#cay diving

[lnl-diving-service-pokemon]

[Transmission received]

[Location: Super Drop Off, Red Sea]

[thatfanfictionchick]

AAKAKSKWDJODOWJKSK (⁠｡⁠・⁠/⁠/./⁠/⁠・⁠｡⁠)

OKAY SO I'M REPLAYING TWST FROM THE BEGINNING (definitely not to satisfy a strange itch about how many times Leona uses the prefects name no definitely not) AND IN THE FIRST BOOK WHEN CATER ASKS FOR YOUR NUMBER IF YOU PICK "I DON'T HAVE A PHONE" HE IMMEDIATELY SETS UP A DATE TO GO GET ONE BUT IF YOU PICK "WAIT, WHAT?" HE

I DROPPED MY PHONE SO FORCEFULLY I'M

[laimelady]

Fiery flame lobster by Gérard Cachon Via Flickr: Flame lobsters (Enoplometopus antillensis) are very hard to find, especially during the day (as in maybe 1 every 150 dives). When you have the rare occasion to find one, they either are tucked too deep into the coral to get an image or immediately crawl into an inaccessible spot, giving you only a brief glimpse. But this one fortunately chose a relatively shallow crack with a sufficiently wide opening. It tried to back away, but it "ran" into a wall, allowing a clean shot and at eye-level as an added bonus. In short, I doubt I will get an image of another flame lobster that I like better. They are apparently prized in the aquarium trade because of their bright color and small size (they are about 10cm long). I prefer to see them in the wild. They are a thrill to find and incredibly beautiful with their bright red and white streaks. (A red lobster that hasn't been cooked!)

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

Kind of makes you look small--or can it?

OFF GUANA CAY, ABACOS ISLANDS, BAHAMAS: If ever there was a rather impressive dive spot to end all dive spots in The Bahamas, it would have to be a reef on the north side of Guana Cay in the Abacos group of the Bahamas known as "The Skyscrapers." Sitting in waters as reach 60 feet deep, with coral reaching literally to the ocean surface, one will certainly try and feel impressed by the sheer looks of such being not unlike a small city situated underwater.

Or am I getting a little too Trollkins for myself here?

Yet even with the looks of The Skyscrapers, care certainly needs to be taken in navigating. And you can never tell when a black-tipped reef shark will come along, let alone Jabberjaw ... but maybe for another time, as the Diver's Delight, the craft of the Peter Potamus Magic Divers, makes anchor off Guana Cay, the name prompting Mildew Wolf to wisecrack whether it would have been much amusing if it were named "Guano Cay." Until Peter pointed out that "guano" is another term for dung--especially such used as fertiliser.

And as I said, considering that many of the coral structures of The Skyscrapers reach to the ocean surface, care has to be taken with the approach.

And was it a dive for the books, videos even ... yet you wouldn't want to attempt an underwater game of "hide-and-go-seek" in this particular reef. Even with the Divin' Wolf Pups, who for some reason seemed attracted to some of the reef life hemmed in between rather hefty coral walls. And given just how narrow some of the passages in The Skyscrapers can get, it was understandable that Peter Potamus, considering his bulk (even for the leader of such a fascinating dive troupe), managed to crawl through one especially narrow passage ... diving on his side. And with barely an inch or so of his frame to spare, even with moray eels and black-tip reef sharks somehow seeing their share of fascination at such a sight. (Let's just hope any footage which Squiddly Diddly captured wasn't of an embarrassing sort.)

Yet then again, you can't help but wonder what can make the Bahamas so divable ... and there's some more to note here, fellow Hanna-Barberians!

@warnerbrosentertainment @joey-gatorman @theweekenddigest @indigo-corvus @xdiver71 @archive-archives @thebigdingle @screamingtoosoftly @themineralyoucrave @thylordshipofbutts @warnerbros-blog1 @iheartgod175 @funtasticworld @jellystone-enjoyer @groovybribri @warnerbrosent-blog

[ace-malarky]

Definitely a Meet-cute yup

juuust fucking around with old-new characters and magic types I haven't put too much thought into yet and sure yeah maybe trying to get back into the habit of sharing some writing?

god that's a wild concept

I'm also very much sitting in work typing up some of the stuff I've written over the past month bc lads it be Quiet in here as ever

Anyway; Akeri and Taerne have a uh. yeah they sure uh

I don't think I've ever mentioned either of them before but it sure has been A Month (summer) that we're working through

~

The woman comes stumbling out of the woods that back onto the cottage, and Akeri’s first thought is corpse. 

She looks up, hand digging into the dirt for a connection, feeling the boundary agreement tremble through her bones. 

Her second thought is that this is a woman alone, coming out of the woods that Akeri is here to protect and seal. 

Akeri stands, hand still tight around dirt. 

The boundary agreement snaps tight at the low stone wall and the woman (corpse) stops with it, swaying on her feet like a drunk. 

She is drained, bleached white. Her hair is fine and tangled and just as pale, a glowing aura clumped with dirt. 

She is naked, Akeri realises. Naked and covered in blood, splattered across fine lines traced over her skin in black ink that looks to still be wet. 

She is staring at Akeri, her face smooth and expressionless. Her eyes dart from Akeri’s horns to her hooves to her tail, and her hand tightens around something pressed behind her arm. 

“We have an agreement,” Akeri breaks the silence, pitching her voice clear, “the woods and I. Do you seek to break it?” 

The woman (corpse sings the trees, reborn whispers the stones, stolen cries the earth) blinks at her. “You talk with the trees?” Her voice is rough, hoarse and croaking and almost broken. “You can hear what they say about what – about me?” 

Akeri frowns. 

There’s a storm front coming in, thick and dark over the woods. The wind tugs leaves from the bed of the woods, sends them flurrying around the woman and over the wall to rest in Akeri’s garden. 

Akeri steps forward. “Do you have a name?” The wind cuts through her layers, sinking the chill into her bones. 

The woman, naked as she is, doesn’t seem to be affected. Her swaying has faded out and now she stands solidly at the wall. 

“Taerne,” she says (forgotten murmurs the trees, abandoned grumbles the stones, murdered mumbles the earth). “Just - Taerne.” She eyes Akeri. “Nothing more.” 

“Akeri,” she replies, and lets the dirt fall from her grasp as she offers Taerne a hand. “Come on in. There’s a storm on the way.” 

[sgdlr-asdfghjkl]

Link Click Musical lyrics translation ✨🎶

@chocolatexiaoshi brought to my attention that Qiao Ling's actress, Cai Lu, posted a video from rehearsal where she's singing a part of QL's solo song that doesn't appear in the encore, only in main plot (rare!). Here's the video:

And by courtesy of chocolatexiaoshi, here's the full translation (plot context below the lyrics) 🙏🌟

M11 尼克和马修 'Nick and Matthew' sung by Qiao Ling

七岁那年遇见一个倒霉朋友 When I was seven years old, I met an unlucky friend. 我的笑料都来自他出丑 I get all my laughs when he makes a fool of himself. 没穿过耐克 (He) never wore Nike. 自己画个倒钩 Drew himself a barb (tick line, to pretend to wear Nike). 羡慕同学有爸妈开车接送 He envied his classmates when their parents drove them around. 他吹牛家里游艇正在维修 He bragged that his family's yacht was being repaired. 这个蠢货幻想有两个朋友 This douchebag fantasizes about having two friends. 一个叫尼克 One's name is Nick. 另一个叫马修 The other is Matthew. 还以为是他国外的笔友 I thought they're his pen pals from abroad. 所谓的朋友全都是他虚构 He's making up all his friends. 尼克是狮子 Nick was a lion. 马修是条狗 Matthew was a dog. 用秘密威胁他做我朋友 Threatened him with this secret to be my friend. 他提了个要求 He made a request. 家长会我爸 PTA meeting with my dad. (PTA - routine meetings between the parents and teachers of students, to discuss a child's progress at school) 装他大舅 Pretend to be his great-uncle.

Here starts the part Cai Lu is singing in the video (and it's 😭💔):

尼克马修其实是孤独的魔咒 Nick and Matthew are actually a curse of loneliness. 若有人陪伴怎会如此荒谬 How can it be so absurd if he has company? 所有的情绪靠幻想找个出口 All his emotions find an outlet in his fantasies. 喜怒哀愁去和故事书交流 He'd go to a storybook for his sorrows and his joys. 自我欺骗才能排解烦忧 The only way to get rid of them is to lie to himself. 这个倒霉蛋我认识十五年之久 I've known this unfortunate man for 15 years. 你是除了我以外，他唯一的朋友 You're the only friend he's got besides me. 看过了彼此的伤痛 You guys've seen each other's pain. 应该更宽容 You should be more forgiving. 别被情绪左右 Don't let your emotions get the best of you. 一起向前走 Let's move forward together. 如果我是尼克 If I'm Nick. 你来做马修 You'd be Matthew. 他渴望的两个朋友 The two friends he craves. 你和我送他拥有 You and I will give him the two friends he longs for.

The clip ends here, but there are a few more verses 🎶

尼克和马修他童年的缺口 Nick and Matthew, the gaping hole in his childhood 填补了他的梦 Filled his dreams. 你我别放手 You and I, don't let go. 尼克和马修吹过最离谱的牛 Nick and Matthew is the most outrageous thing he's ever bragged about. 能不能和我一起 Will you join me? 将他心愿保留 To keep his heart's desire alive

ಥωಥ yeah.

🌟Context: after the earthquake arc dive, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang have a fight where CXS says he doesn't want to see Lu Guang anymore. Qiao Ling tries to ask LG what happened but doesn't get an answer. Then she goes to comfort CXS:

Eventually LG goes to sulk on a basketball court:

Qiao Ling finds him and tells him about Xiaoshi's childhood (her song starts) :'>

These are drawings of Nick and Matthew (tho they seem to change, you can they're different in pics above^). QL shows them while singing:

My dear shiguang nation... how are we feeling about QL and LG stepping into Xiaoshi's life filling a place of his imaginary childhood friends born out of loneliness? Bc I-

Again huge thanks to @chocolatexiaoshi for basically translating everything and adding context to this song 🙏 I just checked english grammar and helped to put it together 🤝 We're keeping in touch and they've actually seen LC musical live, so if you have more in depth questions about the play or specific actors, let us know 😘

[saelterlude]

link click musical list pt.6, (longer bcs i keep accidentally posting these early, gotta make up for the short pt.5)

also hi, this one took a while bcs i keep getting sad over not finding a Wang Yifei-Zhu Hanbin LG uppies clip :')

(pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4, pt.5, pt.7 here)

81. 24/03/2024 night, Zhu Hanbin wore his shirt inside out lol, there's a good chance it was like that the whole performance since LG actors don't change costume. Also, I love how Zi bowen shouted his name, it's cute.

82. Cai Lu's short vlog, includes Guo Hongxu and Ji Xiaokun karaoke, JXK being bad at basketball, and chilling in the dressing room.

83. 28/03/2024, Cao Muzhi getting manhandled by Cai Lu (I drew it hehe) and also giving the biggest laugh when he won first round of RPS against Zhu Hanbin plss.

84. 01/04/2024, Wu Hanglu bullying Bai Zhuoming, Du Guangyi being aggressive, and BZM being confused and overwhelmed in RPS. If you're asking why DGY shouted his line, it's bcs BZM and WHL were too busy bickering to beckon him to the couch like they're supposed to do. Also, they sing 'Dive Back in Time' together.

85. 29/03/2024, Wang Yifei, please stop bullying Wu Hanglu, don't squish her, look at her, she's tiny. See? Now she's bullying you back.

86. 05/04/2024 night, piglet is back!! Wu Yihan, Cai Qi. WHY ARE YOU BOTH SO MEAN TO THE PIGLET?? WYH does not let CQ play around with RPS (by not doing them at all)

87. 05/04/2024 night, bonus to the performance above. WYH does not hug in "Pursuing Light" for once.

88. 06/04/2024 day, New Cai Qi pair unlocked with Guo Hongxu. Awkward eye contact and GHX just assumes he won RPS when he didn't lol, don't you know CQ cheats? Also, Zuo Yiping looks so short between them, helpp.

89. 30/03/2024 night, Wu Yihan going *finger points* "whos singing the sofa song?", and Qian Dongyue's birthday!

90. 13/04/2024 day, I think, Wang Yifei scared Guo Hongxu with that overly enthusiatic jump hug.

91. 13/04/2024 night, Jing Yanqiao 21st birthday!! Let's go! There's actually a full video of your encore now.

Also, #90 and #91, both GHX and JYQ caught off guard by WYF and ZHB's mic cupping habit during 'Dive Back in Time'

92. 06/04/2024 night, I can't find a clip showing Wu Yihan drinking vinegar, but I can show you Cao Muzhi being cute as he walks across the table. And saying 'be careful' in 'Dive Back in Time' bcs something happened with WYH offscreen, i think he hit a camera.

93. 06/04/2024 night, nevermind! Shimmer to the rescue! Here is Wu Yihan drinking vinegar! (he Du Guangyi-ed himself (#19 and #31))

94. 14/04/2024 day, Guo Hongxu has successfully been influenced to cup their mics. Also, I'm now declaring that Guo Hongxu and Wang Yifei is the perfect disgruntled cat-oversized puppy duo, just look at their hug.

95. 14/04/2024 day, another POV of the performance above so you can see Wang Yifei nod approvingly once GHX uses his method.

96. 14/04/2024 night, just a shortclip of Wang Minhui putting Cai Qi in a headlock.

97. Event clip, mostly just explaining the basketball event itself but I wanna show you all Du Guangyi being bad at basketball in the last 10 seconds.

(speaking of event, the theatre is gonna count which actor scores the most during basketball scene/"Faith of Friendship". me and the musical brainrot gang over in the lc 18+ server are doing bets on which actor is scores the most by the end of the month)

98. 19/04/2024, poor Deng Xianling just wanna tie her shoes, stop bothering her lol.

99. 19/04/2024, same performance as above. English boy Teng Chunpeng is very excited abt basketball.

100. 20/04/2024 night, have Jing Yanqiao, shamefully losing 2-8 to Zhu Hanbin

101. 21/04/2024 day, Bai Zhuoming won the match, he teases Wang Minhui about it the whole encore to the point he messed up the entirety of RPS song lol. (Also, they got 15-12, they were conspiring together)

102. 22/04/2024, Shu Rongbo getting startled by Cai Lu's leg and Du Guangyi adding to the leg jenga is very precious, I wanna draw that. SRB also won basketball 36-0 bcs DGY is a softie granpa, I guess we knows who wins this month.

(and no, as much as i favored him, i did not bet on srb :') )

(also, did i wait for the 22nd so i can get at least 1 srb video this post? yes.)

*Please give a big round of applause to @shimmeringweeds for all xhs clips. I could not navigate that site at all.

Bonus time! Made a list (here!) of Zhu Hanbin and Jing Yanqiao performances the other day, thus that's the bonus clips you're getting for this part. Please check them out, they're really cool.

But I guess I might as well add this funny video of Cai Qi and Cao Muzhi performing 'Mia Famiglia' from Apollonia musical. It's gold, just for the fact that CQ acts as if he's in a drama while CMZ acts as if he's in a comedy.

[ryin-silverfish]

Chapter 27-28: Spooky Scary Skellington

(Finally getting back to the book club after a few busy months...)

Chapter 27:

-The White Bone Spirit is one of the most iconic demoness of JTTW, and, as JTTW Research's post on her origin suggests, is likely inspired by the White Tiger Spirit + the giant skeleton nearby in 大唐三藏取经诗话.

-However, when Tripitaka asked about the origin of said giant skeleton at the bottom of a fiery pit, the Monkey Pilgrim gave the strange answer that "This is the place where the Heir Apparent, Ming Huang, changed his bones."(此是明皇太子换骨之处)

-What does that even mean?

-Well, at first, I thought it was just referring to "Corpse Release"(尸解), where Daoists attain immortality by leaving behind a fake corpse——usually a transformed object such as cane, clothes or shoes——to literally trick death.

-Then I finally got to read "Birth of JTTW"(西游记的诞生) by Cai Tieying, in which he traces the "changing of bones" to a legend in the Song dynasty record, 默记.

-Summary: an assassin was sent to kill Tang Minghuang (after he basically abdicated due to the An Shi Rebellion), hit him with a hammer in his sleep, and the hammer just bounced off his head with a clang.

-Minghuang woke up and was like "Yep, I've been expecting this"; ever since he had consumed jade and a golden elixir of immortality under the advice of the famous Daoist Ye Fashan, his bones were transformed into literal jade.

-So if the assassin wanted to kill him for good, he gotta split open Minghuang's skull and take out the elixir——an advice the assassin promptly followed.

-That peculiar little trivia aside, there is a theory about SWK's ability to see through demonic disguises in the Chinese JTTW booksphere, which might explain why Tripitaka never seems to trust him on that regard.

-Unlike in TV adaptations, the "Fiery Eyes and Golden Vision" doesn't work like an X-Ray; rather, it's more like an infrared thermal camera.

-This means SWK can't literally see through a demon or immortal's disguise and perceive their true form, just the general "aura" around them in the form of demonic or auspicious Qi.

-Thus, when this aura is hidden by ambience Qi, altered to fit one's general appearance or less on-the-nose(as later chapters would show), SWK's magical vision also takes a dive in accuracy.

-Furthermore, prior to WBS, none of the demons they encountered had used a human disguise in order to capture Tripitaka.

-So even if SWK said "Hey master, I can totally see through demonic disguises" after he killed the demoness(which he didn't), without precedents, it's gonna sound like he pulled the ability right out of his ass, as a shoddy excuse to justify murdering humans——something Tripitaka did witness before.

Chapter 28:

-Fun fact: during the Qing dynasty, there's a big-budget opera adaptation of JTTW called 升平宝筏, exclusively performed in the royal palace. In this version, the White Bone Spirit and Yellow-robed Demon are actually sworn siblings!

-After Yellow-robed Demon kidnapped the princess, she was the one who helped talk her into accepting the marriage. So when she was killed by SWK, Yellow-robed Demon was furious, and, as revenge, kidnapped Tripitaka + turned him into a tiger later.

-Combining different arcs, much like adding unnecessary romantic subplots, is actually quite common in Qing opera adaptations of JTTW. This change, however, makes more sense than the others.

-First, it explains the "family" that WBS offhandedly mentioned, secondly, the two arcs are already sequential, so making the two demons related doesn't seem like that far of a stretch.

-The burning of FFM is heartwenchingly described, and arguably where most villainous characterizations of Erlang come from. However, hear me out——I don't think he actually did it.

-At the end of Chapter 6, after Erlang caught SWK, his brothers was like "Enough talk, let's take him to the celestial realm." To which Erlang replied that sorry, they were not recognized as part of the celestial bureaucracy and literally not allowed to meet the Jade Emperor.

"But don't worry, I'll go report to the Jade Emperor together with the devarajas, you six stay behind on FFM to do a thorough search of the mountain(搜山). Once you are done, return to Guankou, and right after I get the rewards, I'm heading straight back to share it with y'all."

-Indeed, in the next chapter, after the Jade Emperor gave him a lot of gifts, he said his thanks and returned to Guanjiangkou, where his temple was at.

-My theory is, Erlang did not lead the burning personally, or give a direct order to——he was still in the Celestial Realm, making reports while FFM burned.

-And his six sworn brothers, being hunters and martial men, interpreted "search the mountain" rather liberally in his absence and left out the details once he returned with their reward.

-Just as usual, another job well done, let's get the victory party started.

-Of course, whether Erlang was personally there, leading the burning, makes little difference to the monkeys of FFM; it wasn't him, but he sure as hell wasn't NOT involved either.

@journeythroughjourneytothewest

[dropanostalgia]

After a week of workin on the Shane master list that’s almost like 30 pages, I am lowkey worn out n miss drawing 😭 I also started a new modded save n now SereniShane is real to me <3

Farmer Serenity intro n lore is comin’ next. Stay tuned…

Also might or might not dive into Janitor AI programming on the side cuz CAI is kinda mid rn

[godzilla-reads]

📖 How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black, illustrated by Rovina Cai

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This book followed Cardan from when he was a child to past the ending of the third book- The Queen of Nothing. Here we dive deeper into what makes Cardan tick and why he hates stories.

I really liked this, seeing the events of three books and more through Cardan’s perspective this time. He is extravagant, dramatic, and cunning. At times I felt like the book didn’t have a cohesive plot, but the reappearances of Aslog the troll really cemented a storyline I could follow.

If you’ve just finished The Folk of the Air series and are craving more, this book is perfect!

[theresattrpgforthat]

I find myself really enjoying OSR/NSR systems like Cairn, or Durf, i like that their rules-lite, and have a lot of freedom for player/gm alike but find myself wanting classes with possible class abilities, or similar mechanics, I'm curious if you have any recommendations of that

THEME: Rules-lite Systems with Classes.

Some things to keep in mind: OSR games are stripped down to bare bones because character ingenuity (rather than brute force) is meant to take the forefront. This is why characters don’t usually have class abilities. 

What I’m hearing you ask for is something that keeps light rules, in the same way OSR systems do, but still provides a way to differentiate characters from each-other. I don’t know if all of these suggested games can be classed as OSR or NSR, but they require the same amount of creativity to push the game forward.

24XX Tides Will Rise, by Tubatic. 

A STORM IS COMING!

The crew finds themselves at a settlement preparing for a huge seasonal storm.  Using mechs like in that one movie with the aliens, or whatever you choose, help prepare the settlement to survive The Storm.  

24XX Tides Will Rise is a microgame  / oneshot designed in the style of Jason Tocci's 2400, created for submission to the 24XX Jam. 

24XX games are a distillation of OSR games, usually only about two pages or so, with dice that scale up or down in size depending on your character’s situation and aptitude. Your character will usually get a special ability related to their class, career, background, or in this version, Pilot Skill. There’s also a simplified money and gear system that gets you one or two pieces of useful items that are destined to break at some point, in order to reduce whatever harm you take. Tides Will Rise is about preparing your local settlement for an extreme weather event using giant mechs, but 24XX games could happen in nearly any setting, and are almost always deadly for your characters. If you want a quick game that you can learn and get up and running in less than 30 minutes, this is the game for you!

Hexfall, by titanomachyRPG.

You are a hyperpowered being who came into larger-than-life abilities because of a profound cataclysm. Heartbreak. Grief. The depths. Physical, emotional, multidimensional–something unlocked incredible power in you. People like you have many names across Stratus Cay, but the most common is “Diver,” a nickname derived from their affinity for falling through the Rift, either on dangerous jobs or just for fun. 

Divers’ abilities run the gamut of even the wildest imaginations, and their extreme power and durability makes many of them reckless thrillseekers. The pay is too good and the thrills too extraordinary to turn down the opportunity to go on a dive.

What will you do, falling soul?

Hexfall uses Caltrop Core, a rules-lite system that requires 3d4 and that’s it. Like many OSR games, it uses a hex map that your characters will navigate as they fall through an inter dimensional space called the Rift, their movements and obstacles determined by the roll of the dice. The characters gain tokens as they fall, which act as player currency that can affect narrative beats or navigation rolls as you play. Finally, there are 12 playbooks that you can choose to represent your character: will you be a resilient Giantborn? A liberating MotherThawed? A masterful Myconaut? Each character playbook comes with special moves that only you can do.

High Magic Lowlives, by Gem Room Games.

High Magic Lowlives is a Post-Dungeon Fantasy Tabletop RPG about wizard school dropouts who get into trouble with the Immortal Aristocracy to make coin and build their #brand. Like old school RPGs this is a game about a crew of weirdos finding subterranean vaults filled with treasure, kicking down doors, beating up guards, setting off traps, and taking home as much coin as you can carry. Like new school RPGs the mechanics are simple, drive the story forward, and don't rely on a ton of preparation in advance.

Unlike any RPG you've ever played before you can get paid for livestreaming your fight against the jack-o-lantern queen of zabraxas. Your companions would probably prefer you help them survive the fight, but they'll forgive you when you capture their critical hit for all to see.

High Magic Lowlives uses a ruleset that is a combination of Powered by the Apocalypse, Forged in the Dark, and the Black Hack. Your lowlife has 6 attributes, which could range from 0 to 3. Each character also selects a General Deal, which grants you a special ability, such as access the local library, sweet-talk computers, or gather food in unlikely places. Similar to OSR games, there are tables and tables of items that you can use for conventional and non-conventional uses, and, in step with PbtA mechanics, there are graded levels of success when it comes to hitting things with a weapon. You also have Risk Dice, which deteriorate as you use them, lending the feeling of dwindling resources as you play. If you want a game of high risk, high reward, I recommend High Magic Lowlives!

Aetherway, by Jason Tocci.

Hit the road between worlds with a black cat, a clockwork assassin, a fallen star, and a pilgrim who huffs the ashes of a dead saint. Deliver lumber to communist skeletons living on the back of a gargantuan crab. Ride a comet to a party in the skull of a cosmic god that was converted to condos.

Aetherway is a quirky, planet-hopping RPG zine, compatible with both Tunnel Goons and Troika! Use it to improvise your own adventures, as set of extra Troika! backgrounds, as a conversion guide between Troika! and Tunnel Goons rules, or a bunch of random generators for any other game of planeswalking hijinks. 

This is mostly another chance for me to talk about Troika again, because it’s a) a really funky setting, and b) a game that borrows a lot of elements from OSR-style games. You have random roll tables, backgrounds that give your characters skills and abilities, and an initiative order that leaves everything up to chance. However, you can also use Aetherway to play Tunnel Goons, which is a rules-lite game that contains much of the hallmarks of OSR. 

Planet Dungeon, by Nathan Lathroum.

Ever since birth, the dungeon is all you’ve ever known. All you’ve ever seen. All you were ever meant to see. Who built the dungeon? Is there anything beyond it? How long has the world been trapped here? You can almost smell the fresh outside air. You can almost feel the heat of the sun. You can almost taste victory. But your journey is not over yet.

Ten floors of the dungeon remain. This is all that stands between you and the mythical surface of the Aboveworld. Does it truly exist, or is it merely legend? Is there still a world beyond these walls?

Planet Dungeon is a tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) designed for 3 to 5 players. This book contains all of the rules, systems, and mechanics you will need to play. Additionally, Planet Dungeon requires two regular dice for each player and a singular deck of playing cards. Be warned: Planet Dungeon is not easy, and is intended for players willing to lose.

This game uses 2d6 and a deck of playing cards. As a table, you will create the planet you live on, and select backgrounds for your characters. Each background carries with it a pre-determined set of stats and a unique ability - including the Wretched, which starts woefully bereft of any ability, but has the chance to level up dramatically the first time you reach a boss in any given session. The rooms of each dungeon are determined by a card pulled from the deck, with the suit determining the type of the room. Cards also describe your death, should it happen, as well as what the end of the story looks like, once you escape. If you like simple rules and overwhelming odds, this might be worth checking out.

Lost Eons, by David Blandy.

LOST EONS is solarpunk sci-fantasy. In Lost Eons you will emerge from the darkness into a new light, one dominated by inscrutable and terrible forces you must seek to understand. Using this guide create a post-human character, ready to face the mysteries and dangers of a far future Earth.

LOST EONS is a fast but deep toolkit. Play instant no-prep one-shots and sustained campaigns. Discover beautiful and horrifying new adventures through evocative prompts and procedural generation. This game is no-maths and instantly playable. Mashing together 24XX and Blades in the Dark, gameplay is streamlined, flexible, fast and potentially brutal. Level-up through mutation, your body changing as you evolve. Character Playbooks let you create a character in seconds, yet have limitless customisation through play.

LOST EONS uses all of the basic dice types to tackle obstacles, depending on what you’re doing and what piece of equipment you use to help you. Like Blades in the Dark, this game uses clocks to track consequences, health and adventures, while similar to the grit of dungeon-delving games, the characters find their inventory slowly dwindling the longer they adventure. Survival is difficult in this post-human future. At character creation, you choose one of six different archetypes that will give you a set of skills and a unique talent. If you’re looking for new approaches to play while holding on to some of the tone of OSR games, LOST EONS may be a good fit for you.

[lnl-diving-service-pokemon]

Oh, well hello there?

Thought I felt something watching me.

[potteresque-ire]

Meta Series on "Propaganda Reblogs"

With political tensions re: China reaching a near-unprecedented high, the Chinese state propaganda machine will likely go into overdrive over the next few days, if not until autumn, after it'll be made official whether President Xi will extend his term for another five years.

This means, as turtles, we may expect to see many more "propaganda reblogs" — posts that look like these:

I'm humbly presenting this meta series, which dive a little more into what these posts are about. I confess, I do have an ulterior motive — based on the provided info, I hope I can make a case of why these posts aren't the most suitable for fandom fun, and appeal to fellow fans to please consider refraining from using these posts for joking, for making candies, for making light of them in any way.

Given the length, this meta series is composed of 5 sections: 1) Introduction: why I am, for once, waving my candy-washing soap 2) Anatomy of a propaganda reblog, Part 1: the midnight timestamp 3) Anatomy of a propaganda reblog, Part 2: the ultrashort response 4) Beyond the propaganda: the significance (and tragedy) of events remembered by these posts 5) Conclusion: The Li Jiaqi Paradox

(Below the cut: Part 1: Introduction)

As a fan, I never feel it's my place to tell my fellow fans what they should or shouldn't do. I'm also customarily hesitant about washing candies. Fandom is about having fun, and our corner of fandom, in particular, has always been about imagining, clowning, not taking ourselves too seriously.

It's very nice. A very good thing.

However, given the unique political situation in China, and the fact that Twitter material has, on multiple occasions, been screenshot and imported onto Weibo, I'm appealing to everyone reading this to please consider refraining from playing with these "propaganda reblogs".

This includes joking about them. This includes making candies from them. This includes making light of them in any way.

There are two reasons. One has to do with the nature of the events they address, which I'll touch on later (Section 4). The reason I'd like to focus on first is as follows:

Despite the ubiquitous, "everyone reblogs" nature of these propaganda posts, the ultrashort responses our favorite stars often offer to them, these posts are, by far, the most politically-sensitive material on their blog. The close-to-synchronous timestamps, the similarly-worded responses, are actually the consequences and reflections of the posts' political sensitivity and more importantly, perhaps, of the care the stars and their team have put into them.

Stars in the public eye — particularly, "traffic" stars who garner lots of attention — have little choice but to put in such care: their responses are heavily scrutinized not only by anti-s, but by "melon-eaters", by non-fannish, nationalistic trolls looking for their next famous victim to make an example of.

It's not fun when these stars make a mistake.

Screenshots from an article on SOHU 搜狐, tallying which star reblogged CCTV's "propaganda post" on the anniversary of the 1937 Nanking Massacre 南京大屠殺, also known as the Rape of Nanking, a brutal mass killing of Chinese by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The article noted the timestamps the reblogs were made, pointing out that Gg and Dd, who reblogged at 00:01 and 00:02 respectively, were behind other stars including Cai Xukun 蔡 徐坤, Zhou Shen 周 深, and Meng Meiqi 孟 美岐, who reblogged at 00:00, the same minute the original post was posted. The Chinese state propaganda has been using Japan's war crimes during World War II to fuel its people's nationalistic sentiments, despite the dissolution of the Empire of Japan in 1945 (and the formation of the modern state of Japan, in which the Emperor only occupies a ceremonial role). Reactions of Chinese public figures to propaganda posts related to Japan and WWII have therefore been heavily scrutinized by nationalistic / bored / mean netizens seeking for the next "traitor" in their midst to judge, to "cancel".

=====

The "Propaganda Reblog" Meta Series: 

1) Introduction < YOU'RE HERE 2) The midnight timestamp 3) The ultrashort response 4) Beyond the propaganda 5) Conclusion: The Li Jiaqi Paradox

[akindofmagictoo]

Beneath the Waves

a continuation of the Hurricane x ARMV crossover Potions and Pirates, and a gift to my beloved @ashen-crest​ in return for her wonderful hurt-comfort

part 1, in which we answer the question of “what will Aella get up to with a potion of water breathing?”. part 2 coming tomorrow.

Word Count: 2697

TW/CW: drowning, claustrophobia, panic attack

Context: Ambrose and Eli washed up on the Hurricane, and as a thank you for saving them, Ambrose brewed a potion of water breathing and sent it to Aella, Tempest and Theo. The full thing can be found on my Wattpad, @/zcmitchell.

Breathing underwater was certainly a strange situation, but Aella could have lived in the feeling forever. She flipped over to look back up at the surface, already so far away, but not so far that she couldn’t see the sunlight on its surface. The water of Wavemeet’s bay was so clear. Clear and blue, just like Theo’s eyes. 

She could picture them now, actually. He’d tried not to show it when she dived, but she’d seen the worry in them. The little furrow of his brow as he clung resolutely to the other end of the rope now tied around her ankle, ready to help pull her out at a moment’s notice despite his hatred of deep water. If she squinted really hard at the surface, she could maybe see the dark smudge that marked the jetty. 

As much as she trusted him, she was also glad that he had his uncle and several of the Hurricane’s crew standing by to help as well. Not that she really needed help. The rope had been obtained at Tempest’s suggestion and Theo’s insistence, even though Aella had never needed to dive with a rope before, not in a clear deep area like this one. But Theo had asked her to take it, and she didn’t mind the slight extra tug on her ankle if it kept him from being too worried about her. 

This potion had a time limit on it, she recalled. She should keep going. 

She turned a slow flip backwards and kicked, forcing herself further down into the inky gloom below.

~

Since the sun was directly overhead, it pierced far into the darkness beneath the water, but eventually even its last soft rays had to give way to the embrace of the cold depths. She pressed on, stroke after stroke, feeling the deep satisfying burn in her muscles as she propelled herself deeper and deeper, letting the abyss wrap around her like a dark cloak. 

She liked it less when she couldn’t see. 

For a split second, she could hear the sound of a cell door locking behind her… but no, she was just diving. This was safe darkness. The sea was safe, she reminded herself; it always had been, ever since she was a tiny child too young to walk. 

Tempest, Aria, Marisa and Cai had held her while she learned to swim. Theo, Emmy and Victoire were holding onto her now, all of them ready to feel three tugs on the rope and pull her safely back to the surface. 

She could leave now if she wanted to, but she didn’t want to. Not with so much left to explore. She was Aella Onyeisi, veteran of the Hurricane, and she had survived horrors far greater than this. She would not be turned back because she was scared of the dark.

~

As she reached forward for another stroke, her fingers brushed something. She stopped mid-motion and extended her hand again. Whatever it was was smooth and cold, and strangely familiar. She kicked behind her so she could place her hand flat on the surface. Still oddly normal, but in the darkness it was difficult to tell what. 

Wood. It was wood, worn smooth by time and water. 

It felt like the wood of a ship. 

She felt along the surface in front of her until she reached an edge, then pulled herself along it, hand over hand. Alright, so that felt like it could be a railing, which meant that either she was on the deck or hanging off the side — at least as far as that description applied when she seemed to be more or less horizontal. She pulled her feet forward until they also met the wreck, gauging angles as best she could in her head. Off the side it was. With a gentle push against the hull, she hoisted herself up level with the rail. 

Was that light, or just her mind playing tricks on her? She screwed her eyes shut and waited a moment. Whatever it was she’d just seen was gone. When she opened her eyes again, it seemed to be back. Just a very faint glow somewhere in front of her, maybe one or two arm’s lengths away. 

Another gentle push sent her flipping over the rail and downwards towards the deck. The glow brightened as she moved forwards. It seemed there was a hole in the deck, and the light was coming from within. She kicked out behind her, pushing herself towards the gap.

~

The gap’s edges had once been jagged, but just like the rest of the ship, they had been rounded and smoothed by currents. She wrapped a hand around the edge and peered over. This gap seemed to lead into the ship’s hold, and that hold was covered in softly glowing algae. 

In places, there were only small pinpricks of it, tiny blue stars in the dark. But one corner was completely covered, and it was that glow that had summoned her. 

The algae didn’t hold her attention for long, however, because its light gleamed off metal in the furthest, deepest corner of the hold. She wriggled through the gap — a tight fit, even for her — and into the hold.

~

Whatever had happened to the ship, the hole in the deck was the least of the damage. Support beams and all sorts of loose chunks of wood and metal stuck into the room at odd angles. It was hard to tell in the dim light, but off to one side, sticking up from the sea floor, was what might have been another ship’s ram. Two shipwrecks? 

Keeping an eye out in front of her for further debris, and both hands, she swam deeper into the room, heading for the metallic glimmer ahead. What could it be? Weapons? Treasure? Some further indication of what had sunk this ship? She didn’t know, but she needed to find out.

~

As she swam, she realised the algae wasn’t just blue. Patches were green and purple, and even one or two small specks of gold dappled the overlapping glows. On one wall, just at the edge of her peripheral vision, was something else gold. When she turned, it wasn’t algae, but a picture frame. Parts of it still shone, though parts were covered in algae or tarnish. She flipped over, avoiding a loosely floating crossbeam, and swam closer. The wall with the portrait was tilted such that it seemed more like a ceiling, so she floated underneath it on her back while she inspected it. It seemed to be some rich-looking white man, dressed like a merchant. Perhaps this wasn’t a hold. Maybe it was a cabin. Hard to know. She turned back over, surveying the dimly lit room. That could be a table in the far corner, a broken half-cabinet still attached to another wall. 

Time limit, she reminded herself. Time limit. She abandoned the portrait and dove for the gleam in the bottom corner. 

It was indeed metal that the algae had glinted off. A small chest, not much bigger than her two fists, the metal bands around it tarnished and aged, but not enough to dull their shine. And it didn’t seem to be locked. She drew her dagger and dug it under the latch. 

The latch sprang open to reveal… treasure. 

Pearl necklaces. Golden earrings. Shining jewels in every colour she could imagine and several she had never seen before. A golden ring set with an amber stone. Silver chains with delicate pendants attached. All of it reflecting the colours of the algae behind her, blue and green and purple and pink. All of it beautiful. 

She was probably running out of time on her potion. She shut the chest and gathered it into her arms, and let herself sink down into the corner, ready to kick off upwards. 

Was that a ram over there? Surely she could check quickly? She shifted direction, swimming in that direction instead. 

It was a ship’s ram, forced through the hull but not fitting tightly. Of course. The ship had likely sunk thanks to taking on water, which was harder to do if the ram remained to plug the hole. She hadn’t expected to find a shipwreck here, let alone one that had lost a battle. Rams were a pirate tactic, and Theo said they hadn’t been seen in Wavemeet for a very long time. 

TIME LIMIT. Perhaps she’d have to write to Ambrose to ask him for more of the potion. There were so many unanswered questions in her mind, answers to be found somewhere in this wreck. But she couldn’t stay to find them out, not without getting herself into significant trouble. Theo would be very worried about her if she pushed her limits on the potion. He’d be worried enough about her as it was. She should go.

~

Finding her way back to the hole in the deck was fairly easy. Manoeuvring through while keeping her hold on the chest was harder, but she managed it without catching her clothes on the edges of the gap or dropping her loot. Now all that was left to do was swim back to the surface, and let herself be reeled up like a beautiful fish if the potion started to wear off. Easy. She kicked off the deck. 

The rope around her ankle pulled her up short. 

Shit. 

She jerked her knee up to her chest to dislodge whatever it was caught on. Or rather, tried. The motion simply pulled her back down. 

What could it be tangled up in? It could be anything. But she might have time to fix it. She took a deep breath in, then let it go, and dived back down.

~

It seemed that in all her roaming of the room, the rope had gotten looped around some sort of metal apparatus on the wall. She braced her foot on the wall, tucked her jewel chest safely under her arm, and tugged. 

Nothing. Her hands just slid on the wet rope. 

She looped the rope around her hands and tried again. Still nothing. In frustration, she launched a kick at the wall. The shipwreck might be old, but it wasn’t that old. All she managed to do was send a jolt of pain through her heel. What could she do? She could cut the rope, but it was thick rope, and tying it securely back around her ankle underwater would be pretty difficult. She could hook the rope around something else and use that as leverage to pry the metal off the wall. That didn’t seem likely to work either. Shit. 

She yanked on the rope a third time. The wall seemed to groan, a rough grating sound that echoed through the whole room. Something struck her shoulder and she bit back a yelp, letting go of the rope. 

The whole shipwreck was shifting. She glanced down; what she could see of the ‘floor’ was starting to rock and slide to one side. 

She had to get out. 

How could she get out? Could she still get to the deck gap safely? She should have enough slack in her rope still, but… she glanced up towards the gap and nearly shrieked. 

The shipwreck seemed to be falling towards her. 

She couldn’t breathe. 

Why couldn’t she breathe? The potion should still be in effect. Her hands flew to her throat, her heart beating erratically beneath her fingertips. The water pressed in around her, colder now, chilling her to the bone, the glow of the algae seeming to retreat to the corners of the room. 

No. No no no NO. Why was the algae fading? Was she dying? Was she going to be stuck down here until her air ran out, with Theo and her friends unable to pull her up because the bloody rope was bloody stuck and— 

She had to get out. She had to leave. She fumbled for the knife at her belt, her fingers slow and clumsy, barely able to feel anything. Knife. Knife. Where is it? Had she left it where the jewel chest had been? 

Around her, wood creaked and cracked. 

She still couldn’t breathe. She was running out of time. No time. No time. 

There! Her numb fingers closed on the handle. She squeezed it tightly, so tightly her nails dug into her palm, though she barely felt it. Then she grabbed the rope and began to saw at it, still gasping for breath in the cold water. Come on, come on… the rope was thick, but not that thick. She could do this. 

Deep breaths, she heard Theo say in her mind. With every scrap of reason she had left, she forced herself to listen. Deep breaths. One breath in as she drew the knife one way; one breath out with the next stroke. She could still breathe. The potion was still working. And slowly, slowly but surely, the rope fibres were splitting beneath her blade. 

Don’t look at the ship. Don’t think about how to get out. Cut the rope. One task at a time. One task at a time. Just one. It will be okay. It has to be. 

The rope snapped free so suddenly she could hardly believe it. In the same moment, the ship rocked beneath her again. A beam crashed hard into her back, sending pain firing like lightning through her chest. 

Time to go. 

She dodged another slowly falling piece of ship and dragged herself through the hole in the deck. Its edges caught on her shirt this time. She didn’t care. She barely noticed it past the throbbing in her back. She just had to leave.

~

Swimming up was harder than swimming down. She was tired, she was scared, and she had to work harder to pull herself towards the surface. 

One stroke at a time, she told herself. Theo would be waiting for her. She needed to get back to him. The only way to do that was to swim. 

Something scaled brushed past her bare foot. She shuddered and kicked harder. As with any bay, there were stories of creatures in the water. Some good, some bad. Theo’s parents’ friend, Nell, swore she’d seen several nasty-looking sea serpents in the bay. On the other hand, Theo’s father had told a story of going swimming in the bay and almost drowning, but waking on the shore with a single shimmering scale on the sand beside him. 

Neither story had been proven, but either could be true. The Hurricane had run afoul of a kraken far too recently for Aella to really doubt either story. Either way, she’d rather not take her chances with nasty sea serpents. She swam on. 

She could see the surface of the water, the rays of the sun spilling down, not quite reaching all the way to her yet, but close. So close. The muscles in her arms and legs burned; she shifted her treasure from one arm to the other. Her chest was burning too. Breathing was difficult now. Was it the potion wearing off? Was she just tired? She had to keep going. The rope would do nothing for her now; in her haste to swim back up, she hadn’t thought to follow it. She had to keep swimming.

~

The burning wasn’t going away. She was so close now, close enough to see the sun sparkling on tiny waves in the bay. Just as beautiful as before. No, even more beautiful, because it meant safety, and now she desperately needed that safety. 

Something brushed her foot again. She ignored it, still striving for the surface. 

As before, she breathed in and took in water, but this time it stung. This was wrong. This was bad. There was nothing in the water to help her anymore. She tried to breathe it out, but there was nowhere to send it. No. No no no. 

The surface seemed to dim. She wanted to scream, but she had no air left to do it. She wanted to keep swimming, but she had no more strength for it. Nothing she could do but watch her vision fade to nothing.

Potions and Pirates Taglist: @copper-dragon-in-disguise @diphthongsfordays @pepperdee @zmwrites @the-orangeauthor @quilloftheclouds

Hurricane Taglist: @writingbyjillian @oddsandinks @ahowlinwolf @aziz-writes @juls-writes @lookinpeach @zmwrites @quilloftheclouds @lowslore @isherwoodj @katnapped @thepsycheofbrokenthings @happyorogeny @magicalwriting @ettawritesnstudies @florraisons @tea-and-pirates @writtendevastation @talesofsorrowandofruin @lilmissravingwriter @zielenbloesem @metanoiamorii @little-boats-on-a-lake @lottieiswriting @violetwrites @the-unwrittenwriter @ink-fireplace-coffee @iparisaltanwing @tragedieds @pamsdrabbles @waysofink @hekat-ie @thehellinsideyourhead @starryeve88 @trans1ence @vellichor-virgo @the-orangeauthor @google-plexed @literary-lavender @crystallized-ink @ellatholmes @seamajorshanties @crowewritesstuff @ashen-crest @astridmayewrites @wannabeauthorzofija @mel-writes-with-her-dragons @waterfallwritings @enchanted-lightning-aes @wizardfromthesea @huloglangit @diphthongsfordays​ @ruby-overlock @copper-dragon-in-disguise​ @mr-writes​ @josephinegerardywriter​ @teardropsandtherain​ @emilyoracle​ @matcha-chai​ @fablewritten @autie-auden-writes​ @innocentreticent

ID: a banner with a brown pirate hat in the middle. the hat has two fluffy feathers sticking out of it, one blue and one yellow. the banner is placed above and below the main text. /end ID.

[kookheiress]

𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗢𝗡 𝗙𝗔𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗬 𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗣𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞 : 𝙄𝙎𝙇𝘼𝙉𝘿 𝙊𝘼𝙎𝙄𝙎 . featuring rafe cameron ( @kookheir ) a five acre private island located in the bahamas , featuring a seven thousand two hundred square ft main house ( four bedrooms , open floor plan , large ocean view windows ) , a two thousand eight hundred square ft guest house ( three bedrooms , oceanfront gym , plunge pool / meditation deck ) , completely private beaches , and a private marina fitting several watercraft up to forty five feet in length . amenities include : underwater power cables connected to mainland electricity from the nearby abaco islands ( and a backup generator in case of emergency ) , close proximity to green turtle cay providing easy access to stores and restaurants , and a short distance to various other islands with incredible diving , snorkeling , and fishing locations .

— 𝙢𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵 / 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙜 𝙞𝙛 𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙙 —

[totaldramacruisecontrol]

Last Time On Total Drama Cruise Control: A Tro-pig-al Vacation!

CHALLENGE 12: Big Major Cay

It looks like all the interns were able to scrape off all the goo from…..the incident. The incident that cannot be named. Chris was in a fresh Hawaiian shirt, his hair done, he looked like a new man. You see the interns move what looks like...a certain contestant's stuff near the edge of the bow. Chris gets a phone call, he answers as he paces back and forth.

“Uh huh. I know. I didn't plan for it. I swear. The people back home are mad why? It's Ripper! What? Someone wants to file a missing person report?! No. No, you listen here. I'm not risking the ratings for a rescue mission! Yeah, yeah because I can afford a UFO! Yes. Yes. No. No, I'm not. Look, can we just cut him out?” Chris looks stressed, running his hands through his hair.

“Look. Tell the old lady we'll do our very, very best to find her baby boy. Pay her whatever she wants to shut her trap until we can figure out something. It's elimination day, I'll deal with this later. Ok. OK OK OK. BYE.”

Chris hangs up, he glares at the interns.

“Is that all of it? Throw it overboard. We need to erase every single bit of Ripper off this ship. Now. I don't want to see him, smell him-” “Hello contestants! Nice day we're having, huh?” Chris made sure to have Chef stand behind him. For no reason. Chris steps in front of the piles of stuff, smiling widely. “Don't worry about that, we're just...holding onto it until Ripper comes back!”

Chris's phone goes off, he picks it up to read it, sighing loudly shoving it into his pocket. “FINE. Chef. Get the memorial photo.”

Chef brings in and sets down a memorial photo of Ripper on an easel, turning to the contestants.

“This episode was made in memory of...Ripper. He was...a person. Who will be missed. Any words?”

“Ok cool. Yeah, ship it.” Chef nods and grunts, taking the display right back into his arms to carry away.

“Hey, don't make that face at me, I could've sworn everyone went out for drinks after. Ok, onto more important things. Today's challenge! Today, we'll be landing in Big Major Cay, Exuma. Aka, THE BAHAMAS!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The boat bellows proudly, docking onto the sandy white beach. Beach goers look in awe of the massive boat, the crystal blue water lapping against the shore, it looks as if you walked right into a postcard. It was so unreal how beautiful everything looked. “Today we’ll be hitting up the famous Pig Beach, where I have hidden one golden Chris idol in the beautiful reefs offshore. You will need to snorkel down to find it and return it to me. Just one thing…this challenge has two parts. First, you need to get your snorkel gear, which is currently fitted onto the various pigs scattered on the beach. Go catch yourself a pig and gear up! The order in which you catch your pig will determine the order you dive in. Whoever returns the idol first wins it for the team.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tapirs 1st. Raj 2nd. Courtney 3rd. Lightning 4th. Wayne 5th. Brick Beavers 1st. Harold 2nd. Alejandro 3rd. MK 4th. Amy 5th. Jo 6th. Sammy ------------------------------------------------------------------------

FIRST TWO TO DIVE, RAJ VS HAROLD!

Harold is swimming and swimming and swimming. He finds a fish and tries to befriend it. The fish is swimming away. He's following it. This fish freaking hates him, what the hell. What was he doing again?

Raj dives into the reef. He swims around for a moment, looking around… He thinks he sees a bit of gold nestled in a rock, but he starts to run out of air before he can do anything about it. He swims back up to the surface, coughing as he exits the water. “…Rock-” he tries to say quietly, cutting himself off with a wheeze as he tries to catch his breath. “It’s- it’s in a rock.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------

COURTNEY AND ALEJANDRO ARE NEXT, GET TO DIVING!

Courtney listens to Raj, swimming to the rock...she sees it too! A Glimmering gold...something? She runs out of air before she can get it. Courtney returns to shore. She’s sputtering and gasping for air. “I saw it! It’s down there!”

Alejandro jumps in the water, and he starts to look around. That makeup he wears immediately washes off. Shit. He can't see. He's so freaking scared. My god. He's actually starting to freak out now. He doesn't find anything. He resurfaces, scars of display and everything. "Sorry. I didn't find anything." ------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEXT ROUND IS LIGHTNING VS MK!

MK dives in and swims around. It’s kind of hard to see things she realizes. She tries to grab at something and… nope just some sand. Lightning emerges from the water. "Wayne! It's over there!" He points as he swims back to shore. ------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEXT ROUND IS WAYNE VS AMY! GET TO IT!

"Crud! No dice! Brick, it's over here! This is our last shot!" Wayne splashes out of the water and swims to shore…Crap! Amy swims, searching for the item. She catches a glimmer of gold nestled under a rock. She swims up for air. "I saw it! I saw... it's by a rock?"

------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEXT ROUND! RAJ VS SAMMY!

Raj tries to swim towards where he’d seen it before, but his leg gets caught on some seaweed. He struggles for a moment, trying to get unstuck. He’s not very successful. By the time he gets unstuck, he runs out of air. He swims back to the surface, coughing. He’s empty-handed. Sammy frantically looks back and forth, until— Aha! Right there! It’s under the rock! She wriggles it back and forth, pulling with all her might, but feels her suit constrict with a lack of oxygen. She makes one final tug— but it slips from her grasp. She swims to the surface and gasps for air, defeated. ------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEXT ROUND! COURTNEY VS HAROLD! LET'S GO!

The freaking fish is back! Harold swims after it again. Courtney’s hand breaches the water before anything else. She’s holding the idol! She crawls onto the sand, small statuette held in her hand tightly. She’s holding on for dear life.

“I did it!”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

AND THAT'S A TAPIR WIN! GAME OVER!

"Anyways, that's it everyone! Tapirs, feel free to go explore the island- and Beavers I'll meet you on the....huh?"

A shooting star streaks across the sky. It's very bright, so it's visible... in the middle of the day?

In zooms a space ship. It takes itself down closer and closer to the contestants, producing wind like a helicopter.

It spits out a mass of green goo, which splatters onto the sand. It burbles…

It kinda sounds like…a fart, maybe?

... With a gasp, Ripper bursts from the sludge and tries his very best to gulp down air, eyes wide and full of panic.

"Nice try! We will NOT be taking part in biological warfare," One of the aliens say, their queen. "Ugh, and we thought COWS were bad. Do all Earth specimens produce that much methane? No wonder your planet is overheating and dying. You're a fool for allowing your stupid contestants to get a hold of corn. That's exactly how I knew where to drop it off! Oh, and Mclean? Watch your back." The spaceship zips off, and Ripper is left there in the goop. Ripper sputters through bits of alien goo, shivering and shaking from the shock. Despite this, he gives the best finger guns he can muster. "D-Did you MISS me?!"

------------------------------------------------------------------------

ELIMINATION:

It was Sammy who was served the Mocktail of Misery and walked the Plank of Shame.

Sammy stands up. She looks at her team and gives them a curt nod. “Well. Guess you can’t please everyone. Some people just love their villains.” She stares at Alejandro and Amy. “I can’t wait for everyone to find out what you guys are really like; what you really want, what you really think of your ‘friends’. You haven’t seen the last of me. You may have won the battle, but you won’t win the war.” She heads for the edge of the ship. “You’re making your families very proud. You’re just like them.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The sea tails (Ripper, Wayne, Raj, Alejandro, and Amy) share a moment in the hot tub! Ripper and Alejandro discuss life and death at a bar together. Ripper and Amy play with pigs on the beach. They discuss what happened at the bar with Alejandro. Raj makes a paper football out of an apology letter he received from Courtney. He and Ripper play with it together. Wayne and Ripper play dress up in the show theatre. Raj gets stuck on the beach with Brick and a bunch of seagulls. They talked through stuff. "Happernation" (Happy + Hibernation) starts for the Hockey Bros! A prank war ensues. Raj and Alejandro talk in the rec room and Raj braids his hair. Harold encounters a mysterious shop, which happens to be owned by Leonard. He sells him a cure for vampirism that must be blessed by a cleric. Wayne and Harold visit a church together in an attempt to cure the latter of his vampirism. The cleric there is able to bless the vial Harold gives him. Lightning gains a new friend, a piglet named Waddles.