Twenty-somethings gotta twenty-something

[mikangirl]

Who: Everyone invited, everyone gatecrashing (technically you're all invited, so...)
Broadcast: Who knows, maybe some drunken texting later on
Action: Iskaulit Pool!
When: 3 July

[It's a party for a narcissistic redhead who likes to be reminded she's alive.  Come celebrate!  Alternately, come sneak in and steal the food!  There's a bar set up for drinks drastically lowered to cost-price or to-be-paid-later-tab, a non-alcoholic punch in case of wandering minors (spike it and Nami will end you) and random snacks.

Oh, and a pool.  Which is heated.  Kind of important, that part.

Step right up, I'm reliably informed we'll have Thor with his shirt off, take pictures while you can.]

Comments

[vartex]

That's... a lot.

[What the heck else does one say to that.]

The islands are enough to sustain the population's needs? Or are your people aquatic as well?

[mikangirl]

A bit of both. We don't have the huge kinds of populations that you see in some worlds we've been to here. Some islands are completely uninhabited, a few are large enough to sustain kingdoms of several million. A range in between. My home island was just a collection of small farming villages. And there are a lot of people who take to life at sea, definitely.

[vartex]

Out of necessity, I can imagine.

[Well, that sort of life must appeal to some. Much the same way that he'd rather be in the air than on the ground.]

I'm not sure that would work with a population as large as Ragna's.

[mikangirl]

Sometimes necessity, yes. Sometimes... other reasons. [He's so stiff and formal, she wonders what he'd say if she said she was a pirate. Jump to the wrong conclusion, probably.]

How big is Ragna?

[vartex]

Comparable to Earth, if you're at all familiar.

[He should probably just go ahead and assume people aren't, though. All the universes have differences.]

The distance through the core is about 12,000 kilometers. A few billion people live there, all of varying species.

[mikangirl]

Not at all. Though I have a book on Earth's oceans, as of this morning. [So she intends to familiarise herself with that part, at least.

The distance is a lot easier for her to get a picture of the size, though... given nobody has made the same measurement at all for her own world, she has no idea if they compare.]

A few billion-- all sustainable?

[vartex]

Very much so. Humans moved in to colonize their own territory for precisely that reason- the ecosystem is thriving, more than enough resources to support the population. Many of the Ragnans spend most of their time below sea level as well, making even more space above for farming and natural growth.

[Is that... pride in his voice? Just might be! For all his stoicism, he loved living there.]

[mikangirl]

It sounds like a healthy place, environmentally, at least. How do people live below sea level?

[Not to say they can't, obviously-- she's just curious if they live in domes or ships or something else entirely.]

[vartex]

Ragnan people are aquatic in nature; they have gills, fins, and webbed fingers. They can breathe underwater and sleep in literal water beds. Living beneath the sea would be nothing abnormal for them, so long as they don't mind missing out on the amenities that require dryness and oxygen.

[Like music, computers, cooking- they're like water hicks.]

[mikangirl]

[Ah. They're like Jinbe.]

We've got a nation like that back home-- for fishmen and merfolk, and some humans and others who make the trip down. In fact, to get from one ocean to another you have to kind of go through there, so... it gets busy at times.

It's not all underwater-- they've got some cultivated air pockets. But a lot of them live in much the same way, I believe. Can the Ragnans live above or below water as they like?

[vartex]

Sounds familiar.

[He's not positive on the air pockets bit - he's never gone so far under as to find out - but the Ragnans are a thrifty sort, always making the most out of any space available. If they thought they could coax more people below the surface and into the water they loved, surely they'd use creative methods of doing so.]

Many of them can. Like humans, some have sturdier lungs than others, and more developed gills, so it isn't a suitable living for every Ragnan.

[mikangirl]

The ones who are more suited to living in the water... are they perceived any differently?

[Because that might be a huge difference.]

[vartex]

I'm not aware of any stigma.

[Though it's a fair question. Human history is steeped in bigotry.]

The Ragnans are good, kind people. When humans came to colonize their planet they opened up their homes to welcome us; there was very little conflict. They thrive on familial bonds, and many of their customs revolve around caring for those around them. If such a problem exists, it isn't widespread.

[mikangirl]

That's good to know.

...in our world, fishmen are considered monsters and mermaids are considered a rare catch. It's not pretty. So I'm glad it's not like that in other places.

[Or some of them, anyway.]

[vartex]

Unfortunate. Ragna isn't like that- although if anyone tried, their kind outnumber us several times over, and they're a hardy people as well. It would have ended poorly.

[For both sides, probably; UN Spacy has a lot of heavy artillery, but once they're on the ground they'd be easy pickings if they were dragged into the water.

He's got too many allies of either species to relish the thought of a war between them, though, so he shrugs. It's all one big family, now.]

[mikangirl]

[Kiiind of the same issue back home. Arlong and Hody were both members of the faction that wanted to wipe out humankind, so that was fun for everyone involved. But this is too dark a subject for her own birthday, so screw that.]

Ragna sounds like a pretty great place. I'm guessing you weren't here for the water world we visited here, were you?

[She's pretty sure you're new. Ish.]

[vartex]

No, I wasn't. I heard about it, and I read a few of the reports.

[something something sick people something something air-water. It's weird. But he's also from a universe where singing curbs the symptoms of space rabies, so.]

[mikangirl]

It was definitely interesting to get a taste of what it'd be like to live underwater, that's for sure.

[Reports. Messer, do you know how to have fun? She wonders.] We'll probably see more places like that as we go.

...oh, do you like cake?

[vartex]

[His brows lift.]

As much as anyone does, I suppose.

[He's not about to do cartwheels, but he's normal when it comes to food, honest.]

[mikangirl]

Okay, well-- [She leans back to glance over by the bar, then points with a thumb.] Chocolate and cherries. Make sure you grab a slice.

[vartex]

I will, thank you.

[.....Oh, right. They're here for a reason.]

Happy birthday, as well.

[mikangirl]

Thanks! Enjoy yourself.

[I mean he doesn't look like he's doing too badly, so she won't be too concerned.]