❪ event ❫ khalo? can you hear me?

[natha]

In normal circumstances, this would have been near the time in which you're called upon to greet the newly awakened. Unfortunately, I speak to you to inform that we must postpone that — there is trouble on your horizon. What, I cannot see for sure. We shall continue to monitor the situation, however — we - ... we — [feed cuts off.] OLYMPIAN PRESERVATION     The city of Olympia is preparing the send-off of its most prized artifact: the heart of the ancient dragon, Ysverai. In doing this, they've transformed the palace court into an exhibition detailing the centuries-old war between Wyver and Olympia. Sculptures of Nithor the Exalted and his men and women in clean, white marble, while their armors are polished in perfect gold. Among Nithor are the sculptures of stallions in all shapes and sizes that also aided in the great war. Further in the exhibition, one may also find other artifacts of much older weaponry, rusted by its time in the earth, and items found from a time when humans feared the dragons. The Royal Guard has increased its numbers in wake of such a public event, particularly because the heart will be in display also. The heart is not what one might expect it to be: about the size of an average human, the heart's core is surrounded in stone, a red glow emitting from its still beating core. If that were not unsettling enough, one might also find that lingering around this particular exhibit will have undue affects on one's inhibitions. You'll notice your heart has fallen into sync with the organ, and your more selfish desires will come forth. Things that have long been buried will rise up and place you in a state of unease, encouraging paranoia about your companions intentions. Allow it to fester, and one will carry this feeling with them long after you've left the scene. It's probably a good thing this is leaving Olympia — perhaps it's a source of so much conflict you've endured. It's easy to become mesmerized by all the historical artifacts that are present in Olympia's exhibition. Some even seem mystical or, like Ysverai’s heart, to hold unspeakable powers. Others are just a little eerie. Either way, Olympia prides itself in its generosity and their grand displays, and so refugees are urged to learn more about their artifacts by spending the night in Palace Court. Though, someone should probably mention that there are rumors of strange, almost occult things happening around these relics at night. People speak of armored soldiers casting shadows that have the ability to walk on their own, or gemstones that catch the moonlight in a certain way and show you visions. But those are just silly ghost stories, right? TALL TALES OF KHALO VILLAGE     Because of Khalo's proximity to Wyver, it's no surprise that they would catch wind of the peace talks between Wyver and Olympia. In response, for the first time in centuries, Khalo Village has willingly granted passage to outsiders — but visitors will immediately find out that one cannot just simply walk into the village. Visitors will need to inhale the smoke of a fyrra herb in order to enter the premises without falling into slumber. Khalo is notably different than what refugees are used to. Visitors, specifically refugees, will find that they are exceedingly accommodating. The Khali are very intrigued by the outsiders, thus they're treated with much respect and given instant access to some of the best lounges and fyrra the village has to offer. In exchange, the village is interested in hearing about your journey thus far. Whether it be through a conversation with another individual or the Khali themselves, they'll very likely to have been eavesdropping and recording the tales of their exploits. Why, exactly? Perhaps it will not be immediately clear, but if you happened upon a venasou, a tamed Khali creature, it may have guided you to their Enchanted Library. Upon entering the library, visitors will notice that it is quite the happening place — but not because it's occupied by the Khali, but because there seems to be an assembly of magical quills seemingly writing on their own. The quills are mostly undisturbed by the intrusion and will not stop writing even if parchment is taken from it; it will simply produce another piece of paper and continue its tales. If you happen to read the parchment, you may notice that there is a daunting similarity between your story and the ones being written here. Tales of Thesa birthing new races and sending them from the sky, for example, are very popular in Khalo Village. They mark July 15th as the day in which the Moon Goddess, Thesa, created more people in her image and brought them to El Nysa as saviors. The coincidences don't end there: specifics about your home world might be found in the writings if you search deeply enough — but it's not without its exaggerations. These stories are given all sorts of poetic and literary forms, from short stories to limericks, biographies to something similar to haiku. If asked, the Khali will inform visitors that the enchanted library has access to vague parts of your memories, and thus it is duty-bound to record. The Khali have not seen stories as strange as the ones being made by refugees, which is largely why they are interested in them. NOTE: This is entirely optional! You may make up your own "stories" (fanfiction) and it could be as accurate or inaccurate, or as serious or silly as you'd like. While tales of the Thesa's descendants are still being written, visitors of the Enchanted Library might find intrigue in the more complete works — KING AND KIN. If one is willing to delve deep, they may also find parts of Wyver's past that have been removed from their own archives. These pages will recount the tales of Shanrian and Rasyc. Though a lot of the narrative seems to divide at certain points in the story, it becomes obvious with some quick reading that Rasyc is not only the son of Shanrian, but that he glorifies the Wyver of old, more bloodthirsty and brutal than it is today. Unlike his father, he does not take kindly to Olympia and the threat they will always pose for their people. He has not forgotten Olympia's past sins and he believes that, in his foolish quest for peace, the king has gone soft and no longer possesses the real will to fight. His present voice in affairs of state is not a loud one, as he chooses to speak in whispers and move in the dead of silence. In these quiet murmurings, he boasts of his unwavering belief in the power and dignity of his people. Of how they should all return to what they once were — the kingdom, its citizens, and naturally the father who he had once admired greatly. Though perhaps it can be argued that any estranged son would wish the same. It's difficult to pinpoint what becomes political and what is and always will be more personal for him. But, it hardly matters. It's clear that Rasyc will stop at nothing to achieve his objectives, even if it means never returning to place he calls home. Even if it means turning his back on his own father, Shanrian, King of Wyver... DRAGONFIRE. While tales of the Thesa's descendants are still being written, visitors to the Enchanted Library might find intrigue in the more complete works. In particular, tales of Ysverai, the last of Wyver's great high dragons. Ysverai is most commonly known for being slain by Olympia’s past king and legendary hero, Nithor, but here in Khalo he is depicted in another light. Ysverai is known to the Khali people as a wise being, old as the first inhabitants that walked El Nysa. The creature spoke in the common tongue to the early settlers, guiding them to refuge when his kin began to dominate the land at the cost of its own isolation. It ultimately becomes a tale of sacrifice, for its stand with Nithor became a testament against the Olympian Empire's long reaching influence. At the bottom, there is a quotation: Your hearts will fill with greed and malice the moment my own stops beating. Take care in the Eye of the Storm. Find strength in one another, before it is too late. It seems to end there. Refugees are naturally allowed to question the natives. However, keep in mind that many of their replies will seem more like speculation than fact. But maybe that can be fun too? If you have no interest in the library and the tales they've woven, feel free to explore any of the other areas of interest. Khalo Village is thrilled to be open for you all. THOSE THAT SEEK PEACE, AND THOSE THAT SEEK --     The morning of the 20th is marked by fairly dismal weather. The sky is overcast and a downpour seems imminent. Regardless of the poor forecast, those who signed up to assist in this mission will be required to come early in order to receive their briefing. Members of Group A: ▸ Jon Snow (song_of_ice) ▸ Daenerys Targaryen (dorzalta) ▸ Loras Tyrell (triplerose) ▸ Terra (earthy) ▸ Alisaie Leveilleur (adelphoi) ▸ Solider: 76 (personalwar) ▸ Ardyn Izunia (daemonized) ▸ Mai(maipokerface) ▸ Olivier Armstrong (wallsofbriggs) ▸ Atsushi Nakajima (gekkajuu) Members of Group B: ▸ Kale (kaleorbekaled) ▸ Diana Prince (wondie) ▸ Pheonix Wright (objectionattourney) ▸ Revolver Ocelot (shashka) ▸ Frederick (pebblestone) ▸ John Sheppard (impavid ▸ Ianto Jones (torchwoodteaboy) ▸ Lena Oxton (quevarly) ▸ Allura (quintessent) Due to the rain, members of Group A will have to immediately stop by the checkpoint at the East Watchtower. Additionally, the Royal Guard and Knightryders are well-prepared with extra cloaks for those who may require it. They also will provide basic refreshments such as water and bread. People are encouraged to take what they need prior to their departure on this mission. The checkpoints are a bit far between, after all. Members of the envoy will also be encouraged to utilize this time to become familiar with one another. Maybe some introductions are in order? You never know who will end up having your back... For both groups, the paths will be relatively straightforward with evenly spaced checkpoints along the way. The only issue seems to be the downpour, really. The rain is unforgiving and the roads easily become unstable and increasingly difficult for the carriage to be drawn through. Hence, there may be more than one occasion where you will be expected to lend a hand in prying out its wheels from a particularly pesky (and muddy) pothole. Or perhaps you will be called upon by a fellow guard to assist in getting a particularly stubborn creature out of the path ahead of you. Seems like it may be a longer journey than you expected. Dirtier, too. While weathering the conditions may have been a bit tiring, this journey isn't too bad, right? Well, maybe not. GROUP A. Once the carriage gets through the worst of the terrain and finally manages to depart from the watchtower, it won't be long until the group is met with a physical roadblock. A large tree trunk will be set down the center of the road, acting as a blockade. But, before the group can react or begin crafting a plan around this obstruction, the carriage will be attacked without warning. At first, it's unclear where the attack comes from or from whom, but you don't have the leisure to deliberate this. You hear one of your fellow guards mention something about bandits frequenting these parts, but maybe there's more to it? Either way, your task is clear: protect the artifact, Nithor's skull, and fight the bandits off. You'll be encouraged to try and capture them so that they may later be turned and questioned by the authorities. GROUP B. With clear motives to restock and collect a few more materials for the carriage, it's evident that the envoy will appear restless to arrive at the second checkpoint. However, despite their unspoken delight at seeing the South Outpost from a distance, it's clear something has gone awry. There will be several hooded figures awaiting them right where the mud path meets the cobblestone of the Outpost's road. Soon, several more of these figures will come to flank them from both sides. While they seem like bandits, at least from their physical appearance, there is something far more polished in their movements. They will be attacking the envoy in concise, practiced formations. For those who are more perceptive, it becomes obvious that they are moving around and acting as decoy to one central figure. This member is likely the "leader" of their group, but no matter how one may try to close the distance between themselves and this mysterious leader, someone will constantly get in the way of that. The fighting also seems to act as a distraction since by the time everything is cleared up... only two things are missing. The leader of this group of bandits and more importantly — Ysverai's heart. NOTE: Those RNG'd to thread out the capture and questioning of the bandits will have starters below. For everyone else that signed up, you will still have the opportunity to capture the assailants even though they were not selected to thread the interrogation; you are free to make up your NPCs with the same basic guideline: they will not reveal their motive or their organization. You may turn them in to authorities (Wyver or Olympia or otherwise) or find creative ways to get rid of them. FINAL OOC NOTE     To reiterate: you may use this log as a general mingle for everything from the May Outline, including all Khalo Village activities. In other words, your top-levels don't necessarily have to be related to the prompts written here. An AC-eligible thread in which your character participates in anything mentioned in the May Outline and/or Khalo Village location page may be submitted for 2 REP POINT FOR EITHER OLYMPIA OR WYVER. SUBMIT THE THREAD FOR OLYMPIA OR WYVER HERE OR HERE RESPECTIVELY BY June 10th 11:59 PM EST. For those who participated in this month's plot-related portion, to receive IC recognition for it, a summary of the thread must be submitted HERE by June 8th 11:59 PM EST. Please direct all queries to the question thread below. Thank you, and have fun! QUICK NAV premise ● faq ● lore ● map ● npcs ● bestiary taken ● atp/emp ● application ● rep/acp ● quest bulletin calendar ● hiatus/drops ● modbox [ FULL NAVIGATION ] elnysa nysalogs nysaisles nysaooc elnyan

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Asseylum Vers Allusia | OTA

[versianvirtue]

1. Enchanted Library — Of King and Kin:
Her venasou has become something of a companion for her to speak her thoughts aloud to.

"Rasyc... I don't ever recall him being present at the coalition."

She remembers Shanrian, but never his son. While her understanding of Wyver's contrast with civil, orderly Olympia is young, it's tough not to garner an impression of Wyver as a somewhat barbaric culture lurking somewhere south in the jungles. It's not like she has ever stepped foot in the country, save for the holographic presentation at Thesa Station, so her opinion gets colored by Olympia. Her heart rattles in her throat.

Asseylum's uneasiness draws her face to match her feelings. She may have left her old conflicts behind, but now that this is her reality, she has stakes in what happens between Wyver, Olympia, and all the other surrounding territories. She may be a princess no longer, but the burden of responsibility still settles over her shoulders. It's not a personal responsibility, not one coupled with the guilt of her actions, but the kind that urges her to do what she can as a citizen of Olympia who does not wish for anyone to be caught up in the throes of another bloody war that may have been preventable.

If King Shanrian's son is truly like this, then... ...Asseylum readjusts herself on the mossy cushion of the cozy-looking reading corner in Khalo's library, picking through her thoughts like a reluctant child and string beans.

2. MYCOSCOPIC MANIA:
She's not sure how it happened, but the fungal forest has ballooned in proportions, and all the dainty little shrooms that used to be just the size of her fingers are now big enough to be signposts.

It's disorienting and alarming, to say the least, and it doesn't help that she's been fyrrtwenty the entire time. If you find her, you her a tiny, pipsqueak voice beeping at you from the understory. Look down, and there's a minibarbie waving her hands to get your attention. H-Her voice is so small, you might have to bend down just to make out what she's even saying...

"Excuse me! You up there! I'm sorry, but my situation is getting dire!"

3. OVER THE MOON:
A flight potion?

When she heard of this from one of the local guides, the ignition on her determination went off. She clamored up the vines, lodging leaves and twigs and sap in her hair as she scaled the tangles and nearly fell off a few times. But she made it, and she reaped her reward.

Now that she's triumphant, she's also airborne, and soaring on a high in every sense of the phrase. Flying is every bit as fun as she had imagined, just like zero gravity, but there's so much to explore. She will float past you, elated, pausing midair before you on her swooping journey across Khalo to greet you on her way, laughter permeating her voice.

"Hello!"

4. SLEEPING BEAUTY:

Uh-oh... She's fallen asleep in the middle of... of... gosh, who knows. Whatever must have happened, she has a pipe still in her hand, or lying somewhere near it. Looks like the princess needs a bit of a pick-me-up. Or a wake-me-up, but most likely, she could use a bit of both. (Can be combined with 'mycoscopic', and she can be asleep in just about any spot you can dream up.) Hopefully it's not somewhere dangerous, embarrassing, or inconvenient...

wildcard
Hey! Hit me up @ wingything or paingel#4140 on discord if you want to hash out something entirely different! You can also heckle me into tagging YOUR top-level prompts if that's what you'd prefer. Also, I know I wrote in prose, but feel free to go comment-bracket style if that whirls your girl instead.

Smol Sleepy Hime...!

[steponme]

[There's a very... very very smol human drifting down the murky water of the swamp atop an equally small leaf. How did this happen?? We just don't know. Maybe she's just so light that the leaf she decided to use as a temporary bed got carried away by the wind. But regardless, having had something very similar happen to him earlier, there's no way Shell is going to just let some fish or bird make a snack of her.]

[It takes a bit of wading through the water to reach her (covering his pants in algae in the process, a tragedy) but when he does, he carefully scoops up the leaf. Is she really just asleep? Or...]

Hey, are you all right? Can you hear me?

[versianvirtue]

[Shell makes great sacrifices in order to save another person's life. His lower half may be part swamp monster, but the other half is pure angel.

She stirs with a stretch, uttering squeaky sounds from her throat as she does so. Her eyes blink open, but they're hazy and bound by the spell of sleep still. Her eyelids grow too heavy and fall shut. She dozes off with a smile.]

Mmmm...

[Well, that was an... attempt... at replying to someone she's only dimly aware of. She curls up on her leaf.]

[steponme]

[...she's not sleeping because of the spell around the village, is she? Hm... in that case, he'll just have to bring her there. That's the only way he was able to return to normal, after all. And hopefully carrying her there means it won't matter if she wasn't able to smoke any fyrra.]

[And so begins the journey back! But every so often he calls to her again, to see if she might wake up yet. He'd try and shake her shoulder or something, but-- but she's so tiny!! He doesn't want to hurt her!!]

[versianvirtue]

[All this noise and the jostling of her new crypiremobile is enough to bring her to short bouts of wakefulness. Most of the time, they're nothing significant and amount to as much as a stir and a soft murmur. But once, she reins enough in to be more cognizant of her situations.]

Who...?

[She gazes up at Shell's face, drowsiness dimming her eyes. She blinks and blinks, trying to keep herself from slipping away again.]

[steponme]

--oh! You finally woke up!

[Hopefully she doesn't startle at the size of the giant carrying her in his hands. He'll try and smile to appear friendly, but gee, those are some mighty big fangs he has. Especially when she's so smol in comparison.]

My name is Shell. I found you sleeping and floating down the swamp on a leaf. Does... any of that sound familiar to you?

[versianvirtue]

[She's grown used to Reign's fangs, but my, what big teeth Shell has when she's only a few inches tall...! And, let's face it: she's half-asleep and woozy. She shakes out of her bleariness, gasps, and screams, holding her arms out as though it would protect her.]

Stay away!!

[Hey, look at the bright side! It definitely perked her up! ...Did she even hear a word he said?]

[steponme]

[Well, he can't exactly stay away when he's the one holding her... He can try holding her a little further away?? But he's too worried about dropping her or having her tumble out of his hands to hold her out too far.]

I-I'm sorry! I'm not going to hurt you! It's okay!

[Ooh, he should be careful. If he lets himself get too distracted, he might just step I the same mushroom that made her tiny in the first place.]

[versianvirtue]

[And then they would both be tiny and lost! Or maybe you'll find a mushroom that makes you even bigger? Perish the thought.

Asseylum snaps to it when she hears his reassurance, which is a lot less terrifying than giant fangs to a freshly-woken young lady. She blinks, rubbing her eyes, which feel dangerously heavy. All of her feels heavy, laden with the compulsion of slumber.]

I can't... stop sleeping...

[This is such a frustrating battle! She joggles her head and smacks both of her cheeks with her palms to combat the urge to go under again.]

[steponme]

[His shoulders relax as she does, glad he won't have to deal with a frightened and screaming human the whole way back. He's had enough experience dealing with people being afraid of him back home.]

It's probably the sleep spell surrounding the village. It should get easier to stay awake the closer we get, but you should make sure to smoke some fyrra before you try and leave again.

[Come to think of it, didn't she have a little pipe with her? Did she just not know how to use it?]

Houston we have a problem

[terrantrash]

The longer Slaine spends in the fae-esque village and its surroundings the more he regrets ever having decided to come here with Asseylum in the first place. It hadn't taken long for her to wander away from him and ever since then the two of them had been separated. Needless to say he's been searching for her tirelessly, only to happen upon her now, sky high. Maybe that's why he hadn't been able to spot her. He hadn't been looking up.

"P-Princess Asseylum?!"

He's not sure how she's flying, but it's as if someone decided to turn off gravity just for her. He can feel his stomach drop at the same time a wave of relief hits him. She looks pretty windswept (and kind of a mess in general) but at least there's a smile on her face?

[versianvirtue]

"Slaine! There you are!"

While Mr. Troyard over here worked himself into a veritable tizzy worrying about what his princess had gotten her bad(?) self into, she remained free of care and eager to explore. She spared a contemplation here and there for his whereabouts, but the effects of fyrra drained most of her worries away. Her focus had meandered dozens of times since she last lost sight of him. But now that he's here, she's pretty happy about that.

She hovers before him now, face-to-face, smiling with joyful abandon. A playfulness strikes her eyes, as though ready to betray a secret. "Look at this!" She floats just a little higher off the ground, gesturing with her arms spread out. "I found a way to fly!"

[terrantrash]

"So it seems you have."

She might've given him quite the scare, but the delight on her face has his anxieties melting away almost instantly. Sure, he's still a bit jittery and tense, but how could he frown at the sight of her enjoying herself so fully?

"It's like you've been sprinkled with fairy dust."

Is Tinkerbell responsible for this?

[versianvirtue]

She might be. It's a real fairyland out here, and everyone's high as a kite. Asseylum sure is, and now she gets to be in more than just one respect. '

"Almost! Come here!" She takes his wrist and pulls him gently enough to communicate her wishes for him to accompany her. "There is a flight potion, but you must climb up the vines in order to reach the shops that sell it!"

[terrantrash]

"Climb the vines?"

Wait what, really? She'd climbed all the way up there? How did she manage that? Slaine casts a glance toward her hand on his wrist, unable to pull away. Just what was he going to do?

"Do you know how long the effects last for, princess?"

[versianvirtue]

"Oh..." Her face falls. "That might have been good to know."

Silence as she considers. Then, she smiles anew, closing in to wrap her free arm around the underside of both of his, as though she intends to dance with him like a lead to a follow, or maybe... lift him up??

"I am sure I will know when it starts to run out. We can always ask the shopkeep about it when we get there." She makes an attempt to remove him from the soil, but it's a lot harder in practice than it was in theory...

[terrantrash]

Is she...trying to lift him?

She's definitely trying to lift him. Oh god.

"P-Princess Asseylum I'm pretty heavy! You shouldn't-"

Okay so he's not really that heavy, all things considered, but still. It probably won't end well...

[versianvirtue]

"This way is no good," she decides. You're not stopping her, Slaine, because she's determined to bestow upon you the gift of flight. She backs off, and instead opts to scoop him up from the backs of his knees instead of his wrist. She meets with better success, but her arms tremble...

"There...! Heehee, Slaine... I can pick you up!" she crows on a voice strained by effort.

[terrantrash]

Immediately he feels himself leaning forward as soon enough he finds himself being forced up into the air, his legs in a death trap. On instinct he's got his arms around her neck, face red with embarrassment. This is dangerous! She really shouldn't be doing this!

"P-Princess! You're going to hurt your back!"

2 - Hime Barbie

[doomedtheworld]

Vin can feel the effects of the fyrrha herb tugging at her through the entire trip through the forest, and she doesn't like it. On the surface it feels relaxing enough but here in the middle of unfamiliar territory she's not particularly interested in feeling anything but tense and she doesn't appreciate the drug trying to lull her into restfulness and dull her alertness.

As such, she's been making the walk with periodic flares of both pewter and tin. The first to fortify her body against the herb and the second to clear her head with a rush of input from her senses. It's in the middle of one of those flares of tin that she picks up a very tiny voice from somewhere down below. Coming to a stop, she looks down at her feet and....

Stares.

Blinks slowly once. Twice.

Frowning she raises a hand to her eyes and waves it back and forth once. Her frown deepens and she glances back over her shoulder in the direction she came from.

"I am never touching fyrra again."

!!! :D

[versianvirtue]

It's not the fyrra this time, swear! She is actually tiny enough to marry Ken!

"Vin!" squeaks the mousey voice below, augmented by Asseylum's megaphone hands. "I don't know what happened, but I'm very small!"

While overjoyed to find a familiar face in such dire straits, a touch of guilt creeps in. It almost seems as though Vin has done nothing but rescue her since they met. That doesn't stop her from needing her help more than last time, though, and she isn't in a position to refuse it.

"Could you please, um... pick me up?"

[doomedtheworld]

Won't that be a joyful occasion.

For now, the voice calling to her again catches her attention and she likes back down. Wait, this isn't actually a hallucination? There's actually things in these woods to watch out for or she can end up tiny?

This place is the worst.

"You don't have to yell so loudly. I can hear you." Still, there's a little hesitance at Asseylum's request. Just like that, pick her up? Well, there aren't really any alternatives she supposes. If it's any reassurance, though, Vin considers the last "rescue" repaid by letting her take shelter in her tent. So, with no other options in place, Vin crouches down and slowly sets a hand on the ground next to the miniaturized princess. "Um... climb on?"

What else should she say?

[versianvirtue]

Nothing else really needs to be said; Asseylum scrambles onto her palm and waits in the dip of it, preparing herself for the inevitable liftoff.

"Thank you so much," she says, the same desperation clouding her tone, but with a lining of relief. "Whatever has happened, I don't know how to fix it, but at the very least, I don't want to be lost in a giant mushroom forest anymore! It's frightening."

sleeping beauty!

[reinhardtzar]

[ he certainly does not expect to have found...a young girl sleeping along the pathway leading up to the city. ah. must be the fyrra, he thinks.

reinhardtzar crouches down. a large hand grips her shoulder, shaking her gently. ]

Wake up, kid.

[versianvirtue]

[ Consciousness seeps into the cracks of her dreams and breaks them apart. She lifts her heavy eyelids, a fuzzy darkness greeting her as the sleeping spell lulls her back into slumber. ]

Mmm...

[ She has enough consciousness to garner the understanding that she should not bow to the sway of sleep again, but it proves more difficult than her body wills. Her eyes fall shut again, but her expression no longer conveys much peace. Um... Try again? ]