thousand dreams, lotus boats upon the waters

[promittere]

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

Comments

[shortleash]

0. since recovering... (not quite a prompt, but sort of)

( ... Mika's been avoidant. He'd been laid up in bed with in Ginger's room (their semi-shared room, at this point) all week since returning from East's mission, drifting in and out from feverish sleep as he tossed and turned from sickness due to moon exposure. Ginger handled feeding, and visitors were (mostly) welcome - but Mika was barely sentient, not totally sensical, and seemed terribly clingy and worried about most people passing through, as if obsessed with the idea that they were striding off into great danger.

Since recovering - though he presently still feels a little bit woozy - Mika has been avoiding other people, especially of crowds. It's partly embarrassment (he said some weird things while sick, and he was... embarrassing), and partly... something that's hard to define. But there are times he's within earshot of others (and his earshot runs wide) where he'll suddenly frown, then turn on his heel and leave. Weird.

At least he's not feverishly talking about the moon and its love anymore. That was definitely weirder.

If you want him somewhere around the manor, you can find him quiet places around evening and night - tending to the rose bushes he's been working on with Ginger, up on the roof apparently relaxing as he looks at the sprawling scenery, or out training his magic and with his rapier in the forest around the manor. You can, strangely, now, on rare occasion, see him around during day, too - though still only inside the manor. He continues to never be outside during the day, if he can help it. )

i. hot springs

( Mika's not one to hop into random hot springs, but he can be found investigating them between missions. Here he is crouching down beside one, studying it - neither touching nor seeming keen to get in - as if it were somehow strange.

Really, it's because he's only ever seen hot springs on TV - and that was years ago. He'd basically forgotten they existed. It's... interesting to see them again, and he doesn't find himself wholly indifferent, like at the beach.

It might not be the easiest thing in the world to convince him to get in with you, but it's certainly possible. )

ii. ladies' night

( Though with great reluctance, Mika has, ultimately, conceded to participation in this mission. It does take him quite a few (quite a lot, actually) of tries to get transformation off at all, which is why the end result isn't all too different from his usual self.

He looks largely the same - same exact blonde, fluffy hairstyle, same red eyes, and, honestly? just about the same face - if with vaguely softer features suggesting a glaze of femininity without distinct source. And, lastly: when Mika thinks "girl," he thinks of either of the deceased orphan girls, or a generic Pretty Girl TV Model, so... the latter's the figure he's working with. It's fine. It's embarrassing, but he's can live with it.

You can find a transformed Mika...

iia. Shopping for clothes in the West. This is visibly a challenge, both because Mika hasn't picked clothes out for himself in forever, and also because he's being accosted by some extremely chatty, extremely friendly Western saleskeeps while trying to look at some clothes on display, and he's clearly getting peeved; or...

iib. At the lounge, donning a long, white, military-style jacket, black gloves, a black turtleneck that shows a bit of midriff, white pants, and heeled, black, thigh-high boots. (It's basically the Field Commander's Coat, don't look at me,) He's holding a drink he hasn't touched and is sitting kind of off to the side, on one of the couches, just trying to eavesdrop... but drunk girls keep laughing and falling into him or against him, and trying to drag him into their antics - and he's looking increasingly unamused; or...

iiic. After the party, relieved to be done with it all, lingering at some quiet balcony or bridge a little ways off from the lounge, elbows on the ledge, as he gazes over the bright, Vegas-like lights and vivace of the Western city below. He seems introspective - and tired. He also doesn't seem like he has the patience to be pestered by more annoying humans (Western humans, specifically), which honestly seems to just make the lingering women tempted to bother him some more. There's an Air there. Join him, save him... or just watch him suffer; it's fine. )

iii. sweet dreams

( On a monster extermination excursion to the Forest of Dreams with Mika, you may find...

Discord for memshares, please! Mika's memories range from normal anime boy trauma to uncomfortable, so let's figure out your comfort levels before we discuss anything. We can do a memshare exchange, if you prefer. )

iv. wildcard

( Hit me. Discord to hash things out! )

wildcard

[lighthaus]

[ it's late at night but khun's still in the library, maybe up to no good? he's up to something going by the pile of books, which oddly enough seem to be on less serious topics than you might expect from him: pop culture and village traditions, and other daily life topics. ]

This would be so much simpler with an actual database...

[shortleash]

( Mika has been in the library, perusing the shelves for a fairly specific subject; however, he does not pull out the books he thinks are relevant and set them out in a pile, but instead has slowly spent his time scouring the shelves slowly, extracting each book he thinks is relevant, and skimming them one at a time - before setting them back. He hasn't found a lot relevant to his search, so he hasn't needed to sit down and read much.

He glances back when he hears Khun's idle remark. He'd been aware of him, but did not particularly have business with him (in fact, unlike their meeting before, directly after the beheading incident, he seems very faintly on his guard with Khun in the room).

After scanning Khun's pile, he will, after a moment, turn just slightly more toward him to address him. )

... Were you looking for something specific?

[lighthaus]

[ khun on the other hand hasn't seemed on guard at all, or more realistically, more than his baseline. he's really invested in whatever this research project is.

he looks at mika with a tired sigh. ]

Holidays. [ he snaps the book he was reading shut. ] There's so many of them for anything and everything.

[shortleash]

( Mika shrugs. )

Humans like excuses to celebrate. I'm guessing yours don't.

( By "yours" he means the humans where Khun lived - in that tower - relative to the average human here. Mika's definitely overheard all sorts of talk of varied festivals and celebrations in crowds while in towns here. )

You can just ignore them.

( ... but he's guessing there's a reason Khun is quite specifically researching them, instead of taking note of the quantity and moving on. )

[lighthaus]

Everything is dictated by the King and the administrators of each floor.

[ his world is very rule specific in some areas despite being the wild west in others. though this isn't about his world, so he moves on. ]

I can't. [ does he explain why he can't? absolutely not. ] Most days have more than one holiday—that doesn't even make sense.

Book Giving Day, Library Lovers Day, National Ferris Wheel Day, Valentine's Day, Bonobo Day, Welsh Music Day...

[ they're all foreign to him and he has no idea that one of these is the only real relevant holiday on February 14th. ]

[shortleash]

( ...? )

... You're looking up earth holidays?

( Interesting choice. He's not familiar with all of these things (tf is a bonobo), but he knows the sound of weird earth celebrations when he hears them. )

... Most of those are just... themed days. For promotion and stuff. Like they'd probably let you on the ferris wheel for free on ferris wheel day. But most people don't pay attention to them.

( Free - if that. But the world ended befor Mika could understand the nuances in depth. He definitely remembers ferris wheel-adjacent type days because, as a little orphan child, those promotional days would be the only way they'd gain more affordable access to certain services.)

("He definitely remembers" - or so I wrote, but, really, he'd entirely forgotten until now.) )

... Valentine's day is a real celebration, though. You give chocolate to the person you like and some friends. They'd have to return the favor on White Day.

since you've been goooone-- i mean recovering

[fallingsand]

[ Lurk all you want, Mika, but Bruno is a master lurker himself. Sooner or later, he'll come looking for the saddest vampire ever around the manor, and when he spots him, he'll raise an arm and wave him down. ]

Mika! Hey, Mika! I got it to work!

[shortleash]

( Mika pauses, looking up from his decidedly emo task (emo because Mika is doing it; the task itself is surely neutral) - probably a book. After a moment, he sets it down. )

... Got what to work?

[fallingsand]

[ Stop being emo, emo kid! Which is something Bruno would never say but that's chiefly due to not having 'emo' in his vocabulary. ]

The... the thing! Y'know, the tea! The. The blood tea?

[shortleash]

( Mika stares at Bruno for a few moments, the concept not at all ringing. He knows Bruno is kind of this tea guy (he has the scent of it, probably), but... blood tea... what...

Then - Oh. Oh - right - ah - jeez, he was so fried when they last spoke.

... Bruno actually did it???? )

... You made it work??

( Literally just repeating Bruno but. It's possible ??? Did he taste it himself or...??? It's possible ?? )

[fallingsand]

Yes! Aaand... I... also made the tea I swapped the flavors with taste like blood. So. Yep.

[ He did taste it. He tasted both. He's been doing this for awhile. He probably smells like blood in addition to what is definitely mint tea, assuming vampire senses are simply that good. ]

Recovering

[mirristry]

[Phil too has been largely avoiding others since returning from the mission, in part due to his own need for physical recovery after that and in part because he feels too rattled, too emotionally raw to feel comfortable around anyone else right now.

He slips out of his room on occasion to go get some tea from the kitchen, and it's on one such trip downstairs - hair loose rather than in its usual side plait and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders - that he happens to spot Mika heading back to his own room and just

sort of

freezes.]

.......

[Well. This is awkward.]

[shortleash]

( Mika noticed Phil first by his presence, then by his scent. He glances up at him as they're about to pass, if only out of acknowledgment and without particularly social inclination, and he sees... his reaction.

He presumes Phil is sour with him about the whole human thing like Yamato and Shinjiro, or perhaps that he blames Mika for his recklessness that could have endangered the rest, too.

He hesitates, guilt needling at him. Then, he glances away. )

... It's fine. You can keep going.

( You can stay mad at him if you want. Jing Yuan said that he should try to make amends, but... if Phil just freezes up, then he probably doesn't want to talk, and it wouldn't be fair to force him to make amends. )

[mirristry]

[Phil's scent is ever-so-slightly different now compared to what it was before they'd left on their mission, the rot seeping a little deeper, spreading its poison just a little further. It would seem as though Mika isn't the only one who didn't emerge from their experience unscathed, unfortunately, though unlike Mika he can't point to any one specific thing as being the cause... rather, it was an inevitability, the eventual physical consequence of his lack of medicine finally catching up to him.]

I...

[He too pauses, hesitates. It's unpleasant, feeling like the still-unhealed wounds from that day are being jarred open once again, and he couldn't meet Mika's eyes even if the other were to choose to look at him.]

... what you said back in the City. Do you... truly believe it's human nature to be stupid and selfish?

[He's not sure what he wants the answer to that to be, honestly. 'No' would make him a hideous exception to the rest of humanity, but 'yes' would be just as damning in its own way with the implication that his actions were simply a function of what he is.]

[shortleash]

( The quiet scent of Phillip's encroaching rot fills the air steadily, and it puts Mika on edge - makes him pause, uneasy, as if its terminal point were much closer than Phillip claimed it would be, and it cast a heavy shadow over them now.

For the first time perhaps, he considers his answer with more nuance than he's willing to mention. He will not compromise on his view of humanity just to appease his team, nor will he lie. But he can at least be honest. )

... I've seen humans hurt more people than they've ever helped. Can you even imagine what billions of people look like? That's how many died at once, thanks to humans. And more die every day. More hurt and kill to survive. More get kidnapped for experiments, which continue anyway.

There aren't any heroes. Just people who think they're right.

( And the ones who hurt always think they have privilege to harm.

A beat.

His gaze slowly trail back to Phillip. )

Humans are self-righteous like that. They are greedy, selfish, and short-sighted. They'll do whatever it takes to get what they want. It's just baked into what they are.

( He won't let his naivete harm the people he loves. He has to be staunch, for them - or so he believes. )

... I don't think... every human has to be that way. I think... there can be exceptions. People who try to be more than what they're made of. But... I can't judge all of humanity by those exceptions. That's all.

[mirristry]

["Can you even imagine what billions of people look like? That's how many died at once, thanks to humans."

The words are like a knife to the heart. Just how many people had died as the Voidstorm engulfed the world? He doesn't know. He'll never know for sure, and he hates it, because he feels like every single name should be engraved in his memory like some sort of living cenotaph. He can't stop himself from flinching like he's been struck, or from pulling the blanket a little tighter around himself as though it will somehow shield him from the eyes of people who aren't even there.

He has to swallow a few times to choke back the lump that threatens to close off his throat. The familiar hot sting of tears burns his eyes as he closes them, tries to center himself enough to keep from sobbing aloud the moment he opens his mouth.]

... I... I see. I can't... say that you're wrong. Humans are selfish. Selfish and arrogant. Even if that isn't true of all of them... does it really matter when it only takes the actions of a single person to destroy everything?

[Because that's what he'd done. That's what he's always done. He destroys everything he loves... or is it that he destroys them because in the end he doesn't truly understand what it means to love?]

iic! after after

[lustro]

Mikaaa, there you are!

[ Mika probably heard the sounds of wings and wind before he heard his name. There's no landing. Just wings and then slender arms that wrap around his neck from behind, the fingers familiar in the way they're long and elegant, though the knuckles and angles are not as prominent. What's not familiar is the cascade of blond(e) hair that fall over Mika's shoulders.

The voice is different in form, but the same in timbre - bright and affectionate around Mika, always. ]

Look! I did it.

[ Super belated. The party is over, the dancing and socializing are done, but!! Ginger has finally finished his transformation. Praise him, he worked so hard... Struggle... ]

[shortleash]

( !

His instinct knows it's Ginger before his mind puts a label to it, turning to look back and finding an fresh face, but familiar features. Of course he'd know his own heart.

But there is - a pause, that follows his recognition. When Mika says he sees Ginger for Ginger, he really does mean it, for better or worse - Ginger, in his mind's eye, is comprised of his thoughts and his words and his gestures, and not so much his surface. Picking out what's shifted in his beloved's and finding what's new - what he can't help but love, too, because how could he hate any expression of Ginger, in any form? - he finds... by necessity, his attention drawn to that same surface he's taken perhaps for granted. )

... You did.

( A bit of a lame answer, because he's pulling himself out of his thoughts.
He gently lays his hands on Ginger's arms crossed over his chest. Ginger's limbs are way more slender like this, huh... and he can definitely feel how much softer his chest is. )

... You look... really good.

( Weird for Mika - he kinda wants to see all of him. Is pretty the right word? It feels almost not enough. "Gorgeous" and "beautiful" feel so unnatural to his vocabulary, though - almost pretentious and fake, from his lips. )

... Is it weird if I kiss you right now?

( Genuine question. He can't decide. Is Ginger comfortable with it? ... A kiss is easier on his lips than words. )

[lustro]

[ Ginger’s answer is a happy smile pressed into Mika’s cheek, the apples of his cheeks slightly more rounded than usual, lips a touch fuller. Then he pulls back, head angled forward, lips parted on a please - waiting for Mika’s kiss. Make it deep? Let him taste? ]

[shortleash]

( ! ! !

It's familiar, but different - like the rest of Ginger, right now. More importantly, that was so cute... Ginger is so cute...

He turns, chasing Ginger - pulling him in by the waist (ah, he's a little more slender now,) like he's not all that sure how to angle himself against Ginger this time, the both of them filled in in ways he's not yet used to - he needs to hold on, like he's finding balance.

And he kisses him - fumbling and a little more awkward; a little unsure, but still deeper, unaccustomed to the way it feels different, body pressed to body, lips to lips, to kiss - well, a girl while you're also one.

But he doesn't dislike it (because it's Ginger; he can't really dislike anything that involves his heart) - it's a little weird, for sure, but he likes doing these new things with Ginger. Just Ginger. (His curiosity wanes some without him.)

He'll break it eventually, pulling back in a way he usually doesn't, because he wants to get a good and proper look at Ginger. Ah... )

... You're really soft.

[lustro]

[ He comes to Mika easily - is it a pull if Ginger’s the one who rushes to close whatever gap is left? It’s different, with so much give between them - and Ginger thinks he might have made himself a little shorter on accident? He’s still taller, maybe, but not by much.

The alignment of their lips is not quite the same, but it only takes a slight shift for them to slot together - and then it’s the usual distraction of tongue and taste. Mika is as sweet as ever, and Ginger drinks him breathless.

He feels… hot… in a new, less obvious way. There are new wants to this that have him shifting on his feet. A little antsy for something he doesn’t understand yet.

When Mika pulls away, he’ll see that Ginger’s not in uniform this time (it doesn’t fit his new form, obviously), but a long, loose blouse. White, it falls over his new breasts in a flattering way - not on purpose. Ginger had just chosen something similar in theme, but that his mom wouldn’t shake her head to. He’s not brave enough to wear a skirt, so simple black leggings and black flats complete his look. His long hair falls everywhere. ]

You’re the one who’s soft, Mika. You look so…

[ Ginger trails off, heart beating fast from the kiss - and from Mika’s innate beauty. Everything is softer, but Mika’s always been soft to Ginger - soft heart, soft happiness. Now he looks like the light has brushed him in coy strokes, blurring his edges and making him radiant in a new way. Are his eyes a little sharper? His lips a little pinker? Ginger’s mismatched eyes track every new detail. ]

You’re always so… dazzling. Wow…

iii. sweet dreams;

[foresightis2020]

[ It is quite chilly; chilled to the boned when they walk into the Forest of Dreams, daring to brave whatever lies deep within its trees. For him, not quite an unusual sight, but despite whatever tends to occur whenever one ventures here, Jing Yuan doesn't see himself staying away.

No, in fact, when Mika ends up going on a monster extermination quest, Jing Yuan accompanies, hearing the sound of a creature's call far beyond.

Not that it matters much, since the forest may distort before they go much further. ]

...Keep your focus sharp. The hallucinations that are woven are not a simple matter.

[shortleash]

( Mika can't say he's fond of the North; it's hostile and oppressive, yes, but it's discomfiting, the way it feels like the spirits don't want him here. Too weak for their appetite, surely - but it's bad enough that he feels the hatred of the sun bearing down at him for half the day already; he'd rather avoid places too crushing to exist in, if he can help it.

Fortunately, the cold and the toxin don't bother him much, as a vampire - unfortunately, that means he has to be much more careful keeping up his spells warding against the cold and hallucinogens much more carefully, because his body has no built-in alarm against it. He might not mind the cold, but he can still freeze into a fine block.

And he can certainly still hallucinate. )

... My ward feels steady enough. ( He keeps himself alert, his gaze searching for distant rustles in the trees - his attention fixed on that monster they're hunting. ) Do yours?

( His attention is a little too fixed on the monster, perhaps. As they walk in the deafening quiet of the forest, the soft crunch of snow begins to echo, faint - sounding, oddly, like footsteps on marble. But it can't be marble, can it? )

[foresightis2020]

[ Then there's also the potential for snowblindness...what fun for everyone and the family, huh.

Anyway, Jing Yuan also certainly has his spells up on his end, prepared for whatever may be upon them. He's had more and more time to perfect spells of this nature ever since his foray into the forest before, which seems so distant, though he had been practicing something to that effect even before that. ]

They do. I've ensured that they're as strong as they can be.

[ There's a pause at him hearing the strange sound...certainly enough for him to make commentary on. ]

...Do you hear that?