(no subject)

[arachnerds]

--kay. Start? Record? Umm-- Oh.

[with his own mirror starting to reflect, peter manages to muster up a relieved smile. sure, he's used the shard before, but he's never had to work out how to start a message before. he's only ever had to respond to something already there.]

So, um. Hi? My name's Peter, and I've been here for like...two months now?

[he blinks, looking away from the shard for a moment. has it really been that long already? he fiddles with something off screen, tugging his sleeves further down over his hands to hide his webshooters.]

I know some of us kind of met during the whole-- [he holds his breath a second, cheeks puffing out.] --underwater thing. But I was talking to someone the other day, and it kind of reminded me that there's some things we should probably all know about. About this island, I mean.

So, it happened about a week after I got here. One night, there was a scream, and all our shards lit up. There was a girl on the other end of it who tried to warn us, I think. She said "he's coming", and then she disappeared. I think there was someone else there with her, but I don't know for sure. There wasn't really anything to see. She didn't show her face, it was just...a shadow? My...friends and I tried to find her. But there wasn't anything to go on.

[a pause, and he stares across the lake, towards the building in the far distance. right up until he's snapped out of his own thoughts by the appearance of scales breaking the surface of the lake. it's back. scrubbing his eye with the heel of his palm, peter refocuses on the shard again, his expression sombre.]

People have been disappearing here. When I turned up-- There were two people here from my world. [well, technically, universe. but he's not getting caught up in that.] They're not here anymore, and I don't know where they've gone. All I know if that I woke up one morning, and their room was empty. Their bags had gone. Everything.

I...I think they went home. I think they got sent back somehow. [because he refuses to believe that anything bad happened. (they're safe. they have to be.) or that they found a way home and left him behind. (they wouldn't do that. they're heroes.)] They wouldn't have left as long as people were stuck here. So that has to mean that there's something out there that's capable of sending people home whenever it wants. Which means we have to find it.

[... easier said than done. he shakes his head suddenly, jumping to his feet and grabbing the shard. he holds it up as though he's taking a selfie of himself, turning so his back faces the lake. it's a shot of his head peeking in from one side, the distant castle taking up the rest of the space.]

We need to find a way to go there. [there's an enthusiasm to him now that'd been missing for the rest of the message. he has a mission to focus on now, and it's a lot easier to look forward to that than to dwell on what's already happened.]

I know there's other things we probably need to focus on too. Food, for one thing. Working out how to protect ourselves if that creature comes back again. Fixing up the buildings here so they don't leak if it rains. [a shrug, and he lowers the shard again, looking down at its surface.] I guess that should all get dealt with first, seeing as we have no idea how long we'll be stuck here. But I still want to check out that castle too.

[another pause, and he does his best to put on a smile.]

So, yeah. If anyone needs any help, or you just want someone to talk to, I'm by the lake. I'll probably be here all afternoon.

[a wave, and then the picture goes dark as he places the shard down and goes back to fiddling with his mask. he could really use you right now, karen.]

Comments

[fighterpaladin]

[Keith recognizes Peter's voice-- He recognizes his face, too. The first time they talked, what the other boy was telling him was a little hard to believe, but after witnessing what he and Lance did while being in this place, he knows better now.

Knowing that there are people who have been here for two months already is worrisome. They have places to go, things to do. Theirs is an important mission. But what worries Keith the most in everything that Peter says is the fact that, apparently, just as randomly as they appear, people can also disappear from this place. Just like that.

It makes his heart skip a beat, makes it all the harder to focus on anything else. It's a good thought that, perhaps, all that happened was that they returned home. But what if that's not the case? What if--...]

Hey. [His voice is low but somewhat apologetic. Perhaps for what he asks next.] Your friends who left... They didn't even leave you a note?

[As for the castle, Keith had noticed it too, already. But everything feels scattered in the place and, quite honestly, a bit of a mess. It's like Peter says, while exploring and searching for answers is important, given their conditions, they need to make sure they survive long enough in order to be able to explore.]

I had noticed that place before, too. But we don't even know how many of us there are, who we can count on to do what. [Who can build things, who can organize information, who has medical knowledge, who can fight or hunt or explore.] Supplies are running low and... not all houses are good.

And besides... If there are other people here, like that girl you guys saw, who knows what else there might be. [Beasts? Monsters? Things that might actually be dangerous and they need to fight? Ghosts?] We aren't prepared to survive, let alone fight. [Not seriously, anyway.]

I think we can go there. [To the castle.] But we need to figure ourselves out here, first.

[arachnerds]

[he does his best to put on a brave face. keith's tone may be soft, but it doesn't make the question sting any less.]

They're heroes. They wouldn't have left unless they could take everybody with them.

[because that had been the plan from the start. to find a way off this island, with all the inhabitants in tow. getting everyone back to their own worlds could be dealt with later.]

I've been gathering supplies since I got here. My friend-- She used to hunt for us too. It might be worth finding out who knows how to hunt here. Oh, and who can tell which berries and stuff you can eat and which would kill you. Cause I've got no idea.

[and while he may heal fast, he doesn't want to test his body's limits right now.]

[fighterpaladin]

[Keith just stares at the mirror for a while, once Peter answers. He isn't very good with social situations at all, but he does have empathy. He can tell that there's something off on that reply - the emphasis on heroes making it that much more obvious - but he isn't sure how to approach it. So, instead, his voice remains low, calm.] Could they still be somewhere around here, then?

[He is a bit surprised with how much Peter is not freaking out, though. If that had happened to Keith, if Lance had just up and vanished out of nowhere, he would probably reach Hunk-levels of panicking. If he is so sure that they left - because their things are gone - but that they also wouldn't leave - because they are 'heroes' - then... what happened?

He refrains from touching the subject, though. But also takes note to further secure the windows and doors of the place he and Lance are staying at.]

We've been doing that, too. [Gathering supplies. Though if this keeps up, and more people show up, all the supplies will be gone soon.] ... I can hunt. [If they manage to be stealthy enough to get close to the animals.] But I've no idea about the berries, either.

[arachnerds]

We're gonna run out of food quickly if we don't start working together. Especially if we've searched all the buildings already.

[because he's been to more than one building this week that had clearly already been searched. heading further out (alone) isn't really an option.]

I've never been hunting before. But I'm pretty good at getting in to difficult places, so I can keep searching through the broken buildings.

[a pause, and he adds--]

We really should get everyone together though. Some people might have nothing. We need to work together if we're ever going to get out of here.

network;

[sharpshooterpaladin]

Hi! Uh. I'm Lance, I was definitely there for the diving and stuff. [ Just in case-- it's all kinda fuzzy, they were all a little busy being merpeople and he doesn't remember if he introduced himself, or who to. ]

Okay so here's a question. You said "this island". ... Are you uh, talking about like this entire place? How do you know it's an island?

[ There's a second question here, but he's going to sit on that for a while. ]

And then uh, not to rain on your parade, dude, but I tried swimming there after we dragged those crates to shore? There's some seriously bad fog that shows up when you get closer. Like... you're gonna want a hazmat suit for that. I could barely stand it long enough to come up for air, never mind actually getting out of the water.

[arachnerds]

Because we've walked the full perimeter already? I mean, there could be more out there than we saw. The fog got pretty thick there too, and it was too hot out in the desert to keep going. Even at night.

[and then there's the cold. and the water. and...okay, maybe they've made some assumptions. but there's something cutting them off from the outside world, so calling it an island seems fitting.]

I'm not saying we should head out there right now. We've kind of got bigger things to deal with first. But at some point, I think we need to take a look. It's the only other building I've seen so far.

[sharpshooterpaladin]

Yeah the mountains weren't super easy to maneuver either. But that's what confused me, since island kinda implies that it's surrounded by something, right? Ocean, or I don't know, [ vague gesturing, ] space. But I guess we're cut off either way, so... whatever, island it is.

[ He sighs. ] I guess we've got nothing but time to figure something out. So... maybe finding out how many people are even here isn't a bad start? Getting everyone in the same area so we can help each other would be good.

[arachnerds]

Maybe we should set a date or something. Get everyone together so we can work out what we've got.

[a pause, and he frowns a little. maybe some clarification would be a good idea right about now.]

I mean food and stuff. And maybe look at trying to...get people to live closer together too? Just in case something bad happens again.

[arrogator]

[Mordred's not wearing her helmet when she talks into the mirror, so Peter gets to see her expressions instead of staring at a helmet for the entire conversation.]

Yeah, I want to take a look at that castle too.

[She doesn't know if people are in there or what, but the way that fog creeped up when she tried swimming towards it during the event means something's definitely up with it.]

And you said you got a warning something was coming and then people started disappearing?

[Mordred frowns, thinking about that. She hadn't heard that before. She didn't even know people got here before her and the others found themselves here. She's not really sure what to make of that.]

What makes you think whoever this he you were warned about didn't get them?

[arachnerds]

Yeah. She said "he" was here, but she never said who "he" was.

[though he refuses to believe that "he" is the reason why gamora and star-lord aren't here anymore. the two of them may not have had a choice in leaving, but anything nefarious would have chosen to keep them here rather than send them home. and home is exactly where they are.]

Mr Star-lord and Miss Gamora would've been able to stop anyone that came after them.

[arrogator]

[There's a few things she can say in response to that, and unfortunately, she's going to pick one of the dumber options.]

The hell kind of name is Star-Lord?

[arachnerds]

That's his superhero name. It feels weird calling him Peter.

[what with that being his name too.]

He's a Guardian of the Galaxy, so I think it fits.

[arrogator]

Guardian of the...no way. You're making this up, just like that other guy and his lion robot!

[Because she still doesn't believe that either.]

[arachnerds]

[he just squints back at the mirror for a moment, his confusion clear for a moment. lion robot?]

...no? That's what they're called. They're heroes.

[sinistral]

You okay?

[Because nothing else in the message is more important than that. Peter had been—

Well, he'd been confusing mostly, but kind. Concerned. And insistent in his trust of Bucky. Bucky doesn't really trust himself all that much, not really (not yet?), but there's something about Peter's trust that makes him want to return it.]

[arachnerds]

Mr Barnes. Hey.

[it's far from being his usual, overly enthusiastic greeting. but he's trying.]

I'm still here, so... [a shrug] I'm glad they got to go home though. Someone needs to keep the galaxy safe, right?

[sinistral]

Bucky.

[Trying is all a person can do, sometimes. Bucky understands it.]

Yeah. [If they got to go home, but that’s cruel to point out.] Guess they have to do it without us.

[arachnerds]

Sorry.

[he rubs the back of his neck, his expression turning apologetic, but for a completely different reason.]

Are you...busy?

[sinistral]

Don’t be.

[Truth is, on hearing that the two people from “home” aren’t here anymore, he’s kind of expecting Peter to reach out. To look for the closest thing to familiarity.]

No. Want company?

[arachnerds]

[he nods at the question before he can stop himself, a grimace crossing his face as he looks away for a moment. he knows he’s acting like a child right now, and that’s the last thing he wants to be viewed as.]

Only if you’re sure.

[morphogenia]

[At first there's only a shot of the ground and the voice of a teenage girl. The accent makes it pretty obvious she's an American, specifically from New Jersey.] Uh... hi! I'm Kamala. I think this is working...? Oh! It should face this way!

[It flips to face a teenage girl with a nervous smile.] So I actually have no idea what's going on here, but this is my head's up that once I actually make it to the lake I could seriously use a run down of what's happening? Like who kidnapped us would be great! Also I'm obviously team 'Let's go to a castle!' so jot me down for that.

[arachnerds]

Hey!

[his grin is wide, relief clear at the fact that there is another teenager here. he doesn't have to be the odd one out anymore.]

I can fill you in on what I know, but I really don't know much. Especially not about who brought us here.

[because why would things ever be that easy?]

[morphogenia]

[It's nice that someone is happy to see her, she thinks. Kamala has no idea who she is dealing with here. She can't help feeling frustrated they don't have better news.] Ugh! I should have known this would be hard.

[arachnerds]

At least you're not alone? I mean, we're all kind of in the same position.

[and (he hopes) they all want to find their way home. he'd much rather work out how in a team than alone.]

[morphogenia]

That's true. Being alone sucks so at least we have each other.... [Kamala snaps her fingers.] Oh! We should give ourselves a name if we're going to be a team.