event: a gentle arrival

[thestewards]

I won't give up so don't give in
You've fallen down but you can rise again

► The OOC plotting post for this event can be found here.

► Direct all questions to the mods at this link.

SWEET DREAMS AREN'T MADE OF THIS
The dream isn't unpleasant, just strange. Mist curls around you long after the woman fades. You hold a Jewel in your hand, marveling at its multifaceted surface and feeling the thrill of new, untapped power. Anticipation surges in you: that feeling of wrongness that so often accompanies a nightmare you can't wake from. Anticipation becomes fear. You look up, certain that at any moment the mist will pull back and reveal something gruesome and terrible.

A scream. A piercing wail, that sound that accompanies a violent death. The sound doesn't come from your dream, and it jolts you awake. You…

i. Are alone in your room, and have a moment to gather yourself. Wherever you laid down to rest, you've woken up somewhere different. Somewhere strange. There's a comforting weight in the air—a feeling of welcome, of belonging. Then another scream pierces the night. In your dream, the woman asked for a hero. Maybe you already consider yourself a hero or maybe you don't, but now seems as good a time as any to either be one or start pretending.

ii. See a dark shape looming over you. You have no time to assess the place you've woken up, though you have a quick flash of insight that your dream must have been more than a dream and the woman to whom you spoke has brought you to her world and her home. There's no time to marvel at this. The shadow above you draws back, a pistol Breaker in their hand. Even if you've never seen a gun before, you can somehow taste their malice and hatred. They're pointing a weapon at you, and your scream might be the next to tear through the midnight darkness.

Landen Hunters have infiltrated the Queen's Residence. How stalwartly you choose to fight them off is up to you, but you'll quickly encounter members of Fayura's First Circle defending against the attackers. Allairavar rallies the people of the court, ensuring the most vulnerable are well guarded in the massive dining hall. Loren maintains a Green shield around the room, and only those of the court or the Strangers can enter. There, Healers tend to the wounded, and the children who live at the residence are kept safe.

Amidst the turmoil, you overhear snippets of conversation:

A Healer, quietly, to her patient: If the Lady isn't here, she and Prince Verim must be working some spell to protect us. Rest easy, Prince.

Lord August, speaking quickly to Prince Lachlan as they rush by: —monsters find out the Queen would be bringing help to us tonight? Who told the Hunters—

An injured footman, worried: —see the flames through the window. Landens live in Old Town. How unsurprising that the Guilds would come up with a distraction that hurts their own, too.

FLAME AND FURY
Beyond the Queen's Residence, the Old Town Bazaar burns. Horrified faces gather at the east-facing dining hall windows, and distraught whispers fill the air. Someone cries out that their sister lives in Old Town.

Loren reacts first. He calls for volunteers from the Strangers, and you have the distinct impression that he measures you by your response. "The Hunters—" He grimaces, realizing the Strangers probably don't know what he means. "—landen assassins came in the night to kill you. They've lit part of our city on fire to prevent us from following them. We don't know who, specifically, came for you, but we know where they've gone to ground, so we don't need to chase them down. What we do need to do is stop the fire from spreading. The First Circle will stay here and defend the residence. Who among you Strangers, those of you who came here tonight, will help with the fires?"

Those who agree to help are sent with Allairavar to put out the flames. As you travel with him, Allairavar provides a crash-course in creative application of Craft.

*You wear the Jewels, so you can shield. You should know how, if the Lady's spell worked. Shield yourselves to protect from the flames. Use Craft to shield the buildings and starve out the fires,* he says on a psychic thread so that everyone can hear him and he doesn't need to waste his breath by shouting. *Rescue anyone trapped in the buildings regardless of who they are. Be on the look out for Hunters—the assassins Loren mentioned. They're sneaky bastards, and they'll use our focus on helping the people to put knives in our backs if they can.*

Put out fires, use your powers or Craft to support buildings before they collapse, and rescue landens and Blood alike from the damage done by the Hunter Guild. Be wary and alert, and try not to damage the city more than the fires already have should you encounter Hunters. Blood families will go with the Strangers more easily than landen families, but Allairavar makes it clear that if you have to physically remove someone from a burning home or one that is about to collapse then that is exactly what you should do.


REST FOR THE WEARY
Dawn breaks on the horizon, painting the city of Draega a hazy red. With little wind, the smoke hovers around the city. In Old Town, even buildings that didn't burn begin to smell like the fire.

A somber weight falls on the Queen's Residence. In the aftermath of the night's events, Loren introduces himself to each of the Strangers individually if possible but to groups if he must: He is the Queen's Steward, and his Queen was the one who worked the spell to bring them to Draega. He apologizes for the circumstance of their arrival and that the Queen is currently indisposed. Everyone, he explains, can stay in the residence for as long as they would like, and he makes it clear that by no means are the Strangers required to remain in the residence nor will they be viewed with suspicion or distrust by the court if they decide to find their own homes.

Those with medical skills or healing powers are brought to the dining hall to help the Healers. The Healer in charge is a young, Yellow Jeweled woman who has exhausted her Craft and desperately needs assistance. Anyone who inquires about her position within the court, either to her or others, learns that she is highly skilled and spent her childhood in the landen Medico Guild before taking a chance on her half-Blood heritage and making an Offering. While she wears one of the lightest Jewels in the residence, even Allairavar submits silently to her attentions and he offers no excuse when she chastises him for getting injured.

Midway through the day, Allairavar and Loren make the mistake of having an unshielded conversation near the dining hall. Anyone nearby can overhear…

"I spoke briefly to Verim," Loren says, voice low and urgent. "They weren't caught in the fire, but Allairavar…"

A muscle in Allairavar's jaw ticks. His massive, membranous wings fan out to fill the hall before he pulls them tight to his back. "She's injured."

Loren nods. "Badly. The backlash of power struck her hard, and Verim couldn't help her absorb it." Tension lines Allairavar's body, and Loren quickly adds, "You can't kill them. She brought them here to help us—"

"Our Queen is vulnerable," Allairavar hisses. "There are strangers in our home." A dangerous, wild look fills his eyes. "Does she plan on doing this again? We're not letting her." He rocks back and forth on his feet with the nervous energy of a man contained and about to explode.

"So we'll strand these people here?" Gentle concern fills Loren's eyes. "She'll need to do this once more to send them home."

All that nervous energy abruptly vanishes, and Allairavar bends a sleepy-eyed, malevolent look on Loren. "Would you ask our Queen to destroy herself for these people?"

Violence cloaks both men, but the threat of action rests solely on Allairavar. Loren keeps his voice gentle. Soothing. "Do you really think she would have made the offer if she couldn't send them home? Do you think she would truly be so cruel as to demand they come here with no chance of ever returning home?"

Allairavar is quiet for a long moment. The tension slowly flows out of him, leaving him looking weary and exhausted. "Yes," he finally says, tone grim. "Because to her, the price is worth it to save the world. And she would accept it for any of them if they asked." He runs a hand over his head and sighs heavily. Without another word, he turns and walks away. Loren does not call after him.

AIR TIME
Whether you catch the news on a Far-caster in the city or you're spinning the dial on your own device, you'll hear…

etiquette with evandra and aren
[Evandra's voice is a little bit rough and a little bit husky, the kind of voice that gives bad ideas to young men and headaches to fathers.] Just because the Blood have no law against murder doesn't mean you can kill anyone on the street—or in their homes, isn't that right, Lord Aren?

[Aren's voice is chipper and bright. He sounds more like an eager boy than the full-grown man he is.] Quite true, Evandra! Unless someone has done something to merit execution, wanton murder is generally frowned upon. A Queen can demand a price for the death of someone in her Territory or court.

[A thoughtful hum from Evandra.] So, the Hunter Guild's attack on the Queen's Residence last night isn't illegal, but it was incredibly gauche. And now they face possible retaliation from her and her court. How ghastly!

[Aren agrees.] A dreadful affair. Remember: just because you can doesn't mean you should.

[Evandra:] Quite so. Something for us all to consider. As always, I'm Evandra.

[With solemn dignity, Lord Aren says:] I'm Aren, and you've been listening to…

[Together:] Etiquette with Evandra and Aren. [Jaunty outro music plays. Perhaps they should reconsider this particular tune on dark occassions.]

the weather
[A soft-spoken man's voice rumbles out of the Far-caster. He's pleasant to listen to, with a soothing cadence to his voice.] …overcast and snowy days with temperatures hovering around freezing during the day and dropping at night. Need to tune up your e-line heaters? The Elektriline Guild is offering a limited-time discount this week to ensure you stay warm around the clock.

the news
…distressed to hear of the incident at the Queen's Residence. [The man speaks in a slow, smooth voice. His words ring with heartfelt sincerity.] Though Lady Fayura and I don't often see eye-to-eye— [He chuckles at this, as though he's made a joke. Another man, presumably an interviewer, chuckles along with the air of someone who isn't sure this is a joke they should be laughing at.] —I condemn the actions taken by the Hunter Guild. Destroying people's homes is simply unacceptable.

But one wonders what that surge of power was just prior to midnight. Craft, surely, but to what end? Was that the spell the Queen used to summon these… Strangers from other Realms? Surely we can agree that such action, taken independently of the Guilds and the Ebon Council, much as we don't get along, is cause for concern. I believe the Lady has overstepped, and it is my firm hope that Lord Grejor issues an injunction against her for such flagrant disregard for the law.

[The interviewer speaks, and his voice is faintly strained.] Thank you, Grand Master Niall, for talking to us on this issue.

Comments

clarke griffin | ota

[romancekiller]

i. SWEET DREAMS AREN'T MADE OF THIS.

a ) [the dream itself was definitely strange and she isn't entirely too sure what to make of it but it's the scream that makes her wake up rather abruptly. it hasn't quite registered with her that she isn't in arkadia anymore or anything else regarding the strange circumstances she finds herself. instead her immediate thought is that something is wrong and that one of her people is in danger but the moment she even attempts to move, she notices that she isn't alone.

clarke isn't a stranger to having her life threatened but catching a glipse of the figure looming above her in the dark who is pointing a gun at her, her breath catches in her throat for a moment because she knows she has to think fast to try and make it out of here. she moves and just barely dodging the bullet that was meant for her and in that instance, she takes her chance to fight back with everything she has] Get the hell away from me— [she starts shoving the person away from her and with a swift kick to knock them to the ground as she makes her escape through the door trying to move through the hallways to get as much distance between herself and the person targeting her as she could but in her rush she might end up bumping right into someone]

b ) That really was some wake up call— [her words are mostly muttered to herself for the most part though if you happen to pass by, her words are audible enough. it's a bit later once she has gotten enough distance, clarke pauses for a moment to take a breather while still trying to remain cautious. she takes in her new surrounding a bit and the more she looks around, the more it seems like what she thought was a dream was more real than she anticipated] Definitely not what I was expecting either, including being wherever this place is supposed to be.

ii. REST FOR THE WEARY.

a ) [it has been a long exhausting morning between the rather unpleasant wake up call to going into town to help save people from the fire. she stayed back at the queen's residence while people had been going to help with the latter because she knew that her help would be most needed after it was all said and done especially in terms of offering medical aid to those who came back injured or worse.

she joins the other healers in the dining hall waiting for people to come back and in between that time, there is a certain conversation between loren and allairavar she manages to overhear that further adds to how wary she is about all this along with her other suspicions about being here too]

As if this place wasn't suspicious enough already. [there is definite sarcasm in her tone but she does mentally make note of the conversation she heard for later]

b ) [eventually people do start to come back and she approaches them with genuine concern in her expression. it's clear to her at this point that none of her people are here but in the meantime, she is going to do what she does best and that is to help people who are injured and put her medical skills to use at least] Hey. Are you okay? If you have any injuries, I can patch you up, if you let me take a look?

iii. WILDCARD

[ choose your own adventure! my plotting comment is here if you want to discuss doing something else like teaming up for an influence job or training at the queen's residence or anything else really. i am open to anything! or you can just hit me up on plurk @ throned ]

ia.

[unwieldy]

[ Haein’s in a similar position, having just encountered a Hunter in his room and a pistol in his face, and he’d hit the ground running after rolling out of bed. In his haste to get away, he isn’t watching where he’s going and as he races through the hallway, he collides with Clarke with enough force to hurt and send him stumbling back against the nearest wall where he then braces himself so as not to fall.

He chances a glance off to the side to make sure the gunman isn’t right behind him, and then his attention is back on the stranger before him. He narrows his eyes in suspicion, gaze lowering to her hands and taking note that she doesn’t have a weapon, but he stays on the defensive.

His bleeding arm is a good indicator that he’s just been attacked as well, and now he’s not taking any chances. ]

Are you with them?

[romancekiller]

[everything seems to happen all too fast before she even realizes that she was about to crash into someone because she was so caught up on getting as far away from the hunter as possible. clarke loses her balance and just barely manages to steady herself, she was already on edge from being attacked earlier and this moment wasn't any different as she studies him and tries to gauge if he was a threat to her but upon noticing he was injured and hearing his question, she realizes they might just be on the same side to this] No. I'm not— wait, you're hurt though. Was that from being attacked too?

[unwieldy]

[ A normal person would potentially lower their guard just a bit at hearing that they haven't run into another enemy assailant, but a normal person Haein is not.

He's still as suspicious as ever, making sure to keep his distance between them as well as periodically check over his shoulder to see if the Hunter from earlier is after him, then quickly turning his attention back to the stranger in front him.

There doesn't seem to be any malicious intent coming from her. Still, he regards her warily, allowing the question to hang in the air for longer than necessary before he answers. ]

Someone shot me.

[romancekiller]

[hearing his response only heightens her concerns as she looks towards him] No wonder you're bleeding so much— we need get moving and find if there's an infirmary anywhere around here so I can help patch you up from there.

[unwieldy]

[ That would usually be a sound plan, but Haein being not entirely human means his arm will heal on its own at a faster rate than what would be considered normal. Unfortunately, he is not someone who would volunteer that information.

Good thing the sound of running footsteps comes up and offers some distraction. ]

This way.

[ He doesn't wait for a response, just heads into a different hallway. ]

[romancekiller]

[ clarke is completely oblivious to that and so she assumes he is in agreement with her when she doesn't hear him argue. the sound of someone approaching is also distracting enough that it doesn't give her much of a chance to say much else and she just nods and follow along with him] Yeah, okay— we definitely need to get out of here before they catch up with us again.

[unwieldy]

[ Well, he has no idea where he's going, and it doesn't take long for that to show when he spots a dead end up ahead. That gives him pause, and during that pause, the sound of footsteps draws closer until it reveals the Hunter chasing after them, pistol in hand.

Haein whirls around, gaze immediately landing on the gun, and then he's moving to shove both himself and Clarke into a corridor off to the side. ]

[romancekiller]

[clarke doesn't really have any idea where she is going either so she is kind of hoping for her best at this point when they head further down the hallways. the moment it appears they are at a dead end especially with the hunter steadily gaining on them. she doesn't really have time to think especially when haein quickly shoves them into a corridor on the side. she keeps quiet in efforts so that the hunter doesn't hear them or know where they went]

[unwieldy]

[ Haein presses himself up against the wall, straining to hear for any signs that the Hunter might be following after them. He's quiet and still, realizing a bit later that he's holding his breath. Seconds tick by, the sound of footsteps some feet away becomes hesitant, stops, and then...

The sounds fade as the Hunter takes another route, and Haein waits a few more seconds before peeking his head out to check that the coast is clear. ]

They're gone.

[romancekiller]

[clarke just breathes a sigh of relief and just nods hearing his confirmation that the hunter was gone] That really was a close one.

Let's try going another route since this one was a dead end.

[unwieldy]

[ Why does this place have to be such a maze of hallways? Haein doesn't like the idea of wandering around aimlessly until they get somewhere. The chances of running into unfriendly company seems all too high.

But they're not left with much of a choice. They can't just stay here. ]

You take the lead this time.

[ Since all he's done is lead them into a dead end. ]

[romancekiller]

[clarke just nods at that and after quickly looking around to see what her options are of where she can turn, she starts to head forward before eventually making another turn down a different corridor]

Alright— hopefully we'll have better luck with this route. [she doesn't know her way around either but she knows they need to keep moving and stay vigilante in case they run into another hunter]

hope's an ember.

[mekhanikos]

[ he's no stranger to knowing what kind of destruction a fire can do. and so the next day, after he's had some sleep and food, leo is out there again; not lifting things, nor defending houses from those who might take advantage of the situation... but rather walking around, stopping in front of every collapsed house, every pile of rubble, and staring.

and then, in front of one house, his eyes widen. ]

There's people still in there! [ his heat vision, as useful as it is during the night, is just as useful here. they must be trapped, he thinks grimly. he's not going to get them out on his own. but luckily, there's a young woman close to him, a woman who vaguely reminds him of annabeth, and he turns to her. ]

Come on, we gotta get them out of there.

[romancekiller]

[clarke had initially stayed back opting to help with medical aid instead of going into town to help save people from the fire. however, the next day in the aftermath of it all, she decides to venture out and check to see to see if anything was missed or if anyone was still out there.

it doesn't escape her notice that she wasn't the only one out there which she was grateful for because the more of them who were out her helping, the better their chances were at finding something. she is just wandering around trying to examine everything in the aftermath and though she isn't haven't too much luck on her own, it's not long before she overhears leo and quickly turns towards him with her expression shifting towards concern]

People are still in there? That's— yeah, we need to help them if they are trapped under there. [she moves closer to the rubble to try so they can get started with trying to move it out of the way and free the people who are still under it]

[mekhanikos]

Yeah, I can see them.

[ he doesn't stop to consider how that might sound weird; instead, he raises his voice, trying to sound both as cheerful and as reassuring as he can, ]

Hey, don't worry, we'll get you out of there, okay? I'd totally swear on the River Styx and all, but I'm not sure it works here. Anyway, you'll be out of there and peachy in just a moment!

[ then, quieter, at Clarke, ] ... or a couple of moments. Uh, how're we gonna get all this rubble off? I mean, if you've got some superpowers you're hiding, now'd be a good time to, you know, become Superman.

[romancekiller]

See them? [she gives him a slight questioning look because it definitely sounds weird but she soon shifts her focus to helping the people in question who are trapped under the rumble and tries to offer her reassurances as well]

Yeah, we'll do whatever we can get you out of there.

[hearing leo turn towards her with the question though, she lets out a sigh while the reference definitely goes over her head ] Superpowers? I'm pretty sure we'd have to do it the old fashioned way.

[mekhanikos]

Right, [ he mutters and realizes just how little sense that must have made, before elaborating: ] Heat vision.

[ but there's more important things to worry about, such as actually moving the rubble. and since his companion doesn't seem to be harboring any superpowers... ]

Okay, old-fashioned way it is. I mean, I could probably build something to help move it, if I can find some parts...

[romancekiller]

Heat vision? [she looks a bit confused by that before it registers with her that he could literally see through with that] Oh— huh. Well that's handy at least.

[she just nods at that as she considers how to help move the rubble] What kind of parts do you need if you were going to build something to move it?

[mekhanikos]

As much metal as I can find, [ comes his answer. he's thinking of a claw of sorts, something to grab the pieces of rubble with, something that could move them better than he could on his own. ]

But I don't know how long that's gonna take. [ he sighs. ] I'm pretty sure we could use the Craft to move that stuff, too, but I've never tried it before. [ and experimenting right now sounds like a bad idea. ]

[romancekiller]

Yeah, I guess that could take a while— [so much for that idea honestly which is unfortunate because it would be a great idea if they had more time. hearing his mention about the craft though she is also in agreement that it could be a bad idea too]

Right. The craft... I haven't tried it either. It's still weird for me since this sort of thing doesn't exist where I'm from.

[mekhanikos]

It doesn't? [ right, magic and things like that aren't a thing everywhere, he should remember as much.

the contemplation in his expression gives way to a smile that's half-impish, half-blinding when he comes up with an idea. ]

Okay, I got it! Here — [ he remembers the sledgehammer that he and molly found during the fire, grabs it and holds it up. ]

If you push that piece there, and I hit it with this, I think we can send it flying.

[romancekiller]

[clarke just nods at that] Yeah, it was something I thought was only fictional. [but now isn't really the time to have a discussion on that either.

she notices the change in his expression and the moment he picks up the sledgehammer, she realizes what he was planning and smiles, nodding once more] Oh— yeah that should definitely help. [she moves towards the rubble and starts to give it a push so they can finally get to work with freeing the people trapped behind it]

[mekhanikos]

[ for how scrawny he looks, leo is far stronger than would seem possible, and so it's with only a few strikes of his sledgehammer that the big piece of rubble breaks down, parts of it flying everywhere. ]

I think this is working! Good job, team, [ he grins brightly at clarke. ]

[romancekiller]

Yeah, it is— [she looks impressed with how quick the rubble seems to break down and that shows in her expression before she turns to smile towards leo ] That was good thinking with the sledgehammer.