Realistic or Modern Crimson Valley Resort and Spa (IC)

[TheSpeck]

We are all starting in the same place. The plane is landing in Crimson Valley and the characters are starting their departure.​

Esther opened her eyes, the light hum of engines making its way into her awareness as she slowly blinked away the drowsiness that had overcome her during her travels. A voice was speaking over the intercom, and flight attendants were rushing up and down the aisle, busying themselves with the task of cleaning and carrying out overhead luggage.

"Welcome to Crimson Valley," The intercom spoke in a staticy voice, "you may start your departure. Follow the path to the check in gate. Do not stray from the path. The staff will bring your luggage to your rooms. We hope you enjoy your stay."

As the intercom cut out, Esther slowly started to sit up from her lounged back chair, stretching her arms and legs to try and relieve some of the achiness that had made itself prominent over the long flight. It was probably the longest plane ride she'd ever been on, and quite honestly, she didn't enjoy it one bit, but it would be worth it in the end. She was on vacation now!

Sitting up with a renewed excitement, Esther unbuckled herself and made her way towards the exit, breathing in fresh and almost sweet smelling air as she slowly stepped down the exit stairs of the small airplane. It was beautiful. The trees almost looked like a blaze of fire in the evening sun, all shades of red and yellow bouncing off of everything in sight in a vivid display of magnificent colors. The air felt damp yet cool, bringing a new freshness to her lungs as she took in her new surroundings. Esther had never seen so much red in her life. She'd never seen such a satisfying color palette in nature. It almost made her wonder how such a stunning place came to be on such a dull planet.

Stretching her legs best she could, Esther started forward towards the check in gate, following the obviously laid out path and the few workers that were busily unloading the plane. She wasn't sure what to expect from this place, but she knew one thing.

This was going to be an amazing experience for her, no matter what tried to get in her way.

 

[Meatball30]

Misery.

That was the only word Brooke could imagine to describe the flight. As soon as boarding finished back at the terminal, she knew it would be - not only was she forced to rise at an unholy hour during what was supposed to be a vacation, but she'd failed to grab so much as an ounce of coffee at the airport, on account of nearly missing the flight altogether. She'd been the last, late arrival, which felt irrationally embarrassing.

It didn't help that the flight attendants never offered a coffee, either. Water and juice. Booze too, she supposed, but that would likely just make the headache worse.

When the plane finally touched down, she opened her eyes, not that she'd been able to sleep anyway. She couldn't see it, but she certainly felt haggard, and likely looked that way. Despite it all, she still managed a slight smile. Things would turn around, after all. There was so much she'd learned about the Crimson Valley during her research while planning the trip, and it was truly an amazing place she was ecstatic to visit for such a bargain.

Though, much of what she'd learned seemed more like urban legend and tourist trap mysteries. Tales of areas where gravity seemed less oppressive at times but stronger at others, never-before-seen species of venomous moths, other unique creepy-crawlies with bites that could leave a stinging pain for hours. There didn't seem to be overly much documentation of those types of things.

What she couldn't deny was the beautiful flora, resplendent reds and crimsons and beautiful burgundy. Shades of plant life she'd never dreamed possible. The Crimson Valley, aptly named as it was, was a beautiful place. The resort itself had great reviews too, from what she'd seen. She only wished she could've afforded to stay longer.

When she finally rose from her seat and collected her small carry-on bag, she did drearily recall there was a mandatory get-together the new arrivals would be forced into.

Coffee, or tea, anything really. Please, she thought. Anything at all to drive away her headache, and make the gathering more tolerable.

Stepping off the plane once again drove out her pessimism. The color palette was even more difficult to believe in person, yet there it all was, right before her eyes. The crisp air seemed to shock her back into personhood from the caffeine-deprived zombie she'd shuffled off the plane as.

"Wow," was all she could muster to no one in particular. How this hidden gem remained untouched by settlement, as far as her research had revealed, anyway, was a mystery to her.

 

[GammyWamzee]

Warning: Profanity

---

Tall people and planes, do not mix. That was one thing Thomas had known from the time that he was a teenager. Having to fly from his comfortable New York home, out to Greece, to visit his grandmother. Even as a teenager he was tall. So sitting, crammed in a seat next to his twin brother, father, and himself. Thomas was having a bad time, a very bad time. With his legs cramped up the whole time, as they were flying economy.

It didn't matter if he had more leg room on this plane. The fact of the matter was that Thomas really didn't want to go in the first place. No, he would much rather be at his home, watching movies, and drinking a copious amount of wine. But his mother, no she was just consistently nagging in his ear, 'you should go!' 'it will be a mental health break!' 'you'll regret not going and getting a break'. Yeah sure, whatever. As if some red resort in the middle of buttfuck nowhere was going to do anything for him.

Thomas let out a sigh of relief. God he was tired. He didn't sleep the day before, and really, he was on and off asleep on the flight. So, staring at the closed window, with his knees uncomfortably cramped up against his body, Thomas felt an immense amount of relief as he heard the intercom. Snatching up his stowaway, he stumbled a bit. His legs long having gone numb.

Thomas stepped out into the crimson world that awaited him, and he immediately had felt a sense of dread as he stared at the red canopy. It was something out of a nightmare for him. The reds, soft, bright, dark, it was all far too overwhelming. He looked around, the other's around him seemed to be in awe. But Thomas kept his frizzy head down. Following the path that was set out for him. He hoped that only staying indoors was an option.
Making his way to the check-in gate he could only hope he wasn't super underdressed the whole trip. Actually, he didn't give a flying-fuck.

 

[Meatball30]

Brooke hadn't had the desire or brain capacity to scan the plane's cabin during her near-miss at the terminal. The thought of others' eyes on her late arrival was embarrassing enough at the time, so she'd opted to shuffle through the narrow aisle as quickly as possible to stow her bag and take her seat, forgetting, for the time being, that the flight's passengers would make up most of the folks she'd need to interact with at the first evening's mandatory get-together.

Such a silly concept for a resort vacation, she thought offhandedly. Not that it should last entirely too long, or be too much of a burden, it only struck her as...an interesting prerequisite to their stay.

Brooke figured she might as well get acquainted with one or two of the others now, to save a bit of awkward small talk down the line and, hopefully, keep herself awake while they made their way through check-in. The rejuvenating effect of the Crimson Valley's air had waned somewhat, and she felt herself teetering on the edge of exhaustion once more.

She scanned the faces to her front and behind curiously.

Thomas kept his frizzy head down.

First was the tall man who seemed none-to-thrilled to be visiting a premier resort in one of the world's most unique locales. That one didn't seem too keen on speaking just at the moment, not that Brooke could blame him. She'd noticed his spatial challenges on the smaller jet that brought them into the Crimson Valley's airport, not even the size of the most overlooked regionals in the U.S. He looked like he needed to pass out worse than she did.

This was going to be an amazing experience for her, no matter what tried to get in her way.

The woman to her front had a kinder air about her, certainly more excited to be here than the shaggy-headed man.

"It's a little weird, isn't it?" Brooke began, seemingly to no one, but directed toward the woman before her. She sounded a bit more tired than she'd anticipated. "I mean...this place is gorgeous, it's not quite as isolated as some other places, but there's no history of settlement, no religious sites, nothing but a resort that just seems to have moved in one day."

"At least, from what I saw online," she qualified. "I just can't imagine people not flocking here. Before us tourists, anyway."

 

[BloodThunder27]

Though the flight wasn't all that lengthy to her, Arianell was honestly very happy to finally get off the plane. It would have been uncomfortable, but she was mostly okay as she paid a little extra to sit in first-class. Taking a much needed vacation after putting her career as an Actress and a Singer both on hold because she was feeling really burnt out with work. Hopefully after this vacation, she'll feel more refreshed and ready to get back to work. From writing new songs, going on tour or making another movie. As the plane landed on the tarmac and pulled up to the terminal, Arianell unbuckled her seatbelt and prepared to disembark the plane. Since her luggage was going to be taken to her room for her, all she needed to do was go get checked in. While she could trust the staff with her duffle bag in the overhead storage, she did not trust them with her backpack, which contained her electronics, like her laptop, tablet and Nintendo Switch. Only reason she brought those is to have something to do while in the confines of her room for the evening.

Being among the first to get out of the plane, Arianell was just taking in the scene that had greeted her. 'Crimson Valley' was appropriate, given all the shades of...red. With some yellow. While it was bright and sunny out, it was also a little...cool. And the air was refreshing to breathe. Amazing air quality out here. Holding onto the straps of her backpack, she proceeded to follow the other vacation goers so that she could go get checked in, go to her room, unpack, wash off the 'plane smell' and go have some fun, maybe go have dinner? There was a lot to do and she was gonna enjoy her stay to the fullest!

 

[TheSpeck]

As Esther walked she took mental note of a few things, trying to familiarize herself with her surroundings like she always did when going to a foreign area. It seemed like the forest was pretty thick where the path didn't cut through, and she didn't recognize a single plant she saw in the tangle of bushes and vines that hugged the surface of the earth. Esther found that a bit concerning and decided she wouldn't be wandering around much on her own. The resort seemed pretty adamant that they shouldn't go into the forest without a guide as well, so it seemed like a very bad idea to be playing with the wildlife.

Another thing she noticed was the workers at the resort. They all wore pretty much the same thing: a black long sleeved formal shirt, a dark red vest, either a red tie or bowtie, matching red suit pants or skirt, and black, well cleaned formal shoes. The outfits were well put together and looked quite expensive. Esther wondered just how large a budget the resort must have to provide all workers with such uniforms. That wasn't exactly what stood out to her, though… all the workers had…. Some sort of…. Face mask? Similar to medical masks worn by doctors, but black and almost metal looking. She found it quite odd… why would they need to wear such a thing? Didn't they get hot when it was sunny out?

Before she could really think about it, a voice sounded behind her and Esther shot a glance back. A nice yet tired looking woman–another vacationer, she assumed–seemed to be talking to her. She paused and smiled, then nodded, "Yeah, I'm surprised this place is so well preserved. You'd think such a beautiful forest would be crawling with people…. I guess it's better off without, though." Esther said, slowing just a bit so she wasn't in front of the woman anymore, "I'm so happy to get an opportunity to be here…. My name is Esther. Nice to meet you."

As they got closer to the check in area, Esther could clearly see a gate up ahead. A single worker stood in a small booth off to the side, presumably there to help check everyone in. Behind the gate stood a large and beautifully designed building, pillars and gardens and balconies elegantly placed along the walls, making the entire thing just a bit more stunning then a normal resort. Esther did notice that she didn't see a lot of windows, though, which confused her a bit. The resort was advertised heavily based on its views, so why have the building almost windowless other than a few scattered around towards the upper floors of the building?


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[Meatball30]

My name is Esther. Nice to meet you.

Brooke returned Esther's smile with her own closed-eyed grin, warm despite the apparent effort it took on her part.

"I'm Brooke," she responded. "Maybe it's the stories that kept people away? I guess superstition has its uses, but I never found out where those stories came from, nothing about native people or anything like that."

She couldn't help but follow Esther's gaze as they approached the resort's gate. Beautiful wilderness pressed rebelliously against the manmade enclave from the airport runway through the paved sidewalks leading to the resort itself. The thick tangle that Esther was eyeing with some consternation was imposing, looming as if waiting for its opportunity to reclaim what small bits of the Crimson Valley had been conquered by humanity. The species that surrounded them, alien as they were to Brooke, might as well have been from another world.

"Do you think any of it's true?" Brooke asked her new acquaintance. "The stuff about gravity changing and all that? That was one of the weirder things I found when I was looking the place up. That, and the fact there wasn't anyone complaining about service in their reviews."

Though perhaps the service really was that good. The crew were almost military in their uniformity, a swarm red and black straight out of a B-movie dystopia, though ready to serve their guests rather than put down an insurrection. Their face coverings didn't help Brooke imagine them as anything other than faceless Stormtroopers for valiant heroes to mow down in their quest for liberation.

When the pair reached the ornate gate separating them from immaculately constructed resort, Brooke wasted no time speaking up. Anything to get one step closer to some espresso.

"Hello," she said, sweetly waving to the employee at check-in. "I'm not sure if you need a name but it's Brooke Murphy?" she asked more than stated, feeling a bit silly she hadn't read how they were expected to proceed at check-in.

 

[BloodThunder27]

Arianell proceeded to enjoy the scenery while the staff had led them to the check-in area, which, to her delight was not that much further away. After such a long flight, Arianell was honestly very eager to get to her room, unpack and unwind. During this time, she noticed a few of the vacation goers already speaking to one another. The two that stuck out to her the most were two other young women. One with short hair dark-blondish hair and the other with shoulder length black hair and wearing glasses. Before long, the group had reached a rather ornate looking gate. Why was it so far from the runway, she wondered.

Although she didn't think too much of it, Arianell did take note of how the large building didn't exactly have all that many windows, which was kinda surprising. Most other resorts were practically like glass towers, Even the balconies were transparent! But here...Not so much. Definitely more luxurious then half of the other resorts she's been to on previous vacations though.

Once it was her turn to go to the check-in counter, Arianell smiled and walked up. "Checking in for Arianell Rose." She said, dropping her name and ready to get a room key. "I made a reservation for a room on the very top floor."

 

[TheSpeck]

"stories?" Esther mumbled curiously, silently listening as Brooke continued to elaborate a bit, "I dunno, I've never heard of that.... I guess I probably should've done some research before coming here..." She said, a little nervous now that she realized how oblivious she must be to any dangers Crimson Valley may hold. It wasn't all her fault for not reading up on the place, though. She'd been working a lot, and after a twelve hour night shift the last thing she wanted to do was research a resort with little more information than a home page.

As the two approached the check in gate Brooke and another woman formed a line in front of the booth, so Esther quickly fell in line behind them.

The person standing behind the booth was a young man with silky black hair, pulled back into a short ponytail that didn't do much to keep his bangs out of his face. He looked up at Brooke and gave a small wave back to her after she had waved at him, a seemingly happy look in his eyes despite his unnatural silence. Jesse- that's the name Esther read on the name tag- only nodded in response to Brookes question before handing her a key and waving again, as if to say goodbye. He did the exact same thing with the other woman, and as Esther approached he treated her similarly.

Esther waved goodbye to the man at the booth as she backed away to wait near the gate, a bit confused as to why he hadn't said a single word yet. Perhaps he just didn't like talking. She wouldn't blame him for that. She certainly didn't love to speak at certain times.

As she stood, the gate leading into the resort started to open, letting anyone who had checked in through.

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[Meatball30]

I guess I probably should've done some research before coming here...

Brooke shook her head slightly, smiling. She detected some anxiety on Esther's part, though if it was from the stories themselves or simply the fact she seemed unprepared, Broke couldn't tell.

"Oh, don't feel bad about that at all," she said. "It's just kind of... what I do. Comes from my anthropological background, I can't help myself when I'm traveling somewhere new. Besides, I can't call the source for those things I read particularly scholarly."

The quiet man at check in seemed friendly enough, returning her wave and handing over a single key, presumably all she'd need to access her room, since they were discouraged from leaving the resort grounds. Brooke smiled and give a slight nod of acknowledgement, and thanks, though the staff's silence and black face coverings struck her as a bit discomforting.

Brooke decided to hover just near the opening gate, waiting for Esther to finish the short check in.

Checking in for Arianell Rose.

And she was glad she had.

Ahhh! was the first thought that came to mind when she heard the name and spotted the silver-haired actress waiting for her keys. Arianell Rose was, to be certain, not what most people would consider Brooke's style when it came to films. Her background in kicking ass, driving fast and generally giving ideal action hero vibes tended to see her cast in a fair few action flicks Broke loved to watch to turn her brain off and enjoy a night of trashy cinema to, though from what she'd seen the actress did have impressive range that took her out of those roles just as regularly.

Their vibes didn't line up exactly, but it was still exciting to see a celebrity she recognized. She tried not to come off as too obnoxious when Arianell wandered within earshot.

"Hopefully you'll get more natural light up there than the rest of us," Brooke started in her ambiguous way, not looking toward the woman but clearly addressing her. "This place is built like a prison as far as windows go."

 

[GammyWamzee]

Thomas, as he walked through the path laid out, really had to force himself to stop looking at his feet as he walked. Forests were something that made him nervous. He didn't have a good experience with them. So instead of looking at the forest around him, he opted to look at the other resort goers.

He pursed his lips just a tad, while it wasn't a fact that he minded.. he couldn't help but notice that there were very few men on this trip. It was just an odd thing that he had picked out and found funny. Maybe the staff would be friendly.

He inwardly cringed to himself as he saw the militant staff, with metal masks to cover their faces. While he was certain they were hospitable, he wasn't sure about how chatty they would be. He couldn't help but shudder to himself a bit. He kept his eyes off of the staff.

He knew he was just over reacting to the trip, he didn't like being in unknown places. Especially ones surrounded in forests.

Then he had seen a familiar face. Arianell Rose, an actress. As a frequent movie enjoyer he had seen plenty of her films. He would make certain to never bring that up to her face to face. Unless he was drunk, because well, then there was no choice but to bring it up.

Thomas walked a bit closer to the group that seemed to have congregated near the entrance. In hindsight it may have been seen as a tad bit creepy, considering his tired eyes, messy hair, and trenchcoat, he fit the bill for 'serial killer', but in all honesty he was interested in their conversation, talking about the resort. And the more he head, the more he would prefer to, get the hell out. Was the best way to put it.

Finally, Thomas decided to speak up, speaking of research,"my mother was the one that convinced me to go," he sighed out, his voice on the rougher side. Because well, that's just how it was, including the lack of speaking on the long flight, it was a given. "She wouldn't shut up about the reviews," making air quotes as he talked, sounding rather miffed, "'it says here they have good food, that probably includes wine' or 'it has a spa too, maybe get yourself cleaned up and find a wife'" Thomas sighed out, rather exasperated.

He knew he was wanting to these strangers but he felt like saying atleast, something. He would be required to interact with these people on some level.

Thomas cringed to himself as he saw the building, only able to get out, "I should've gotten a top floor room," he was already nervous, even simply dreading being in his room now. He liked windows, as they provided a method of escape. Balconies too because he could smoke on them then. He briefly thought about if smoking was allowed.

He decided to just check in, as he repeated the mantra in his head 'its not that bad', but really he had a feeling it was.

"Checking in for Thomas Gray." He stated simply.

 

[TheSpeck]

Esther once again gravitated towards Brooke once she was finished checking in, though she paused a bit further away when Brooke started speaking to the other woman (who, now that she thought about it, looked vaguely familiar for some reason.) Her anxiety immediately flared at the very uncomplicated situation. Esther didn't want to interfere with Brooke's conversation, but she also didn't know anyone else… And goodness, there was no way in hell she would be the one to initiate social interaction with a stranger.


Before she could over think it and awkwardly stand there for too long, the man who didn't seem too friendly surprisingly approached the group and casually started talking to them, which she…. Hadn't really expected. He just didn't seem like the 'small talk' type. Not that she would know… she probably shouldn't judge people so early on, especially after a grueling 12 hour plane ride.


Smiling at the newcomer, she decided to respond to him instead of risking interrupting Brooke, "Oh really?" She said curiously, a bit surprised to find the man didn't seem too keen to be in Crimson Valley, "Well, I'm sure you can find something fun to do here! And if you don't, at least you get free food and drinks and such." She said. Before she knew it the man had left and was checking in. The worker handed him a key, and Esther turned away towards the gate, still too nervous to interrupt Brooke of anything she might be doing. She walked a bit slowly but entered the garden that was just after the gate, taking her time to look around and take in the sight. She didn't want to run away too quick just in case anyone still wanted to speak with her, and she still wanted to at least get the names of the silver haired woman and the sort of grumpy looking man.

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[BloodThunder27]

Upon receiving her room key, Arianell proceeded to go ahead and finally make her way to the elevator so that she could go to the top floor suite that she had reserved. It was going to be a nice, long vacation. And after that, spending time with loved ones while taking a break from acting. From heavy action choreography due to incorporating the use of Martial Arts. This left her to wonder if she should add any more to her already large arsenal. She already held a black belt in both Karate and Taekwondo. And she also trained in both Judo and Brazilian Jujitsu. Sure, they had their similarities, but one of them had more of an emphasis on ground fighting. Plus heavy hitters like Boxing and Muay Thai? Well, there was also Capoeira, which will probably allow her to also enhance her dance moves in breakdancing and hip-hop dancing. Maybe it was time to star in a music video? Maybe a gangster film?

As these thoughts crossed through her mind, her zoning out was soon disrupted by a semi-unknown voice.

"Hopefully you'll get more natural light up there than the rest of us. This place is built like a prison as far as windows go."

"Sure, I'll keep that in mind, thanks." She answered as she pushed her sunglasses up as they were kinda slipping.

Keeping a tight grip on her dufflebag and one of the straps of her backpack, she continued to walk towards the elevator, before looking back briefly to see if she could see who the voice had come from. Only smiling, she finally reached the elevator and pressed the button to go up, eager to settle into her suite.

---

Meatball30​