Solo Tremaine

[COLOR=#503F86]So... the winner is the one who gets all their team taller first, or is it just that you all need to be big by the end of the challenge (i.e. that the mushrooms' effects only last for one post)?[/COLOR]

[color=#503f86]I'm nice and single, although not through choice >.>; I've had real trouble finding a girl my age who's into similar interests that I am. The problem I have is that I tend to be too particular about what I want now, rather than looking for someone who's just genuinely nice. But the interests I have don't exactly lend themselves to great amounts of the 'right' social interaction- [list] [*]Anime- serves my interests online; I don't know anyone outside my current circle of friends who likes it, and all of the girls I do know who do are either over an hour away, taken or lesbian. It's really bizarre. And I'm not one for long-distance relationships, unfortunately. If I was it'd be no problem... [*]Writing- hardly a social practice. [*]Acting- Since I'm mostly working with the Youth Theatre at the moment, not only am I on the outer rim of a very close group anyway, but they're all rather young. [*]Historical Reenactment- Big, beardy blokes with weapons. Yeah... [/list] I've never been to University, and it's likely that I never will, which means I've lost out on a massive chunk of socialness already. I don't work (officially) currently, so it's not as if I can meet people that way, and I can't stand going out to nightclubs. Even if I did, I'll have had to drive their in the first place so I can't drink and I end up getting bored as hell waiting for something interesting to happen. Bleh. But I know my problems. I'm just reluctant to do anything about them right now. I was about to go on a huge rant about how a lot of girls I see end up with the most horrible-looking guys, but I don't think it'd be a good idea. But there's more to a relationship than looks. Even so, though... I think they're always there if you look hard enough and are willing to wait. It sucks not being in a relationship but you can't push to be in one- all you'll do is cause yourself grief.[/color]

[COLOR=#503F86]I've had my name since I joined the boards three and a half years ago. I've thought about changing it since then, but to be honest I can't be bothered, heh. It stems from my Starfox fanfics I used to write even before I started at any messageboard [i]ever[/i], back in about 1998/9. Like any good fanfic, it involved the main characters, but also had a slew of incidental ones. The thing is, once I met someone else who wrote Starfox fanfics, I felt like my focus should have been more on what I created than on what I'm basing off other people's work, so this guy called Solo Ross appeared and began taking on more prevalent roles. I figured out quite a nice storyline for him, too ^_^ But anyway, I can't remember where I saw it, but I came across 'Tremaine' as a name and thought it'd be nicer for him than Ross. So I changed it, then got my first e-mail address at bolt.com with that name. When I eventually signed up for the boards I thought I'd use his name as mine. If you want a vague meaning, in English you can translate Solo as 'lone' and Tremaine as 'a kind of farm', but that wasn't what I had in mind when I put it up. I chose Solo because it reminded me of Exile in Road Rovers (not least because both characters were huskies, heh). I wanted to keep the sense of standing alone, but with a slightly less harsh-sounding name. Even though I grew out of Starfox fanfics aeons ago, I still keep the username for pretty much everything I'm part of. It's just too much effort trying to think of anything else ^_^;[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Fair enough ^_^; It's not a simple situation anyway, but yeah... Jus go with your instincts and see what happens, then. After all, you can't argue with yourself, heh.[/COLOR]

[quote name='Hug Monster][color=purple]Well, the thing that has me is that when it comes to girls I am sexually attracted but not with guys i.e. I can't see myself having secks with a guy. But I have fallen in love with people of both seckses[/color'].[/quote][color=#503f86]That's slightly different, then. Oddly enough, I posted near enough the same thing on MyOtaku some months ago, and I got a really decent reply to it ^_^[/color] [color=#503f86]There are some things I know I'd never do sexually with a guy (or girl, for that matter). Even thinking about all the stuff you can get up to makes me feel a bit weird, and that's something I'd have to come to terms with if I decided I wanted to start a relationship with a guy.[/color] [color=#503f86]It's easy enough to fall in love with anyone, but I think sexuality encompasses all aspects of love, not just sexual and not just emotional. I know I love some guys, but I'm not 'in love' with them as such, in that I don't want to sleep with them. What it might help you to work out is whether you're [i]attracted[/i] to guys (in any/all senses of the word) or whether you're just feeling very deeply for someone you know and care about intensely. But there's nothing wrong with simple experimentation, either.[/color]

[quote name='Hug Monster][color=purple']Wait... Solo, you're a guy? O_o[/color][/quote][COLOR=#503F86]Yeah, I am ^_^; I get that a lot online. But anyway, let's not get too judgemental here on either side. Threads to do with sexuality don't have a very good history on OB and it'd be nice to see one turn out differently for a change.[/COLOR]

[color=#503f86]You can't be entirely asexual (i.e. not finding anyone attractive) if you find yourself being attracted to guys and girls. If you want a simple definition, I'd say 'bi-confused'. But even then it's channelling things a bit. What I'd suggest you do is experiment and find out how you really feel. I'm not saying 'sleep around with everyone you know' or anything- you're only 14, and really, you've barely even started maturing. But it's no good just going on thoughts, feelings and premonitions because you can't necessarily know how you're going to act in a real situation where you have the opportunity to be with (physically or in as in a relationship) either a guy or a girl. I wondered for ages whether I was bisexual as I started finding a lot of guys I went to college with attractive and began imagining what it'd be like being with them. The only thing I do know is that I'm not gay, because I find girls too attractive ^_^; Either way, I've never been physically active with a guy so I don't actually know if it's what I want at all. I could be completely wrong about it *shrugs* So yeah... I wouldn't worry too much about labelling yourself and just go with what you feel. If you go out with a guy/girl/either and enjoy it, fine. If you don't, then you'll know.[/color]

[color=#503f86]The bed wasn't as comfortable as she'd anticipated. She bounced over to her left side, then onto her right, hoping to be able to form some kind of groove that she could nestle into. Unfortunately, the rather stiff springs of the mattress didn't want to co-operate. Perhaps sleeping on the sand would be a more comfortable idea. Just as she placed her waistcoat over the pillow for extra cushioning, a few light knocks shook her door. A soft voice called through the wooden panelling. "Hey Krystal, it's Lara. Mind if I come in?" "Uh, sure," Lara walked quietly inside and pulled the door too behind her, looking very stylish in her summery outfit. Krystal looked at her expectantly, holding her waistcoat in her lap. "Is everything alright?" Lara asked, wearing a look of friendly concern. Krystal was a little taken aback; she didn't expect someone to ask about her. She shuffled on her bed and wrung her hands, breathing in deeply. "Yeah, everything's okay," she sighed happily, smiling up at her companion. And really... everything was okay. At least it was now that someone had been in to see her, all personal quibbles aside. She had been annoyed about the mirror, and the fact that everyone just seemed to disappear after their first successful major challenge. But then, they were a new team and the challenge had been pretty strenuous so it's only expected that everyone would want to do their own thing. She was still quite insecure at heart, not that she'd ever admit it. "I guess I'm having trouble getting used to the structure of this place. It's not quite what I was expecting." Lara nodded. "Well, it's only our first day- I've had a few surprises myself." Which was true- the discovery that she was the only human on their team was quite a shock. "I'm sure it won't take long for us to pull together." "Yeah... Do you know-" A dull rumble interrupted her speech. Krystal blushed, prompting Lara to give her a very quizzical look. "Sorry about that!" she giggled. "I haven't eaten yet today. Do you know where we can find something to eat?"[/color]

[color=#503f86]I kept thinking of new ones and I couldn't stop![/color] [color=#503f86]Kakashi brought a new meaning to the ninja code of 'silent and deadly'.[/color] -- [color=#503f86][b]Kakashi:[/b] You want to see under my [i]mask[/i]?! The real mystery's in my trousers, you know...[/color] -- [color=#503f86][b]Kakashi:[/b] 4LL UR F00D R B3L0NG 2 M3![/color] [color=#503f86][b]Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke:[/b] 0 N0ES!11!![/color] [color=#503f86]Mmm, I love one-liners ^_^[/color]

[color=#503F86]Er, what [i]actually[/i] happens (in In-Game terms) to the deleted characters, out of interest? Are they shipped back to where they came from, or properly wiped from existence?[/COLOR]

[i][size=1]"Does one of us really need to hold onto it?" Crash questioned "I mean, it's not like there is anyone else here on Solitary Island, is there? Perhaps on challenges it might occasionally be useful to have along, but personally I know I wouldn't want to cart around some... paperweight. I can't see us using it constantly, to tell you the truth."[/i][/size] [color=#503f86]"That wasn't what I meant..." Krystal muttered to herself, folding her arms in disdain at being left alone on the beach. It's not as if any of them weren't more than twenty feet away in whatever direction, but she'd felt rather offended all the same. Picking her waistcoat up from the floor, she slung it over her shoulder and turned to the forest's edge. She presumed they were able to explore amongst the trees, and the sun and breeze made it feel placid enough. She glanced quickly back to where everyone else was relaxing, then disappeared in the undergrowth. The forest was hot, humid and generally much less comfortable than the beach. Small animals darted along the forest floor to avoid the stranger's approach, and small insects seemed to be constantly flying two inches from her face no matter where she moved to. "Ugh, this is a little disgusting," she mumbled, picking a mosquito from her face. Despite the noise, the heat, the humidity and the abundance of wildlife that could potentially give you very harmful diseases, there was something very serene about the forest. Well, so far. Krystal didn't want to stray too far from the camp in case she lost her bearings. Not that that would ever happen, though. She was a Very Competant Explorer, after all. She placed herself down at the bank of a river and sighed. She really didn't know what to do with herself. The beach was a nicer place to be than here and she had no clue what she was looking for in the first place, so coming out here was pretty pointless. She lay on her side, watching the water ripple past in front of her. "Yeah, I should go back..." * * * When she arrived back at camp a few minutes later, nobody seemed to notice she'd been anywhere, save for Lara, who opened one of her eyes in her direction. Krystal plodded into her hut and crawled into bed.[/color]

[COLOR=#503F86]That's perfect ^____^ Thank you! *goes to attach avatar and banner and wear them with pride*[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Krystal was virtually bouncing around the group, ecstatic that they'd managed to win their first trial. "This is amazing!" she cried, giving a joyous twirl and grinning widely at Fox, who replied with a wry, slightly embarrassed smile. "Yeah! Go us!" Crash nodded his head ferverently, punching the air with his fist. Krystal took a deep breath in and removed her grey padded waistcoat, throwing it onto the ground. Her cheeks were glowing red and she was starting to feel a little giddy from the heat. She plonked herself down on the sand and lay back, breathing heavily. "If I see another sodding Lemming again I'll kill myself," Shadow muttered, performing a mimick of shooting himself in the head with his hand. "They don't taste very nice." Pac-Man looked as if he wanted to scrape his tongue on something, but of course without any additional limbs to help him out, that would probably prove difficult. Krystal closed her eyes and felt her body slowly relax. She hadn't realised the challenges would be quite so... challenging. A cool sea breeze drifted over them; she could feel the spray of the waves sprinkling over her fur. It was a very welcome contrast to the oppressive heat and panic of the dungeon. What did 'deleting' mean though, exactly. She'd heard Mog mentioning it, and she assumed it just meant that they'd get taken back to their home area. It didn't seem possible that Mog would be capable of any really sinister thinking... aside from the Lemmings, that is. [i]"Hmm, no time to get suspicious,"[/i] she scolded herself. [i]"Besides, nobody in their right minds would apply for something like this if that's what really happened."[/i] She yawned and stretched, raking the sand with her claw tips. "I could do with a nice rest," she mumbled. Just as she was ready to fall asleep, she was alerted by Fox, sounding a little unimpressed. "Is that it?" "I was expecting it to be a little bigger..." Lara tutted. Krystal opened her eyes and sat up. Lara was holding their prize for completing the first challenge- the apparently 'all-seeing' mirror. It was about twelve inches in diameter, circular, and had two handles on opposite edges for easy grip. It looked quite heavy, too. Crash prodded it. "How does it work?" A synchronised reply of 'Um...' echoed around the group. Almost immediately everyone started pitching in their own ideas as to what to do- "Hold it like this!"; "Chant something." "Mirror, mirror, in my hand, show me... um... something grand?" "We might not be able to see them yet because they're still in the CPU," Pac-Man suggested, loudly. "Ptcch, what a rip!" Shadow hissed. "That winged creep sold us out!" "The CPU's a completely different place, Shadow. Besides, we don't even know how to get this work yet," Lara was beginning to find Shadow's pessimism a little irksome. Krystal scratched the back of her neck. "The question is now- who gets to look after it?"[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]It's not so much a series as a couple of separate OVAs, the later of which (the CGI'd version) is far superior to the first. They're about the last city on Earth, populated by humans and these artificially-created lifeforms/robots/whatever you'd want to call them called Bioroids, which run the city and serve to protect humanity's future. It's based on a manga by Masamune Shirow... am I right? Or am I getting confused with someone else? Anyway, the CGI film is, in my opinion, well worth checking out. I wouldn't bother so much with the 1980's animation. I wasn't impressed with it- it's 45 minutes long and the English dub I heard contained huge amounts of swearing in it for no reason. I guess they were trying to make anime more popular to adult audiences by giving it a higher age rating...[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]*squees* I'm really impressed ^____^ I love the avatar, Katana, and the colours in the banner are prefect. The only thing I don't really want is my name on it. I realised (once I'd gone to bed) I should have specified that. But it's no biggie- the rest of it's lovely. About the text- I'd actually like to have the whole Game On! bit all in capitals, if a little smaller and in a font like 'Adventure' in MS Word (or an equivalent). And if the 'Krystal' could be bolder and a little higher, perhaps in a more decorative font. Um... maybe with the [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=24676]OB Survivor logo[/URL] inbetween the two bits of text? Sorry if I'm being too awkward ^_^; Whatever fits, looks best, any random things that come to mind- I'll leave it to you, heh. Lrb- although you say they're simple, they're more than I could make! I do appreciate your efforts. The idea of the other language shadowing the English is a nice touch, but I think I'll have to go with Katana's all the same.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Well, I wanted to make myself look a bit more festive seeing as this is probably one of, if not [i]the[/i] biggest RPG project I've taken part in. Everyone else's all look so pretty and the pull was too much to resist ^_^; Anyway, although Sandy used another picture in the Game On! thread proper, [URL=http://www.starfox-online.com/adventures/images/art/krystal.jpg]this[/URL] is the picture I'd like for the Avatar. At least, that's how I always picture her character as looking. For the banner, though, [URL=http://www.otakuboards.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=24838&stc=1]this (attached) picture[/URL]'d be great if it's not too big to resize 'n all. Basically, you're welcome to experiment as you like ^_^ Thanks in advace, hehe.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]The gathering Pokemon inside the Guardians' Council Room were all talking hushedly amongst themselves; more members were climbing in every second, and all shared grave expressions of worry and confusion. In the centre of the guilded amphitheatre stood the high members of the Council headed by Alakazam, one of the oldest Pokemon in the world. The elderly creature turned a weary head to the Council members surrounding him. "This situation is very grave," his voice flowed telepathically to those around him, so as not to disturb the main bulk of the Guardian Agents. "A young Abra sent me word of an ancient artifact being activated in the Orange Islands. It has created widespread panic amongst the humans. All communications have been lost with Navel Island and the sea, air and land around that area have all been deeply disturbed." "What kind of artifact was it?" a gruff-looking Arcanine shook his head in irritation as he spoke. "I don't know. I have been talking to the Artifact Keepers around the world, and they believe that the Legion may have tried to unseal his body. We don't know if they have been successful or not." "Then..." Lugia grimaced. "What should we do?" "We are going to send out a small party to investigate the island and uncover the events that have taken place. We will then follow with an offensive force if necessary." The Council members nodded in unison. Alakazam cleared his throat. "Lugia, I will leave you in charge of bringing together and leading the initial group. I trust your judgement, and your strength will be needed if any of you are to survive long enough to send us a message. Choose carefully; once I have finished telling them of the problem, I will let you make your decision, and then you must leave immediately." * * *[/COLOR] Slowly, the black clouds around Navel Island began to dissipate. the seas grew calm and the falling rocks were reduced to trails of dust and sand trickling down the rocky mountain slopes. From afar, the humans watched in fear. The videophones were back online, but no-one was answering... * * * [i]"This hasn't worked. Are we still lacking the sacrifices needed to fulfil His blood requirement?"[/i] "He has been drained for several thousand years. It is possible that he may not-" [i]"I WILL NOT ACCEPT YOUR PITIFUL EXCUSES!" You are supposed to know everything about these artifacts- why won't it open?[/i] "Perhaps... the key is not in the blood itself, but in one bearing the blood." [i]"I don't care for your musings! Do something or become a sacrifice yourself. If you fail, I will make sure you will be alive to see your own dismemberment."[/i] "I understand."

[color=#503f86]Krystal watched as everyone else seemed to be doing an admirable job of keeping the Lemmings at bay. Well, she couldn't say Pac-Man's position was 'admirable', but all the same everyone seemed to be doing more (and better) than she was. She wanted her staff back. Picking her way through bits of toasted, splattered and generally rather dead lemmings, she sidled over to Fox and gently eased the staff from his fingers. "Wh-what-" "You're being too rough, dear," she huffed, frustratedly looking at Shadow's reddened hand. She twirled it round and pointed the business end at his fingertips. A cool, icy glow shone from the end and smaller ice crystals danced over the black hedgehog's singed fingers. It wouldn't heal it, but at least he wouldn't have an excuse to try and gain heroic sympathy. [i]She[/i] wanted that. "Uh... thanks," he mumbled, quickly pulling his glove back on. She gave him a kind smile. "Don't mention i-" "GUYS!" Crash yelled. "Stop messing about- they're getting away!" Krystal looked up just in time to see two more Lemmings slice their heads off in another of the weird whirling contraptions of death. "Damn..." [/color] [color=blue][b][/b][/color]

[COLOR=#503F86]Yeah, that'd be fine. Serpentizor hasn't returned yet; this is a sort of preliminary event. I'll reply to the RPG in a short while (i.e. by the end of today); been rather busy of late, heh.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Wraith must've been writing his post at the same time I was mine, heh ^_^; I think that's why there was confusion. Unless you mean numbers just going missing between times as well... I always tend to assume (with posts that all have a specific time/item count) that numbers change between posts too as a matter of course. If you want it running exactly from one post to the other though, that's easily done.[/COLOR]

[color=#503f86]Erm, how much can we use our personal items in the challenges? Krystal's been using her staff, but I wasn't sure if it was all right to do so.[/color]

[COLOR=#503F86]"This is ridiculous!" Krystal spluttered, flicking a lemming back towards the wall with the end of her staff and away from what she could only describe as 'flaming dungeon mashers'. "How have these things managed to survive this far anyway, let alone wander through the challange? Do they always rely on some benevolent sentient being to herd them out of certain death situations?" "Who cares? Get on with it!" Shadow yelled, scooping up a group of the tiny creatures in his arms and placing them over in a corner, only to find five run straight back to where they were, one to crawl into his shoe and another two to jump down a grill to an untimely death. Krystal pointed her staff towards a flaming grate a few feet behind where Crash was trying to set up an impromptu suicide self-help group and powered it up. Ice crystals fanned from the end and the fiery trap began to ebb. She let out a confident grin and stopped her staff's power... only to find four frozen lemmings staring back at her. "Oh, you little bastards!" Meanwhile, Pac-Man, having recovered from his brief state of inebriation, looked to be at a rather frustrated loss. His lack of limbs and innate ability to do nothing else but eat things left very little for him to do, aside from gulp up a few lemmings for safe keeping and spit them out a few seconds later to delay the near-unavoidable. Unfortunately, they seemed to revel in his bodily fluids and instead began charging around the room twice as fast as they had previously, finding new and exciting ways to decorate the dungeon with their blue bodies and green hair (as well as other colours from less savoury parts of their bodies). Shadow picked the lemming out of his shoe- dead from asphyxiation. "Everyone's a critic," he scowled. Krystal narrowly missed tripping into a pit full of lethal metal spikes trying to usher some lemmings away from its edge. She could feel herself beginning to lose patience.[/COLOR] [b]End of Post: [/b]

[COLOR=#503F86]I'm happy with that, too. Heh, I spent ages writing out a detailed description of the camp in a post, then found that Doukeshi'd posted one twenty minutes earlier ^_^; Never mind. Serves me right leaving posting so long :p[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]Krystal ran her hands over the sand next to her. It felt soft and warm. If the tide didn't have a habit of coming in (and if the sun was out at night) she'd happily sleep out here. "What do you thnk the next challenges will be?" she asked no-one in particular. A shrug made its way around the remaining group. "So long as it's not another stupid word anagram game I don't care. I can get through anything that Mog throws at us." Pac-Man rotated towards the black hedgehog. "Hey, less of the 'I'. It's no good you getting ahead of yourself if we're all on the same team." Shadow flicked his hand derisively, wandering towards the shade of the palm trees further up the beach. "Whatever. It's still an individual contest, you know. If any of you start dragging me down, you'll hear about it." Krystal looked out to sea. There didn't seem to be any indication of civilisation for miles. Just more islands, separated by cobalt waves drifting calmly inbetween them. She had a sudden urge to plunge into the water and swim out to them, but she had no idea what penalty could be incurred for leaving their base. For now, she contented herself with looking through the trees at the island in front of them. The whole island was basically one gigantic ridge carpeted with trees, with some larger peaks running along its spine. [i]"The island at the centre must give a great view..."[/i] she mused. The island itself was a lot like Dinosaur Planet. Krystal was sure she could even recognise some of the plants- small ferns, odd-looking mushrooms... although considering the wet, rather temperate climates of both places it was hardly surprising that similar vegetation was doing its best to try and get in your way with every step you took. She looked over to the other huts along the beachline. She was reminded of a vague memory she had of her home planet, but she couldn't place anything more about it than that. She pulled herself up and wandered over to the hut on the left of Lara's. It wasn't exactly luxury, but there was a certain charm to it. If she placed her staff in the sand outside and used its light shield ability, it should keep most of the insects away at night. "Yeah," she smiled. "This'll do nicely."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#503F86]I think the success of online relationships depends a lot on the age you are when you're in them, who you are in the first place and various other niggling factors. In a sense, I've been in three online relationships (at least, three long-distance ones). The first was probably more of an infatuation on my part which I didn't fully understand; I just wanted to spand hundreds of hours talking on the phone for ages with someone I'd found who shared my interests. By the time my second relationship rolled round, and I'd gained proper use of the internet, I was able to talk cheaply more often with someone I gained a very strong attachment to (who was on OB), but at the time I didn't really know how to be in love with someone, despite the fact that she was someone I felt closer to than anyone else I knew. The problem was that all of a sudden, I couldn't handle a lot of the responsibilities that came with being in that relationship, and the fact that I couldn't physically be there for her when she needed me was incredibly distressing. It caused me a lot of stress and in the end it was broken off. We're still friends, though ^_^ That's what's quite nice about falling for a friend- if you're lucky, you'll still have the interests in common that you begin with to fall back on. My third relationship was with an OBer, heh. That was great for the most part- the distance was greater, but at the same time I'd matured and knew more what I wanted and had a better idea of what I was supposed to do. But it didn't work out; I blame myself for that. But even so, I'm not a person who can withstand a long-distance relationship. At least at the moment, I wouldn't be able to cope with it. I have no problem whatsoever with other people having them. I think they can be a really great way of forming a relationship as, assuming you're honest and open with each other in the ways you need to be, you really get to know who you're falling in love with, and you get to see the physical, real side of them as and when you meet up. It's almost like meeting a friend of a friend when you first meet someone you've spoken to on the internet for a long time. You can see bits of their written personality in the way they talk and act, but there are things you'll do in person that you'll never be able to portray online. Hence, you get to know them all over again, already knowing that this is someone you know and love. So to answer the original question... I have, but I don't currently ^_^;[/COLOR]