[WORLD ONE | SEPTEMBER INTRO LOG]

[spellbindmods]

Who: The new coven members, old blood & Palai people
Where: In and around the city land of Aimintas
When: Day 61
Open/Closed: Open to All

The initial setting information found here should be utilized for threads here.

There's no official OOC account for the Palai people. You're free to roleplay their actions and reactions on your own, as in depth as you want -- asking questions, hand-waved interactions, becoming best friends. The new world is your oyster!

All characters are told briefly what their powers are by Genette -- no extemporaneous details. For instance, if your character has the ability to detect lies, they'll be told as such -- no warning about limitations, repurcussions or the like. They'll also be given a variant of this letter so they aren't totally ignorant of the situation -- though of course adapt this letter to the current setting and surroundings of the game.

This setting may be familiar to you -- maybe you caught a glimpse of it when you first visited. Maybe this is your first time experiencing this weird world and the panic is setting in. If you're totally lost, a tall human woman with a long scroll of paper will stop by to give you the run down. She'll also give you a letter, which may give you more questions than answers since the information is a wee out of date. (Maybe someone else can fill in some gaps for you). What you may not know is that this world recently experienced something of a tragedy. You wouldn't be able to guess this based on the festive energy in the air. The main marketplace where you've shown up finished reconstruction last night, and after grief comes joy to the Palai -- those lizard creatures you see wandering around. They're now hosting a festival to celebrate their success and the lives of those both still present and those lost. It's also a chance for them to host one of those big celebrations like they'd previously seen in human books. However, their resources are limited -- don't blame them if things are a little cut-and-paste! A ▢ One of the preferred methods for masking grief in the Palai world is playing games. Because the Palai are still on their shrimp kick (the old blood characters are probably sick of them at this point), the shrimp are being used as part of a few festival games: Shrimp Scoop: Live prawns have been placed in a tank of water. Instead of paper scoops, players are handed small scraps of cloth which they may then dive into the six-foot tall tank to try and grab the prawns with -- no hands! And no magic or your prawn will be revoked. For extra incentive, sacks of golden coins have been tied to the prawns. These coins can be exchanged for goods and prizes, though what your character receives for their coin -- no matter how bland or wacky -- is up to your character. Shrimp Shock: Dead shrimp have been placed in a wading pool. Your character and another character enter the pool while Elto shock the shrimp out of the water. With about 20 shrimp in the water, the character with the most shrimps caught out of the air wins an allotment of coins. Whack-a-Shrimp: Eltos have powered six large, stuffed shrimp dolls (made with cloth), that will pop out of cut holes in a large game board. Hit the shrimp as many times as you can in 30 seconds, and your number will amount to the coins you receive. Shrimp Fest: Is your character a big eater? Your character is given a plate of cooked jumbo prawns. If they can eat all 50 jumbo prawns in 30 seconds, they win 100 coins. B ▢ What good is a festival if there's no face painting? Don't worry, you have more options than shrimp. Palai have an assortment of paints and are making colourful designs on both their kin and coven members -- your request may not look exactly as you want it to since they have bumpy hands and claws that get in the way.

This is all pretty juvenile, but fear not! For the mature sort and adults of Aimintas, there's a more quiet part set up that may cater to your older interests. A softer atmosphere, away from the excitement of things. If you want to wind down from the thrill of being magicked away to a new world, this is probably the best way for it. C ▢ Fans of alcohol will find that the Palai have broken out their best spirits for themselves and the coven. Some of these aged spirits are decades old and have aged accordingly, giving them a bitter flavor with a nasty bite of alcohol. Others are more recently distilled or imbued with magic for an extra buzz. Accordingly, some drinks can get you inebriated pretty quickly. Some drinks are essentially giddy truth serums. Others may have an effect on magic or telepathy. Pick your poison! D ▢ The environment in this more secluded area of the marketplace is supposed to be more relaxed, but it's also the best place to sit if you want a front row seat to the fireworks exhibit the remaining Eltos are putting on. Through balls of dye and their electrical powers, they're quickly blowing up the sky with arcs of color that rain down in the form of bright pieces of glitter once the spectacle is over. They also have a special service they're offering -- the Eltos have a grasp on electrical magic, which means they can draw certain things in the sky with these dye balls. If you have a request for a written message or a drawing of some sort, they'd be happy to comply with your wish! For the real adult experience, however, you may want to check out the large rolling cart that Palai are pushing around the marketplace, landing it in the fireworks area. This cart is filled with all of the eggs that were a product of their mating season, and this part of Aimintas is the warmest. E ▢ For newbies and those who missed the egg train, your character can instead be Egg Parent for a Night. The Palai are holding their eggs to warm them for the evening, but (like most parents with new babies) they're certainly trying to show off their creations. Hold them, pass them around -- or maybe even act a fool and fend off a fiercely angry Palai parent.

Finally, the Palai are getting used to the standard familiar faces, so they aren't unaware that there are quite a few new faces in the mix. Based on how familiar your character is, they'll receive a nice little gift from the Palai. Older coven members will receive a scrolled parchment that lists them as honorary citizens of Aimintas and a handmade, harden clay sculpture of their likeness. It may not look a lot like them, but they tried. F ▢ What about new members? Well, they get the Aimintas Starter Kit: an unmarked vial containing Palai mating pheromones (makes your character affectionate, etc), a bag of cooked shrimp, a collection of their baked goods and energy drinks (containing Elto magic that makes magical abilities hard to handle), and a harmless paper flower. Your character likely isn't used to the dangers of some of these items, so maybe someone can help them...or is it too late? G ▢ Because the Palai recognize new faces, these new coven members will be dragged to other coven members who they do recognize. In an effort to help make introductions, the Palai are trying to connect new members with old members in order to foster friendships. Say hi to a new, awkwardly introduced covenmate...? H ▢ Wildcard! How will your character interact with this new and unusual world?

Comments

[alphonse]

[Light up eyes are a perfectly normal armor feature, okay.

The disappointment, at least, is new. Wait until this kid meets the resident androids.]

Well, it's either that or constantly panic.

[That's probably a joke.]

[adjustable]

Sometimes you just can't help but panic, that's a normal reaction...

[He says on behalf of all those who might constantly panic out there.

Not that he's that type of person or anything. Haha. Ha.]

[alphonse]

It's definitely weird at first. But it helps that we're all in the same situation, so you aren't dealing with any of it alone.

[adjustable]

Ngh... yeah, I guess so... [Reluctantly... He's sorely wishing for familiar faces, but what can you do?]

And I don't gotta fight or anything, right?

[don't know if you can tell, not a big fighter this guy]

[alphonse]

No, but this isn't exactly the safest place, so you do have to be careful.

[Time for the less optimistic part of the welcoming speech already. It really can't be helped.]

I know it's hard to tell from the way the Palai are celebrating, but the city was just attacked and still needs time to recover.

[adjustable]

...It was just attacked?

[No, he couldn't tell at all... Who could tell, with a party going on!]

How come these guys are celebratin', then...

[alphonse]

They're relieved they survived. [A beat.] And they're... like that.

[Take that as you will. He points up to the ocean-sky.]

The species that lives up there has been attacking them for so long that they've practically accepted it as a normal part of their lives. It happens every month.

[adjustable]

...Ehhh...

[He looks up and god that is freaky. He hadn't looked up so much until now but looking up is... Souda shakes his head hard and looks back down.]

They're gonna keep happenin' while we're here too? H-- How bad are the attacks?

[alphonse]

Bad enough. They only target the Palai, but they won't hesitate to attack anyone they see as in their way.

[He's making an effort to sound calm about it, at least. The first raid was only a few days after he arrived himself, and he'd rather avoid seeing any of the new people get caught off guard.]

Don't worry, though--you definitely aren't the only one who isn't interested in fighting. Some of the others have been working on creating barriers to keep the Uvi out of buildings, so there'll be safe places to lay low at in case anything happens.

[adjustable]

Oh... then good!

[He'll absolutely hide and take shelter. Because, well, he doesn't know what's happening. Maybe if he had access to tech...]

Do you got anything else I should know 'bout this place? [He's still mostly at a loss, but he keeps it CASUAL.]

[alphonse]

[It's a good effort! Al carefully adjusts the egg he's holding to count things off on his fingers as he says them. Weird Quirks of the Palai is a long list in itself.]

Let's see... Watch what you eat and drink, especially if it's something the Palai made for a special occasion. Some of it has weird side effects. And they take being social seriously--some of the business owners won't even let you in their shops if you're alone. How to say no to them nicely is one of the most important things you can learn. They're good people, but they get really enthusiastic about magic.

[adjustable]

[Only now does he notice the egg... He was distracted by the armour thing. Why an egg?? Why anything?]

E-- eeeeh... [He groans softly, though.] I gotta go with someone if I wanna get in anywhere...? What a pain...

[His friends aren't here for him to whine at.]

[alphonse]

[Because sometimes the Palai also turn you into surprise parents, but one thing at a time.]

It's not as bad as it sounds. Once you get past all that, the way they live is really pretty similar to humans.

[It's just a hyper-social lizard world constantly under the threat of destruction, no big deal.]

Qri and her magic are where things get weird. Have you tried using the telepathy yet?

[adjustable]

...

...

... The what.

[UH NO? Apparently.]

[alphonse]

[...Oh. Whoops. There's no graceful way to lead into this now.]

The telepathy. Believe me, I know it sounds crazy, but it actually works. You can talk to anyone else in the coven just by thinking about it.

[adjustable]

It-- it ain't just gonna let other people hear what I'm thinking when I don't want 'em to, will it?!

[BIG CONCERN]

[alphonse]

Not if you control it!

[So that's a big yes if you don't.]

[adjustable]

[That sure sounds like a big YES.]

How do I control it?!

[alphonse]

Um...

[This is especially hard to explain for a guy who does his normal talking by more or less just thinking about it too.]

You have to concentrate on what you want to say, and put everything else out of your mind. But not too much because if you're thinking about not thinking about something then you're making yourself think about it and other people might be able to notice.

[How clear.]

[adjustable]

[Souda is just staring into the sun... rest in pieces, he'll never be able to do this.]

Ughhh... [SHAKING HIS HEAD.] I'd be better off just not thinkin' at all!

[alphonse]

Really, it's just one of those things you need to practice. I know it's invasive, but being able to talk to anyone pretty much instantly will come in handy if you're ever in trouble.

[Mobile phones and their evil touch screens are dead to him.]

[adjustable]

Why couldn't we have phones...?

[Sorry Alphonse he would much prefer a mobile phone with a touch screen.]

[alphonse]

[Phones discriminate against people with natural glove-hands, blasphemy.]

I guess the idea is there'd be no network to connect them if we're moving to different worlds, but it doesn't make a lot of sense when you really think about it. There has to be a less invasive way for someone as powerful as Qri to keep everyone in communication.

[adjustable]

[not his problem alphonse!!!]

Yeah, yeah! [He grumbles.] Rather than risk us blaring our thoughts at each other even when we don't wanna.