MAY MINGLE

[stellafortunamods]

May Mingle: Entombed City
Welcome to Teyvat - a vast magical world of adventure.
Everyone's hard work resulted in the gate to upper Dragonspine opening. These ruins have not been traversed in years, if not centuries - everything within has been lost to time and living memory. An entire city has been buried in the snow.

People once lived there. The broken buildings host damaged furniture and weathered streets. There are various cloth-covered mounds in a house here and there, accompanied by a sprig of blue flowers. Someone has laid these people to rest after they passed away.

Traces of technology can be found in the city - golden boxes that contain crystals capable of recording and playing back holograms. One of the boxes introduces this place as Vindagnyr; a land once full of greenery and life. Just what happened to these people? What caused the eternal winter?

The highest point in the city is occupied by a temple built into a Domain. Within the Domain is a pale white tree, split in half by a strange object that has fallen through the Domain's ceiling. This temple was once a site for worship for Vindagnyr's people, and even in death they continue to pray for salvation. The priests have been frozen in ice, and the sheer cold emanating from the Skyfrost Nail makes it obvious that it is the cause of winter.

The city's inhabitants worshipped Celestia. Why then were they left to die?

State of the World

On October 1st, the entombed city of Vindagnyr becomes open for exploration. Travelers can choose to look for clues or try to scavenge the city for ancient materials or tools. Recording boxes all around the city tell stories of Vindagnyr's greener past, and of the days when winter suddenly arrived. This is the cruelty of Celestia that Forneus wished you to see.

For all questions regarding May's mingle and events, please head over to our OOC post.

Comments

[unfriendliest]

Not too far. It wouldn't take long to find them and make your way back.

[bowfaire]

Luck's got nothing to do with it.

(And he winks. Why rely on luck when he has his own skills and the best friends anyone could ask for?)

Yeah, actually. Just one more. (He sounds so serious, too!!) Aren't you cold?

(WHERE IS YOUR WINTER OUTFIT, ZHONGLI???)

[pragmatism]

[ Zhongli looks down at himself, as if he's only just realized. ]

I do suppose I have forgotten....

[ ]

[bowfaire]

I'm not sure if it would be much better even if Celestia was less involved...

(Speaking from his own experience.)

A god that would just abandon people who rely on them on a whim, though. I'd say everyone would be better off without them but looking at what happened here...

(It's more than that. The world is better off without the whole rotten system sometimes.)

[nefilim]

[There's a sharp exhale from her, tension stiffening in her shoulders. Yet, she doesn't snap at him - only curling into herself a little more, as a weight settles in her chest. This hatred is old and familiar, and now she has a new target for it.]

One day I'm getting up there and dragging them off that damn island. [Whoever is up there, whichever gods that look down upon everyone and treat them like they're nothing. If it wouldn't cause a great deal of damage, she may be more tempted just to bring the island down with them.]

[bowfaire]

...

(How do you just forget tho.)

Are you going to be okay?

[nefilim]

[✨✨✨]

It's my new calling in life, after all.

[Luckily Ana has learned that it's better to judge the individuals than the whole. Grandpa Zhongli being a good influence and all that.]

I'm all good. Though maybe see if you can get the guild to send up more winter gear? It doesn't seem like there's enough Pyro's here for everyone.

[stellafortunamods]

[ Forneus shrugs a little, though at least he looks apologetic ]

Visions have to resonate with a person's heart, unfortunately. I can't really give people Visions that don't fit them. They wouldn't be able to use it.

[whiteshroud]

Liyue? I didn't realize it was that close.

[Well it certainly gets his attention, considering he's been hearing about Liyue for months now. He follows Zhongli, the distraction working perfectly]

Those monoliths must be massive if you can see them from up here...

[bowfaire]

(Sitting up straight at that,)

So there is a reason.

(He's been trying to find a pattern but who knew it actually takes a while to get to know people! He's just scratching the surface with everyone,)

How's it work? Pyros are hot-headed? Cryo users are cool?

(He's joking but also... tell him.)

[nefilim]

[There's a nod of agreement with Elliot, before peeking over at Ledah when he speaks. Humming softly as she glances over the bodies as well, mulling over his words. Ledah as a good idea, so she doesn't hesitate to follow closely behind him - peeking over to make sure Elliot is nearby.

Mostly because she conjures a small ball of flame into being, the shape of it almost rose-like as it floats amongst the trio. Shivering or not, she doesn't want to see anyone freeze today.]

Hopefully there's some fabric or something we can use. Though the issue is if we would have enough...

[She hopes they do. Though she doesn't offer to go ask Forneus about said attempts to purify... Mostly thanks to how her last chat with him started with her punching him.]

[pragmatism]

I will be fine.

[ Zhongli appears to have collected himself after that momentary lapse. ]

I am very... durable. Please do not worry about me.

[pragmatism]

[ Zhongli sighs.



After about half a minute, it seems like this is all he's saying about this topic. It's quite heavy and complex, especially for a god like him. ]

[whiteshroud]

[Yeah, considering Claude's own take on religion, he's not surprised by those words. Jun can only offer a slight shrug]

It's hard to say. The relationship between humans and gods by its very nature is ... complicated, to say the least. No system a god chooses will be without its flaws.

[An ever present god might cause over-reliance, while a distant god may cause feelings of abandonment and resentment. If there was a system that worked perfectly, Jun's never heard of it]

...If you ask me, Celestia is insane and as cruel as any demon. [He'd been leaning that way for awhile, but the sight they saw solidified that opinion further.] But... I still don't like the idea of outsiders deciding this world's future.

[None of them would have to live with the consequences of what they do here, and there'll be consequences for sure. It should be the Teyvat people deciding if they want to deal with that]

[bowfaire]

No one's completely impervious.

(Even a god, Zhongli.)

... But alright. If you need anything, you can rely on us though. We might all be a bunch of outsiders to you but... You're one of us, you know?

[stellafortunamods]

Eh... it's a bit of column A and a bit of column B.

[ Forneus waves a hand ]

The power of a Vision also draws on its corresponding god. So a person who holds a particular element will sort of need to fit the criteria that the elemental Archon sets out. I kind of circumvented it a little, but the general principle is the same.

[bowfaire]

(He was joking? Forneus, stereotypes are bad...)

... Alright.

(Dragging that last part out because he's just a nerd hungry for knowledge and Forneus is dangling it in front of him now,)

So how about mine. (Electro,) What can you tell me about it? ... About me?

(WHY DOES HE FEEL LIKE HE'S ASKING A FORTUNE TELLER IN A SHADY STREET CORNER TO TELL HIS FUTURE...)

[nefilim]

[Even gods as long lived as him can be weighed down, it seems.

Ana watches him for a moment, quietly and considering. The tension is still there, but there's no ire in her voice when she does break the silence.]

Even you shouldn't hang out here for long. Let's head back.

[whiteshroud]

[There is a faint sound that sounds like a "heh" through the modulator. Yeah, you be that evil anime queen. Own it Ana]

Yeah, seems like we've lost a few... [Pyros, he means] I'll see what I can do.

Be safe, Ana.

[stellafortunamods]

The Electro Archon styles herself as the God of Eternity. She really doesn't like me.

[ A pause. Apparently Forneus thinks it's funny. ]

She is quite different from the rest of us. She pursues Eternity, because it's the closest to Heaven. She tends to like people who think differently from the norm. Unique ideas, manners, beliefs. That sort of thing.

[fiddlestick]

You aren't?

[Well he wasn't expecting that]

That's a twist. Where are you from?

[stellafortunamods]

Its name not pronounceable in any worldly language, but it roughly means 'First City'.

[ Because that's not ominous at all. ]

It doesn't exist anymore, though. I came to Teyvat after a long journey.

[fiddlestick]

[First City? Should that mean something to him? And taking a long journey before ending up in Teyvat? Is that normal for gods to pick worlds like students pick colleges or is this a massive bombshell? Elliot knows nothing about how gods work. Aidios is very much the type of goddess that prefers you don't question this shit too hard, so there's not a lot of theological theories. And even if they were, it's not like Elliot had a strong interest in religion like Gaius so he probably wouldn't have read them anyway.

But at the same time, he doesn't want to sound like a total dumbass to Forneus. So excuse him as he

]

...Huh. Interesting.

[stellafortunamods]

[ Luckily for all parties involved, Forneus does not seem bothered in the least by Elliot's answer. ]

Ehh, no need to think too deeply about it. It's all in the past anyway.

[ In other words: this is a story for another day. ]

Anyways... it's one of the reasons I thought of inviting people from the outside. Native Teyvat gods hate outsiders, they'd never do this sort of thing.

[bowfaire]

In principle, the two of you would either be completely at odds with each other or too similar...

(If you consider time endless or the end. That's a philosophical question he'll have to reflect on later. Ah, but there's an answer that gets him to think even more. So this is why he ended up with the Vision he has, huh? It's all enough for him to just sit quietly for a moment, taking everything in and really reflecting,)

Huh. (And he shrugs, seemingly unbothered by this revelation,) I'm guessing she's not exactly on your side to bring everything down...

(Because someone who considers (wants to be?) close to Heaven doesn't sound like someone who would bring it down.)