epidemiology | 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

[He tsks gently and squints into the flames. Non-spiritually sensitive humans register as nothing on his radar, so Rey's talents are very useful in that regard.] All right, if you'll lift the worst of it blocking the entranceway, it shouldn't be anything more than a quick in-and-out.

[Three people are easy to carry and if he has no obstructions, he can flash step once he knows where they are, and can get back. Once he's certain Rey is following his orders, he calls back in.] Hello there! Don't move! We're coming to get you, and please don't be alarm if things start shifting around on their own.

[ Great. Lifting heavy, flaming debris over her teacher's head. This actually makes perfect sense for her first attempt at lifting heavy stuff. This is exactly how her life would go.

She extends her hand, drawing from something deep in her chest and sort of … gathering the energy around the debris together in her mind. Like she's trying to get it all in a grocery bag. A chakra grocery bag. It's very profound.

The rubble shifts, splintered and ashen beams groaning under the weight of the roof as she realizes she— she's going to need to hold that up too, or once these beams lift up, the whole thing will collapse.

Her other hand comes up quickly. ]

Hurry!

[ She grits her teeth, sweat beading on her forehead as she sort of … heaves the weight with a tilt of her chin and it all lifts. ]

[At least he didn't throw you into a hole for three days and give you "succeed or die" ultimatums. It's almost like he's growing as a person.

The words hurry have barely left her when Urahara runs in. It takes him a bit of searching to actively find the three, but once he has them and they've agreed to hold on tightly, the exit is much faster- just a flash of movement that comes on the tail end of a couple of moments worth of crushing panic.

Urahara is singed and covered in ash and dust, but looks smugly satisfied (and maybe even a bit proud), as he looks at Rey. He has a teenage girl and a petite older woman in either arm and a very traumatized older man clinging to his back like a spider monkey as if he'd rather face the fire than have to endure another round of flash stepping. Once they feel safe enough, they climb down and cling to one another.]

[ They cling to one another and that's the moment that Rey knows it's okay to let go. They're not missing anyone. She hadn't missed anyone, reaching out to sense who was in there. Like any weight, it's hard to shake herself of it without injury. She can't just drop it; it's almost like she has to lift up a little higher just to let go.

For a moment it looks like it might be too much for her. She's visibly straining. But then she short of … shoves, and the weight of the rubble is released, crumbling and putting out some of the fire near the entrance.

Sweat gathers in her eyebrows and lip and drips down her back and she sways on her feet. It's a lot. ]

[Urahara observes all of this quietly, removing his hat and slapping it against his leg to shake all the ash and dirt from it. Only after she's relaxed a bit does he make an impressed sound, loud enough that it startles the still-clinging family who were getting comfortable in the silence.] My, my, Rey-san. That was impressive. You're almost scary.

[ She reaches out for his upper arm and grips it to steady herself. It looks like she really did almost collapse there before being willing to reach out for help. Yikes. ]

Don't say that. [ She sounds injured by that, genuinely, and it leaks through because ... well. Because she's too beat for it not to. ]

It's only an expression, Rey-san. I know you're as gentle as a kitten, truly. [He could have probably stood to genuinely dial that down, but sometimes Urahara is at his most sincere when he doesn't drop the act. If he dropped the act, it would be like admitting he said something wrong on purpose, rather than just making a joke that cuts too close to the bone with all of her fear of darkness.

And the joke proves he has no belief that she's really all that dark.]

Isn't your philosophy the one that's all about how one doesn't preclude the other?

[ Mr salt about the Jedi binary over here can get called out too. Mostly because she has to say something abrasive to justify the fact that she's now going to lean into him a little to catch her breath. ]

[Urahara places an arm around her shoulder to steady her. Also because he's a giant lanky dad-like person. Eat it, Luke Skywalker.] Ah, so you have been listening~

[ She likes them giant and lanky. But not dad-like. Contrary to popular belief there's no daddy kink here. ]

I always listen.

[ She just also takes time to think about it and digest it and — ok she doesn't always listen until it's staring her in the face and impossible to ignore. Like an angry rathtar. ]

Mmm. [He looks thoughtful.] Well, that's interesting. Maybe I should be more careful what I say now. You might get the wrong idea.

[Teasing, teasing. He lets her lean on him for a second longer and then pats her shoulder.] Come on, then. Let's see how much more of a disaster this is.

EVENT ▸ EMPIRE OF THE CRASHING WAVE

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