Marooned!

[cornichaun]

THE MAROONED MEME



When you’re stranded. When there’s no way out.

At least this you’re not alone.

WHERE ARE YOU STRANDED?
1: Island. Surrounded by the ocean, shipwrecked on an island. Far away from any civilization.
2: Planet. Is it an uninhabited wasteland? A teeming forest, crammed with alien life forms? Does it have enough oxygen? Storms? Predators?
3: Moon/Asteroid. Low atmosphere, low gravity. You better hope that you have a survival pod where there’s enough air and heat.
4: Adrift. A ship on the ocean; a power-dead space station; a skimmer floating through the levels of a gas giant.
5: Oasis. Not quite marooned in the same sense, but you’re surrounded by empty desert, too far to cross. You might as well be trapped by the water of the oasis.
6: Cave. Again, not quite in the same sense, but something has left you trapped underground. Did you slide down a chasm? Suffer a cave-in? Either way, you’re down here to stay, for the time being.
7: Other.

WHO’S WITH YOU?
1: A friend. You’re in this together.
2: An enemy. Maybe war brought you both here, and war left you stranded behind. Could be that you’re an enemy in a more mundane sense: school rivals, an assassin and her prey.
3: Strangers. You were both on that boat for vacation, and now you have to survive together.
4: A lover. Some honeymoon, huh?
5: Other. For any other variation.

WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
1: Food and water.
2: Shelter. There’s a storm coming. The nights are cold, here. Or do you just want a sense of security?
3: Communication. How can you get someone to come rescue you?
4: Predators. Something’s trying to kill you…
5: Escape. If you can just fix the ship…
6: Each other. One more hour and you might kill each other.
7: Injury/Disease. One of you needs medical attention. Hopefully the other can muddle through.
8: Other. Any other problem you can think up!

Comments

[demonicbeauty]

[After a while, the sound of the falls comes crashing around them, along with the humidity which they provide. Ariadne leads him along, as the terrain gradually becomes even and grassy. It smells of rain.]

We should be there soon.

[She glances up. There's no question now that he sun is starting to dip toward the horizon, like a teardrop rolling off of a smooth cheek. They'll make it, but it might be a little tight.

And more than a little spooky.]

Has the bleeding stopped?

[It's smelling less fresh. As is he.]

[epitomized]

Seems like it.

[ He hasn't felt anything warm and wet trickling down his side. Which is good, all things considered. Not bleeding out is high on his list of this to accomplish tonight, and that determination wears heavy on his face as he moves.

Should have been a young man's face. That's more apparent in the forgiving hue of the dying sunlight, softening some of those edges. He can't be much past thirty. ]

[demonicbeauty]

Good. Good. That's good.

[She prances ahead a few paces, pulling back the thick overgrowth coming out of some of the trees, clearing a path for him. Ariadne glances over the curve of her shoulder as she does, giving him a dimpled smile.]

You must be getting hungry.

There's plenty to eat around the falls.

[epitomized]

[ He lets out a huff of something that could be laughter, his grip tightening on his makeshift cane as he makes his way closer. ]

With just one person here to eat, I don't doubt it. You sure it'll handle two?

[ Not that he's complaining. Food and rest will be necessary before wandering out into the sands in the hopes of finding some way out of this place. Which is still his goal. This place might be leafy and green and very pretty to look at...

But a prison is a prison. ]

[demonicbeauty]

I'm pretty sure.

[She's the worst at sarcasm. It doesn't help that she's so out of practice dealing with other people. But what she lacks in sincerity, she more than makes up for in earnest.

Maybe.]

I should probably warn you, I can't cook.

Don't know how.

[epitomized]

I think I'll live.

[ The corner of his lip creeps upwards slightly, before he continues to hobble his way forward. Really, anything edible at this point would be welcome. ]

So what do you eat around here?

[demonicbeauty]

Mostly root vegetables. Sometimes berries. Stone fruit grow a couple of times a year, although you have to get there at just the right moment.

[She grabs a branch, swinging herself along the trail a little bit.]

Actually, most things that grow here are all right. Just never ever eat anything that's spotted.

[epitomized]

Nothing spotted. Got it.

[ He doesn't want to know, does he? Probably not, and he's not adventurous with food on the best of days. What she eats, he'll eat, and that'll be well enough.

Hopefully, they're not far. He can hear the rushing water. Hopefully that's what he's hearing, and not him just hearing things. Head trauma is the last thing he needs, after the day he's had. ]

[demonicbeauty]

That includes the ones that look like apples.

[Says the voice of experience.

But with that, she grabs hold of a willowy truck and draws the fronds back. It's like a curtain rising on a show. And the scenery is exquisite. The falls are arranged in a horseshoe, cliffs over five stories high, crashing down into a pool, pale blue on the edges, darkening to plum purple on the inside. A fine mist is rising off of the rocks, casting rainbows. And framing the water are bushes of ruby-red berries.

The whole thing is like an oil painting.]