❪ 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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[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!"

[versianvirtue]

"Really? It feels fine. You're not as heavy as I thought you would be."

She tests her mettle by floating just a little higher...

[terrantrash]

She's managed to lift him but who knows for how long her grasp on him will last? He's clinging to her now, shamelessly, thankful she can't see how embarrassed he is but also internally screaming at how bad of an idea everything happening is.

"You really don't have to do this, Princess..."

[versianvirtue]

He doesn't have to worry, because she has her eyes on the treetops. The exertion has her breaking out a bit of a sweat now, but she acts as though she doesn't notice at all...

"Why not? It will save you the trip! Do you know how long it took me to climb up there?"

A twig falls onto Slaine's face from the crown of her hair.

[terrantrash]

Thankfully the twig doesn't poke one of his eyes out, but it sure does come close. Oh god, what a disaster this is turning out to be. He nearly has a mid-flight heart attack at the thought of her struggling to climb all the way up there...but she'd made it, hadn't she? If she could surely he could too.

"It's okay! I would rather climb than trouble you!"

[versianvirtue]

A burst of genius collides with Asseylum's skull, and her face lights up.

"Oh, I've got it! Why don't we try this?" Without consulting him, she levitates over to the nearest wall of vines, making an ascent four meters, eight meters, sixteen meters higher... her breath shortens all the while, her heart thumping in her chest with all this exercise she hadn't been anticipating. And once she decides she needs a break, she hovers close to the tortuous foliage, holding Slaine close to it with quaking arms.

"H-Here... Grab... onto this..."

Hope you're not afraid of heights, Slaine!

[terrantrash]

Thankfully Slaine lacks a fear of heights, but that doesn't stop him from feeling panic as he reaches out to grip onto the vines he's hovering near. His fingers coil around the tendrils of the plant, eyes wide as he stares at his princess, heart racing.

At least this way he won't be dragging her down...he just has to manage to not slip and fall down himself.

"I've got it."

[versianvirtue]

"That's wonderful!" she cheers breathlessly. After a few beats, she continues. "While I recover, you may climb the vines until I restore my strength. Then, I can pick you up again and carry you even higher! We're working as a team, Slaine! What's more, if you fall, I will be right here to catch you before you hit the ground. I will not permit that to happen, no matter what."

[terrantrash]

Working as a team...

It's a novel thought, one he'd give more time to if he weren't literally hanging off vines wrapped around a tree. Even so, her enthusiastic optimism is more powerful a drug to him than anything one could smoke or drink here in this village. She'll catch him, he says, and while he wants to protest anything of the sort the way she looks at him silences any rebellion within him.

"Please rest. I'm a better climber than you might think."

[versianvirtue]

He sounds confident, enough that it motivates her to allow him the space to work for his reward, just the same as she did. He deserves to feel that satisfaction at the end of the vines, too.

"...Very well, then. I will stand by and support you in your endeavors. Do your best!" She giggles to herself. "Or maybe I mean to say I will float by?"

[terrantrash]

Having her by his side is like a stat boost he never knew he was able to get. The motivation he feels swell inside him at her words, knowing she'll be there by his side, has him reaching for a vine with one hand while his feet try to find appropriate footing. He's more than ready to do his best, if she's there watching and cheering him on.

After about ten minutes or so Slaine's cleared a bit of distance, but the strain on his body is showing. He's almost there though and he refuses to give up. She wants him to get to the top, after all, and if it's a request of hers he's going to fulfill it no matter what.

[versianvirtue]

For the ensuing ten minutes, she manages to maintain her focus on Slaine's upvine battle, encouraging him the whole time with 'you can do it's and 'you're almost there's and 'you really are a good climber's— the whole garden variety of verbal bolsters, small claps and proud smiles included. Now that the mid-level is ever closer within reach with its bridges and platforms and titanic tree branches, she can hardly stand it. Or, er, float it.

And then, she decides to fly over to the closest boardwalk jutting out from the wall Slaine climbs, his final destination, and alights. From there, she extends her hand, eager for Slaine to claim it so she can yank him the rest of the way up.


"Just a little more...!"

[terrantrash]

Who knew all Slaine needed to succeed and not fail was Asseylum cheering him on? The more praise and encouragement she gives him the faster he climbs and the more focused he becomes. He could do this forever if it meant he could listen to her praise him like this endlessly.

When she offers him a hand he reaches for it eagerly, drunk on wanting to appease her even more. It may be a precarious move but if he fell to his death right now at least he'd die happy.