a pact .

i make truce with you, walt whitman. i have detested you long enough. i come to you as a grown child who has had a pig-headed father; i am old enough now to make friends. it was you that broke new wood, now is a time for carving. we have one sap and one root. let there be commerce between us.

[primordial-fungus-monolith]

It's okay when I do things that are evil because I'm sexy

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

.

“You think we’re an experiment?” The very thought spiked her anxiety. She was not cut out for this. Didn’t she need to sign some kind of consent form? She’d learned that in school. “I don’t know. Logically none of it makes sense, you know? There’s no reason for them to bring people to an abandoned island against our will.” She was in disbelief, that was for sure. It was kind of like going through the stages of grief and she was currently in denial. “If we had a way to collect the rain that would be a good start. And then once we get that, we can try to find shelter.”

. . . .

“ i think being an unwitting subject is about as possible as any other theory, ” he responded, pinching the bridge of his nose at the thought and the uncertainty. “ interest in how people fare under this type of stress – where their loyalties lie, what they’re willing to do – would seem a sound study. quite unethical, but a reason, nonetheless. far-fetched, but... ” so was everything else.  he nodded and scanned the area. as far as he was concerned, there was nothing but sand, sand, and a strip of trees that contained who knew what. best to get their bearings before entering the further unknown... but what could they collect water in ? all he had were the clothes he’d last recalled putting on – nothing in his pockets, no case. but... “ i’ve an idea, ” he introduced, leaning over to take his only slightly useful shoes off. “ these are leather, so... i believe – believe – that this rain may begin to collect after it soaks the inside. ”

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

sullivanmock​:

clearliquors:

BOLD what applies to your muse.

PLACE IN SOCIETY

financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty.

medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged.

class or caste: upper / middle / working / slave / unsure.

education: qualified / unqualified / studying.

criminal record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no.

FAMILY

married - happily / married - unhappily / engaged or betrothed / partnered / single / divorced / separated.

has a child or children / has no children / wants children.  

close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased.

orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent(s) / raised by guardian(s)

TRAITS + TENDENCIES

extroverted / introverted / in between.

disorganized / organized / in between.

close minded / open-minded  / in between.

calm / anxious / in between.

disagreeable / agreeable / in between.

cautious / reckless / in between.

patient / impatient / in between.

outspoken / reserved / in between.

leader / follower / in between.

empathetic / unemphatic / in between.

optimistic / pessimistic / in between.

traditional / modern / in between.

hard-working / lazy / in between.

cultured / un-cultured / in between 

loyal / disloyal / in between.

faithful / unfaithful / unknown.

BELIEFS:

monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic.

belief in ghosts or spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in an afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in aliens: yes  / no / don’t know / don’t care.

religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious.

philosophical: yes / no.

SEXUALITY + ROMANTIC INCLINATION

heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual.

sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favourable.

romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favourable.

sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious.

potential sexual partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all.

potential romantic partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all.

ABILITIES

combat skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none.

literacy skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

artistic skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

technical skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none.

HABITS

drinking alcohol: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

smoking: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess. 

other narcotics: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

medicinal drugs: never / sometimes  / frequently / to excess. 

indulgent food: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess. 

splurge spending: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

gambling: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

“Right. There’s no way they just left two people alone on this island, right?” She went along with his thoughts. “Plus, however we got here, it was unlikely to be something that only carried two people.” Alison was well versed in nervous rambling when she wasn’t being awkwardly silent. She seemed to have two extremes in that sense. “I think so, yes.” Alison nodded. “It seems to have gotten brighter, not darker.”

. . . .

“ if this is some sort of, uh, experiment, then they’d need more than just two subjects. and you would think... you would think there would be a tie. ” no matter how they got there, why they were there, there had to be some tie. “ something cosmic, spontaneous... it couldn’t just be us. ” oh, how utterly mad he felt rambling on about being subjects in an experiment or the victims of some freak spontaneous occurrence ! alas, there didn’t seem to be any logical way to look at it. “ alright, i think we should try to get some water first then. shelter will be important come nightfall, but water will be far more important in the grand scheme. ”

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

.

Strangers were difficult for Alison. On one hand, she always prided herself in being kind and open. On another hand, strangers could do harm to her. But she didn’t want to be alone on this island. Alone sounded even worse. “Maybe there are more.” She gave the man a half shrug. “Both. Shelter and something to collect the water in, yeah?” Alison pushed her hands into the sand to press up from the ground. A bit unsteady on her tired feet, she gained her balance.

. . . .

maybe there are more. the four words that iago had thought, had essentially said, had not hit until they reverberated. “ i don’t know you. i assume you don’t know me. if we have no tie, i’d have to guess there are more. ” thinking aloud, offering a verbal stream of consciousness, was not a preference of iago’s ; however, he was now in this with the woman. they needed answers. they needed thoughts. “ yes... yes. ” he looked to the shore and wished he knew what direction they were facing, knew if the sun was setting or rising... “ i’d be inclined to guess it’s closer to morning than it is nightfall, yes ? ” 

[iagoshah]

aphroditefm​:

callista felt her heart drop at that statement from this new stranger. this situation not being a dream just was not working for her — if this was, in fact, all real, then the implications of it were something that she was quite ready to face head on. not just yet. for now, she’d prefer to believe that she’d wake up safe and dry with a full memory at some point. at the stranger’s next words, she looked up at him from her seat in the sand and crossed her arms defiantly; he hadn’t even introduced himself before beginning to tell her what to do. mannerless and bossy, she thought to herself. callista puckered her lips and raised a brow before making a point to look around, as if searching for someone else this man could have been speaking to, before landing her eyes back on him. “i’m sorry, what?”

. . . .

it was a lot to drop on a stranger – on anyone – but the less time wasted panicking and denying the truth, the better. a necessary bomb. he had no reason to believe it himself, but who would he be to waste time ? the chance this was all real, something that seemed to be becoming more evident as he lacked the ability to wake up, was one he had to embrace. “ your shoes, take them off. water will start to collect in the toe after it’s soaked enough. ” it was a theory. the inside of his loafers had been somewhat leather-adjacent, thus eventually soaking until they were unable to soak anymore and began collecting. but what use would she have for pumps on a deserted island anyway ?

[iagoshah]

virginiafeldman​:

virginia’s first thoughts when she came to: alright ! cool ! it wasn’t like it was the first time she woke up somewhere with no recollection of how she’d gotten there, right ? yeah ! but, like… no, no, it was the most extreme. for sure. maybe she was in a saw movie ? or a really intense escape room, designed to look super realistic ? really, they were both about as likely as her reality: being mysteriously spit out on a deserted island. was there a correct way to process that ? because cycling through the endless possibilities that were just about as likely, but were all equally untrue ( aliens ? ), was about all she could do until she spotted someone and thank god, at least she wasn’t the only target of the billionaire who hunted humans for sport. “ hey, you – do you have any clue what’s happening ? because i’m getting big ‘most dangerous game’ vibes which would mean we’re both fucked. ”

The more people Iago encountered, the better he felt about their chances of survival. Or the better he felt about his chance of survival. Between the limited supplies, limited knowledge, and overall disorganization, it seemed as though it would eventually be every man for himself. So he couldn’t risk making any missteps, becoming anyone’s foe. His eyebrows raised at the new voice, not startled that there was someone else, but pleasantly surprised he was finally being directly addressed - even if the question did largely remain the same. “I’m not quite sure, but I, personally, am not hunting humans for game, so I suppose only time will tell.” He gave her a one over before asking, “Do you have anything you could use to collect some of this water? Say, some leather bag or shoes?”

[iagoshah]

aphroditefm​:

the first thing callista saw when her eyes opened was a swath of dark clouds cast across the sky. the first thing she heard was…..water? she popped up from where she’d laid so quickly she made herself dizzy. she raised a hand to steady her spinning head, pausing when she realized it was….sand? there was sand covering her hand? callista closed her eyes for a second, trying to come to her senses — when she opened them again, she fully took in her surroundings. sand, the sea, and a sky that was about to open. her jaw slowly fell open and her heartbeat felt dull. sand in her hair, all over her designer outfit, and her chanel pumps were scuffed. a sense of panic began to set in as she realized she had no idea where she was or how the hell she’d gotten there. “what in the absolute hell…,” she said quietly, toying with her layers of necklaces just to check that they were still there. she scoffed in disbelief and began shaking her head. “oh absolutely not. this is a dream; this is a dream and i will be waking up from it immediately,” she said out loud, to no one in particular.

Bare feet crunching in the wet sand, Iago had submitted to the rain. One shoe in his right hand, the other sitting nearby, he was doing all he could to collect as much fresh water as possible with as few resources as he had. Or, between the young woman he’d met and the voice that was calling from nearby, maybe it was a ‘they’ now. “I’m afraid it’s not a dream, dear.” He glanced down at her shoes and, yes, they would work. They wouldn’t collect much, but they would collect. “Those are some lovely shoes, but you won’t have much use for them in the real world anymore. Start collecting water.”

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

.

Alison was almost grateful for the rain. The way it cleansed her body of the sand. The way it meant that at least somehow she could have drinkable water. It made wherever they were feel more alive. She nodded at the strange man. Could she trust him? Would he hurt her? These thoughts were not singular to being trapped in a strange place. “I am. Entirely lost.”

.

Scanning the island, Iago saw little resources around: unless it was just the two of them, there would be competition. “Do you think there are more of us?” Perhaps someone would have an answer, or perhaps someone would create an obstacle. In any case, in that moment, it was in his best interest to be an ally to this woman. “There’s an explanation for this, I’m sure. But until then, we should try to find some shelter.” Holding out his hand for raindrops to slide over (and regretting wearing a shirt with fabric that clung to him in the most uncomfortable way possible, if only he’d known he’d wake up on an unknown island), he cocked his head. “Or something to collect some of this rain in.”

[iagoshah]

alisonxhayford​:

Alison’s eyes open only once the sand starts to burn her skin. She awakens with what feels like sandpaper in her throat and all over her body. The sun is hotter than she remembers it being before she fell asleep. Did she fall asleep? Is this a dream? No, she decides, it can’t be. Should she pinch herself to be sure? Her memory is as hazy as the sky across the sea. Her eyes squint into the distance. Surely she can’t be here alone. Surely that’s another figure she sees. Hopefully a human. Hopefully she has not been set up for death wherever she is. She can’t remember what she felt before getting here, but now she is scared.

Before so much as noticing the sand that lay under his body, grainy and uncomfortable and unmistakable, Iago registered the rain. How could he not? It seemed to come down harder with each passing moment, barely leaving him room to worry about where he was... but where was he? With furrowed brows, he glanced around: sand, sand, sand, rocks, sand, a couple of trees, more sand. hardly any shade. But a weak spell of relief cast over him when he noticed a figure nearby. Judging by her expression, he called, “ I suppose you’re just as clueless as myself ? ”