❪ 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

[valcurie]

( Yes, even he gets a pat on the forearm. Because, upset and confrontational as she became with him last time, that was then and this is now. She's a professional. Still, her tone is a bit clipped, as she shakes her head and nearly rolls her eyes at his suggestion. Without disguising a tsk in her throat, she says with a gesture to the cot: )

Niemand hat Zeit für Märtyrer. ( Intentionally, she doesn't want this to be understood. Maybe he'll recognise that, her habit to sass people sometimes, when they are trying her patience and they know it. ) Don't be like that. It will be a waste of time.

( And, hey, maybe she does bristle a bit at the unintended{?} suggestion that she can't suck up her own personal grievances long enough to handle something so simple as taking blood. When she comes over to him, she sets down the contents of the donation packet, taking some of the sanitisation swabs in hand. She'll wait for him to remove whatever he needs to and roll up his sleeves. )

Are you going to keep your face hidden?

[beatupgrass]

I don't know why you'd put anything in a bladder, but I'll take your word for it. [Breathing through his mouth seems to be working for the most part except for the part where it makes him seem like he has a mild sinus infection- on a furry creature that tends to veer towards the pathetic.

He will in no way draw attention to it, however. It's plan time.] See, if you stick it under your arm -[he gestures]- and when someone stabs into the tube, you just-

[He's interrupted mid-explanation as a woman who looks like the Bride of Tough Olympian Volunteer approaches them. She gives them both scrutinizing looks as if she has already decided they are Trouble. Why she could think that is anyone's guess. "Is there a problem?"]

[cajolery]

[ She looks scandalized by his statement, rushing over to scold him with her baby still in tow. ]

Mikazuki! You cannot simply call this poor child a ham straight to its very face!

[ You'll give it self-esteem problems!!! She starts to lean down, forgetting she's already holding this baby—stops, repositions the baby so that its tucked against her chest—and then crouches down so that she can look Mika's baby in the eye and tell it that its beautiful.

Literally... ]

Empty his words from your mind, little one! You are a very [ beautiful? handsome? she really can't tell if this or any baby is male or female ] lovely babe indeed.

[ Does she realize that babies can't speak words yet. Maybe it doesn't matter, since the baby just keeps burbling happily. ]

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket is utterly relieved that the bar isn't some fancy place- not because he's underdressed for it, because he stays underdressed, but because he doesn't want attention drawn to him here. Sure, it's inevitable word will get out, but if he keeps pretending like he can avoid it, then all will be well.

He still enters the bar with wary trepidation, but that's just the attitude he gives off whenever he walks in anywhere. People have a tendency to gawk, even if there's tons of nonhumans around. None quite so short or fuzzy or clearly augmented though.

But everyone is too drunk or mildly exhausted from giving blood, so they pay him no mind, and he allows himself to relax a little.]

It's got that nice musky bar smell. I didn't expect that from this side of the city.

[adelphoi]

[ alisaie is not an affectionate girl, and she never has been. even when she was young, she always felt as if she had something to prove, some need to be strong, to stand tall and independent and shirk all the things that are commonly associated with little girls. of the two of them, alphinaud was the one who sought laps and hugs as toddlers, and it was a status quo that remained fixed as they grew.

she's opened up, surely. and with certain people she has offered affection, rarely, when the moment suited it, but still she is not like to touch without provocation.

now, though - deeply asleep as she is it's so easy to sink right into it, to press into that body heat as the air gets cooler and cooler, to lean toward that familiar scent like a vine drawn toward the sun. her dreams are mild and quiet, fuzzy-edged things with little meaning, and it's a very, very restful sleep.

it's nearly fully dark by the time she begins to stir, shifting beside him, her grip on his shirt tightening a little, her head nestled comfortably against his shoulder. it's quiet, save for the sound of droning evening insects, but she's still drowsy, a low sound rolling in her throat, her eyelids still heavy. she'll open them soon enough.. ]

[valcurie]

( Laughing, again. Not because he's a talking raccoon, but because she finds his frank and brash bluntness rather amusing. She can't help but suspect a lot of it is bluster, perhaps because people do not treat him with basic dignity. That is a rather sad thought, of course, but he doesn't seem like someone who needs, or wants, her sympathy.

And, if he sees her book, at least her penmanship is about as good as his. Her drawings are excellent and precise and crisp, but she is a doctor in an era when basically nothing is analogue anymore. )

Ah, did Evras do something? He struck me as a rather scholarly sort. Maybe the only native scientific mind.

[planetary_bonds]

[He smiles wryly, somewhat amused.]

I suppose people seem to think the small talking animal has no use for money.

[planetary_bonds]

[By the time Aoi sprays the cinjaws, Yusei has the jacket securely in place around his face while he pulls on his gloves. Whatever. Time for work.]

Mmn. At least you have that right.

[Back to work. Nothing else to discuss, at least.]

[nineteenfortyfive]

Didn't get to the end?

[His arm prepped, she gives him a warning before the needle comes along.]

Small pinch.

[Barely a thing to be felt when done right.]

[chaoticlootral]

[ Taako looks over at illusion-Taako, who has finally shut up and is now just standing around holding ducks. Is the radiant form of himself not impressive enough. Some people. He leaves fake Taako hanging around in case they need him for something later (hawking ducks, possibly]

Anything? [ He takes a look around the street to judge how much room he has to expand here, then stares deeply into the illusory face of the magic-Taako double, thinking what he might look really cool as.]

Okay, got it. Ala-quack-zam!

[ Jesus that's a bad one-liner. In a puff of glittery smoke (for effect) Taako-the-elf disappears, and in his place is now a duck. It's wearing a tiny wizard's hat. It quacks, smugly.]

[melodiouspacifist]

[Blues songs with an electric guitar riff, and some weird experimental stuff.]

Oh, that's a good point. I didn't even think of that.

[His eyes widen a little. What would they do with it? Was his blood even normal? What if they came after him? That would be a lot of hassle.]

They didn't mention screening, no.

[laveers]

[ Some people need a little convincing about the ducks. ]

[ Asha starts, looking down at the duck sharply, then slowly curious. She makes a little "huh" sound, and reaches for the wizard's hat on the duck's head, wanting a closer look. ]

Any creature?

[chaoticlootral]

It's like no one here has heard of a simple thing called finesse. I can see why they picked me to unfreeze, honestly. A little effort goes a long way with, uh, whipping up baked goods, you know? This is slapdash. Next time just take the milk and butter and liberate them before they end up this way.

[ Taako seems to finally emerge from his baking-judgment zone, tilting his head and squinting a little at Yusei. ]

Anyway, have we met? You look familiar? With the hair.

[ . . . Yeah, sorry about that Yusei.]

[punshots]

[ Slowly, slowly but surely, wakefulness presses against his consciousness. It's not something he gives into willingly, because he was having such a nice rest just then. Rest that hadn't come with the frantic dreams he usually had, and parting with that peacefulness to face reality again is not so easy.

But he has to wake up eventually, even if it does seem to be nighttime now. So much for a quick snooze. Just how long had he been out? What had he even been doing before he slept here? As awareness filters back to his senses, he hears her stir, feels her fingers tightening on his shirt, synapses still connecting. That's right...he'd fallen asleep under a tree while he was supposed to be working. Whoops. And Alisaie had been -

...Alisaie had been...right next to him.

With a sudden apprehension flooding his every corner, Prompto's eyes snap open, confirming what his dull subconscious had been sending him snippets of while he slept. That warmth and familiarity and comfort. Alisaie. Alisaie sleeping pressed against him and holding onto him. And he's holding onto her.

Please hold. ]

[chaoticlootral]

[It quacks its disapproval of hat touching and waddles out of the way. A wizard's hat is sacred. Or maybe Taako's just weird about it.

He can't actually answer, because he's. Y'know. A duck that can't talk, but it does a short of duck-like shrug, hoping to indicate wordlessly: Well, there are limits based on my current level, but I've also stretched those limits in canon so it's hard to say, really? For reasonable non-god-moding productive roleplaying, probably nothing too wildly destructive or hugely powerful like a Godzilla, but certainly some entertaining enough people and things.

That probably won't come across at all, so Taako gives up. And is also tired of being a duck for more than a minute because he has to waddle places and it's very undignified, so he transforms back - brushing duck feathers off of his clothes.]

Most creatures.

[punshots]

[ If Olympians love puns, then they're his kind of people, and he's going to do very well here. Bolstered by their laughter (and bless this shark costume for somewhat masking how flustered girls even laughing at his bad jokes makes him), he keeps a good fin going. ]

Smiley Sal might just throw in a crab or two just for the halibut!

[ This is actually not true. He knows of no such deal. But it was too good of an opportunity to pass up, you know? ]

[tricksune]

[ Stop bodyshaming him?? He can't be picky about human pillows, especially since Yusuke is being generous enough not to slap him awake.

Not out of any altruism, though. Instead... Yusuke's expression brightens, suddenly delighted—what fortune! Circumstance smiles upon him!! The last time he tried this, the slumbering party had woken up immediately, but now is his moment, his chance, his golden ticket opportunity.

And so, he takes out a pen and immediately sets to work, drawing on Chuuya's face. ]

[punshots]

[ Slowly, comprehension dawns on him, though he's still nonplussed through her explanation. So she wants him to take pictures of her to...promote stuff? Okay, but does that really make any more sense than the fashion-critic-tour-guide option?

He's still trying to suss all of this out, bear with him. His brow remains pinched as he crosses his arms, head listing to one side. ]

So...let me get this straight. You want us to form some kind of...business venture together? [ There is a first time for everything, apparently! ] But I-I'm not even that good! And I definitely haven't done any, you know, legit studio stuff.

[ He takes pictures because it's his passion. Honestly, even if he wasn't aggravatingly modest about his skill level, he hadn't thought about turning it into an actual career opportunity. At least, not here. ]

[chaoticlootral]

[ Taako gives him a bit of an odd look at the mouth-breathing. Is he dying. Has he thrown his lot in with a dying rabid furry guy. He won't say anything though, because pointing it out might be the straw that busts the camel's bladder on his new friend's rabies-meltdown. Maybe the raccoon guy is just a harmless weirdo, and we all have our faults (except Taako himself, who is perfect).

He's nodding along to the plan happily enough when they're interrupted - and he has a brief moment of moral crisis. He could cast Blink or Invisibility and just boogie the fuck out of here, leaving his new friend to his fate and also not having to share any potential Blood profits, but he could also maybe not be a dick to someone he's just met for once. He accepts his involvement in these shenanigans fully and his Lying engine kicks gear faster than you can say "bluff roll."]

Me and my associate, um, Justin [ Rocket is a raccoon. A fake name is probably not gonna help conceal his identity. ] needed to visit your establishment's potty. The whizz room.

[She doesn't seem to quite be buying it yet, so he barrels on.] He's my emotional support animal. I'm pee-shy. There's a whole community of us, you know? Blending into this new community, having to find new bathrooms, it's just been [voice cracking] really difficult!

[ Looking to Rocket for a bluff assist here. Really sell this idiotic piss-take. ]

his opinion doesn't matter here

[punshots]

[ His features are pinched, crinkled in obvious alarm - but also in thought. There had been more immediate concerns when Noct had disappeared into the Crystal than exactly how Ardyn had been able to just walk away from what should have been a serious gunshot wound. It's not exactly a cherished memory he's talked at length about with Noct or Gladio, but...there had been something eerily familiar about the way Ardyn had healed - if that was even the right word for it - from that affliction. It almost reminds him of daemons.

(Why is he always the last person to find out about these things???)

His air of alarm growing, Prompto pointedly does not give Ardyn his arm, tightening both of them over his chest, because hey, you know what sounds like a bad idea? Letting someone who influenced the guy who made you for the express purpose of being daemonized get at your blood. Especially if he has some kind of daemon powers. ]

A-and what if I don't? What will you do then, huh?

[ This is a supremely mature and appropriate response right now, let him live. ]

[theycalledmeacurse]

[ Despite having been there once before, Rogue still checks the exits when she enters the bar. It's a habit from the old days, making sure she knows how to get out of a place if things go badly. Back at home, her hair and her ever-present gloves had outed her as someone unusual, and it was easy for people to jump to the conclusion of Mutant. Here, at least, she can bare her skin and not cause harm to others, which helps a little with the effort to blend in. But those old habits still die hard. ]

It is nice, isn't it. I found it the other day and thought I'd stop in again while I'm in these parts.

[ There's something comforting about the bar, something that reminds her a bit of Home in a way that doesn't hurt. Good memories only, not yet tainted by the bad. She hopes it stays that way -- it would be nice to have a haven in this strange new land. Scoping out the available tables, she gestures to a booth in the back, where they wouldn't be quite so on display. ]

How about back there?

birds & the bees, sepht edition

[juniberries]

[this feels like the sort of thing Coran would have enjoyed. according to her father, and based on Coran's own tales of his adventures traveling the galaxies with the paladins of old, he always had a huge fascination with the native creatures of whatever planet they were visiting.

Allura, meanwhile, while also finding these creatures rather cute, is still unsure whether helping them to mate is the ideal job for her. her hair is tied back, and she's dutifully wearing the mask over her mouth to avoid getting any of the spray on her, but upon taking a pause to survey the land, to find the best location to spray the aphrodisiac, one of the otherwise shy creatures lands on her head, and Allura freezes in place, gasping slightly.]

Keith! Look!

[she says it in a hushed, excited voice because honestly, the sephts are adorable, but the bright blue creature doesn't hesitate for a tick, wrapping its grubby hands around Allura's tiara, and before the Princess can react, it snatches it clear off her head, and begins to take off.]

knife time

[coolerjunpei]

[Fact: Junpei is really goddamn afraid of needles. The fact that he's in this blood bank volunteer area is a miracle in and of itself, but it's all for the money. He needs a good 200 silver for a few minutes of bleeding, it sounds great on paper, but he's not immediately seen to the second he walks in and so he's left to get more and more nervous by the minute while he waits.

Watching the other volunteers get their blood taken, even painlessly and with a nice glass of alien orange juice afterward, doesn't ease his nerves at all. In fact, by the time someone approaches him, he's all but hugging himself to protect his precious veins and tells at least two different volunteers that he's already had his blood taken and he's just waiting for a friend. It works those first two times... and then this little guy pulls out a knife?]

Whoa, wait— holy shit, no way. Not a chance! Not with that!

[Can he hug himself any tighter? It's time to find out.]

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket's eyes swivel up to him with the kind of incredulity you can't really expect out of most animals, but it at least distracts him from his impression of a mouth-breathing rabid animal. The smell will hit him again pretty soon and then he's probably definitely going to need the aforementioned whizz-room, but not for whizzing.

He's staring long enough that it takes him a second to pick up the beat his new pointy-eared entrepreneur buddy is laying down, which does great for the lie, probably.] Yeah... It's really bad. I gotta coach him through it. You don't want all the details.

[The woman looks between them, but apparently people being suspicious in a Blood Bank is not high on her list of things she feels like dealing with today. She points in a direction. "It's that way, and be quick about it. We don't have enough room for you to be loitering around if you're not here to donate or volunteer."

Rocket shoves himself bodily against Taako's leg to get him moving, just in case she decides that nonconsensual bloodletting is the way to go.] Right, right. We're going.

cake time

[coolerjunpei]

[Junpei looks a mess himself - haggard, tired, a little rumpled around the edges, but not because he's been out in the wild trying to help the animals. No, it's because he had his blood taken... and it was very stressful. He's loitering around town now, probably waiting for Snake or someone who needs a hand with something, when Yusei turns up with more cake than people typically walk around with.

He actually leans around Yusei to see the house behind him instead of answering his question, raising an eyebrow.]

Did you rob a bakery?