august mingle

[stellafortunamods]

August Mingle
Welcome to Teyvat - a vast magical world of adventure.
Happy new year....! In Teyvat, that is. It is now January ingame, and Liyue's people go about their disaster recovery efforts with more vigour than before. After all, Liyue's biggest festival is slated to occur in the latter half of the month - the Lantern Rite!

The Rite of Parting - Rex Lapis' funeral - passes without much incident, and Liyue collectively breathes a sigh of relief. With the Fatui being chased out of the yard, it seems that peace will finally return to the harbour city as they rebuild from the storm. You'll also get to watch three million Mora's worth of incense go up in smoke, so there's that.

Eager to focus on the future, Liyue folk have begun discussing the upcoming festival. The Lantern Rite commemorates hope for a new beginning and continued prosperity, and the construction of the festival centerpiece is currently underway. This year's Mingxiao Lantern will soar into the sky amidst thousands of smaller lanterns, and it will take the shape of a fallen Adeptus to commemorate the Adepti's contribution to Liyue's lasting peace.

Unfortunately, you're not quite out of the frying pan yet. With the Fatui gone from Liyue, the Ministry of Civil Affairs turn their attention to solving another issue that has cropped up after Osial's revival and subsequent defeat. Quite a few miners have gone missing from the Chasm, and the likelihood of finding them will only grow slimmer as the days go by. Both the Millelith and the Adventurers' Guild have pitched in to search for the kidnapped people. All clues lead to Nantianmen - and it's just your luck that Geovishaps and their hatchlings have come out of hibernation at around the same time. These lizard-like beings have shells of solid rock, and they seem especially agitated at having their territory invaded. Solving the mystery of the missing miners will take more than just a day's work.

State of the World

With the Lantern Rite set to open on January 21st, all of Liyue have come to visit the harbour to set up their stalls and pitch in to craft the Mingxiao Lantern. Hopefully the miners are found before the festival begins - the Lantern Rite is a festival of reunions, after all. Not to mention the Geovishaps' increased activity will inadvertently lead to them burrowing around in the rocky mountains. There's a small, but non-zero chance of them hitting an ancient seal somewhere and unleashing a buried threat.

Unless... that was their intention all along?

Please direct all questions to August's OOC post!

Comments

[whiteshroud]

Agreed.

[Jun would certainly prefer if they were alive too. Because you know, he's not a total psychopath]

Hmmm... [He starts thinking.] If we continue onward to this direction, we'll start getting near Jueyun Karst. If something supernatural took them, it might've gone there.

[killtwice]

Time to get it to it. There's not a moment to waste.

[ Trevor gets up and then straightens up his back. He's cranky and sometimes he's in a bad mood. ]

Shit, I haven't gone investigating like this in a while. Do you have experience handling these sorts of matters?

[whiteshroud]

[Jun nods, jumping off from his rock platform as it disappears in a sparkle of energy. Time to go on the trail!]

Yes. Investigating unnatural disappears is a common task in my work back home.

[killtwice]

Let's hope we're not the ones who disappear next. We're no good to the miners if we're defenseless and end up in the same situation as them.

[ Trevor gets his whip out from his belt and holds onto it just incase. ]

Do you mind double checking our surroundings for me? I'm not asking for much.

[whiteshroud]

Don't worry, if we go missing I'm sure they'll be able to track your scent...

[Just saying man. He'll gaze around]

No signs of monsters or the miners. At least on an elemental energy level.

[killtwice]

Are you insulting the way I smell or the way you smell? I daresay, if you get too close to me then you'll catch it too.

[It sounds like he's talking in jest because he really doesn't think that will happen. Trevor is just messing around for no real reason.]

There's no monsters here. Not even a trail or maybe....

[There's a set of footsteps on the ground next to them.]

We can follow that.

[whiteshroud]

It's just an observation.

[Sure Jun.

He was continuing his own elemental sight scanning when Trevor points out the footsteps. He glances down at them, observing them]

...Adult size, multiple sets, staggered steps.... [He nods] Mm, good spotting. This might be them.

[killtwice]

For once I was able to contribute and not feel like I'm a complete idiot. Whenever this place starts to become about magic I'm just lost and confused. Lost and confused.

[ Trevor is much better at doing recon and simply just tracking things down. He doesn't know too much about magic and sorcery in general. They exist in his world but he's only got rudimentary knowledge on them.]

I have a feeling we're going to find something other than the miners.

[whiteshroud]

[ Lord is he having a self-pity moment right now...]

Have you tried asking questions and trying to learn...? It's not like I knew much about Teyvat or its system of magic when I arrived.

[But he spent a large amount of time those first few months training and doing everything to learn and adapt to his new mission. But hey, that's probably why Jun gets paid the big bucks.]

Most likely...a normal human kidnapper wouldn't go near Jueyun Karst. The humans that live around here know to stay clear of it.

[killtwice]

I managed to get some things working but it doesn't always go the way I expect it to. That's life, isn't it? Full of things just not working right.

[ He's having a moment of self-pity. Yes. Up until more recently, Trevor had been wandering aimlessly without purpose. Ever since he's arrived in Teyvat everything seemed different from before. He's having difficulty making heads or tails of the situation and he sometimes wonders if he's on the right track. ]

A human kidnapper also wouldn't leave prints like that. Regardless, we should be on our way.

[whiteshroud]

[ ... 💧 ]

That's rough buddy.

[That's the best he's got. Jun wasn't the best at being a empathetic ear on a good day ok

But yeah, he'll keep heading forward, all while keeping his eyes and senses peeled. While there's no nearby monsters, it's easy to pick up the traces of them. Which is...strange.]

...I visited Jueyun Karst a couple months ago, but I don't recall this level of activity.

[killtwice]

[ It's fine, they need to move on. Jun also has a point. It's rough, but there isn't much else that needs to be said. ]

Were things quieter back then? I wasn't here for too long so I don't have the full picture.

[ He's trying to take some initiative and ask questions about things he doesn't understand. There's just something about this entire thing that isn't sitting right with him. ]

Things always look chaotic to me.

[whiteshroud]

[Oh hey, Trevor is asking questions. Which luckily, Jun is more than willing to explain now that he's been asked]

Mm. Jueyun Karst is the home of the adepti, a type of immortal spiritual being that have protected Liyue for thousands of years. While some adepti choose to live among humans, the ones who reside out here prefer peace and solitude. That's why humans normally aren't allowed to come here, at least without permission. Trespassing here can be...fatal.

[He'll dig into pockets, pulling out a sigil and showing it to Trevor]

I was given this the last time I was allowed to visit. Let's pray it's still in effect. Though...we should probably stay clear of any adepti, regardless.

[killtwice]

I'm not into the habit of prayer and I've been excommunicated by the church itself so, no. I won't pray. You're free to do whatever you want though.

[ He's still nodding and listening though. Trevor takes another look at the sigil and inspects it. It's nothing he's seen before and he doesn't recognize it from anywhere either. ]

Humans aren't allowed to go there without permission? How about a vampire or a demon? Are they allowed to pass?

[whiteshroud]

[Jun can't help but roll his eyes] It's an expression. I don't care about your religious beliefs.

[Honestly, the number of times he has to clarify that...]

No. Many Adepti devote their lives to destroying demons, so they'd be even less welcomed than humans. [Understatement, really] Why do you ask?

[killtwice]

Maybe there's some kind of loophole? I'm just trying to find an easy way out.

[ Look, he just wants his life to be simple. Everything has to be complicated for some reason and Trevor isn't having any of it. His brows crumple together and he sighs. ]

The areas around here seem different too. I wonder about the land and what kind of mystery it might hold.

[whiteshroud]

If you're having second thoughts, you can always turn back.

[Jun doesn't mind continuing on by himself, if that's what needs to be done for the mission]

Countless mysteries, I'd imagine. Rex Lapis was over 6,000 years old. That's a long time for things to happen.

[killtwice]

I'm not having second thoughts and I'm certainly no coward.

[ He's staying there to investigate and the danger he hardly minds. Trevor is used to working under unpleasant conditions. ]

They might have some food that's over 6000 years old. Would you eat it??

[whiteshroud]

The fact you equate turning back to being cowardly says a lot about you...

[Another check mark for the reckless idiot theory]

If the Adepti offered it, sure. It'd be an interesting experience.

[killtwice]

The fact that you'd eat 6000 year old food if it was offered says a lot about you...!

[ Trevor shrugs and then shakes his head once. He doesn't understand why he finds himself with these crazy conversations. ]

I think you might be stupid or utterly insane.

[whiteshroud]

[Jun clicks his tongue. His patience is being tested, yep. ]

It was an adeptus who helped me when I arrived in Teyvat. Even though he had every reason to see me as a threat, he looked after me and taught me how to use my Vision. He showed me nothing but kindness.

If anything would be stupid or insane, it'd be rudely snubbing his fellow kins' hospitality because their customs are different than what I'm used to. I have faith that if they meant me harm, they'd do so directly.

[killtwice]

[ He's quiet for a moment as he stops to think about how wildly different his perspective is from Jun's. Trevor does things the way he wants to and has very little care for what someone may or may not think. Then again, he also starts to think that Jun might be a little too trusting of others. Trevor believes that his opinion barely means anything so he keeps it to himself, but he just sighs. ]

Just don't get yourself killed. It's better to be stupid or insane than be dead.

[ That's such a roundabout way of telling someone to be careful. ]

Are you not afraid of danger?

[whiteshroud]

[Says the guy that kept chasing after a hooded figure in the dark for no reason...Jun thinks to himself, but doesn't vocalize it.]

You mean am I afraid of your stupid and extremely unlikely scenario?

No. I'd say it's near the bottom of my list of concerns.

[killtwice]

If it's at the bottom of your list then what's at the top of your list?

[ Trevor hasn't even figured out that the hooded guy in the dark is the same guy he's talking to now. That's a story for another time. ]

Another extremely unlikely scenario?

[whiteshroud]

[....

Jun exhales and goes quiet. That's an easy thought for him. That what they're doing here isn't actually for the good of the people currently living in Teyvat. That no matter how tyrannical Celestia is, by removing them, they'll be leaving a power vacuum for other gods and demons to step in and attempt seize power. And that this will all lead to another cataclysmic holy war that devastates the land for centuries.

Or, it's not other gods that but humans that wage the holy wars. People will continue to worship deities who are now absent, but without their constant presence their teachings being twisted and warped until crusades and inquisitions become commonplace. Jesus preached nothing more than to love your fellow man, and yet countless people have been killed in his name. What about the more nuanced lessons that the Archons have taught? How will those be twisted? And even in Earth's case, God was still watching over Earth in His own way - intervening when necessary. Teyvat would have no such safety net.

Perhaps Forneus is right and in the long term, the removal of Celestia would be better for humanity in this world. But after how long? After how much suffering until they reach that period of peace? Would it take 2000 years, as it did with Earth? Gods are notorious for thinking in the long term, while overlooking the suffering in the short term until it was right in front of them. And unfortunately, Jun was too mortal to do the same.

But....Jun wasn't one to voice his thoughts and feelings very easily. Especially when he's sure much of it would go over Trevor's head. So...even after all that thought, he just lets out a simple:]

Something like that.