EVENT ▸ WELCOME TO HANABIRA

[futurologists]

LAND OF CELESTIAL MOUNTAINS Following guild Ophelia's first mission, after which the temporal shard was found and safely disposed of back on Headquarters, Guild Master Imogen informs them they've received a contract to help ease tensions in a land known as Hanabira, on an unnamed planet designated as Hathaway-484. However, the contract is from a third party and the Hanabirans themselves do not know about interdimensional travel, she explains, so it'll be best to announce Ophelia as visitors from a foreign land. Any strange appearances or abilities will be able to be brushed off as magic, as the Hanabirans are no strangers to things such as ogres and imps. They're given five days to look over the dossier, and then it's through the rift they go. Those who are new to rift travel may find themselves a bit dizzy on the way out, but overall, everything seems to have gone according to plan. Upon arrival, their magitek projects words in front of their eyes that only they can see: Location reached: HANABIRA. No events scheduled. You may wish to survey the surrounding area. » LAND OF CELESTIAL MOUNTAINS A militaristic society that values strength. Main sources of income: mining, foresting, hunting, blacksmithing. Heavy matriarchal ideals. Empress NAMA resides at the HEAVENLY SUMMIT. Those who attempt to reach the Heavenly Summit, which turns out to be the name of a castle situated on the tallest mountain peak, will not make it very far. Empress Nama's guards have no time for foreign strangers attempting to enter the castle without an audience, and there are plenty of them. It looks like that plan of action is going to take some time to rethink. There's still much more to look at, though. In the Merchant's District, you can stock up on everything you'll need to blend in. A cursory look at all the clothing and it's clear that the Mountain Clan style focuses on a more powerful look, with broad shoulder accents and thick fabrics. Both men and women wear kimonos, but it seems men's fashion changes depending on their age and marital status. Time to figure out those backstories! There are several more items for sale as well, as long as you're willing to pay -- or if you're particularly good at sleight of hand. The Commoner's District, derogatorily called the Slums by some, is where many of the lower class Mountain Clan work and live. Those who don't have the coin to buy a space in the Merchant's District sell their wares here; they are at a lower price, but often of lower quality as well, unless you're particularly lucky. This is the most densely populated area of the Celestial Mountains, and also the most egalitarian. Here, both men and women must do the same work to provide for their families. However, you will still find that the prevailing cultural attitude supports the matriarchy. On the other side of town is the Noble's District, which is patrolled by guards on regular routes. Men on their own will arouse suspicion in this area, as will anyone in any garb but the noble disguise. Troublemakers will be asked to leave and unceremoniously escorted out. Those who manage to stay will be able to find conversation with the nobility, many of whom are high-ranking military leaders. The rest of the town belongs to the lower to upper middle class, who are friendliest to women or groups with at least one woman in them. Women's reactions to sole men may range from dismissive to awkward, although men alone are not in any danger of angry or violent reactions (as long as they don't provoke anyone). ▸ SPRING FESTIVAL After a bit of time for exploring, a new message flashes in front of recruits' eyes. New event scheduled: MOUNTAIN CLAN FESTIVAL. » INFORMATION: Analysis of all mentions of 'festival' since the arrival of OPHELIA suggests heavy HANABIRAN presence at this time, during which guild members may wish to gather intel. It appears as though Ophelia has arrived just in time for the Spring Festival, a yearly celebration in honor of the changing of seasons. Plum and cherry trees throughout the Celestial Mountains flower in white and pink blossoms, creating a cheerful atmosphere as the population goes about their daily business during the day. Workers view the flowers during their lunch and tea times, and nobles can be found strolling through gardens in the Noble's District at all times. In the early afternoon, food stalls begin to appear in the Merchant's District, and by the late afternoon, the festival is in full swing: dumplings, noodles, persimmons, and skewered meat are available at various stalls, as well as plenty of sake. Other stalls sell beautifully designed kites, fans, and kimonos, and as the sun begins to sink down, some stalls begin to sell incense-stick fireworks. There are also games to take part in, from the light-hearted collaborative ball game kemari, to an archery competition, the winners of which are rewarded with plums and sake. An old man near the archery competition invites any passersby to join him in a game of Go, and he'll even offer to teach foreigners the rules of the game. There is also a falconry competition for the nobles, but unless you have a disguise, you'll just have to content yourself with watching. With so many people milling around, it's a good time to ask questions and try to get a feel for the political opinions of the people of the mountain clan. They are all in favor of their empress ruling Hanabira, supporting the spread of their traditional culture over the more lax culture of the sea clan. If asked their opinions on how to ensure there is no war, suggestions will range from preemptively killing the sea empress and her army, to banishing them across the sea. It should be noted that the mountain clan is not especially known for their expertise in diplomacy. As the sky darkens, fireworks light up the sky. It's very beautiful, but also very distracting -- the perfect time for something to go wrong. ▸ AN AMBUSH The fireworks are loud, and everyone -- even guards milling around -- are looking skyward toward the display. No one notices the danger until it's too late. A scream pierces the air, and everything after that happens quick and sudden: people are running in all directions, panicked, trying to escape. Stands are knocked over and food goes flying through the air. A merchant struggles to reach her wife, caught across the fearful throng of festivalgoers. It's chaos. As the panicked crowd begins to thin, those of Ophelia who stay behind to help will see the cause -- women wearing clothes of the sea clan and masks covering their faces are laying waste to the festival ground. They begin to set stalls ablaze, and though they aren't targeting any civilians, a handful lay dead or injured, crushed by the panicked stampede. Guards rush in to stop the women, and they could probably use help; they will be trying to capture them, but if your character is killing an ambusher instead, please let the mods know with a link to the thread. For those who aren't the fighting type, there are plenty of other things to do -- direct traffic, try to rescue civilians from the stampede, or go find someplace to hide yourself. Once the immediate trouble is dealt with, the festival unceremoniously ended, the civilians drift back to their homes to begin a restless sleep. If your character hasn't found lodgings for the night yet, they'd better get that matter settled soon. The morning after the ambush, there is tension and unease in the air. The people of the mountain clan mutter about taking revenge or continuing peaceably; the ambush and its effect on their relations with the sea clan is the topic of the day. Was this an attack sanctioned by the Empress of the Crashing Wave? Were these sea people acting of their own volition? Does it matter? The festival grounds could use cleaning up, and tending to the injured can be a good way to ingratiate foreigners (that's you) to the mountain clan. Otherwise, the forests of the Celestial Mountains are open for exploration, or the Flowerlands and its farms below. ▸ OOC NOTES Welcome to the first mission of the season! Apps are now closed and will remain closed until the mission is over. If you have questions about this log or the overall mission, please ask them on the dossier. Questions about Futurology in general should be directed to the FAQ. ▸ The festival and ambush lasts one IC day, after which characters may continue to explore. Areas currently open are the Land of Celestial Mountains or the Flowerlands. The Empire of the Crashing Wave will be introduced in the next log on 3 February. ▸ The Bounty Board is now live, as well as an items page. The February calendar will go live in late January. ▸ January AC will go up on 1 February. You will only need to supply one proof. February AC will require full activity.

Comments

[pummelling]

Kung Jin will be taking a group into the Commoner’s District, split up into two subgroups that will be investigating separate areas:

Kung Jin, Clarice Fong, and Connor Walsh will be following the two little girls down the alleyway:

- Kung Jin will largely be playing bouncer and standing behind the group to ensure its safety, surveying the area and keeping an eye out for anything that seems out of the ordinary.
- Clarice will be trying to talk to the children, maybe playing a game with them to get them comfortable.
- Connor doesn’t expect to get a whole lot of relevant info out of the children, but he’ll ask if they’re having a nice day, and if anything has happened on their street recently (fully expecting an earful of child gossip/drama). In general he’ll just be surveying their surroundings to see how people interact, what daily life is like up close, etc.

Veronica Lodge, Kisuke Urahara, Ginko, and Majima Goro will be hitting up the frail, spirited merchant woman:

- Veronica will be asking about the old woman's thoughts about being in a repressed part of the city considering the current conflict, as they're most likely to be harmed by it.
- Urahara would kind of charmingly try to infer whether she thinks there's a nonviolent alternative to dealing with the sea clan or if she fancies there being an ideal end to this that isn't about violence. Of course, he'd be very flippant and talk about it like he's just a wilting daisy who abhors violence so he doesn't look suspicious.
- Ginko will be asking the woman for details about the history of tensions between the mountain clan and the sea clan, as the woman perceives them, posing as a passing traveler to avoid suspicions.
- Majima would buy a few things to butter the old lady up, and ask about the general feel of things -- how relations have been with the sea clan, how the mountain people think of the sea clan's ruler, recent tensions/conflicts, and policies of Nama the old lady approves of. He’ll also show interest in gossipy stuff like whether Nama's interested in getting hitched any time soon.

[futurologists]

Since this is technically two interactions, we will be counting this as two towards our total of five!

The two little girls laugh and play with Clarice happily, and warm up to Connor quickly as well. The ambiguity of his questions leads to quite a bit of rambling chatter -- "Aimi was really mean to me yesterday so we're not friends anymore!" "And Hanako stole my doll!" -- but there is some relevant information interspersed throughout: "Mother says we should leave the city, but I don't want to leave. All of our friends are here!" "Father said we could stay with his Uncle Ikko in the Flowerlands. He smells!" "But Mother heard the Flowerlands might not be safe either..."

If Jin keeps a sharp eye out, he might spot a shadow in the distance. For just a split second, a figure wearing sea clan armor weaves through the crowd. Then, as suddenly as it appeared, it's gone.

The merchant woman squares her shoulders at Veronica and Urahara, raising her chin. She clearly does not want to consider herself repressed, nor does she find Urahara's suggestion of nonviolence appealing. The mountain clan culture values strength, but this woman in particular seems to value it more than most. "Feh! All I want is for that damn Empress to send her soldiers to slaughter the fools already. What are you, some wilting sea clan anemone? Buy something or clear out, I've got paying customers to tend to."

Once Majima buys a few items to soothe her, she listens to a few more of their questions. To Ginko, she explains that the tensions only started recently. In fact, the timeline matches almost exactly with when the Merging happened, although she doesn't seem to know it. "We inhabited the Celestial Mountains and their lands," she says, "until one day they appeared from nowhere, claiming we were the ones stealing their land! They're liars and thieves, all of them!" She spits. Clearly, relations with the sea clan have not been going well.

She thinks the sea clan's ruler, Empress Youmi, is too soft and lets her people run amok. Meanwhile, she approves of Empress Nama's support of the military, but believes she's been too reserved with it. "It's time to take back our land by force, once and for all!" Finally, when it comes to the topic of Nama marrying, she says, "Well, I'm no noble, but the word is that the Empress hasn't married because she's never found anyone of high enough renown for her. Picky thing."

When they leave, she grabs Veronica by the arm and whispers in her ear: "I couldn't help but notice you're in the company of so many young men." She continues on to ask if Veronica is a madam, and if so, how much she charges.