WEEKS 7 & 8

[linkupmods]

WEEKS 7 & 8

THE SEASONS TURN...

Time really passes, doesn't it? Before you know it, you're halfway through the time that the goddess Braphine has promised that you'll be here, your home away from home. You are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, maybe, even through all the challenges and eventful (!) twist and turns that have followed you through your stay here. Surely there can't be anything else lurking in the wings, right?

Through the efforts of all of Braphine's chosen, the city definitely is starting to feel a little bit cheerier, in contrast to the temperatures that are starting to cool as the seasons in Sunset City turn and the leaves change their colour. The Shopping District and the Entertainment District look and feel decidedly more warm, and a quick trip into the Nekyia also show that the haze has cleared from both districts, with the Shadows lurking much fewer in number.

Further exploration will find that the haze has thinned to explorable levels in the Nekyia Fashion District - there are Shadows to be cleared, after all. Maybe if you are lucky, they might drop you a little something in reward for your efforts.

DO YOUR PART FOR CHARITY!

On Saturday, there's a notice pinned in the lobby of the dormitory:

CHARITY EVENT FOR THE TEMPLE OF BRAPHINE
9/21
FLEA MARKET AM
FORMAL MASQUERADE BALL PM
Come and support the temple when we need it most!



Yes, you read that right: There will be a Charity Event for the Temple of Braphine, hosted by no one other than her devoted followers. They sent this over to the dorms to request the Chosens' assistance, it seems, and as the flyer says, this is an all-day event to take place on September 21st.

In the morning, there will be a Flea Market! There's a note from the hosts that they'd like the Chosens to either find a vendor to assist, provide entertainment, or participate as vendors in the Flea Market. At night, a ball will be held with live music, dinner, refreshments, and an open dance floor for all. They are not asking for your assistance with the ball, however; rather, you are automatically invited as esteemed guests and are encouraged to dress your finest for the occasion!

Given that this isn't for another week, however, it is highly encouraged that you shop around to find an outfit you'll look snazzy in for the ball. You can also start preparing merchandise to sell; or maybe, perhaps, you'd like to save that street performance for the Flea Market? Either way, you've got a long week ahead of you…

…but it won't be all rainbows and sunshine.

KEEP DREAMING.

Late into the night on Saturday, you will dream. What that dream consists of varies with each individual, but you will have one, even if you've never dreamed before. This dream could be a core memory, or perhaps about something you've always wanted, your worst fear...the list goes on.

The next day, anyone who enters the Nekyia will find that, aside from the strange "Palaces" that have popped up, things aren't right yet again…but for an entirely different reason. No matter where you are, you enter the Nekyia to a hallway full of dressing rooms. It's a fairly long hallway, because venturing down it will eventually lead you to a door that has your name on it.

Why don't you journey there and find out what awaits?

–

After seeing "Sayaka" and finding your door, you'll find something even more strange.

That dream you had last night? Well, it's here. Your dream may manifest as a small, contained landscape from your dream; a creature that you may have dreamt of might be scurrying around; another version of you, different from a Shadow; or you could be unlucky and have one of your memories on full display for everyone to see.

This phenomenon will last for the next two weeks, and dreamscapes will shift with the different dreams characters have. It won't be a one and done ordeal, unfortunately…but there is, perhaps, a way you can stop it.

(OOC: Sayaka's top level is NOT time sensitive, nor is it a mod-run event. This can be treated like a regular top level to be tagged at your own pace!

Please see the "A Dream Unraveled" commission for some details on what's causing the dreamscapes to appear! Welcome to your dreamwalking/memory share event!)

WEATHER FORECAST

Temperature: hot and humid, but gradually getting cooler! Surprise showers may occur during these two weeks when you least expect it, so stay sharp and don't get drenched!

Characters who journery into the Nekyia when it is raining may find HP-restoring items dropped during combat with Shadows.

COMMISSIONS

REAL WORLD COMMISSIONS

BATTLE OF THE BRANDS

Two boutiques on Amaranth Avenue have been at war with each other - figuratively, at least. The sweet lolita brand Cookies for Mice and the punk brand Panthera Punks started out merely vying for advertising space, but have now been taking rather pointed pot shots at each other in their marketing. As the shops are across from each other, it’s plain to see the owners are taking it personally as they can’t seem to stop glaring at each other from across the road. Won’t somebody help mediate before it escalates any further…?

AN ALTERNATIVE CANVAS

Up-and-coming makeup artists are looking to land a job with a new makeup brand in the area, and their final test: finding a model (or two) to model their work and prove their skill. Characters will find that these artists are on the prowl for willing (or not so willing) faces - but at least you’ll be compensated for your patience as they endeavor to make you look your best?

FISHY FUN FASHION

Saffron Street has been chosen to host a highly regarded fashion show! The theme: aquatic life. They need models of all sexes and sizes to walk the runway in ethereal clothing that brings to mind deep sea creatures like bioluminescent jellyfish, or even angler fish! For those who are not brave enough to walk the walk, volunteers are needed to help maintain the large, specially made tanks the city’s aquarium has generously lent out for the occasion. The tanks are full of friendly fish and plant life to create the perfect backdrop for the show! …You know how to use diving gear, don’t you?

NEKYIA COMMISSIONS

THE LION AND THE MOUSE

She thinks she’s so great… I’ll show her! We don’t need her prissy, holier-than-thou attitude around here! We’ll see how she behaves when her shop’s reduced to shreds…

It seems the owner of Panthera Punks having beef with the owner of Cookies for Mice isn’t just a real world problem - she has her very own Shadow in the form of a level 30 Narcissus. Take him on in battle and help to loosen its grip on her in reality before things get much, much worse.

HER HEART WON'T GO ON

How could he… After all I’ve done, after all the money I’ve spent… He leaves me behind for her?! I’ll make him pay… I’ll make them both pay!!

It seems one of the local models has had a rather nasty breakup, and the ex and other woman may end up suffering a rather harrowing fate if all these feelings of anger are left to fester… Characters who follow these angry rants will find themselves face to face with a Level 32 Leanan Sidhe, a jealous lover all too willing to enact a very real harm on those who wronged her. Fight back against the Shadow and teach her the value in moving on from a lover who was never worth her time to begin with.

A DREAM UNRAVELLED

Deep in the Nekyia, whispers and wails can be heard; a fashion designer bemoans their dearth of ideas, and hotly defends their choice to steal their designs instead. After all, this was their dream, and they can’t give it up now - no matter the cost.

Characters may find the Unfaithful Dream-King in a nest of collected dreams of the populace - including some of Braphine’s own chosen. He will be a powerful opponent for sure, but it seems solving this particular Shadow problem is the only way to ensure everyone can have a good night’s rest once more.

Once he is defeated, he will drop a rare item. Who knows, maybe this will help you in your journey ahead.

(OOC: Please turn in your threads for this commission on the rewards page to receive a stat boost item, valid for one time use during any battle.)

OOC

READ ME!!!!

Welcome to your log for Weeks 7 and 8! Feel free to use this log for any developments that happen during the next two weeks. There will be no log posted next week, but a top-level for the charity event will be posted instead on next Saturday!
For plotting, please feel free to head over to this post on the OOC comm to post your plotting top levels.
For Nekyia commissions, you can assume that the Shadows will respawn until they've been beaten enough times to go back to normal.
Don't forget that the deadline for applications and character swaps is on September 28!

ic comm | inboxes | ooc comm | full nav

code

Comments

[prozaic]

[Shalem tilts his head. Seems as if he's getting to Soujuurou. So he simply cuts through the chaff.]

What was it they raised you for, Soujuurou? What were you meant to be, for them?

Or did they never tell you that?

[emptyself]

...

[ ...

he sighs, his gaze pained with guilt. a part of him feels guilty for continuing to question it, even now when his current life and the mountains are worlds apart, but... ]

I'm not really sure. But I've wondered before...why they needed to train us like that in the first place. Whenever I think about it, I feel like they had to have a reason beyond self-defense but...

[ he doesn't know it. or, if he knows, he can't bring himself to admit to it. the discomfort is clear on his face, as it's something that he knows he shouldn't even be questioning in the first place. and yet he has before and continues to do so-- the grave sin he keeps committing over and over again. ]

[prozaic]

I shall tell you what I saw when we encountered a little feral boy and chased him until he became tired of fleeing. [Shalem shakes his head.]

I saw someone who was trained not to defend themself or others, but someone who knew how to kill with their bare hands. I saw someone who hit all of the softest spots on a person's body, and watch their victims survive only because of sheer luck.

People don't raise a child to do that unless they were planning on using those skills, that strength, unless that child is the means to an end.

[emptyself]

You’re saying we were being trained to be murderers.

[ soujuurou understands that he only attacked because he felt like he was going to die. it was a struggle that any cornered animal would take, because it’s simply the nature that’s been engrained in it.

but then what happens when you live on that boundary of life and death constantly? where every day is the same and yet any day could be your last?

in that case, the concepts of life and death simply lose all meaning, leaving nothing behind. and a human that cannot distinguish between either could barely be considered a human at all, could they? what could that be, if only a tool?

… ]

Yeah, I figured as much.

[ and yet, that longing remains in his tone like a bitter aftertaste. ]

[prozaic]

[Shalem stays silent for as long as it takes Soujuurou to say it for himself-- he's not so arrogant or condescending to think that the boy wouldn't be able to come to the conclusion that the serpent had been gently shepherding him to. And when Soujuurou finally does? He gives a grave nod.]

Yes. Such goals are achieved by any means necessary, even if it means changing the child entirely to something they can control.

You saw it, did you not? How our butler always affirmed who I was according to the script. [And perhaps even the way their god Himself came, and always for Phantom-- the Troupe's Solitaire, their Diamond.]

If I had stayed with them, I would have become yet one of those masked dancers in crimson, taking aside the audience one by one, and giving their heads to the Master for His favour. I don't remember who I was before they told me what I was to them. Do you?

I would consider you fortunate if you do... but also unfortunate.

[emptyself]

I’ve never lived anywhere else but the mountains.

[ in other words, there was no self before the mountains— it could be argued that there was no ‘self’ in the mountains either. they were all well-oiled cogs, moving in perfect tandem to survive the harsh environment. it was a life where you needed nothing, you wanted nothing, and, in consequence, you got nothing. the purest form of life, removed of any excess that could slow down or sully the mind.

which is why soujuurou still feels the weight of his questions far more than any other heavy weight he has carried. because they’re all unnecessary things that only cause him pain, as his wish for a better life is thoroughly incompatible with the life of nothingness he had been raised in. ]

I didn’t even know there was any life outside of the mountains for a long time— I thought that was just how everyone lived. That’s all I ever had.

[prozaic]

Which means... you had nothing. [Well, he still doesn't know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing!

But organizations like theirs have never been good.] You're the perfect blank slate for them. And, looking at you now... I doubt they ever made an attempt to change that.

It's too late for me to change my ways, and I can only suppress who and what I am until the day I die. But you? You are young, you can learn to find yourself away from them. I want to help you with that.

[emptyself]

Does everyone have to call me that...

[ he's not the first to call him a blank slate. nor is he the second. and something about that fact irritates the young soujuurou further. he knows he shouldn't be, that shalem isn't necessarily wrong, and that the snake is simply trying to help but...

frustrated, he sighs. ]

I'm sorry, Shalem. But there is one thing that you're wrong about. I understand... I've understood for a while that their purpose was for something bad. And, obviously, I don't want to become a killer.

[ even though he has nothing, that his life was probably prefabricated for a horrible purpose, soujuurou desperately wants to hold on to that one thing that made up most of his life. ]

I don't know if I was happy there. It was tough, and any day could have been my last. Actually, now that I think about it, I probably hated it. But that's still my home. I don't want to lose that, even if it's fake.

[ that field of flowers, the beautiful autumn weather, and the stars that used to be so close that soujuurou used to think he could reach out and touch them. he doesn't want to lose that too. ]

...But I know I have to change. Every day, I get farther and farther away from the person I was back then. It scares me. What if I can't recognize the person I am?

[prozaic]

Hmm. [He's thinking! Let him think.

He makes a circuit around the room, tail flicking behind him. It's more animated than usual, when it simply used to drag on the floor and only moved to wrap around something, usually his leg to stay out of the way. Every so often, he looks back at Soujuurou, gazing at him like he's looking right past his skin and into his very self.

Then, eventually:]

Soujuurou, how old are you?

[emptyself]

[ soujuurou watches closely as shalem begins to pace, perfectly still in the center of the path.

he wonders what it could be that troubles shalem so much, but once he asks his question, soujuurou figures that he’ll get his answer soon. ]

17. Is something wrong?

[prozaic]

You're quite young, not even an adult. [Which is a concern, but also a relief-- Soujuurou is still young enough to be able to turn his life around with a bit of pushing. The sort of pushing just depends on how he'd react to said pushing. Quite paradoxical, and yet it makes sense.]

Every day you get farther away from the person you were back then, but you are seventeen. One day, you will become eighteen, and then nineteen, and then twenty. You may emphasize that, however...

A person is not the same person they were at fifteen when they reach seventeen. Many things happen in the span of two years when it comes to children, all because you're still growing.

Even as an adult, it's typical to not be the same person at thirty as you were at twenty-one. [Oh, he just aged himself... and casually dropped a hint as to how old he was when he left the Troupe.]

What are you truly so afraid of? The comfort of knowing for certain, in the face of a lifetime of facing the unknown ahead of you? That is merely called the inevitability of life. Of growth and maturity.

[emptyself]

So people are constantly changing, is what you mean.

[ soujuurou mulls over this fact, his expression unchanging. maybe there's a hint of discomfort on his face, at the thought of this so called inevitability. ]

I think that's the part that scares me the most-- everything in the mountains was always the same from one day to the other. If it weren't for the change in seasons, I would believe that I just lived the same day over and over.

[ wake up. train. wake up. train. wake up. train. a life of pure monotony to the point where not even day and night mattered to them. ]

But I think you're right. Even one day in the city is totally different from the next, so in a year I'm sure that I'll be a completely different person. I just... still don't know what kind of person I want to become.

[ it'd be nice if someone could just point him in the right direction and let him go but... well, even he knows that's not going to happen. ]

[prozaic]

[Shalem stops pacing, and sits down on the Victorian settee. But he never removes his eyes from Soujuurou, simply navigating with the help of his tail.]

You just need someone to guide you. [Oh look, it's as if he read Soujuurou's mind--

No, Shalem was already guiding him to this sort of conclusion with all of his prodding.]

Someone to say the right things to make you think, and help you come to a conclusion.

[emptyself]

[ as before, soujuurou continues staring back at shalem, like a cat focused on its target, wondering if it's an ally, prey, or a foe. a neutral look, but his instincts don't allow him to look away. ]

I guess you're right. [ he nods curtly, arms to his sides. ] I just have one question. [ he pauses, reassessing whether or not this is a good idea and... ]

Why are you telling me all of this?

[ because you're doing plenty guiding here, shalem. it makes soujuurou wonder if there's a particular conclusion that the other wants to get out of him. ]

[prozaic]

I wonder. [Shalem leans his elbows on his legs and laces his fingers together. Does he manspread? Yes, absolutely. But this is his room, his furniture, he's allowed to do that.]

You are the way Phantom and I once were, but we didn't grow quite right with all the cracks in us. We are men who are an active danger to all those around us simply because there is no more to be done for us. You on the other hand... There's a chance for you, still.

And I will assist, whether you like it or not.

[emptyself]

Oh… uh…

[ soujuurou blinks, genuinely perplexed by the answer. a part of him can’t help but feel like this is a strange echo of when two girls were fighting by his semi-conscious body over what to do with him.

well, as long as this guy doesn’t want to put a collar on him or feed him poison, it can’t be that bad.

he gives shalem a quick bow, artificial and genuine at the same time. ]

Thank you…? I’ll be in your care.

[prozaic]

[Shalem gives a little nod, before standing. He moves towards the door and opens it, as if to say "time for you to go".]

Time for you to rest. [Close enough!] If you find you're unable to sleep, have a mug of hot cocoa.

[emptyself]

I will.

[ hot cocoa...he's seen it in the market before, but he's never actually tried it. maybe he should have one anyways. he walks to the door and, right before he leaves, he turns back to shalem, eyes bright. ]

Good night.