EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

[futurologists]

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

Comments

[notthatjason]

[Jason studies the man for a moment. There's something...but he's not sure what's bothering him. There isn't really time to question it much and instead Jason just turns and rushes forward into the fray. A few feet away another skirmish is already underway -- with more of each clan clashing further out. He brings the sword up and blocks the downward swing of a sea clanwoman from driving into the shoulder of a ronin from the mountain clan.

He follows the momentum of battle, kicking the sea clanwoman away before turning in time to block the sword strike from the recovering mountain ronin. The woman looks surprised by the combat prowess of a man, but doesn't let that stop her for long. She swings again and Jason is able to step out of the way of the blow.

He's so used to fighting monsters and other demigods that it takes him a minute to realize that the reason she is so slow is because she is an average mortal. Jason's purpose isn't to toy with the ronin though, he wants this fighting to end. He drops low and pops up behind her, taking her down with a blow to the head.]

[selfimage]

[ there is smoke and adrenaline in the air, and it feeds the rush of battle. Loki has a sword, somewhere, but he doesn't call for it. this is neither a time for Gram nor Laeveteinn, as both weapons are crafted to tackle the supernatural rather than the mortal. all he needs this time is his fingers and his words (his words, which are more dangerous than either one of his blades).

Jason dives into the battle face-first, and Loki skims along the edges of the fight, calm against the wave of fire and rage. there's a mutter from his lips and fabric of reality responds, wafting from something concrete to something more permeable (though to Loki, reality is always permeable). the next ronin behind Jason ready to strike from the interruption to battle stops short and misses the blow by a mile.

there's some confusion, and then a flicker of an illusion. it's not just that ronin, but three others around them that seem to be fighting with invisible partners.

around Loki there's a green glow that follows Loki's fingers with some disassociation to those who focus on it: what is real, and what isn't real? ]

[notthatjason]

[When the ronin warriors around him begin fighting something or someone else, it gives Jason pause. He steps away and if he squints he can see flickering in the air before the warriors.

Is it the Mist? No, he's pretty sure that doesn't exist here. Magic then. It reminds him of what Hazel had learned to do...what Hecate was known for doing. He can only figure this must be coming from someone supporting him and Jason realizes that when he rushed into battle he'd already lost track of the other Team Ophelia member.

No...there he is. Jason spies him on the edge of the field of combat, a green light flickering around his hands. He has to blink several times since his eyes seem to constantly be slipping away from it--seeing something else. Definitely magic then.

But there are more skirmishes that Jason should end. With the ronin around him distracted by fights that aren't really there perhaps he can end this more quickly. Jason moves over towards the nearest one and begins to systematically knock out the fighters while they are distracted.]

[selfimage]

[ there's one thing that Loki's always been good at, despite all of the blows to his pride, and it was being support for anyone heroic (or stupid, he'd point out) to get the job done. Loki was not the most noble of souls, he's used his own cleverness to both enrich and damn, and now seems fairly comfortable to ride the line in between. ]

You guys aren't going to remember this in the morning, you know. [ he says to them—or himself, really—as he makes a dance out of the bright green lights.

there's a glance up at Jason to make sure that he's utilizing this opportunity to his benefit. ]

Hm, not bad I suppose.