fourside | [3.8★] "Too much water"

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[3.8★] "Too much water" — Yelp Reviewer

THE OCEANARIUM
It's like a fish tank, but bigger.

The sea is a vast expanse of water that covers 70% of our planet Earth. It is also home to various marine life that dwell within the very depths. Then one day, someone decided to bring the ocean to the surface for Reasons. So now everyone gets the chance to see all sorts of seafaring creatures — man-eating sharks, living fossils, and whatever horrors found deep in the ocean trenches all safely confined inside these oversized aquariums.

Somehow, your character got their hands on some tickets. So why not dive right in and spend some of that free time to hang out with the fishes? Learn something about the ocean, pet a cute penguin, or even plot to free a killer whale. It'll be an experience they won't forget.

➤ What is this?

This is just an open RP post with a sandbox-like setting. While there's some scenarios premade for your roleplaying needs, you can mess around with it as much or as little as you want. Feel free to use it for voicetesting, create cross-canon shenanigans, or develop a ship even further. You can carry the story over to your musebox if you'd like too. And you can re-use this post as many times as you'd like (until it hits the comment limit.) So bring your blorbos, your originals, your AUs, your friends and your friends' friends along for the fun!

➤ How to play:

Comment with your character's name and series in the subject.
Follow it up with a starter, and state your preferences too.
Label any warnings when necessary.
Reply to other characters!
Most importantly, just don't worry and have fun!

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Upon arrival, the attendant greets you as she collects your ticket. She hands over a brochure of the park containing a map, and descriptions of each featured exhibit that you can access. Afterwards she explains some guidelines for you to follow while within the park premises:

No smoking.
Don't leave your children unattended.
Don't tap or slam against the glass.
Please keep your valuables with you.
Don't bring food or drinks inside any of the exhibit rooms.
Use of flash photography is strictly prohibited.
Ignore the noises coming from the backrooms.
Keep a safe distance from the pools, otherwise you will get wet.

Once she's done, she slaps a wristband over your arm and gestures to make your way into the main lobby where all of the other visitors are gathered. From here you may begin exploring around the facility on your own, with your partner, or tag along with a tour guide as they show you the way. There's a lot of places to be, and plenty of fish to see!

Scenarios
A Watery Wonderland ✦ Close Encounters of the Penguin Kind ✦ Operation: Free Willy ✦ Submerged in Shadow ✦ Deep Fear ✦ Relaxed, Refreshed & Resurfaced ✦ Wildcard!

❖ A Watery Wonderland

➤ Location: Sea-Through Tunnel

The Sea-Through Tunnel is the main attraction of the Oceanarium, and the highlight in most advertisements you find about this place. And you now understand why after seeing it up-close.

It is a long glass tunnel that passes through the large indoor aquarium, giving you a glimpse of the wonders of the sea. And like an aquarium, the exhibit presents a near-perfect replication of the seabed and the various kinds of marine life found exclusively under the sea. Though it comes with a few bits and bobs you expect from any fish tank like a shipwrecked galleon or a treasure chest. If you peruse through the brochure, you take note of the description of the tunnel as follows:

...The Oceanarium™ has even transplanted seaweed, anemones, giant clams and all from the Pacific and Atlantic depths to really nail in the accuracy of their natural habitat. It's the best place to find sharks, stingrays and other fascinating seafaring creatures from behind the glass without having to dive deep into the ocean itself. So you don't have to worry about that pesky thalassophobia kicking in!

Apparently this exhibit is also popular among families and young couples according to the guide that you overheard. They explained how with the vivid blue water, the colorful coral covering the surface, and an assortment of marine life swimming by, certainly all of these make for a perfect backdrop for any special occasion.

"First meetings, reunions, confessions, wedding proposals, you name it!" the tour guide enthused, "What could be more memorable than having a heartfelt moment or two take place underwater and being surrounded by thousands of fish?"

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❖ Close Encounters of the Penguin Kind

➤ Location: The Cold Spot

Another popular attraction in the Oceanarium is The Cold Spot, showcasing images and dioramas of wildlife that survive within polar habitats. And to really add to the experience, the temperature in the room is a bit lower than usual. So as the name implies, it does get a little chilly inside.

Though what draws people the most is the large penguin enclosure within the exhibit. It's where guests get to see these dapper-looking birds clumsily waddle around on the snow-covered surface or diving gracefully into the waters of the indoor pool. Many of them are seen idling by either at their nests, the fake rocks, or at the edge of the pool with little concern of their spectators standing behind the glass barrier with fascination and glee.

If you're hoping to get a close look of these birds, then lucky for you! For a phenomenally nominal fee, you can feed and pet them at your leisure within the exhibit.* Watch as these little guys will start swarming around you to observe and hope to get some fish out of your hands.

Then you notice some smaller text at the bottom of the Cold Spot's description.

* – The Oceanarium™ will not be held responsible for the animals' behavior, and any injuries or losses gained from them will not be compensated for as per agreement in the terms and conditions written in your waiver. Please take caution when interacting with these animals.

Other than that, if you're not up to paying for meeting penguins, there are a couple of penguin statues and a photo stand-in of a penguin with its face cut-out so you can pretend to be one just for laughs.

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❖ Operation: Free Willy

➤ Location: Aquatheater

Built for family-friendly entertainment, this area is an enriching experience for both you and our finned friends in captivity. The Aquatheater is made to hold more than a hundred guests to view over the stage – a large oval pool where our handlers hold the highly-anticipated marine show featuring our highly trained cetaceans and pinnipeds performing the most captivating acts of acrobatics in and over water.

But as it turns out, there was more to it than meets the eye.

Maybe it's something you caught word of before entering the facility, but you heard rumors that there were plans from the staff behind the scenes about getting rid of one of their poorest performers in the bunch. The Oceanarium has a bit of a seedy reputation regarding the welfare of these seafaring mammals, and have even called into question how they handled them in captivity. You don't know what they'll do to that poor creature, and wouldn't want to think the worst of it to happen. Frankly it's not your business to pry, yet you feel you have to do something if any of that is true.

Now driven to save the creature, you and your partner sneak into the backrooms and make an attempt to set it free.

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❖ Submerged in Shadow

➤ Location: The Abyssal Zone

You figured there's a good reason why this exhibit is called The Abyssal Zone, as it is almost pitch black inside upon entering. This makes it impossible to read the brochure in such darkness. And the only sources of light that you could find are the tiny LED lights embedded on the floor to illuminate your path, and the soft eerie blue glow coming from the fish tanks.

Apparently all of the specimens featured here are mostly found within the deepest trenches of the ocean and are highly sensitive to bright lights. That would explain why the attendant from earlier discouraged you to use flash photography. The tour guide mentions how a handful of them are species that have been around since the prehistoric era. They even proudly boast that the Oceanarium seems to be the only marine park that has the rare "Deep Sea Pucker-Faced Lanternfish" in captivity, thought to have been extinct during the Paleocene era. Seeing how these species of fish managed to survive for over millions of years makes you wonder what else could be lurking beneath the depths.

You then take notice of a few fish that seem to be glowing by themselves. One of them at a distance looked rather... humanoid in shape based on the silhouette. Though maybe you're just seeing things.

"...Oh and did you know?" you hear the guide continue, "Some of these fishes are able to produce their own light naturally – mostly to lure in their prey."

Somehow, you're getting the sense that you're being watched by whatever it is behind the glass.

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❖ Deep Fear

➤ Location: Basement-Level Research Laboratory

⚠️ Content Warning ⚠️
 
Slight body horror.

Something's wrong.

Your body swiftly jumps and aches as your nerves begin to connect to your sudden awareness. It's like you are weighted down with lead for muscles, your limbs are uncooperative at every attempt. Not only that, but there's an odd sensation coming from your hands and feet like they felt stuck together. And for some reason, it's become a chore to breathe through your throat as you rasp loudly. And as you awake, bright lights glare before your eyes and you immediately shield them away with your hand. And that's the first oddity you've discovered – the skin between your digits are stitched together, webbed like fins of a fish. The second is finding yourself atop an operating table.

A sharp chill takes over you completely.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary before you got here. But whatever reason you have for visiting the Oceanarium, someone had their sights on you and knocked you unconscious when no one's watching. And now you've found yourself in a strange yet horrifying predicament. Everything about you has changed, and you dread how your life will be like from this point onwards. It's become certain that you've regretted ever coming to the park in the first place.

There's no time to think about this any further. There's only one goal in mind right now – You have to get out of here. And you can only hope and pray the people running this place don't catch you if you're spotted.

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❖ Relaxed, Refreshed & Resurfaced

➤ Location: Gift Shop & Café

Had enough excitement for today? It sure seems like it.

Well, your time here in the Oceanarium is finally over. Maybe you got to learn a thing or two about the sea, that you found some appreciation towards our fishy friends. Or maybe you've just decided for yourself that you're going to stay far away from the ocean permanently. Either one of these is a valid response really. Just don't let the staff know about the latter part.

But before you leave, the tour guide encourages everyone to stop by at the gift shop and bring home a souvenir or two for you and your friends. There's Oceanarium-themed keychains, fridge magnets, bottle openers, t-shirts, baseball caps, and even plush toys of critters such as penguins, dolphins, octopi, a legally distinct clownfish, or the pucker-faced lanternfish that you can have as a new companion on your way back out.

Alternatively you can sit back, relax, and grab some bubble tea or try out some fish and chips at the indoor café. Of course there's more options you can choose from in the menu, with some food items specially catered towards those who are either vegan, vegetarian, have specific allergies, or just a really picky eater.

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❖ Wildcard!

➤ Location: Anywhere

If you're not feeling any of these prompts, or have some other ideas in mind, then go wild!

You can mix and match scenarios or come up with your own. Swap roles where you play the villain and your partner would be the hero or the other way around. You can even expand the setting with new locations, or AU it up and rebuild it into your own version of the setting if you'd like. There's no limits to what your imagination can create. It's free real estate here, and the world is your oyster! (No pun intended.)

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Not exactly a thing that'd make him feel better, to be honest!]

Huh... That kinda shit exists even with the "saviors of the world"...? Sucks for the world.

We're not perfect people, or have sunshine out of our asses or anything. We're just normal people....well maybe not normal.

Huh... So what kinda "normal, not normal" people are we talking about...?

[Not that Nagiri's interested in joining. Of course not. He wouldn't be ~~allowed~~ interested in some stupid group of world saviors. He's just fishing for their weaknesses.]

Thor, [NORMAL????] Captain America, Black Widow.

[So normal]

[Nagiri, who doesn't watch TV or movies, read comics, or even read newspaper articles that aren't relevant to him, has never heard of those people. But what he has seen a lot of are vampire hunters.]

Those sound like the names of people who'd wear flashy themed costumes and use impractical but cool weapons to fight vampires and stuff...

I won't say I've never fought vampires, but those were hurting people and causing chaos. I don't doubt there are decent vampires out there-- we're not exclusive to all that.

Yeah, no shit... Most higher vampires are annoying weirdoes who like causing chaos for attention. Harmless idiots who wanna have fun...

[Totally unlike Nagiri.]

You met some? [a fish....meeting vampires...not unheard of because, again, Namor, but still] I don't deal with any vamps usually, but yeah it really depends. On the age too.

[Hey, he wasn't always a fish!]

Met some? Hah... Can't walk down a block without meeting a vamp in Shin-Yokohama... [Unless you go out before sunset, but that doesn't even occur to Nagiri.]

[hey, that's still a hard one to put his head around]

Really? Huh. Is Blade there?

Who? [Well, he can guess that's probably a vampire from context, but...] Do I look like I know every vampire by name...

He's actually a hunter, not a vampire. But he gets out there-- sort of.

Ah. Haven't seen the name in the local vampire hunter magazines, at least... [And Nagiri does read those when he can, just to keep up with possible enemies. He'll keep the name Blade in mind as somebody he probably doesn't want to cross.] Dunno if you'd have heard of them, but the biggest names in Shin-Yoko vamp hunter business are Vamone, Bear Killer Maria, and Ronaldo... [Nagiri tries not to let his distaste for hunters show, but there's an edge to his voice and his body tenses when he says Ronaldo's name.]

Hmmm...no, none of those are familiar at all. Blade's probably the biggest name, and then the XMen dabble when it's world ending or something.

Yeah, figures...

[Nagiri trails off, feeling small. Damn, Shin-Yokohama really was nothing in the grand scale of the world, huh... It gives Nagiri a vaguely nauseous feeling at the bottom of his stomach. Were the vampire hunters he's been avoiding really that small of a deal? What does that make Nagiri, then? At one point, Tsujigiri Nagiri was the most feared vampire in all of Japan, but what about outside it? He resists the urge to ask if Bucky recognizes the name. Either he's never heard of him (bad) or he realizes "Tsujita" is actually Tsujigiri (even worse).

Once upon a time, Nagiri wanted to take over the world, but that seems like such a childish, impossible dream now...]

Could just be cause those lines don't cross. I don't know all that much.

[as though that's helpful; still, big world out there]

[Shit, Bucky's saying something. Shake yourself out of that introspection, Nagiri!]

Ah, yeah... maybe vampire hunters would know more about other countries' vampire hunters...

[...Nagiri failed to shake himself out of it, mind still elsewhere and sounding half-hearted.]

Not like you can ask much of Blade when he's in a mood. Which he always is. [Bucky's like sunshine in comparison.

he checks his phone]

Just a bit longer. You good?

[Nagiri can relate to that.

Ugh, he needs to focus. Now Bucky's even getting worried about him.]

I'm fucking boiling alive, what do you think...? I'll manage...

[Despite the sarcasm, he is getting kind of overheated. Even if they're in the shade, that doesn't change the fact that being out during the day is pretty awful for vampires, and being out of the water for too long is pretty awful for his new fish half. He's been stubbornly ignoring that for a while now.]

[he wordlessly offers a canteen to Nagiri, shaking it, the liquid inside sloshes loudly]

Have some water. It'll cool you down.

[Bucky didn't think it was that hot, but still]

[Wordlessly, Nagiri accepts the canteen, but makes no move to open it. Dammit, he's starting to reach the state of staying out during the day where he feels nauseous... The thought of drinking or eating anything but blood feels repulsive. Ugh, he wishes he had blood to drink... Bucky's neck right there in his fangs' reach is starting to seem really appetizing, but that's a terrible idea for so many reasons...

Nagiri makes a vaguely agonized groaning noise and thunks his head down on Bucky's shoulder, keeping his jaw clenched shut.]

[he starts slightly, just minutely, at the weight of Nagiri on his shoulder. he peeks at him, brow furrowed with concern. He looks clammy...]

Hey, hang in there. Have the water, if you can.

Nughh...

[He really doesn't want to drink the water... But, wait... Maybe he should just pour it over himself? He's a fishman now, that's probably good for him? Having water all over him sounds pretty good right now...

Without thinking about it further, Nagiri raises his head off Bucky's shoulder, opens the water bottle and upends it over his own head and shoulders. Sorry, Bucky, you're definitely getting some on you. Nagiri looks a little more alive, at least...]

[oh, that's-- not what he was expecting-- alarm rising, he leans back to take in Nagiri's face, pinched in pain? in distress? the guy usually has had an unpleasant look on his face in the 15 minutes he's known him]

Just hang on.

[He definitely has a strained expression. Not quite pained, but pinched, eyes and mouth closed. Nagiri's currently focusing on keeping his blood blades from appearing anywhere on his body where they'd stab Bucky. As a side-effect of that effort, an old scar opens on his forehead, with blood bursting out to harden into a brittle and small blood blade, like a horn. Also, he's completely drenched, and regretting that slightly now that his cloak is sticking to him.

He doesn't respond out loud, but he nods.]

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[sorry for the late tag!]

not a prob, buddy!

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