[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

[alphonse]

[Geir may regret asking.]

It's all guesswork. I don't really know the limitations, or what powers it, or even why we all have such different abilities to begin with. I've been getting by okay with just practicing so far, but for all I know I could be doing it completely wrong.

[He sketches a transmutation circle in the dirt like it's supposed to illustrate something.]

Alchemy is precise. You have to know the composition of what you're working with and exactly how you want to apply the energy. Magic means throwing all that out and what? Using it anyway just based on feelings? It almost doesn't seem fair.

[It isn't just magic, not really. He was equally terrible at trying to learn alkahestry and might be more than a little frustrated he still hasn't adapted.]

[rootandbranch]

[Geir noses at the transmutation circle, scuffing the lines of it in the dirt. the unfamiliar symbols don't mean anything to him, of course, but call him a tactile learner -- he's listening to Alphonse's embittered explanation intently as he fidgets.]

But it's not just about feelings at all! It's about, um... understanding power. At least, that's how it's always been for me.

Your explanation sounds kind of weird, if that's how you're thinking of it. Do you really know exactly what's in this dirt?

[alphonse]

Mm, it's like... when you think of something at its most basic level, you can pull out the elements you want to work with, but there's no affecting something you don't understand.

[He's listening to what Geir has to say, but the ideas are so far removed from Al's usual approach he isn't sure how to bridge the gap.]

Understanding power... If it's not about feelings but you don't have any guidelines, how do you do it?

[rootandbranch]

[Geir makes a whiny little noise under his breath, plaintive.]

Aw, geez, I don't know how to do this... Vern never gets things when I explain them, either. Okay, you're talking about... breaking things down to their most basic level. Understanding that the dirt has dead plants, or metal, or stone in it, or whatever. Right?

[he waits for some acknowledging gesture on Alphonse's part, and then goes on.]

So what's something like you or me? If you just look at flesh, it's-- dirt, basically.

[he's about to say something about how dirt is Ymir's flesh anyway, but he decides not to-- he doesn't think it's true, here, and also it's probably getting ahead of himself in Alphonse's understanding. man, his relatives are weird, especially the old coots that were around before Odin's time... but no, he has to move on.]

But it's not just that. Who you are makes-- a shape in the world. Are you a person or a tool? When you reach out your hand to grasp the things you want, do you get them? Do you bow your head or do you hold it up? Can you decide that, can you make it stick? What's your fate?

[he stares at Alphonse, not sure if this is making any sense; it's deeply intuitive knowledge to him. he can feel it in every bone.]

Your body pushes water away from it if you jump into a pond. Power comes from what you can change in the world, and it pushes events away from you, or around you, or into your hands. Your own strength rests in you like a weight and digs your heels deep into the path you walk on, so others can see your footprints behind you. If you don't understand it, or won't use it, other people will use you instead.

[this is frustrating -- Geir can see Alphonse is not someone powerless, and he wants to make him understand that. does he have better words for this? he doesn't.]

Can you see what I'm talking about?

[alphonse]

[It's probably the most he's ever heard Geir say in one go, and he nods along, fascinated. Thematically, it's not at odds with things he already believes about people and the way they fit into and affect the world. In some ways it reminds him of the things his teacher used to try to drill into him about folding the big, abstract concepts into the practical. When it comes to magic, though, he still isn't there. He knows his own has worked better in emergencies, when control has been natural and automatic instead of something overthought. Applying that minsdet all the time, though...]

I don't know.

[Said honestly, after a silent moment of mulling it over.]

I mean, I think I do, but I haven't figured out how to use it. So maybe I don't know anything at all.

[rootandbranch]

Maybe it'll take you a while to learn how to use it because you don't understand it yet! But if you break it down into little pieces, then parts of who you are in the world are the same as a speck of rock in a handful of dirt. And then the magic you use is just... putting a shape to that, with power.

[he vents a long sigh and rubs at his muzzle sheepishly with a foreclaw; that was a lot of talking, for him. it's not that he doesn't have opinions or thoughts or feelings on these things, but he prefers to listen when he feels so uncertain about most of the new developments in his life, and his direct nature doesn't usually lend itself to long explanations. needing this many words for his awkward attempt to explain something so pivotal to him feels oddly vulnerable, which moves him to an unprompted confession.]

That's why I feel so weird about the power I got from Qri...

[alphonse]

[Al edges a little closer, tilting his head curiously. It's clear he's willing to listen if Geir feels like elaborating.]

It's practically the opposite of your normal magic, right? That has to be confusing.

[rootandbranch]

It's the opposite of everything I am! I don't bring life to things. I reeeally, really don't.

[he was born to kick off the end of everything. what can he even claim to know about life?]

I'm supposed to be doing something totally different... honestly, at home, Vern and I were hiding out from my family while we figured stuff out, because weren't sure if we were going to go through with things or not. So even if I don't like Qri much, this works for us. But the enlivening part is just strange.

[alphonse]

[Says who? he wants to ask, but he'll come back to that soon enough. First:]

You seem pretty good at it to me.

[Not that Al's opinion is what matters here either.]

Even though it's different... [A glance at the plants they've worked on for emphasis.] Do you like using it?

[rootandbranch]

[Geir sidles awkwardly, pleased and embarrassed. that's... that's a compliment... okay. he doesn't know what to do with it.]

Ummm. Um. It's... definitely new.

[he ducks his head...]

I couldn't answer that when Vern asked me, either. I'm bad at this.

[alphonse]

There's no answer that's right or wrong. It's just about how you feel.

[But maybe Geir's still working that out, so he's not trying to demand a response.]

The way I see it, you've done a lot to help the coven and the Palai. You even came all the way out here and listened to me complain.

[He can't not see Geir as a good person, easily as complex as any human.]

Power's all in how you use it, right?

[rootandbranch]

It's about how you use it, but it's also about who or what you are. It's complicated. It's a little different for me than it'd be for Vern or someone, too, because I was born to do something... that's part of me.

[he looks up at Alponse shyly from where his head was ducked... he's touched that Alphonse is trying to reassure him, as well as processing the meaning of his words. if listening to someone complain is on the same order as supporting the coven and the Palai, that's certainly something he feels capable of.]

...I'm glad if I helped, though.