epidemiology | EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

EMPIRE OF THE
CRASHING WAVE

The royalty of Guild Ophelia has managed to hold an audience with Empress Nama of the Celestial Mountains, urging her to meet with the Empress of the Crashing Wave in the interest of finding an accord between their clans. In return, Nama requests that Ophelia take two letters to the Crashing Wave's court, where, as foreigners, they should be received better than any of her own people.

The Empire of the Crashing Wave is a week's travel by foot from the Land of Celestial Mountains, through the forests and farms of the Flowerlands. There is no visible indication that this universe was once two, with even the road leading through the Flowerlands heading seamlessly toward the sea.

The farms and villages in the outskirts of the Empire of the Crashing Wave are decorated in seashells and motifs of the sea, and the closer one gets to the city, the stronger the scent of the ocean becomes. Once the city proper is reached, Ophelia's magitek projects words in front of their eyes that only they can see:

Location reached:

» EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE
A progressive society that values innovation. Main sources of income: fishing, pearl diving, jewelry crafting, shipbuilding. Politically matriarchal; socially egalitarian. Empress YOUMI resides at the PEACEFUL TIDE.

No events scheduled. You may wish to survey the surrounding area.

The city is built right on the ocean's edge, with some parts of it even jutting out into the sea on bridges and piers. The castle, Peaceful Tide, is built high above the rest; guards will stop anyone at the gates and, if shown the correspondence from Empress Nama, will deliver the letters directly to Empress Youmi. Attempts to seek an audience with Youmi will be rebuffed for the time being, so you may as well take in the sights...

▸ A PROMISING DEVELOPMENT

Unlike the Land of Celestial Mountains, men may move freely here, the matriarchal rules of the land only extending to politics. Men and women work alongside each other in all sections of the city, nobles and commoners alike, and even the guards have men among their ranks. In the Artisan District, potters, musicians, and artists line the streets and sell their wares, work, or discuss their craft with each other.

Closer to the Beach, there is a boardwalk where young couples stroll alongside grandparents chasing after their grandchildren, electric lamps bathing the wooden planks in a warm glow at night. Fishermen haul in their daily catch in buckets and nets, trailed by a gaggle of hopeful cats. Beachcombers and pearl divers populate the beach as well, making it a clear place for work instead of play.

A few days after Ophelia's arrival in sea clan territory, a bell rings loudly in the late afternoon, drawing citizens toward the castle. Guards stop anyone from getting too close, though the populace seems to know what to expect -- soon, a beautiful woman in an elaborate blue kimono appears in an upper balcony.

When viewing the woman, Ophelia's magitek will tell them:

» EMPRESS YOUMI
Leader of the EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE.
30 years old. SPECIES: Human. MEDICAL CONCERNS: Lactose intolerant.

The crowd cheers at Youmi's arrival, only quieting once she raises her hand. She speaks clearly and confidently, her voice carrying easily across the assembly.

"I have received a letter from Her Imperial Majesty Nama of the Land of Celestial Mountains. She informs me that their spring festival was interrupted by an attack from our own people, working without my knowledge or consent," Youmi begins, holding her hand up again when a displeased rumble begins to ripple through the crowd. It's unclear if they're perturbed by the ambush or by Nama herself. Once all is silent again, she continues.

"She has detained the criminals, for that is what they are, and assures me she will not bring this to the battlefield. I will send her an agreement to the terms, but hear this: any who escalate this further will be slain by my order. I have spoken. The spirits of the sea watch over us all."

Youmi then retreats back into the castle. While some citizens cheer their empress's decree, others mutter unhappily amongst themselves as they disperse and go about their business.

▸ BUT TROUBLE CONTINUES

The rest of the day following Youmi's decree goes by without incident, leaving time for Ophelia to stop by the sake breweries near the sea or travel back through the forests of the Flowerlands for hunting, hot springs, or simply enjoying the nature of Hanabira. With war averted and the empresses in communication, it seems as though Ophelia's time in this universe will draw to a close soon.

As the sun sinks down, finding a place to sleep might be a good idea. There are hotels in the city, but for those who are trying to be a little more frugal, the Flowerlands is a good place to set up camp for free. Doro, the Lord of the Flowerlands, has heard of Ophelia's efforts in starting communication between the empresses as well, and offers rooms in his castle in thanks; if war were to start between the two, his land would suffer for it.

During the night, those who accept Doro's invitation will hear a commotion very nearby, steel clashing against steel. Doro and his daughters rush out, weapons drawn, and straight into a skirmish between sea and mountain clan ronin. The warriors are fighting to kill, and in their fervor, someone's fire arrow alights a farmhouse on Doro's property. The farmers need to be rescued and the fire put out, and while the warriors will likely kill each other, they could also be subdued to prevent further damage. Please let the mods know with a link to the thread if your character is killing or capturing any of the ronin.

After the skirmish, Doro must be brought back inside his castle, having been wounded during the battle. He pleads with Ophelia to continue to help, as it looks like a tentative truce by the empresses is not enough to calm the citizens. Since they were so successful in receiving an audience with Nama, he believes they can propose a way the two empires can live in harmony.

Throughout the next two weeks, skirmishes between the clans are peppered throughout the Flowerlands, some leaving bodies behind and some leaving damage to farms and forest. It looks like Ophelia's peacekeeping mission just became a lot more hands-on: keep the skirmishes from getting out of control while still working toward a way to end the conflict once and for all.

▸ OOC NOTES

This log will last for two IC weeks: the first three days will be free exploration, and day four is Youmi's proclamation and the skirmish in the Flowerlands. Your characters are free to explore for the next ten days, during which further skirmishes will occur. 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.

▸ Coming next log: Peace proposals! Get your brainstorming started now.

▸ Activity Check is due on 5 February 23:59 UTC. We do not accept late submissions, so make sure you fill it out!

▸ Uniform Design Contest is open! Submissions are due 28 February 23:59 UTC. Gamewide voting will be in March.

▸ Bounty Board ▸ Items Page ▸ Exploration Group Planning ▸ General Plotting ▸ February Calendar

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Don't worry about her. She isn't going to hurt anyone unless they do something stupid. Then that's they own fault. [Poor murderous fluff. It sucks when everyone thinks you're a true monster, huh?

He doesn't look up from his digging. The speed isn't so great that he's slinging dirt everywhere, but he also doesn't seem to be bothered by the strain of having to be quick, or the repetitive motions of scooping. The first hole is finished--deep enough to ward off scavengers, but not so deep that you'd break your neck getting in and out.

The boy left is smoke-crusted and red-eyed. Tired and running on leftover adrenaline. Inuyasha isn't sure what to do with him, so when there's a gumption to begin digging the next hole, Inuyasha lets him at first.

There's no reason to make a kid like that dig graves when he's capable. He grabs the handle of the shovel to stop the motions.] Give me that. Just let me do it. [Not much resistance is given when he weasels the shovel out of the boy's hands.] We'll be puttin' you in one if you keep it up, and I'm not gonna be responsible.

How about go get some flowers or something? [That's what Kagome would do, he thinks, with Shippo. Gather some flowers.] Bring them back, and we'll put them on the graves.

Go on. [He can tell reluctance about Nymeria when he sees it.] Go that way. She isn't gonna bother you. [Inuyasha watches him go anyway, just to give the kid peace of mind, if that's possible when a dog demon and a direwolf are watching you walk.

Then he glances over at the woman and the girl.] What're you saying anyway?

[ he’s just a child, she thinks watching the boy depart too. brave, though, to stay. kind to wish to help. could her brother walk, he would have done much the same. had he lived.

a small groan catches her attention, so quiet no one would have heard it. but she is no one and she is close too. zokla takes the old woman’s arm. she lets the woman use her for support to ease her carefully to her feet. the old woman passes a gnarled hand over zokla’s short brown hair before carefully stepping past. zokla watches her in case she falls. ]

All men must die.

[ non sequitur in any other context. except she briefly catches inuyasha’s eye before turning to watch the woman and boy. she might leave the answer there, but she finds her tongue loosening. ]

It’s High Valyrian. Like my name. Back home, we use it as a greeting or a farewell. The other person answers with valor dohaeris — “all men must serve.”

[ her eyes fall to the line of white-wrapped figures at their feet. ]

All men must die. But this is cruel. [ her voice, mostly toneless before, acquires a furious edge that only grows. nymeria echoes her anger so the black growls almost seem to come from the girl, instead. ] They weren’t fighting. They weren’t threatening homes or their family. They were just here.

[ the last word is almost a snarl, forced through between her teeth, indignant and frustrated and tired that everywhere, everywhere…it’s always the same. ]

I don't think any of these people are gonna answer you, but [The white ears fold back briefly. His brows pinch in the middle, his lips frown.] they probably knew what it meant to "serve" anyway.

[After a moment of not exactly knowing what to say for comfort or resolution, he holds out the shovel to Arya.] It's gonna be worse if we don't hurry up and figure out how to fix everything. This place is caught in the middle. It's going to be a graveyard by the time those two idiots are satisfied.

Here. Take it. [He'll let her have it if she's willing. Feels wrong to make a kid shovel grave dirt, but he knows all too well how much stabbing the ground can help when you're angry at the world. Even something that simple.] I can use my hands.

[ there is no comfort. nor resolution. that has been a truth she has held for years. even the gods here stand back, following the threads of a tapestry only they can see. if they wish something done, they must all do it themselves.

but stabbing the ground is fucking great.

she takes the shovel without a word. never has she had to use a shovel, not even held one. the dead she came across she didn't bury. she didn't have the time. she didn't have the privilege. when she could, she took what was useful and then kept walking. most of the time she only watched them fall. to stop would have meant her own death.

she thinks of them. she thinks of the victims here. the sound of the shovel striking the earth is a different name each time.

ser gregor. dunsen. raff the sweetling. ser ilyn. ser meryn. queen cersei. ]

[It's surprising how quiet he is from then on, what with as much boisterous fuss as he's usually making when people are giving him a hard time all the time. Dead demons don't bother him at all, and dead humans bother him only a little when they are people he doesn't know. He feels bad--for them, for who is left behind, for the injustice of innocent people caught in the middle.

Why hurt someone who couldn't fight back? He didn't get it at all. It was cowardly.

In lieu of a shovel, he uses his hands and his sharp nails, and he again doesn't seem bothered by lack of stamina, or by the dirt sullying his skin, his pants. He only stops every so often to check on Arya.

The mother he buried is who he thinks about. He never got to bury Kikyo, and he thinks about that, too. About how angry she must have felt when she died, telling him that he had betrayed her. He thinks about Kagome, and how he doesn't want to bury another woman in his life ever again.

Yet here he is, burying mothers, and girlfriend, and sisters, and children.

Perhaps the only irony about the whole ordeal is the fact long streams of dirt are being tossed up over the edge of a growing hole, as dogs would do. All at once for a few moments, a pause, and then one or two chunks of scrap dirt, then a long stream all over again.]

[ burying the dead takes most of the day. by the time the sun tracks closer west, zokla's hands tremble from exhaustion. when she could no longer dig, she passed the shovel off to someone else and resumed her earlier task: cleaning and preparing the bodies.

here too people are uncomfortable with death. aside from surviving family who claimed the bodies, the task remained with her, the old woman and the boy who stayed. at one point, he sat down on the ground, more flowers in his lap, and started to cry. after a moment, she stopped what she was doing and sat next to him. neither said anything. zokla, her hand on his arm, let him cry until he stopped.

when they're finished, the old woman invites them back to their home. the boy agrees; it doesn't seem he has anyone to find anymore. zokla hangs back. she tips her head up, squinting against the glare. to inuyasha, ] What are you going to do?

[By the end, he's matted on the hands and sleeves and feet with dirt, black under the nails. Specks of soil stain small bits of his face where he needed to wipe and had crumbs of it on his shoulder when he did.

So he hadn't touched any of the bodies, or the woman, or even the boy when the crying began. Frankly, he thought he was out of tears, but just to be safe, he tried to focus on something else instead.

It takes all day, from morning to sunset, with a few breaks. They get most everyone buried, the ones they had, the ones found. No one is different anymore. All human. Sea Clan insurgens lie beside Flowerland farmers who lie beside Mountain warriors. Returned to the earth.] All men must die, I guess.

[He turns to look back over his shoulder, and then he looks down at his hands. Curls them into fists, filthy.] Dunno. [The woman seems nice, and hopefully the boy can find a place to be pieced in. But it feels wrong accepting their hospitality when they should be getting hospitality instead.]

Go find some food or something. Some water to get all this stupid dirt off.

What're you gonna do?

[ valar dohaeris, she answers instinctively in her head. out loud, she says, ] There's a stream that way. It's not far from the woods either so we'll find cover.

[ she does not plan to stay, either, but her reasons differ. they are here to do a job. it'd be stupid to get attached to the old woman or the boy when they must leave…and when either of them could be killed next. she buried one friend, and it hurt. ( she wasn't able to bury anyone else. ) ]

[Any other time, he'd probably gripe about the "we" because he doesn't think he's a babysitter, but after all this... yeah, nevermind. The complaining can wait. He's too tired.]

Then we better get goin', or it'll be dark, and who knows what we'll run into.

[There's nothing for him to carry other than the Tessaiga that's already at his waist. He goes on ahead a little ways and stops to wait for the girl if she needs the time to get things together.]

What's your name anyway, kid?

[ 'we' as in 'nymeria and me.' but she is too exhausted, physically and emotionally, to argue. after she makes sure her things are accounted for, she follows after inuyasha. nymeria pads ahead of both; she knows where to go. ]

My father named me Zokla. Everyone just calls me Zo.

[ she winds her fingers around the straps of her backpack, tugging down on them. ]

Back home, people thought my name funny. Here, some can't pronounce it.

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EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

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sorry for the late!! work has been a thing