maskormods: (Default)
Mask or Menace | MODERATORS ([personal profile] maskormods) wrote in [community profile] maskormenacelogs2020-01-10 05:08 pm

(no subject)

WHO: Everyone!
WHERE: An hour outside De Chima
WHEN: January 10-12
WHAT: imPorts are treated to a Swear-In that’s nothing but a weekend of relaxation at a brand new resort and spa!
WARNINGS: Possible mild nudity

It’s been a long few months, hasn’t it imPorts? Between the invading monsters (yikes!), evading the apocalypse (double yikes!) and then some fear toxin on behalf of your good pal Joker (triple yikes!), imPorts are overdue for a vacation. And wouldn’t you know it? One is coming right up.

Oh, yeah. It’s a Hot Springs Episode.

Welcome to Elysium Resort and Spa! When you come in, you’ll get a brochure with all of their offerings. They’re a little confused, perhaps, espousing relaxation ideals of every culture, clearly having just thrown all of their relaxation spaghetti at the wall to see if it sticks, but they’ve got the spirit! The smell of eucalyptus fills the air as you toe off your shoes and change into the slippers and robes that they have available for you as they usher you into what must be, for some, absolute paradise.

You can find rooms for all persuasions here, all purporting various health benefits. They have your typical fare - salt rooms, saunas, steam rooms, buckets of water with ladles resting in them to pour over the heaters to allow them to sizzle - but be warned! Some of these rooms climb up to ridiculous temperatures, leaving the bottoms of your feet red and toasty as you jump in (they suggest sandals, but who reads instructions anyway?), and other rooms are filled with ice as you’re plunged into what may as well be a walk-in freezer. Sometimes the doors are a little fiddly, though. Don’t worry - you won’t get trapped in here long enough for any real harm to come to you. But you might get a little uncomfortable as you rattle at the door, one of the employees eventually hurrying to let you out and offering their sincerest apologies, and won’t you have a gift certificate?

If those rooms aren’t enough for you, you can check out the baths. Salt baths, chilled baths, and hot tubs galore are here for imPorts, but that’s not all. Ever wanted to bathe in tea? In wine? Would you like to sink into a bath filled entirely with clay? How about getting all your dead skin chomped off by fish? It’s all here for you! Just try not to drink the bathwater - or, heavens, eat the fish. Those aren’t for you!

As imPorts stroll outside, they’ll see a beautiful vista overlooking the mountains, attached to a spacious hot springs (it’s natural, they claim, but who’s checking?) where imPorts can simply relax and enjoy the scenery. After that, why not pop inside to where some of the technicians will absolutely insist that you get a massage. Or a mani-pedi - yes, even you, big guy. Or, really, anything that your heart desires.

Once you’ve been poked and prodded and primped to your heart’s content (or discontent, as it may be), the spa open until the wee hours of the morning, it’s time to go and dine on some of the local cuisine, prepared fresh by the resort’s resident chef with a distinct eye to fresh, clean flavors and a truly ridiculous amount of salad. They want to make sure that you’re healthy inside and out, after all!

Before arriving at the spa, everyone was able to choose who they wanted to room with. But it seems that their systems got a bit scrambled during their grand opening, so you may find yourself bunking with a stranger instead. They’re deeply apologetic, of course, but it really would be easier for them if you’d just be nice for an evening and give it a shot. It’s only one evening, right? It’s not like you’ll be roomed with a serial killer. Probably. Given the imPort population there’s, what, a five percent chance?

The hotel rooms themselves are beautiful and spacious, each with a window looking out over the lovely view of the scenery below. It’s the perfect way to end your night… until 3 AM when an alarm begins to blare and all of the guests are ushered outside in the chilly winter air while firefighters come to check the place out. It’s a false alarm (some brat must have pulled it, the manager says apologetically, ready with more gift certificates), but hey, maybe this is a good chance to get to know your neighbors!

The next day, guests are free to take advantage of the resort’s facilities once more, or they can go hiking in the mountainous trails available to them, complete with regular rest stops with firepits, with the staff more than happy to pack lunchboxes and fixings for s’mores.

After they come back and have a thankfully uneventful night’s rest, buses will be ready to take them back to civilization, along with goodie bags filled with luxury goods and an earnest invitation to come back anytime! But maybe next time, wait a couple of months so they can iron out the kinks in their system.

fauxmarth: (god this is the most relaxing void)

[personal profile] fauxmarth 2020-01-18 05:35 pm (UTC)(link)
[of course he is. his gross bug armor grows on then peels off, right? nasty boy.]

Maybe just colors. Anything they mean to have glued on my fingers will break off right away in training, so it's no good. [and the prospect of just taking a week off of combat or training is not even a thing in her mind, obviously.] It'd be a feat for anything to last more than a couple days, but...maybe that's the challenge of being here?

[if being at a spa resort can be considered at all a challenge.]
lanofsizhui: ponponpon@dw (013)

[personal profile] lanofsizhui 2020-01-18 07:34 pm (UTC)(link)
Sizhui approaches the man that he had known as his highly esteemed uncle, the man who raised him well besides Lan Wangji. He approaches at the edge of the pool, put his hands together and makes a respectful bow as a child should greet the elder. He sees him recuperating in one of the hot spas, taking a soak.

He smiles cheerfully back. "Zewu-Jun. Uncle. It's good to see you. You're here as well. If I had known you're here, I would have brought you something sweet."

Even if the young man's birthday, he always have a thought for others.
lanofsizhui: ponponpon@dw (010)

[personal profile] lanofsizhui 2020-01-18 08:37 pm (UTC)(link)
Sizhui is at the juice bar by the pool, ordering a fruit smoothie when his father approaches. Sizhui makes a quick respectful bow. The usual routine manners.

He blinks. What he's giving him? "Hanguang-Jun?" Sizhui opens the package box and sees fresh carrots of different colors. He appreciates the gift, smiling brightly.

The color of the carrot are weird. "Thank you. Um...do you happen to know if they are edible?"
germhating_hypochondriac: (hand)

[personal profile] germhating_hypochondriac 2020-01-18 08:39 pm (UTC)(link)
"All kinds of weird shit.  Apocalypses, time bubbles, poisonous clowns, natural disasters."   Eddie shook his head.  "And they expect us to deal with it."
lanofsizhui: kaliyuga@dw (014)

[personal profile] lanofsizhui 2020-01-18 08:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[Sizhui looks surprised. He has never seen this girl before or recalls seeing her. This is the first time.]

My headband? Yes, everyone in Cloud Recesses wears them. How did you know Hanguang-jun?
photophobic: (050)

[personal profile] photophobic 2020-01-18 09:55 pm (UTC)(link)
"Pink," he says. It is absolutely intended to be the kind of dead-pan joke he's discovered can have an explosive effect when perfectly timed, but—
photophobic: (121)

[personal profile] photophobic 2020-01-18 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[What a question. Quite demonstrably, everything has not been good since the last time they were in each other's orbit, but it's equally obvious neither of them particularly wants to talk about that.

Though, Ronan's no longer slowly liquefying, so there's that.]


Better. Yes. [There's a lengthy pause. Then:] Perhaps, the weather? If you were looking for a relaxing topic of conversation.
photophobic: (050)

[personal profile] photophobic 2020-01-18 11:13 pm (UTC)(link)
[Well, that is at least less terrible than one of the alternatives Kylo had been entertaining. He watches M for a moment as if weighing up the chances that this is all just the set-up for a joke at his expense, then turns to host behind the counter.]

A snake massage. For myself and my companion.

[And back to M's face, while the necessary admin takes place. There. Challenge Accepted.]
onthe_threshold: (hmm)

[personal profile] onthe_threshold 2020-01-19 12:03 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh."

He thinks about that for a moment before nodding. "I'm used to that. Guess I'll be fine."
roughworkdone: (pic#13493513)

[personal profile] roughworkdone 2020-01-19 12:51 am (UTC)(link)
[Like is not the word Kaz might have chosen. He is intoxicated by it, tortured by it, and offended by the breath of Kavinsky at the end, which brings yet a different kind of agony. No. He doesn't like it. He gives Kavinsky a sharp, lingering look.]

No.

[It answers both questions. No, the auction stunt was not revenge. No, he didn't like the gift. But that didn't keep him from opening it again, and again, just to catch a hint of what's there.

He hates that every time the end notes of Kavinsky hit him. Hard. His hand tightens briefly on the cane as he remembers the wretched feeling of wanting. Tobacco, pepper, and some scent that makes him feel dizzy. Kaz Brekker's jaw ticks. He can be grateful that mind reading is not among Kavinsky's talents.

Dark eyes linger on places where Kavinsky's skin is bare and he scowls.]


khajidont: (Jaime - Mild)

[personal profile] khajidont 2020-01-19 01:05 am (UTC)(link)
"That's what they say," Jaime agrees, moseying on over to another tank to dunk his feet in, more to see what it's about than anything else. They can just rinse it all off later anyway, though he has to say the sensation isn't particularly good.

"But of course they said she was beautiful, right? She was royalty. They gotta say that. It's not like we got any pictures."
dauntless_son: (pic#13698609)

[personal profile] dauntless_son 2020-01-19 01:21 am (UTC)(link)
He looks like a monk, but not any of the orders that Declan is familiar with. He considers the question and the man asking it.

"Never know," he answers. "Maybe you like discussing the finer observations of foreign flora and fauna while you walk."

It is, maybe, a smartass answer; however, it's delivered like he's remarking on the weather. Declan notices the attention he's getting. He doesn't recognize this man in particular, but it doesn't mean they haven't met. And there is another distinct possibility, just as there always was if one knew more than one Lynch.

"I don't think so. But I have a brother."

There's no point in denying it. The family resemblance isn't very subtle.
hatejakku: (no problem)

[personal profile] hatejakku 2020-01-19 01:55 am (UTC)(link)
He does love his blue. Finn bites his lip as he looks over the options but... he knows what he's getting.

"Black. With the stars," he clarifies to the technician filing down his nails as if what he wants isn't obvious enough. But then he looks at Cece. "Shouldn't I get something colorful, though? What are you getting?"
goldtoxicity: (pic#12834440)

[personal profile] goldtoxicity 2020-01-19 02:35 am (UTC)(link)
[ we... weather??? who talks about the weather? is this ironic? is it a joke? is kylo ren secretly a 60 year old man? ]

It's... good?

[ yes josh good adds so much to the conversation. ]

Um, I guess it's been a while since I've seen so much snow.
adamantlyardent: (wow that's dumb)

[personal profile] adamantlyardent 2020-01-19 02:50 am (UTC)(link)
"Maybe just paint...certainly nothing long and claw-like glued on." She gives him a pointed look that says you know what I mean but also don't talk about it.

"Why don't you pick the color, since I always do. Surprise me, let me judge your taste."
hatejakku: (hm)

[personal profile] hatejakku 2020-01-19 03:07 am (UTC)(link)
He does kinda like the claw ones. The problem is, he'll have to schedule vacation time just to get them done.

But until then, he's going to low-key panic about having to choose Cecelia's nail color. Finn squints between her face and her hands, trying to think of something complimentary. "... Reeeeeed- Yellow. Like light yellow? No, red... Or green."

He's usually good at decisions but not the kind that might upset her. "Okay, no, I'm settling on red. A candy red. What do you think?"
photophobic: (040)

[personal profile] photophobic 2020-01-19 03:17 am (UTC)(link)
Kylo can't think of many people who would think it was good to see him, here or anywhere else. But it doesn't appear to be a joke at his expense.

"I doubt you are the only imPort concerned with what might have been left behind," he offers, the slight tension in his voice suggesting an almost cautious reserve that eases off slowly as he continues. "But it doesn't serve you. The past is locked in place. You are made from it. There's nothing new to be gained in unraveling it— and your future is here."

He abandons the slip-on sandals (a size or two on the small side, honestly) to pad barefoot over the wooden decking towards the edge of the pool, where he discards his robe and slips smoothly into the water, leaving a good, respectable yet conversational distance between them. She has, after all, invited him to join her, hasn't she? And the reflected moon fractures on the surface of the disturbed water between them in a disarmingly stark, beautiful way.

"With all of this. Not your ghosts."
adamantlyardent: (acceptable)

[personal profile] adamantlyardent 2020-01-19 03:45 am (UTC)(link)
Candy red. Red, as her hair is read? She smirks, half a mind to note that it'd just make her skin look redder on top of it! But he looks very earnest and...and worried about getting it wrong? Gods, man, how old are you?! It's just paint. Paint that can wash off.

"Red it is, then." She nods to the technician. "Candy red, as he said," she adds, her mouth quirking as she glances back Finn's way.
monster_san: clearly, a line (...it's a line)

[personal profile] monster_san 2020-01-19 03:53 am (UTC)(link)
[Really, Jaime? After all this time, after five years of swear-ins, you thought one that takes place in a beautiful mountain resort and SPA was going to be chill?!

She does manage to keep most of that off her face as she tries to figure out how to word that politely--it's late enough that it takes her a moment. Enough that she has to smile at the one side she gets of Jaime's argument with Khaji.]


Are you sure that Khaji-san isn't too busy sorting out the false positives from all of us to miss whatever's really happening? [she's really not about to accept the idea that Things Are Actually Fine without some extremely convincing evidence and she doesn't have that yet.] I was afraid this would happen as soon as they announced where the Swear-In was.
photophobic: (068)

[personal profile] photophobic 2020-01-19 04:00 am (UTC)(link)
[Kylo's mouth tics at the corner, something like amusement hiding in his eyes as he watches Josh flounder. Yep. That indeed was a moment of Kylo Ren humour— notable, as they often are, for not actually being funny. Like, at all.]

Unseasonable. For the time of year.

[It is not.]
governorkang: (This is fun / Go fish!)

[personal profile] governorkang 2020-01-19 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
He tilts his head to one side slightly. "And are magic-users common, on your Earth? It's rare to find one that even has magic."

"The lower spells do tend to be underappreciated. Sometimes it's better to be smart than destructive."
goldtoxicity: (pic#12834440)

[personal profile] goldtoxicity 2020-01-19 05:22 am (UTC)(link)
Um... I mean, sure, if you're living in Australia or something I guess it's off...

[ wait. is he from australia??? or even from earth? is this insensitive? uhhhhh ]

I-I'm more of a summer guy myself. But, um, skiing is kinda fun?

[ help ]
nightmarist: (reverent ☘)

[personal profile] nightmarist 2020-01-19 05:35 am (UTC)(link)
There is no if in Ronan's mind. Kylo may not have a throne, but he is Ronan's lord here and now. He may not have a court, but he has his concubine. There's nothing that stands in the way of turning that fantasy into reality. Ronan doesn't get on his knees and play at worship. His adoration is true.

As Kylo seizes his hair, he glances up. But there's no protest, no discouragement. Ronan's mouth finds Kylo's skin again, each kiss growing more and more heated as he climbs. His face disappears beneath folds of cloth, and once he's there, his lips are a tease again. Nothing but voiceless whispers brushed against Kylo's arousal. He doesn't have to - anyone could see how much he's wanted - but Ronan begs anyway to be allowed a taste.

Please, please, please...
dragony: (❥f - 07)

[personal profile] dragony 2020-01-19 05:48 am (UTC)(link)
"It's a little harder, when your ghosts insist on following you."

It doesn't have the force of a denial; her feet kick a little in the water, her gaze slipping down to the choppy fragments of the moon in reflection. "I've spent my whole life running away from them, but it never does me any good. I mean... we almost lost this world to the same thing that destroyed the place I grew up."

Maybe he knew this already, maybe he doesn't; she's talked about it enough on the Network, coming from the ruined world of the City to here. The memory of it lingers at the edges of her thoughts, little flashes of buildings in their twisting destruction, a dried-out ocean, the echoing sensation of death. None of it shows on her face, but it does in her shoulders — her hands tighten their grip on the lip of the pool.

"My future is here." A sudden little brightness, like sunlight through a thick fog. She's never imagined having a future before. Not any time as a child, too weak to live but too important to die. Not any time in the other world, upheaval after upheaval and loss after loss leaving her with no solid footing, scarred and wounded, with poisons left in her heart to fester for years. Not any time in the years here, before now, hurt and afraid and feeling so much like a ghost herself. She's never let herself want a future before, but she's desperate for one now.

She doesn't want to ruin this, too.

What Kylo's said contains a truth they both share: the future is here, because it is nowhere else. There is no going back to the places they started. There is no returning to the people they once were without the complete destruction of the people they are now. Some imPorts stay for years without ever realizing that crucial truth about their existence. Some spend all their time looking back, never once seeing reality for what it is.

He gets it. And it's why, after that long hesitation, she lets herself say the rest. "... But, how do you let go of something, if it won't let go of you?"
iminthebook: (Thinky 2)

[personal profile] iminthebook 2020-01-19 05:52 am (UTC)(link)
"Not super-common, but more so than most I heard of." He nods to the other. "Most are low powered, and only a thousand maybe, currently, are higher level in power." He scritches his chin, thinking.

"I usually work a lot with the lower level people, as I don['t care what power people have as long as they sue it not to hurt people."

Which is more than one could say for most of the wizards in his world.