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MINGLE ∞ LOG — June 2025

Mingle ∞ Log

No Lifeguard on Duty

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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Viktor, too, is spending the night in the diffusion zone, mostly because lodgings have been offered to them and Jayce needs to rest. He stays with him until he falls asleep, but after that he's left to his own devices, no longer in need of such functions. Patrolling the grounds seems like a good way to both gain his bearings, and to keep watch over their room.

He does wander, a little. The plant life is interesting, but not necessarily his concern (suffice to say the mushrooms go mostly unnoticed).

The pile of clothes, however, is strange. Worrying, almost. Viktor bends to pick them up, as if he'll be able to discern something from doing so. He looks around, briefly, for an owner, and when he doesn't see one, tenses, like he's expecting this to be some kind of trap.

Ha! Ha! He'd wandered straight into the cunning trap that had been laid down by...!

By...

By no one. There was no trap. There was only a tiny little white puff coming tumbling out of the ferns to? Headbutt? Viktor's foot? It was entirely unclear, but there it was.

To An Zhe's credit, Viktor does not see this coming, even with all of his power. Perhaps he's not expecting something so small and innocuous, but the contact makes him stop short.

It's a long way down, but he will bend over to better inspect the offending little white puff. Very gingerly, he will. Lift it. Then, it's a very long way up.

What a diabolical marshmallow, taking this eldritch creature by surprise.

This was in fact a very long way up. A few whispery white strands of hyphae trailed from the little mushroom, wrapping around Viktor's fingers to secure a hold as it flew up into the stratosphere. It reminded An Zhe briefly of flying over the barren earth on the back of a giant bumblebee, a warm breeze brushing past him. That feeling had been one punctuated by the need to escape.

This time, though. This time just had the surprisingly human desire not to lose his clothes again. Please don't take those. It was so awkward last time.

It is, in fact, the longest elevator ride ever. Viktor is gentle, at least, puzzled by the creature until he sees the little tendrils securing purchase on his fingers and through their physical contact, recognizes the person, even if he's currently in a different form.

"An Zhe," he says, calmly, with the barest hint of surprise in his voice. "Were you hiding?"

The surprise on the mushroom's part could not be understated. Every single thin strand seemed to briefly flinch, and it seemed to be staring(?) intensely at Viktor. The fact that his voice was familiar was being wildly overshadowed by everything else.

It took him a moment to process that there was a question, and even then he? Wasn't actually sure? He wasn't really hiding but also he was hiding but not from anything and--

An Zhe the mushroom gave a very alarmed back and forth shake of his little mushroom cap.

He does understand that this might be a surprise, so Viktor does his very best to project calm. The last thing he wants is for An Zhe to fall seven feet to the ground, even if he appears to be fairly squishy (and feels impossibly light). There are questions to be asked, certainly, but he imagines An Zhe has some of his own.

For now, he tries to provide as stable a surface as possible.

"I can set you down, if you like."

Those moments of stillness do a lot for helping the mushroom stay calm as well. There aren't any sudden movements, and now that familiar voice really was ringing true as familiar. No wonder it was such a long elevator ride. That was also calming, in its own way.

There was an up and down bob of that mushroom cap. At the same time though, a few more strands of hyphae extended from his blob of a body to reach towards those clothes Viktor had picked up. Those would also be good, thank you.

Well, Viktor can recognize that as a nod, and he also recognizes the tendrils as reaching for the clothes. Perhaps he forgot that he was holding them, but at least he hasn't let them fall to the ground (or taken them, not that he'd have any use for something like this).

He'll offer a nod in return, and very slowly stoop down so that he can lower An Zhe. With both hands full and his hood sliding into his vision, he'll use the Hexclaw to pull it away, deciding that his potentially frightening experience is worth revealing if it gets An Zhe to the ground safely. He'll set his clothes neatly beside him.

"It's all here."

Oh, what striking eyes you had, Viktor. What an interesting third arm. An Zhe was looking at him quite intently (trust me bro), but only because he had been so mysterious before. This was by far the kindest bug he'd ever met.

The mushroom gently tumbled out of Viktor's hand when the elevator came to a stop, gratefully rolling onto the clothes pile. It cocked itself to the side slightly, seemingly peering up at him and nodding along. Then it started off, rolling off into the ferns and bushes.

A thin blanket of mycelium was being left in its wake, the strands of hyphae catching hold of the garments to pull them along behind An Zhe. The blanket began to thicken as the mushroom went out of sight, threads and strands of milky white shaping and knitting together into solid masses. They were undeniably a pair of hands now, attached to delicate arms that sloped up to a face that was still very pale as it peeked around the ferns. "Just a moment."

He was gone with a rustle. He'd gotten really fast at throwing clothes on, he'd be right back!

Edited (a spelling) 2025-07-02 02:42 (UTC)

Viktor can recognize when he's being studied, even if that is coming in the form of small mushroom creature without a real face. An Zhe does not appear to be afraid, at least, which is heartening. He might smile, if he could.

For now, he'll wait patiently while An Zhe finds somewhere safe and obscured to, presumably, change back. The process of it seems fascinating--he'd dabbled more in botany, recently, than anything to do with mushrooms. He'll have to ask.

"Take your time," he replies, making no further moves to intrude.

As promised, it was not long before An Zhe re-appeared from behind the very helpful ferns of privacy. The clothes he’d thrown on were clearly not his actual size, borrowed from one of the cabanas. He wasn’t as pale as he’d been a minute ago now that he fully looked like a person, peering up at Viktor with the same calm expression he’d shown him while they traversed interdimensional costco together.

“Hello, Viktor.”

He's not sure what questions about this might be invasive. An Zhe seems to be taking it in stride, and Viktor supposes that with people here from so many different places and worlds, why not a child that is also a mushroom?

That said, he's sure his own appearance is a surprise as well. Viktor's face betrays no expression, but the slight tilt of his head indicates curiosity.

"Were you looking for something?"

Something he possibly wouldn't be able to find in a human form--he can certainly understand that much.

An Zhe's thoughts were following a lot of the same paths. He was quite curious about what kind of bug Viktor might have been, but at the same time maybe asking that was rude when it didn't change anything. While his appearance had been a surprise, An Zhe understood full well that sometimes it was just easier to keep things out of the spotlight. It felt a bit safer to be different here, but that wasn't an absolute.

Besides, Viktor was still Viktor. An Zhe might not have known him well, but he'd only been kind so far.

So he just tilt his own head slightly in turn. Ah. Well. There was no reason not to be honest about it now.

"I was looking for nice dirt."

Of course. What else might a small mushroom want, but nice dirt? It's almost amusing--thankfully, he manages to temper any kind of humorous reaction (easy, when one's face is an immovable mask).

"I'm sorry if I frightened you." Though it doesn't seem like An Zhe minded the elevator ride. "Or if I interrupted."

The search for nice dirt.

There was a small shake of An Zhe's head. "You didn't."

Well, not entirely. "I was just afraid someone else was going to take my clothes again." Which was true, even if that was actually the more minor thing at this point. "I did not realize so many people would still be awake."

Well, then it's a good thing that Viktor was here to keep them safe (??). He'll offer as much, if An Zhe wants to spend time as a mushroom again--he doubts that anyone will try to take anything from someone of his stature.

"I have no need for sleep," he confesses, though it might be an obvious statement, given his lack of eyelids. "I was exploring to pass the time."

Yes, that seemed like it would track. So he did not need to sleep, nor did he need to eat. It sounded like an easy way to get by in this sorta place, but An Zhe couldn't help but wonder if that was kind of lonely. Maybe large bugs didn't get lonely? An Zhe was never lonely either, before he was An Zhe.

"Have you found anything interesting?"

"Not especially." The most interesting thing so far as been An Zhe's mushroom form, which he still plans to ask about. "But that's a good thing."

Viktor looks back towards the block of hotel rooms.

"My partner does need to sleep, so I have taken it upon myself to patrol the area for any potential dangers."

That was a very good thing. It set An Zhe a little more at ease with his own decisions to sleep out at the resort. As long as he managed to actually stay tucked away, things would probably be fine.

An Zhe's gaze followed Viktor's to the hotel rooms, and some suspicions were promptly confirmed. He had assumed that the search for non-perishable supplies had been for someone else, and it was nice to know that there was no reason to be lonely during someone's waking hours.

"I see. I am glad it hasn't been too interesting then."

The only deeply interesting things that An Zhe had picked up on was how empty the dirt was, and that a very tall bugman had known his name. That was incredibly important, actually, and things seemed amicable enough to simply speak up. "... Can I ask how you knew me?"

No, Viktor is not alone, which he's glad for. Jayce himself would probably prefer if Viktor stayed in bed with him, but they both hate being idle. Waking time is best spent working, and given freedom from human needs like food or sleep, Viktor will take advantage of it.

And it is good, that there are no immediate dangers. He still puzzles over the androids, but the diffusion zone itself seems to be entirely benign.

The next question is somewhat unexpected, though he supposes it's fair. Explaining it, however, is difficult.

"I felt it."

He felt it.

Somehow, that had been the most logical answer while being one that should have been confusing. Lu Feng had always known that there was something off about An Zhe even from the very beginning. Even if it made him wonder if the Arbiter would have known him if he'd ever seen the mushroom as it was, An Zhe knew this was different. Perhaps it was even similar to himself.

So he only seemed mildly surprised by that answer. "All of it?"

"No, not all of it."

Viktor is doing his best not to be too intrusive. An Zhe had projected no memories, from their brief touch, and he hadn't gone looking, knowing how poorly it might end. Still, there is no real disguising the essence of one's self from his powers, which is how he was able to know as soon as An Zhe stepped into his hand.

"Enough to know that it was you."

"Mm."

Well, An Zhe supposed that was fine either way. Knowing he could become a mushroom was almost the same thing as knowing he was a mushroom. The nuance did not matter in the world he'd come from. As far as An Zhe was concerned, Viktor already knew the main secret An Zhe had been keeping.

The mushroom idly hooked his fingers together in his lap, feeling a bit unsure if anything was supposed to change now.

"I... hope that is not a problem."

Viktor is sympathetic--he can only assume this was a secret, undone with only a touch. But there's no reason for him to share this with anyone else, especially if An Zhe would rather keep it private.

"Why would it be a problem?"

He's clearly not in a position to judge who or what anyone is, small mushrooms included.

MINGLE ∞ LOG — June 2025

shroom time

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lmk if this is ok

yessss 8]

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