epidemiology | EVENT ▸ WELCOME TO HANABIRA

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ she frowns at him. most of the time, she's getting told off for coming to decisions too quickly, too impulsively. ]

Fine. You want my honest opinion?

[ she takes care to keep her voice low, but still casual. ]

I don't think either group deserves to rule. If you're too caught up on what's yours and what isn't, and can't even play nice with your neighbors, then you probably don't deserve to have anything.

[ she shrugs, poking around her bowl. ]

Let the Flowerlands guy have it.

[ Majima wished he could be more impulsive. Now that would be a party. ]

They are more laissez faire in their outlook, ain't they? Only thing is they'd be surrounded... and they don't seem tough enough to fight on two fronts at once.

[ He put his chopsticks down. ]

Looks like that lady's been nursing the same drink for a while. Might as well get started.

[ clarice only shrugs at his shrewd observation. ]

Didn't say they should or can, just that they'd be my pick, if I had to choose right now.

[ but she's quick to shift gears when he does, sitting up a little straighter and casting a glance at the woman. ]

Try not to get clocked in the head again.

[ Clarice's answer was a slight, sassy flip of his ponytail as Majima stood up and made his way over to the counter, a seat or two away from where the woman was sitting, and requested a drink.

She glanced up as he ordered. "You're a new one here." Yep. 100% the fuzz. ]

Majima looked over his shoulder at her, ducked his head in a small, deferential smile. "So you noticed?"

[ "A bit difficult not to notice, isn't it? You have an unusual look to you." ]

The corners of Majima's smile curved upward ever-so-slightly. ]

Oh, yeah... everyone's always tellin' me how tall I am.

[ A beat, and then the woman let out a laugh, her shoulders now more relaxed in their set. "What about your mistress over there? She doesn't mind?"

Majima looked back at Clarice on cue. Snippets of the conversation may have reached Clarice, depending on how much she was listening, so hopefully she'd back him up with some sort of appropriate gesture! ]

[ she had been listening, yes. little snippets, here and there, mostly because she'd turned back to her food, but also because she doesn't hold out much hope this exercise will actually glean them anything.

but when she's prompted, she glances over her shoulder and graces them both with a gracious smile. she lifts her cup of water at them both, as if in toast.

go wild, kids. ]

[ Whew. The woman's eyebrows arched, but she seemed to accept this well enough. "Well. In that case, I suppose a drink or two is in order. My name is Ayame." ]

Majima Gorō. Pleased to meet you. [ When his drink was set down in front of him, Majima lifted his cup for a little sip. ] Lookin' forward to the festival? I hear they're goin' all out this year.

[ Ayame snorted. "And I won't get to so much as enjoy a minute of it."

He looked sympathetic. ]

Work?

[ The woman scoffed into her drink. "Isn't it always? I'm new, so I get all the duty no one else wants. I should count myself lucky if I even get to see my relatives for the holidays this year."

Ah. Sometimes the better part of conversation was knowing when to keep quiet. Majima offered to pour her some more sake, and she lifted her cup to let him. This simple action, along with having an attentive audience (something she NEVER got at work, thx), seemed to assuage her wounded ego somewhat.

"I take it all seriously, of course. Though I doubt those sea dogs would dare try anything in our kingdom." ]

[ the shop in general is quiet enough that it's easy to pick up their conversation from where clarice sits. besides, given the time of day, the area, the sort of people that would frequent a little dive like this... clarice can understand why the woman would feel inclined to say as much as she is.

of course it wouldn't be prudent to interrupt, so clarice herself keeps quiet, instead deigning to let her eyes drift from patron to patron, letting the action seem more lazy and absent-minded than shrewd. everyone else seemed uncaring for anyone else's business... ]

You haven't had any... run-ins with them, have you?

[ Majima's manner was one of someone vaguely intrigued by the prospect of foreign danger... and yet tempered with trepidation about what said danger might entail.

Ayame took another drink. Venting her frustrations seemed to have made her thirsty. "Ha! Not I. Merchants, mostly. Common traders." She made the profession sound like something to be looked down on. "They come in and out, as always. No stomach for making a real fuss. They'll probably be at the edges of the festival, too, where I'll be keeping an eye on them. Still, they're easy enough to spot, since they stink like seawater."

That done with, she cast a glance back up at Majima. "But enough about that. How does your mistress feel about... borrowing?"

(send help) ]

EVENT ▸ WELCOME TO HANABIRA

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