TDM #3

[aionmods]

TDM #3

DREAMING (new characters)

At first, there is nothing. You are nothing. Whatever existed before ceases to be if for a moment. Then, bit by bit, you start to become aware. Where there was not even darkness now is a dim haze, gentle and almost mist-like. You have limbs again and beneath your feet lays a path of light reaching out like limbs of a great tree beneath you, twisting and climbing out into the horizon.

You take a step forward for what else is there to do? As you walk you begin to remember what it was you were doing before the nothingness; maybe something as simple as chatting with a loved one or close friend. Maybe you were just beginning a great journey or facing off against an old foe. Whatever it was, you get the distinct feeling that wherever and whenever that was, it is not here. Not now.

The path of light twists off into different directions. When you look up you can see that it is not a sky above you but the sky of everything, a grand cosmic tapestry littered with not mere stars but galaxies and clusters of galaxies that gleam like crystals against the velvety backdrop of space. Admire it for a moment, if you will. You don't know how long you will drift here, but you are not alone. Other wanderers will come and go as you bask together in the vastness of creation.

It seems to you that there are two paths to walk in this place, the light and dark beckoning in turn.

❖ THE LIGHT AT THE CENTER
One leads you to the center, splintered fragments folding together and colliding until only one thing remains: a light that speaks to you with the voice of all there is and has ever been. It greets you simultaneously as an old friend and as a lost child, both rejoicing in and mourning your arrival. You remember it too, somehow, with a feeling of complex nostalgia, as if returning to a place recalled from your distant childhood.

You’ll feel the same of the other wanderers that join you in the light; you know their faces, their voices, and as you reflect upon the world of your birth, you may witness fragments of theirs as well. You feel a comradery, then, a synchronicity of thought and emotion. Are the lives of others truly so different from your own? Or are you simply two hands of the same, greater being? Though some individualistic part of you may resist, the longer you spend in the light, the more you will find yourself becoming one with it.

Despite this welcoming call, no matter how eagerly your pursue its embrace, before you can fully submerge yourself in this oneness you will find yourself being torn away. As if seized by the impossibly long, cold arm of a creature unseen, you are plucked from the edge of fulfillment. The last thing you will remember is the sensation of your world, and all the others your experienced here, collapsing into nothingness.

❖ THE DARK OUTSIDE (CW: deep despair, ego death)
The other leads towards the outside, where the splintering becomes so great that the vestiges of reality can do nothing but collapse back into the abyss at the end of everything. As you wander to these barren outskirts, your thoughts will not be drawn to familiarity and oneness, but instead to memories of discontent and waste. The darker the path becomes, the more you find yourself dwelling on life’s disappointments and injustices, of the things about yourself and your world you find wanting.

If you see others here, at first they will feel frightening or contemptible, as if representing to you the worst experiences in your life. Even if they are someone you’re certain you know, that familiarity and affection will be stripped away in the face of the great emptiness before you. In the end, you were all the same. In the end, none of this was worth it. If you approach the end together, you may even form a kind of kinship around this acknowledgment, as the need for paranoia and hatred fades.

Slowly, the darkness encroaches, and you can see it devouring all the things you once knew. Memories of your home, of those you loved, dissolve into nothing, and you can only reflect on the barren emptiness in your heart as you see it happen. In your final moments, though, you feel peace with it all, knowing that there was no other way. You step from the edge of the last dwindling fragment of being and are greeted by silence.

❖ THE END
No matter which way you go, you are left with a single impression: you feel the world you came from die. It's a realization that transcends logic or sense; it weighs on your heart and leaves the vestiges of dark memories dancing in your thoughts like motes of ash. It's a memory of your home crumbling away into nothing as if consumed from within by rot. Returned to the void, all that's left to you is to be reborn.

REBIRTH (new characters)

In a new time and place, you awaken. Stirring within a capsule of warmth and isolation your senses will slowly return, only to observe that you are trapped. Your body, as it wakes, is tangled in close, yours eyes unable to open, as if still within the womb. You are held tight in the embrace of something unyielding, so smothering that at first you only have the strength to struggle for moments at a time. Yet, as you persist, the pressure begins to relent in turn; it may take hours, but eventually you will find the purchase to push, to claw, to fight, and it will all give way.

The chrysalis surrounding you bends like flesh and cracks like glass. It tears as you force your fingers through, finding liberation one inch at a time, until finally you have emerged. As if having undergone metamorphosis, you feel old and new all at once. You are weak, piteously so, but the markings and scars of your previous life remain. As you slump down upon the smooth cavern stone, you realize that you've just wrenched yourself free of gigantic crystal, though its hollow, shimmering form is now in pieces on account of your passing. Somewhere on your body, a shard of similar material remains embedded.

The cave itself looks almost like the inside of a geode, the walls and ceiling bedazzled with greyish crystal that shines with all the colors of the rainbow. While they vary wildly in size and shape, only a few have grown large enough to hold a form like yours, and you can see the one you just escaped isn't the only one bearing a passenger within. They may have already hatched, or they may still be lingering in stasis. Either way, there's enough time that you may have a chance to speak to yours unexpected peers, or to perhaps to struggle to find something to cover your naked body with. You feel the chill of the open air against your moisture laden skin, a distant light trickling in through the cavern's opening.

Make the most of this time. It won't be long before you're interrupted.

[Mod Note: If you don't want to deal with your character being naked in front of the others at that location, feel free to assume they emerge at a different time than the others of their legacy. Characters will be 'hatching' over a period of several hours.]

DREAMING (OLD CHARACTERS)

For those already in Horos, they will find themselves in the same dreamscape as the new arrivals, only, this time, it's familiar. You'll feel more cognizant of your surroundings as you reawaken in this psychedelic realm, more in control of your emotions. What's more, you recognize that light at the center and the darkness at the edge: it's the Pleroma and Kenoma respectively. The one you are attuned to will call our to your soul, and though you are technically free to wander as you please, the closer you get to the force of your opposite sect, the more it will grate against you spiritually. Pleroma attuned nearing the Kenoma will feel as if its presence is desperately trying to tear them apart, and Kenoma attuned nearing the Pleroma will feel as if its light is burning them from the inside out.

More importantly, you notice that entirely new souls are wandering here with faces you didn't see in the cavern. It gradually becomes clear that they are Aions in the same state you were prior to your rebirth, lost and wandering this stretch of the cosmos with no idea what's to come. Maybe this is your chance to ease the confusion of their arrival, or maybe you'd simply like to scope out what kind of people are on their way. It's also possible for you to run into Aions already in Horos, wandering just like you are. Unfortunately, things are a lot less neutral than they are the last time you shared this realm.

No matter what you do, eventually the cosmos above will begin to burn out, just as it did the first time you were here. As darkness swallows reality itself, you will wake with the visceral memory of your world corrupting and breaking apart.

SEARCHING (OLD CHARACTERS)

Soon after the dreams begin, it will become clear that the Aion NPCs of either sect are also aware of what's happening. For those in Achamoth and Greentruth, the imminent arrival of new Aions will become a matter of official discussion. All able Aions will be called upon for their aid, in whatever way they can offer. Getting to the shrines themselves will be easily accomplished via teleportation. What's would be more complicated is ferrying any new arrivals back to a secure location. Thankfully, this is something both sects have already prepared for.

All characters will have the opportunity to acquire a 'returning stone' if they don't already have one. In all cases, this will amount to an amulet made of the same shimmering material as the shrine monuments, though the stylization differs between the Pleroma and the Kenoma. While regular Aion teleportation can bring you to any of the shrines you know the sigil and location of, a returning stone is magically programmed to bring its wearer back to a specific destination to which it is attuned. Normally, these stones will only be able to store enough energy for one 'return' a month, but it turns out that the ambient power created by the shrines being active will temporarily super charge them. Though it's not guaranteed, this means they may generate enough energy to perform multiple returns for TDM purposes. More information about returning stones can be found on the powers page.

Spare returning stones will be issued to all Aions so that they can be used to bring back anyone they collect, as it's possible to bring someone alongside you if they are also wearing a returning stone. Where your stone leads will depend on your sect.

❖ PLEROMA
Tehri will be the one to supply returning stones, based out of Greentruth. She will not travel to Godsblood to deliver returning stones to those that have not visited Greentruth, but it can be assumed that Greentruth's visitors can pass them along to anyone who has been staying in the city. The returning stones are set to bring them to a secure location beneath the water of Godsblood's coast. From there, new arrivals will have to be allowed to rest and then brought up into the city when they're ready.

Greentruth is limited in its resources, but it will attempt to send troops to the Innocent, Seeker, Wanderer, and Firebrand shrines, all of which are close to the forest. Compared to the last attempt, these troops are a bit better armored. Meanwhile, bolstered by recent events in Godsblood, bands of Resistance members and guerrilla fighters will turn up at the Artisan and Sovereign shrines. The Resistance members will work willingly alongside with the Pleroma Aions, but the guerrilla fighters seem to have their own priorities and that is mostly that they have a beef with the Achamites. These reinforcements will struggle against powered Aions, but they might be able to delay any troops sent by Achamoth or Hylici.

❖ KENOMA
Xishen will be handing out returning stones to all Kenoma the day after the dreams begin for the Aions that don't already have one. She'll explain how to use them, and state that the Regent expects for them to head to the shrines once they become fully active. The Kenoma will have whatever mundane weapons or supplies they need at their disposal for this mission, along with minimal Achamite reinforcements. Due to injuries and death in both Godsblood and Venera, many are in recovery or on their return to Achamoth. She'll reiterate not to rely too heavily on them; after all, only the Aions are able to quickly move between the shrines and at the Citadel. The regular troops will have to be deployed by river or by land, and mobilizing them will take time. They will feasible be able to reach all of the shrines to some degree or another, but will more easily populate the shrines of the Martyr, Celebrant, Lover, Champion, Visionary, Sovereign, and Firebrand.

The Hylicians will be called to fill in the ranks of the diminished Achamite troops. They follow the orders that they are given but are very standoffish otherwise, even more than usual for them. Xishen herself says she will be traveling to the shrines and the Kenoma will be expected to communicate their movements to her as they work. Dionys remains in Achamoth to 'keep watch'. All Kenoma Aions will be given a familiar vial of black sludge, and are instructed to feed it to any Aions they capture at the shrines. It will cause the same effects it did in the cavern, though it will resolve in a few days rather than a week.

RETURNED (ALL CHARACTERS)

New characters that are found a the shrines will be brought back to one of two lodestones, depending on which sect they are taken by. This will be accomplished by their escort putting a 'returning stone' around their neck that will enable them to be teleported to a secure area in their sect's territory. It is advised for your character to be taken by whichever sect you'd like them to end up in.

❖ TO THE PLEROMA
In a dazzling flash of psychedelic light, you will find yourself brought to the Pleroma's lodestone: a monolithic rock set in the center of temple-like ruins. The entire cavern is hidden away beneath the ocean waves, just outside of Godsblood, and the ceiling itself is comprised of nothing but a barrier of water, as if held back from filling the space by some unknown force. The waters surrounding the lodestone are exactly body temperature, with swarms of tiny, violently iridescent fish darting through it. Crabs that look as if they're made of pure, clear crystal wander the sparkling, sandy shores.

There isn't much here in the way of accommodations, but it's comfortable enough that the new arrivals brought in by the Pleroma can take a moment to catch their breath. Some relatively plain but assorted new clothing will have been brought to the cavern to make sure they are actually clothed, as well as blankets and basic food items. It's a good time to ask your questions, or if you are an established Pleroma, to help out your freshly arrived peers. After all, their welcome at the shrine may have been a confusing one.

New arrivals will be permitted to leave the lodestone's temple when they are ready. Unfortunately, the only ways out of these place are through your choice of either swimming through pockets of water that eventually lead to the surface, or by spelunking through a series of tunnels to make your way the cliff faces near the city of Godsblood. More information about the city itself can be found on the setting page, though it would be preferable to keep TDM interactions to the lodestone area. As characters emerging from the shrines will start our as Untouched (more info about attunements here) they will not be permitted entry into Greentruth until they have attuned to Pleroma.

❖ TO THE KENOMA
As your returning stone activates, you will feel yourself thrust into a suffocating void, only to emerge just as quickly somewhere else. The most pressing thing on the minds of anyone taken by the Kenoma will be the vial of pitch black sludge they are forced to drink, whether it is before or after their arrival. Maybe their 'escort' from the shrine gave it to them, or perhaps another Kenoma does soon after they arrive. If not, one of the Achamite cultists wandering around definitely will. Dedicated servants to the Regent's will as they are, they are not afraid to gang up on the vulnerable new arrivals and force it down their throats.

Once in your mouth, the potion will slither down your throat as if it's a living thing. The effect takes hold quickly: as this darkness creeps through your insides, it will embolden your darkest and most despair inducing emotions, plaguing your thoughts with the worst sorrows of your life. What's worst, it simultaneously seems to awaken some form of enhanced psychic empathy within you, both projecting your thoughts for others to hear, and allowing you to receive those of the others around you in kind. Black ooze will begin to seep from orifices, or the space around your shard. The effects of this contamination bring out your worst, and its recipients will be forced to live with these effects until they accept the force corrupting them into their souls.

This world is not good enough, a voice speaks to your through the Kenoma. This suffering you feel, the cruelty that has birthed this darkness in you... it is simply the rot that is consuming this existence. A better universe awaits, one forged by your own hand, and all you need do is first bring about this broken reality's end.

How long this goes on will depend on how long the characters is able to fight it. Acceptance of the Kenoma can come as quickly as immediately, if your character is inclined towards it, or it could be drawn out to take a few days. In the meantime, they will have to stay in the barren halls surrounding the Regent's lodestone, and will not be permitted to exit into the greater Citadel as the current Kenoma are. All that will immediately be offered to them down there are stone slabs that can be used as beds and formless white robes that reach down past their knees.

Of course, that doesn't mean the characters that are already of the Kenoma can't do something about that. If they desire it, they will be able to bring food or other supplies to those suffering with their Kenoma infections, and it will be equally within their power to try anything from bullying them into accepting to lovebombing them. Once a character accepts the Kenoma and attunes to it, they will be permitted to leave, but for the sake of the TDM interactions should be kept to the lodestone area.

QUESTIONS

Is this TDM canon?
Mostly! It's part of an in-game event. However, only threads with new players that app and are accepted will be considered game canon. Threads between old characters will all be canon, but threads involving new characters that don't apply or aren't accepted will either need to be tweaked to remove their involvement or made non-canon. New characters will also be able to decide TDM threads aren't canon if they end up changing directions.

Who can toplevel on this post?
Anyone, whether they are a new character or a current one. However, we do ask for current players to do their best to tag new characters. If you are bringing in a new character and want a current character to bring them into your sect of choice, post your request here! ICly, current characters are fighting to claim new arrivals, but it's up to the player of new characters where they ultimately end up going.

When is this TDM taking place chronologically?
The beginning of August. The shrines will be active and forming Aions during that time. The dreams will start around the 29th of July. All current Aions will be able to sense when it's time for the new arrivals to start emerging.

What are the shrines like?
Every shrine is comprised of the crystal-filled cavern character emerge inside and then the massive statue symbolizing the relevant Legacy built on top. More information about each shrine can be found in the "Aion Shrine" section of the setting page.

Are everyone's homeworlds really gone?
That's a complicated issue, and while the fate of their world is not without hope, they may certainly get the impression its been destroyed from the dream they had. Alternatively, they may refuse to believe what they felt and attempt to dismiss it as only a vision. More about this situation will be revealed as the game goes on.

Can I only experience one end of the dream sequence prompt?
New characters may experience one ending, both endings, or neither. If they experience both they will struggle to recall which came first or which feels the most 'true' to them, as both will simultaneously be the thought they are reborn with. If your character refuses to pursue either path they can simply linger in the middle until the infinite worlds above them start being extinguished one by one, eventually expelling them into darkness in a similar style to the light prompt. Which dreams they experience will not dictate their initial sect affiliation.

Is it possible to pull another character back from the end of the light or darkness dreams?
Yes! If your character is able to resist the pull of either end, they will have the chance to try to pull another character back from the edge of the abyss or the edge of oneness. Whether or not they succeed is entirely up to the other character, though.

Do you come out of the chrysalis wet?
For most intents and purposes it's the same experience as hatching out of a real butterfly chrysalis, so yes, a bit.

How does attunement to the Pleroma or Kenoma work for new characters?
More information about sect attunements can be read on their dedicated info page, but in summary: when new characters are brought to Horos, they will be in the state of being "Untouched" meaning they are not attuned to either sect. By the end of their first month in game it is expected they will either attune to Pleroma or Kenoma, though for those taken by the Kenoma's forces, the transition will be forced within the first few days. If taken in by the Pleroma, it may take then some time to attune to Pleroma, depending on the strength of their spirit, but it could also happen almost instantly if they are allowed to. How quickly it happens will depend on how strongly they align with the Pleroma's traits. Characters who have been taken by the Pleroma but that remain Untouched will not be allowed into Greentruth until their attunement to Pleroma is complete.

Can a character taken by one side end up attuning to the sect of the opposite one?
This is theoretically possible, yes: a person taken by the Kenoma could potentially resist the Kenoma's call, and someone taken by the Pleroma could end up falling to the Kenoma while staying with them. Generally, though, we recommend that you have your character be taken by whichever sect you want to end up in, as doing a switcheroo will cause narrative complications that might bog their introduction down in plotting that will need to be done with the mods. It can happen, but it is not to be done lightly!

Comments

Claude von Riegan | Fire Emblem: Three Houses | Seeker

[leicesters]

1. DREAMING - THE LIGHT AT THE CENTRE

[Claude has always loved the night sky. He can't count the many hours he's spent since he was a child, gazing up at the stars. They were company when he had none, a reminder he had just a little place in the universe and that his problems were therefore small in the grand scheme of things. That everyone, ultimately, looked up at the same sky, no matter how they in turn were looked on by others.

So he's amazed by this sight, of floating in the cosmos, of the many galaxies unfolding out over his head with a kind of detail he could never see from the ground.

Of course, then, it's only natural he walks towards the light. It compels him, tugs at his heart with the same kind of nostalgia as a blazing sun over desert sands, or the gentle moon reflected in the waters of the Aquatic City. But this -- somehow this light draws him in, and he instinctively feels he's wanted here, belongs here wholeheartedly.

It's then that his eyes find other faces, other people nearby, and greets them with an easy smile.]

Hey... Can you feel it, too?

2. REBIRTH - SEEKER SHRINE

[Claude wakes slowly at first from the comfort and warmth of sleep, but soon, as consciousness catches up to him, it turns into a panic. Snared in some kind of cocoon, he barely has the strength to move. Then to raise an arm. Then to try to push against the crystal encasing him. All the while he's stalling, straining his ears to figure out if he's alone, if escaping whatever this is is even safe. He remembers the strange dream, and right now his head is too foggy to tell apart imagination and reality. But it had felt so real... And the way it had ended, his home crumbling away...

That thought sends a panicked jolt through his heart. The claustrophobia kicks in enough and his strength builds that he pushes, and after what feels like like a long, extended stretch of effort, one last almighty shove has the crystal give way, sending him crashing to the ground with it.

He's still weak, and he feels like his legs are like jelly, but that crash surely would have alerted anyone nearby. He grabs a shard of crystal that looks particularly sharp, and drags himself to an alcove of the cavern to hide, pulling his knees up to his naked chest to make himself smaller. Then he waits. Even his breathing sounds too loud, and the chill setting in to damp skin is soon making him shiver, but he doesn't have much choice for now. While he recovers his strength, he just has to rest and try to defend himself if anyone comes.]

3. RETURNED TO THE PLEROMA

[Claude's a little less rattled by the time he has clothes on his back and arrives at the lodestone. The ruins immediately catch his attention, and after a hasty 'thanks' to whoever escorted him over, he's already roaming the area to explore, first going to take a closer look at the temple-like structure. It's not like anything he's ever seen before, so it's beginning to sink in that he really could be in another world.

...Or perhaps you can find him tossing a rock from hand to hand while he contemplates the watery ceiling above, a mischievous glint in his eye.]

Think if I threw this rock up really really hard, it'd hit the water and make a splash?

4. WILDCARD

[For anything else! I'll be playing him from Chapter 12 of White Clouds (Golden Deer route). Hit me up via PM or over at moonsilver/moonsilver#4734 @ discord if you have any questions or want to plot!]

Rebirth

[undertheweight]

[Claude can sense another presence in the shrine--or near it, at least. In his normal form, the cavern is a bit small for Wrathion's comfort, though he isn't really claustrophobic. Though when Wrathion notices movement within, he squeezes himself back in. It's true that in part the dragon wants to be intimidating--but the second, more noticeable part is that he emanates heat like a furnace.]

Who are you, mortal? What is this place? Have you answers?

[He's not very patient, but at least his tone suggests he's asking questions, not demanding answers...]

[leicesters]

[Claude emerges from his hiding place, and the crystal makeshift weapon in his hand clatters uselessly to the ground in shock. A great winged beast, with black scales the inverse of the Immaculate One's pure white, is in the cavern.

And talking... to him.

Hadn't the Immaculate One fought alongside him and the others in the defence of Garreg Mach Monastery? So maybe he doesn't have anything to fear from this one, too, at least for now. Its -- his -- tone certainly doesn't suggest hostility, even if the cave is suddenly a lot warmer.]

I'm Claude von Riegan, not 'mortal', thanks. No idea where we are. And you are, uh...?

[Hopefully not going to snack on him for that attitude, at least.]

[undertheweight]

[The dragon's eyes narrow--but Wrathion can admire bravery--even if it's foolhardy. He snorts, and a wave of warm air washes over the naked human. At least it's amusement?]

My name is Wrathion. All I know for certain is that this is not Azeroth, the world where I was hatched.

[He can be forgiven for that, can't he?] Is it yours? Do you know?

rebirth;

[emblazer]

[ Here he thought he'd gotten his fill of walking in on disoriented naked people the last time, but it seems he was very wrong. When he'd gotten word of new arrivals from one of the others, he'd quickly put together a basket full of food and blankets just so they don't have to waddle around and wait until they reach civilization for some sort of modesty. His timing couldn't be more perfect.

His head pokes briefly into the Seeker Shrine, only catching a glimpse of skin before immediately squeezing his eyes shut and holding out a blanket to the clearly confused arrival. ]

Don't mind me. I'm honestly here to help. Let me know if you'd rather I toss this at you than you coming over to me.

[ He should probably say something a little more explanatory than that, so this poor guy doesn't think Thoma is the reason he's here in this state. ]

I'm Thoma, by the way, an outsider like you. I was actually more or less in your place two months ago, except in a different shrine.

[leicesters]

[From where he's hunched, Claude's grip on the crystal shard he's holding tightens instinctively, ready to fight. But then the guy is -- cringing away and holding out a blanket? He stares at him in disbelief for a second. So... He's really here to help?

Wordlessly, he gets to his feet, necessity overcoming distrust. He's recovered a little more strength by now, so he manages to unsteadily make his way to Thoma and snag the blanket, wrapping it around him.]

Thanks, you're a lifesaver. [Despite the seemingly friendly words, his brow is knitted in suspicion as he eyes Thoma, trying to piece everything he's saying together.] I'm Claude. You're saying this is a shrine?

[emblazer]

[ Not the fanciest of shrines, especially since the ones in Thoma's world tend to be more architecturally impressive, but– he nods. ]

There are a couple around, though I couldn't tell you who built them or much about them at all. If you're really like the rest of us, then you're probably still feeling fuzzy from the recent dream and being transported here from your world.

[ Which is why he brought snacks. It's harder to think on an empty stomach, and he's trying to reduce some of the trauma of the whole situation, especially if it was a bad dream Claude experienced... Thoma still only remembers the barest traces of blinding light and watching his own home at a great distance in his own. ]

If you're hungry and still tired, you can take a load off and eat, then I can try and answer your questions as best as I can.

[ The cover on the basket is removed to show off all the tightly rolled up rice balls he made with salmon-like fish in the center. ]

I promise it's not poisonous, but I can eat one in front of you if you need more proof.

3.

[warmare]

[Hayame did not intend to be at the lodestone for long.

She has only come to change locations, accompanying a group back from one of the shrines and waiting for the next to head out, ready to go wherever the threat of Kenoma might present itself. Not to save new aion souls for the cause of the Pleroma... But perhaps the motive of hunting down Achamites was decent enough.

Except, as she begins to pass through the strange cavern with its watery ceiling, her equine half largely concealed by a crumbled ruin wall she passes by... a man calls out to her... and asks one of the most pointless questions she could imagine.]

Do you think I care?

[This seven foot tall something woman? doesn't seem impressed with his curiosity.]

[leicesters]

[Unfazed by that frosty reception, he gives her a shrewd look over. She looks tall and powerful, so if anyone could help with his little experiment, it'd be someone of her build and stature. But since she's in a bad mood...]

All right, then let me rephrase. Have you ever been so mad you just wanna throw stuff, get it all out of your system?

[He offers her the rock, and then quickly adds,] Uh, but not at me or anyone in here, though! Just throw it up.

[Do it for science, his expression seems to say. Doitdoitdoit.]

[warmare]

[A little too tall, a little too powerful to be a normal woman, to be honest... And the new arrival (or, for all she knew, someone who had been in Horus for months, she was hardly social) will soon find out why there's something a bit off about her proportions, because she hasn't actually stopped moving to talk to him, her comment dismissive and said with a flick of her long ebon hair... But that question?]

No.

[That is decidedly a lie, but-]

Because I am a warrior, not a filly.

[What did he think was happening here? A daydream? Some cute little romp in the fields? She sucks her lip a bit instead of taking the rock... and then a equine foreleg appears from behind the wall, then another, and then an entire equine lower half, with a six foot long bow and quiver slung along the withers.]

3

[pyojeol]

[Han Sooyoung follows his gaze, tilting her head up to regard the watery ceiling, and then back down to squint at Claude. Whatever thoughts she has on his question is clearly apparent at her face -- these are thoughts filled with Doubt,]

Can you even make that shot?

[she says, as if she isn't shorter than claude. but you know what this ain't about her]

[leicesters]

I can absolutely-- [He puffs up indignantly,] --not make that shot.

[He deflates again. Despite the anticlimax, points for knowing his own limits?]

If I had a bow and arrow that'd be another story, but I was hoping to get the attention of someone with a better throwing arm than me. [Claude looks at Han Sooyoung, considering. She's small, but...] I don't suppose you think you can?

[pyojeol]

So you just wanted someone else to do it...

[CLAUDE....

now it's her turn to puff up indignantly when Claude gives her that considering look. it's definitely warranted, but she still doesn't like it.........]

Give it here.

[she reaches over in an attempt to grab the rock, unless Claude holds it over her head for fun]

3

[bingos]

[ She's busying herself with helping out - which to anyone who knows her isn't a great sign (good news, no one knows her). But when she's passing by with extra water for anyone who needs it and has the question half on her lips and he asks that. She glances up at the dome and then back down with a raised brow: ]

Let's see you try it.

[ Yes, that's a challenge. ]

[leicesters]

[Claude's cunning scheme had been to attract the attention of someone who might have a better throwing arm than him or who could recommend someone, so he doesn't expect it when Miyako just plays along with his obvious nonsense.

But, well, he's committed, why not try? He rolls up his sleeves of the clothes he was given after arriving.]

All right, I'll give it a shot. [He winds up his throwing arm -- which, admittedly, has more force to it than an ordinary teen's would, being an archer and all -- and flings it up as hard as he can.

It goes a respectable distance! But nowhere near hitting the water. Which is when gravity inevitably begins to pull it back to the ground.]

Ah, look out! [He grabs Miyako and pulls her out of the way before the stone can crack either of them on the head.]

[bingos]

[ He's cute, she thinks, despite herself - flatly chooses to ignore it. Is given more of a reason to ignore it as she glances up half shielding her eyes to see where it's going only... Until the impressively cute guys has (un)impressively failed the shot. She doesn't know what he was expecting but it's not that and she's still willing to watch it fall and fall -

She gives a yeep of surprise when he suddely pulls her away (fair). And lets a puff of breath: ] You should... really warn someone first!

[ About what? The throwing of a thing you ENCOURAGED him to do? Or pulling someone away? Possibly giving you a concussion? Who knows, she doesn't. ]

dreaming

[ricordi]

What is it that you felt? [because cassius? cassius does not know what he felt.

rather, he does not understand. he's quite familiar with the needs and reactions of his body because oftentimes only he can perform maintenance on himself. but something that is not physical? he has barely experienced such a thing before, and trying to parse what exactly he feels, let alone understand what it is and its origin, is something cassius has still not managed to grasp.

all he understands is a warmth crossing his chest and back again, but when he looks down, there's nothing physically on him.]

What are your senses telling you?

[leicesters]

Well, it's... it's like I belong here, and so do you.

[It's hard to explain such a complex, abstract feeling, but that warmth and feeling of peace and acceptance is unlike anything he's ever felt in his life. Of course he wants to keep going toward it, to embrace it wholeheartedly. It's like everything he ever dreamed of.]

It also feels like you and I have met before. Don't you think I feel familiar, too? [He's never met this man before in his life, he knows that, but that feeling is undeniable.]

[ricordi]

Hm.

It is illogical. [a statement which, in itself, is neither an agreement nor a denial. but then, if one were to read in between the lines, it's practically affirmation.

he's just saying that the feeling is illogical.]

My memory is clear-- I have never met you before and I don't know your name, but I do not know why you seem familiar.

2

[fisherwife]

[On the bright side, having finally clawed her way out of the crystal, being naked doesn't bother Mipha at all. It's her normal state of being, more or less, so she doesn't even bat an eyelash about it.

This whole place, however, is a different story. She remains laying on the ground for a few moments, mind a whirl, before she takes a deep breath and begins to push herself up. She sits up and looks around slowly, trying to orient herself.

Fragments of her dream keep washing up in her mind, but she can hardly tell anymore what's real and what's not. She felt very solid and alive right now. Was this some kind of afterlife, or...?

There were a lot of other crystal things around, which seemed to her pretty telling that there must be others, so--]

Hello? Is anyone else there?

[leicesters]

[Hearing a soft feminine voice, Claude creeps out of cover just enough to peek over a crystal outcropping, spotting... What is she, exactly?

He's not sure, but he can't see a weapon on her, so he drops the sharp piece of crystal in his hand, and fully pokes his head out from cover. (But not the rest of him. She is seemingly a girl after all, even if she isn't human.)]

Heya. Where'd you come from? [He thought he heard a crash too... so perhaps one of the other crystal cocoons?]

[fisherwife]

[Hark, a voice! Mipha turns her head, her body still protesting sudden movement, until she spots the.... Hylian? He doesn't look like any Hylian she's ever seen, and from what she can see his ears don't appear to be pointed at all.

Well he doesn't appear to be a foe and seems to be in much of the same predicament as she is-- and she doesn't have her trident on her anyhow.]

Where? I think... [She blinks slowly and looks up and around, spying the crystal just behind her. She points with a slightly shaking hand]

From...There. I think. [She drops her hand to her head and gives it a little shake] Is this still Hyrule?

Returned

[superbshot]

[Oh, of course there's a mischief maker. It doesn't take Caitlyn long to peg this guy as someone who'd make a ruckus. Really, all he had to do was open his mouth.

Setting aside the ledger of supplies she'd made sure were brought in, Caitlyn gives him a raised eyebrow.]

I don't know. I haven't tried. Why don't you, and we'll see together.

[It's not as though it's harmful.]

[leicesters]

Alright, watch and be amazed!

[He winks at her, even though he already knows his throwing arm sucks and this is going to fail abysmally. He winds up for a throw, and--]

Hup! [...gets a little too overenthusiastic on said throw, because the rock spins off course, bouncing off the wall of the ruined temple and directly down into the path of whoever's standing around below.]

[locumstudentesquire]

[...That would be this poor sod.

Ryunosuke is literally just sitting over here and spacing out a bit between forays to the shrines? Then that rock comes tumbling down out of nowhere and clonks him right on the back of his stupid head.

He yowls and springs to his feet with both hands pressed painfully to the fresh bump, glancing about wildly before his attention turns back to the ruins. Something must've broken off the crumbling masonry there and fell... Maybe he shouldn't sit here anymore??

Grumbling, he gets up and moves a bit away, to a spot he hopes is less likely to be in the path of falling debris.]