look at me, i'm the wound you tried to hide

[promittere]

ANDANTE ALLA WANING CRESCENT

Another day dawns for the Sage's wizards. It's been a month, now, since arriving in this world and being given a task nobody seems to fully understand—though after the jobs the Southern and Central wizards have taken on, it seems like it might just be possible after all.

And it seems like there's another task for the wizards, from the Eastern nation. However, unlike the other requests the Sage has been fielding, this task is far too big for five wizards alone. This is a task everyone will need to help tackle, whether they like it or not. Those that aren't particularly altruistic will still be whisked together by Tatara and Lazuli both, and they may still find the journey...illuminating. Answers to what happened to the original wizards may be just within reach.

Traveling via the elevator at the manor is familiar to some of you, at least, Lazuli setting a mana stone into the control not a surprise in a the slightest. The fact all of you can, somehow, fit in the elevator comfortably may be a surprise, but it's best not to dwell on it too much. You'll be staying at the City of Rain, Lazuli tells you with the air of someone reading you a court sentence, but you've been tasked with clearing up the site of some sort of disaster. He doesn't have much information beyond that—a fact that seems to greatly annoy him—and he warns you not to break any of the City of Rain's laws well before you're out of the elevator.

Which that shouldn't be too difficult, right? Right...?

Perhaps not, as the rules of the city are extreme. There are certain areas which forbid socialization and talking entirely, some areas where only talking to strangers is forbidden, only a handful of businesses allow chatter of any sort, and the list goes on. The most pressing law of all, though, is very simple: no use of any sort of magic within city limits. Do your best to follow the rules because breaking them will result in an arrest, and do you really want Lazuli and Tatara bailing you out? With the rules laid out and lodging sorted, Lazuli ushers you to the site you're tasked with dealing with. You will have downtime to explore the city, though, as it's expected to take several days to clear things up.

The site is a terrible, terrible mess. In what must have once been a peaceful patch of wilderness, there now sits a terrible gouge in the earth, several meters deep and twice as wide across, hollowed by what must have been a powerful force. The dirt is gray and sandy, dead in the manner the Southern wizards will recognize. Plants on the edges of the crater are dry and withered and splintered and broken. Permeating the air is a lingering dread, one both Southern and Central wizards will immediately recognize...

But it is clear now, now that your magic is considerably stronger, that the spirits are agitated by the disturbance in the fabric of magic. Dark clouds hang low over the site, and low thunder rumbles in the constant threat of a storm that will never come. The spirits' agitation, coupled with the dread hanging in the air, will feel uncomfortable, and perhaps leave the more sensitive of the bunch feeling on edge. This is not something that can will resolve on its own, so your most important task is to calm the spirits. That means doing the things they like: playing music, dancing, praying, telling stories, wearing fanciful and whimsical clothes to soothe their temperaments.

Your second most important task is to clear out monsters. The unusual energy in the air is attractive to beasts magical in nature—they slink out of their hiding places in the deep wilderness to the area, and their presence is threatening the humans who regularly use the nearby routes for trade and to commute. Kill them, take their mana stones for yourself. Win-win.

The third task is general clean-up. Remove the dead plants from the earth, remove the broken trees and any natural debris that might prove to be a hindrance. Characters are more than welcome to search inside the crater for any hint or clue as to what might have caused this strange explosion, but they'll find the site picked clean, earth having fallen into cavities where there might have been larger objects present at one point...like someone was here to clear out any evidence.

JOB BOARD

Reinforcement. Peace in Granvelle Castle has been restored. A liveliness and energy has returned to the castle and the surrounding parts of the city that hasn't been seen in nearly a month. Thank your Central friends for their hard work!

Their issues aren't quite resolved, however. The castle is asking for help in creating and then reinforcing a magical barrier around the castle. The barrier is a bit bigger than what one wizard alone is capable of at this point, so band together to create and reinforce what parts you can. Perhaps it's not a bad idea to use your own hair or blood as a conduit.

The type of barrier is specific, however—they want one that masks magical signatures. If you step inside, you'll feel a faint, but powerful presence within... What are they guarding?

Recycling. The Eastern country is known for its expertise in all things mechanical, particularly when it comes to clockwork. While not as bombastic or flashy as Western technology, the use of magic and mana stones being deeply frowned upon and rejected, Eastern artisans can create truly fantastical things just with gears and cogs and a bit of know-how... But, of course, sometimes it's better to scrap something and create something new than let the old items waste away, so some Eastern craftsman have asked for help gathering clockwork automatons and other creations in order to melt it all back down. Some of them seem a bit nervous and harried, but it's an easy enough job to scrap automatons and cart junk around.

Monster hunting. The few settlements in the North have been sending in frantic request after frantic request. There has been a disturbing increase in monster activity in the North, and the native Northern wizards are as unreliable as ever. They need your help in thinning the numbers, and that's all they really ask for—you can keep all the mana stones you earn.

For those of you who haven't been to the North yet, the weather is harsh, no matter the season. Protection on oneself to survive the negative degrees is crucial; make sure your magic is up to snuff enough to keep yourself at least room temperature. And using your magic to battle on top of that? This isn't going to be an easy job, not at your level. Be cautious, and good luck.

Mana areas & amulets. You've been here for a month now, and living in an unfamiliar place, alongside unfamiliar people, using unfamiliar magic must be wearing you down. Isn't it? In that case, it's time for the last piece of your wizardhood puzzle: your mana area.

Mana areas are spots where wizards feel most at peace with themselves, most whole, and a place where they can refill on the emotional load they've been chipping away at for their magic. It can be a specific location, or a conditional circumstance. Find more detail on the magic page. Your task—given to you by your sage and your mentor—is to traverse the continent, find your mana area, and recharge your batteries, so to speak. While there, make an amulet to take back with you, like a portable battery.

WANDERER TASKS

Listen to the spirits.

You've been here long enough that it's time to see if you can actually communicate with the spirits who've laid claim on you and have been empowering your spells. Try your listen and see if you can hear what they have to say to you.

OOC Note: For those attempting this task, ping one of the mods and roll a dice! Based on the dice roll, your character will get a little tidbit from the spirits... Or they might not hear anything yet, but they can always dedicate themselves to their studies and try again after leveling up!

TATARA ACTIVITIES

Don't make promises.

If you've made a promise, don't break it.

If you break a promise, you'll lose your magic. And I don't know if I can help you anymore or send you home if that happens. I'm sorry this is so late. But please...be careful.

OOC NOTES

🌙 Welcome to your third event! Everyone's lasted a month, congratulations! Keep working on your magic, keep forging those bonds.
🌙 As your characters settle into the world, they might find themselves irresistibly drawn to crowds, to music, to dancing. It's hard to resist the allure of a gathering, and it's hard to keep yourself from swaying to music when it fills your ears, no matter what sort of person you used to be. You're changing...
🌙 As we enter the second month, we are announcing a deadline for finding your pairs. This will be Friday, June 14 at 11:59 PM EDT. Remember, you may submit a guess at any time, and there is no penalty for getting a guess wrong, so long as you have a thread to back up your guess and consent from your partner. The pair page is here.
🌙 Your OOC plotting post is here! Remember to keep all wider plotting on this post, as not everyone checks plurk or discord frequently.
🌙 Next up for missions is East. Let's hope they don't have to talk to anyone for this one.

» NAVIGATION

Comments

[impacter]

MUKASHI MUKASHI

[For the duration of their time in the East, Solomon has exchanged his normal coat for a cloak of simple white, the hood kept down and draped along his shoulders. It makes him a relatively easy figure to spot, as well as one to avoid those times that the hood is brought up.

It's in the boundaries of their mission, where magic is finally permitted, that he lets his image play. Illusions aren't easy as one from the North, and he can only manage it on the one piece of clothing. But golden shapes dance along the fabric like the tide of the ocean, his hood kept up as he explores.

The dread can practically be tasted on the tongue. It's something truly cursed, perhaps, that's wounded the land and unsettled the spirits. What to do, what to do.

...

While he can be found helping with the defense and cleanup in short bursts, he is most often found... talking to nothing?

Talking to nothing, it seems, wand out to act as a simple source of dancing light, the man swaying his cape with almost dramatic gesture at times. There's a flow to his speech - that of a weaver of the mysterious, to draw in with his wares, his words, the mischief of the unknown and unknowable. Come, come, to person and beast and spirit. Come and hear him weave.

He is a storyteller. Lend him your ear.

Should he notice one of his fellow wizards has stopped to listen, he will abruptly stop with a tilt of his head against the shade of his cloak's hood, his smile as pleasant and unreadable as ever.]

Curiosity is a good look on you.

Won't you come take a seat?

AMULETS
[As quiet as it is in the City of Rain, Solomon tries to at least find areas that allow some speech when it comes to looking through shops. What exactly he's looking for isn't incredibly obvious, given how he seems to flit from shop to shop without purchasing much of anything.

If he does come across another wizard, he will stop what he's doing to tap gently at their elbow.]

You don't look too busy. Mind doing a little window shopping with me?

LIKE HELLFIRE

[It's the third day of their time in the East when a commotion starts in the middle of the quietest parts of the city.

Nothing specific has happened. A simple walk, early in the morning, avoidant and quiet. But like a switch, Solomon suddenly chokes and falters as though struck.

An agonized inhale for breath echoes too late before a hand clamps to his mouth, his other digging into the fabric of his shirt over his chest as flickering orange light begins to build. He stumbles, legs shaking and eventually giving way, tipping him to slide against a wall with dead weight and slowly curl in on himself, shaking violently.

Whether it is because of the noise, the apparent presence of magic, or something else entirely, the ruckus has not gone unnoticed and soldiers are already on the move. But Solomon either does not see, or does not care.]

WILDCARD
[If you would like prompts for the North Mission, for mana area searches, for monster hunting or for cleanup, just let me know and I'll write us a starter!]

mana area wildcard

[leewards]

Mmm~

I'm honoured that you'd chosen me as a companion for this excursion. [Is that a hint of sarcasm he injects into his comment? Perish the thought.

(Okay, maybe a little.)]

Though, guidance in finding my mana area is something I don't quite need, I've already my ideas. Amulets though... we shall see.

[impacter]

Then think of it as an inescapable teamwork exercise, Ithaqua.

[Ithaqua's sarcasm meets just the slightest tinge of Solomon's polite sass as the sorcerer drapes his cloak over his shoulders, working on fastening the ties as his broom sits in wait.]

Or maybe, even, just a break from our duties? If you really have your suspicions on your mana area already, then that just makes our task less of a chore. Besides, this should be something pretty beneficial whether you need guidance or not.

Who knows? I might just find an amulet for you~

[leewards]

I do appreciate the help, heheh.

However, there are two people here. [He means Solomon and himself, of course.]

What of your mana area, then? Unless you've already found yours, thus giving you no reason to need to come with me anywhere.

like hellfire

[fallingsand]

[ Hey, guess who's been avoiding people since that possession ordeal but is still at Solomon's side immediately when he goes down? It's Bruno, of course. He's been drifting around the city during the earliest hours. As luck has it, he'd been lingering nearby, just out of sight, waiting for Solomon to leave this particular street, but... ]

Shh, shh, Solomon, you need to be quiet.

[ It's with frantic whispering that he greets him, though even that breaks the "no talking" rule in the area. Bruno has seen the soldiers, so much to his chagrin, the first thing he does is bid Solomon to try and quiet down, but logically, he knows that's impossible considering his chest is on fire?! What even?!

Crap, crap, crud, crudity crap, they need to move before they get arrested. He reaches for Solomon's arm, trying to haul him up alongside him as he stands. ]

We have to go!

did i have to make a new icon for this thread, unfortunately yes

[impacter]

[bruno why

His chest is, indeed, on fire - a contained blaze over the left side of his chest that shouldn't be able to exist, but still does, not leaving a mark at his clothes but still causing him very, very clear pain.

Solomon has crumpled by the time he hears Bruno, doubled over with heaving breaths behind the press of his own hand. What does Bruno think he's trying to do, give a street performance???????? The charisma has no room to come, though. Only pain, burning pain, sharp and hot and destructive, as though it might crawl through him from the inside out.

When Bruno yanks at him, all he can do is gasp, like a man trying to choke for air in the swells of the ocean. Go.... they have to... go...

His grip shakes as he reaches for Bruno in return, fingers digging into his shoulder to force himself up with a gait that just threatens to tip them both over at any moment. He can barely think, where are they... where are they going...

With more words spoken, what crows have milled about for the morning start to disperse away from the duo. The sound of marching gets closer, ominous in the lack of speech that follows it.]

solomon not smiling, terrible, just terrible

[fallingsand]

[ As long as he's up and moving, Bruno can't argue how harshly he grips his shoulder, although the stumbling gait isn't about to help either of them. Normally, Bruno is particularly hard to catch, but that's when he's on his own.

With Solomon slowing him down, they can only move along with what an increasingly worried Bruno feels is a plodding pace, but how can he bid him to try harder? His chest is on fire? Plus if he says even more, won't they be in tons more trouble?! This is a no-win situation but, hey, he still tries.

He turns them down a street that leads them toward an area where speaking is allowed in some places. It's still a ways away, though, and those footsteps chasing them are getting ever closer. ]

Amulets

[themanwhoerasedhisname]

You're assuming too much.

[But also is right, he's not busy. That's why Kiryu nods]

What are you looking for?

[impacter]

I was right, though, wasn't I?

[Teehee. Hello, Kiryu-kun.

Anyway.]

I'll know it when I see it. Amulets can't be just anything, after all.

Amulet

[troublereduction]

[ Day was already doing a bit of window shopping himself, though more because he's just curious about what the shops sell period. He looks up with Solomon taps him. ]

Hm? Sure. Ain't like I'm not window shoppin' myself.

[impacter]

Ah good! Maybe we're after something similar. [He pulls his cloak a little tighter against his shoulders.]

Which end of the city did you come from? I wouldn't want to overlap.

throws a wild card for monster hunting;

[foresightis2020]

[ The howling wind is merciless, alongside the biting chill threatening to send them into a deep freeze. There is also the sound of a creature's monstrous cry in the distance, but whatever it is, they haven't neared close enough to engage it just yet.

Despite it all, Jing Yuan merely smiles in the face of the biting cold. He never lets anything get to him for long. ]

It seems we'll be having our work cut out for us, won't we?

[ Hopefully, Solomon is up to whatever awaits, however. ]

Time to murder and eat some rocks, normal senior living

[impacter]

[Enchantments are still a work in progress, always seeming farther away and harder to complete than any of his attack spells. But at the very least, he can keep a pocket of warmth on him while his concentration is stable. The edges of his coat whip in the biting snaps of the wind.]

More or less. There's a reason this country needs wizards desperately in order to survive.

[His wand is already drawn, though he doesn't hold it at the ready just yet. Animal or magical, beast or giant -- would it make a move or retreat? It's enough of a calm taken to try and assess that which they can't see yet - better to do it now than in the midst of a fight.]

We'll just have to see if we can live up to the people's call. How are you in your combat skills, Jing Yuan?

amulet

[lustro]

You trying to start a fight?

[ Hackles raised, teeth bared... as he starts to follow Solomon. Hmph. ]

[impacter]

[heehee]

Now now, no need for a show of threat, Ginger!

If you're that busy, I can search for amulets on my own.

amulets

[revengier]

[ It's easy enough for Kurapika to walk about town in complete silence, which is what he ends up doing for most of his stay here. That's why he's a little surprised to be tapped on the elbow, and he turns around, eyebrows raised.

Ah. It's Solomon. ]

Not at all. What are you looking for?

[impacter]

An amulet, of course. At least we can take some of our downtime to fuel inspiration, right?

[It's also easier to focus on the tasks at hand to distract from the Stressors that have plauged the manor since Central's return. Everyone seemed to be in such varying states of coping....]

It's easier to think of ideas with the perspective of good company. So would you mind if I take your time for a little bit?

Amulets

[dyingtohealyou]

[Damn... caught.]

...Fine.

[impacter]

Perfect. I could use your opinion.

[Come along now, kiddo. He gestures for Ahito to follow.]

It's good to see you up and about so soon.

mukashi mukashi

[divineth]

[Of course Urianger's going to be drawn in to a dramatic storytelling session, so here he stands once Solomon has finished.]

I was not aware of thy storytelling ability, Solomon. 'Twas an opening act most gripping.

[He'll go ahead and take a seat as requested.]

Dost thou intend to continue?

[What was the demon's name, huh? Huh??]

[impacter]

[Ah, a receptive audience! He takes a sweeping bow with a swish of his cloak.]

High praise. We'll see if the spirits are as generous as you, my dear Urianger.

[As far as continuing the story at hand, his smile merely widens, just slightly, a narrowing of his eyes as a finger comes up to his lips.]

What stories do you know of the birth of demonkind?

mukashi mukashi

[fellheart]

I would not call it curiosity so much as a lack of preference for what sources I might partake of knowledge from.

[ if he learns something novel, all the better to stave off the tedium of existence. ]

Of course, should you prove to bore me with whatever story it is you're weaving, I'll gladly take my leave.

[ so go on, entertain him. spin your yarn. ]

[impacter]

[He draws his fingers across his lips as his opposite hand sweeps his cape open, a half-curtsey in greeting.]

To grow as a sorcerer means to stretch your comfort zone and find knowledge within yourself. There is no such thing as an empty ocean in which to pull from.

[aka get good fellow grandpa, knowledge is subjective]

Mmm... perhaps you deserve a different type of story? Are you the fae king of my evening, I wonder?

Mana Area Wildcard

[jorunna]

[ Their current enemy for finding a good mana area... Is the nighttime weather right now. It's a bit too cloudy. At Solomon's discretion, the two have decided upon some nightly activity to sit down and pass the time. Every so often, the two stare up to check the sky. ]

Did you happen find an amulet while out shopping?

[impacter]

[Have you ever played croquet with magic, Comet? Because that is what Solomon is teaching them how to do, the space around them lit only with little star-like flares of Solomon's own making, following both them and their equipment around thanks to a very simple enchantment. Solomon only keeps the spell moving for one makeshift wicket of light at a time, just so that he doesn't exhaust himself.]

I did! I had to go searching around with quite a few people to find something close enough to use without transformation magic.

Once we have a better view of the starlight, I'll make sure you get a peek. For right now, though, it can be my secret~

How about you, Comet?