Event Eight.

[awashmods]

To thee I'll return, overburdened with care; The heart's dearest solace will smile on me there. No more from the cottage again will I roam, Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

he Town is quiet this week. No sudden quests on the forum post, no roars of werewolves in the distance... just peaceful, peaceful quiet. Of course, it's hot as hell right now, but that aside, it's pretty pleasant. You probably don't want to wander around the Town right now, but... Naturally, now's when the Town is going to start thoroughly encouraging you to do just that. You do want to find your doorway back home, don't you? Better get searching! And don't mind the other worlds you might end up stumbling into first. Welcome to Awash's eighth event log, everyone! Further information on this event can be found here at the OOC post. You are welcome to start your own posts or logs for this event as well. If there are any questions, please ask them here. Thank you!

Comments

[troubadamsel]

A - All Around Me Are Familiar Faces

[Maribelle's portal? At the stable! She'd been there to feed and brush the animals that lived within, and now she suddenly finds herself at the base of the Mila Tree. This gigantic tree reaches up into the heavens, you can barely see the top, and it's as large as a mountain. It almost seems to shimmer, giving off a divine presence - it is home to a legendary manakete, after all. All around the base are small tents, and to be quite honest, THAT'S where her attention lies.]

Lissa! Lissa, please tell me you're here!

[Even though common sense tells her this is too good to be true, she rushes towards the nearest tent, throwing the flap open... and finding no one inside. Her entire body seems to deflate.]

... What new trick is this? Haven't we already suffered enough?

B - Worn Out Places

[Some time later, maybe you're here to visit the horses and such, or maybe you're just clumsy enough to fall in there, but here you are. Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back - aren't you itching to look into one of those tents?

Choose one of the following names - Chrom, Lissa, Ricken, Gaius or even Maribelle herself to see what's in those tents - and Maribelle's reaction to you sneaking around.]

C - Worn Out Faces

[A message has popped over the network from Maribelle's handle!]

By now we all know what is happening, and some of us are gaining something from it. I would like some assistance removing essential tomes from my realm. If it works, my magic will be much stronger, and thus we'll all benefit from it.

D - Bright And Early For Their Daily Races

[It's not all fun and games. Whether you came with her or by yourself, Risen monsters are here to attack! Some look more human and some look less, but they don't speak and are only interested in sheer death and destruction. The best way to defeat them is a good, solid hit - long as you don't get hit first.]

Gods damn it all! They couldn't bring my friends, but they could bring the Risen?!

Wildcard - Going Nowhere
[Make your own prompt, have Mari stumble into your portal if you want! If you want to plan deeper, PM me or hit me up on plurk (melcat33)!]

C - July 21

[youwillbeunequaled]

As they live in the same house, it is easy for the two of them to talk about their respective finds, and for Tonbokiri to find out about Maribelle's desire to improve her magic powers.

Given that they haven't had a chance to have their mounted duel yet, he can't help but be pleased that he'll help his opponent grow stronger. It is easy for him to agree to a trip with her. And, he admits, he does have another reason for wishing to see her world. He hopes that he can come to understand her better through both seeing her home and Ochako's advice to ask about her life there.

Passing through the door of the stable, he is immediately taken by the presence - both in atmosphere and physically - of the tree. He stops walking to look up at it, taking in the view.

"I- I am astounded, Maribelle-dono. What is that magnificent tree? Even calling it 'tree' does not do it justice, does it.

[troubadamsel]

Maribelle supposes she can't blame him for being awe-struck. Everyone in the Shepherds was much the same the first time they came upon this astounding tree, with the world so quiet and sunlight breaking through the leaves.

"If you want to be more specific, it is called the Mila Tree... it is named after the mother goddess, and some say it's as old as she is." After a few silent footsteps, she lightly touches the bark with one hand. "At the very top rests a powerful manakete... she is respected as a deity, sleeping for thousands of years and awakening when we need her most."

[youwillbeunequaled]

"A god-like tree... Certainly, there is a powerful spirit here. Your world is already far beyond what I could have imagined, Maribelle-dono."

He awkwardly hesitates a moment, feeling that this is so direct, but still a good chance. So he gently asks, "I would like to know more about your life here, as to understand you better. For over and over, I have realized that I cannot understand you from only the perspective of my own memories and culture. And now, if you are agreeable, I have the opportunity to see with my own eyes this part of your life."

d.

[underwraps]

[Aizawa's not entirely surprised that some of these pocket dimensions house threats, though he would've preferred to discover this with a less threatening group of opponents.

He's already gripping his capture weapon, situating himself between Maribelle and the wave of things that are steadily approaching them. His highest priority at the moment is ensuring his company's safety, but a few of them are already close enough where confrontation is inevitable.]

What's the best way to deal with them?

[troubadamsel]

[Not to worry, she's not defenseless, though with a red book in her arms, she may give off a different impression.]

They have no brains, they can't be strategic. A heavy, hard hit will make them dissolve! Their real strength is in their numbers, we can't let them overwhelm us.

[underwraps]

[So quantity over quality, huh? Fighting droves of opponents isn't Aizawa's forte, but the reality is that not all situations will be ideal, and it's a pro Hero's duty to adapt to whatever circumstances are thrown at them.

Still, the 'strategy' sounds deceptively simple, but Aizawa doesn't have time to ask for semantics before one of them lunges straight for him. He immediately dodges off to the side, twisting his body and delivering a hard roundhouse kick against the back of their head.

And true to Maribelle's word his opponent practically crumbles against his boot, though he doesn't wait before he's whipping his capture weapon out so that it latches itself onto the wrist of another Risen, using the momentum stored in his body to toss them hard over his shoulder so it slams face first into the ground.]

c

[parodeity]

[ we'll skip the part where dave responds to the message. but he shows up to maribelle's portal with his hands in his pockets and looks around when he's led through, planning to help her take whatever she wants (or at least...allowing her to grab one thing. alas) ]

Holy shit. That tree. I think it takes the dictionary definition for tree in any contest hands down?

[troubadamsel]

[She waves a hand, a little dismissive.]

Beautiful as it is, I do wish I'd been dropped into a marketplace, so we could gather more supplies.

[parodeity]

Well...how many tomes can you take in a trip? Also what's the tree's story. Is it a god tree? Like a sleeping tree that like...gave birth to the world, or something?

[ that sounds fantastic enough right ]

c, response from #000033

[whereabout]

Would you be willing to trade help for help? As long as I have access to supplies from home, I'd like to get what I can over here.

[troubadamsel]

Of course, that would only be proper.

[whereabout]

At your convenience, then. Though maybe that's right now?

B

[good_ideas]

[Never say Shiho isn’t curious. The tree does get its own wide-eyed look and she resolves to go check it out soon. But first she drifts towards a name she’s heard before.]

....Lissa? Isn’t that Maribelle’s friend?

[Though she doesn’t open the tent yet. She’s a psychometer, after all. She can snoop all she wants and see everything there is inside the tent just by lightly touching the tent.]

[troubadamsel]

[And by that touch, she'll see inside....

-a basic cot and blankets... with a frog sleeping on time.
-abandoned needle-work. She was trying to make a cat, it looks like a squid.
-tiny honey-cakes.
-Magical tomes and staffs, similar to the ones Maribelle uses.

As Shiho "inspects", someone clears their throat behind her.]

A-hem.

[good_ideas]

[She immediately zeroes in on those cakes as she examines it using psychometry, kind of curious over the taste but then someone’s there and she pauses.

...Technically she’s not inside. And all it looks like is that she has her hand on a tent.]

Oh.

[She turns around, looking surprised though not really.] Hi, Maribelle! Is this your world?

c - #A5001B

[retrobeats]

that sure sounds like a no-brainer to me!
i'm down to help rescue some skill books if you still need more people

[troubadamsel]

More hands are always essential. Do you know where the stables are?

[retrobeats]

not really, i'm still making my mental HUD of the town
any chance of directions of how to get there from Ruga?

D

[nipzips]

[ The being before him looks human in every shape and form, save for the way their eyes seem to glow bright red. It's eerie, against the dark backdrop of this strange new world he's in, and the way this 'person' seems to stare at him without making a single sound only unnerves him more. ]

That guy's really giving me the creeps! What does he want?! [ He's instinctively stepping in front of Maribelle, just in case. ]

[troubadamsel]

[She appreciates the bravado, bro.]

He wants us dead! We have to defeat them before they find a way back into town!

[nipzips]

But why're they even here? Is this some kinda zombie, like in the movies? [ Crazy Diamond phases out of him, ready to pulverize some zombie-like creatures. ]

C; also hello again~! o/

[tendershepherd]

[This comes from Sorey's handle of #FFFF4D.]

I'll help! Where do I need to go?

[troubadamsel]

Do you know where the stables are?

[tendershepherd]

Oh...no, I don't. I can find them if I know the general location though!