you opened your eyes, spreading it wide

[promittere]

THIRD QUARTER ALLEGRO

While our newly-arrived wizards have been settling in, learning their magic, and getting to know one another, the sage and their mentor have been busy with a different kind of work behind the scenes—bureaucratic work. It hasn't been particularly exciting, but it has paid off.

Because now, the world is ready to receive them.

Put on your finest clothes, because Granvelle Castle invites you to a welcome ball in your honor.

Didn't bring any fine clothes with you? No need to worry—specially chosen tailors from Central Capital have been commissioned to take care of you, and they will be visiting the manor to get you gussied up in the fashion of your choice for the day (by this, we mean feel free to pick whatever fancy clothes you want for the ball).

As the sun sets on the designated day, all the residents of the manor make their way to the castle. Granvelle Castle stands proud in Central Capital, its lights a beacon in the darkening city, and its doors open to outsiders for the first time in weeks. Upon arrival they're greeted by brightly lit halls, welcoming staff, and a grand ballroom, windows flung open to let in the spring breeze and pale moonlight. Everyone and everything seems determined to make this a cheerful affair, despite the underlying sense of dread and tension.

Live music fills the air, played the greatest musicians in the world. There are some larger ensembles, solo acts; some pieces are of more traditional folk dances, while some are slower, and some are upbeat and avant-garde. Regardless, the floor is open for dancing—grab a buddy and dance the night away!

Lining one wall is a long banquet table, filled with plenty of food and drink, both alcoholic and non to sate the new arrivals. The hors d'oeuvres and small plates comprise an array of delicacies from around the world, with everything from savory lobster bites to the sweetest portions of tres leches you have ever tasted. It seems someone has also put in a specific request for Japanese food—a part of the banquet table has been set aside specifically for Japanese dishes, and this includes small portions of ramen. There also seems to be a plate on the far end of the table filled with lovingly stacked pieces of charcoal... Is that meant to be food?

You aren't the only ones in attendance tonight. Representatives and dignitaries from around the world are also present—they have quite a lot to say about the unusual situation, and they are most curious about these otherworldly individuals tasked with fending off the moon under their national banners. The most dignitaries are from Central, West, and East, while there do seem to be a few representatives from the less populated North and South. Those from Central, West, and South in general seem to be the most social, while the rest are more reserved. There are also a few of the castle staff that seem (begrudgingly) willing to speak with the new wizards. Most are here to chat and mingle—lend them an ear, you may learn something new...

For those tired of socializing, the ballroom opens out onto a breezy, spacious balcony. It looks out over the main thoroughfare leading to the main castle entrance, and the nighttime lights of the Central capital twinkle in the near distance. For those that would rather take a breather, there is a small patio table and a couple of chairs. Despite the waxing moon in the sky, it is a very nice evening.

If you would like to have a chat with an NPC, then please respond to this comment. NPCs will be assigned randomly if no preference is given. While everyone has something valuable to say, they're not giving potentially sensitive info out for free—let's hope your diplomatic skills are up to snuff. We're doing our best to give everyone meaningful conversations, so please bear with us!

JOB BOARD

Rejuvenation. Thanks to your Southern friends' hard work, the South has been saved from a potentially devastating crop failure, and these fledgling towns can continue to grow as they're meant to! Give them a pat on the back and a round of applause.

But the South is not without its scars. While the root cause has been taken care of, the damage has been done. A town's wheat field has been partially destroyed—help them tear out the blackened, dead wheat, till and fertilize the soil, and replant what can be replanted. The City of Clouds, the most prosperous of the Southern settlements, have also offered extra tools, hands, and seeds to help set the town back on the path to recovery. Transport these supplies to the town. Let's hope your broom skills are up to snuff too, because it's a long ride.

Shadows in the night. The residents of the Central capital have recently been reporting eerie sightings after sundown: shadowy figures lurking in corners, the constant feeling of being watched, and, in some extreme cases, these shadowy figures attacking when traveling alone at night. Many reports seem to indicate an odd concentration of these creepy figures lurking around the Granvelle Castle moat, as though trying to find a way into the castle. Residents are understandably frightened and unnerved and cannot go about their nightly business—beat back what shadows you find and make the streets safer for the Central capital residents.

While physical attacks don't seem to do much against them, they dissipate rather easily under magic. Try not to wear yourself to the bone, though—there are a lot of them.

Escorting nobility. The Eastern Blanchett noble family have called an important meeting, inviting nobles and others of import from across the Eastern Country. However, their castle lies beyond Sherwood Forest, a very large, dense, and deep wood—while a fine natural defense for the Blanchett family, it's a bit of trouble for those looking to visit. While the Blanchett's own forest guard is absent, it is your job to safely escort these nobles to the Blanchett abode, and back out. But be careful: lurking in the shadows amongst the trees are all sorts of territorial predators like bears and wolves, not to mention the magical beasts that sneak up on unsuspecting prey. You may come across a brigand or bandit or two, since the forest is a near perfect hiding place for illegal activity. And please—try not to get lost.

Typical of any Easterner, the nobles are reluctant to make much small talk and are a bit suspicious of the new wizards, but they are otherwise pleasant and will generally comply with most requests.

WANDERER TASKS

Can you go a week without ruining food or the pots and pans? Stop being so wasteful and learn how to cook or stop trying.

Learn how to use magic to repair things. Again, if you're going to keep ruining the kitchen at least learn how to put it back together.

TATARA ACTIVITIES

I need milk. I'm trying to perfect latte foam art, but I haven't really gotten the hang of it yet... I used up all the milk (oops, sorry!), so I need more. Actually, could you grab me other kinds of milk while you're at it? I want to experiment! I'm sure other markets in the farther reaches of the world will have weirder milk... Please!

We should start a veggie garden! Or an herb garden? Doesn't matter! I found a nice sunny patch of grass in the training forest—we could dig up that spot, right? Help me get it set up! I need people to dig, and till... Oh! We need seeds to plant, too! Please and thank you~

OOC NOTES

🌙 Welcome to your second event post! Get out your snazzy outfits. It's time to party.
🌙 As you grow into your magic, your character might start realizing they can differentiate between everyone's magic. Everyone has a unique signature, and you may be able to start sensing who cast what, where. Someone put a magical seal on the kitchen door? Smells like Shinjiro's magic. Akira had some of Solomon's sugar? You can sense that, too!
🌙 As you start getting past the basics, your character might realize they have a much easier time with certain kinds of magic over others. For North, this will be offensive and attack spells; for East, this will be intricate seals and curses; for West, this will be manipulative magic like illusions and transformation; for South, this will be healing, purification, and protection. Central? A little bit of everything. Read up on your country if you need a refresher!
🌙 It's been peaceful at home in the manor thus far, hasn't it? Do you think that will last?
🌙 Your OOC plotting post is here! Remember to keep all wider plotting contained to the OOC post, since not everyone checks plurk or discord frequently.
🌙 Our next group to go on their mission is Central. Be ready, heroes...

» NAVIGATION

Comments

sometime at night when we still have our central wizards

[lighthaus]

[ It's a fine evening, isn't it? Late enough for the moon to sit high in the sky, but not so late that everyone but the nocturnal critters (and wizards) are abed. Everything seems as it should be, and nothing will immediately alert you to the reality that something is terribly wrong.

No explosions, no yelling, no clanks of metal against metal or fist against bone. So maybe it's sheer luck that brings you to the courtyard this night, to see the scene painted before you in red. Two figures stand opposite each other, eyes locked, posture rigid.

The first is Khun Aguero Agnis, blood splattered down his front, knife drawn and dipped red. The other is Mikaela, a distressing amount of blood splattered down his front, and more spilling free from the gaping wound in his neck, half beheaded with his rapier drawn. Somewhere nearby, cracked and abandoned, is a pair of attractive-looking spectacles.

Can they even perceive the world around them? Well, it's probably not the best idea to leave them to their own devices either way. ]

[impacter]

[Guess who's on the roof, and guess who is very quickly NOT on the roof at the sight of red splattering down in the courtyard.

Solomon's broom dissipates mid-flight as he drops onto the stone, wand extending with an immediate precision to throw a barrier between both parties. He says nothing else, but he isn't going to let that down anytime soon.]

[annihilator]

[Thanks, Solomon. Here's our other resident vampire, looking at all of this with an exasperated expression. He's going to go to Mika's side, adding as he goes:]

If any of y'all are able to offer Mika blood, that'd be real helpful, he's probably gonna need it when he regenerates.

[He. Can regenerate from this, right?? He's pretty sure Mika's got some incredible regeneration skills compared to Malice's own but like?? Don't die on us, Mika??]

[serenesinker]

[Yodarha offers a silent nod as thanks.]

[mirristry]

[Phil chose a terrible time to take a walk, clearly.

Still, Solomon's interference is timely, though he's got one arm raised to cast his own barrier if it looks like it's going to be needed.]

I'll reinforce you if it comes down to that.

[foresightis2020]

[ A fine evening indeed.

Jing Yuan is strolling in the midst of the courtyard for his nightly grandpa walks, or something...like that? Whatever, the details are not important.

What is happens to be the fact that there is a confrontation going on, and it is getting extremely out of control; he knows what frenzied fights look like as opposed to simply sparring. This is firmly in the realm of the latter.

Somewhere in between all of this (maybe others' interferences?), Jing Yuan will move swiftly, to close the distance, and suddenly, his voice is booming— ]

Enough. You both have had your fill.

[ His weapon is ready to bring out just in case, aha. But he doesn't draw it just yet. ]

What happened?

[lighthaus]

[ If he was in a normal state of mind, he'd honestly have laughed at this. But he's pretty far from that at the moment. His eyes dart first to the shield Solomon cast and then Jing Xuan.

The knife is still in his hand, though his gaze hasn't strayed from Mikaela. After another moment, low and flat: ]

Does it matter?

[shortleash]

( Between the barrier going up, Jing Yuan stepping in, and Yodarha ripping??? reality??? to make a waterfall???? Mika is still tense, but he's not in instant, immediate danger anymore.

There's - a sound that comes from Mika; a weird sort of - not inhale, but like wind whipping through a tunnel as he turns his head toward Jing Yuan, the half of his neck asynchronous with the bottom half. Blood spills from the split in his neck from the exertion - cold blood, chill like his body.

Though his lips part, no sound comes out, and the cut seems... unbelievably deep.

Guess whose vocal chords are out and whose wound isn't healing and who's lost way too much of that tasty stored blood!!!! :') )

[serenesinker]

What the hyuk!?

[Yodarha was taking a peaceful walk outside before going to bed. So much for that! He rushes over immediately, focus in hand.]

Ougi, Healing Spring!

[The air is cut in front of Yodarha, and out of the small tear in reality comes a healthy flow of healing water. He fishes out a bottle from his pack and captures some of the errant liquid before stepping closer.

His focus is held out toward Khun, a menacing red blade shimmering in the moonlight.]

I'm gonna need ya to drop the knife so I can make sure nothing else happens.

[lighthaus]

No.

[ ...he should probably say anything but that, but that's what he goes with. On the plus side, he can't exactly make anymore moves at the moment with this barrier, so there's that. ]

[dyingtohealyou]

[He shows up when he hears the commotion the others are making and-

uh,

Why is there so much blood again so soon.]

What the... what happened?!

[lustro]

[ Barrier or no, Ginger jumps over it, using his wings to give him the speed and height. He slams into Khun with the intent to crush, to bury him into the dirt, smear him over the stone. ]

What did you do to him?!

[ How dare he - Ginger will kill him - ]

[shortleash]

( !?!?!?!

Mika was standing down but know he's shoulder-slamming against the barrier!!! Let him in before Khun goes at Ginger the fuck—

He rasps in some instinctive attempt to speak, but all that muscle contraction does does is draw blood up toward the wound, and he coughs - blood splattering mostly from his neck, a little from his lips. )

[impacter]

[Solomon's eyes follow Ginger, but he doesn't move. Do what you need to do, little nephilim.]

[lighthaus]

[ This is why he shouldn't have ever shifted from a fighting stance. He's cursing that action first of all, because even he realized there's no point fighting in a group like this (Was there a point before? Let's not be hasty). The hit connects and they go flying, and he's definitely broken a bone or two. How nostalgic.

But he's fast and he pulls no punches, so as soon as he can he spits out his magic word. It's now raining razor sharp icicles on them both, since he's really not in the state of mind to try to aim.

Somewhere in the chaos of it all, he manages a few more. ]

I tried to kill him.

[positivize]

[Wow she was just coming back from the library, what the fuck people

Anyways. Looks like Mika has a lot blood on him (again) but this time it is actually coming from him. Bad!! And then Khun is also just standing there with a knife drawn too, so also bad!!!

In any case, it seems like other people have barrier-ing covered, so she'll draw one of her guns from the holster and run closer to Mika's side of the courtyard so she can assist with healing. But she is also going to look over to Khun and shout at him because what is going on, seriously.]

Khun-san, stop this! Why are you fighting!?

[lighthaus]

[ We assume this is pre-ginger! Not me having to do mental math if guns exist in Tower of God? Probably not in the form Maya has regardless, so she gets a lengthier stare (though maybe, there's another reason he doesn't disregard her immediately either). ]

Because I had to. [ Like every other word he's spoken so far, it's flat. ]

[shortleash]

( Mika - looking worse for wear (understatement) and pale as death, shakes his head as she approaches - forget him, he seems to mean; there's others to worry about— )

1/2

[shadowkin]

[... Damn. That looks like fun.

--is unfortunately the first thought of Cid Kagenou, who is also misfortunately or fortunately still Cid Kagenou at this point in the night; he comes upon the scene when it's already quite rowdy, though, so it's probably not the best stage to switch to Shadow and make it even more of a scene or something.

Sadly, this manor is way too crowded for a good Eminence in Shadow playground.

That, and he's still back in the Training To Become A Good Baby Wizard 101 stage of things, which means proper swordplay and beheadings are at a bit of a premium these days. Maybe he needs to get more exercise.]

Hmmm. It's too bad. It's really too bad.

[Back in the corner, muttering to himself, he sounds kind of like one of those disapproving old men who read the paper outside the local store and tut at the rough-and-tumble life of the youth.

But really, he's just lamenting the timing.]

2/2

[shadowkin]

[But what's this, what's this? Something shiny, glinting in the darkness?

He definitely just kicked something -- first Cid looks around to make sure nobody notices he maybe broke something, and then like a big ol' shadowy raven or magpie or whatever (he is totally not a big ol' black bird drawn to sparkling things)....... he picks up the discarded spectacles on the side.

Hmmmmmm.

He's never tried the date-megane schtick, but maybe he can still get something out of this! Yoink.]

bruno walks in with pizza why is everything on fire

[fallingsand]

[ Ha ha, wow, why is there so much red all over the courtyard? Why is everyone out here this late? Bruno sure has a lot of questions as he wanders in from the gates from... who knows where? Look, he has problems wandering around when there are people out, not when they're asleep.

Excuse him while he stops to take in the wild scene before him for a minute. ]

...wh... what is going on?

[ Hello?! ]

[shortleash]

(

soooo... )

[fullspbar]

[ You'd think they'd be able to go maybe a month without shit happening, but apparently, that's wishful thinking.

It is sheer coincidence he happens to pass by a window on a night back from...something, evidently, only to see an absolute clusterfuck going on outside. That enough is cause for alarm, but when he catches a glance of two individuals stained and splashed with a red that catches the bright light of the moon far too vividly, he's already halfway down the hallway.

It's chilly out, and he should have brought his coat, but fuck it. When he arrives, it's with a huff from the sheer sprint he's just done through the halls and across the courtyard, tension creasing his features. ]

What the hell is going on?!

[divineth]

[The commotion eventually reaches Urianger's ears and he comes running to see what's happening, only to witness Mikaela going feral on Jing Yuan's arm.]

By the Twelve-- Mikaela?!

[AGAIN?

But wait, it doesn't look so simple. Khun's over there doing Khun things and Urianger just lets out an agitated sigh. What is going on here, Westies.

Anyway he'll expedite the whole "figuring out the situation" process by looking toward whoever's already involved.]

I shall help however I can.

[Healing, most like. It seems people are on Mikaela already.]

post-trauma tea time [FEEL FREE TO USE THIS AS A MINGLE]

[fallingsand]

[ Now that Jing Yuan's arm is all set, Bruno is going to turn and look around at the... everything and... everyone, anyone still lingering in the courtyard. He's trying to ignore the blood on the ground.

Also the blood on his hands.

Look, he magically cleaned away the blood on Yuan's arm but only that. That's how it works. Anyway. ]

So. [ And he brings his hands together in a clap. ] I'm going to go and, um. Make tea. If anyone wants some. It's going to be super calming because, haha, I... I need that.

[ Pretty sure a lot of other people do, too. Anyway, that said, he's turning to leave for the kitchen, bye. Feel free to join him there for a cup of enchanted chamomile.

For those who follow him to the kitchen eventually, he'll have made and enchanted a large pot of chamomile tea; when drunk, the tea will be calming and very soothing, magically so, and will grant a good night's sleep. ]