( mini-plot post: open to all )

[jawdacity]

Who: jawdacity & all of cerealia!
When: towards the end of the event (so this won't conflict with any event threads you may already have going). 2-3pm.
Where: Abandoned village + surrounding jungle
What: THERE ARE EXPLOSIONS. And mushrooms.
Rating/Warning: Possible NSFW for gore?

Details about this mini-plot HERE

"World of Loudening Screams" (Watch on YouTube)

(theme song of this post, courtesy of moribound.)



[ it's another muggy, meandering day in the jungle; nothing seems to be out of the ordinary. ]

IN THE VILLAGE

[ if your character is near the center of the village, they'll bear witness to the curious sight of a herd of shuffling mushroom beasts. in terms of threat level, to the experienced hunter they may have ranked low on the scale: slow, lacking an external fang or claw, they seem to be interested only in their endless march forward.

but, if your character is close enough, they may catch sight of a red-haired young man, a manifesto of anger written across his face. one breathless moment, the calm before the storm, and then he hurls a metallic pair of gloves at the closest beast, the gloves trailing arcs of flame.

what may strike your character first is the searing heat, the thrum of the earth below their feet. the whole village is demolished in a moment, the dying cries of the beasts rising above the din. the explosion lasts much longer than it should, the line of mushrooms going up one after another.

if you're too close, you might be torn in two. you might lose a limb, or two, or three. you might go deaf, you might lose your sight. you might lose all your eyelashes, your clothes. maybe the bag of mushrooms you'd collected for dinner is now little more than ash.

keep running. the smoke trails into the air. someone is screaming. the smell of charred meat follows you even after you disappear into the jungle. ]

IN THE SURROUNDING JUNGLE

[ if your character is close enough to the village, they'll feel the blasts, one after the other. the jungle is on fire, quickly spreading. maybe you'll hear the screaming, too; maybe your lungs will fill with smoke. maybe you'll run into one of the last mushroom beasts, fleeing from the explosion only to trigger a lesser one in the depths of the jungle.

it came from the village, didn't it? maybe someone you love was swept up in the explosion.

if you manage to escape the stampede of terrified jungle beasts (some of which may stop to crunch you up as a quick meal as they dash away from the blast), maybe you can venture closer to see what's happened.

or maybe you should get as far away as possible. ]

Comments

[yasusada]

A joke? Huh? I thought you were serious! Does that mean you don't want to see my troop? [ He laughs just a little as he smiles at her, taking a step forward towards the fire. Whatever could have made this had to be fierce but.. whatever could it have been? ] I'm glad, I want to be of some use. Besides, I'll make sure that nothing wrong happens.

[ He couldn't be stopped if she tries, there's something about an Okita Souji sword that just doesn't give up easily. ] ... Huh? That.. thing? [ Following her gaze towards his vessel, there's a frown on his features. ] My vessel? I assure you.. [ The sword is his real body, or he could be misunderstanding her words. ] I'm very useful.

[ Though he waits for her to start moving so he can follow. ]

[journaler]

[ . . . She definitely missed something here, and she really doesn't know what he means by vessel. She likes his determination though, so she sort of awkwardly goes with it, deciding that maybe she'll see for herself what he's capable of. He seems to be confident, and she has to trust in that. ]

Okay . . . then I'm counting on you.

My name's Leia.

[ Should he ever decide to introduce her to his troop--well, there he has it. ]

[yasusada]

[ Yamato doesn't get that she doesn't understand so maybe one day he'll be able to tell her in full what his being is about. Perhaps she hasn't met that many swords in her life but for now, he'll try his best to be the first and teach her all about his people! For now, he's happy that he can be counted on which can be seen by his shocked expression to a sheepish grin. ]

I'm glad to be able to help. [ With her name, he does have to ask. ] Leia.. Huh? Do you have a last name, normally I say full names to be polite! [ Though the name is rather pretty but they should be focusing on important matters. ] Should we get water to try and calm the fire?

[ Looks like someone is meeting a troop in the near future. ]

[journaler]

Yes! [ Leia blurts the answer out almost immediately. Water is definitely a priority, though without the proper artes, she has no idea how they're going to stand a chance against this much fire. ] And . . . uh, yes.

Sorry, it's Rolando... Leia Rolando. I didn't mean to be rude.

[yasusada]

Huh? You weren't rude! It's just a habit of mine. [ With her name in his mind, he decides to turn around in look for something that he could use to carry water to the flames. ]

Do you see anything we could use? [ Would a few monsters be willing to help them out? It doesn't seem impossible but they've been wary of all these new people from the start. With another look at the fire, he tries to squint in order to take any notice of someone calling for help or stuck there, but he doesn't hear anything so maybe putting out the flames before they engulf more is a good idea. ]

[journaler]

[ She looks around too as they go. It isn't exactly pleasant, with the smoke getting worse instead of better as they close in, but she does the best she can. Nothing useful, not even any monsters. ]

Not yet . . .

[ She does hear running water, though. Is there a river nearby?

Her search grows more desperate. ]

If we don't do something, everything will burn.

[yasusada]

[ Perhaps the monsters are too scared of the fire that they've caused or was it even them? Either way, the uchigatana looks around in hopes that something may speak to them but what he finds is nothing but one of those despicable small faeries from before. The one who follow the happiest people and probably places them through stress.

What's odd about it is that he's wings are wet so it can't fly that far into the air but that gives something of a hint. Trying to grab the female's attention. ]

Hey.. do you see that? Do you think we should follow it.

[ It's probably bad to leave a fire here raging but they do need to find water quickly. The small faerie flutters it's wings just a bit as if to dry but it does seem to be happy with where it's about to go. ]

Hm?

[journaler]

Oh, no . . .

[ Leia recognizes the faerie, being as happy and optimistic as she is. She forgot about them for the time being, but now one is just barely floating there in front of her. It's . . . different, this time. It's sad and lonely-looking.

So she takes back her words. ]

It's acting weird. [ There's a pause as she considers this, but then she'll answer the question. ] . . . Yeah. Let's find out where it wants to go.

[yasusada]

[ Why are these creatures in pain? This is their forest which is understandable but Yamato gives a nod as he begins to follow the faerie along with her, wondering why it's so wet and why it isn't bothering people like normal.

Its wings shake violently as if to get the water off, seems to be trying it's best so that it can put out a small fire but its body doesn't carry that much. It's only a matter of minutes until both Leia and Yamato stumble upon a small pond filled with water, a few of the monsters trying to outdo the fire but others seem violent of the territory.

Luckily for them, Yamato finds a mushroom cap, flipping it over and wondering if they can carry water in it. ]

Huh.. Do you think we can use that? [ Most likely but how will they get past the few monsters to the pond? ]

[journaler]

[ The pond doesn't look too impressive; but it's private, hidden away, so she can see why these creatures have made it their home of sorts in between feeding off everyone's positive energy. Of course, she can also understand why some of them are angry about the intrusion . . .

She gives them some distance, glancing over at the mushroom cap when she's prompted. ]

It's a little small, but it's better than nothing . . .

[ A far more optimistic answer than the truth allows; but still, she finds herself wondering if there's another one. ]

Is this what it wanted us to find? Some of them don't seem too happy.

[yasusada]

They don't seem too happy but I doubt they'd want us to go near them.. but we have to get to the pond if they want us to do anything. Huh, I guess it would be alright.

[ Maybe it's best to keep in mind that this could all just be a trap for them, the various creatures around could gang up and try to kill them. As for the faeries, they could have a hidden agenda considering the fact Yamato severed heads from their bodies and then went as far as to cutting off their fingers. It was only because they threatened him, tried to bite at him so he calls that protecting himself.

With the mushroom cap in hand as he passes it to Leia, he places a hand on the hilt of his sword as he looks to the female. ]

Did you want to get the water while I use a weapon, we can never be too safe, right?

[journaler]

[ . . . Mmm. Leia's fallen and almost fallen into traps plenty. At least this time she feels mentally prepared; so she takes the mushroom cap. ]

I'll try.

You'll cover me, right?

[ At least, that's what she took it to mean. "Get in the water while I use a weapon." ]