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

[oathkeeper]

[He's never really sure why people get such aversions to magic. Magic is amazing and makes so many possibilities for people to explore. Sora misses his own magic quite a lot but as a monster he has none of that anymore. He'd probably jump at the chance get some of it back someday. Or even a chance to be able to learn a witch's charm or two.]

Did you cast a spell and it really backfired on you or something? I had a friend that accidentally blew up a charm once. She was stuck laughing for a week straight.

[Is that why the lady doesn't like magic? Bad experiences?]

But no, I don't have any magic. I'm a puca so I'm nothing like a witch.

[Yet. He'll eventually be learning his own type of puca magic. He's just too baby right now.]

[sparkstrikes]

A poo—? [You know what.] Never mind.

[She's not even going to ask what that is, but it's a pretty safe guess to say that it's got something to do with those ears. That isn't what's important, and he sure as hell isn't the first one to have some crazy features. His are, in comparison, fairly tame.

At least he doesn't have wings.]

Yeah, something like that. But I sure as hell wasn't laughing about it.

[Her fingers flex as she feels a weird, familiar pain surge through the tips, but it's fleeting, gone as quick as it had come.]

Hey. You know anywhere I can dry off?

[oathkeeper]

Huh?

[Yeah, something like that.

Sora blinks innocently. He feels like he's totally missing something here. And because of that Sora feels rather curious about her. No one says something like that without something behind it all! Is she one of the people who's left Aefenglom and come back? He's met a few people like that.]

Uhh...! Yeah! Let's get you some towels or something! Then we can talk more!

[He turns around to look, his rabbit ears twitching and swivelling as he does. Follow the rabbit!]

My place isn't too far from here! I can at least get you some towels! And you might be able to borrow some fresh clothes or something from Aqua. Oh- And I'm Sora!

[sparkstrikes]

Lightning.

[She'll follow when he starts to move, falling in step with him easily, but keeping herself at least one behind. He can lead the way, and she doesn't want to presume she knows where she's going. It'll give her a chance to take a gander around while they walk, too... see if she can pick out some old memories, and maybe even find her way back to where she used to live.

Will all of her things still be there, she wonders? Or maybe the Coven will have kept it... Ugh. Well, she'll have to get there eventually, she figures.]

Your place far?

[oathkeeper]

It's nice to meet you, Lightning!

[Goodnes, that makes a few people he knows with weather-based names. It must be a popular thing to do or something like that. It's cool.

The city itself hasn't changed all that much. The clouds are gray and it rains a lot. Issues with monster slavery is still a big deal with outside cities and Aefenglom is still in turmoil to try and turn the tides. But lately, it's been fairly calm and the day to day has been the same. Besides all these people falling for the sky lately, that is.]

I live just up this street here.

[He gives her a curious look.]

So I'm guessing you're a witch?

[sparkstrikes]

Think so, unless that's changed since the last time.

[She lifts her hands to flex her fingers, looking them over and recalling now how they looked before she left. For now, they feel fine, but she doesn't think that'll last forever. Nothing good ever does. It's a cynical approach, but she isn't going to get her hopes up. Not here.]

Haven't grown any horns or tails yet, so I'm probably in the clear. Dunno how long it takes for them to show up anyway.

[oathkeeper]

[As if making a demonstration of it Sora does tug on one of his long rabbit ears with his fingers.]

I think it took about a month and a half for anything to change for me. But from the looks of it you're probably a witch? But it's always good to double-check with the coven just in case.

[Magic has this lingering aura, after all. And since Sora has three bonds with witches he's fairly good at guessing. he is not sniffing her]

I'm just here!

[They round the road to a stone cottage just up ahead. It looks about medium-sized and it's littered with trees and growing shrubs. There's a sizeable garden growing out front with what appears to be a variety of growing vegetables and fragrant herbs. It seems the household likes to keep well-stocked. Or they have a growing rabbit-boy to feed.]

[sparkstrikes]

[Yeah. The first thought that Lightning comes to mind when she sees the gardens and shrubs is him and his rabbit ears. Does that mean he takes on the characteristics of them, too? Weird.

She hesitates for a moment as they near the front door, though, and looks down to him, lips twisting into a thin line.]

You sure this is a good idea?

[Inviting a stranger into his home? An older one, no less.]

[oathkeeper]

Yeah, sure! I'm not gonna just leave someone out in the cold and freezing wet.

[Sora has zero qualms with letting a stranger into the house and helping them out. In fact, he does just that. He opens the door and motions for her to follow him before he quickly makes a beeline for the hallway closet to retrieve some dry and clean towels for her. He returns and offers them.]

Here, start with that. I can put some tea on the stove too if you want!

[What a good boy next door.]

And I think Aqua should have some dry clothes that could fit you! I'll be right back!

[So generous, he's even giving away his roommate's clothing.]

[sparkstrikes]

[There is so much happening right now, so Lightning accepts the towels without a protest, only managing a quiet 'uhhh' in response before she dabs her face with them. That's really all she can do at this rate, but she does appreciate the gesture.

Well, most of it anyway.]

Wait—! [Before he can run off, she grabs hold of his shoulder.] Thanks but... I don't think I should take someone else's clothes.

[There is thoughtful, and then there's that.]

If I can just dry off and stay warm for a bit, I'll be fine.

[oathkeeper]

Huh? Are you sure? But you look about the same size as her?

[Lightning is absolutely right about that, though. Sora really shouldn't just give away someone's clothing without asking. Sometimes his generous heart is a little too loud.

He's glad she at least takes the towels and he glances back at the main living room.]

Alright, let me get the fireplace going. It's kind of hard to do it without a witch's magic but I think I know where the flints are.

[sparkstrikes]

( overflow! )