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balance_logs2020-01-03 01:32 pm
balancemod) wrote in balance_logs2020-01-03 01:32 pm
Field Mission 7: The Queen of Hearts, Part 1
  The day is met the way all others begin: the sun rises from the eastern stretch of land facing the sea, as the citizens of Emberwharf awaken to a fish market brimming with life and splendor. The same sun is seen in Ok'talar, where its warchief watches, as is tradition for its leader to be meditating under the warmth of its warm embrace. The clans of the Highlands pick up where they left off just yesterday, squabbling over minor infractions of land, marriage, or deals that have fell through. And in the cold clutches of Orrenvia to the north, people are bundling up and preparing to visit the mines at the base of the Spine of the World. The general news throughout the Kingdom of Fanelia is that today is a day of celebration. It marks the 110th anniversary of the coronation of its ruler, the Queen of Hearts. While some people around the outskirts of the citadel proper consider this as a day of mourning, many are called forth to partake in festivities, dining, and the accompaniment of the finest musicians from the far-reaching town of Peppelfen. For the last 110 years, the Queen has kept order and, somehow, relative peace throughout the kingdom she rules. Although open defiance and protest is met with swift justice and sentencing, no one can overlook how crafty and careful she is. Her manipulations resonate throughout the annals of the history of Fanelia, present in every major brokered deal throughout its vast land mass and diverse population. Her benevolent guidance is felt by all... as is her tyranny. She is a monarch of paradoxes: obsessed with control, but only acting for the betterment of the realm's self-preservation. Every passionate declaration of "OFF WITH HIS HEAD!" had been necessary up to this point; who else can steer and guide this world into prosperity than she herself? The horizon in the far off distance swirls with its usual tumultuous temper. A dark cloud surrounds the continent where Fanelia is located, known to all as "The Expanse." Every year, the border closes a little bit more inward, narrowing the lands and threatening the civilizations that reside on the fringes. Its presence encroaches, and with it, a general looming sense of fear that one day only the capital city will be left standing, protected by a magical bubble of pure radiant light that allows only those permitted by decree to enter. But none of you can remember your life before this illusion took hold. As far as you're concerned, you've been here your entire life. You don't notice that this farce, this world created by the usage of a Grand Relic, has only existed for a year. One whole year has passed since magic was cut loose from Faerun's fabric, and no one is any wiser that it's been gone at all. You look down to your wrist, noticing the same three clouded, empty colored crystals that have always been there since the day you were born. Each one bears the shape of a heart, and it makes sense to you why Lucretia is known as... 1. THE COURT OF HEARTS A. ANOTHER MORNING, HOWEVER YOU SLICE IT Good morning! Where are you right now? Another day is creeping over the horizon, and your life as you know it is continuing down the path it always has. Wherever you are. However you're feeling. The crystals on your wrist, though you've managed to sort out at least one purpose for them by now, remain as dull and lifeless as they've always been. Maybe you've long since figured out that not everyone has them — and maybe today is the morning that you finally heed a call to figure out why. The harder you think about it, the more questions you seem to have. It's a wide world out there, and there are people you just might be dying to remember. Where will you go? Who will you run into? B. NETWORK Speaking of that one purpose you've stumbled upon: A series of messages that, if you choose to access them, dance across your mind as if they were your own thoughts. Over the years, the messages have ranged from confused — people on the other end wondering what this is, without really finding any answers — to just straight up sales pitches. One day, though, a message under the name of Avalon appears: Wandering fortune teller and adviser offering services. [ooc: If you'd like a randomized way for a memory to begin unraveling, feel free to hit up the RNG thread for a fortune! Note: A low roll doesn't necessarily mean a failure to nudge your character in the right direction, it will just dictate how cryptic and/or troll-y the fortune actually is. Or, feel free to come up with an unrelated fortune for a prompt.] C. AROUND THE CAPITAL One way or another, you may make your way to the capital city, the seat of the Court of Hearts. Whether you're here for answers, or whether you're here just to see the sights, here are a few ideas to get you started.
 D. EXPANDED WILDCARD As we mentioned in the OOC post, we highly encourage worldbuilding and creating your own scenarios to recover your character's lost memories! Outside of the capital city, the entire setting is yours to alter, and play in, as you see fit. Want to haunt the Enchanted Forest, or hunt wild boars? Want to follow your character's fairy tale story and have them work their way to leader of a clan, or of a settlement in Kingstown? Go for it! This is your story to write. If you have any questions, feel free to hit us up on the OOC post. blurb code by photosynthesis |
○ Chaotic croquet: Indeed, you will be discovering how the capital city plays the queen's favorite game. You and a fellow crystal-bearer/Reclaimer will near immediately be roped into a round and pitted against each other, with a rather stern reminder to follow the rules.
○ We mentioned earlier that the castle, should you wander past the common areas, gets a little ... strange. It's labyrinthine in nature, with staircases, doors and hallways that lead to no where, or straight into the ceiling. The neat line of roses planted along the hallways begin to wither the farther you walk — almost as if nobody dared getting lost just to water some plants.
iii
This is...
...a wretched coincidence.
If he doesn't recognize her, it's by design. One very short young woman in a thick dark hooded cloak at night looks like any very short young woman in a - yeah. And it's always inevitable. He's everywhere, after all, eventually. No use getting indignant about it. No use getting heartbroken about it. Whatever he's up to, it's going to happen.
Not much to do about it except try to pop him in the nose with a Mage Hand while the opportunity is there.]
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He also doesn't expect resistance - at least, not immediately. The Mage Hand catches him by surprise. His first instinct's not to dodge, but to reach for his shield. Usually he uses his blue flames as weapons, or at least to put some force behind his threats, but they can be protection too.
...this time, it doesn't work.
The hand strikes him a glancing blow, but it's the surprise that makes him stumble. He's done that before, hasn't he? Shielded himself? That's why he has that pin. It's not like anyone else has ever been there to watch his back. No one ever will. If he can't do it on his own...
Forget it. It doesn't matter. He's not even really hurt. Shaking off the surprise, he teleports around to the other side of his target so he can get a better look at her. Who's this alert magic-user he's messed with?]
Oh, it's you!
[He's not exactly happy to see her. They aren't friendly; things like him don't have friends. But this whole place has been interesting, and her presence is just another intriguing factor. He drops his illusion and teleports again, closer. He could walk, but humans seem to find it more unnerving when he blinks around. The fact that he isn't actively trying to scare her doesn't mean he's gonna just start being normal.]
It's been a while.
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She scoffs out a very juvenile-sounding uggh noise and squints, like she wants to close her eyes in disgust but also doesn't want to take her eyes off of him.]
I don't want to know. [...regarding why he's here in person, what he's up to, etc. She'll assume the usual and sleep a little more soundly tonight, plus or minus a few minutes thinking too hard about the whole wrist crystal business.]
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I do! What brings you here, Pandora?
[sorry did you not want him to loudly proclaim your identity on the street]
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Visiting family.
[nah man we are all bastards and must work to get our answers.]
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[Judging from his tone, he very much does not believe her, but he's willing to play along. This is all just how their usual games go!]
How fun. Where do they live?
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Tsk, come on. That was just sad.