By Bixyl Shuftan
The Relay for Life brings out many talented creators whom over the course of the season use their skills to create some very artistic and detailed builds. This is particularly the case for the Relay Weekend, in which not only the various camps show of what they can do, but also some artists whom get to work on special "designer sims," usually having a whole sim to work on. For this year's Relay Weekend, Null Aries got to work on the designer sim of RFL Courage.
With the theme being "Once Upon a Cure," I had adopted the look of a "dragonkin" fighter to look around the place that day.
RFL Courage was on the east side of the Relay Track, with the suggested direction of traffic going east then south.
Looking around on the right side of the tracks (right going clockwise on the course) was the "Lake of Despair." But where there is despair, there is also courage.
Not far away was a small shopping area with a few wares.
The area had much detail in the scenery. I would check out things out in more detail later, but I had heard about a cavern I wanted to explore first.
On the left side of the track was a stairway leading up the hill to the "Trail of Tranquility."
The trail itself is a peaceful one, a path through some woods.
Next to the path was a hole, which led down to the "Cave of Unknowing."
At the bottom of the entry ladder, things seemed a little slimy and sluggish.
The cave was very detailed, with features such as mushrooms and this fountain, fed by water coming from above.
There were dark, misty, passageways between rooms.
"Courage to be aware."
In the middle of this cavern of fungi, a monster lurks.
And the monster has a name: cancer.
"Courage to find out."
The monster can take different forms, and names.
"Courage to fight."
Fighting cancer isn't easy, needing the right medicines and care.
It's a disease that can strike both the old, and young.
"Courage to Triumph."
What everyone fighting cancer thinks of is the victory, of finding out the monster is defeated.
Support, Courage, Faith, Determination, all are needed to beat the monster.
"Courage to Endure," After the victory, it isn't necessarily easy going on.
"Courage to Accept." One has been through a struggle.
It soon dawned on me the journey out of the caves looked just like going in.
In the aftermath. one looks back at the journey they went through, but one finds the "Courage to Survive."
And the caves end like they began. It probably was"U" shaped with two mirror ends, with the other sides of the passage signs with a different set of letters
"Immerse yourself in our fairytale quest. Locate a book. Then travel the Trail of Tranquility. Help us give courage in Second Life and real life."
Getting out, it was back on the trail.
The Cave of Unknowing was worth an article in itself. But there were other sights in the sim yet to see.
The Brook of Encouragement.
One could pick up a notecard with a small Fantasy tale.
Back on the right side of the track, I decided to check the trail up "Triumph Mountain."
Like most everything else about the sim, the trail up was well detailed.
At the top, I found a heart, and a little something else.
There was a freebie display case for a hunt. This was for nine geodes hidden about the trail. I just had to find them.
So I began looking.
And I began finding them
At the base of the mountain was a farmer's building with a few piggies.
Sometimes you wonder what else is in the area besides you.
The search for the geodes continued.
Eventually, I would find all nine geodes.
The 2016 Relay Track, and its RFL Courage designer sim, are now gone. But I still have the the nine geodes as a souvenir. For now, they're on display at the Newser office building.
Go Relay!
Bixyl Shuftan
