[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 She'll also give you a letter, which may give you more questions than answers since the information is a wee out of date.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

[rootbound]

Ah, you're really bad at this. Plant your feet or you'll fall again.

[the words are unkind; his tone isn't. he spends most of his time with someone quadrupedal (if much longer than Shiro is right now); he thinks he might remember the right way to move that sort of body, if he can put it into words.]

[spaceforged]

[Plant his feet? That's actually something he hadn't thought of. He plants his back foot and moves the other one out from under him. His balance stabilizes.]

I'll get better at it. It will just take more practice.

[Shiro takes a few cautious steps and stops.]

How's that? ...My mistake was trying to walk like I normally do.

[rootbound]

You want to make sure you have one foot on the ground on either side at all times, I think. Seems like you do okay as long as you're thinking about it.

[frowns]

Have you shape-changed, or is that some form of armor, anyway?

[spaceforged]

I changed shape. I came back here to practice using it away from everyone else.

[He takes a few steps backwards. No balance issues this time. Between one moment and the next he changes back. His machine hand is up against the wall. He pushes away from it once a wave of dizziness passes.]

The sooner I learn to use it the better. ...do you mind me asking you something? Related to magic.

[rootbound]

I don't mind, though I can't promise a reliable answer. I know my own system of magic, but not too much about the one we've been caught up in.

[he took a couple of steps forward when Shiro changed back, but pauses and sighs in relief when it looks less likely he'll need catching]

[spaceforged]

[Shiro remains steady on his feet. He's been in worse conditions before and still kept on his feet.]

How often are the magic powers here related directly to what the person was doing before?

[rootbound]

I don't know.

[okay maybe that's slightly too unhelpful]

...mine has no relation at all that I can see, to my original ability. Other people have something similarly broad and unrelated. But others have something that's tangential to their capabilities at home, and others have something that's directly related. There's no predictable pattern.

Did you raise strange metal cats back in your world, or what?

[spaceforged]

Usually, I'm the Black Lion's pilot. But then it's usually a lot bigger and a lot more powerful. ...so the powers aren't always tied to what we are. That's good to know.

[It rules out a few worries. This could just be a shadow of the true Black Lion. He hasn't been able to unlock the powers within the Lion. There's still a chance Keith will have a full team behind him. Shiro relaxes, his shoulders easing.]

Do they grow in strength over time? Or is everyone so new no one has any idea of that.

[rootbound]

They get stronger as you get used to them, for the most part, or you at least get more control. I haven't heard of anyone's getting weaker; sucks to be me.

[it sounds pretty droll, but how oh how he wishes he could turn his power off, even if just temporarily.]

So rather, you got fused with your -- [hesitates] -- vessel? Cat-vessel? That's an awfully direct one.

[spaceforged]

We just call them Lions. It makes it easier. But, yes I agree.

If they're all random it could just be by chance. [Still, it makes him uneasy. He could be spending a lot of time in lion form depending on what they encounter.

He pauses.]

...sucks to be you? If you don't mind me asking. What is yours? You don't have to answer if you don't want to.

[rootbound]

I have the power to feel other people's feelings.

[he says it in the same tone as one might say 'I have the power to summon dog turds']

I would much rather have lions, metal or not. I've never seen one before.

[spaceforged]

...What is the specifics of pickup? I'd rather not make you uncomfortable.

[Or overwhelm. He keeps his emotions in check but, that kind of power could pick up everything.]

Anyway, we might see more of them. Metal and flesh. If we're traveling between universes there's a lot of possibilities.

[rootbound]

It's effective ten feet all around me, I'm sorry to say. The closer you are the more I'll get, and I'm going to call it out if you're being particularly weird with your feelings, so if you're in emotional turmoil and want to be extremely stoic about it at some point we'll need to yell across the room a little.

[he seems...mildly good-humored about it, in his deadpan way; he's started to make a little bit of peace with it.]

--thanks, though. And I'll keep an eye out for lions, then. They look exciting.

[taps his fingers on the wall briefly, thinking]

Mm, do you know where everyone is staying yet? I think most of the group is out celebrating, you might actually have fewer interruptions in practice back at the house.

[spaceforged]

I...didn't think about that. [He had thought the place they're staying would be just as loud and bustling. Then again, as he thinks back to having napped there recently. It had been fairly peaceful.]

I know where we're staying. Do you mind walking with me? I've only been there once.

[Shiro starts towards him and passes to right. He pauses, adding.] I don't mind if you call me out. I'll keep my distance and warn you if I can't deal with something or handle it well.

[rootbound]

[looks unexpectedly surprised, and perhaps touched, for a moment, before his expression slides back into smooth neutrality; moves forward to keep pace with him]

Sure, I'll show you there. And -- well, thanks. I try to be frank about this because it feels creepy to withhold that I can tell that stuff from people, but people aren't usually frank back.

[spaceforged]

Like you said, you can't help what you pick up. I'd be a poor teammate if I didn't try to work with you.

[He shrugs, smiling for the first time all night.]

Besides, you did help a large metal cat that probably weighted in the hundreds of pounds find his feet. It's no thorn but I'm still grateful.
[His jokes are awful.]

[rootbound]

[that makes him smile back, unexpectedly bright]

It's not been the first time I had to do that sort of thing, though admittedly not with a metal cat. Just try not to risk your nine lives too much.

[spaceforged]

Don't worry, I take each life very seriously. [Life just happens to have completely different ideas considering how many times he ends up needing to recover.]

I'll be careful. ...it helps being a metal cat makes me pretty durable. So far.

[rootbound]

You're still not immune to being dented, so I'm glad to hear you take it seriously.

Why were you piloting a cat, anyway? Is that just a thing where you're from?

[spaceforged]

[He has to think about how to explain it. There's no harm admitting a few things. It wasn't a secret at home either.]

It's a little complicated. The Black Lion chooses its pilot. It's not common but I'm not the only one. There are five us.

[rootbound]

How does it choose? Is it a living thing? I've not heard of living metal, not even from the dwarves, but that's only in my world, I suppose...

[spaceforged]

...I think they're living. We share a psychic bond. I know it isn't here when I reach out and feel nothing.

Lions choose their pilots based on quintessence, or life force. We have to match theirs.

[rootbound]

That's a strange system...but I guess it's not that different from summoning theory, just turned the other way around.

You can't feel it when you reach out you say. Maybe -- if it's somehow become part of you -- you need to reach inward instead?

[spaceforged]

[He blinks. Then blinks again.] ...That's-

I don't know why I didn't think of that. Will you give me a moment?

[rootbound]

[two thumbs up; take your time, dude]