lunaecalamitas | thousand dreams, lotus boats upon the waters

thousand dreams, lotus boats upon the waters

NEW MOON ADAGIO

Between the constant requests from the North and the sense of tension that pervades the manor, Sage Tatara makes an executive decision: we're going North, baby.

Of all the things that have happened thus far, let this be the ultimate test of your magic. Even as we near summer, it's frigid. Protect yourselves and your allies from the cold. Protect yourselves while also fighting off monsters (or other territorial wizards, should you make the terrible mistake of wandering into another's territory), flying through the vast wilderness, or protecting the poor humans who need your help to survive. Time to blow off some of your steam. Just be sure to obey Tatara's one rule: don't kill each other.

One particular problem of note is in the Forest of Dreams. Without its guardian, many of these rogue monsters and dangerous predators, displaced from their normal habitats, have found their way into the forest. Many of them, however, are unable to survive against the fatal toxin, and there are plenty of animal corpses and mana stones that litter the forest. It might be best to clean these up before the forest guardian returns...

That said, the toxin is yet another thing you must protect yourself against in addition to the cold. While you can likely keep yourself from dying from the toxins, you may not be immune to its effects. This deadly toxin causes anyone who breathes it in to dream and hallucinate vividly, be it images of the past, imagined futures, thoughts of the present processed and warped...

Strangely enough, those nearby may end up sharing in your dreams... Did you want the darkest recesses of your thoughts, hopes, and fears unearthed for others to see?

Those who decide to venture far past the more populated (in relative terms) parts of the North may find themselves stumbling upon what looks to be an abandoned bandit hideout. It seems it's been abandoned for quite a while—nothing to loot here, sorry!—but there sure are a whole lot of monsters that have decided to make this hidden corner of the North their home.

While you're at it, you may find a nearby cave. Beautiful crystals dot the walls and the floors, and there are small pools of hot spring water free for relaxing. It seems to be relatively free of monsters, too. So maybe this wouldn't be a bad spot to relax, away from everything else?

However, there's one thing that makes this cave truly unique, and it isn't the vistas or the springs—it's the bats. These bats hear echoes of the past and replay them for visitors. Should you stay a while and listen, a bat may pay you a visit. And when it does, it may play for you the voices from the memories of visitors past, whose stories may hold a clue or two to your circumstances...

While the Forest of Dreams is a memory/dreamshare free for all, the aural memories replayed by the bats in the Cave of Time will come from one of the original wizards only. If you'd like an audio replay of a perhaps significant moment either in their personal life or a clue as to what happened to them (it will be randomized), then please reply to this comment!

JOB BOARD

Clean-up and repairs. While thanks to the hard work of your Eastern friends the worst was prevented, the City of Rain emerged from their short ordeal a little worse for wear.

Buildings need repair, blood needs to be cleaned off the streets, the injured need help. This is, perhaps, the only time you will be allowed to use magic openly in the city (you've been given permits and everything!), but you still are not allowed to talk outside of designated zones. Please, please don't get arrested...

As for the scrap that litters the streets? Unfortunately, you'll have to take it back to the scrapyard. But this time, there's a big, roaring bonfire out there. Just chuck all the scrap and debris in the fire. The city isn't taking any second chances—extreme situations call for extreme measures.

Reverence. Several Northern villages are currently outside the protection of a wizard, and have requested the sage's wizards' presence. They're terrified of the monsters and worried the barriers for their villages will fail sooner than later. They don't simply ask for help for free, however, and these smaller villages are steeped in their tradition—they'll pay you their respects, praying to you, offering you gifts, groveling at your feet, in hopes for a modicum of your time and protection. Do their offerings please you? Then assist them with what you deem appropriate for their worship to you: kill a few monsters for them, or a lot if you're pleased. Strengthen the barrier a lot, or not at all if you're displeased. It's up to you! You have the power here. What's it like to be a god for a day?

Ladies' night. The monthly lady officers' gathering is coming up in the City of Affluence—it's an exclusive meetup for the women involved in and related to Western military and bureaucratic affairs. Anyone is welcome, so long as they meet two requirements: they are outwardly presenting feminine, and they have an invitation to the gathering. Here's your chance to flex your transformation and glamour spells! Infiltrate the meetup with a disguise and a fake invitation, mingle, enjoy the drinks, the jazz, the entertainment, and find out what you can... What's the Western army up to? Be careful, though—don't get caught and kicked out!

The attendees seem to be excited about the new phantasmagoria technology and the upcoming display, and many whisper about the upcoming Venator meteor shower...

G'RAHA TASKS

Greetings, new friends! I am G'raha Tia, and while I hesitate to call myself a mentor or a replacement for the one you had, I am eternally grateful for the assistance I received and will do my best to help your cause in any way I can. To that end, I feel I may need to be caught up to speed on the events and get to know all of you.

We can have some tea and sandwiches and have a discussion! That's the best way to learn, sometimes.

TATARA ACTIVITIES

Even if we're not here for very long, I think we should leave our mark (not literally! Don't paint on the walls!). I got paint and big paper in the dining hall, but no brushes... Do you know what that means? Finger paint! Finger paint a portrait of yourself with your name and I'll hang it up in the library when they're all done!

Thanks to Cid and Khun, my camcorder works now. The thing is, what's the point of filming anything if we have no way to watch the film?! Could you guys work together to make some kind of projector? Or like...VHS player? We could have a movie night together!

OOC NOTES

🌙 Welcome to your fourth event! It's your dreamshare and memshare event! Ready to open up with your deepest and darkest secrets?
🌙 We're halfway through the game. How do you feel?
🌙 Back at the manor, Kurapika and Maya have set up a bulletin board! Leave comments, argue with your neighbors, have fun. Be nice. Don't set it on fire.
🌙 On the admin side of things, Lav has swapped out Wanderer for G'raha! Please say hello to your new mentor NPC.
🌙 Your OOC plotting post is here! Remember to keep all wider plotting to the post, and remember to check back frequently, since not everyone checks plurk or discord all the time.
🌙 The next country to go on their mission is North. Do you think a PVP-enabled mission will go well?

» NAVIGATION

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I think my friend realized how important it was to me to go find a doctor for him, so helped me.

[ And it's why he didn't mind cheating, because it got him closer to his goal. ]

[ self-righteousness is such a heady drug, isn't it? it inoculates against doubt. it guards from criticism. it is the poison that leads you to be blind to any belief that detracts from your own.

to the end, walhart believed himself true. he cannot have been the only one of his kind, for him to have amassed such a following. on an academic, purely utilitarian level, robin can understand walhart's logic, but not the means.

chrom, though. now, there's a topic both more and less fraught. ]

... Chrom was my friend. He wanted to be nothing like his father, a man who he later related to me must have greatly resembled Walhart. [ says robin, carefully. ] I supported him, yes. I swore to, when he threatened to waver and break in the wake of his sister's death.

[ and perhaps, what may not be a surprise to jing yuan, who has already noted the traces of sorrow in his gaze earlier, and may now note the continued used of past tense: ]

He has, however, been dead for longer than I actually ever knew him for.

Yeah. But...you know, it's alright. I've found better people to trust, now. That's what's important, I think.

[ A big revelation for a guy who was brooding over this when he got here, so! ]

It was a pretty bad move, though, yeah.

[ Isn't it just?

Well, he has been assuming that the topic concerning Chrom would not involve discussion of the man having passed away. But those assumptions are simply incorrect; evidenced by the way the other refers to him in the past.

Though what truly is the ultimate confirmation is the final statement Robin makes afterwards, regarding his state. ]

...Even though it must have been for some time, as I certainly don't know how long you must have known him for, I extend condolences for such a loss.

Losing a dear friend is never easy; and no matter how much time has passed, there will always remain a hole where they once were. Even if moving forward every day without them is a necessity.

[ Speaking from experience, really. ]

A little bit. Though I'd like to hear about them from you as well.

[ Multiple perspectives are important. ]

It's the mafia themselves.

[ He breathes out, slowly, some of the rage dissipating. It isn't enough, though. He can still feel it flowing through him, the eyes in his arms a conduit for it. A reminder. ]

If you think you can take all of them out, be my guest.

[ It's harsh, but that's what he expects of Khun. He'll tell Kurapika his honest thoughts without any worry that it might hurt Kurapika's feelings.

The breath he lets out is sharp. ]

It's that obvious, isn't it? That I hate killing.

[ That it breaks him, scatters pieces of him that he can never get back. ]

[ With a little bit more blending, the eyeshadow is done and he snaps the palette shut. ]

Practicing it on myself so I could create a more convincing disguise.

[ He reaches into his bag, grabbing eyeliner. ]

I'm going to put this along the top of your lash line. Try not to blink.

Yeah. Protect that part of yourself, however you can.

[ kurapika probably already knows this, but he feels like he needs to say it again anyway. ]

[ The mafia...

...

Well then. That makes things a bit complicated, doesn't it? Not that he imagines he can simply upend matters to such a grand degree in a memory — even if it is interactive. Though, he will do his best, and see where it leads. ]

I'll find a way to do something about it — about them. Even if I doubt I can manage it now, and it truly sounds like an ordeal.

But...better to give it a try than to do nothing instead.

[ Protect it...

It's one thing to know, but another thing to hear it from someone else. It feels as if the wind has been knocked out of him momentarily, but he finally takes in a soft breath. ]

That would mean giving up my goals.

[ Which is the answer he comes to time and time again. ]

Does it? Find someone like me. Find someone you can share that burden with. Just don't bear it like you have been.

[ khun thinks there's a lot of options, but kurapika has to be open to them first. ]

[ This really wasn't the encounter he was expecting, but... he can't say he's angry over it either. Which is why he finally turns and faces Jing Yuan, his eyes a bright, burning red. It's the sort of red that's hard to look away from, a scarlet just as intense as the eyes in the box Kurapika has his arms wrapped around. ]

You're a nice person. So... I think you should leave.

[ The rage in his body is hard to contain, and he doesn't want Jing Yuan caught in the crossfire. Facing Jing Yuan, it's obvious that he's trembling, his fingers shaking as well as his legs... it's why he was stumbling as he walked. ]

You see... I don't care who I kill right now. Leave.

[ This man is kind, and he doesn't deserve the wrath threatening to be released. ]

...I'll see what I can do.

[ His mind immediately goes to Akira, but he can't put that burden on him. Someone kind like him should never have to kill, and so... that's why Khun is right. It should be someone just like him. ]

There aren't many people in my world like you that I can trust.

[ Because despite everything, he really does trust Khun. ]

[ he smiles, wry. ]

Maybe try smiling more. Even people like me can't ignore that. [ that's the closest he'll get to a compliment here, and he tips his head to signal they should get out of this woods while they have the chance. ]

Mm~ [He stretches his arms.] Where to start.

I suppose I shall tell you that we were forcefully brought to the North because the barrier for the City of Ice had fallen, and the chimera was the culprit. As it was bearing down on us, we had little time to prepare.

In the middle of battle with it, two Northern witches appeared not just to attempt to steal our kill, but also kill us-- wholly unacceptable, of course.

That almost sounds like a compliment.

[ Khun likes his smile? This is news to him, but... he'll take it, he supposes.

And he'll also take that signal, quickly treading back on the path they came into the forest on. ]

[ It's not an easy answer even if it should be. obviously he loves baam and he's okay with it admitting it to tatara and even others here. but admitting it to baam himself? he still doesn't want to burden him and it's not like he'll get that chance anyway. ]

I don't know. [ ...though, that's a copout. they said they weren't doing that anymore, so he screws his eyes shut and just focuses on the sound of tatara breathing, the feel of him on his skin. ]

...no, I wouldn't. He's dead and—there's a lot of other things I'd need to tell him first.

[ maybe after that, but it's impossible to imagine and he doesn't want to put any hope in his mind that he'll get that chance. ]

But I think I would say it to Maria. I'll tell you about her one day soon, but not today. I'm— [ tired. cold. selfish things. ] sorry.

[ he really wants to, but he feels like if he talks about them both right now he'll get entirely lost in himself. ]

[ He nods. ]

Right. [ It's absolutely unacceptable. ] Did they give a reason for wanting to kill all of you, or were you just in the way?

Oh, they specifically wanted us.

[He's quite casual about it, and even takes a break to sip at his tea. He's not too bothered about the fact that someone tried to kill them-- they're already dead after all, and Ithaqua enjoyed himself in the act of making them dead.]

They wanted the chimera, and our mana stones. [As tends to be part of the North attitude.]

[If there's one thing G'raha will do willingly and with zero hesitation, it's work hard. Maybe too hard, some times, but he's good at it!]

I imagine it is quite the common feeling, amongst all of us. This has been quite a big shift for us...

[C'mon, Shinji, lighten up a little!]

I appreciate the offer, and I shall keep you in mind if I need any assistance. Though saying that, what is it that you would consider to be your "department"?

[Let him get to know you... It'll be fun...]

Almost.

[ out of the forest they hopefully go, dodging all the memories along the way—

yeah right.

the scene plays out similar to kurapika's, clearly the memory of a distant past.

By Order of the Princess

when it's over, khun's affect is mostly flat, though not entirely. ]

...see what I mean? [ let someone like him deal with killing others, someone like him who felt no remorse for driving his own sister to suicide. ]

Yeah? Really? Look, my family and I may have our issues, but. But my sisters? They aren't bad parents. I know that they love their kids.

[ It would have been infinitely more difficult to decide to vanish for a decade if they hadn't, oof, what a dreadful thought. ]

And the reason they wouldn't take me too iiiis... because... [ There's a long pause. He's trying to think of a reason. However, the best he can do is, ] I can't think of a good reason but if I had one, you'd be like, oh, yeah, that makes sense, so how about we leave it there?

[ He hadn't realized that he had been holding his breath until Khun finally speaks and all of it leaves him in a rush of an exhale. ]

...You told me about this, and yet... it's one thing to see it than it is to hear of it.

[ To see the lack of regret in Khun's eyes, the matter-of-fact way he spoke of his betrayal.

It's something that Kurapika finds that he needs to process. ]

[ Bruno can run fast! Which might be surprising. He does have to sprint to keep up with Urianger's longer stride, but he does so without issue, missing tree roots and underbrush. It won't matter in the long run, however, since they'll find themselves escaping into another thick fog no matter which way they go and Urianger will find himself abruptly alone.

Alone and indoors, even, rather than still in the forest itself.

He finds himself in a narrow space between two walls, light barely filtering down through cracks in the wall and the smell of dust thick in the air. From the framework and supports visible, one could easily surmise they're not only in a house, but inside the walls of it. For a tall elezen, he may find himself somewhat cramped.

Ahead? A door. It certainly doesn't look like it belongs where it is and yet it is there, perhaps having been placed by someone at some point. Voices come, too, muffled from behind it, although one has a familiar uncertain, mumbling pitch to it. ]

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thousand dreams, lotus boats upon the waters

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cw; suicide, violence

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this memory provides like 80% of my icons i stg