Field Mission 6: A Day in Thay, Part 1

[balancemod]

oh man best of luck out there dudes NAVIGATION Click here for the RNG thread! Ready or not, rested or not, it's time to get moving, Reclaimers. You've got a very, very long day ahead of you. And another one. And another one. And, you get the joke. Early Friday morning, with the Director there to see them off, the Reclaimers load up into the Bureau's transportation orbs for the sixth time since this whole ordeal began, and make their way to about a mile or two outside of Thay. It's important to try to stick to the story, at least — that you're all visitors from a faraway school, here to spend some time with the students and faculty of Boarbumps. As much as Lucretia would have liked to join you, she can't. None of the other leading members of the Bureau of Balance can. Whoever enters Thay, after all, is entering a bubble, after all. A time trap. Nobody will be able to leave until the Relic, the Lamp of Undoing, is either retrieved or destroyed. Someone needs to be able to continue if you all can't. 1. SEVEN O'CLOCK ALREADY As we noted in the OOC post, prompts on this log will be a quick few sentences of specific things happening during each hour. It's expected that Reclaimers will be seeing all of these events multiple times! So feel free to play with them as you see fit. If you're not sure if something you want to do would warrant a roll, please ask us in the RNG thread. ○ The Reclaimers have arrived in Thay, much to the curiosity of the highly intelligent, occasionally highly ... suspicious ... residents. Nevertheless, they recognize you as visiting, esteemed students, and, though perhaps still suspicious, welcome you into their fold. Also, as a note: Every time the relic is used, time is reset to this moment. ○ Boarbumps Academy for the Magically Inclined opens its doors to the Reclaimers. This is your first opening to explore the school — afternoon classes begin in an hour. ○ Rainer Arunsun, The Regent of Thay and Highest of the Hermetic Order of Red Wizards, can be seen watching the new arrivals by the entrance to the Red Keep. It's difficult to discern any emotion on her face. Shortly before 1 p.m., she retreats back inside. ○ Afternoon classes at Boarbumps begin, starting with a lecture on the magical circuits of the common toad. If you happen to sit in on this one, as a visitor from another school, you may be asked to assist in the dissection. You will be heckled by the rest of the class as deemed fit. ○ Erinne and Adriel can be seen within the hallways of Boarbumps arguing in a very heated manner. Some... less than choice words are exchanged between the two before one, or both of them take their wands out and begin throwing magic missiles at each other. No one knows why the fight starts, but the two have had bad blood before, and this isn't the first quarrel to happen at Boarbumps between them. A staff member arrives on the scene and is accidentally paralyzed by a misfire. ○ The town proper, surrounding the Red Keep, is open for a farmer's market. A bountiful harvest of goods are on display, but in particular, Thay is known for its amazing quality of medicinal herbs and magical reagants, many of which are rare without travel to the area. The merchants typically shoo students off, unless they have a hall pass provided to them by the faculty to retrieve something of import for class. ○ The second afternoon class at Boarbumps begins. Are you three or four time loops in and in desperate need of a nap? This class, The History of Boarbumps, is for you. You will be treated to a long and droning lecture about how the students attending during Boarbumps' very first semester banded together to stop a particularly plucky troll. Which you'd think would be an interesting tale. It is not. ○ Someone's enchanted several books at the library to begin rattling and shaking from the shelves themselves. All over the racks, spines pop out from their homes and fall to the ground, magically lift up and return to some other, non-Dewey decimal approved locale. Other books begin dancing — yes, you've read this correctly — dancing on the tables. Leon would be going into cardiac arrest at the moment, but it looks like someone's playing a prank in here. Again. This librarian looks far less tilted by this. It must be a somewhat normal afternoon for her. ○ Over in the center of town, music, a single violin playing a mournful tune, begins to play. It's unclear where exactly it's coming from. ○ The third and final afternoon class at Boarbumps — Fighting with Fire — begins. The professor, known to be slightly more unorthodox in her teaching methods, will recruit any Reclaimer who happens to be there to defend themselves from the students' incoming fireball spells. The potency of the fireballs themselves range from the tickle of a candle, to that one time you ate a ghost pepper, to one particularly fiery spell that might actually hurt you. ○ There's a scream in the girls' bathroom on the 3rd floor of Boarbumps. Anyone who enters realizes, very quickly, that no one is actually in there. Apparently, this particular lavatory is haunted. ○ Szass Astrosz dips class to go visit the local shrines within the town of Thay. He's been known to skip class before, so his departure from the halls of Boarbumps is rather nondescript. He spends time there praying quietly to his god. ○ There's a slight catastrophe over in the Town Square. That is to say, a giant spider seems to have escaped from Boarbumps and is terrorizing the vendors, to everyone's surprise. Subdue or dispatch it, it's up to you. ○ There's a scheduled council meeting to take place within the Red Keep, a usual weekly affair where Rainer, Casariel, Onerion, Gromph, and the rest meet to discuss matters of the town. Today's is canceled, as Gromph is called out to take care of the arachnid chaos currently convening around the Town Square. ○ Someone places a standing mirror around the corner of Boarbumps. If you happen to stand in front of it, it doesn't show your reflection — rather, it shows the person that you desire most. The mirror is gone by 5 p.m. ○ Cleanup of whatever damage the spider did is underway. In the meantime, the faculty of Boarbumps and the Hermetic Order of Red Wizards invite the Reclaimers to a small dinner in one of the public meeting rooms at the Red Keep. Every member of the Red Wizards are present, aside from Onerion Wyvernspur and Brian Darling. ○ The shops around the town of Thay begin to close for the evening. People are somewhere between annoyed and blase — the spider escaping was new enough, but weird Magic Things are, as you can imagine, pretty commonplace. ○ Over at The Sleepy Willow, cozy, fluffy pillows are arranged on the floor around a large fireplace. The owners will also serve you dinner, if you decide to skip the meal at The Red Keep. This may be one of the only peaceful moments you have to study everything that you've learned thus far. ○ No matter where you are in Thay, you'll feel the ground rumble underneath your feet. The residents largely pass it off as an earthquake, but will note that they have become much more frequent lately. ○ Towards the latter half of the hour, the rumbling within the school grounds causes several of the animal cages used in Onerion's Wondrous Beasts class to come unfastened as they begin to escape. Shortly thereafter, various beasts of all shapes and sizes are set free and begin running for freedom. None of them seem intent on hurting students, but they look to make an exit out of town in the quickest way possible. ○ Droves of the skeletal undead that are used around town seem to freeze in place, no longer retaining their animation. Whatever they're holding currently falls to the floor. Whatever task they're working on comes to a halt. No one understands why that is, but even the best necromancers around town can't seem to wake them back up. ○ With a sudden loud roar, the ground of the town square suddenly begins to split. People, shops, and everything else begin to drop into the chasm, despite the Red Wizards, and everyone else's, attempts to save them. ○ In the last split second you remember, if you happen to look down in the chasm, you'll notice a pair of bright, glowing eyes. Whatever exactly is down there begins to claw its way to the surface. ○ And then, just as suddenly, your vision turns white, and you're briefly overtaken by dizziness. When the haze clears, you are standing at the entrance to Thay. The sun hangs directly overhead in the sky. You have returned to 12 p.m. 2. OOC: A SPECIAL SHOUTOUT You are welcome to keep track of how your character experiences these time loops as much or as little as you're comfortable with — we'll also be tracking what you all are doing! Our Minato player Kel came up with some extremely snazzy coding if you would like to track how each loop plays out for your character more closely. Thank you, Kel! Of course, this is completely optional. Keep up with as much as you'd like, have fun as you see fit, and we hope you enjoy this mission! blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[royalresearch]

No, I can't say I have. They are not something that exists in my world.

[Maybe in the future. As medicine gets better.]

It does seem rather strange to use a brush on teeth. Is there oils or such to keep your teeth from being damaged?

[conciliant]

[2B lifts one of her many toothbrushes and runs her fingers along the bristles. Even through her gloves, she can tell that it's rough, and not something she'd want to rub along the insides of her mouth. She's starting to learn very quickly that being human comes with a lot of strange inconveniences.]

There might be...?

[Pod 042 has the answer to that!]

Toothpaste is a paste or gel used with a toothbrush to clean and maintain the aesthetics and health of teeth. It is an abrasive that aids in removing plaque and food from the teeth, and delivers active ingredients, most commonly fluoride, to help prevent decay and disease.

[That's... a lot of information, and words that she doesn't know.]

So, we need to find toothpaste...

sorry for the delay ;;;;

[royalresearch]

[Oh! Zelda was finding herself liking this strange little metal creature floating about more and more. It was really helpful.]

Do you suppose we could ask the person you received these brushes from where they might be?

[That seems like the easiest route.]

[conciliant]

Yeah, I suppose we could.

[2B glances around the crowded marketplace, mapping out on her visor the exact destination she had purchased the toothbrushes with Monika not long ago. After beckoning to Zelda, she begins to make her way through, ignoring the lingering looks she gets along the way. She's grown used to them since arriving... people seem much more interested in her visor than anything. And as they arrive, the Merchant peers up again, this time staring a lot less than she did the first time.]

Excuse me, [she begins in a curt tone.]

We're looking for toothpaste. [The woman behind the stall looks to Zelda with a questioning look.]

"For your toothbrushes, I'm guessing?"

[royalresearch]

[Zelda follows, not finding the visor odd at all. People wore what they wore, and she's seen much stranger back in Hyrule.

She nods as the stall owner.]

Yes. Would you happen to have some for sale, or know where we may acquire some?

[conciliant]

"Yes, I've got some right here. Plenty of flavours to pick from."

[2B's attention is drawn to where the vendor motions with a hand to the variety of tubes of toothpaste she offers. She reads the labels out loud.]

Peppermint, spearmint, fresh mint, orange, bubblegum, citrus, and banana.

[This is a bit overwhelming. She turns to Zelda.]

Which one would you like? We could each pick one.

[royalresearch]

[Most of these have been heard of, though Zelda now has to choose between three she knows well.

Or go for a wild card.]

I do not know what this bubblegum is, so I would like that one.

[conciliant]

[Bubblegum... an interesting choice. She's heard of it before but has never tasted it and while she is curious about it, she'll have to choose a different one. Variety is important!

2B takes a few seconds to consider her options carefully, as if this is an important life decision. She lets out several thoughtful hums, not quite realizing she's doing it, before she picks up a tube.]

I'll take the fresh mint.

[It sounds pleasant.

And after paying and accepting another odd look from the merchant, 2B leads Zelda away from the booth with their new items in hand.]

... Do you want to try them?

[royalresearch]

Mint is a rather good choice. It cleanses the palate.

[Or so Zelda remembers. Tea was a good thing to make it into as well, but to brush your teeth with it... It at least would be refreshing.

She follows 2B and nods.]

I believe we should, just to see how effective this toothbrush and paste will be. If anything, I will discover what this bubblegum flavor might be.

[conciliant]

[2B uncaps her tube and squeezes, watching as the first glob of it pokes out from the top. She's not... entirely sure what to do with it. Do they put it on the toothbrush and then use it that way? No, that seems inconvenient. Do they use their hands? Or do they...]

Hmm.

[She brings the toothpaste to her mouth and spreads it across her front teeth, nose wrinkling at the sudden cool taste of mint. It's not a bad taste, but the texture is what makes the rest of her face contort in disgust, and as much as she hates it, she has to power through it.]

They have to use this every day!?

[royalresearch]

[Just seeing 2B's expression makes Zelda hesitant to try. She decides to put a little bit of the bright pink paste on the brush. Not as bold as 2B here.

She makes an attempt to brush her teeth, looking confused after just a few strokes.]

I do not know how this is pleasant. This "bubblegum" does not taste pleasing in the least.

[conciliant]

[2B watches Zelda, observing the much smarter way she spreads it across the toothbrush and brushes her teeth with it. That would make the most sense... This. This right here is why she is never gung-ho about things. It's always better to be careful. You never know what could be waiting for you on the other side!

She tries to speak again through the thick froth forming in her mouth.]

Are we shupposhed to—

[With that, she begins to motion with the brush, rubbing the bristles against her teeth. This shit's sending alarm bells through her pain receptors!!!

Pod, sensing her distress, interrupts the two women.]

Proposal: Unit 2B should practice more careful strokes. Aggressive brushing is known to irritate the gums.

moving really threw my tag game off

[royalresearch]

[The white froth makes Zelda step back in alarm, especially when it it accompanied with frantic brushing.]

Please! Do not hurt yourself!

[And why is her mouth frothing???]