october mid-month event

[stellafortunamods]

October Mid-Month Event
Welcome to Teyvat - a vast magical world of adventure.
Two weeks after the Travelers arrive in Inazuma, the conflict between the Shogunate and the Sangonomiya Resistance begin to intensify. At Forneus' behest, you venture west to survey the battlegrounds and consider your next move.

Heading west from Narukami Island will bring you to Kannazuka, the location of the Mikage Furnace. This furnace uses the power of the Tatarigami to produce high-quality swords for the Shogunate. However, sabotage by members of the Resistance have led to the furnace becoming unstable. The Shogunate's soldiers and the Shrine Maidens have set up camp on the island, but the two factions cannot decide on how to address the problem. That's where you come in. Unfettered by the chains of bureaucracy, you can act as you wish. Venture into the Furnace and stabilize it before it blows the island away.

Yashiori Island lies even further west. Its position means that it is currently the middle ground where the Shogunate and the Resistance skirmish. However, the fighting has died down due to torrential rain that blankets the island, as well as the intense Electro energy within Musoujin Gorge. Once, this island was the battlefield between the Raiden Shogun and Orobashi, with the latter defeated and sealed. However, someone broke its seals during the civil war, and the lingering resentment of the Serpent has possessed soldiers on the island, turning them violent.

Once again, a stalemate that can only be broken from the outside. This isn't anything new now, is it?

State of the World

The Sangonomiya Resistance have declared civil war on the Shogunate after the establishment of the Vision Hunt Decree. As you travel through Inazuma, you will eventually meet them, as well as their leader. It becomes evident that the two sides are locked in equal balance, and that the civil war does nothing good for anyone... which is why the overseer of the Narukami Shrine has asked you to come. You are unbound by any destiny, and thus able to tip the scales. But to do that, you will need a complete picture of the situation, and to solve problems that no one is willing to face.

No one has seen the Shogun out in public for quite a while. It seems that only a sufficiently grave danger will provoke her from within her castle. The enemy of eternity is change, and you are just that.

Questions about this event can be asked below!

Comments

questions?

[stellafortunamods]

[justicefang]

Avoiding Critical (Mikage Furnace)

[In Anima city, when things can't be solved by the laws or law enforcement, Shirou Ogami is called in. No one is calling him in here, aside from his fellow immortal. As he walks up to the entrance to the furnace's lower entrance he can feel the slight nip in the air.

There's no one around right now. He kneels down with one hand on the ground. He breathes in and the world inverts, scents drifting to him as the imprints of people who passed by flick through his mind.

He opens his eyes and narrows them.]

Not enough. I'll have to go in. I can't get a look at how it all started out here. If it's even recent enough to tell... [He climbs to his feet as he glances at the nearest person.]

Well, are you ready?

Instability (Mikage Furnace)

[Inside the space housing the furnace, Shirou has climbed up a couple of levels to study everything from a higher vantage point. He steps back into the shadows. Even if he is beholden to neither faction...the hostility and careful bias against foreigners kicked up familiar feelings. The old rage and distrust are hard to shake. He's carried it for a thousand years.

He'd caught himself more than once resisting the urge to snarl some curse about humans. They don't even know what he is. He sighs and drags a hand over his face as he drops his human disguise.

Then he steps out, he needs a closer look at the furnace itself. Catch him before he leaps to the center and he'll motion for you to follow. If you're falling there will be a brush of wind to slow your fall. If you need it. He's here and this is the sort of case he would take back home.]

Broken seals (Yashiori)

[A long time ago Nirvasyl fell as Beastmen lost themselves. He can remember how it felt when their united pain and rage pulled him from the brink of death. The moment he steps on Yashiori island with the rain pouring down he can feel that simmering fury. It presses against him. He could almost imagine the voices of his people contained with him finally whispering to him again.

They are silent.

But the island isn't. He adjusts his coat and glances around, looking human...for now. He needs to find a place where humans are not to drop the falsehood and use his senses.] Can you feel it? They let this problem linger like this.

If we don't act this will get worse.

Bones of a Fallen God (Yashiori)
[Or one can find him studying the bones jutting up out of the ground with narrowed eyes and the wind curling around him. His shoulders are tense and he looks ready to send that wind out at any moment. He sighs.]

Sorry. For one of my kind, this is not the best of places.

[He shakes his head and walks around to the side of a massive rib bone. His hand presses to the old weathered bone as he circles around to crystallized marrow sticking out of the side of it. He stares at it then shakes his head.] There is a shrine further up the island near a lagoon. Come with me.

Bones of a Fallen God

[dispassionatedevotion]

[ And so this is where Ledah does indeed find Shirou, coming upon him, and then stopping upon noticing his current state. Which is rather easy for him to see, and then when he gives the apology, he just nods for the moment.

He then prepares to follow, and will do so. ]

Did the sight of that dead being bother you?

[ He was wondering still, at that comment about 'one of his kind'... ]

[justicefang]

[He doesn’t answer at first. As they walk between one breath and the next he sheds his human guise. It feels better. He tips his head up slightly.]

No. I merely feel the pressure of their resentment. The moment I stepped onto the island it was there.

[He shakes his head. The slow anger that he could have mistaken for his own. If it had been a year ago he wouldn’t have even thought about it. But he isn’t as angry as he used to be.]

Did you see the crystals growing on it?

Broken Seals

[nefilim]

[Even as a being who can sense and consume negative energy, the atmosphere of the island is horrifically stifling. The curse bears down on Ana along with the rainfall, a constant and foreboding weight, and both are enough to subdue her usual fiery energy. At least for the moment.

Her wings press tightly against her back as her arms fold around herself, a furrow in her brows as she glances over at Shirou. Giving a gentle nod in agreement, before she then casts her eyes to the rumbling storm overhead.]

I don't really wanna think about how it'll get worse. [Already she can feel a cold weight in her stomach and a headache slowly throbbing to life. This really has gone on for far too long...]

We have to go to the shrines, right?

[justicefang]

Yes. [The press of the islands feelings on him is something to worry about. He is immune to losing control in the way Beastman can when over stressed. But he has no doubt this island could consume him.

He trudges through the grass and loses that false humanity in moments. His ears swivel forward to listen to the stray sounds. It’s a miserable trek but he says,]

Let’s hope fixing the seals won’t be difficult. I’ll watch out for the levels of this…anger. If you start seeing me act odd, don’t hesitate to knock me out.

[He’ll elaborate on that in a moment. What a fun conversation this will be.]

Lutha | PYRO

[hangfire]

[Though he had been sporting a pretty impressive black eye for their first week in Inazuma City, Lutha now appears relatively normal. Looks like someone was gracious enough (or was threatened enough) to heal him. Still, he's far more subdued as they head out, always staying off the bows of the boats in favor of staying beneath deck. Boats are bad and he will never stop being a boat hermit.]

MIKAGE FURNACE

[The atmosphere around the furnace drips of an unfamiliar element, one that sinks into the bones and almost hurts. Lutha's legitimately surprised to see that other living things are actively brooding around the grounds. The color of the water on the grounds underneath their feet has his blood running cold, but with plenty of entrances up above the ground, it's easier to swallow down his dread.

Besides, they have more of an issue at hand. Listening to the Shrine Maidens and the Shogunate army bicker back and forth was too much of a pain when neither would bother to action. It's... familiar, in a way, this impatience that stirs him up.

Thankfully, he's not stupid enough to go alone this time. He's tagging along with the group that's headed off to investigate, having to take an alarmed breath at the feel of Electro that comes from the Tatarigumi.

By reflex, his hand reaches for his gun. Instead, he grips his Vision, letting out a breath.]

If something can be sabotaged, it can be put back together. And if other people are in there, there has to be a way to get to the middle of it safely.

[He'll give a nod of his head.] Come on. We need a better look.

YASHIORI ISLAND -- THREE OPTIONS

[Wow! This sucks!

Whenever the boats land on the shores to the sound of heavy rain battering the decks, his soul about exits his body through his mouth. Clearly the gods hate him and he's just going to be in a constant state of disaster. Woe is him.

Thankfully, Lutha's combat is almost completely ranged. While he can't quite set things on fire due to all the rain, a gun is still a gun, and so long as the young man has cover he'll still provide support to others trying to fend off those affected by whatever is infecting this island. The serpent's head, for as intimidating as it looks, is a blessing in disguise, and one might find him off in a dry corner trying to re-collect himself.

---

It's when the group first encounters the gorge that something changes about Lutha's countenance. His face goes almost ashen, even with their height up from the water below. Water which radiates an unnatural purple, that radiates with the same manic energy as the furnace. It looks like a safe enough jump to make with a glider, and others might be making it themselves to get to the village, or to get to the serpent's winding skeleton. So why does he seem frozen in place?

---

The village itself that sits on Yashiori Island has its own combat. So many soldiers, so much combat, and exhaustion comes quickly. He's stumbling onto the porch of one of the many buildings, catching his breath as he slides his back against the wall, making sure he's faced away from the wind. To look over what remains of the people who still live on this island, of houses that were very obviously once lived in and now driven empty by something beyond their control...

It's hard not to see this possibly happening at home, and his exhaustion turns somber as he takes a softer look around the village, now littered with the downed bodies of the mad samurai.]

...It's too quiet like this.

Mikage Furnace

[whiteshroud]

[Another day, another mission. Whether or not Jun is happy about this pair up, he won't say. In fact it's hard to read his emotions, what with his hood on and the voice modifier distorting his voice. It didn't really matter anyway in the end. To a Seal Knight, the mission was what mattered above all else.

And as for the mission...well, it was a mess alright. Jun was familiar enough to recognize with these kinds of things the Tatarigumi energy for what it was: something that humans had no place messing with. But it wasn't his mission to dispose of the Tatarigumi entirely. Just simply resolve this crisis. So, he'll focus on that]

If we can get to the furnace, I can create seal that'll hold until proper repairs can be made.

[He'll summon his sacred sword. It'd do little good here to hold back. He then starts to head in. No point in waiting around after all! ]

[hangfire]

[Fine by him. Anything to not have to discuss what happened the last time he'd seen Jun... as unsettling as the modulator sounds, at least it keeps them from maintaining eye contact.

That's fine. That's safe.

He'll keep his palm against the base of his gun as he follows behind Jun as best he can.]

Are we talking a physical or elemental seal?

yashiori island jump

[codeprometheus]

[ This place is bad. It's worse than miasma, because at least humans are immune to miasma. Nobody is immune to balethunder, and it's making him uneasy. There's no telling what the high electric charge would do to the parasite that animates his deceased body.

Surely, it's safer to go over the gorge and to the village by using a glider, but Lutha isn't doing so good. Maybe he has a fear of heights? ]

Hey, [ Louis calls out to him gently, or as much as he can given the rain. ] Do you need a hand?

yells hello to louis

[hangfire]

[He starts at the call, seemingly unaware for a moment before looking over at Louis with an oddly open shock, one that takes him a moment to reel back in.]

I... n-no, no. I'm fine.

[YA DONT LOOK FINE FAM. But he still swallows, looking off towards the village, following the line of the cliff with his gaze to look for a better crossing point... hopefully one that didn't involve jumping over the river.]

There... there has to be another way around.

yashiori island jump

[higanbana]

[Ris knows that look on Lutha's face. She's worn it herself plenty of times, after all.

She's made it this far only through the guidance of others. If it weren't for her fellow travelers, she might still be in Inazuma City, staring out wide-eyed into the unknown of the grasslands.

And those were grasslands. This terrifying mixture of the elements is certainly much worse. So, despite her probably being the last person in the world that ought to try and help anyone else, she speaks up, trying her very best not to startle Lutha.

Sure, he's a ranged fighter, but at the end of the day he looks like he could probably take her out and Ris really doesn't want to get punched if she can avoid it.]

Ah... sir.

Are you quite all right?

[She knows he's not. But it would be rude to just go "hey, what's up with you?"]

[hangfire]

[The voice seems to startle him, shaking his head as though he was drifting off and turning dark eyes on the unfamiliar girl.

Ah. The eyepatch. Was this god mocking him or something?

There is an open, raw hint of something borderline nostalgic that creeps across his face before he tears his eyes away, taking a few steps back from the cliff face.]

I... I'm fine. I'll be fine.

[He lets out a breath sharply, glancing at their surroundings. The bridge had collapsed, sure, but--.]

Just have to find another way around. That's all. If you've seen anything outside the damn bridge, point me to it.

yashiori island, keeping dry

[sufferean]

[Things have been too hectic for Rean to try to pull Lutha aside and talk to him, which has probably been for the best. Elliot's had enough of a time with him, anyway, and Rean's still a bit uneasy.

But they have a second to breathe, for now, and when Rean sees him huddling in the corner, he knows he can't put this off forever.

Everyone here is on the same team, at the end of the day. So, steeling himself, he takes a deep breath and walks over.]

...Hey.

[It's awkward, despite Rean's best attempt. But when he continues on, it's definitely more natural and genuine.]

You holding up okay? I know you're... not the biggest fan of water.

[Understatement of the century, but hey.]

why are my only threads with rean in the middle of the rain.... poetry

[hangfire]

[He's tucked back far enough into the skeleton's open mouth that the blowing rain can't quite reach, his Vision alight as he summons up enough Pyro energy to try and warm his hands, dry his face, pin him to the present. He's definitely shaken, but still alert enough that Rean's approach gets him to turn just enough to make eye contact.

Ah. Yeah.

His face goes red right as his eyes go dark, turning back to the flame in his palm. All of China knows etc etc etc. He doesn't question it.]

Save it. [...Mmn, but he winces at the tone of his own voice, his expression twisting with displeasure before softening, tiring.] We survived that damn ocean god. Regardless of how I feel, a storm shouldn't matter.

Yashiori Island, Dry

[bad_crowmance]

[ A young man with vibrant white hair and red eyes flops down nearby. ]

Nice work with the gun.

[ His tone is friendly, conversational. ]

[hangfire]

[jaws music.mp3

He's preoccupied trying to use his vision to dry himself off even a little bit, to try and shake his nerves. But Crow speaks up, and Lutha starts despite himself, the flame in his open palm nearly flickering out.]

It's nothing. [That is about the only acknowledgement of that compliment he is willing to give right now, gods he is so tired.] Spirits only know how long the powder's going to last in this damn weather. It'd be idiotic not to make it count.

...

[Wordlessly, he looks Crow over with all the suspicion of a feral cat. Who the fuck is this?]

[drewthetower]

Shrine

[Honestly, August is only like. Half listening to whatever it is the overseer of the shrine is saying about being able to tip the scales. Even if he was interested in fighting a civil war (he's not), it's not like he'd actually need to get both sides of the store. The Shogun is clearly off her rocker. The Resistance doesn't have to be good people or whatever to be right.

August is literally the antithesis of what's just bog-standard social conservatism in a funny hat (as far as he can tell, anyway). It's kind of funny that anyone might think otherwise.

Eventually the overseer finishes and August...settles down a bit away from the entrance to the shrine, finds a flat rock, and starts messing with his tarot deck. Julian perches on his shoulder, giving August the look of a Very Weird Fortuneteller.

That is kind of the point, and if someone stops and asks for a divination...well, August isn't going to say no to money he gets that isn't reliant on him trying to fight shit.]

Yashinori Island

[Excuse August, he's leaning against a tree and laughing his ass off at the poor guy who approached asking for help purifying the island and fixing the seals.]

No, no, it's not you, dude, I get it, the situation is fucked. It's just this is the single funniest fucking thing anyone has ever asked me to handle. I literally cannot help you here. Literally, I am physically incapable of helping anyone purify anything. I'd probably break out into hives or some shit.

[God, where's Alexandre or Clara when he wants them? This is hilarious.]

Wildcard...ish

[August can be found hopping around the other islands a bit, finding a place to work on his commissions, and at one point at the shrine, to a shrine maiden:]

So if I reverse these characters, will that tell people that I super can't help with any purification anything? Or, like, is there a color or something I can wear for that?

[Yeah, he's still losing it over that.]

Yashinori Island

[whiteshroud]

[You know...while Jun can understand turning down a job because it's out of your skillset, laughing in the face of someone in trouble is a little much. Even for Jun.

And so, he'll clear his throat. ]

If you can't purify anything, then how about you help escort me to where we need to go? Seals are something of a specialty for me.

[Does Jun actually require a real escort? No. But does he want to drag this guy? Yes.]

[drewthetower]

[Look, if Jun knew why August was laughing--

He gives Jun a Look when he suggests August-as-escort but also eh, why not. He needs to talk to the guy.]

Alright. Lead on.

shrine

[higanbana]

[Ris is doing what she does best, kind of creeping around in the shadows and keeping her distance from everything while just trying to watch and take everything in.

And all of that was... quite a bit to try to take in. So for now, she's just milling about and trying to get a handle on everything. Until August catches her eye, that is.

She's off to August's side, peering over to see his cards. She doesn't want to get close enough to agitate the bird, but that may not be possible to avoid.]

Are you some sort of diviner?

[drewthetower]

[Julian isn't bothered by the weird girl. His human is a weird boy.]

Not with the temple. I do this at home, though, and I haven't been wrong yet.

Shrine

[bad_crowmance]

[ Crow's watching August with his deck for a moment before he decides to wander over. ]

That's tarot, isn't it?

[ His tone is conversational, friendly. ]

[drewthetower]

[August nods as Julian flies over to inspect the new guy.]

Mhm. Want a reading?

shrine

[hangfire]

[Ah. It's the crow man.

Despite the fact that he does not want a repeat of their first meeting, the sight of someone with a set of divination cards with a crow perched on their shoulder twists Lutha's chest with unfortunate nostalgia. So he slows as he looks back over his shoulder, hand tucked against his hip.]

...You do divination?