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Description

It was broad daylight when whispering woke him up Though… he wasn’t really asleep. He was just mentally resting on the beach. The waves sloshed over his big body, giving him a cooled feeling. He wanted to dig deeper in the soft sand, but the whispers didn’t stop. He looked up. Seagulls… no they were bigger… albatrosses soared over the ocean looking for fish. His gaze drifted to the water and then to the shoreline. In the distance he could see a few black dots. The village. He was too far away, several kilometers away, and yet the whispers continued. It sounded sombre, like muttering voices urging him to stand. He pushed his heavy paws into the sand and pulled himself up. Maymuun shook himself. Drops of water flew in all directions. He looked around, but still couldn't figure out where the soft whisper came from. So he decided to set course for the village. Perhaps the voices came swaying across the sea, carried with the wind. It was a long walk, in which he took in nature with his head rocking. He went to the village monthly, maybe even weekly. That was his safe haven. They had also given him a name: Maymuun. That meant ‘blessed’.

Once, before he became an esk, he was a killerwhale. A young male who still lived close to his mother. He remembered how happy he felt. It felt wonderful to swim through the ocean, weightless. Experience the thrill of the hunt and sing songs with his family in the evening. That all changed when the ship came. A storm raged that morning, dark clouds gathered. From then on he could only remember flashes. He was left all alone, the smell and memory of the salt blood clinging to his brain. He swam on his own for a while until he came to this sea. Warm, tropical, beautiful. Coral reefs and kelp forests were dotted amongst the shoreline. He could find food there, but what he remembered best was the village. He swam pretty far away from it, but underwater he could see the posts. The village had platforms built on stilts with wooden houses on top. That's how it stayed afloat. At first the village people were afraid of him and it took them a few years to get used to each other. Now, of course, he was no longer a killerwhale. He wasn't sure if people could still see him, but his presence was felt. They were still talking about him even though it was a year ago. They told stories to each other that this young orca still roams around like a ghost and on midsummer night he would show up again. Of course, only part of this was true, and he wasn't a ghost either. Not really.

Maymuun, meanwhile, had arrived at the village, and he was amazed at two things. Normally, the flowers in his fur should have wilted and fallen off. He should have left the pieces of wood behind, but he didn't. He looked back for a few minutes to double check, but yes they stayed on. Was this kind of a rule change? Gosh he really should ask Zenzee when she comes around again. The second thing that amazed him was the people. They went about their business and talked, but the whispers didn't seem to be any louder. Huh… crazy. He scanned the beach. Only now did he see the many things washed ashore. Some he recognized. Fishing nets, shoes, stones, fish bones, seaweed… Maymuun decided to investigate. Where did these things come from? Why didn't people clean them up? If there was one thing he couldn't stand, it was pollution. More and more often he found plastic in the reef he called home. So it was with a mixture of surprise and horror that he examined the objects. They were huddled together in groups, but none of them were really interested. He decided to walk a bit through the water, to the rocks that were further away from the village. Once on the rocks, he wanted to turn to the things lying there, but a large wave caught his attention. He was big, almost huge, but this wave transcended everything. In the gulf he could just make out the ghost of the manta rays. Wow!

And the second introduction done. I just had the delight of designing my own esk from scratch! This is featuring Maymuun (6365 ).

Panel 1:
10 (shaded) 5 (min bg) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) || TOTAL AP: 25
4 (shaded) 2 (min bg) 2 (biome bonus) || TOTAL GP: 8 (for Maymuun 6365)

Panel 2:
10 (shaded) 5 (full body) 30 (scenic bg) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) || TOTAL AP: 55
4 (shaded) 2 (full body) 10 (scenic bg) 2 (biome bonus) || TOTAL GP: 18 (for Maymuun 6365)

Additional writing:
14 (writing, wc: 721) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) 5 (palette bonus) || TOTAL AP: 29
7 (writing, wc: 721) 2 (biome bonus) 2 (palette bonus) || TOTAL GP: 11 (for Maymuun 6365)

Word palette used:
afloat • weightless • sombre • thrill

+15AP Quest Bonus
+8GP Quest Bonus
AP Total: 124
GP Total: 45

Description

It was broad daylight when whispering woke him up Though… he wasn’t really asleep. He was just mentally resting on the beach. The waves sloshed over his big body, giving him a cooled feeling. He wanted to dig deeper in the soft sand, but the whispers didn’t stop. He looked up. Seagulls… no they were bigger… albatrosses soared over the ocean looking for fish. His gaze drifted to the water and then to the shoreline. In the distance he could see a few black dots. The village. He was too far away, several kilometers away, and yet the whispers continued. It sounded sombre, like muttering voices urging him to stand. He pushed his heavy paws into the sand and pulled himself up. Maymuun shook himself. Drops of water flew in all directions. He looked around, but still couldn't figure out where the soft whisper came from. So he decided to set course for the village. Perhaps the voices came swaying across the sea, carried with the wind. It was a long walk, in which he took in nature with his head rocking. He went to the village monthly, maybe even weekly. That was his safe haven. They had also given him a name: Maymuun. That meant ‘blessed’.

Once, before he became an esk, he was a killerwhale. A young male who still lived close to his mother. He remembered how happy he felt. It felt wonderful to swim through the ocean, weightless. Experience the thrill of the hunt and sing songs with his family in the evening. That all changed when the ship came. A storm raged that morning, dark clouds gathered. From then on he could only remember flashes. He was left all alone, the smell and memory of the salt blood clinging to his brain. He swam on his own for a while until he came to this sea. Warm, tropical, beautiful. Coral reefs and kelp forests were dotted amongst the shoreline. He could find food there, but what he remembered best was the village. He swam pretty far away from it, but underwater he could see the posts. The village had platforms built on stilts with wooden houses on top. That's how it stayed afloat. At first the village people were afraid of him and it took them a few years to get used to each other. Now, of course, he was no longer a killerwhale. He wasn't sure if people could still see him, but his presence was felt. They were still talking about him even though it was a year ago. They told stories to each other that this young orca still roams around like a ghost and on midsummer night he would show up again. Of course, only part of this was true, and he wasn't a ghost either. Not really.

Maymuun, meanwhile, had arrived at the village, and he was amazed at two things. Normally, the flowers in his fur should have wilted and fallen off. He should have left the pieces of wood behind, but he didn't. He looked back for a few minutes to double check, but yes they stayed on. Was this kind of a rule change? Gosh he really should ask Zenzee when she comes around again. The second thing that amazed him was the people. They went about their business and talked, but the whispers didn't seem to be any louder. Huh… crazy. He scanned the beach. Only now did he see the many things washed ashore. Some he recognized. Fishing nets, shoes, stones, fish bones, seaweed… Maymuun decided to investigate. Where did these things come from? Why didn't people clean them up? If there was one thing he couldn't stand, it was pollution. More and more often he found plastic in the reef he called home. So it was with a mixture of surprise and horror that he examined the objects. They were huddled together in groups, but none of them were really interested. He decided to walk a bit through the water, to the rocks that were further away from the village. Once on the rocks, he wanted to turn to the things lying there, but a large wave caught his attention. He was big, almost huge, but this wave transcended everything. In the gulf he could just make out the ghost of the manta rays. Wow!

And the second introduction done. I just had the delight of designing my own esk from scratch! This is featuring Maymuun (6365 ).

Panel 1:
10 (shaded) 5 (min bg) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) || TOTAL AP: 25
4 (shaded) 2 (min bg) 2 (biome bonus) || TOTAL GP: 8 (for Maymuun 6365)

Panel 2:
10 (shaded) 5 (full body) 30 (scenic bg) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) || TOTAL AP: 55
4 (shaded) 2 (full body) 10 (scenic bg) 2 (biome bonus) || TOTAL GP: 18 (for Maymuun 6365)

Additional writing:
14 (writing, wc: 721) 5 (personal) 5 (biome bonus) 5 (palette bonus) || TOTAL AP: 29
7 (writing, wc: 721) 2 (biome bonus) 2 (palette bonus) || TOTAL GP: 11 (for Maymuun 6365)

Word palette used:
afloat • weightless • sombre • thrill

+15AP Quest Bonus
+8GP Quest Bonus
AP Total: 124
GP Total: 45