epidemiology | MINI-EVENT ★ WELCOME/RESCUE PARTY

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MINI-EVENT ★ WELCOME/RESCUE PARTY

WELCOME/RESCUE PARTY

The temporal insects have all either been squished or hopped into another dimension and all of Oska's inhabitants have gone back to their (relatively) normal selves. However, they didn't leave before chewing through some of the rift magitek, causing the new arrivals to end up in a slightly less safe place than the castle.

The new Audentes recruits are dropped right at the edge of this pocket universe in the untamed forest. It's easy to lose your way in here, and to make it even harder, it's dark and storming. Going off without a buddy or two isn't recommended; you may walk in circles for hours. Meanwhile, a select few recruits receive a frantic message from Dagny begging for their help in locating these members and bringing them safely home, promising a reward in return.

The forest is home to a whole host of unusual creatures, some friendly, some not. While you're avoiding a run-in with them, you'll also have to be careful not to step into the pockets of distorted reality left behind in the temporal insects' wake. Each pocket seems to be from the time before Oska was ALASTAIR's HQ, when it was still just a crumbling universe. The feelings and sensations are vivid; the earthquakes feel very real, as does the falling debris, so watch your head.

When everyone has returned safely to the castle, Dagny will be waiting with the promised rewards. Each established recruit who participated in the rescue and all the newcomers will receive two bracelets, both made of a thin gold chain, and the instructions to give the extra to somebody close to them to tighten their bond.

OOC NOTES

Established recruits are entrusted with diving into the forest and bringing the newbies back to safety. Once they have, everyone is welcome to get situated in Oska until the next mission starts.

Characters aren't required to give their second bracelet away, but those who do (or have their bracelet stolen/lost/found) will find that the moment both bracelets are slipped on, they'll share a significant memory of theirs with the other wearer and vice versa. This is a one-time effect and will not work after the first time, even with different wearers.

Please note again that this log occurs after the temporal bugs have been cleared out. Due to the OOC extension of the previous event as well as this mini-event, the IC time between the bug extermination and the start of the mission has been extended past the 24 hours stated in the dossier to around half a week.

As a reminder, this log is open to newcomers and those who signed up on the OOC post only.

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[ His ears flick back against either side of his head. Like a cat.

He sets his jaw, looking irritated. Well, more so than usual. ]

I have an inkling. Take what you need.

[ Koltira's something of a vampire himself, so he's not in a position to judge. Besides, despite his sour attitude, he likes Lancer. ]

Ban's impression of Knives wasn't surprising. If she had a Canadian dollar for every person who had mixed feelings about her, she would be filthy stinking rich. Most of the people in her life said at some point that she was annoying or just too much to handle. Over the past year, she tried toning down the more extreme parts of her personality with mixed results. Her obsessive tendencies had gone down, but her hyper-activeness seemed to be here to stay.

"You're probably right. We're totally safe!" Despite that, she still clung onto him. Better safe than sorry, right? "And sorry for screaming all the time. Guess I'm still kinda freaking out over everything. Getting stupid drunk, getting kidnapped by a mysterious organization for mysterious purposes, getting stuck in a creepy forests with deadly monsters--it's just a lot to process, you know?"

She paused for barely a second before breaking the silence again. "Hey, I just realized something! We've been hanging out for, like, an hour now, and we haven't even exchanged names. What's up with that?" Finally letting go of his arm, she held out her hand, smiling expectantly at him. "So let's do this right! I'm Knives Chau. It's nice to meet you, Mr...?"

[Haise observes this, surprised to see that sort of gear despite himself. Considering just how wide a gamut of skills and abilities the lot of them have, he supposes that it's silly to anticipate anything in particular.

They come from such very different places, after all]

Gear like that must come in handy.

[Though he hasn't worked with it himself, he can well imagine...especially with the odd creatures prowling this place]

[Haise adjusts his gait when his associate cuts ahead, so it's a little easier for them to talk and walk. That, and to allow time to warn him if he's about to trip over anything,

Despite himself, he can't help a frown when he thinks back on Nalawi. They'd done what good they could after things had resolved the way they did, but he doubts he'll ever forget how disappointing the "solution" was.

His experience with the CCG at least has him well-equipped to discuss matters for whic he has some distaste]

Ultimately it was decided that the goddesses would be killed, in order to release the energy they contained into the world. Nalanni seemed to anticipate this and accepted death. Ryba...was a protracted battle, as I understand it.

[For his part, he stuck to the part he could stomach: protecting the healers' tents]

Afterward, a few of us stayed behind for three months, to help the people adapt. It was just two days for everyone in Oska, apparently.

[Moving right along from that subject...]

And it's Haise Sasaki.

( this is obviously a hypothetical question. he should know that. yet, he squints at her slightly, a glimmer of confusion in his features before he assures her, )

Despite your strange hue, no, you don't.

( pearls are small and round and shiny, and Peri is... well she's just not. )

I understand the frustration. They say they aren't responsible for bringing us here, though I don't know the truth one way or another. Still, that is the request they make of us, and I have seen them send people home again for their service.

( you can't own an animal, at least not according to the Huntsman. and the Huntsman still lives inside Graham, even though he doesn't get the chance to bear his teeth as often these days. still, the middle of a battle isn't a great time to argue animal rights, and he stills his tongue. his Brother being 'his' is hopefully good enough reason not to harm him, so it suits his purposes enough for the moment.

it seems to, as his company throws the beast back from landing a blow on the smallest threat of all of them, a mercy that Graham will be grateful for, given the chance. protecting him means something, yet protecting the wolf is about the most anyone could ever do to gain his gratitude.

between magic, snaps at ankles and knees, and a well aimed arrow when the opportunity presents it self, they get to the drop sooner rather than later. ) We'll need to push hard, or it'll bolt around. ( they needed to surprise it, the creature was smart enough to avoid the danger if they didn't. )

[Yeah, when everyone comes from different places you can expect them to have different skill sets. Julius happens to excel in monster trapping and hunting. Haise probably has talents elsewhere. They're luck to be in a group filled with people who have unique abilities.]

It saved my life on a few occasions. Traps are handy enough, certainly. Even so...it's only a temporary solution to our problems. There's no guarantee to anything unless we get out of here quickly enough.

[They're over staying their visit here!!! In the distance you can hear a loud beastly scream. ]

Did you hear that just now?

[ He is delicate, and he makes a pained, whimper-y sound when she drops him. When she calls him fat (!!!) he makes a put out face, raising his eyebrows and scoffing. Despite being total skin and bones, he's somehow still offended by this accusation. ]

Okay, first of all, you ask first before— doing that. I could... I had it totally under control. I was going to protect you.

Admittedly, Knives was safer than one may have expected. The hungry creatures in the forest likely wouldn't bother getting close with Ban around as he let his murderous gaze rake across the forest a few moments, directed at pretty much everything but Knives. When he put his eyes on her, his expression was dull and somewhat devoid of that presence. It made him look a little boring, so he seemed somewhat disinterested.

It wasn't easy to flip the switch and grind to a halt so easily, so it just made it seem like he wasn't really paying attention.

"Doesn't sound like a weird evening to me," Anything that Knives described, at least. Part of his group of knights, that sounded like a few of his weekends outside of joining ALASTAIR. Ban stopped from intimidating the creatures around them to look to Knives' hand, lifting a brow. He took her hand and shook it when offered. "Don't worry about it. Pretty sure you're not supposed to be thinkin' about good manners too much at the moment. I'm 'Undead Ban'."

With no surname to speak of, Ban always went with his criminal alias.

[The way Haise whips around to stare in the direction that sound came from might well be answer enough. It's a less startled expression than one might expect, because he's actually looking for the creature that produced that howl, first wide-eyed and then squinting into the gloom...

But so far, he can't see any signs of whatever it was. There's still some distance between them, judging by the way the sound had carried, but there isn't any guarantee that will remain the case]

...We might want to pick up the pace, rather than find out what could make that sound.

[And appreciating that they shouldn't dally, he turns and starts toward their original drop-off location once again. This time, at a brisker pace]

[Aren't they supposed to be friends....friends don't ambush other friends like this, traitor.

Her steps pause, and Riza narrows her eyes suspicious at the introduction of this particular topic out of the blue. (Hah, blue, get it.)]

Does it matter what my answer is?

[She's seen very little that's altered his expression away from the default carefree grin. Surely the feelings of a mere coworker shouldn't affect him in the least. But for all that she keeps her expression composed, the words spoken are the biggest giveaway - she wouldn't reply back with a question if the answer weren't at least slightly in the affirmative.]

A single rush, then, from all corners.

[ Loki's panting lightly--a bit embarrassing, if he stops to think about it, as he's not mortal and really ought to have much better stamina than this. But he's also been trekking about the dark forest for quite a while now, and had fought off more than one of these beasts. ]

[ She blinks at his laughter, not sure if she should be smiling in response. She does when he pats her shoulder, shifting her weight and glancing between him as he strolls, then back in the direction that leads toward the upper levels of the castle.

Fortune favours the bold.

She doesn't know if that's true, but... ]

I don't need fortune... but the only one who can live my life and achieve my goals for me is me.

[ Her goals being simple: get home, get into school, and in the most simple and complex of ways, grow up. She takes a step back from the wall, still watching Lancer. "Just don't overdo it." ]

Please be careful too, Lancer-san. And um. There's some nice baths in the castle, too, if you don't feel like heading to the hot springs. Though if you want to head down to them, I can bring you a towel and robe.

[ Her attempt to be helpful while, you know, pointing out that he needs to bathe. ]

[ Don't hate, being dickish is a tried and true sign of friendship. As is being able to read between the finer lines; he's been gone a while, but Riza's mannerisms are comfortably familiar.

...And it's all the more reason to press the question instead of flitting away to another topic. ]

Of course. [ He's hurt, casting an affronted hand over his chest. ] Would I ask if it didn't?

[ Probably, yes. But that shouldn't count against him. ]

[Like pulling on a girl's pigtails to show romantic interest? Truly, the patriarchy is terrible. She eyeballs him another moment, unimpressed, before she resumes walking again.]

You do many things that don't always make sense.

[Much to her chagrin. But fine, if he wants an honest answer she can give him one.] But I did. You were a friend. You still are.

[She's not that cold-hearted.]

[ Aw, what a gooey, magical center. ]

Now who's being generous?

[ The mana transfer schools of thought are wide and varied—a businesslike sapping from a distance, handholding, full-on, bloodsucking vampirism—so who knows what Koltira's expecting. He hasn't kept up with how the other spirits got their fix, and doesn't plan to start.

But Lancer's preferences should be obvious. And while knocking boots on the forest floor is fine and dandy, he politely refrains from jumping his bones. He steps ahead of him, reaching up to cup his face. The way his fingers brush past his ears is purposeful, teasing as ever, but his smile is harmless. The almost unnatural warmth in hands is less so. He wastes no time, skimming off the top of his magic as he speaks. ]

Stop me if I get greedy.

[ Koltira's eyes widen slightly, and his posture goes absolutely rigid. It's not that he dislikes being touched--the opposite, really--he just assumes other people would recoil at the very thought. Meeting someone who doesn't is always a surprise he has trouble handling. ]

Ah--

[ As far as the magic itself, Koltira has plenty to spare. His people were born to the arcane, and his body now is a chimera of flesh and spellcraft. The shadows are heavy, an oppressive, sickly sweet weight. The fel magic burns volatile and searing; its power is a drug still sought after by nearly all of Koltira's still living people. It tastes dry and bitter, like a brimstone wine. ]

[ Does he know she doesn't actually have a tundra where her heart should be? Naturally. Was he wheedling her for an honest answer? Yes. Was he actually expecting one? No, because he's an idiot, and it catches him off-guard. He startles slightly, one step made too wide and sloppily fixed by the next. Friendships and camaraderie were easy to him, so much so that it seemed flippant. Carelessly dealt, maybe.

But Lancer felt gains and losses as strongly as anyone does. Of course he's touched. He catches up to her, old nostalgia and cheer driving him to greet Riza in earnest this time, as he would with the closest of his knights after a long departure. As with Naoise in Alba, like Ferdiad at the ford, he tosses an arm around her neck and shares a grateful kiss for their reunion.

Then, before long, he pulls back to casually draping over her shoulders, words warm and open as flame. ]

Same to you, of course.

[ Her winning personality seems to pay off, and they've incapacitated (1) whole swider. Now, to be fair, he'd been expecting something more like... bullet speed. A little more destruction. But this also gets the job done, so he can't complain much.

Or so would usually be the case. ]

Not bad! [ He watches his earring bounce viciously off the creature's head, biting back a snicker. ] D'you need to be closer to get it back? Here—

[ He really wasn't kidding about those earrings. And without a second thought, he leaps down to a lower branch, leaves and rain rattling beneath them. As long as she kept this up, it didn't matter if they lost a little ground. Or—maybe he's just fucking around, but in any case, he peers down at the slightly disoriented flock of birdrachnids without a good, healthy dose of fear. They'll probably be back to their antics soon. ]

[ How resolute. Despite how badly it ends for people (and for him), there's something to be said for strength of will, the stubborn spirit to keep on one's path.

Lancer relates, but that isn't why he sticks around.

He pauses before he gets too far, taking the sweet time to backpedal a few steps and—give her a noogie, fluffing her hair up into a frightful mess. AS SHE DESERVES... His irritation is exaggerated with an obviously overblown sigh. ]

All right, brat... I get it. [ he's going. and it's not like he enjoys being like this, okay! people from the 1st century still bathe on the reg, this is ageism.

...But it's still a nice offer. All this talk of bath houses—who wouldn't go to the springs? ] And I'd appreciate that.

Edited 2016-09-25 23:44 (UTC)

[ If anything comes at them, he's sure there'll be enough notice—he's a tracker, and lord knows Ban's got some crazy powers going on. So despite the possible dangers, Lancer's nerves are even, calm enough to let out a bark of laughter. ]

I never thought so either. [ He stretches his arms, letting his knuckles and elbows creak and crack. ] Geez, my age must be showing.

[ Or maybe he's young forever. Depends on the frame of reference. He's not reincarnated, technically—the two of them can't quite be compared.

Either way, his tone stays friendly, but slides to something more sly. ]

Maybe I'm just less 'greedy' than you.

[ If McCree's feeling any awkwardness himself, there's no sign of it. He shakes Shiro's hand vigorously, his palm warm through the leather of his glove. ]

Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Shiro. I'm gonna lead on you on outta here and up to that castle in the distance.

[ He gestures to the horizon beyond, where the spires of Oska's castle are barely visible against the dark and stormy sky. ]

We'll get you fixed up right once we're there. C'mon, now, stay close. I been hearin' and seein' some odd things tonight.

[ She lifts her hands up to pat her hair back into compliance after that frightful fluffing of doom! Offering a nonverbal protest for the upset of her hair, she snorts and then smiles when he accepts the offer.

... While still stroking her hair back into compliance. ]

Okay! I'll get right on that, and I'll leave it for you with your name on a note! See you later, Lancer-san.

[ She now escapes with one hand on her head until she's a few meters down the hall, at which point she breaks into a jog and heads off to do as she said she would. Consider one towel and one really big robe properly delivered to the hot springs, with a nicely written attempt at "Lancer" in katakana pinned to the robe. ]

It made it easier once the method was known. [ But no matter it was a small obstacle to overcome. ]

I agree. When it comes to working alongside others you aren't familiar with remaining silent isn't the best course of action.

Huh... that's kind of weird...

[ There should be plenty of trolls here, it would be hard not to see at least one besides herself. Unless...

Oh, did she not know yet? Feferi can't really get a good look at her face, but all the same, ger fins pin back in momentary sympathy, and she offers a smile. ]

How much farther is it, again?

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Page 11 of 15

MINI-EVENT ★ WELCOME/RESCUE PARTY

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i am blessed by friends

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i hate honesty hour

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gurgles..... i'm sorry

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rrrr

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