aionooc | EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS

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EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS

Sovereign Citizens

All across Horos, even in lands that have long since forsaken the Legacies, Soviseri is a month of political action. Most years, this simply means annual elections; for the faithful, organizations and governments big and small take this opportunity to bask in the wisdom of the Sovereign while reassessing their leadership and strategies, while the more secular simply see it as a convenient waymark on the yearly calendar. Soviseri allows them to face the remainder of the cycle with fresh eyes.

Most years, these customs will pass uneventfully, barring the moderate confusion that can result when too many leaderships change at once. This year, however, is not like others: for the one that considers themself the most sovereign of sovereigns has witnessed the seeds of revolt take root in the most fertile soil. Though they have not yet begun to sprout, let alone flourish, the Regent knows full well where such small things can lead. It's because of this that they intend to salt the earth and remind the cities of Horos the value of the 'peace' they've experienced while allowing them their reign.

This event will last from the 13th to the 25th of Soviseri.

❖ INCLUDED EVENT PROMPTS

◆ THE REGENT'S ADDRESS: On the eve of the 13th, near the height of the Sovereign's Moon, all Aions will have their spirits summoned into a metaphysical court of the Regent's making. They'll only have enough time to seat themselves somewhere before the vision overtakes them, bringing them into the Regent's presence for what will be the first time for many. It is in this meeting of souls that the Regent will express their intent to punish the Pleroma's supporters in Godsblood and Venera, and to declare that it will be at the hands of their Kenoma followers. The Pleroma will be able to leave the communion unharmed, but the message is clear: without intervention, Godsblood and Venera will suffer.

◆ AN EXECUTION (GODSBLOOD): The 15th would normally be a day of public debates and speeches, a time for those in power to prove their worth in full sight of the Sovereign, but all of that will be thrown into discord at the public announcement that Vaeka Lovenskol is to face public execution for her crimes against the Regent. What crimes? Well, apparently she has been working as part of a resistant unit intent on aiding the Pleroma menace... a fact that any Pleroma in Greentruth will know to be true. Vaeka has been one of the brave souls working to keep the entry to Greentruth concealed, guiding what new Pleroma they become aware of to its gates.

How she was exposed is not exactly clear, but she is scheduled for a public execution in Godsblood's main square on the 20th. That means there are five days to snatch her from the Kenoma sent to guard her, lest she be made an example to her people.

◆ TRIMMING THE VINE (VENERA): While the execution in Godsblood is a public affair, what happens Venera is far more insidious. Despite the meek and escapist nature of its citizens, a spark has been lit beneath the surface, spurred by the Aion's actions within the city during the Innocence's contagion, as well as the Achamite's and Hylician's inaction. Some Venerans that were either spotted supporting the Pleroma or that seek to resist the Regent's will have been rooted out, and will be made to pay for their transgressions by the Kenoma first and foremost.

From the 15th to the 25th, the Kenoma will be ordered to work their way through a hit list of sorts, finding and imprisoning Veneran troublemakers, with the intent of essentially 'disappearing' them. Prisoners will be held for a day or so after capture for a meaningless trial by the Achamites present, and then be executed.

◆ MARCHING ORDERS (KENOMA): As the Regent has observed there is a finite limit to what the Kenoma will do without orders, they are now being explicit; all Kenoma are required to participate in the subjugation of either Godsblood or Venera during these activities. Whether or not Kenoma players are available to play out things on an OOC level, all must be at least handwaved to ICly participate in this mission by signing up for duty in either Venera or Godsblood down below. Failure to perform IC will be met with IC punishment.

In addition to their mission duties, the Regent is also ordering all their Kenoma to attempt to lure out and capture as many Pleroma as possible. How they go about this is up to each individual, but the Regent expects that most Pleroma will not be able to resist making an appearance at either location.

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So according to this mod reply, if the Pleroma want the Veneran citizens they're trying to help to actually get out the city and STAY safe, it's up to the players to come up with a plan to help make that happen:

There will be some vestiges of a Venera [resistance] network that could help them, but to really ensure their safety in the long term, it would help a lot for the Aions to be involved in bringing them somewhere safe. So, essentially, the default assumption is that the Veneran rebels make due somehow, but if Aions decide to help them after the fact to get them somewhere safer, we would consider the situation as better future-proofed for upcoming plots.

In summary: if any Pleroma want to help the survivors get somewhere safe, they'd be making a difference in the long term. What exactly the plan is would be up to the players.

I'm thinking it would be cool to try and throw together a sort of in-character refugee smuggling network as a coordinated effort for the event! It looks like ICly, the Pleroma will have about two days after the Regent's address to make a plan and get down to Venera before the kidnappings/killings start, so they can possibly scramble and get a rough idea together before heading down to the city. If you've got a Pleroma who would want to assist in making sure that the targets STAY safe after the event, chime in! Let's work together!

If your character is going to Godsblood but would be able to contribute ideas/planning before the Venera group departs, feel free to add that as well!

For now, this thread is just a place to bounce around ideas and see if we have enough interest and can get something of a plan forming.

Edited 2022-07-11 20:49 (UTC)

Comment here if you'd like to informally volunteer your character to help out in some way; a basic rundown of motivations and what kind of skills/knowledge they could/would be willing apply to the effort would be helpful to include here.

Edited 2022-07-11 20:59 (UTC)

Ryu's got NPCs he cares about in Venera AND he really hates the injustice inherent to what the Regent is doing, so he's extremely invested in making sure the people being targeted can get out of the city and go somewhere safe!

Unfortunately subterfuge and organizing this kind of effort isn't really in his wheelhouse, plus he's getting captured toward the end of the event, so... It's probably best if he doesn't take IC point on this. He's a good helper though and will do whatever he can! Just don't expect him to come up with any ingenious escape plans.

Though Cid doesn't exactly have personal ties to any person in Venera, with the exception of a (handwaved) kindly woman who gave him water when he was having a terrible time. He's going to be looking for her, because while he doesn't know if she was aware he's an Aion, he wants to protect her if he can.

Though he doesn't know all that much about sneaking into a location, he does know quite a bit about sneaking out of a location, especially when it comes to safely smuggling people out of a city. Granted, the situations are different and the people he's smuggled out have all known and trusted him, but he has the ability to keep calm in tense situations and not lose his head.

It didn't occur to me until I was writing this comment that he actually has done this twice before, though sadly for him both times did involve his airship.

He's bringing with him his snazzy shield-summoning spell, as well as a short sword he started working on at the end of May after he realizes how bad off he would be without some manner of weapon.

Cid would definitely be able to organize something like this, but unfortunately I don't know if I could come up with something, so there will probably need to be some sort of OOC discussion to help me nail down what Cid's plan will be.

He'll help guard people as they escape and serve as a distraction/decoy to keep any of the Kenomas from latching onto the Veneran refugees. He can take quite a few hits so he'll be able to hold off any attackers. As he doesn't know anyone personally in Venera particularly well aside from a small family he helped, he'll defer mostly to allies on who to protect and where to provide support.

Protecting innocent civilians from getting swept up into conflict is very much Kim's bag. He's a decorated peace corps lieutenant, so he has experience strategizing/organizing, etc., but he will also want to be hands on in the rescue himself, either in combat or defense. He isn't particularly close to any of the people in Venera, but he saw their kindness towards all Aions during the event, and he won't want them to suffer for a good deed.

Dokja's been spending a decent amount of time in Venera after he got outed as an Aion in Godsblood (Ciel placed a portal in his Godsblood room that connects to the outskirts of Venera but it'll be gone once the event starts)... He's grown to like it there and more selfishly, would like to preserve it as a place he can stay so he'll be doing what he can to help smuggle and/or release the citizens on The List. He's going to be getting some help with that from Kenoma's Liem!

closes my eyes... He has a bunch of fighting abilities, his main ones being that he can control lightning and the wind. He also has a sword so he can do a stab or a slash at any time... BUT he will be dissipated at the end of the event so he won't be around on the last day.

Hayame has absolutely no personal stake in Venera or its people, but she does want to stick it to the Regent and bring some severed heads back to Greentruth... and let's face it she's a giant centaur and blending in to the populace/espionage is not gonna happen for her.

So she'll volunteer for body guarding/escorting, likely for the actual "getting out of the city and to a boat or portal or wherever" part, in the hopes of getting able to shoot and/or trample some Achamite guards in the process.

She has no useful magic or spells at hand but she is a physical powerhouse and expert archer.

Yuya is mostly inclined to help because murdering people for dissenting against the tyrant is bad, actually? Nobody deserves this.

That said he's useless in a fight though he does have a shield as a holdout if necessary (and innocence magic he'll be Avoiding If Possible).

He is going to have a run-in with Bunny and get some of the names of the people targeted, so he can share that with other Pleroma so they know who to smuggle out. And otherwise will just follow any lead about where to take people/be ready to receive people at whatever safe place they have.

The actual plotting and discussion can go under here.

Edited 2022-07-11 21:09 (UTC)

Kim has been trying to keep as lowkey as possible in Godsblood to act as a spy for Greentruth rebels in the city. He's still working his way up in the society to manage that well, however, he does have contacts there that could provide refuge for any escapees in the jungle, maybe?

Oh that sounds like an excellent idea. From what the mods have said it sounds like the Greentruth rebels would tell them that Godsblood might be the best option for a destination, so maybe Kim could be in charge of getting anyone who gets successfully smuggled out settled in up there?

OK first off forgive me if this whole process of plotting this out seems really inefficient, I'm not really used to taking point on these things lamfsdklmsdfl if anyone has any suggestions on how to better organize this, PLEASE, I am all ears and open to suggestions.

Anyway, I'm just gonna start spitballing something here accounting for the people we have signed up so far, just so we can get the ball rolling, but anyone reading this who's interested is still welcome to jump in! Also I'm not married to any of this, so please don't be afraid to challenge these points or chime in with alternatives.

We wanna get these guys out of Venera bc presumably it is no longer safe for them to stay there... I checked with the mods about whether the rebels in GT would have any suggestions on where the refugees would be best advised to head and if you want to read the long answer it's here. But the gist is that helping the Veneran resistance get these targeted people to Godsblood is probably the most direct option. Getting them to Lohkimareen might also be an option but the journey across Horos is far riskier, we'll need people who are comfortable navigating the forest to get them all through in one piece, and the NPCs may have a harder time adjusting to living there than they would Godsblood which could be bad long-term.

Those are the options. As a general outline of how this whole thing might work in an IC capacity, uh... Here's a general idea of what I'm thinking so far:

Pleroma go down to Venera knowing ahead of time that, 1) Venera hasn't fought back like this in a while so their resistance is probably going to need some help, and 2) the people being targeted likely can't stay in the city any longer, and it would probably be best to help relocate some people if they're able to.

We'll need characters who are good at organizing this sort of thing to work directly with the resistance and direct the other Pleroma in how to help. I'm guessing Kim and Cid are probably good options to take point here?

Maybe characters can look into either establishing some sort of safehouse location to keep the rescued NPCs stashed in until the end of the event? At which point the whole group can try to flee the city together?

If they try to get to Godsblood by sea, we'll have to obtain a ship. Details on what kind of vessels are available and how the characters can get access to one, are probably gonna be something we won't be able to nail down until the log goes up and we can ask more questions about the setting. But it's something to plan ahead for!

If characters decide to try and get NPCs to Lohkimareen instead... I'm not opposed to it as a player but I also have no ideas on how to make that journey work lol so I'm open to suggestions.

I think Cid would make an excellent getaway driver considering his past experience and his piloting/navigational abilities, up to you Nin if you're cool with him capping off the event that way tho since I know you had plans for him to be around for the Estinien clusterfuck? Also, if things do go this route, maybe at least one heavy hitter Pleroma can go along with him for support? The mods say the sea routes may be closely monitored but if the kenoma aions are distracted and don't intercept, the pleroma aions shouldn't have too much trouble fighting off any of the Regent's non-aion lackeys.

On that note for the getaway I guess we should decide if we should try to pure stealth it or plan to have some characters engage the Kenoma to keep them from catching on to what they're up to.

Thoughts?

Edited 2022-07-13 00:22 (UTC)

➵ As someone who has trekked over land on ~~foot~~ hoof between Venera and Lohkimareen out of dislike of portals and half starved for over a week... Hayame would definitely discourage that route just from a logistics perspective, so she's voting for boat to Godsblood.

➵ Sadly Hayame won't be much use on the spying part because even with a glamor spell on her that only changes her visual appearance, so her seven foot tall centaur ass can't go anywhere narrow or crowded without giving herself away.

➵ However, she can be entrusted with guarding a safehouse, and will proactively volunteer for bodyguarding for the "getting them out of the city part.

➵ Should any Achamite guards get involved pursuing them... she's a believer in "leave no witnesses", so she's shooting to kill.

➵ If we're going the boat route and a heavy hitter needs to go with, she will reluctantly do so if only because... maybe Kenoma or more guards will come after them... and she will get to shoot them out of the air or their boats...

Let's do it???

Kim is all for getting people in the places they need to be and establishing timelines in regards to actual rescue, while someone else handles the logistics of securing a boat. He does have connections at the Godsblood docks that will be able to help them once they get in/secure somewhere to land, but that's about it, re: ships.

Also, Kim will generally encourage non-lethal force, especially to non-Aions. He isn't against killing if there's no other option, though, and that's up to the other characters to determine. They're also free to butt heads with him on this.

Kim also has the ability to act as a shield-- he can absorb force and redirect it with twice the strength, though he is vulnerable while on the attack.

Finally, his priority will be the refugees themselves. If any Aions want to linger just to raise hell, he will definitely have Words with them.

Since we've got confirmation that steam-powered boats do exist in Godsblood, Cid will absolutely be volunteering piloting the boat to get the hell out of Venera! In fact he'd probably be doing one of his undercover smuggling people out of danger thing by going in disguised as one of the normal trade ships. That is, he goes with people who are actually already on their way to Venera legitimately as traders, who are also Resistance supporters.

He'd be willing to have anyone interested in carving out an escape path for both him and the refugees tag along on the boat, but he would stress that the Aions need to be as inconspicuous as possible so there will need to be some actual attempts at physically unloading supplies off the ship onto the docks to look like real laborers.

After that, he's not going to be giving orders beyond specific times to meet at in order for them to start the task of getting the refugees safely out of the city. Given he's going to be inserting himself into the Estinien situation, he'll be in Venera until the end of the event, giving people plenty of time to blend in and do other tasks.

Dokja's happy to go on the attack and clear a path if need be. TEAM VIOLENCE! Zero qualms about killing!! He won't be on the ship so he can hang back and hold off any pursuers if it comes to that.

This comment turned out a lot shorter than I expected, but I'm all about the idea of getting the Venerans on a ship headed for Godsblood.

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EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS

PLEROMA SUBPLOT IDEA: Veneran Rebel Smuggling???

CHARACTER ROLE CALL

RYUNOSUKE NARUHODO

CID GARLOND

Thoma

KIM KITSURAGI

DOKJA

HAYAME

YUYA

DISCUSSION

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Re: DISCUSSION

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