EVENT ★ POKAREKARE ANA

[futurologists]

NALANNI Now as weak as any mortal, Nalanni only needs one person to dispatch her. Though Jason has been selected for the sad deed, it would be smart not to let him go it alone. Once Nalanni ceases to be, the ground quakes and roils. The planet's rock and earth can feel the loss of its mother, and with Ryba still living, the power imbalance throws the world into turmoil. Monsters stream forth from the cave Nalanni had been held on the risen Dakal island. But unlike before, when Pomarr blew through the side of Nalalona and left lava creatures in her wake, these monsters are made of stone. And they are gigantic. Ranging from five to nine meters (roughly 16-30 feet), the stone golems are slow-moving but powerful, capable of crushing anything in their path with their feet or powerful fists. The golems cannot be spoken to or reasoned with; all they feel is the loss of their mother and the vacuum of power she has left behind. Their mindless anger makes them easily distracted, so teamwork is the best way to keep them at bay. Roughly formed of rock and hardened mud, they are weak to water. Luckily, halfway through the day, a light rain begins to fall. The golems will continue to come forth from the earth until Ryba is defeated. Upon her death, they will simply collapse into inert piles of stone. RYBA THE DEVOURING ONE Pomarr stays true to her word and draws the sea goddess to the shore of the deserted island that once housed the Dakal. Without comment, Pomarr turns and steps into an ALASTAIR rift, leaving your team to its business. Ryba is impossibly large, a mass of twisting, searching tentacles with no discernible body. She is especially weak to electrical attacks, but can otherwise be defeated by simply wearing her down with brute force. Now that you've got your collective powers back, it should be a piece of cake. Right? ATTACKS: TENTACLES. Ryba's initial attack is waving her massive, numerous tentacles around to try and keep combatants at bay. Despite their size, they are surprisingly quick -- capable of snapping at anyone who dares get too close, whiplike, or simply crushing those who stay still for too long. Her tentacles are seemingly endless, impossible to count, and move about in a nearly hypnotic way. THE STORM. After enough damage has been dealt, Ryba will grow more desperate and begin to use her connections to the sea itself. Though the battle is near the shore, sudden winds whip at the recruits, pulling them away from the shallows. Drowning becomes a real danger: the waves are high and fast, and intensely swirling waterspouts crisscross with intent to sweep recruits up, scrambling them. SHARKNADO. Ryba's last-ditch effort calls upon the creatures of the sea as well as the wind and waves. She creates a swirling vortex with her massive body in the center in attempts to shield herself from attacks. But that's not all -- spinning around her at high speeds with the vortex are sharks. A lot of sharks. And they are all angry. If characters attempt to speak with Ryba through the battle, she will respond in a calm, dark voice throughout: she has nothing to say to the invaders who would dare take her from the peace of her trench, except that they must destroy her or she will kill them all herself, before the world crumbles to nothing. Once Ryba is defeated, her massive body will simply cease moving. Goddess or not, it seems her form is as physical as any other creature of the sea. ISLANDERS During the day-long battle, characters who choose not to fight are advised to stay behind with the Nalawi to keep them safe. Though the battle rages far to the west, on the once-sunken island of the Dakal, the storms may travel to the westernmost edges of the Nalawi islands. Recruits may attempt to temporarily evacuate the westernmost Nalawi, though there may be considerable resistance. After the battle, the Nalawi can instantly tell that their goddess is gone for good. Where there was once confusion and desperation in the face of Nalanni's disappearance, there is now only sorrow and directionlessness. All recruits are invited to return to Komo, the first island at the start of the mission, for a somber memorial for Nalanni: the Nalawi don't blame the recruits for what has happened, and only expect them to join in their grief. For the rest of the time on Nalawi, characters may spend their time as they wish. The locals will need help learning how to cope without their Gifts and how to live without the goddess on whom they had come to rely. They will need help learning all sorts of trades, from fishing to pottery to plumbing, so characters who have knowledge in the mundane will have their time to shine. But the Timeline is always in need of tending, so recruits can't stay here forever. Say your goodbyes, because soon a rift will open and you'll be headed back to Oska. OOC INFO Mods will not be NPCing the Ryba encounter, so you are free to NPC her attacks yourself. Please remember that defeating her is a group effort; no one person will have the "killing blow." The battle against Ryba will take one full day. After she is defeated, recruits will have 13 days to say goodbye to the Nalawi before departing for Oska. If characters wish to temporarily stay behind in Nalawi, see here for details.

Comments

[selfimage]

[ if Loki is nothing else, she's an awfully good distraction. she makes a seat out of the stony golem's shoulder, crossing her legs elegantly at the knee as if she would be preparing herself to watch the curtains raise in a theatre. the bottoms of her boots are green, glowing dully and leaving a trail behind her as she waves one of her heels back and forth.

one of the beasts makes a move for Haise and Loki takes the initiative, sliding backward down the rock and using her feet to spring from the creature's chest to act as a hindrance. with the sword strapped to her waist and the snake-like mail on her chest it's possible that she can attack, and seems to be having more fun being a nuisance. ]

You're making them mad!

[ actually, Loki. you're making them mad. ]

[ex_adept136]

[Although it seems his green-clad associate might be provoking more of a reaction than him, Haise offers a lopsided smile all the same]

Am I? I suppose that's rather rude of me...

[Not that it stops him from wrenching his blade free of the golem's leg, goring an angry line along the stone. It's not enough to disable the towering figure by any means, but it's progress, and the angry howl he prompts from it tells him that much. If he can trip up the creature-

Actually, his associate might be able to use some information sooner than he can]

Sieglinde thinks there's a weak point in the middle of its chest.

[The words are punctuated with another stab to the golem's leg, keeping at his effort to knock it off balance]

[selfimage]

Very, very rude. [ she breathes to herself in an amused, overdramatic statement, going so far as to put a foot of a Seven League boot over one of the stone monster's shoulders. the beast tries to swat her, and she leaps to the next, and then down beside him as if they were about to dance. ] Everything has a sort of weak point, hm?

A shame that this isn't entirely fault. I can't say that I blame them. There's quite the disturbance in their world's basis of reality. [ she says smoothly, darting to the side as one of the monsters decides to waltz between them. ]

[ex_adept136]

Weaknesses do seem natural.

[He springs back when the golem's massive foot slams into place between them. Sand sprays into the air, only to cascade back down in the next instant, pelting his uniform. Not enough distance gained, but he doesn't pay it any mind aside quickly brushing off the front of his coat]

I must admit, I did expect more resistance than what I'd seen.

[Not that he wanted it - but it made sense.

He circles around the golem's leg before lancing his quinque into it again]

[selfimage]

This is only the tip of it.

[ she says it casually, as if this is some kind of foreseen outcome. Haise moves toward the beast, but Loki remains where she is, watching as if she needn't interfere (not yet, anyway). ]

The world itself is screaming—awfully loud, mind you.

[ to illustrate, she puts a pinky in her ear, cleaning it while ... Haise does all the work, yeah. ]

[ex_adept136]

Screaming?

[It's a strange thought, but then, aren't so many things in this world? At least to someone like him, at any rate.

He sidesteps when a hulking fist comes crashing down toward him, hopping up onto it and darting up the stone creature's arm in an effort to get to that "weak point" Sieglinde pointed out.

Using his kagune would be easier, but this may work just as well]

[selfimage]

[ Loki slips to the side, barely avoiding a wave that comes crashing from the aftermath of the force. she dances along the top of the water, riding a thin wave that arises before coming up the side of the stone beast to watch.

she shields her eyes with her hand. ]

Oh yes—I suppose everyone can't hear it, but there's a void where Nalanni used to be. We're in quite the precarious situation, if I do say so myself.

[ even though she seems perfectly calm about it, you know. ]

[ex_adept136]

[Haise has to drive his quinque into the golem's arm after a point, to avoid dropping when it straightens its posture again. He swings himself up and pulls it free, landing on its shoulder with far less grace than his associate had, but he's there.

Once he steadies himself, he tries to size up the best way to get to that weak point]

A void... I suppose there would be, wouldn't there?

[And there isn't any masking something forlorn in his tone, having never wanted to see Nalanni perish to begin with.

It's all he manages to say before he has to dart away from a massive hand that comes up to bat him away]