kaisou | March Event Log

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March Event Log

March Event
Dominant Element: Wind
Waning Element: Earth

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It's as they say, March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. The early part of March will be blistery and cold, with strong winds and chilly nights. But as the month goes on, the weather will slowly warm and the snow will melt. By the end of the month, it's well into the early spring and the plants already begin to green up once more.

First Signs of Green

With Valentine's over and done with, there's only one thing that everyone's looking forward to, and that's the arrival of spring. Shops in town are stocking themselves up with new outfits for spring and outdoor furniture. The garden shops are stocks with flower seeds and spring vegetables, preparing for the warm weather to finally come rolling in. Many restaurants will be having a special on Bara Brith (malt loaf) and Cawl (lamb stew), in honor of St. David's day earlier in the month as it's trendy this year. On warmer days, people will be finding just about any excuse to be outside and the streets will be busy with people. Enjoy some much needed sunlight everyone!

For adults looking for activities to do, with the upcoming St. Paddy's day, plenty of bars are doing their own promotional celebrations. Most of these are the standard kind of fanfare, where you get a discount if you wear green or there's beer that's been dyed green. Though there's a few quirkier promotions, such as the Deathmatch bar offering free beer for everyone until someone uses the bathroom. Work together to hold the line and your bladders.

Gacha Day

Throughout the month, there's talk in Undertown about being on the lookout for good fortune. On the surface it sounds like the usual fanfare you hear from gossip - someone reblogged a lucky cat photo and came upon some money. Or someone found a four leaf clover and won the grand prize in the raffle. It's easy enough for the more skeptical to dismiss. However for those who are on the look out for lucky signs may find themselves also being blessed by good fortune. A brand new TV will appear in their house, or they'll befriend a new animal friend, or they'll discover they have a new ability. There's no rhyme or reason for what good luck will befall you, but these lucky occurrences seem to have shortly after seeing an omen of good luck. And granted...some of these occurrences might be hard to perceive as lucky. Some may even be downright cursed.

Still! Maybe it's time to keep a closer eye on any patches of clovers you come across, huh?

The Dulahan

The night of March 15th is an usually foggy night. There's an eerie stillness to the world, and the wind that blows with an unnatural chill. Even the normal citizens in town feel a sense of unease, as people rush to get home. As for those more sensitive, you can't help but get a feeling of dread in your stomach. Animals too may seem unsettled, not unlike when they sense an earthquake.

It's late in the night when he shows himself, long after the streets have grown quiet. A horseman riding a horse as black as night, with his own head missing from atop his shoulders. One hand holds onto the reins of his horse, while the other carries the severed head of a woman. He trots through the misty streets of Kaisou, occasionally pausing in front of a place of residences and pointing towards those who dwell inside, before continuing on his way. If you attempt to confront him in the street, he will disappear in a sea of mist and reappear further down the road, focused on his task. Repeated attempts to confront him will eventually enough irritation that he'll pull out a whip made from human spines. Being hit by this whip will render them unconscious until morning.

It's not clear until morning what the Dulahan was after, but when the first rays of morning come through, the horror will sink in. Every person that the Dulahan singled out? Is now missing from the city - whisked away into the Spirit Realm.

New Gate: Tír na nóg

The following morning, March 16th, a new message from Zodiac is sent out

ALERT: SHIFTING GATE IDENTIFIED IN BRICK ALLEY.
Element Classification: Unknown
Danger Level: S
Designation: Tír na nóg
ALERT! A highly dangerous gate has been discovered in Brick Alley. It's already been linked to disappearances across the city. Zodiac is currently investigating but we ask all available people to help investigate and recover the missing people. Please visit the Zodiac office for any supplies. Use caution when engaging with denizens in the realm.

Going to the Zodiac Office, you will find that it's a lot busier than normal. Several Zodiac employees are coming in and out, talking and using tech as they try to sort out the scale of what they're dealing with. Professor Willow is there too, there to help with consultation. According to him, it's a Dulahan that was spotted last night- though his own information is limited to what's known in popular myths. His specialty is more on animals found within the spirit realm, not mythological figures. Notably, it seems he's managed to befriend a Meltan from last month's gate.

Zodiac will supply weapons made from iron, as well as packs of food. If you press them for more information, they will suggest not to give your name or consume any food while within the spirit gate. If you need motivation than saving your friends to help, Zodiac is more than willing to pay you for your services. As for the location of the spirit gate, they will mention that it might be a little hard to spot this time, so keep your eyes peeled!

Hard to spot will turn out to be an apt description. When they arrive in Brick Alley, there's no obvious standing tall gate as there were the previous two months. Instead, they will have to search around until they find a circle of mushrooms that have popped up on a patch of grass. These mushrooms are impervious to harm, and you'll have to stand in the center of them if you want to enter the realm. It'll take a moment or two to activate, leaving you feel a little awkward as normal people pass by and stare at you standing in a circle of mushrooms, but hold fast, because soon you'll find yourself warped into another realm.

The landscape of Tír na nóg is beautiful, looking like it came out of the pages of a fairy tale. Golden sunlight washes over lush meadows and forests ahead of you. Behind you, are tall rocky cliffs that drop down into the raging sea below. In the distance, there is a castle that stands on higher cliffs and looks like the only place of civilization in this realm. If there's any spot where the kidnapped folks are being held, it's there. You must travel through a long winding path through the forest in order to reach it. The forest is full of wildlife that's more like Earth's, but you can't but get that feeling that you're being watched. You better hope that you ate before you left or brought food of your own, because the trek takes long enough that the unprepared may find themselves feeling famished by the time they make it to the castle.

When they reach the castle, they will find the place guarded by several Fae guards along with a couple mythical beasts. They will allow entry, but only if they leave behind any iron they have on their person. If you agree to do so, they will be rather welcoming, offering refreshments for any weary travelers. Curiously, if you inquire about the other people that were brought here, the fae will seem to be of the belief that the people they're talking about have been guests at the castle longer than they've been missing, by several days in fact. What in the world is going on?

As for those who act with more hostility, well: prepare for a fight. The fae would prefer to talk things out, but they aren't afraid throw down arms when faced with violence. What more, they wield much stronger magic than anything the characters currently have. Don't be surprised to see yourself be turned into a small animal for your troubles. Only apologizing to the fae or leaving the spirit realm will reverse the effects.

Waking up at the Castle

Those who were kidnapped by the Dulahan will wake up to find themselves in much nicer accommodations than you'd expect for being kidnapped. You wake up in your own personal guestroom in soft beds. Fae attendants will come in to check on your needs, checking if everything is to your liking while any requests to go home seem to fall on deaf ears. While this place is much more medieval in terms of technology, they seem determined to make your stay as comfortable as possible. You are even allowed to leave your rooms to wander the halls to see others in their guest rooms, though for a least the first morning they block you from leaving the guest wing. It should also be noted that anything made of iron has been removed from your person.

At midday on that first day, the kidnapped characters will be invited down to the main hall of the castle for a grand feast. Any type of food you could possibly desire, as well as foods you've never heard of, are laid across the giant banquet table. The fae are friendly and more than curious to learn about their new "guests", asking personal questions and encouraging them to eat up. The fae themselves come in all shapes and sizes. Some look like classic fairies while others more otherworldly appearance. It's only when they've made sure enough of their new guests have eaten and shared their names do the head of the fae announce their reason for bringing you to their realm: they could sense something special about you, and have decided to have you joined the fae. It's been a long time since they've had anyone bolster their ranks after all.

After this announcement, the fae will allow the guests to travel where they wish. You can explore the realm or spend time with the fae as you like. However if anyone who ate the food or gave their name will find that even if they reach the gate, they won't be able to use it to get back to Kaisou. For now, you're stuck in the spirit realm.

Life among the Fae

One thing will become obvious when the kidnapped meet up with their would-be rescuers: time flows differently in this realm. A single day in Kaisou is several days in Tír na nóg. By the time the would-be rescuers have found the people they were looking for, several days have passed - more than enough time for the kidnapped to explore and experience this realm on their own. The fae themselves aren't too concerned about the new arrivals, and will treat them as guests as well. It's not like they have a way to ESCAPE after all. Though just like those kidnapped- any who share their name or eat the food will also find themselves stuck in the spirit realm. Whoops.

The fae are friendly and playful race. While they rarely give a straight answer, they enjoy playing games and hearing stories about places outside the realm. Some of their games include riddles, fishing, or playing with balls made of sheer gold. However, their good nature will quickly sour if you do anything to cross them. Attempting to cheat, steal, or honestly any perceived slight against them may result in you getting cursed with magic. This magic will either turn you partly or fully into an animal, depending on the severity of their rage. Though at the same time, getting endearing yourself too much to the fae may also end in your body getting changed, with them deciding to "bless you" by granting you fae-like features.

It's not just the fae you need to be wary of. A popular dish among the court is called the "Fish of Knowledge". It's a type of salmon that admittedly tastes extremely good. However anyone who consumes it will find it having an effect on their memories. AU characters may find all their AU memories getting swapped for the memories of their canon counterpart, now even more lost and confused to what's going on here. Otherwise, characters from other worlds (and any AU characters that rather go this route) will find themselves becoming an expert in a random field of study. Never went to medical school? Doesn't matter, you now have a PhD worth of medical knowledge in your head, or any other subject that you feel apt.

The Rescue

As much as the Fae want to keep their new friends, it's not like you guys can actually stay forever. Eventually, they'll be able to strike a deal with the leaders of the Fae. If they can retrieve the head that the Dulahan carries and bring it to Gwenffrwd well atop the mountain (there's murmurings among the court whether it's ACTUALLY a mountain, this seems to be a contentious opinion), everyone will be allowed to leave the realm. They'll even be nice enough to give back your iron weapons for this quest -- once you leave the castle grounds, that is.

Finding the Dulahan will take some work, as he wanders the bogs of Tír na nóg. These bogs are treacherous, where taking the wrong step could lead you to fall under the murky waters. No matter the time of day, it's dark and gloomy in these spots. Will-o'-the-wisps appear as lights floating over the bog, intent on leading people off the path. Undead skeletons are also found in these bogs, and they are more than happy to try to get you to join their undead horde. When you do finally find the Dulahan, you'll have to be careful to make sure he doesn't run off before you can grab that head. Not only that, but his power is stronger now that he's in the Spirit Realm, meaning his attacks might do more than just knock you out for awhile. Teamwork is likely your best option here.

Once you have retrieved the severed head (which is the real severed head of a woman, wonderful), it's time to go up the mountain(?)! Away from the bog, the path up the mountain(?) is winding but straightforward, but it'll turn out about three-fourths up the mountain there is one teensy little detail the fae left out. And that detail being that the path to the well is being guarded by a large, fire breathing, red dragon. It seems some fae have even gathered around to spectate the whole encounter, because who are they to turn down free entertainment?

Good luck guys!

If you manage to find a way past the dragon, then the rest of the trip to the well is pretty straightforward. Drop the head into the waters of the well, and there'll be a glow of magic. All characters, regardless of if they ate the fae food, will be allowed to come and go from this realm as they wish.

Aftermath

While for those trapped in the realm, it'll feel like they were there for a month -- once they return to Kaisou they will find they were only gone for 1 IC week (the 15th to the 22nd). You're welcome to deal with the consequences with work or school that'd happen for being missing for a week, though if you rather not then you'll find that Zodiac stepped in and was able to give believable excuses for your absences. It's uh, a little unnerving how good they are at handling explaining people disappearing, honestly

Any knowledge or memories that your character gained from eating the fish will disappear, becoming fuzzier and fuzzier until it's hard to recall anything they learned. As for any animal/fae features they received from Fae magic, it is optional whether or not they will stick around for any amount of time.

For the rest of the month, characters are allowed to come and go into Tír na nóg as they wish. The fae will be sad that you won't be staying with them forever, but they are still happy for your company. With the crisis averted, Zodiac will once again offer paid incentives to bring back items from the realm. Those gold balls in particular are of interest to them, but don't let the fae catch you thieving. And per usual, there'll be penalties for anyone who doesn't return the items that Zodiac loaned out.

OOC Notes

The dominant element this month is wind! Anyone with an affinity to the wind element will find themselves boosted throughout the month. This could mean a boost to their power, having more energy, feeling more inspired with creativity, having better luck on different attempts -- the boost can manifest in all sorts of different ways. By contrast, anyone with an affinity for earth will be experiencing the opposite. Perhaps their powers will be weaker, they have less energy, they're having a creative block or general worse luck - again it can manifest in all sorts of way and players are free to play with this mechanic as they'd like.

Memories gained by eating the fish will not remain, but characters are welcome to retain any animal features. If they were turned fully into an animal, they'll find they are now able to shift between human and animal form. Nice! (EDIT: Details on the feature have been elaborated on here.)

Any fights or interactions with NPCs will be handled by the players! Feel free to thread out things however you'd like! If you have any questions, please ask them on the plot questions thread below! The original OOC plotting post for this event can be found here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Aaaaaaah she purred back!! Ana's day is now infinitely better.

Though she's snapped out of her mental squealing when Phantom speaks again, tilting her head a little before nodding. Which probably looks silly on a cat.]

It'll be better than wandering alone like this. [Especially since she's still lowkey worried about being stuck like this but. It'll be fine!!!]

I'm Anastasia, but just call me Ana... or "Feather", when there's faeries around.

I am Phantom.

[ No need to rename himself when he already has a codename. ]

Stay close to me. [ He's not going to carry her... he only has enough shoulder space for one cat. If they really get into danger, he might pick her up and then go into stealth mode.

He originally came this way looking for any storage rooms or libraries that might have information. He'll continue along the corridor. ]

[So just a codename, huh? That's fine.

So with another "prrbt" of agreement, she instead makes things a little easier for him by using her little wings to fly - fluttering up to float alongside him.]

Nice to meet you, Phantom. [And with that she follows him along the corridor, bobbing along as scarlet eyes peer about. Mostly it just seems to be rooms of faeries having fun, holding tea parties and the like, and she doubts that's what he's looking for.]

Sooooo, what're you looking for?

[ ... the cat flies. You know, this isn't weird to him at all. He's seen weirder. ]

There are people kidnapped and trapped in this realm who need rescue. [ His first priority. ] Then, seeking out any items that may have useful properties and retrieving them.

[ The second thing is for money. He's a regular Zodiac freelancer. ]

Mm, a friend of mine has been kidnapped so I was looking for him! [Before she got catified...] So we need to be on the lookout for a guy with short, red hair.

[Even though her roomie looked totally fine when they spoke on the network, and hopefully it stays that way.]

I know Zodiac is probably interested in those golden balls, too... Let's see... [She flitters further ahead, peering into the rooms before stopping in front of a certain door - twirling about in front of it Something of interest spotted!]

This looks like a storage room! There might be good stuff in here.

[ Phantom nods, but he looks at Ana and lets her see him disappear before he steps in. It's impossible to tell where he is once he's activated his concealment ability, and it's something that he keeps using all the time unless he actually has to speak to someone.

So far, this room has a few cupboards and shelves. Most of them have closed boxes on them. Should they really be rummaging through these? Phantom takes a careful look around first.

After a minute or two, he reappears next to her. ]

No traps... not from the outside.

[Little crimson eyes blink when he disappears, peering into the room where she think he's gone. But she does at least stay put, fluttering in place before perking up when he reappears.]

Oh, I can take a closer look. [The how isn't obvious as she stays hovering outside the room, but it becomes more clear when floating red eyes flicker into existence. Two of them float into the room, peering through gaps in the shelves and into boxes - considering they're a very vague projection of her, it's not she'll get hurt if they're damaged.]

Looks all clear on my end too!

[ Huh. That's a helpful ability... not that he would be surprised, given that Ana already has wings. She must be a lot more magical than he is. ]

Alright then...

[ He walks over to open one of the boxes. It seems to be filled entirely with combs of many different shapes and sizes. ]

... they collect these? [ He sounds a little incredulous. Just a little. ]

[Magical sure is one way to put it!! Though she is lowkey glad he didn't freak out like... everyone else she knows, really.

But she flutters over to peer into the box, a paw reaching in to poke at the combs.]

They are faeries, they tend to like random shit. [She paws through them some more, only a little (more than a little) annoyed at the lack of thumbs, before she turns her attention to the box next to it.

Which is filled with old hand mirrors and compacts.]

... I have a feeling we might've come across their hoarding collection.

[ Random 'shit', huh... ]

They hoard these? [ He echoes Ana's words. So fairies like mundane objects from the human world... maybe they could use this fact to barter for things. ] But these are useless...

[ There's not likely to be any magical artifacts in this room, if that's the case. ]

[It's okay you can swear too, Phantom - ]

If it's pretty or interesting, they'll like it. [She gently paws at a compact with an intricate rose design, doing her best to delicately hold it between her paws as she takes a look at it.]

But maybe we could offer them some stuff from the human world.

[And with that she puts the compact back, fluttering into the air again. It's at least a useful tidbit of info, but not really anything that can help them at the moment.]

[ He can't swear, he has to be a Victorian gentleman. ]

I see...

[ Well, he didn't come with any trinkets. Maybe he'll bring some next time. ]

Another room, then. [ Time to go outside and find another room to sneak into, or maybe a Fae they can talk into giving information. ]

[She bobs in the air in agreement, and flutters on ahead - though the sight of a floating cat with an outsider seems to catch the attention of one of the Fae. While the attention is still grating, it does at least endear the Fae enough to talk. Though considering their habit of talking in riddles, what they talk about isn't really clear.

They do talk of a "sparkly room" on this floor though - which sounds like a good enough hint - and once the Fae is distracted by something else it's easy enough to drift past them.]

Well, at least that's something.

[ Phantom lets Ana handle talking to the Fae. He knows he'll mess it up badly given his style of speaking, and he doesn't want to interact with them either. After all, he had planned to simply sneak by all of them whenever possible. ]

A sparkly room... perhaps gold?

[ Do Fae simply leave their possessions around? He's starting to think that they shouldn't take things on a whim. It has to be something of importance. ]

Or magic... [She thinks over this, fluttering in place still before coming up with an idea.]

I can have a look further ahead, I have an okay range with my eyes at the moment.

[It's not as expansive as she's used to, but it could stop them from aimlessly wandering around.]

That would help, yes.

[ Technically he could stealth and go ahead, but it's wiser to send something disposable. He's not questioning Ana's abilities when it's quite on par with a few people he's seen back home. ]

Got it~!

[With that, the eyes flicker back to existence - drifting down the hallway, peering into rooms and down other corridors. Ana humming softly before she grimaces, her eyes spotting the Fae that turned her into a cat in the first place.]

I haven't found anything yet, but I did find the one who turned me into a cat... [And it would be really ideal if she could change back, especially after getting harrassed earlier. But that means she should... probably... apologize............]

Oh? Could they reverse the enchantment?

[ Phantom doesn't know that apologizing will revert it, but he thinks this might be an opportunity to negotiate at the least. ]

They could, but they did it because I made them mad...

[She slumps even more at the approaching dread of swallowing her pride, but she can't stay like this. So, with great reluctance, she starts to drift in the right direction.]

So I'll probably have to apologize to get them to fix this.

Will you?

[ He says this quietly; not a trace of sneering or ridicule. He says it just as it is. ]

I don't want to, but yes. My pride isn't worth being useless like this.

[As much of a stubborn idiot she is, even she knows there's a limit. So with a deep breath and gritted teeth, the cat drifts over to the Fae who is lounging about in a small, elegant tea room.

Of course they aren't happy to see her, and Ana really doesn't want to do this - but she forces herself through it. There's back and forth for a while, before the Fae finally decides to forgive her and change her back.

So gone is the flying fluffy cat, and now in it's place is a young, blonde woman with black wings.]

Phew... I thought I was gonna be stuck like that forever. [Judging by how the Fae giggles at that, it maybe have been a possibility.]

[ Phantom just... watches from behind. He's aware that any form of intervention on his part would be useless, so he concealed himself when Ana went to speak with the Fae.

He's looking rather noticeably at her wings when she comes back, though his attention quickly snaps back to her face, as is polite for conversation. ]

Welcome back. [ Pause. ] I apologize if this is an untoward question, but... is there a reason why you have those wings?

[She notices the attention to her wings - but it's something she's used to at this point. Instead she grins at his greeting, back to her usual self now.]

Glad to be back! [Though, huh... He's actually the first person to ever ask why she has them. Most people just turned the other way about it.]

Oh, it's because I'm half angel. So I was born with these. [She has no reason to hide her heritage anyway.] It's also why I can do that weird eye thing too.

... I see.

[ He appears to accept that fact without further questions. She didn't seem to be a denizen of the Spirit Realm, so she must be one of those otheworlders that he's heard about. ]

We should move.

[ To the next hallway, or somewhere that might give them a clue. ]

Right, right.

[Once more she summons her eyes, and they drift on further ahead. It's only after some walking that she comes to a stop, canting her head slightly as she "looks" at something.]

There's an open doorway being guarded up ahead... I can see something shining inside, maybe this was the "sparkly room" that fae was talking about.

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