[WORLD ONE | POST-UVI CELEBRATION]

[spellbindmods]

Who: Coven members and Palai
Where: In and around the Aimintas marketplace
When: Day 39
Open/Closed: Open to All

After an appropriate amount of time for mourning, the Palai have shifted into a more positive mood -- they're a very resilient species, though there is a bit of a muted tone to their celebration. The whole event is a little hodge-podge, mostly because they aren't used to having to celebrate with the coven members added to the guest list. The Palai have gathered together all of their people and have invited the coven members to a small, intimate gathering -- the purpose of the event is to thank them for their service in fighting the Uvi, and the success of freezing the Uvi in their home. While no one knows how long the Uvi will stay gone, any amount of time without the Uvi being a concern is fine by them. The event takes place in the very center of the marketplace, with the Palai interacting on the fringes of the party throughout the rest of the large building. The coven members have time to spend by themselves, but there's room for moving around on their own and also spending time with the Palai if they so choose. A ▢ One of the more noticeable editions to the food the Palai have provided is a large pile of sweet, sugar dusted pastries. You may notice that something about them seems...odd, to say the least. It looks as if the pastries are vibrating slightly, but they smell divine. If you're so inclined to ask what the deal is, these pastries are magically infused by Eltos, which somehow gives them a sweeter flavor and enhances the sensation of tastebuds. The Palai sometimes eat these before meals in order to better the flavor of their entire spread -- though adding this energized magic to an already magical being means magic powers may be a little off kilter. Don't be surprised if suddenly your abilities go a little crazy. B ▢ The Palai aren't participating the party for two big reasons. One, the purpose is to celebrate the victory of coven members. The other reason, however, is one that may be more interesting to outsiders. While previously the Palai were peaceful people, happy to exist submitting to the Uvi, the coven's show of strength and valor has inspired them to be more aggressive in their approaches. Grown Palai can be seen working on makeshift weapons, but the idea of smaller tools like slingshots have already been constructed and almost perfected. The Palai youth have discovered these tools and are playing with them gleefully, though occasionally hitting each other -- and potentially you -- with energized, paralyzing rocks fueled with Elto energy. Watch out or you might get zapped! C ▢ Other Palai youth aren't as fortunate to be so distracted and happy. While fewer Palai died during this attack, the casualty number wasn't zero. Most Palai children still have at least one family member to care for them, but they're still a little disconnected from their people by means of grief. Some are milling about with the coven members, trying to eat or pester them for attention. If you're good with kids this may be more your speed, but those bad with children can find this irritating. Some Palai youth are more muted, however, content to just sit and listen to stories or eavesdrop on conversations. D ▢ For some people, rain isn't that big an issue -- but it certainly puts a damper (get it?) on a party. The Palai seem a bit confused by the sudden shower that comes in heavy as the evening dies down. The Palai have never experienced rain before, using irrigation systems and existing ground water as their means of hydration (both for themselves and for plants). Because the rain is coming from the ocean, the drops are large and salty, and the marketplace quickly begins to flood. The Palai move the party indoors for the most part, but that doesn't mean you or the food aren't already soaked. It's much warming underneath the roofs in the marketplace, but that doesn't provide much relief since the ocean rain is warm and humid. E ▢ Wildcard! How will your character handle this violent and volatile situation.

Comments

[rootandbranch]

I don't either, but please don't faint.

[he only has limited experience with mother-henning humans, but he can try. this girl is clearly sort of out of it.]

Do you need water? A place to sit?

[decipheringeye]

No thanks, I've already had plenty to drink.

[Indicates her glass of whatever the local booze is. Please drink responsibly, kids.]

[rootandbranch]

That's not water...

[HUGE SIGH]

You're mead-happy and you've hardly had a drop. Humans are so delicate.

[decipheringeye]

Well, excuse me for being delicate. It must be pretty nice being a dragon.

[And so, we have derailed.]

[rootandbranch]

Do you mean "being a dragon" or "being able to hold your ale?" Haha!

[Geir is more interested in making sure she lays down or something than teasing her, though. having sick humans around doesn't strike him as a good idea.]

You really should get that water, though...

[decipheringeye]

I will, I will. You sound just like my mom.

[rootandbranch]

Do I? I don't sound like my mom.

[that's a pretty interesting fact, anyway. what are human moms even like? heck if he knows.]

Was she nice?

[decipheringeye]

Of course she's nice. And don't go selfishly putting other people's parents into the past tense like that, you'll cause some kind of misunderstanding.

[Recklessly talking to dragons: Easier with a few drinks in you.]

[rootandbranch]

Selfishly? How is that selfish? I don't know anything about your mom.

[fortunately for Kosuzu, the dragon seems much more intrigued than offended by being talked to recklessly. he's learning important things about human moms. who would turn that down?]

[decipheringeye]

If you say "Was she nice?" it's like you're saying, "Oh, I guess she's dead," or at least "I guess you'll never see her again." She is nice and I am going to see her again. These kind of situations never last forever.

[rootandbranch]

You've been in a situation like this before? That's different. Tell me about it!

[Geir's amused by her huffiness. he might as well see what she wants to talk about while she's inebriated, if she's a talky drunk -- and telling him a story will keep her put and drinking her water.]

[decipheringeye]

[By this point, she's sitting down, and has water. You're helping, Geir.]

Back where I come from, weird things happen all the time, and it always turns out that there's some kind of weirdo troublemaker behind the scenes. Then Reimu beats them up, and everything goes back to normal. This is just like that, but maybe a little more dramatic than normal.

[rootandbranch]

"Back to normal?" But... what's normal? How does it get back there?

[Geir doesn't come from a serialized story, so this kind of narrative isn't really what he's used to.]

Are you planning to beat Qri up?

[that, on the other hand, makes sense and is eminently reasonable. Geir could get behind that idea.]

[decipheringeye]

No way, if I fought someone like that I'd definitely lose. I'll leave it to the problem solving types.

[In other words, the violent lunatics.]

[rootandbranch]

So... that's the way thing go that you're used to -- that's "normal"? Weird things happen, then you wait around until other people fight them and the world just goes back to the way you want it to be?

[that's not a kind way of putting it, if it's even accurate. but Geir has a tendency to listen to and parse things quite literally and then indicate his understanding in the bluntest way possible, and that's what he's hearing.]

It sounds like you're counting on a lot.

[based on his own life, it sounds like an impossible fantasy. doesn't she at least want to beat up her own weirdoes, so she has some control over what happens to them? he's used to not being in control of his own destiny, but this approach is still just odd to someone who's never been able to rely on others much either.]

[decipheringeye]

[She looks a little melancholic at that. It's not like she hasn't had that thought before.]

It's not like I wouldn't like to be able to fight on my own. My only ability is reading things in other languages. When it comes to defeating people who can fly, or use magic, or harness the power of nuclear fusion, what else am I supposed to do than count on more powerful people?

[rootandbranch]

[that IS a puzzle, and Geir gives it the attention it deserves. he's never considered himself weak, except for when he was tiny, but he knows others do. Vern had magic, but counted himself as powerless to do most things nonetheless, because the problems he was fighting were too big for his own power till Geir woke up. on the other hand, Geir doesn't know exactly what he would do to make humans stop fighting or treat magic users better, which were what Vern was struggling against. isn't having power but not knowing how to solve the problem the same as not having power to begin with?]

I dunno. Maybe you could get power over others and get them to help you. Do you have magic here?

[decipheringeye]

Just the thing where I saw the future, but apparently I don't even know how that works.

[rootandbranch]

Ohhh, so that's where that comes from! No wonder it's so confusing then. My power from Qri is pretty confusing, too.

[he's still not sure what his own has to do with anything else in his life, but okay, Qri, you do you.]

Is your Reimu here? If you're right, maybe he'll punch Qri and we'll all go home.

[decipheringeye]

Well... no, she's not...

[That's the kind of thing you don't think of when you're drunk.]

...Anyway, her instincts are really sharp, and she's all about this kind of weird stuff with other dimensions. I'm sure she'll find this place eventually.

[rootandbranch]

Oh.

[Geir is back to being a bit dubious, but he keeps it behind his teeth. he learned a whole tact!]

Well, we'll just make sure everything stays fine while you're waiting for her.

[decipheringeye]

[Kosuzu raises her drink.]

I bet you're really good at that!

Come to think of it, I've never had a conversation with a dragon before. You're a dragon, right? [The ones she's familiar with are a bit more snake-shaped.]

[rootandbranch]

[Geir tilts his head, interested.]

I guess a lot of humans haven't... yeah, I'm a dragon!

[decipheringeye]

From the neck down, you don't look much like any dragon I've seen. Too many legs.

[rootandbranch]

[Geir puts his head down close to the ground to peer at his own legs and talons. he's not entirely sure what will happen to them if he fully becomes the World-Serpent. does he get to keep them and just act out the snaking symbolically, on a layer closer to the Tree? or do they fall off or something...]

...this is just as well, for now... I like having wings and legs. They're good for, uh, grabbing things. And flying.