MINGLE ∞ LOG — June 2025

[thediadem]

Mingle ∞ Log

No Lifeguard on Duty

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Jump ⇅ :: Intro — Prompts — NPC Interaction

Summary

What's going on?

An unexpected heat wave in mid-June, coupled with the cycling shutdown of all air conditioning units in motels across the Blocks, has made the summer unbearable. Meanwhile, the ever-eager storm chaser, Felix Bjurstrom, has uncovered a fancy resort with a pool in a diffusion zone only 1 hour out from Panorama. Lucky, right? Well...kind of. It's got some quirks.

When is this happening?

June 10 - 30

What should I know?

• This area is one of many diffusion zones that appear throughout the planet.
• A storm chaser is someone dedicated to studying the cosmic phenomenon in the Diadem. Felix is a pioneer in his field.
• A winding highway filled with old empty barrels will take you to the zone.
• Characters can travel with a friend to save on gas! Parking's limited, so it might not be a bad idea.
• At any given time, there's max several dozen visitors. Most work long hours, some are traveling through the diffusion zones, and others prefer not to risk the drive or waste precious gas, so it won't draw a huge crowd (but there's still a crowd!).
• This is a mingle rather than an event. Plot-heavy elements will be minor. The game's first proper event will be posted in July!

What does my character know?

• Having lost his phone, Felix will spread the word using good old-fashioned printed posters that he's put up around Panorama. A young woman is seen helping him. They appear to be close. Some say that's his daughter.
• Though the timing is impossible to predict accurately, Felix believes that due to this zone's unusual proximity to an anchor point, it has a high chance of persisting for 2-3 weeks.
• Directions are printed on the posters, though characters are also free to stumble across the zone by accident.

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Travel — Map — Setting

Introduction

The resort looks like your typical upscale vacation spot: a beautiful pool, lovely cabins, and plenty of pool chairs. The sky is perpetually nighttime and there are two moons. One moon is smaller than its sister and glows purple. The other looks like the Earth's moon. The weather is pleasantly warm. In fact, conditions are almost too perfect.

Other fluxdrifts are here, too, and you might come across them, all of whom are taking advantage of the pool. They'll converse superficially with you and will come and go randomly. You'll want to keep a close eye on your belongings. Other than cooling off, this isn't a bad place to start making connections. Life in the Diadem is better when you've got allies if not friends.

Just outside the resort is a spacious parking lot, designed for visitors. Nobody's following parking rules so put your car anywhere it fits. If you get blocked in, well, that's a problem for when you leave.

At the end of June, the diffusion zone will flicker and morph into an unremarkable overgrown park, long abandoned to the decades.

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Prompts

As you wander around, you discover deactivated androids in many of the poolside huts. These androids cannot be mistaken for any organic species: their chassis is metal, and their heads are shiny. Circuits and wires are visible. But each is dressed distinctly human in a way that borders on disturbing. You spot lipstick drawn on some of the metal faces, as though they're playing dress up...or as if they don't realize they aren't human. One android is frozen in place with a diary clutched in its hands. Another has a hairbrush for its nonexistent hair.

Something seems to have destroyed them—perhaps a powerful EMP wave that knocked them all out. All except one.

The Bartender

The poolside bar is at the eastern end of the resort. There are plenty of seats. A few are occupied by deactivated androids. The bartender is also an android and appears to be the only functional one in this place. He speaks with a modulated voice and has a neutral accent. He exhibits the following behaviors if you sit at his bar:

• Icebreaker. Whether you're alone or with a companion, he'll try to get you all to be friends, asking random self-generated icebreaker questions. He'll be visibly disappointed if you don't play along.
• Bartending. While cheerful, he can't make the correct drink: it's always too strong, incredibly weak, added salt instead of sugar, messed up the ice. He's obviously doing his best, but it's just not working. The harder he tries, the worse he performs until it becomes a comedy of errors with stuff falling over, ice dumped in your lap, champagne corks flying, and any number of slapstick mishaps. You can help him out by mixing the drink yourself.

If you're nice to him, he'll introduce himself as Thomas Lustras. He's happy to tell you about his son. Strange, you think, but who says androids can't have paternal instincts? Yet, when the android takes out his wallet to show you a photo of his son—named Edward Lustras—the picture is that of a human child, roughly 5 years old, in the arms of his human father.

The driver's license in the same wallet confirms that Thomas is (was?) a real person. The picture on the license matches the human male in the photo. A half-scorched business card states that Thomas was a consultant at Outer Rim Resettlements. Thomas believes he's on a company retreat and wistfully declares he's eager to return home to his son.

Maybe don't look too closely. After all, this place will soon disappear. And so will he.

The Grill

It's not a vacation without a grill! Not a grillable item is in sight, though, so you'll have to rely on what you can bring out of Panorama. Some of the visiting drifters will pitch in to share, unloading hotdogs (some synthetic, others authentic, and some far past expiry), burger patties (same) and buns, and "kebabs" made of blocky frozen vegetable squares. The squares vaguely resemble corn, mushrooms, and pineapple. The texture is passable, like a flavor-infused block of tofu.

Fire up the grill and take turns grilling. You'll also have to manage the propane. The grill's also prone to sputtering out, requiring regular minor repairs to get it back up and going. Any loose bolts or screws can be taken out of the dead androids to replace the rusty ones in the grill. You're unsure if you should feel uncomfortable doing that or what, but it is a solution.

Parking Woes

Like any crowded event, the parking lot can get chaotic, and the lawlessness of the diffusion zones doesn't help. While some are happy to help barbecue, others are more interested in picking fights over who got to the parking space first. It won't take much for a fistfight to break out, and a knife fight isn't out of the question, either, though nobody'll be killed (this time).

You can let the troublemakers beat each other, or you can try to intervene if somebody who doesn't deserve it is getting harassed. Just avoid causing too much of a scene. Breaking noses is acceptable; gutting someone head to toe is not. There are Enforcers visiting the zone, and if you interfere with their nice pool time, they won't hesitate to haul away everybody involved and make you sit in jail for a few days.

Questions? Ask here

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Comments

[tolight]

[ The nobility goes both ways, apparently. There's something to be said about finding a kindred spirit in the most unlikely places — like at the bar inside a resort. Whatever tension from earlier seems to bleed out of her, until she finds herself smiling. Faint, but it's there. Her eyes are softer than before. ]

Some of the bravest people I know did not fight in the traditional sense, as well. [ Her Aunt Emmeryn, for one. Brady and Aunt Lissa too. ] And they're just as important as the rest of us — or so I'd like to believe. [ None of it is a platitude; she means it just as earnestly as she looks, eyes warm as she watches him. ]

If you don't mind me asking — how do you fight?

[godjr]

I have superpowers. I can't punch someone well, but I can hurt them with my mind.

[ It's said very factually, and almost apologetically. It's not something that Jack is particularly happy about. He likes to be useful and he has helped his family fight many dangerous creatures over time, and he saved countless lives in the Apocalypse World with his abilities. But he has no real taste for blood or violence, at least not with a soul now. At least if someone is being punched, they have a chance. He can turn people into atoms with a snap, just like his father and grandfather. It's not something to be proud of, only accepted as fact.]

I would rather protect people than hurt them though. I like that part of our job a lot more.

[ Jack's instinct is usually to protect. He heals instinctively, resurrects, shields, rescues. It's only when he has to use things offensively that things end up going wrong. ]

They never taught me how to fight like a normal person because I don't need to.

[tolight]

[ She can see the emotions flicker past his face. It would be a stretch to say she empathizes; at some point, her resolve to protect those around her naturally translated to doing whatever it takes. She doesn't feel remorse for the bodies she has stuck down — that would leave her with a guilt that she would never be able to live with. But ... she gets it. Being hardened against the circumstances doesn't mean one can't wish for a kinder time, regardless. Where she can focus on protecting those around her, instead of fighting those who wished to harm them.

It leaves her quiet for a time. 'They never taught me how to fight like a normal person because I don't need to', with the apology that's left unsaid. Gently, as encouragingly as she can make it— ]

... Is it something you'd like to learn? Ah — perhaps not to fight others, but for self-defense. I've found at least knowing the basics goes a long way in the heat of the moment. [ Just so he gets the choice between blocking a punch and turning someone into nothing. ]

[godjr]

[ With Jack, his powers are more of a curse. No matter how much good he's done, and how much good he wants to do, it doesn't change that he has too much of it and he's dangerous. Now his powers are supposed to help him kill God, and die in the process, but he's here again and it's spilling over him waiting to be used correctly. It's concerning but he's doing his best.

Still he appreciates her response isn't immediately to fear him or get taken aback by his admittance of violence. He doesn't like to be different. And then her offer makes his eyes widen slightly and he considers. It's not a question of what he wants, it rarely is, but what he feels can be safe for others. Jack thinks he could keep it together. He should be able to do this. ]

Yes! [ Maybe if he can fight people hand to hand, he can handle them without bursting anyone into atoms. ] I would very much like that. I'm a good learner, I'd take it seriously and work hard.

[ The attempts with Bobby were fine but he was powerless then. And he was dying, but Jack still tried. ] I wouldn't be a bother.

[tolight]

Oh. I— [ There's enthusiasm, then there's ... she inhales. Exhales. A smile plays at her lips even as she shakes her head. ] You wouldn't be. It would be an honor to teach you.

[ Maybe it's a little presumptuous to say so, considering she doesn't know anything about the man. But there's a confident to her words that makes it clear that it's no platitude. He may be a stranger, but he wants to protect — people, himself. That's all she really needs to know that he'll take it as seriously as he needs.

So. ] My name is Lucina. I'm currently staying in Panorama, and train every morning at a lot in the Lodges... though if there's another location that's convenient, all we need is space to move around.

[godjr]

[ Jack smiles at her like she just gave him the greatest gift in the world. He tends to fluctuate between being unnervingly calm and placid to something bright like this, but it's rare that he's happy to he leans into it. And then he can show his family how he's improved and maybe they'll be impressed. Or less worried about him, when he proves how capable he is. ]

I'm Jack. I can go there! I work nights because I don't really sleep.

[ Jack used to sometimes, an aftereffect of being half-human, but he's no longer human enough for that. He has the Grace of two archangels in him now. It makes him a perfect graveyard shift worker. ]

I do have super strength so I will keep it under control. I don't actually know the limit to it yet as I haven't found one.

[ Jack thinks he might want to try someday for a building and see what happens, that is probably the limit and then he can know for sure, but he can lift cars and trucks, these cabanas for certain. ]

I'll be so careful, I promise, Lucina.

[ He doesn't want her to be concerned about her new pupil accidentally knocking her across a park. ]

[tolight]

[ There's a split second of hesitation, a brief stutter in her expression.

Then, a shrug. As if nothing happened— ] We'll figure something out, I'm sure. [ Is her lack of concern concerning? Probably. But she doesn't want to worry him. She's not really concerned for her own well-being — her sense of self-preservation has eroded over the years, anyway. It's more the overwhelming honesty that's giving her pause, the familiar-unfamiliar of admissions that come out just as easily as his name.

He's like Morgan, she realizes, and the reminder of home nets her a pang in the chest. ]

I'm hardier than I look. [ He could knock her across a part and she'll probably be fine. She's lived through worse. Lucina tries for light and ends up sounding a little too fond. ] Gods know I've broken my fair share of training dummies. [ It's not lifting cars and trucks, but it's still something. ]