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

You don't owe me an explanation.

[ she'll say that out of hand. like, she's not going to go around telling everybody about her powers, and he doesn't necessarily have to do that either just because his are really obvious. she gets it. ]

So it's still …? [ she gestures with her staff to his eyes. then she looks up and down the hall. ] If you think you could do that again, we should keep moving. There's probably more.

[ Scott rather thinks he did owe her an explanation, but there's not really time to argue you. ]

It doesn't turn off. [ He looks down the hall too. ] And it doesn't run out. Ever.

[ Though there's no time to be angsting about that. No time to worry about his lack of shoes or shirt either. Maybe time to point out that he saw her telekinesis. Scott heads off down the hall. ]

What about you? [ He drops his voice, the better to hear, and not be heard. ] Can you move things bigger than your staff?

Others like me have been able to.

[ So she should be able to, probably. She's never tried, though. Not yet. She glances up as she strides alongside him, curious. ]

Do you have something in mind?

Yes.

[ From a thousand Danger Room sessions, from every second he fought at Jean's side. But there's no guarantee that'll translate well; from talking to Luke, it seems like mutant-telekinesis might be an outlier in strength and dexterity.

Guess they'll find out, though. ]

Can you grab multiple objects at once? Or— [ Damn, how does he explain this? He doesn't know how Jean and Rachel do it— ] can you use it as a kind of...shield? A barrier?

Like a sentinel's shield?

[ She shakes her head. ]

Maybe, but I've never tried. I think I could do more than one object at once, though.

[ Okay. That's good. That'll have to be good enough. He's not stupid enough to think that two superpowered individuals should get cocky about this. But they can probably make it work. ]

Good. [ He stops in the hall, because they need to settle this before they jump into anything. ] Can you—

[ He taps his temple, thinking as hard as he can: Can you hear me, Rey? ]

Believe it or not, I've been thinking for myself for—

[ oh

he didn't mean 'think' with that gesture. she looks genuinely surprised when she does figure out what he means. ]

You ... want me to read your thoughts?

[ Scott nods. They don't really have time for her to dwell on that surprise. Someone might come any second. ]

I'm used to it. My team coordinates this way back home, so we can make calls in the field safely.

[ And he'd like to think he's gotten good enough that he could make it easier for her, keep his mind focused as opposed to broadcasting every random passing thought to her. Not like with Jean.

(Jean will always be special.) ]

[ Sorry. Still processing. She's staring at him, really genuinely slack-jawed. There was a lot of Unhappiness from Poe Dameron on this exact topic lately, so it's hard for her to grasp that Scott would be a.) casual about it, b.) comfortable with it. ]

I — Yeah. Yeah, I can. [ Just to clarify. That's in her power. ] I have to focus. I'm still learning.

[ What he describes would be easier for someone like Ben, who has been using it to — well, dig into Poe's head for all this time. And she's not sure she won't just bleed her own thoughts out. ]

It might be one-sided. I'll be able to hear you, but I'm not sure I can ... reach back.

That's okay. We can work with that. I'll put it out there as loud as I can.

[ It's really fine. Scott's trying to project reassurance, quashing whatever anxiety he feels about inviting someone he still doesn't know that well into his head. It's actually not too significant. Teenage girl telepaths pick apart his thoughts all the time. At least in combat he's certain of his focus. ]

If it gets to be too hard, we'll just talk. I'll watch your back and you watch mine.

[ And they're in an enclosed space, which means they'll have to stick closer together. Which will make it easier not to worry about hitting her with ricochet'd blasts. ]

[ Honestly Scott Summers deserves an award for being the best person ever because all this heartens Rey in a way she can't really put words to. She's feeling super good about her Force powers now, which is a good pick-me-up from Poe making her feel like a monster.

She's not gonna be asinine and waste time being like uwu thank you right this minute, though. She blinks that sentiment back quickly and

reaches out with the Force, trying to get a firm grip on his mind. He might experience some slight discomfort as she tries to more or less hook herself there, grabbing on instead of just skimming the surface. It's a fumbling effort. ]

[ Scott's very careful not to flinch. It's not like having Jean in his head. She could listen without him ever being aware, slide right into the depths of his mind. Put herself there, really there, present in the web of his thoughts. He wishes now that it weren't so easy, so that they'd have been forced to learn how to make and stabilize the connection. So that he'd know how to help Rey now.

But he knows the shape of his own mind, thanks to Jean. He tries to structure it now, give the fingernails of thought scrabbling for purchase something to cling to. Put everything else aside and visualize; here is the space for her to stand, here is the place in his mind that makes these calls (it looks a little like the Danger Room, when he pictures it). He doesn't know what it looks like to her, what it feels like to her. All he can do is put it out there— this is the place, this is where to be— project it with unwavering certainty and try to make it as easy as possible for her to enter and hold.

Which he really hopes works, because. Pretty soon they'll have to go. ]

[ It's there, something calling to her from his consciousness. She grabs on when she brushes up against it and hones her focus so that it solidifies into something substantial. Scott's mind, crystalized and whole in the edge of her awareness.

Her eyes open, and she affords him a quick nod. ]

I can hear you. And you're right — we have to go. Now.

[ And there it is. Even if he can't hear her, a one-way connection is better than nothing.

Scott jerks his head down the hall, and heads off in that direction. Never mind his lack of weapon or lack of clothes. While he starts lining up strategy in that new mental connection. ]

My powers don't make for good crowd control. Especially here. It's too easy to wreck the house without wrecking people. I have to land direct shots head on, before they're past my guard.

[ She's able to follow his intent. It's odd. It's not quite as intuitive and unconscious as her ability to understand Ben through the bond, but it's a cousin to it. A distant relative. There's more intention behind it, more willingness. Scott doesn't feel quite as much like he overlaps with her and—

God, she hopes it's not a two-way connection. She shuts that thought down quickly, just in case. ]

I'll lure them into the open for you to get a clean shot.

[ That seems, at least, to be where he's going with this. ]

You're sure they'll survive a direct hit?

[ Her thoughts— it's a bit like trying to find a radio station, static and jumbled bits of meaning. Not like she's blocking him; like she doesn't quite know how to put her thoughts out there.

Scott's given a lot of thought to how he'd handle dealing with telepaths of all stripes and strengths. And he's spent a lot of time with them, spent a lot of time trying to do this exact thing. Practicing for a moment like this. Practicing for this kind of singular focus, where the strategy takes place somewhere deep in the subconscious and he can just pull out a decision and put it forth.

If she can hear him, he'll trust that maybe she can figure out how to make him hear her properly. When she needs to. They can work as is. ]

Trust me. Don't be bait. Just don't let them get too close or get away.

[ Scott steps back against the wall, making room for her to get ahead of him. He puts a finger to his lips, and then gives her a thumbs up. Agreed? ]

[ Trust me. She scoffs a little, only because they'd been keeping secrets from one another (by design or otherwise). But she slips ahead of him, glancing back to consider his expression and sort of shrugging one shoulder like, yeah, alright.

She shuts her eyes, leans up against the wall, and reaches out. She can feel them. Four of them. No fighting down that way, not yet. They're looking for something. She can't pick up on what, though. Not as distracted as she is by the link to Scott.

Rey levitates a wall-hanging and lets it fall to the floor down the hall from them, drawing the attention of the ronin before she comes around the corner with her staff raised to get a hit in while they're distracted. ]

[ What else is he supposed to say? They don't have time for a practical demonstration. She's in his head; surely she can get the impression of his certainty. He knows what he can do, even if she's still an unknown.

But now's a good time to observe. She's the one with the weapon, she's the one who gets to go first. Scott lurks in the shadows behind her, fingers to the side of his visor, waiting for the sight-lines to open up. She nails one on the side of the head, and there's a clutter as more come to follow.

There's no time to grab her shoulder. Only room for NOW, NOW as they come into his line of fire, and she's short enough that he can aim right over her head.

The first lesson, the hardest lesson he ever learned on the road to using his powers for something more than just destruction: how not to obliterate everything in sight. It's one concentrated, narrow shot, but the hall lights up ruby for the second it takes the blast to leave Scott's visor and slam right between the ronin's eyes. He drops like a stone; another blast wipes out his friend behind him, and they drop to the floor like very concussed stones. ]

[ Rey rolls forward the minute the intent enters his mind. Connected to him like this, it doesn't even require the deliberate shouting of it. She'll have to work out those kinks later, modify their methods, but — this works. The bright red light flares over her head, and bodies drop around her.

She sits up to check their pulse, then turns back to nod at Scott. Good. He'd managed what he'd promised. ]

Nice shooting.

[ Though the blast following his eyesight probably makes aim easy, now that she thinks about it. She gets to her feet. ]

[ There's a brief hint of a smile, two fingers just above his visor in a small pantomime of a salute. ]

It's what I do.

[ It's about the only thing his powers can do, as long as he keeps that visor stuck square on his face. Better than stumbling around blind. ]

Though...I also do other things.

[ Gonna check the guys they knocked out, looking to grab a sword. Just in case someone gets up in his face, where it's hard to shoot. ]

[ When he grabs the sword, Rey grins. That's something she knows what to do with. She's better with her staff, though, so she's not going to fetch one just yet. Rather, she's glad to see he's ready for up-close. ]

Let's keep going. There could be more.

[ And then she joins him in rounding the corner to whatever next hallway there is in the castle. ]

[ He can't just let her carry the short-range/melee side of the battle alone. And without armor, or even a shirt and boots, hand-to-hand seems unspeakably stupid. Scott hefts the sword, feeling how the weight sits in his hand. It'll have to do. ]

Still good?

[ Scott catches himself saying it out loud as he taps the side of his temple. They should go back to that. They should stick to it as much as possible, if they can. ]

I still hear you.

[ Her nod possesses a confidence that doesn't match up with her experience. But she had felt around enough in the dark corners of Kylo Ren's mind by this point that she's not worried about her ability to bridge a mind. The greater concern is making sure she doesn't slip into digging too deeply. ]

They won't give us any trouble.

Unless they've got someone like us on their side.

[ Not that Scott's seen any evidence of it. But he hasn't lived this long underestimating his opponents, or any of the nasty potential surprises coming down the pike.

But he's got a sword, and she's got a staff. His eyes shoot energy and she can grab things with her mind. It'd have to be a hell of a supervillain in hiding to face off with both of them. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject