[WORLD ONE | DING DONG THE FISH IS DEAD]

[spellbindmods]

Who: Coven members and the Palai
Where: Celebrating the Uvi going boom-boom
When: Day 67
Open/Closed: Open to All
OOC Note:

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!

For decades, the Palai have had to deal with the threat of the Uvi invading their homes, killing their families and returning 30 days later. After the coven found their way to Aimintas, the Palai found that the threat wasn't so...threatening. After the last attack, with many more Palai lost as compared to previous Uvi instances, some Palai had lost hope. Now, after seeing their nemesis blown to bits and falling out of the ocean, their faith in safety is restored. While the Uvi are still committed (by and large) to learning more about barriers and other forms of safety, the time for focusing on serious things has passed. It will return, but tonight? They celebrate. Unlike their last, shrimpy festival, this party has a lot more going for it. The Palai have had time to process the events and prepare themselves for a grand celebration. The Palai know how to party, but you ain't seen nothin' like this. A ▢ As a birthday tradition, the Palai give the birthday lizard a special concoction. It contains Elto energy and a combination of found herbs that can easily be located in Aimintas. When these herbs are combined with the Elto energy, they create a sort of...hallucinogenic experience. It's supposed to feel extremely relaxing and give the Palai pleasant visions, but in human bodies it's essentially just getting high. There are vials of these being passed around like candy, so don't worry about anyone running out. B ▢ Despite the adults getting lit, there are obviously a lot of baby Palai on the lose. Responsible coven members who have their own babies will have the ability to let them run wild and play with their lizardy cousins. If you want to spend time with your baby, the nursery caretakers have platters of crackers with mushy foods adorning them -- these are essentially candy to a tiny Palai. They may also be tempted by other foods present at the festivities, but you can avoid them getting a tummy ache if you have a watchful eye. C ▢ Speaking of food, there certainly is a lot of it. There are large grills being heated by the newly found bone structures. These hold shrimp and fish, grilled vegetable skewers and other foods. Instead of the Palai doing the serving, the coven members and other Palai are instead encouraged to utilize their own raw ingredients (which includes several large sharks, dolphins, etc.) in whatever fashion they choose. It's essentially a "build-your-own-kabob" station with no limits. D ▢ Because the party is lasting on into the night, some Elto have decided to light the marketplace with some of the bone structures they found by powering them and inserting them into small cloth bags that they then magically levitate around. While they provide a powerful light source that can increase the party's longevity, they're also floating live wires. Bump into one of these and you'll get a nasty shock! This is doubly concerning since Palai babies are fascinated by following these floating "toys." E ▢ The Palai, feeling more familial and supportive of their ideals than ever, haven't let go of the whole family/romance pushing on the coven. Their newest attempt is a bit of a prank (probably due to high Palais) who have taken magic bone structures and tied thick strings to the spines that poke out of them. At the end of these strings are loops that they're quickly slipping around the wrists of coven members they find. You may find that you're suddenly magically connected to someone -- or two other people if you're lucky enough -- by a magical thread that's VERY hard to slip out of or break. F ▢ Wildcard Part 1: Other previous party prompts can also be considered here, from the rolls that make magic go haywire to the aged liquor that causes a bit more than a headache. G ▢ Wildcard Part 2: Any prompt you like!

Comments

[deem]

It affected your vision too then?

[9S can at least move without everything flickering now, and he'll call that progress. Even the static seems to have dulled.

Strange, he'd nearly gotten used to that]

Was it something you wanted to talk about though?

[talim]

Only a little. It was more dizziness than anything else.

[ jude has to think on that one. ]

... The truth is, I don't know. But I didn't mind it. There are still so many things about me you haven't learned, and... well, sharing isn't something I'm opposed to.

[deem]

[It's true that there are a lot of things that he doesn't know about Jude. And likewise, there are just as many that he hasn't shared about himself.

And he knows that's been a point of concern]

...Originally, I was dispatched on missions alone. That's how it is, for Scanners. We're made for intelligence gathering, rather than fighting. I found it pretty lonely, rather than anything else.

[It's not much of a story, but he thinks...it's something safe to share]

And then one day I was assigned as 2B's support. It made me happy, being with someone.

[Which "first" meeting is he referring to? It could be one of so many]

[talim]

[ jude listens with a patient look, and deep down he's appreciative that he didn't have to give 9s a nudge to get him to tell him a little thing about his life back home.

jude recognizes it as a kindness. certainly not an obligation. and he's grateful. it shows on his face.

he almost asks about emotions being prohibited; loneliness and happiness are certainly emotions, but he's been pushing 9s to let go of that notion. he's not going to break that now. not when they're both loose-limbed and relaxed. ]

So that's how you two met.

[deem]

It was unusual, but I didn't mind that.

[He certainly thought about and analyzed it over time, during more than one life. But it's simplest not to mention that he's died before. Although he knows Jude isn't unfamiliar with the cavalier way with which YoRHa regard the well-being of their current bodies, he doesn't want to upset him by bringing it up.

Not to mention, he's given 2B no indication of what he does and doesn't know. There's only so much it's safe to say without weighing either of them down.

He halts when they're close enough to what looks like a comfortable seat, and he sets Jude down carefully. It's more than is necessary, but he doesn't think much about it]

Typically, Scanners don't have a NFCS, so being out in the field alone is pretty dangerous. Mostly though, I just preferred the company, even if 2B wasn't much for conversation.

[talim]

[ jude sighs when 9s finally puts him down, releasing his hold around his shoulders and sinking into his seat, shoulders slumping. he gives the seat next to him a pat, wordlessly inviting 9s to join him. ]

Even if 2B isn't exactly the most talkative person, her presence in itself is... soothing. I can't quite explain why.

Is that how you feel, too?

[deem]

[It doesn't take more encouraging than that for 9S to plonk right down without ceremony, far less ginger about it than he was with making sure Jude was settled. But hey, he's hardware]

Yeah, something like that... She's a very capable person, and a caring one, even though she comes off so serious.

[And there's a certain level of appreciation that seeps into his tone as he talks about her. Conflicted as some of his emotions have been, he does admire that about 2B. That she can hold herself together so well, and despite the bitter reality of her unit type, that she can care so much for others]

[talim]

She does care a lot. The smallest things seem to mean the world to her.

But if I were to take a guess... She seems to care the most about you.

[deem]

[There's something startling about hearing that from someone else. From a human, even, because they're supposed to place mankind above and before everything and everyone. Of course, they're so seldom quite what they're meant to be. Certainly, they're not even what they were told they are.

Even now, he can only wonder about his black box, but he doesn't want to think about it. If he does, then he has to debate whether it's really okay to be this close to humans]

We're partners, after all... So we've been through a lot.

[It's a safe answer, and he suspects Jude will know it for what it is. Even so, how should he answer a thought that fills him with so much joy...and so much guilt at the same time?]

[talim]

I can only imagine.

[ a smile. ]

Tell me all about your adventures with 2B sometime. I'd love to hear them. Maybe I'll tell you a little bit about Milla, too, in between.

[deem]

You'd want to hear about something like that?

[That's surprising.

But also dangerous]

Our missions might not always make for fun stories, exactly.

[talim]

Is there a reason why I shouldn't?

[ he hums in thought. ]

Mine all aren't fun and games, either. But I do have some pretty good ones! Have I ever told you about Milla's fascination with human bodily fluids?

[ OH BOY. ]

[deem]

Her...what?

[There is no diplomatic response to this, only obvious confusion.

9S has no idea how he should interpret that, but Milla's important to Jude, right? Surely it can't be something bad]

That's a unique interest.

[There is a diplomatic response after all]

[talim]

I guess Great Spirits are just fascinated with all things related to the human realm. Needing food, needing sleep... Milla used to eat so much, I don't know where she put it all. She never needed it to sustain herself prior to losing her spirit powers, but afterward...

The first meal she ever had... she fell asleep face first in the bowl while Alvin and I were right there.

[ ah. memories. jude looks so ridiculously fond. here he was, asking about 9s and 2b, but somehow the topic shifted... he'll apologize later. ]

As for what I said in particular? Uh, well, she was really excited when she caught a cold this one time. Something about mucus and the human body being a truly cumbersome thing.

Milla's an odd one.

[deem]

I guess I can understand being interested in new data...

[Although 9S can't say he's particularly curious about mucus, of all the things he's itching to learn about mankind. That's something he thinks is just as well left in Milla's capable hands.

He wonders, from what Jude says of her, what meeting such a person must be like. More to the point, being around them]

My interest in studying machine life-forms was considered strange too though.

[At best, highly discouraged and against regulations at worst. But there was something that piqued his interest about their attack patterns and how they engaged in combat. The details, especially, could hold his focus for hours]

[talim]

It doesn't sound all that strange to me.

[ a small tilt of the head. ]

I asked 2B a little about it. About the differences between androids and machines.

[deem]

[He wonders what she might've said. At the same time, he's hesitant to ask.

What he knows he's far too uncomfortable with]

She knows just as well as anybody would. [Perhaps not entirely accurate, anymore, but he sounds like he believes it] But Scanners aren't really supposed to take interest in the things I did. I should put it that way.

[talim]

Is there a reason why? What is it that dictates what you can and can't be interested in?

[ a genuine question. it can't just be his programming, can it? ]

[deem]

There're regulations specific to YoRHa units.

[More than a few he anticipates Jude would not agree with. Even if that organization no longer exists, the awareness of what he is and what's expected of him remains]

Those'd come from Command, and they can vary by unit type and model.

[talim]

I just...

[ his buzz is starting to fade little by little. ]

I don't know. Just imagining being told what I can and can't be interested in...

[ a deep frown curves his lips, brows knit and eyes downcast. ]

Personally? I'd hate that more than anything.

[deem]

I wasn't very good about adhering to some of it.

[Said with a wry twist of his lips, because of course he was cognizant of it all along. He simply pretended it wasn't the case]

Everyone has rules though, right?

[Like those machines in the desert with countless, unending, and often ridiculous ones. Somehow he's the king of them. Really ought to tell Jude that story someday...]

[talim]

[ that wry grin earns 9s a coy smile of his own. he should have given him more credit.

he's learned that 9s isn't the most conventional by now. ]

We humans have a saying: rules are meant to be broken.

[deem]

Still, I bet you've got a few you abide by.

[This subject is an easier one, if only because they're speaking of it on surface terms. His thoughts go far deeper than that, but for now, he'd sooner not chase Jude's smile off again.

Lighter is better, he thinks, as it always has been]

Or are you some lawless troublemaker after all?

[talim]

You caught me. I was just a hardened criminal all along. Sorry I misled you.

[ he says this with a dry expression, but his lips are quivering in an effort not to laugh. ]

[deem]

Not even my Scanner's intuition could see through your clever ruse... I was doomed all along.

[On the other hand 9S can say this with such grave intonation]