applesaucedream | Encampment Under the Sea [Open to All]

photo encampmentunderthesea_zps98ceddce.jpg

Since the dreamers of Manhattan had such a lovely time at the last vaguely-nautical-themed party, the Rift has decided to step things up a notch. Tonight, the dreamers will find themselves in what appears to be a city very much like the one they inhabit in the waking world, full of towering skyscrapers, neon signs, and heavy traffic. But there is one rather crucial difference: this city is located deep underwater, and the aforementioned traffic is mostly whales and fish, with the occasional submersible thrown into the mix.

The walls and windows are heavily reinforced to withstand the pressure of the water outside, and the people who dwell in these buildings seem to be doing rather well for themselves, for the most part. Buildings are connected by enclosed walkways, so barring any horrible accidents, the dreamers should have no problem getting around without getting too wet.

Much like the city they inhabit in the waking world, some areas are more obviously affluent than others, and the dreamers are as likely to stumble upon an upscale club as an underwater pub. But while the chances of a full structural breakdown are slim, there are definitely some areas that are on the leaky side, and a general sense of claustrophobia pervades the city wherever you might find yourself.

Explore. Or, if you're feeling particularly ambitious, attempt to escape. Either way, take care - it's hard to say what might be lurking in the darkness just beyond the city lights.

[ooc: Y'all know the drill. All characters are welcome, whether they are in the game or not. Characters can remember or forget the events of the dreaming at the player's discretion. And the party never stops - backtag into infinity!]

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Daine turns at the voice. Or… voices? It's like listening to bird calls, or wolves howling, that funny mixture of sound in her ears and speech in her mind, except they're both speech, and they're both in her ears. Daine has to give her head a vigorous little shake before she can even look at the speaker, and then she blinks in surprise.

It's… a tree. Some sort of giant two-legger-shaped tree.

Daine turns about on the pipe and eyes that outstretched hand a little bit uneasily. Rocket? she repeats. I think you might have… confused me with someone else. She says it all rather uncertainly; it's one thing to be confused for an animal when she's in a shape, and quite another to be confused for a specific animal with a name. Then again, if anyone's likely to know a raccoon, she supposes a tree would be. I'm Daine.

He realizes at once that no, it is not Rocket - of course it is not, he should have realized at once. Rocket would be offended no doubt. This creature is not clothed, does not look anything like Rocket - and yet, in all their travels, they have never encountered anything like him anywhere. That was what led him astray. Allowed him to see his friend, if only for a moment. He slumps a little, feeling even more dejected.

Still, though. Daine can understand him. And - they speak in his head. Not like Rocket at all. How very strange.

"I am Groot," he says, Forgive me, it's just that I have a friend who looks quite a bit like you, and I've never seen anything like you before him. Would it be all right to ask what you are?

This is going to take some getting used to, Daine realizes when he speaks again. She's not sure why he's repeating the bit about his name, so she focuses on the other part, instead, the voice she expects she wouldn't even hear if she was in her human shape.

I'm a raccoon, she explains. Or, well, I'm in raccoon shape. She lifts a paw and wiggles her little claws for emphasis. Are there… not many raccoons where you come from?

"I am Groot," he explains, No, only Rocket. Racoon is what my friend Peter Quill called him once, but I do not know what that means. Are you of Earth, then? Is this Earth? I did not know there were subaquatic dwellings on Earth. It is so peculiar, that I do not know how I came to be here.

Is he going to say that Groot part every time? It's fair confusing. Then again, it's also getting easier for her to ignore that part and pay closer attention to the higher-pitched stuff. Which is just as well, because he's asking an awful lot of questions.

This is a dream, she explains patiently. We're both dreaming, so I expect this place doesn't really exist at all. But the animals out there are Earth animals, far as I can tell. For whatever that's worth. Daine heaves her furry shoulders in a very un-raccoon-like shrug, then cants her head a little to one side. Are you from Earth? I've never seen a talking tree-person before.

Groot smiles broadly at the intriguing explanations; so much he did not expect, so much to consider - and the best news of all, that it is a dream, that he will wake up and be with his friends once more. Daine is certainly a very helpful raccoon.

"I am Groot!"

Which is to say,

Fascinating! I'm relieved to hear you say so; I had been afraid I'd been displaced from my friends. I am not from Earth; I am a Flora Colossus from Planet X. Do all Earth raccoons communicate such as you?

Daine blinks at the strange planet name. Maybe the Doctor and TARDIS would have heard of it, but she certainly hasn't.

Sort of, she says, rising onto her haunches so she can sniff at him curiously. Animals can talk with each other, and I can talk with them, but I'm not sure you'd be able to understand me if we were both awake.

Oh, which is just, "Groot."

But why? he asks after a short pause, which comes out as a fuller, if perplexed, "I am Groot." Do you forget how to speak when you are awake?

Come to that, how can there be two self-aware entities in one dream? Surely this must be one of their dreams. And if it's his (he thinks it is his), Daine must not be real. He is a little surprised at himself for thinking up something so creative.

Daine shakes her head, amused by the thought. Oh, no. I could still talk to animals and suchlike, but anyone who couldn't understand animal speech wouldn't be able to understand me, either. You can only hear me right now 'cause we're dreaming.

How curious. And yet communicative limitations are not something with which he is in any way unfamiliar. He gives a thoughtful nod.

"I am Groot," he muses (How very interesting; I wonder if you would be able to understand me while awake).

A worthy thought experiment, if nothing else.

Probably not if I was in my human shape, she guesses, though she really can't be sure. Most of what you're saying is higher than my normal ears could make out, I think. So I'd have to be in a shape with better hearing than a human's. There would still be quite a few options, of course. When you have a good portion of the animal kingdom to choose from, it's fair easy to find options with better senses than a human's (regardless of what sense in particular you're focused on).

We could test it. Of course, this is dream, so who knows if anything would change if she tried another shape… but it couldn't hurt to try.

That is quite surprising. He draws himself up a bit, rustling. "I am Groot??" Your human shape? Do you mean to say Earth raccoons are not always like this?

How very strange. Perhaps there really is nothing like Rocket anywhere.

Encampment Under the Sea [Open to All]

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