❪ mini-event ❫ OLYMPIA QUESTS: 1

[natha]

It isn’t easy starting life in a new place. It quickly becomes apparent that you are in dire need of two very important things: money and a good name. In addition to full-time jobs, certain people in Olympia will reward handsomely for helping them with tasks. Submit any AC eligible thread of participating in this log's prompts for One (1) Olympia REP point HERE. Threads involving your flora/fauna submission may also be submitted, even if your submission is not made official game canon. FOR THE RECORD     It’s time to put on your hiking shoes. Characters will be approached by both Evras and Lysa at separate times. Both individuals are interested in recording species of plants and animals-- El Nysa is bursting with all sorts of life, after all! It is impossible to chronicle all of it without help. You will be provided with a journal to chronicle your findings. Each submission pays 100 silver. OOC: We need YOUR help in worldbuilding the area in and around Olympia and The Outlook! Create a creature or plant and submit it HERE by August 31st at 11:59 PM EST. ONE entry per character only. NOTE: If you have accepted a job at The Sanctuary or Simwe Institute, you MUST submit your entry to your boss to maintain your position. You may assume a character got the job if they established contact, even if an official offer hasn't been extended yet. Although an entry will net you TWO (2) Olympia REP points no matter what, we will be choosing a maximum of 20 entries to include in the official bestiary for future encounters. THE BIRDS AND THE BEES     Along with the request to record traits of a certain specimen, Evras and Lysa independently ask for more quick favors. Certain species, due to their unique natures, aren’t as prone to procreating as one would hope. They need your help. The directions for these requests, provided by Evras or Lysa, are simple. You will be provided a small amount of heavy aphrodisiacs (and a mask) to spray in a particular region. Because the natural aphrodisiacs of the island run a bit thin there, the wildlife has been less... willing to comply. Each species you help will net you 50 silver. Three species in particular are in need of a little help. Note: There will be a mask provided. Forgetting it may mean you start to feel some of the effects yourself. You may also be immune. Please put appropriate warnings in threads if applicable. Xlarix, also commonly referred to as the love bug. Found in MURKWELL HOLLOW. They have an ability to release literal positive energy, making those exposed to it more willing to be friendly and jovial with another. Even the most heated rivals can easily become the closest companions. You may even be tempted to temporarily abandon the request and do something fun with your new best friend. Unfortunately, while many have desired to use its effects in diplomacy, its effects only last a few minutes at best. Despite their powers to assist others in bridging emotional gaps, they are vicious insects. During mating, they engage in battle, normally losing the lives of both parties before their spawn is even properly produced. This is why they need a little help. Try to break up the fights as much as you can. For the Xlarix, being in each other's presence for long enough will eventually get them to calm down and continue the process. You may get unlucky in the process and end up with an extremely painful sting that requires healing, however. The pain increases with time, and if you allow it to go untreated for more than a day, it will be excruciating, enough that it may be debilitating, for 12 hours before eventually healing on its own. Sepht, found in EDRATHE RUINS: Both shy and antisocial, it’s no wonder these little marsupials don’t have much luck in the mating department. They prefer to live in isolation, and are much more concerned with hoarding everything they can get their hands on. This includes stealing anything you may have brought with you. As a warning, they are incredibly strong. They can also fly, so good luck catching them after they’ve made off with your stuff. Let’s hope you can get back that magical sword or enchanted necklace of yours. Once you have sprayed the chemical in their habitat, do not stick around the area. Despite being more suggestible to mate now, they are shy to the core, and will not come out of hiding until they are sure the coast is clear. Cinjaw, found JUST OUTSIDE OLYMPIA. Domestic animals kept by local farmers in the outskirts of Olympia. These guys are just really, really lazy. Too lazy to care about things like passing on their genes. Honestly, if it weren’t for the efforts of humans and the fact that their meat is too delicious for the Olympians to allow these creatures to go extinct, they would have been wiped out years ago. Stay too long near the herd, and you will begin to feel extremely lethargic yourself. Nothing sounds better than using the person next to you as a pillow for your nap, or dropping everything you’re doing to go sleep in that hay. Hopefully someone finds you and is kind enough to wake you up. After spraying the aphrodisiac, you won’t want to stick around. They are loud: loud enough to damage hearing without proper ear protection (Now you know why those farmers walk around with ear plugs). HELP A NEIGHBOR     Being new is tough in any given neighborhood. This is especially the case when you’re a newly arrived refugee. Though you’ve been welcomed here, you haven’t established a lot of trust in the community. Your neighbors don’t know a single thing about you, and that name tag fiasco doesn’t count. Fortunately for all of you, the rule of this game is simple. There is no monetary payment, but isn't it priceless to feel good about being a good samaritan? Make yourself helpful. Did you neighbor mention wanting to take their pet chicken out on a walk? Offer to do it for them and they may pay you back in a meal or a small gift. Did one of them mention needing help with rearranging their collection of thousands of cat figurines? Well, who better than to ask but you! You over there, why not help your fellow refugee by doing this task together? It never hurt to do some teamwork. Or maybe your roommate is the one taking that chicken out on a walk, and you’re just ready to judge. Complete judgment. But hey, that’s fair. BLOOD BANK     CW: Needles, Blood One of the things that quickly becomes apparent about life in Olympia is that all citizens are welcome, including those who may possess unique dietary requirements. The Blood Bank is an institution that has stood proudly for many years, and in addition to providing meals for some of its citizens, the supply is invaluable for care in The Sanctuary, research in Simwe Institute, and for use in certain types of magic. They're offering you a special today, for your blood in particular! You just look so... healthy and able-bodied. Donate a few pints, and you'll earn an easy 200 silver. Unfortunately, the center is so busy today that they've had to call on volunteers, and depending on who you've met so far, your particular volunteer may look familiar. It's... another refugee. Wait, are they even qualified?! How did they even get roped into this?! Qualified or not, the job pays well for both the refugees donating, and the ones drawing the blood (much more for whoever's donating, though. Fair is fair.). A blood drawing set inclusive of clean needles, antiseptic swabs and a blood storage kit, will be provided. Sticking a needle into a vein isn't as easy as those people in the Sanctuary make it seem, though. You may not always get it the first time, so try, try again! And if you still can't hit the bulls-eye? A rogue-looking Olympian "volunteer" approaches and hands you a knife. Apparently, cutting right into the vein and collecting the blood in a saucer also works; the staff would only need to sterilize the blood with a spell afterward. And about the gaping wound you'd cause? They always have healing potions on hand for when things go wrong (but just like the potions from before, they have been known to cause some nausea). You'll do anything to help your fellow Olympian, right? OOC     There are a total of 3 OLYMPIA REP POINTS possible to earn in this log. 2 from OOCly submitting a flora/fauna above in For the Record, and 1 for submitting any AC-length thread for any of these prompts. You may do one or the other, or both. Submit a flora/fauna HERE and submit an AC-eligible thread HERE by AUGUST 31st 11:59 PM EST. The results of The Birds and the Bees will be submitted to whoever you submit a flora/fauna entry to. If you do not submit a flora/fauna entry, submission to either one may be handwaved. In the event of CAPTCHA, we will be providing an overflow. In the event of a second CAPTCHA, players are advised to move threads to an overflow post on their character journals. These threads remain eligible for AC, AC Rewards, and REP. 1 SILVER = 1 US DOLLAR. QUICK NAV premise ● faq ● world ● map ● reputation ● npcs taken ● reserves ● application calendar ● hiatus/drops ● modbox [ FULL NAVIGATION ] elnysa nysalogs nysaisles nysaooc elnyan

Comments

I. aka - London bridge ( is falling down )

[cassus]

[ The image that Merlin strikes is truly memorable, yet for all of the wrong reasons. He's a ridiculous sight, his demeanor practically screaming 'patsy' to those who have apparently already read these signals loud and clear enough to take advantage with errands galore.

Funny how just a glimpse of Merlin stumbling along, burdened with the belongings of others, spins a yarn about who he is in a nutshell. It speaks of his insecurities, his struggles and the shiny bright bits of goodness beneath the whole of him that seems so ordinary. There's no surprise that this young man reminds Dazai of another boy with a similarly selfless heart. And it's this reason that Merlin holds his attention much longer than any half-second flicker of amusement.

While Merlin is a spectacle of disaster, sticking out like a sore thumb, Dazai blends into his surroundings. So even when Merlin passes by a mop of dark hair and a form leaned against the short wall in feigned sleep, mimicking the midday naps residents often take along the square, Dazai might as well be invisible.

But he's watching the boy who has somehow caught his eye. Which is fortunate, seeing as how the cobblestone wall beneath Merlin's feet has one fatal flaw - it ends rather abruptly. A few more steps leads to a sharp drop-off, where the crumbling old stone bleeds into thin air. ]

Careful, there...

[ Dazai casually sets one foot atop the cloak's dragging edge, intending to both coax it's temporary owner into halting while keeping him upright on the remaining few feet of wall. But it's entirely up to Merlin whether or not he takes that last fateful step or hesitates at the prompting of a curiously amicable man that hadn't been standing beside him before. ]

If you were trying to jump off a ledge, next time you might try something with a little more height.

[politrick]

[If Merlin could actually move himself in a dozen directions at once, he would. The way he moves before he hops up on that wall, somehow weaving this pile of junk through a crowd of people and not hitting anyone harder than a slight jostle, he's already practiced at doing too many things at once for too many people. The little ledge is a godsend if only because he can stop saying excuse me for a few minutes as he darts along, wobbling only a little despite what he's carrying and the narrower footspace.

So he's done this before. But he doesn't often have his cloak - well, not his cloak - stepped on, so with a jerk he stops short and shuffles back a step, given that he has no free hand to pull the fastener away from digging into his neck. Hello? What?]

If you tear it i'm going to have to fix it and I really, truly don't have time for that. [frazzled,] Who's jumping off anything?

[cassus]

[ As always, Dazai's hands have been nestled snugly in either pocket of his own lengthy bit of outerwear. But he'll make the agonizing effort to dislodge one, since the young man seems to need cluing in on where his feet were leading him. An accusing finger jabs itself towards the abrupt edge of Merlin's little wall. Or more specifically, the sharp three foot drop he was about to go over. ]

You are, if you're not careful.

[ Oh, that's right. The kid can barely see his own nose thanks to the numerous bundles obscuring the rest of the world from view. But removing several of the top-most from Merlin's makeshift tower might help. So Dazai doesn't so much as ask before taking the initiative to 'borrow' them for a moment. ]

See. what did I tell you? [ He makes the addendum as if Merlin's eyes need the added confirmation, declaring his innocence like a man with a penchant for lying about it. ] It was the honest truth.

[ And as if he'd innocently forgotten to do so before now, Dazai finally eases his foot off the article of clothing he wouldn't pay for, damaged or not. Amusing as Merlin's reactions might be, he doesn't care to press his luck and wind up with this determined young man chasing him through the streets, demanding remuneration Dazai doesn't presently have. ]

Thanks to me both you and your cloak are unscathed.

[politrick]

[His parcels... he needs those to do this not-job, Dazai. Give them back. Merlin watches him with an expression that's difficult to discern, mostly because he himself doesn't know what to make of the man. Something about his demeanor seems like a lot of affected laziness for just pointing out a wall and stepping on his- not his cloak. The cloak he shifts to tug straight, now that he has few enough parcels to balance precariously in one arm.]

I didn't doubt you. And it isn't my cloak.

[Here, look, he'll even be responsible enough to look where he's going as he steps back slightly and then off the wall, onto a crate that's been left there, then down to the ground. Hmm.]

I'm going to need those back, you know. If you don't mind.

[cassus]

Not your cloak, then.

[ And because Merlin is behaving as though Dazai has committed some heinous crime in waylaying the young man's schedule, he's going to retaliate. His revenge is swift, succinct and as childish as humanly possible. How, might you ask? He performs an elaborately flourished bow, all while still perched upon the wall's edge. It'd look graceful, if he wasn't poking fun at Merlin's stellar failure at socializing, while acting like a fool himself. The beauty of his exaggerated bow depreciates quickly as Dazai delivers a proclamation at the top of his lungs, willing every passerby to hear. And while it's supposedly a request for forgiveness, Dazai sounds like he's having the time of his life, theatrically belting out lines instead of suffering any remorse. ]

Please forgive me, My Liege! For this egregious error you have my sincerest apologies!

[ Merlin, good gracious. Are you okay? Honestly, if that stick wedges itself any higher you might cough it out. Smile a bit or even laugh at the ridiculous man who is trying to get you to loosen up. ]

Oh, these? [ Dazai gives a little blink as his 'stage act' comes screeching to a halt. He does his best to look innocent, as though he isn't presently pestering some busy fellow who just wants to get his errands done. ] Actually- I think I'll hold onto them!

[ The aforementioned bit of baggage gets tucked under his left arm before he steps off the ledge, landing neatly beside Merlin without much ado. ]

For everyone's sake. [ Because you're a walking disaster when you're overwhelmed, Merlin. ]

So, where are we off to? Going to get your- ah, I mean 'not your cloak' cleaned? [ P.S. You have acquired +1 friend. No returns accepted. ]

sorry for the delay...!!

[politrick]

[Oh - oh god, he's one of these. Merlin is taken aback when he starts performing, flouncing around like that like he's an actual jester and not just someone who gets made fun of a lot (which has never happened to Merlin, he swears). He really, genuinely, is speechless for a moment, giving Dazai all the opportunity he needs to keep going.

To his credit, though - he's confused more than he is annoyed, all of a sudden. Help? Give him his things back? Oh lord.]

That's- hang on! [Overwhelmed nothing, he immediately almost trips over himself in his haste to twist to the side and try to both grab that parcel and keep the rest of them balanced. Wobbling, wobbling—] We're making deliveries first!

[....] I'm making deliveries first! Not you. Give that back. Don't you have something of your own that needs doing?

[Famous last words.]

No worries! Merlin's a Good Kid and I'm enjoying his tags.

[cassus]

Yessir! Anything you say, Sir.

[ Well, if you want those bundles so bad Dazai has no qualms with simply - letting go, in order to parody one of those military salutes he's see performed so often on television. But only after Merlin has deemed it necessary to latch onto them. Hopefully the kid has some balance left in him, since the ground isn't the softest ( or cleanest ) place to sprawl out. ]

Why, this is what I need to be doing. Helping you, of course!

[ On the off chance Merlin does take a brilliant nose-dive Dazai will reach to catch hold of the back of his shirt. It'll be at just the right nanosecond, moments before his face gets a free mud treatment, which may not be made up entirely of just mud, thanks to the local flora and fauna.

The same can't be said for the tower of Merlin's goodies that are likely to end up earthbound, or worse, if he isn't apt at juggling. ]

Think of it as one good Samaritan helping another, who's helping the entire breathing populace of this place.

he's like a solid 6/10 Kid

[politrick]

My name is Merlin— [This he says as he does indeed make a generous lunge for the parcel as it drops, so his next words are jumbled in an indignant noise as he falls-but-doesn't, shirt grabbed, the works. This is embarrassing...

He's dropped several parcels. There they are, sadly sitting on the ground, because he's shit at juggling. Goddamn it.]

Well, I'm not helping anymore, am I...? Look what you've done.

[He's still kind of just. Hanging? Hmm.]

[cassus]

Merlynn~, huh?

[ Dazai purposefully makes it sound like the other man is a twenty something cocktail waitress called 'Barbie' or 'Candi', drawling out the syllables in hopes of a good reaction. ]

Well, I for one have been a tremendous help. Obviously.

[ A little jangle of his wrist, and therefore Merlin's shirt, suggests as much. He's rescued this boy how many times already?

Fear not, kiddo! Dazai's aware you can't show up to the houses of those generous folks who've doled out these errands looking like wallowing in a pigsty is a favorite past-time.

Eventually he'll help the young man into something of a more upright and standing position. Eventually. All that perilous dangling is too amusing to pass up foisting upon someone so haughty and easily flustered. ]

Better now?