Do you know wha- ?" Ora reached a few of the fellow beach dwellers - a gorgeous Cathar (@Killa Ree), a little blue fellow who was wearing a hospital gown (@Pazaakly), a posh-looking woman (@LadyRen), and... 'The Vice President of the ISC?' (@Altaris) - just as the Cathar woman practically took the words right out of her mouth. She thought for a moment to offer the Aloxian the top of her pajamas, then thought better. They were soaking wet, and she wasn't wearing anything underneath. 'Okay, maybe not.'

One look at anyone else would answer her question, though: the bewildered looks, the panicking... clearly none of them knew what was going on. "I have no id- oh! Let me see if my droid has- " Ora's eyes lit up in a panic. Her droid! Did she dive into the water with him in there? Shoving her hand into her pocket only served to heighten her panic. "My droid! He's gone!"

What was she going to do without her little buddy? The Nautolan threw her hands up to her temples and pushed them back, trying really hard not to freak out. Maybe he was in the jungle?

@Logan @Sreeya

 

[Kaladin]

Kal woke up mostly unaware of the sounds of panic around him, still too sleepy for any of that to come into focus and register with his mostly groggy brain. So for all he knew this was just another morning, that was till he realized that like usual he hadn't bumped his head into the upper bunk as he was used to. As a Knight he had earned a room of his own, but it was a converted padawan quarter that was originally supposed to house two, and they had simply turned the upper bunk into a storage unit when retrofitting it for him. Still, no early morning headache, that was good. Smiling proudly as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he instinctively reached for his phone to do some morning scrolling but all he got was sand.

He quickly noticed that the sand wasn't the only anomaly. Instead of the bland and familiar interiors of his tiny living quarters on the Brighthome, he was out in the open. The sea, the sun, the breeze in his face, it was all far too alien. Getting to his feet, he spotted the others, and began realizing that they seemed to be experiencing the same weirdness that he was. Like him they were all dressed in various sorts of nightwear, and he quickly looked down to make sure he had something on. Letting out a sigh of relief as he noticed that he had on a pair of pajamas and his favorite tank top, he thanked the Force that he hadn't fully recovered from the cold he had caught on Nar Shaddaa and had been too cold to sleep like normal.

Taking a look around to see if there was anything else of note besides the other people, he would finally turn his attention to them, taking them in one by one and trying to make some sense of all the questions and screams about missing droids that were flying around.

@Logan @lizziie @Sreeya @Arcangel @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Killa Ree

 

[Lissa Blackhand]

Pocket! Stun! Muffle it with his belly!
Thanks, didn't expect him to be that strong...
Help me carry him to the bathroom
Should we tie him up? I don't know how long he'll be out...
Unnecessary, he won't be waking up anytime soon

Despite not drawing attention to it, as Vance was heading downstairs, Lissa did look down and notice the blood trickling onto the bathtub, turning his head and see his ears bleeding. All at once she felt a great swirl of pity and regret settle into her stomach. He may have been a sleazy piece of bantha poodoo, but he was still innocent in all this, they just needed his uniform and card.
Frack...sorry Teddy She muttered, her face morose as she left the room and made a mental note to buy a stun stick as soon as the job was over. She couldn't afford to get torn up though, she had work ahead of her. She stood with a sigh and turned to leave the bathroom.

Where ya going baby?

She froze, her blood turning cold as she heard those words. That wasn't how it happened. She had...he was dead, wasn't he? Then again, so was...the normally still blaster arm quivered as it inched toward the holster. She turned, fear overwhelming as the last thing she saw was two walking corpses screaming as one lunged at her, and another, armless, legless thing leaped on top of her.

LeT TeDdY gIvE yOu a hUG
DoN't LeAvE mE lIkE tHiS LISSA!!!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lissa jolted a little, groaning and putting her hand to her head. Another karking nightmare...with a special guest this time too. Still, at least it over now, bit jarring though. Nightmares were weird, you could be in the throes of pure fear and about to have a heart attack, then suddenly you're surrounded by soft sand and relaxing water. Honestly she- wait...roll that back?

She opened her eyes, blinding light searing them on contact and making her throw up an arm to shield herself. This wasn't Correlia, so where the hell was she? She propped herself up on an elbow, looking around and seeing what seemed to be flock of different people all congregating together in pyjamas, robes, and less. She appeared to be on a beach...in the middle of nowhere...when she was previously on Corellia.

"What the f-"

 

[The Storyteller]

Frightened eyes watched the ones waking on the beach. Eagle-like, even from this distance, the gaze remained steady and unwavering despite the haggard and rapid breathing shaking everything else. Hands stained rusty and dark with long-ago dried blood dared not part the treeline - not yet.

They watched as many of those that lay strewn on the beach gathered together, their confusion evident from their body language and tones of voice. An eyebrow arched as one of them seemed to think it could fly and ended up falling directly into the water. After paying such a great cost, this is what had been delivered?

There had to have been some mistake. Maybe someone had been lied or had played a cruel trick. It wouldn't have been the first time, but there had been so much care given. All of the details followed and nothing skipped. It had to have worked..

It had to.

As Ezra (@Sreeya) and Kaladin (@Wit) took a different path from the others and chose first trying to look for clues instead of commiserating over their circumstances, eventually their attention would be too drawn to the treeline. Just inside, where the blazing rays of sun that berated the beach were held back by the thick boughs of ancient foliage, both men could make out the slightest form of a person.

Before either of them could truly approach, the person seemed to notice both of them too. Ezra and Kaladin would see the person make several deliberate motions with her hands, that if either of them were familiar with the motions, they might recognize as an ancient and forgotten form of sign casting.

A flourish of energy echoed from the girl, though it wouldn't feel anything like the force the two Jedi were familiar with. Before their very eyes the girl would transform into a cat-like creature with sleek, dark fur and race deeper into the forest.

You must make your own way to find us. Travel with the others into the forest but be wary of any you meet. Value your name and keep it close.

The words would whisper into both Jedi's ears as if the person speaking them were right next to them and would vanish as quickly as they'd come. Even odder, the language in which they were spoken was one neither of them recognized, though their minds were still able to understand their message.

Suddenly, both Kaladin and Ezra would feel a burning sensation on their left palms, like they'd just pressed their hands onto a hot iron. Should they look to see what was causing it, they would only find an odd symbol branded there in faint black lines.

Left with nothing else and not even knowing the other had seen the same thing, the two Jedi would find themselves alone again. What they would do with the information they'd just heard or the strange things they'd just seen was up to them.

As for the rest of the gathered, they would be blissfully unaware of anything that had just happened, too consumed with their odd circumstances and wondering about their lost droids to have seen anything at all.

@lizziie @Sreeya @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Ezra Thorne]

Ezra paused when he spotted the girl that looked all levels of shady. He glanced over and spotted a cute Mirialan dude. He looked vaguely familiar - Ezra thought he saw him around on Brighthome. In any case, this was great because the other guy could do all the talking while Ezra waited at a safe distance. He jutted his chin in a ‘go ask her questions!’ sort of way as he looked at the man. Before they could do anything, she began to flail her arms around and…turn into a cat?!

Ezra barely processed that before he felt searing pain in his palm. He glanced down to see the symbol and he glared at it, “Hey!” He called out where the cat lady went, “You don’t get to just put a tattoo on me, get back here!” Ezra charged into the woods where he saw the cat go, beyond furious at some bitch making modifications on his body. He attempted to use the Force, but found it wasn’t listening to his commands.

He wasn’t sure what to make of the symbol, but for now he looked for a plant that was similar. His first priority, however, was still trying to find the stupid girl that branded him. He couldn’t spot her anymore, so he came to a halt, breathing heavily from his jog. He looked around, realizing that he was no longer by the beach where he landed. He wasn’t even sure where he was. He stood in silence, relying on his sensitive hearing. Though his face didn’t display it, he felt nothing but dread. He hoped at least the other guy was here, or he was well and truly alone.

@Wit @Logan

 

[Kaladin]

Seeing Ezra put Kal's mind at ease, the presence of another Jedi started making the thought of this being some elaborate prank, or some dumb test set by the Council, seem more likely than it had a few moments ago. So he didn't even mind when Ezra effectively called "not it" on dealing with the strange girl. Just how bad could it be, dealing with whatever she had to say and wait for the idiots carrying the holocams to jump out shouting "spazzinga"!

That was till the girl started gesturing with her hands, and turned into a cat. That stopped him in his steps, caught completely unawares by that development. And then the pain his his hand, along with the brand that appeared there, pushed away any hopeful thoughts of this being something lighthearted. So as he heard Ezra shouting after the cat-girl and running into the forest in her wake, he had to make a quick decision. Looking back at the rest of the group it seemed like whatever had happened to him and Ezra had happened to them alone, none of them seemed to be panicking about any mysterious brands on their arms, or strange girls speaking into their heads.

And that meant that the girl had known they were Jedi, and singled them out, which wasn't good. Ezra might well be running into a trap. The moment he reached that conclusion his next steps were clear. He began running after Ezra and the girl. "Stay on the beach," he shouted over his shoulders as he began sprinting towards the tree to catch up with Ezra, "there's something in the woods!"

That was all he could get out before he was among the trees, and turned his attention to keeping up with Ezra. Slowing down as he spotted the part-Sephi up ahead, he came crashing out of the trees to stop besides the other Jedi. Dropping his hands to his knees to catch his breath, having run full tilt to catch up, he looked around to see if Ezra had found the cat.

"Did you catch her? Don't tell me she turned into a bird or something and flew off."

@Logan @Sreeya

 

[Ora Trel]

'Maybe he's in the jungle?' Ora repeated that thought as her red eyes shot up toward the treeline, catching sight of the rustling bushes just moments after @Kaladin disappeared past it. Between her own panic and the others', Ora hadn't even registered the Jedi's shout. She had no idea that there were two more of them, let alone that they'd run off into the woods by themselves.

Starting toward the tropic forest, Ora got about halfway between the shore and the edge of the forest before she slowed to a stop to consider her actions. Was it really such a good idea to go running off on her own, soaking wet in a fuzzy shark pj set with no weapon in hand? Ora shoved her hands back into the pockets of her shirt again, just to check to really make sure they were empty. 'Nothing,'

"Fuck." The pink-skinned Nautolan turned to look back down the beach at the others. Were they really all stuck here? She pinched herself, having to check just one more time that this was really all real. 'Ow.' Definitely real. Just her and a bunch of strangers on an unknown world with nothing but the clothes on their backs and absolutely zero droids. She was totally freaking out, but she'd been in worse situations. 'Are pirates a worse situation?'

Ora took a big, deep breath. "OKAY! EVERYONE!" Hopefully that got their attention. Heat would flush to the Nautolan's cheeks as eyes (presumably) fell onto her after her shout reached their ears. She wasn't really sure where she was about to go with this, but she was sure about anything at that moment, so did it really matter? "Does anyone have any idea what happened?"

None of them would, which was incredibly unhelpful but a shared trait among the group. Ora bit the side of her cheek and pondered for a moment. She was a city girl; there was no way she'd be able to survive on her own long enough to figure out what was going on. She'd need to team up.

"Let's introduce ourselves," she suggested, beginning to walk back down closer to the group. "And then we should.... uh, probably figure out if we're safe." 'Or not.'

"I'll go first! My name's Ora."

tl;dr - Ora addresses everyone and tries to get everyone on the same page, at least.

@Logan @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Killa Ree

 

[Galek Ordalos]

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Galek was thoroughly confused by the present situation. The Vice President was convinced of his own self-importance and thus kidnapping - even if the theory rapidly begun to make less and less logical sense. Why was he abandoned on some beach? Who the hell were the people around him? Damnit, where was his assistant when he needed her most.

The Vice President briefly glanced down to his commlink, tempted to call Livi for help. Or rather, to vaguely ask questions without revealing that he had gotten himself into a situation he wasn’t accustomed to handle. To his dismay, the lack of Holo-Signal summarily put such attempts to rest.

Before Galek could do anything else, his hazel gaze flicked over to the woman who approached him. His eyes immediately narrowed onto the nightgown she was wrapped in, coupled by the rats-nest of blonde hair plopped onto the top of her head. The woman looked like she just rolled out of bed and was clearly just as clueless.

“If I knew where we were, I wouldn’t be here.” Galek said after a moment, blinking. “What are you wearing?” He said with a flick of his gaze up and down, oblivious yet to his own state of appearance. He vaguely heard some kids running off into the distance but otherwise minded his own business. Fuck running off into the jungle.

“Prince Galek Ordalos, Vice President of the Independent Systems Consortium.” He said proudly when requested to introduce himself.

 

[Lissa Blackhand]

As the sobering reality began to set in, Lissa staggered to her feet, clutching her pounding skull with a tired groan. Probably best to take stock...on a deserted island in the middle of nowhere, planet unknown, weaponless and in her jim jams. At least her arm still worked, so she wasn't gonna be mono-dextrous when hunting for a lizard to eat. She finally turned her attention to the crowd that was building up, all seemed to be in their nightwear too, all confused and dazed. Humans, a Nautolan, a Cathar, faces were somewhat familiar...wait, was that Ezra Thorne that just ran into the jungle? Is that the vice president of the ISC?? The Queen of Juvexia??? Who the frack had managed to bring all these people here while they slept!!????

Ok Lissa, calm, caaaalm now, you're fine, you're still standing and you have your own two hands...well, your own one hand and a replacement. She started walking toward her fellow abductees and brushed the sand from her hair as best as she could, especially after the Nautolan tried to gather everyone up.
"Lissa Blackhand, mercenary," She said, waving nonchalantly at them. "No clue whatsoever what happened either, aside from the fact that we've been kidnapped. Given the fact that there are, or were, three people here who would regularly be surrounded by security details and bodyguards, whoever took us must be powerful in their own right."

 

[Peedunkee]

Peedunkee was doing his best to keep up with all the conversation around him, but listening to Basic was like running down a hill for him. Barely hanging on and the whole thing could come tumbling down at any moment. Turning his attention to the cat lady (@Killa Ree) he managed an understanding. Not the correct one, but it was better than nothing.

It was mostly body language that he was going off of so when she gestured to what he was wearing he responded "You want?" and pulled the scrubs off, holding it out to her. He certainly didn't need it, the thing gave him zero added protection and if anything could only work against him. If she wanted it he would give it gladly.

He couldn't tell what the commotion closer towards the woods was about but it wasn't of much interest to him. There were more people here, and this shoreline was the most exotic sight he had ever seen so he wasn't about to leave so quickly. If anything he was hoping to learn how he could stay.

Speaking of the people, the colorful tentacle lady (@lizziie) seemed to be calling a meeting of some kind so he bounded over now fully unencumbered, dragging his feet through the sand as he did.

He looked up at each one of them in turn, struggling to decipher their speech but happy to be there nonetheless. With each introduction's conclusion he'd wave at them and repeat their name with a slight accent. Finally seeing an opportunity to jump in he said pointing to himself "Peedunkee. Slave. Puncher!" and did some quick shadowboxing to try and wow his new exotic companions.

In truth hitting things was his only consistently useful skill. Making money for his master as a prize fighter meant it was the one area he had meaningful experience in.

Adding what little he could to the group's understanding he said "Peedunkee drug hospital. Woke here." and gave a shrug. His eyeline wasn't on them anymore anyways, instead looking longingly at the crashing waves behind them and at Ora's soaked pajamas with envy.

@Logan @LadyRen @Altaris

 

[Electra Juvexia]

Electra had no damn clue what was happening, but was severely displeased with everything and frankly speaking everyone. The man she had adressed didn't seem to be of help either and so crossed her arms in front of her chest while she still faced him, her venomous green eyes slightly narrowing.

As he spoke about her clothes, she couldn't help but to burst into laughter though. It was a result of this completely mental situation and the plainly dressed lowborn judging her attire. "It's called silk, Honey" she sweetly replied, amusedly shaking her head before she wanted to turn and speak to someone else, however then she heard a strange voice adressing all of them.

The Octopus girl started talking and this all began to turn from a nightmare into a fever dream. Introduce themselves? What for? It was fairly obvious that someone had kidnapped them and brought them here. Why? She didn't know. But the Queen was furious. She wished they had delivered a Nexu as well, but obviously their captor didn't seem one of the gracious kind.

She raised a brow at the 'prince' of whatsoever, not even bothering recalling her galactical politics lessons, but obviously the 'Vice President' entitlement drew a stronger reaction from her. Was he kidding? The Queen of Juvexia wasn't exactly fond of the ISC and apart from this Thorne daddy the ISC didn't rang many bells as they had always been an independent system and didn't bother being in contact with them at all.

Figure out whether they were safe? Please. "Isn't it obvious that were safe for now? Whoever brought us here had decided not to kill us, so it has to be safe for now. If they'd want us dead, we'd be dead already" or was this the very weird after life?

"I'm Electra Olimpia of House Juvexia, Queen of Juvexia, and I can assure you the royal Palace has already noted my absence. Wherever we are, we won't be here for long" she confidently declared, pointing out the obvious. She glanced around this weird accumulation of diverse people and watched the Cat girl for a moment, deciding that she'd make a fine addition to her collection.

@Logan @Altaris @lizziie @Panda Hermit 98 @Pazaakly @Killa Ree @Sreeya @Wit

 

[Syrina Ro'shyn]

Okay, so...

Seeing two of their little motley crew suddenly dart into the forest was odd enough, especially with one of them howling something that was drowned out by the waves(@Wit). She wasn't entirely sure herself whether or not she wanted to just hover around these beaches, especially when she wasn't even sure if high tide was a thing.

Well, she wasn't afraid of getting a little wet, but she just got her hair done.

Giving it another ruffle with a manicured hand, her eyes boggled almost comically as the little blue guy seemed to totally misread what she said, and shucked off his outfit. Letting out a loud, hard laugh, green eyes tracked up and down once, before raising her eyebrows.

"Pass on that one, Blueberry."

Still, she would let the two seemingly self-important ones (@Altaris & @LadyRen) bicker it out between them. Splitting the party was no bueno, but it looked like there wasn't much choice, especially as whatever made Tall, Dark-Haired and Handsome and Green Machine sprint off the way they did; maybe they spotted something of importance. Syrina had grown up going back to her parents' home planet before; this jungle island seemed similar. Maybe they found some food?

At the name-giving, she merely shrugged once, calling out over her shoulder towards Pinky Swimmer(@lizziie). "Only friends know my name," she declared, but gave them all a sultry, flirtatious wink. "But you can call me Tiger Lily. Y'all stay here now and keep together, don't leave the beach!"

As if she would stay out and miss any action.

Sprinting after Green Machine(@Wit), she was silently grateful to have had the foresight to put on some leggings at least before she went to bed, because only a select few would be graced to seeing all her fur patterns in the light of any day. "Wait up!" she called out after them, panting by the time she finally caught up.

"What... did you find?" she huffed, brushing back a few strands of curly dark hair behind her ear. "Was it someone else?" Besides, she'd be damned if she wouldn't do something to figure out what the hell was going on here. Staying on the beach wasn't an option, especially if it came down to possibly solving what happened, or finding a way out of this weird place.

@Wit @Sreeya @Logan

 

[The Storyteller]

The Beach

The ones that stayed on the beach would find their conversations uninterrupted for a time. They would be able to exchange introductions and pleasantries and maybe just for a moment, forget they were stranded, no more than strangers in a strange place.

The particularly observant might notice that the sound of waves gently crashing on the beach eventually came to a total stop. The water fell silent and still, barely even the smallest of ripples disturbing its surface. The stagnant air around them grew hot, the ever present heat of the sun that burned above them amplified, oppressive.

An ear shattering crack echoed from deep within the forest, like someone had broken one of the massive, ancient trees in half. After, a shriek of panic, high and shrill. Then a monstrous roar, low and thunderous.

Quiet returned to the beach, the slow lapping of water on the sand once again filling everyone's ears.

--

The Forest

Driven by anger and making no real attempt to remember the direction he'd come from, Ezra raced into the unknown. The first to act, he would end up ahead of Kaladin and Syrina by several hundred feet.

As he looked around for some foliage that would match the brand on his palm, Ezra unfortunately wouldn't find much. Instead, as he cleared some moss from a nearby treetrunk, he would see the same symbol carved into the thick bark. It was n old carving, Ezra noticing that it was shallow, weathered by the environment and passage of time.

Far ahead, where the sunrays filtering through the forest canopy cast thick shadows, Ezra would see the faint outline of a creature, standing very still. Though he couldn't be entirely sure, it would almost seem like he could feel the creature's gaze directly upon him.

There was a weight on his shoulders and it would suddenly feel like he was drowning, like someone was pushing him down, forcing his head below water as he stood there in the forest.

And that's how the others would find him, Kaladin and Syrina finally catching up with Ezra as he stood near the tree.

For Ezra the feeling of drowning would fade immediately and he would be able to finally gasp for air. The figure haunting the edge of the shadows was gone and he would be unsure if had ever even been there at all.

A few minutes would pass before eventually, a tiny voice would pipe up from a cluster of mushrooms that grew near the base of a nearby tree.

A very dangerous place to be lost, The voice said, its tone noticeably light and casual despite the graveness of its message. Only a few find the way, and even fewer recognize when they do.

From the bundle of mushrooms strode out a little creature, a wise smile on its face.

And some, well, they don't ever want to in the first place.

@lizziie @Sreeya @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Electra Juvexia]

None of them, literally not a single one looked like they were useful at all and while the Queen herself wouldn't even deliberately lift a finger to contribute to public interest, she did know what they'd have to do until her royal shuttle would arrive. "Okay lovely chat you all. It's getting hot and the sun is high up. It might take a few more hours so we should prevent dehydration" she began, facing the Nautolan first (@lizziie).

"You. You're good with water, aren't you? Why don't you start building something that can desalinate the water?" she suggested, as if she simply had to voice it and the other would be crafty enough to make it possible at the snap of a finger. Electra was an educated, intelligent woman, but while she had ideas, she had no clue how to build something.

"The sun will easily make the salt water evaporate if we can find a container...we just need to catch the condensated water somewhere then..." She didn't care how long exactly it would take them all to die of thrist, but she wasn't going to risk it. This was all very bad for the skin after all.

Their little trivial chatting and the introductions were suddenly interrupted by the loud crack though. Electra immediately spun, her hand moving upwards and clutching her sapphire necklace as if clinging onto it would somehow save her. She stared towards the forest with her eyes widened in shock, her body completely stiff but her mind suddenly fully awake.

As the high-pitched shriek followed, she was immediately backing off, gaze never leaving the trees while she suddenly found herself closer to the water. She thought it was over, but then came the deep roar and she completely froze up again. This was no Nexu, this was something far larger and apperently angry.

Fuck the water. It seemed like they potentially had a different issue to deal with first. "B-By the Gods...okay. No water now. You, slave guy, you can punch, right? Why don't you go check it out?" (@Pazaakly) she adressed the little blue guy, hoping he could go deal with the issue.

@Logan @Altaris @Panda Hermit 98 @Wit @Sreeya @Killa Ree