[WORLD ONE] AIMINTAS (INTRODUCTION)

[spellbindmods]

Who: The coven & Palai people
Where: In and around the city land of Aimintas
When: Days 13 & 14
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!

Just like how you arrived, the process of leaving the hub and reappearing somewhere else is quite quick and uneventful. Brie and Genette gather as many people as possible so that everyone can explore the new world together in a group, which is where they all land once Qri has worked her magic. If you weren't in the vicinity, or thought that not being social meant you'd get to stay on the island, you come along as well, though you didn't exactly show up with the group. A ▢ Everyone starts their journey a reasonable distance from the outer city walls of Aimintas. It's about a four hour trek to the rocks on foot, which Genette tells everyone to move towards -- though you're free to do as you please. You may discover that traveling on your own too far away results in something quite unpleasant. The initial terrain is quite interesting -- it's at least different from the hub island, though you may not be particularly impressed. There's sticky kelp to step in, water in the sky to look at and sand to get stuck in every orifice of your body. How do you like the new digs thus far? B ▢ Genette explains that the gang must enter the city of Aimintas to survive, but it's easier said than done. Maybe as something of an incentive, Genette climbs into Qri's caravan and it floats away, over the rock face. There go all the supplies you brought! The rest of you losers will have to climb through the craggy rock walls, hundreds of feet tall with very few crevices and cracks that are navigable. Hope you can climb...or maybe you can find a way to get through using someone's magic? The sun sets while the coven is busy trying to get through the craggy infrastructure (at least, that's the fate of those who don't find a quicker way to get into the city). Brie locates a large cave in one of the rocks, and that's where everyone sets up camp for the night. If you want to carry on, that's your choice...but who knows if anything that goes bump in the night is out there bumping in the night time? C ▢ What will your character be doing tonight? Sleeping on a hard rock? Stuck awake? Even if they do manage to fall asleep, they may be haunted by the occasional high pitched screech that comes through the night, though the location of the noise is unknown as of right now.

It takes about a day to travel to Aimintas, climb through the rocks and come into the city. Thankfully the city hub is close to the side of the city the coven managed to climb through, so civilization is awaiting. That civilization is decently modern, lizard-like and very, very nosy. D ▢ Upon entering civilization, the Palai are immediately curious and in awe of their taller, bipedal visitors. They've only seen people like those in the coven in pictures, and if they learn that your character has magic? It'll be as if an A-list celebrity just wandered into town. Because they're so enamored, the Palai will readily give coven members gifts as a token of their appreciation. What exactly do they appreciate? Don't be afraid to ask a few simple questions. They'll be more than happy to give out answers. E ▢ Some Palai, though, will want to see some of that magic before they offer up any gifts. Some may be a little demanding, just because their curiosity is so overwhelming. A harsh no will result in an apology and a gift anyways, but maybe just show them some magic anyway...? Even outside of interacting with the Palai, there's quite a bit around here to look at. Genette can be found in the middle of one of the parks, handing out the stored supplies to their owners. (Don't worry, she'll tell you where she is with a little telepathic poke. Your supplies will give you access to shopping and bartering...your status as a magical humanoid thing will only get you so far. F ▢ The Palai marketplace is rather large and home to a variety of businesses, shops and services. Want a good night's sleep? Want to eat a delicious shrimp wrap? Need your hub technology charged? You can do that here. What strange items will you fine? Is their technology level something you're familiar with? G ▢ Finally, the Palai are a people of culture. That culture can be quite unforgiving to those who choose to wander around alone. Some Palai people, after the initial wonder has worn off, will deny services to people who are on their own. It just doesn't compute! Your character is better off with a group of three, but a friend is fine. Travel in groups or couples and your character will find that they get fewer strange looks and questions.

It can be easy to get overwhelmed within the Palai marketplace, so no one will blame a coven-member for escaping the city for a bit. On the outside of the marketplace is a very large house with dozens of Palai congregating -- and my dozens, we mean at least 200. A Palai mate triangle just committed to each other, and this is certainly worth celebrating. H ▢ The guests feel blessed by the presence of a coven-member, and they readily invite any that happen by to the festivities. There's cake, alcohol, drinks, dancing. The Palai people certainly know how to get down. I ▢ Wildcard! How will your character interact with this new and unusual world?

Comments

[soulcomet]

This, you mean?

[the Soul Gem floats half an inch or so off her flat palm, and she brings it a bit closer so Dirk can get a better look.]

It's called a Soul Gem. It's where magical girls get their power.

[it feels a little strange discussing this with someone who isn't a magical girl. it's something she'd kept a closely guarded secret from nearly everyone back home. but ... if they're going to be traveling to worlds and fighting together, it would be best if they understood each other's abilities, right?]

[splinten]

[Almost imperceptibly, he stills.]

Do you know anything about how it works?

[Soul Gem. Maybe it was her choice. Maybe she knew what she was doing. If she doesn't, though—]

[soulcomet]

Eh? Well ...

[she does have an answer, but the lack of specifics are probably a dead giveaway.]

I guess the easiest way to describe it is has all of my available magical energy. Like ... [what was the word? ... mana?]

Um. In any case, it's what I use to transform, and to use my magic.

[splinten]

[ALARM QUICKLY ESCALATING]

I'd be interested to see what you transform into and what kind of magic you've got.

[He needs to. Set some groundwork, if he's going to say this. Okay.]

My things are related to what's called my aspect. It's Heart, which is basically the soul.

[soulcomet]

[Madoka has no idea. the odds of her being able to glean any sort of alarm in Dirk's expression were pretty low to begin with.]

Really? That sounds interesting ... what sort of powers does it give you? [she asks as she stands and dusts herself off, getting ready to transform.]

[splinten]

[He stands back, giving her some room.]

Frankly, it makes me sound like a supervillain. Aside from sensing souls, I can rip out souls and destroy them or move them to other places. I was told to think about how to use that positively.

[He has been blanking on it.]

[soulcomet]

[that ... gives Madoka pause. she can't help the look of horror on her face either, though she almost immediately presses her lips together in an urge to flatten her expression.]

[Dirk has already shown her kindness, even if it was unconventional. and even though it sounds terrible ... she has no reason to suspect — she doesn't want to believe — that he would regularly do something so cruel.]

... Have you ... ever done it before?

[splinten]

[He won't lie. He won't act like he doesn't deserve that look. But he won't hide the circumstances either.]

I tried once. I was trying to save my friends. But the magic failed, and so did I.

[He was left alone. Completely.]

It isn't something I'd use lightly. Taking a soul out of someone is cutting off everything that makes them what they are.

[And Madoka is holding a Soul Gem in her hands.]

Who made that Soul Gem?

[soulcomet]

[she almost can't bring herself to speak. there's a part of her that takes comfort in the fact that Dirk takes his power as seriously as he does.]

[but failing to save his friends ... why does that story sound so familiar? why is it that, despite the happy life she's living, despite how hard she's worked to protect her home, it feels like she's watched someone's magic, someone's wish, backfire on them a hundred times before?]

[and why is he fixated on the Soul Gem?]

It's ... Kyubey. He's — he's this cat creature. He's the one who gives magical girls their power.

[splinten]

And he told you nothing about how it works.

[The creature did not tell her what he had done to her soul. He hates it instantly, with the hate he reserves for injustice and cruelty. He hates it for twisted betrayals of the kind at heart.]

[soulcomet]

... What are you saying?

[splinten]

[It is a heavy thing to say. There is a war in him between telling her truly or sparing her that knowledge.

But Dirk has always believed it is better to know. Still, he has to ask.]

I told you my aspect is Heart. I can tell you what I sensed of it if you're sure you want to know, but it might be better if we pull away from the group for a moment. It's probably a private matter.

[soulcomet]

[there's no turning back now. if ... if Dirk's found something, it's important that Madoka know, so she can relay it to her friends if she manages to find her way back home. no matter how afraid she might feel, she owes them that much. right?]

[wordlessly, she nods, and turns, ready to step away from the others. she'll hear what he has to say.]

[splinten]

[He walks with her, wearing the weight of this knowledge. He fears giving it to her. But he can't turn back, either. She deserves to know if she chooses. He waits until they are away, out under the eerie seaswept skies. He stops, and turns to look at her.]

I can sense souls, where the essence of a person is. I didn't notice at the island without my powers, but I realized what was happening here, when I saw your Soul Gem. [The name is a sick joke. It's like giving the girls everything on a platter and then pulling a veil over their eyes so they can't see it.] I could tell that your soul is located inside that gem.

[soulcomet]

[Madoka's hands tighten over her Soul Gem, and instinctively, she brings it to her chest.]

Y-you can't be serious, right? I'm ... [but she doesn't feel any different than she's felt her entire life. why would Kyubey — how could he have done something so cruel? do the other girls even know? is "girl" even the right word? if their souls aren't even in their bodies, that makes them...]

[has ... has she been using her literal soul as magic this entire time?]

[Madoka nearly buckles under the weight of her thoughts slamming down on her, but she manages to keep herself steady. she doesn't look up at Dirk, though, she only stares down at her hands.]

... I don't want to believe you. [her voice shrinks as she speaks.] But ... but I don't think you would lie to me, either.

Is there a way I can be absolutely sure? [because she desperately wants him to be wrong. a misunderstanding, or something. anything.]

[splinten]

[He is still, not sure if he should go closer or keep his distance. He feels his title ringing in his ears: Prince of Heart. Destroyer. She is uncertain and frightened, he can tell, but she keeps herself steady. It isn't fair.]

Using my powers to confirm it would probably hurt you.

[Tearing out her soul. Aranea had been in pain.]

We could try moving the Soul Gem away from you. Test if physical distance makes a difference in the soul's ability to animate your body.

[He wants to say, I'm sorry. He doesn't think he has a right to say it.]

[soulcomet]

[the way Dirk describes it is so nauseating to her, even if what he's saying is exactly how she is. but it's that tiny glimmer of hope that maybe this is a misunderstanding that moves her forward. or is it her Soul Gem? she doesn't know anymore.]

I could try hiding it back at the cave, then see what happens when I walk here. [said almost absently, as she turns to head back.]

[splinten]

[He pauses.]

Okay, but I'm stickin' with you.

[If she collapses, he's going to be there to catch her. He started this, and he is going to be there to the end.]

[soulcomet]

Okay. [she even tries on the tiniest of smiles, but it's a poor effort and entirely unconvincing, and she can't seem to wear it for very long.]

[she's quiet for the entire walk back to the cave, and when she gently sets the Soul Gem down next to an inconspicuous rock near the cave's entrance. what could she say? she's standing on the brink of her own humanity, and Madoka is terrified of what they're going to find, when they leave her Soul Gem behind.]

[it isn't until they're about a football field away, and the Soul Gem's gentle pink glow is well out of sight, that she finally speaks.]

How long do you suppose we should walk?

[Dirk won't get a chance to answer, because not even a few steps later, they cross the threshold and, much like snipping the strings of a puppet, Madoka's connection to her body breaks.]

[it's instant. it's as if a flip were switched, and she's suddenly gone, the light in her eyes suddenly extinguished. and down the body goes.]

[splinten]

[It's a flashstep forward and he grabs her in his arms. He feels the soul still humming gently, in the cave. He feels that Madoka does not bear that soul in her. It's like a tether pushed too far. Dirk pulls her up, into his arms, and quickly moves back, waiting to feel the link snap back into place.]

Madoka?

[soulcomet]

[it takes a minute or so, once they're back in a range that her soul can reach. and just as suddenly as she left, she snaps back with a gasp, unconsciously gripping his shoulder tightly as she tries to regain her bearings.]

What —

[splinten]

You collapsed.

[He keeps his grip steady because they both know that it means he was right.]

I'm sorry.

[soulcomet]

But ... But I ... [that's all Madoka can manage before she breaks down, shaking, tears flowing freely.]

[it's too much. it's too horrible. it feels like she can't even tell whether the pain is coming from this zombie body, or if it's off in the distance where she actually is.]

[splinten]

[It's unfair. He hates this—he hates seeing this, that she's like this. He hates that he was the one who forced this on her. Prince of Hearts rings in his head, a miserable truth.

Dirk picks up her Soul Gem, so that she can continue to live, and carries her outside of the cave, away from anyone else's hearing.

He doesn't say anything. He doesn't know what to say. He just knows that it would be unfair to leave her alone. So he lets her cry and shake and he stays there, not letting go.]

[soulcomet]

[Dirk might be here a little while. every new, awful question that occurs to her knocks the wind right out of her; she can only make tiny, pained little sobs.]

[how could she go home and face her family and her friends? how could she even bear to tell her friends the truth? that this is what it really meant when they exchanged their lives for a wish, and became magical girls?]

[is ... is she even alive right now?]

[when Madoka finally does say something, it's not much better.]

How could he do this to us? I just ... I just wanted to help everyone...