Event Log: May, An Inauspicious Arrival

[faileas]

Event Log: May, An Inauspicious Arrival

I. Boaltinn (1st - 3rd) Boaltinn comes around again. A handful of Mirrorbound will remember the holiday from last year, but for others, it will be brand new. In both Residential Districts, bonfires burn in central locations through the night, frequented by the residents celebrating another summer come to Aefenglom. Curiously, while last year the bonfires seemed quite segregated by human or Monster, this year, there is more of a noticeable mix at each, and Mirrorbound are invited to join the games and festivities quite happily. Characters are invited to try and jump through the bonfire's flames to burn away any poor relationship experiences, be it romantic or platonic, past or present; to aid them in this, those at the Eastern Bonfire will give those participating rune-etched accessories to protect them from the fire. The city has quite a bit to offer for this holiday: shared rose baths at public bathhouses and pleasure establishments that increase feelings of friendliness and talkativeness, poles draped in ribbons meant to be danced around, wrapping a ribbon around the pole to bring good luck for the summer, food stalls whose offerings are meant to be shared, and fortune-telling set up by Divination students of the Coven, who can tell your day is going to go. To see last year's Boaltinn prompts, you can take a glance right here! Much of it, including the bonfires, baths, and entertainments will be similar this year, so feel free to use those in your top levels.

II. An Unusual Arrival (3rd on) A full year from the arrival of the first group of Mirrorbound, the 1st passes quietly, with no one showing up in the mirror-lined halls of the Looking-Glass House. Dates and times are important in most kinds of magic, and this is strange enough that some Witches of the Coven get together on the night of the 3rd to try a probing ritual, attempting to gather some kind of clues that could be useful in prying out the cottage's secrets. Boaltinn is the best time for such things, when the boundaries are thinner, and magic is stronger. Those who are awake that night at 3 am might notice a pulse of harmless silvery light that spreads like ripples on water throughout the whole city, originating at the Looking-Glass House, but nothing further happens, and the Coven receives no answers. Well, nothing happens in the Looking-Glass House. Before long, the reports start coming in: people are emerging from mirrors, regular old mundane mirrors, all over the city. Anything with a particularly reflective surface could be an entry point for someone from another world! Inhabited homes, businesses closed and locked for the night, pools of still water in fountains or the river, these unorthodox Mirrorbound pop up anywhere and everywhere, causing chaos for the City Guard (folks aren't happy to find strangers in their bathrooms at 3 in the morning) and the Coven both. Out of nowhere, a glint of light catches your eye; your heart thunders in your ears as your body moves on its own, your mind consumed with inspecting the source. Your reflection stares back at you, just as curious from the surface - a mirror, a pool of water, your most trusted sword, something fleeting that your mind can barely remember - then ripples at your touch. If you are one of these unfortunate arrivals, it's likely a rude awakening for you, to find yourself somewhere inconvenient, somewhere other than where you've been. It only makes sense to be confused. Hopefully someone finds you and explains to you what's happened to you. Resident Mirrorbound will hear a message from Miss Nessie shortly after it begins, a call to arms: "Dears, I'm quite sorry to disturb you, but it seems your fellows are arriving elsewhere than the Looking-Glass House this month! We're trying to track them all down for the usual welcome, but we could use a hand or several! If you could just bring them by the Coven, the usual spot, that would be lovely." She'll give her usual orientation and pass out Watches, but no doubt the Mirrorbound will be more helpful in this regard, with so many arriving.

III. The Goblin Market (All Month) Life goes on in Aefenglom, despite the addition of so many new residents. With the City Guard decidedly busy dealing with the sudden flood of break-ins (or, more accurately, break-outs?), the vendors of the Goblin Market find opportunity to set up their stalls more openly than they have since the crack-downs some months ago. They pop up all over the city, but clustered more often in the Residential Districts and the Harbor District, where there are even fewer law enforcement agents out and about to run them off. These sellers, while not as devoid of morals as those major players of the Black Market, still have very few compunctions when it comes to lying, cheating, fencing stolen goods, and misrepresenting their wares to unsuspecting buyers. It's also the place to find those things that are- not quite legal, shall we say. They won't say a word if you don't. If confronted, they are quick to pack up their things and slip away, however; they know this city and its hiding places a lot better than you do. With a brand new batch of what the natives assume are Mirrorbound, many undergoing rapid transformations into their Monster forms, many of the wares on display are potions: supposed cure-alls for aches and itches, calming draughts for the full moon restlessness, some even claim their brews can halt changes entirely! Some concoctions are meant to increase a Witch's magical ability, or decrease it, or provide them a finer control. They offer potions that they say will eliminate the need for a Bond, or temporary Bonding potions of their own that they claim are more pure, stronger, than the ones offered by the Coven. Claims are only claims, though. A few remedies for the pain of changing or some regular temporary Bonding potions can be found here and there, but for every potion that works, there are twenty more that have less than pleasant side effects. A brew that will cause everything you touch to turn to solid gold for up to an hour; a potion that will invert your sense of direction - trying to turn right will make you turn left, trying to go forward will cause you to walk backward; a potion that will remove all traction from your feet, causing you to slide around as if cobblestone are the slickest ice. Worse, some shadier vendors sell things more sinister, including a potion that gives you the appearance of being moderately to heavily infected by the Cwyld. Even if you don't drink any, the vendors are not at all careful where they're sloshing those bottles around, trying to show them off, and they all activate on skin contact.

IV. A Wilde Hunt (7th - 22nd) All Mirrorbound, temporary or not, are likely to feel it. Monsters are always affected by the full moons, but this month, it is more. Stronger. Instincts rise to the surface as the Sisters emerge full and visible in the night sky, and for many Mirrorbound, they are undergoing rapid transformations into whatever type of Monster they are meant to be. Curiously, the natives get along like they usually do, noticing nothing out of the norm, other than the increased agitation and restlessness from Mirrorbound Monsters. Monsters' aggression fades when the Sisters start to wane, but as the new moons approach on the 22nd, Mirrorbound Witches will notice their magical reserves overfilling, and will find themselves stricken with the overwhelming urge to use it, until casting spells, pushing one's magical limits, is almost a compulsion. Those who are not in proper Witch-Monster Bonds will feel it even stronger, with no stabilizing magic to consume (for Monsters) or avenues to expend magic (for Witches) other than casting spells. (For those who are interested, the Coven does offer temporary Bonding potions which can be used to help alleviate the effects somewhat.) The Coven Witches notice the signs, and they take decisive action on the morning of the 6th, the day before the full moons. So many Mirrorbound, likely to be so heavily affected by the lunar cycle this month, many of them coming into new features and abilities at a breakneck pace, only spells danger for the city. They barricade off a massive chunk of Wilde outside Aefenglom, largely free of Cwyld and totally bereft of farms, homes, and Wilder outposts. They invite anyone who feels the effects of the moons too strongly to control to come out for a Hunt. The hunting grounds will be open nightly to anyone who needs to work off restless energy or overflowing magic; all participants will be warned that their safety cannot be guaranteed from others, but they won't be able to harm bystanders out here. The woods are thick, with the river cutting through them, and full of wildlife. There is room to run and chase prey, or room to play with your developing magic. Play cat and mouse with your friends or Bondmates, or stalk a stranger. If playing games isn't your thing, there is something else to hunt out here as well. With the deep Wilde entering into Winter, this patch of land so close to the city is much warmer, and fearsome Shades have emerged to search for prey. These were once living beings, Monsters, Witches, or animals, who have been overtaken by Cwyld infection long ago, leaving them dead but for the infection, white-eyed and seeking out sources of magic to consume and infect. Anything could become a Shade, but the most common out right now are the ferocious remains of bears, wolves, and nomadic Arachne and Turnskins. If not killed, these Shades threaten the people of the Outer City, when they inevitably escape the barricade. Careful to limit your contact, though; anyone infected upon their return to the gates will be escorted straight to the infirmary.

Welcome to May's Fourth Wall event, An Inauspicious Arrival! The comms are now open to comments from all registered users and will be until June 1st. Current players, if you don't want fourth wall characters tagging your posts, just say so in your text. Fourth wall characters can use this post for their own network top-levels, or this post for log top levels. This event is game canon; threads from this fourth wall can be used as application samples later and current players may use these threads for AC. As always, be courteous to each other! Let the mod team know if there are any problems and we will handle things.

As always, please direct your questions to this thread!

Comments

[moneytwin]

[ Vex can't tell if that's a death rattle, or simply how shades always sound. But one pointed ear is kept towards the forest, trying to make out any sounds of approach instead of flight away. It's only once Percival lowers the gun that she lowers her wings, lets them draw to her back - no feathers, and hardly as temporary as her brother's, though these can be willed away. Just..not right now.

Just as he looks over her, now she returns the look. She remembers all too vividly how he looked when she last.. When he..

For a moment, she can feel her balance shift, rolling forward onto the balls of her feet, before settling back. She can't, quite, bring herself to close the distance yet. ]

Oh. Well. You know. [She swallows thickly, before giving what she hopes is a winning smile. And a shrug, as her free hand indicates her everything.] All things considered, dear.

..How are you?

[gunsmithed]

Ah. [ The sound he makes isn't quite a laugh and isn't quite an exhale, but it does pull a small, tired smile out of him in return. She always could do that, make him smile like it was just some simple thing. ] Managing. All things considered.

[ He's alive, or some semblance of it, and at the moment that's much better than the alternative. It occurs to him, from what he's heard from some of the others, that she could be from a different point in time than he is, the past or the future. Percy is suddenly very certain that he doesn't want to know. ]

How long have you been here?

[moneytwin]

[ His answer earns the widest of smiles, a soft puff of laughter under her breath. It's the sort of smile she gives when her emotions are at their tightest and most tangled, but--

--he's alive. He's alive. Who else but he could give that sort of answer to her so casually? Or, well, as casually as only Percival can manage.]

Ah, something like two and half, three weeks? Apparently I did not arrive through the traditional method of falling through the right sort of mirror. [mirror magic isn't unknown to her, but there being right and wrong types? Well. She's glad that they can leave it to the mages to puzzle that one out.] What...what about you?

[she steps a little closer, the hand grasping Fenthras tightening around it. Even as she yearns to reach out, unbidden comes the thought that this is some illusion. Maybe she's just seeing what her heart wants to see. ]

You look...well. [..compared to when she saw him last]

[gunsmithed]

[ Weeks. And he's only just discovered it. Percy would like to think that he's not that oblivious, and yet here they are. But Vex is standing there and smiling at him like that, and it's a bit difficult to honestly get too worked up over it. He is going to have to investigate what 'not the right sort of mirror' means, but that can come later. ]

A year, or nearly. [ The corner of his mouth tips into a wry sort of smile as he watches her, cataloging every movement like there might be a test on them later.

Which does beg a rather important question. One that he doesn't particularly want to ask, but does seem necessary. ]

What's the last thing you remember? From...home.

[moneytwin]

A year? [what is an "inside voice", because apparently Vex'ahlia has lost hers somewhere between falling through a mirrored surface into an armory and becoming part dragon. At least it's not a yell! Especially in the middle of a forest with very very dangerous creatures lurking.

But Vex'ahlia truly doesn't care about any of that right now.] But, that.. How is that possible? That's, so much time. And we were just..!

[her voice falters then, when he asks about --home, about what she remembers. If he has truly been gone a year, then, is this place..?

No. She did not die (again). And this world was real enough, had enough people from many other realms afflicted as they were.]

We killed her. Ripley. We, we killed her for you, Percy. We couldn't just let her leave, not after she.. [Words fail her, and for a moment she just stares at him, fine features losing lightness and joy, and her mouth can't manage the twist into a smile. But it tries nonetheless, waging war against grief of three weeks ago and counting, with the reality of here and now.]

[gunsmithed]

[ He's not quite sure what he was hoping for with the question, but that hollowed-out look on her face was most certainly not it. That hurts, when he knows he's the cause. It takes him a moment of silence before Percy suddenly inhales deeply and lets it out again in one quiet word. ]

Good. [ Good that no one else had followed him down. Good that they'd finished what he couldn't. That's all he could have asked for, in the aftermath.

Except that they're in the aftermath now, staring at each other through a chasm no one could have seen coming. And Percy smiles just a little because some things are too ridiculous even for Vox Machina. ]

I'm given to understand that time can work a bit...strangely, here. Like the Feywilde, a bit.

[moneytwin]

..Less colourful, though. [She's still staring at him. It's just..so good to hear his voice.

The loss of him is the cause of that visible ache, knowledge of their failure to protect him, fury at the machinations of a vile woman who's dismembered corpse is now destined to be the ugliest tree on Glintshore. There are so many reasons for the wave of emotions she feels, many of which she doesn't dare look at too closely (or she'd have to admit something she isn't quite ready to yet), but all she can hear is "good".

Good, as if there wasn't anything else to be said.

And perhaps there isn't. That fight is over now. Has been over for him for a year, in fact. She's the one playing catch up.

And so it is that at the end of his comparison to the Feywild --one she will certain discuss the merits of later-- she moves, instinct overriding natural caution as she becomes a blur of dark hair and red scales. Moving, so that she might throw her arms around him. Part of her almost expects to pass straight through, to find all this to be the illusion she fears it is, but instead taloned hands find purchase along the back of his coat, and she buries her face into his shoulder.

Behind her, the wings flare open, stretching wide, before mantling around witch-man and monster-elf. A secondary hug; a shield from prying eyes. ]

[gunsmithed]

[ Several things happen in quick succession: Percy lets out a huff of air as Vex suddenly collides with him, freezes without meaning to at the unexpected contact, and then forces himself to unwind and wrap his arms around her in turn.

Even if this sort of thing isn't something they do much of, if any situation calls for a hug this might be it. And it's not actually unpleasant, now that the immediate surprise has worn off, close contact with someone he trusts implicitly. Vex is solid and warm and very clearly present, and he leans down to rest his forehead against the top of her head as they stand there wrapped around each other.

The wings are, admittedly, new. But they've managed with stranger. ]

It's alright.

[ Murmured nonsense he's barely paying attention to, but saying something seems like the right thing to do. He's had his time to come to terms with this whole thing the least he can do is attempt to help Vex do the same. ]

[moneytwin]

[ Perhaps de Rolos didn't hug, but Vox Machina has never been shy where physical affection for their found family is concerned. That is what Vex will tell herself later, to justify her actions. For now, however, she is merely gratified he does not try to pry himself free, that he does slowly hold her just as closely.

Her head turns, cheek rests against his coat, one tapered ear listening for his heartbeat; arms squeeze gently about his torso in response to his reassuring murmurs. ]

You died, Percy. I don't see how that can be "alright".

[and given her own experience with death.. She closes her eyes a moment, letting out a soft sigh, before straightening up a little. She does not break the embrace, but does look up at him intently, ignoring the sting of tears at the corner of her eyes]

I promise, we were..are going to do what we can to get you back. You know that we couldn't just.. Leave you.

I don't know how you're here. ['Alive'. her smile is watery, but at least makes a return] But it's so very good to see you, dear.

[gunsmithed]

[ Continued! ]