event: portal one | the island

[mayfield_mods]

The first portal doesn’t take long to locate: it’s across the road from the Rec Center, in a field visible from the pool. There is no shimmering or flashy effects to indicate the portal’s presence. There is simply an eight-by-five-foot vertical hole in the middle of the air, a hole through which a vast expanse of sand and surf can be seen. Said hole is completely two-dimensional- walk to its side, and it will seem as though it’s disappeared.

There are times, however, when the portal seems to disappear even when viewed from the front. Every once in a while, the portal appears to flicker ever so faintly, like a television briefly losing signal. Don’t worry about it- it’s probably nothing. Those who visited the carnival last month and viewed the pockets of nothingness that plagued it may feel a familiar sense of physical discomfort when staring at the portal for too long- as if your eyes instinctively know that they’re looking at something that shouldn’t exist in this world.

Stepping through the portal doesn’t burn or hurt at all, although the temperature immediately rises on the other side from early autumn to the peak of a tropical summer. There is, however, a slight tingle to your skin that lasts only for moments upon passing through. Again, probably nothing. The portal does not vanish after you pass through it: behind you you can see the field and the rec center in the distance.

The island has no name. Its beach stretches from east to west as far as the eye can make out, and the great sea lapping at its edges is a bright, clear blue. Looking out at the ocean you can see that it’s calm, the waves soft and almost inviting. There’s no other land on the horizon, only a vast expanse of endless sea.

The only signs of human habitation you can make out are littered on the beach around you. A set of towels, beach chairs and umbrellas have been set up a short distance away from the portal. In the wet sand left in the high tide’s wake, a series of sand castles have been constructed, as well as a shallow pit where someone may have been buried in the sand.

On the opposite edge of the beach lies a forest of palm trees. The foliage is thick, but there seems to be a path carved into the flora a short distance away from the shore.

Comments

[hontobakabaka]

[Ruri walks into the portal and looks around, bringing up a screen and slowly starting to take the area in having a map slowly appear on it.]

Hello? Key? Anyone?

[She lets out a sigh and starts to head to the sand castles, peering at them slightly]

[sumofallreds]

[Marvelous regretted the coat the second he stepped through the portal all the way. He was going to be be hot and sticky by the end of this...as if that was going to be the only thing that happened to him.

He'll recognize the girl ahead of him's voice from months ago. The one from that ship. He will call a greeting ahead to her, before commenting on their new surroundings.]

So...we 'need' to be here, huh?

[imstillhere]

[Jim hasn't been really paying attention to the mail so he has no clue about these portals that are supposed to open up. Someone should have told him that before flying into a portal on his Solar Surfer

Instantly confused, he looks around at the beach before him. Touching down, he turns his surfer off. When did Mayfield get a beach?]

Hello!? Anyone out there?!

[scarredglasses]

[Harry was confused as well. But he'd never been to a beach so he was having fun in the sand when he heard a voice.]

Hello. Are you lost too?

[windows_hyliaedition]

Hnnnn... Staring at the portal and watching it flicker in and out brings a fair number of reasons why going through would be a terrible idea. Particularly since the last 'portal' anywhere, building that it was, didn't lead to anything good.

Fi narrows her eyes, and from the side, her robot makes the decision for her it seems. "If-Mistress-Fi-is-needing-anything-at-all-from-behind-this,-I-will-be-pleased-to-aid-her-bzwRRP!?

What-

"Scrapper, no-"

Ahhhhh there he goes...

...Annnd there she follows, lest he do something stupid. But...

Oh? This is odd.

"...Beach..?"

[shadowflashkick]

-He was simply looking around. So far, the only thing that seemed out of place to him, was the simple fact there was ... portal, that led to someplace else. He was trying to wrap his mind around it, but upon seeing Fi... he decided he should just stop trying to make logic work in this place.-

[imoutos]

[ .. this time, she has to help out. Nadeko has decided that much. Last time around she couldn't do much, she only waited as her friends apparently had a difficult time, so.. she shouldn't do that again, right? She should at least try, else everyone might get mad at her..

So even though she definitely feels fear and nervousness the moment she spots the portal, she still goes through it. There's only a beach on the other side, right? Only a beach, it shouldn't be too bad..

And in fact, it isn't so bad once she's through it. Even though she still feels pretty nervous, she tries to focus on the beach - as if she just is on the beach, like some trip. In fact, the first thing the girl does it to go stand under an umbrella, the sun might be too bad for her skin otherwise and she doesn't want to get burned!!

From there she'll be peering around, looking.. well, slightly nervous and more than anything definitely shy. ]

[little_thief]

[It's not long before Kay finds Nadeko and goes over to stand with her. She gives a bright smile and a wave as she approaches.]

Nadeko, hey! Did you come in here by yourself?

[Kay seems to have done some preparing ahead of time for an adventure like this, as she's carrying a backpack full of food and other essentials with her. Curiously, she's also wearing a cowboy hat for no discernible reason.]

[highfunctioning_sociopath]

[Sherlock spends a long time examining the portal. The fact that it was two-dimensional was most intriguing. He noted the flickering and logged it in the back of his mind. That could be part of the 'phasing' that the rest of the town was experiencing. Though it would be quite awful to get caught on the other side. He then explored as much through the portal as he could without stepping through. He noted that the longer he looked at the portal them more uncomfortable he felt. It wasn't unlike when people insistently talked about emotions and sentimental things: it was completely wrong.]

[He put his arm through first, to test it. He noted a strange tingling sensation when he again withdrew his arm. He timed how long it took for the tingling to stop and was pleased when it did in short order. He checked his pockets for his supplies, to make sure he had everything. He had been assembling items as he could - making do with what was available around town, as well as some things that others had provided him.]

[Feeling like he was as prepared as he could be - he was missing John, but there wasn't a way to get him here right now - he stepped through. He was expecting the change in temperature, only because tropics were more humid than pretty much anywhere else. And the tingling dissipated as expected as well. He looked around with a faint glimmer of excitement in his eyes.]

The game is on!

[He carefully made his way around the beach, taking in the items on the beach. Well, those are boring, so Sherlock is looking for the things others would miss: footprints, hand-prints and other evidence of who might have been on this beach.]

[mal_addict]

[What had she told them about wandering off into danger? Maladict knew the second the damn portal appeared she'd have trouble. That was what happened when you lived with idiot detectives who had to explore everything.

And so, with an annoyed sigh, Maladict followed after Sherlock in the hopes that she could keep him from dying horribly. She really hoped Conan would stay put with his injured ribs.

Longest shot in history, that. She folded her arms as she stepped out, squinting in the sunlight. Well, that was unpleasant already]

I'm going to start chaining you to the house.

[perfectsymmetry]

[You'll have to excuse Crowe for a few moments while he stares wide-eyed at the scenery. He hasn't seen a body of water, beach or anything like it in two and a half years. Right now, this looks like paradise.]

Wh-What.... What is going on? Where is this?

[glowing_skye]

A beach, scientifically speaking.

What we need to figure out is what beach this is, and what its significance is to our librarian and our town.

[A pause.]

Good to see you, as much as it's good to see anyone in Mayfield.

Cowboy Club

[springtime4me]

[Honestly, Hitler had been prepared for much worse than a tropical island paradise, but he's not going to complain. There's probably something dangerous around here anyway. It would be too much to hope for it to be completely safe. Taking a look around the chairs and blankets on the beach, he adjust the cowboy hat(no, really) on his head and turns to his friends.]

I don't see anything on the beach.... Maybe we could try that path into the woods?

YIPPIE KI-YI-YAY MOTHERFUCKERS

[little_thief]

[Kay is definitely more excited about this cowboy thing than the other two. It's pretty easy to see who motivated this particular wardrobe change. Grinning, she pushes the hat down to dramatically cover the top half of her face before looking over toward the path.]

Sounds good to me!

[little_thief]

[At some point, Kay has apparently decided that investigation should take a back seat to a bit of beachside fun. She's set her backpack full of food and camping supplies down on the sand next to her, and is looking out over the water with her arms folded, clad in a pink bikini, the scarf from her normal outfit, and a cowboy hat. It looks thoroughly ridiculous.]

[glowing_skye]

Kay, you do realize that we have a limited window during which we can investigate this area, right?

[SCIENCE > beach funtimes, as nice as beachside fun would be.]

[on_bailes_strand]

Connla walks into the portal and finds himself in a place he never thought possible. Everything from the ground to the trees looked strange to him.]

H-hello?

[He stands and waits for an answer.]

[chibi_emperor]

[ Oh hey, that's a face he vaugly remembers. He's met this kid before, hasn't he?

Emperor comes floating up to him, raising an eyebrow as he sees the boy just standing there. ]

You expecting a parade to greet you, brat?

[glowing_skye]

[Unsurprisingly given Ema's impatience when it comes to investigating things, she has made it a point to go through the first portal she can find. She's packed some food, several notebooks and pens, water, a change of clothes, and a couple of Edward's things (his digital voice recorder and a revolver--she left a note saying she borrowed them, for what it's worth).

After spending nearly an hour taking notes on the portal itself, she steps through it. The change in temperature prompts her to remove her sweater and tie it around her waist, leaving her in her camisole. Once that's accomplished, she jots down a few more notes about how going through the portal felt before taking in the sights around her.

There's a sting of nostalgia. How long has it been since she's seen a beach? It reminds her of home, even if the beaches of southern California aren't quite the same as this one is.

She shakes herself off before long, however. Now is the time to investigate, not to get wistful. She wanders down closer to where the chairs are set up and starts taking notes.

If anyone gets close to her, she might ask them what their observations are. If anyone gets closer to the chairs than she is, she'll definitely yell at them to preserve the integrity of the scene until she's done taking forensic evidence.]

[ooeeooahah]

[ Ilsa follows soon after, similarly equipped. Even with the elevated temperature, she doesn't follow Ema's example of shedding layers. ]

Hm, just a bit off, but this might be using the same template as Port West.

[ooeeooahah]

[ Ilsa enters the portal soon after observing others enter, though she has gone back to the house to arm and armor for the trip. ]

[ The tingle is passing familiar, like but not exactly the same as crossing dimensions with her father. ]

[ Staying equidistant between the shore and forest, she pauses to sense what and who she can within range, keeping an eye on the signatures of those she knows. ]

[velesdonnersen]

[ Tarvek sees the hole in the air, the sand and surf beyond,the people moving through and knows. Another Mayfield event. Ah, well.]

[He cuts past home and collects a small but versatile set of tech tools and ninja equipment, including basics like high-test cording and a really good utility tool. Once he's prepared to play Ninja Science Boy Scout, he goes back.]

[ He takes a deep breath, pauses long enough to polish his pince nez just once, out of nervous tension, and then steps through. ]

[ Tarvek Sturmvoraus is doing the most Wulfenbachian of things: he's intentionally setting out to have an adventure...]

[ooeeooahah]

[ She's behind him when he steps through the portal, wearing the latest version of the armor he made for her. ]

Figured you'd be here soon enough.

[scarredglasses]

[Harry was a little excited to see the beach. He'd never been to one. Tentatively, he stepped through then stepped back. Best to make sure he could get back before going, right?

He contemplated running back to the house to get Henry but he knew his "brother" would find the place sooner or later. So he went ahead towards the sandcastles. Maybe he could build one too?]

[breaking4thwall]

[ There's a very big sandcastle by the others - was it even there before? - and is it humming? Yes, yes it is, because Fran is playing around with his illusions and is now very much looking like a 1-meter-or-so high sandcastle. ]

[shadowflashkick]

-If anything, upon noticing the portal, Charlie took it upon himself to investigate. He was curious about this place, he had to know just what was going on. He hadn't paid attention to who had decided to venture on ahead of him, or after.

Walking through the portal that shouldn't exist at all, had him baffled. There had to be a logical conclusion to this... but he couldn't place it.

However... if he were to explore a bit further...-

[velesdonnersen]

[Tarvek and Ilsa are exploring the fringe of the wood-line...or palm-tree line, in any case. As Charlie approaches Tarvek hears him, and looks back. ]

Ah! Charlie--you're here! Mayfield has come up with another new "feature." A death-trap, no doubt. But a pretty one.

[treefetish]

[Audrey recognizes the place as a beach. While she's never seen a real one before, it looks similar to where people in Thneedville would surf, what they called their beach. She kicks off her boots and runs out onto the sand, stopping only at the edge of the water.]

Wow... [She sticks her foot out tentatively.]

[bailedontheempire]

{Bail had been somewhat reluctant to enter the portal after that feeling so like the carnival. But... here he was]

Seems harmless enough...

[Almost pleasant. But so had the carnival, the first day]

[witchofthechalk]

[Tiffany examines the portal before going inside.

And coming out on a beach. First things first.

Explore.

You can find Tiffany either examining the towels and castles,

or a bit later walking into the forest of palm trees]

[springtime4me]

[After Cowboy Club's forest exploration expedition, Hitler decided to head over to the beach to see if there was anything strange about the sand castles.

Seeing her is a rather pleasant surprise.]

Hi!

[Yeah, he's still wearing the cowboy hat. He sort of forgot he had it on.]

Find anything interesting?

[putonmythinkingcap]

[Cliff wasted no time in getting through that portal. While the tingle after he entered unnerved him, he tried not to let it show.

He's currently poking at that shallow pit in the sand with a stick. Had someone been buried there, or was there something else going on? Just to be on the safe side, he's using his telekinesis to move that stick around.]

[mayfield_mods]

[The pit behaves as normal, no booby traps activate. The footprints around here are small, but not quite childlike: perhaps those of a teenage girl.]

[snacklist]

[Al wanted to help out, but there was no way he was leaving his mother when things were starting to get a bit crazy. So anyone might see Alphonse looming over Trisha, stepping close enough to almost tread on her heels as they head towards the path in the foliage.]

[nurture]

[Trisha, meanwhile, looks about as enthusiastic as could be...!]

Al! This is beautiful...!

I can't remember the last time we went to the ocean!

[eternalcameo]

(Upon discovering the portal, Asagi took it upon herself to go check it out. Beaches were always nice, but even she knew better than to kick back around here. She leaps from tree to tree, looking down on the area as she goes; she's generally following the path to go deeper into the forest, but doing so from the treetops. It's easy to watch her leap from tree to tree, but she's keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.)

[mayfield_mods]

[The only remotely suspicious thing is the wildlife, which flees at her approach. As she traverses deeper into the forest, it becomes less of a forest and more of a jungle, the foliage becoming thicker and the air more humid. Long vines hang from the treetops, and they seem strong enough to swing from.]

[chibi_emperor]

[ It's been years and years since Emperor last were at a beach. At least in a conscious state; Rei might have gone to one while he was sleeping and he wouldn't be aware of it.

He's levitating a couple of meter above the ground, leaving eventual stepping-on-traps to whoever can't fly as he checks out the island. He's keeping his distance from the shore for now, making annoyed faces at the sea whenever he looks its way. ]

[breaking4thwall]

[ Wait, did the sea just make a face back at Emperor? At least that should be what it looks like, because Fran's entertaining himself watching this floating person making faces and why not have the water do it in return? ]

[breaking4thwall]

[ Interest is gotten when he sees all that water expanding, and no thought is given as he make his way through the portal. ]

[ Being in the sun wearing his thick Varia uniform might prove to be a bit warm in the end, but right now, Fran don't seem to care. Instead, he walks straight down the beach, feeling how the sensations feel, well, real. ]

Doesn't feel like an illussiooon.

[ And he don't know that many illusionists who would be able to create an illusion that he wouldn't be able to see through. After all, he's a Top Magician, just like his Master. And Mukuro was not in Mayfield or anything, as far as he knew. ]

[jumpsuited_rat]

[Chell's used to portals, but she's surprised to see one in town that leads to somewhere she's never seen before.

She watches it for a bit and once she's certain it's not going away, she goes back home and grabs her equipment she had readied for the funhouse adventure. Chell had replaced all the food and water and whatever else had been used since then.

Once she got back to the portal with her bag, she picks up a rock and tosses it through. When nothing happens to the rock, Chell steps on through.

The tingle is similar to the ones she felt when passing through the portals in Aperture, so she doesn't even notice it at all. After taking several steps, she pauses and breathes in the salty air. Chell doesn't ever remember going to the beach, if it wasn't for the fact that she still may be trapped in Mayfield, she'd enjoy this trip.

Her first concern is to start walking around the edge of the island, looking out to sea for any signs of land out across the ocean. She walks quickly and businesslike, she's on a mission.]

[putonmythinkingcap]

[Cliff, meanwhile, has been poking at things with a stick in a bid to make a scientific analysis of this strange beach. Just to be on the safe side, he's been using his telekinesis to move the stick around.

He's poking around the area when he spots her looking more prepared than he does. He's in his supervillain suit and being followed around by a floating stick, that's it.]

Hey! You seen anything?

[Nope, he's not even bothering with a pleasant "hello." Even in a suddenly-appearing strange beach, he's still got the same terrible manners as ever.]

[imstillhere]

[Well, Jim's just flying over the jungle on his board. So he found out there's a memento they need to find. Sooo, he's trying to find it from a birds eye view.]

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY

[mayfield_mods]

[Someone has found the memento!

Abruptly the winds pick up into an all out hurricane without even a second's warning. If you happen to be on the clifftops, bad luck because it's likely you'll be picked up by the wind and thrown into the ocean.

Anyone falling in the ocean (or in it already) might be surprised to find sharks swimming at them all of sudden. Lightning is striking the beach and forest, and trees are falling.

Not just that, but the water level is rising... seems like the island itself is sinking!]

Re: EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY

[sumofallreds]

[GOOOOOO-BUSTER]

What a pain in the ass...

[That lightning strike was too close for words. Luckily, his speed is nice and boosted in this form. Hopefully it'll be enough to get out of dodge.]