Field Mission 7: The Queen of Hearts, Part 1

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Once upon a time... NAVIGATION Click here for the RNG thread! 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... The Queen of Hearts. 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. Have a burning question you want answered? Do you wish for a quick peek into the void, to light a match into the unknown? Giving out free samples now! Just message me ;) [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. ○ 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. If only the rules made sense! Each path to the next wicket is more treacherous than the last — you may find yourself quite literally navigating the ball over a bottomless pit, or bumping it up stairs that threaten to send the ball right back, careening toward your face. There is also the Stone Golem guarding the final wicket to contend with. It's a bit strange, actually. It's almost as if this match of the Queen of Hearts' imagining would prefer that the two of you worked together, rather than against each other. ○ 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. And then, you wander into an empty room, that quite literally transforms before your eyes. It's the place you call home. Or ... is it? This is most certainly not your bedroom back in whatever corner of Fanelia you hail from. In fact, you don't think you've ever set foot in there before — it might be a bedroom with views into outer space itself. It might be a place from another world entirely, one that you definitely don't recognize. But as time passes, and as you stand there, your sense of longing grows stronger. You should probably get out of there, before the guards find you. ○ The Queen of Hearts, in a recent twist (not unusual for her), has a keen interest in the relationships her subjects have with one another, whether it's romantic or platonic. And she'd like to see to it that the people of Fanelia are able to find those important people in their lives. Enter: THE FANELIA FRIENDSHIP (OR SOMETHING MORE?) EXTRAVAGANZA Yeah, it's pretty much a dating show, for both the amusement of onlookers and for your benefit! Or friendship show, as it were. Sign up, answer a brief survey, and showrunners will pair you with a fellow crystal-bearer/Reclaimer that they think you may be compatible with. Let the dating begin! You may: - Slay a monster together - Take a nice long walk around the capital city together - Be given a series of embarrassing questions to ask each other - Cook a meal together - The list goes on Is the right person, or your new best friend, waiting for you in plain sight? Sign up and find out! 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

Comments

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[eastofeden]

[ Michael's current shape may be innocuous enough, and yet, Aziraphale's eyes are wide and frightened, growing wider still at the sight of the hearts on the stranger's wrist. He's never met anyone else with those same hearts on their wrist - not to his knowledge, anyway. Most of the time, he tries to keep the hearts hidden. In the end, they're just one more thing to set him apart, one more reason for his stepfamily to hate him. But his sleeve had come rucked up a bit as he did the family's shopping, and now -

He swallows, shaking his head and casting his eyes away. ]

I - I've always had it, sir. Since I was a child.

[eudaimonikos]

[Oh man, he loves people like this! So frightened, after nothing more than being acknowledged in the streets! He leans in, looming over the shorter man in apparent interest.

...also the information is interesting too he guesses]

And it's grown with you?

[eastofeden]

I...I suppose it must have.

[ He shuffles back as Michael looms closer, trying valiantly to keep the same amount of space between them. ]

[eudaimonikos]

How fascinating.

[Nope, Michael's just gonna close that space. But he's smiling, see. So it's...fine???

And of course, he's not addressing the implication that his own crystals didn't grow with him, for whatever reason.]

And what brings you here?

[eastofeden]

[ He doesn't like that smile. Aziraphale backs up a bit more, swallowing hard. ]

Just visiting the market, sir.

[ He holds up his basket of freshly bought meats and bread, as if for proof. ]

[eudaimonikos]

Oh. Nothing to do with those, then?

[Gesturing at the crystals again, also casually continuing to not really let Aziraphale gain any significant distance.]

I've noticed a few other people with them around. Very strange thing.

[eastofeden]

[ He glances at the crystals in confusion, then shakes his head, tugging his sleeve nervously down to hide the hearts again.

And keeps backing up, until he backs up right into a wall. Oh. ]

Is it? I hadn't noticed it at all.

[ He glances left, and then right. ]

I...I really should be getting back. My stepfather will be expecting me.

[eudaimonikos]

Your stepfather?

[He makes the word sound faintly mocking. Oh, by all means, this grown man had better not disappoint his ~stepfather~]

Sure. Go ahead. [He does not move back, or aside.]

[eastofeden]

[ Aziraphale smiles nervously, and nods. He waits, and when Michael does not step back, he clears his throat. ]

If you could just...

[ And he makes a shooing gesture with his hands, to indicate Michael should back away. ]

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael raises both eyebrows innocently, and takes maybe half a step back.]

Yes?

[eastofeden]

[ Oh, he's going to be like this. With great personal effort, Aziraphale takes a deep breath, squares his shoulders, and looks the other man right in the eye. ]

Please let me through.

[eudaimonikos]

Who's stopping you?

[He waves an arm in a show of mock magnanimity. There's like...technically room to get away.]

[eastofeden]

[ You are, Aziraphale thinks grimly, but of course he can't say that.

He smiles tightly instead, and nods. Then, bracing himself, he shuffles forward, briefly regretting all those stolen morsels from the kitchen, the foods he'd rescued from his stepfather's nearly untouched plate, and the soft round belly that had resulted.

There is, technically, room to get away, but his body brushes unpleasantly against Michael's as he does, and he looks up at him awkwardly. ]

...Pardon me.

[eudaimonikos]

[He grins down at Aziraphale, almost mockingly paternal, as he shifts just barely enough to let the shorter man past. This isn't even strictly fear, at this point; this is just him loving to cause problems.]

Have a nice day.