WEEK 4

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WEEK 4

READY, STEADY, GO-KARTS!

After a harrowing week of forced honesty and a surprise attack from the God of Conflict, it seems the Goddess’ “gift” has finally faded - and just in time! Today marks the date of the highly anticipated Go-Kart Race, featuring a whopping twelve teams from the Goddess’ picks and a number of teams comprised of locals. Fortunately the weather is holding up well for the event, with clear skies and a radiant sun beating down on all contestants as they wait to begin, the heat reflecting off the asphalt. Hopefully everyone thought to use sunscreen!

The local arcade has decked out the go-kart track in flags representing the different teams, and some local businesses have set up both a spectator stand area near the finish line, as well as kiosks selling snacks and drinks for the spectators and anyone who happens to wander by! There are also some midway fair game booths and portable game machines if you're not really here for the go-karts and just here for a fun afternoon out. The best part is that everyone who enters the event zone gets three free tokens courtesy of the arcade, so you've got nothing to lose~ Unless you do happen to lose, which means that you'll probably have to purchase more tokens from the distracted teenagers volunteering manning the admin booth.

ALL'S WELL THAT-- HUH?

Eventually, all the preamble is completed, and it’s time for the race! A light counts down from red to yellow to green, and the racers are off!

While the start of the race is a jumble, a few in particular begin to pull ahead of the pack: Spade of the Sea and Kururu and Schneider in particular! Tragically, Team Bloody Angels just can’t seem to get the speed they want and seem to get stalled by various traps, falling further and further behind…

In the middle of the bunch, Atem and Sunrise manage to maintain their speed, while THE CUTIE PATOOTIES, Fire’n Ice, and Aaron and Morgan all struggle to surpass each other - leaving Beautiful, Bright Knights of Lovely Radiance, and Exquisite Midnight Shimmering unfortunately trapped behind the three and unable to pass at all. Towards the back of the group, Badass Ladies compete directly with TEAM ROADKILL for their place, while Frieren and Arven have a leisurely drive by comparison.

The first and second laps go without incident. But on the third…

Something about the local teams changes. Instead of the regular frustration of losing, some of them seem to fall into, well, road rage.

Schneider and Kururu, nearly caught up to Hiiro and Jordi, find their hopes dashed as a woman in a blue bandana bumps them from behind - the impact enough to cut their engine for a moment too long, allowing Hiiro and Jordi to pass the finish line in first place without any trouble.

The middle of the pack gets the worst of it. Jesse and Mafuyu find themselves hounded by a woman in aviators who manages to ram into their Go-Kart hard enough to dent the guard, putting pressure on the wheel - while they cross at the same time as others, they are unable to steer the Go-Kart due to the damages, and find themselves ramming into guardrail. While Mafuyu is miraculously without injury, Jesse takes the brunt of the force and will be feeling that whiplash the next day.

Aaron and Morgan get a brick - a literal brick - chucked at them, and while they manage to avoid getting hit themselves, they have to do a violent swerve to do so. That’ll also be a bit of whiplash for them, too. Badass Ladies get sideswiped by one of the locals and their kart ends up grinding against one of the guardrails. Eek.

The real destruction, however, hits the back end of the group - a man in yellow sneakers manages to bash hard into Eli and Kirumi, pushing them off course. The impact causes them to bump into Aerith and Maika along the way, who lose control of the steering wheel and knock Fray and Argenti into the wall. Fray sustains injuries as he’s dragged against the wall for a moment until Argenti is able to right their path again, pulling them back into the middle of the course. Eli and Kirumi don’t get off so easily, either - the bump against Aerith and Maika isn’t enough to stop their momentum, and Eli cracks his right shoulder against a barrier as Kirumi hits the brakes to prevent further injury. Fray, Argenti, Eli, and Kirumi will be feeling whiplash the next day.

Braphine’s chosen aren’t the only victims, either - a woman with red combat boots and a man in a green jacket each crash into local competitors, and the result is a six-kart pileup.

Frieren and Arven and Team Bloody Angels witness all of this from the back of the race, though neither team can do much except to continue on to the finish line.

What should have been a celebration at the end instead turns into panic as medics are called onto the scene and emergency personnel are summoned to the track. While many of the people in the stands seem roiling with discontent and beginning to argue and fight over the cause of all these injuries, a few of the locals hurry down to the course to help. Schneider, Aaron, Argenti, Aerith, Eli, and Kirumi will find themselves aided by familiar faces - the boutique staff recognized them and are here to lend them and their partners a hand in getting treated for their injuries.

As the racetrack descends into chaos, it soon becomes difficult to keep track of everyone. However, Hiiro, Schneider, Sally, Morgan, Argenti, Aerith, Frieren, and Celeste all notice a figure in a strangely ancient hood standing among the stands, a fierce grin on their face - before the figure turns and disappears into the crowd.

Mina - having come to spectate and cheer on everyone from the stands - gets a rather panicked look on her face as she watches it all unfold. She quickly takes out her phone and begins typing frantically at it, before hitting “send.”

All at once, all of Braphine’s chosen will hear their phones begin to beep.

CALL FOR HELP.

I've added emergency commissions to the app - please take them on if you are able to/need to!

We can get through this if we all work together. So, please... look out for each other out there, okay?

COMMISSIONS

HELPING HAND

Please help the injured! Even if it's as small as first-aid or comforting a scared child who's gotten lost in the aftermath of the go-kart crash, any little bit of help would be appreciated by the overwhelmed medical staff at the scene! Unless you’re already injured, in which case, please allow yourself to be tended to!

(OOC note: For clarity, this commission reward applies both to characters who are helping the injured and those who are injured in the thread!)

HOLY HEALING

The hospital is going to need more supplies. For those who are strong enough, please seek out Archangel Shadows in the Nekyia. They should drop blessed feathers - these feathers then can be taken to Braphine’s Temple, and the priest or priestess there should be able to turn them into medicine for the injured.

RACETRACK REPAIRS

In the aftermath of the go-kart pileup and everything associated with it, it's time for people who are good with their hands to roll up their sleeves and help the locals with repairs - clear the debris off the track and make sure the way is clear for the emergency vehicles and construction crews who need to access the site!

OOC

READ ME!!!!

• Welcome to your Week 4 event log! While this log covers the go-kart race and its immediate aftermath, please feel free to use this log to thread out anything else happening during the week after and we will see you next week for the Week 5 event!
  
• Note to all go-kart participants that there has been some shuffling in the team compositions due to player drops as well as Everything That Happened on Friday. Regardless, you can claim event participation gacha rewards if you signed up and have one thread of at least 10 comments with a go-kart related prompt on this post.
  
• Archangel stats and information have been added to the bestiary!
  
• AC is due end of the month! Make sure you get that in~
  

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Comments

[fullmoonmutt]

None of that makes me less human!

[ Right?! Right! Unsurprisingly, he's quick to move on to complaining about this world instead. ]

It just won't let up... If I find those assholes next time, I'm kicking all of their asses. First the graffiti and the fucking mist walls, now this?

[bloodandstars]

[ Did he think she was going to ignore such an obvious sore spot if he keeps digging at it? As if she were someone with tact? ]

Right. Like not having any tails or wolf fangs or claws doesn't make me any less Arcanic. Humans usually agree on that. Arcanics, not so much.

[ So do humans really buy it when Eli does that spiel? Doubt. Anyway: ]

...If we do that, probably some new bastards are going to come crawling out of nowhere. It'd still be satisfying.

[fullmoonmutt]

Why would an Arcanic want fangs and tails and claws, anyway? Everyone looks at you like you're a freak when you have them. Like you're gonna turn on them at any second...

[ But maybe that's the point Maika is trying to make. Humans don't see him as human, apart from mom and her crew. They know him. They raised him. ]

Yeah. You're probably right. There's no shortage of punks like that in this city.

[bloodandstars]

In human cities? Sure. But scopes and dogs will pick up Arcanic blood just as fast. I've been attacked by a human mob once. And I've been attacked by Arcanic mobs for looking too human, too. If you're halfway between, you'll never be enough to make either side happy.

[ She's just saying that bluntly, because it's a fact and she doubts Eli's somehow failed to notice it already. And a little wryly, as an afterthought: ]

Nothing more annoying than everyone else trying to tell you what they think you are. So if you say you're human, fine. But don't bite my hand off just because some of us don't see anything wrong with being a monster. I'll bite back.

[ Just saying! With a little snort for emphasis. ]

[fullmoonmutt]

Tch, you're about as monstrous as I am.

[ Which is to say not much. Of course, what does he know about her? Only that she's hot and likes to wrestle for fun, and that's hardly anything. ]

I mean, that I know of. I guess. [ He'll tentatively admit it while giving her a sidelong look. ] How... how do you even deal with it? I mean, I could move to the RH district back home, just. Live with people like me... or leave the city entirely, but both mean I'm leaving mom all alone. Only she's human. An important one. It's not like she can move with me or leave with me or...

[ He trails off with a sigh, his gaze dropping to the ground as he rubs at his shoulder. It hurts. He hates that it hurts. He hates that it makes him realize being a normal human sucks, actually. ]

cw: alcoholism mention

[bloodandstars]

You don't know shit about me, little wolf.

[ An endearment, or deliberately to piss him off? Maybe the best of both. But her tone is a lot less biting than if he hadn't chosen to walk that back.

Still. She flicks a sidelong glance at him that can't completely conceal her surprise. People don't usually ask her how she does anything. They're generally too busy yelling at her to stop. ]

...I'm the worst person you could ask that. How I dealt with it? Drank too much. Hurt people. Made sure anyone who tried to start something with me walked away with the scars to teach them better, if they walked away at all.

[ So, not exactly advice to live by. But her expression softens infintessimally. ]

But that's what I was taught. Survival over everything. Before loyalty, before love. But... [ There's an awkward pause as she glances around the racetrack to look at anything but him. ] ...The shittiest moments of my life, it wasn't survival reflexes that pulled me through. It was some bastard too stupid to know I'm not worth caring about that wouldn't let go of me. Your mother probably wants you to survive, above all else. But if she's that person to you, then you'd be a fool to leave.

[fullmoonmutt]

I'm not...!

[ A little wolf, or maybe he is. It didn't sound like an insult, leaving him uncertain. Hurting people, though, and making sure they know better than to mess with him. That sounds painfully familiar. He never starts it, but he always ends up taking the blame. Was it the same for her? ]

Survival over everything. That's the mindset we've been trying to fight, but it's hard when the world has gone to shit. That would be me, too... if it weren't for mom... but things are different now. She won't say it, but all I do is cause her problems. Even more now than before. I don't fit into a city full of. Of normal people. And they don't want me there, either.

[bloodandstars]

[ Oh, he definitely is. But if he isn't going to make a futile argument, she won't press the point. This time.

The rest, though, hits entirely too close to home. People insisting on following her, no matter what problems she causes... She lifts her hand to press her nails into the center of her chest, the memory of the itch of healing skin still nagging. ]

I've met a lot of humans in my life. A lot of Arcanics, and cats. Even a few Ancients and Old Gods. I don't think I've ever met a "normal" person. [ Not that the fact that they're all freaks makes them necessarily less dangerous. ] ...People like us cause problems. We are problems. She knew that when she took you in, though. You think she'd accept it if you left?

[fullmoonmutt]

[ Would she...? Well. Eli seems to deflate, his shoulders sinking (not without a wince; he should be careful with the hurt one). He looks down, finding the road's asphalt very interesting all of a sudden. ]

I mean... I know she doesn't want to, but. She was talking about sending me away, back to her old unit. The ones who helped raise me. Said I was having too much trouble adjusting to so many people and she was worried and... I don't know. Mom shit like that.

[ He's sure he wasn't meant to overhear, but he had, and then he ran off to, unsurprisingly to himself, cause more trouble. Then he was here. Maybe it's for the best after all. ]

[bloodandstars]

[ She sees that wince and her eyes narrow a little again. At least he didn't mean to do it this time, but still... ]

So you can stay with her. Or you can go back to other family. [ It's hard for her to understand the shape of this, when she's only ever stayed in one place because she was incapacitated or under siege. ] Then what's the problem? Why can't she just go with you?

[ And since he's sitting in one place for the moment, Maika will rifle through her voluminous pockets for another bandage roll and sink down to crouch next to him. ]

Stay put while I immobilize the busted one. [ "Or else," says her tone. ]

[fullmoonmutt]

It's...!

[ Fine, he wants to complain, but he hears that warning, and even he has to admit, no, it isn't fine. With a huff and a puff, he does hold still, so Maika wins this one. ]

...and she can't. When I say unit, I mean military unit. After she got hurt real bad, she couldn't return to the field with 'em, so they saddled her with a desk job helping rebuild instead. I guess it's a promotion.

[ Even though he doesn't sound too happy about it himself... ]

If I leave, then she's... I dunno. All alone? There ain't anyone there I trust to watch her back besides me, okay?

[bloodandstars]

[ Good!! Because if he doesn't hold still, she's bandaging his mouth first!! Don't test the patience of a one-armed woman, Eli. Maika works briskly with the bandages to bind the arm close, tossing the bandage roll around and catching it deftly rather than passing it hand to hand. ]

That's the problem with a military. They tell you where to go and your life's not your own. At least rebuilding is what the point of war is supposed to be.

[ But she gives a little grimace, because no way in any world could she be stuck behind a desk, either. ]

...I get it. A peaceful life with someone you care about is like a beautiful dream. But when you've been fighting your whole life, you forget how to stop. You wouldn't know how to not cause problems even if you wanted to. And you can't force humans to accept you at gunpoint. ...Not for long, anyway.

[fullmoonmutt]

[ He would eat through the bandage! Rarararar! Thankfully, it won't come to that, though. He watches her work from the corner of his eye, curious. His mom is down an arm, too, although hers is gone up to the shoulder... Thinking about it, yeah, she'd probably still be able to stabilize an injury regardless.

He has to wonder if she and Maika would get along. A passing thought and impossible, he knows. ]

Yeah. Pretty much. So that's it, huh? I keep causing problems until she's forced to get rid of me, I guess.

[bloodandstars]

The way I see it, you've got three choices.

[ She raises an eyebrow, but she can't really give him the stern stare while she's working. She just has to take it on faith that he sees it. ]

You run. You fight. Or you change. If you don't want to leave her behind, that rules out one.

[fullmoonmutt]

[ Run, fight, or change. Change? Change?! Why should he be the one to change?! ]

How am I supposed to change when I don't know how to be anything else, huh?! All I ever looked forward to as a kid was when they finally let me join them on missions! Now I have to learn to be some kind of city boy?! Hiding from all the monsters lurking outside the fences?!

[ He can't help it. He snaps at her, turning and giving his injured shoulder a jerk. Too angy to even wince now. ]

[bloodandstars]

[ Well, since him jerking like that tugged the end of the bandages from her hand: is he going to wince at all when she brings it down in a light chop right on top of his stupid head? ]

Then run! If all you want is to go fight monsters, go join her unit and fight monsters! She's too hurt to chase after you halfway around the fucking world, it shouldn't even be hard!

[ It's not like she's in a position to give advice. She's tried all three and each of them was a different disaster. ]

Until you're so sick of yourself that you can't even look in a fucking mirror without wanting to break it in half, you're not ready to change anyway. Congratulations, problem solved.

[fullmoonmutt]

[ He does wince, though it's more out of surprise than pain. It's not as if Eli isn't used to being yelled at or scolded, but this time, it's a little close to home for him, too. He's left staring in shock for a second before his expression wavers. He looks like he's about to cry...

He won't, but it's close. This is stressful, okay? In any case, he looks away, firmly down at his boots instead. ]

...sorry. [ She's only upset because of him being a jackass, after all. ] I just don't know what to do, okay? I don't even know why I'm telling you all this... none of it matters here... and it ain't your problem.

[bloodandstars]

[ Ah... shit. For just a second, the look on Maika's face is pure and undisguised shock.

Double shit. Who ever takes what she says that seriously? Not even Kippa. Kippa would definitely have bitten back by now. ]

It's worrying you enough that you're talking to me about it. That's how you know it's bad.

[ And then she falters again, because she's never known how to fix things. "Sorry"? Sorry doesn't make anything better. She clears her throat a little. ]

...I don't know shit about your world or your circumstances, either. If it were that easy to fix, you'd have done it already. You just sounded enough like me to piss me off.

[fullmoonmutt]

Tch, maybe that's why I'm whining at you about all this shit... We're too damn similar.

[ He honestly doesn't realize she's a wolf yet, per se. All she's mentioned is having wolf parts as signs of some goddess and Arcanic thingies, but specifically? Well. Maybe on some level, he recognizes it, but not in any conscious way. ]

I don't want to keep snapping at people, though... Here, anyway. None of you actually deserve it. I'm just. I don't know. Angry all the time. It's stupid.

[bloodandstars]

Hah. One halfwolf to another.

[ And it hasn't occured to Maika yet that their worlds are different enough that her last name by itself doesn't mean much, so she makes the joke with a quiet snort. ]

We're not that much alike. I never gave a shit about whether someone deserved it or not. [ But it's no great surprise to her that Eli is a better person than she was, either. ] ...There's a lot of shit to be angry about. In your world and in mine. People's stupid fucking preconceptions. The way the world is. The choices we make to get by in it. It's hard to stop being angry when the world won't stop reminding you why you're pissed.

[fullmoonmutt]

...one halfwolf to a...? [ Thinking, thinking, uhhhh. ] Oh, shit, that's why you wanted my teeth, huh?

[ PHRASING but still. It's not like he completely ignored that jealous look from before. He looks at Maika with renewed curiosity. ]

Do you think your world will ever stop pissing you off?

[bloodandstars]

[ PHRASING... for just a second the look in her eyes says she's considering thwumping him again, just because. ]

Did you think I was just some human with strange hobbies the entire time?

[ Actually, she's just not going to replay any of those conversations in her mind, for fear of dying of cringe. Moving on. ]

...Probably not. But I found some things — some people I don't hate about it. [ And she pauses, but he's probably due her embarrassing herself a tiny bit to make up for snapping earlier: ] And I got sick of hating myself. So maybe I don't need to burn the whole continent down just yet.

[fullmoonmutt]

...I ain't answering that question.

[ The first smart thing he's done today. Wow. ]

Huh. People you don't hate about it.

[ Well, he has mom. He has the Spades unit, however distant they are. If it weren't for being stuck in that godforsaken city... ]

Guess all that nonsense about bonds isn't total bunk. I mean, I feel like. I could burn down everything, sometimes. What if we just hadn't retaken Sydney? The, uh, city. New capital, I mean, where I'm at. My life would still be the way I wanted it. I liked that life. Only everything would be worse for everyone else.

[bloodandstars]

[ Pup... who is like two weeks younger than Maika and considerably taller, but that's not the point. Pup.

She very magnanimously decides not to thwump him again. ]

I've got no loyalty to their goddess here. But that might be the only thing she isn't full of shit about.

[ Angry, prickly, tired Maika still nonetheless has never doubted just how vital bonds are. She just doesn't want to humor Braphine about it. She gives a little shrug. ]

Victory isn't all it's cracked up to be. What comes after can be the real hell. Is it worth it? If you could go back, would you?

[fullmoonmutt]

[ Would he? ]

I mean, mom wouldn't be hurt anymore. We'd still be with the crew. If she hadn't...

[ This is where he balks even considering such thoughts. It's not great. ]

If she had just... the guy running the operation... he was going to get a lot of folks killed before she intervened... If she had just let him do it, our lives wouldn't had to have changed. But she didn't. 'cause that isn't how she is.

[ Meaning, in the end? He can only sigh and sulk. ]

Nah. That's what it would take to go back and I don't want that, either.