lunaecalamitas | 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

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Us Northerners were called away on a mission, in the same vein as everyone but the West has so far.

[That's not much of an answer!! And he is well aware of that.]

[ And Day is noticing that! ]

Gotta say the disappearin' act's new. [ Apparently all of them poofed. ] How're you holdin' up? [ He knows the heals have been handled, but he still feels he ought to ask. ]

Mm~ [He gives a shrug.]

I'm fine, given I managed to walk here. [Rather, he took the elevator and walked to the main entrance.] None of this is my blood, and I weathered everything in the battle easily.

[Proud of himself, isn't he?]

[ Weirdly enough that's...kind of reassuring? Norths. ]

Oh, good. So I'm guessin' the manastones are...?

[ Whatever they fought? Probably? ]

Magic folk unaffiliated with the sage, and thus us. [He raises the bloodied coat for emphasis.]

They presented themselves as enemies, so you could say that our actions were initially motivated by self-defense.

[Which very quickly turned to something else entirely.]

"Initially"?

[ For what it's worth, Day doesn't sound judgmental, just curious. If Itha says these people came at them, then, well, Day can't say don't defend yourselves. ]

I cannot speak for the others, but I eventually just wanted them dead for the sake of making them dead. [Meaning, he wanted to murder.

And he got it. That's why he looks quite pleased with himself, despite all the blood and bruises.]

[ Day, sipping his metaphorical tea while he listens to this: Hm,

He is reminded of a saying in the division: Sometimes, serenity is being rid of a hated foe.

...And he supposes that's what this is, sort of. ]

I guess lookin' so pleased with yourself is pretty earned, then.

But of course. [Perhaps a little more than "pleased with himself".

He looks like an adrenaline junkie who has finally gotten the challenge he craved. Except all he did was kill, and not sweat for much else.]

Is it not natural to feel accomplished after a kill? [Perhaps for monsters, it is.]

I can't say I know when I'm terrible at killin'.

[ And he means this both because he hasn't killed another person yet and because he's always sucked at hunting. ]

Terrible at killing? [Ithaqua's eyes narrow slightly.]

Seems like a very inefficient way of saying I've not killed before. After all, you either do, or do not.

...My bad.

[ He can't really protest since Ithaqua is, basically, correct. ]

But no, I ain't killed anyone yet, so I wouldn't really know how it feels.

[ "Yet" because Day knows that's always going to be looming over him back home until it one day happens. ]

[Not so difficult, was it!]

And perhaps you'll not find out. Though I wonder if that is a curse or a blessing. [Given Day's personality... Hm.

Hmm.]

Oh, I think... [ This feels like such a morbid thing to say, Day realises, but Ithaqua just came back after the Norths all fought something, and the mana stones are proof that something (or someone) is now dead. So honestly, this just fits the mood. ]

I'm definitely gonna end up havin' to kill someone at some point, it just ain't happened yet. [ he says this very neutrally, like it's a fact. It's the inevitability that's been impressed upon him both in training and anecdote. ]

Hmmm.

[He blinks those big, black eyes, and then tilts his head. He's not unlike an owl right now.]

I wonder how you would change afterward, then.

[ Day finds himself looking back, but his expression is harder to read. ]

...Honestly, I ain't got a clue either. [ He's thought about it but never been able to actually...imagine how he might react. Or rather, every time he tries it feels more surreal than it probably ought to feel, even for a hypothetical. ]

No, no, it's something you must learn for yourself. [He waves the hand laden with mana stones for empahsis, even if he can't gesture too much in case he drops the coat.] After all, taking a life reveals something that you would have never foreseen about yourself.

You think you know yourself, but you really, truly don't until something happens. Murder is one of those things.

I'm assumin' that was the case for you?

[ Though he does believe that Ithaqua's right. It's why he dreads the day he has to take someone else's life, for whatever reason it ends up happening.

Day thinks he's also been through one of those things that reveals something about yourself, but...well, taking a life is a different matter from having to start your life over. ]

Yes.

[Such a simple answer.]

I discovered that I could do it over and over and feel no remorse.

thousand dreams, lotus boats upon the waters

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