For those who have spent much time in the chilly city of Nadril, the cold that finally finds its way to the rest of the Isles of El Nysa. It starts in the streets of Olympia; you may notice that citizens have already begun wearing more layers in wake of the chills of late fall. In the streets, you may hear natives complain of the incoming winter; and the dwellers of the Red Light District will attempt you lure you in with the promise to warm you up. During this time of the year, Solace Springs become popular attraction among the Olympians - if not as a source of heat, but an engaging location for discussions of the current state of their world.
Wyver should remain warmer due to its geological position, yet the dragon city has found itself hit with record lows in temperature. Natives cope with this uncharacteristic cold by putting up large torches of fire all along the city roads — you may find merchants selling more fabric lately, and offering jobs to hunt and harvest the pelage of animals for extra warmth.
In both cities, there has been buzz of a carnival to take place in Khalo. Thesaens have mostly been occupied with the events in Nadril and Dranbu, but Khalo's humble village has been a hotspot for visitors, as it is comparatively warmer there than anywhere else on the Isles. The aforementioned Carnival has been in the making for weeks, but it's only in the beginning of the month that you might find a flyer or two, or three. Eventually, the buzz reaches Dranbu and the North Outpost of Olympia, where it'll become unavoidable to not have at least heard about it. They say it will be a cultural experience, as they need to remind both natives and outer-persons of the Isles' history.
Wyver, in its part, does help. Now that travel has become rather accessible, all one needs to do is first take the train to the Dragon City, and from there, follow the street torch lights into the jungle's Overgrowth — and it will lead you right into Khalo Village, where the magical barrier has temporarily been disabled to welcome you in with open arms.
At first glance, the Carnival looks somewhat chaotic. There is no sense of order to the way pavilions have been erected. Some are staffed by the people of Khalo, and others by locals hoping to turn a profit selling alcohol and their specialty dishes. While there's no shortage of refreshments, finding the same place twice may prove difficult, if not impossible.
A place where all cultures converge - Khalo's deep respect for each god's devotees has bleed over into the decor. Ysverai's pavilion is surrounded by torches, a bonfire nearby. Idrei's is darkened but for the light of its ferris wheel. Barthala's location is somehow overgrown, moss covered as if it's been here for centuries. The space dedicated to Nwarhal is somewhat removed, set up where stone breaches the grassy meadow. Frey's tent is perhaps the most remarkable, perfectly round and lined with twinkling white lights.
Empty tents litter the midst of the festivities, open to anyone who needs a place to rest or retreat. Near one edge of the celebration is a wooden, warped stage. Fixed on a natural slope, the stage is elevated and well lit by colorful hanging orbs. The spirit of Khalo is a spirit of freedom - there is no schedule of entertainment. Anyone is free to come and play as they please, from solo performers to impromptu groups to entire orchestras. While there is no telling what songs may echo throughout the festival, Olympia and Wyver will provide more formal music for dancing on both the first and the last night of the celebration. Waltzing in a field may be strange for some, but it's all a part of the experience.
I. YSVERAI — The Wise Dragon of Wyver
Attraction: The fires that erupt within the roller coaster can be seen from all over the festival. Anyone near Ysverai's pavilion will feel the heat that emanates in waves from the attraction. With no metal structure, this coaster runs on magic, the track appearing a gleaming gold ahead and disappearing behind. The carts have no safety bar, just a handle for each rider to hold on to. Board in pairs, and prepare for a wild ride of loops, drops and competition. There's a special challenge aboard this ride - two get on, but only one gets off. A pond of water beneath will catch the loser, so if you fall through some fire, you won't be ablaze for long. Try to shove your partner off, because if you both reach the end of the ride together, you'll be sent through again.
Education: Guides in Ysverai's pavilion are somber, the god's horrific resurrection a terrible mark on his rich history. Many may still be resentful of the great dragon's terrors, but in life he was not a cruel creature. To those who will listen, a guide will explain Ysverai's strength came in the form of protection. It was a might that protected, reaping so that more life could be sown.
The activity that accompanies Ysverai's tale is a simple one. Relax in a lush bed of pillows, and allow your guide to pierce a vein with a dragon's quill. As your blood drips slowly your mind will be filled with memories of triumph and wisdom. In minutes or hours, a crystal will be formed from the blood you've shed - a gift to be bequeathed upon another. What it does, the guide will not specify, however, they encourage you to exchange with someone else before leaving the pavilion. When your gem comes into contact with the skin of another, it will liquefy and soak into them. A vision of your most treasured victory will wind through their mind, imbuing them with a sense of courage that will last the night.
II. FREY — The Lustful Phoenix of Olympia
Attraction: This attraction is more than what meets the eye. At first, you may feel like you're entering a mansion. Upon stepping through the iron gates, you will immediately be paired off with the person next to you. The mansion appearance is only for show; inside, it's hollow and is actually the entry to a Tunnel of Love. The boat itself is designed to resemble a phoenix, presumably what you would consider kin to Frey himself.
Once seated, the ride starts of slow enough; the tunnel is dark and the water is gentle beneath you, guiding you toward the light at the end. All along the ride, you feel a sense of desperation and listlessness; the walls display shadows and silhouettes of poverty and terror of Dragons, and all the while you are waiting to reach the end. The outside part is curtained by water, and once your phoenix crosses the threshold and into the light, fanfare is played by statue soldiers on either side of you, colorful confetti showers down on you and your partner as though you're parading back from victory — bursting through the dark ages where Olympians lived in fear of the terrors of the south.
Near the end of the ride, you are propelled up toward the sky, a sign of an imminent drop incoming, and you'll come crashing down with a splash, surely to get you and your ride partner wet. The waters aren't all safe, though — Frey was known to be somewhat of a flirt to humankind - and Olympians emulate this by casting magic upon its waters. Participants of the ride will leave feeling a sort of idol worship to their ride partners, but this only affects one of the persons, and it will last for about a week.
Education: The Olympia pavilion is the most decorated of all, not to be outdone by their ancient foes, Wyver. Most people should know Olympia's story by now, but not much were educated on the story of Frey, the deity who once watched over the city. In ancient times, Olympia lived in terror of the human-eating Dragons of Wyver, and it was thanks to a phoenix named Frey that rose from to help with the aid of humankind.
However, one day, Frey simply disappeared. They say Frey had fallen in love with a human, and was thus banished from Olympia. Today, you know that location as the desert called Frey's End, just north of Dranbu.
III. BARTHALA — The Mother Forest of Dranbu
Attraction: Gigantic flowers litter a section of this pavilion, and as you draw close, a petal opens up to allow you and one other to enter and sit within it. Once you are both seated, the petal closes back in on itself, keeping you cupped securely within it. You sit across from your partner as the flowers start to move, looping gently around the makeshift grove and spinning independently of the others as they make their orbit. As you spin and the word whips around you, you and your partner see visions of what might be: a safer world, filled with all the comforts and trappings of home that the both of you would expect. By the time this ride ends, you and your partner will have caught glimpses of what makes the other feel most at ease, what makes them feel safe and protected. When the ride stops, the petals of the flower open up to let you off … but will you really want to leave? You can ride it again and again if you want, those visions of a safer world growing more vivid with each repetition.
Education: Soft fairy lights are sprinkled throughout this pavilion, casting it in a gentle glow, and the scent of flowers is heavy in the air. To each person, the scent is different - whichever floral scent brings them the most comfortable is what floods their senses. The guides here speak in warm, gentle tones, and invite you to partake in a drink with them. Keen observers will notice that this drink seems to be liquid nectar harvested from the garlands of flowers worn around their necks, but when poured into a cup, takes on the taste of something from home that you associate with safety and security. When you drink it, it settles the mind and lessens any anxieties you might be feeling.
Barthala, they explain, is not merely the lady of the forests and the earth - she is the embodiment of safety, and was born of the desires of all living creatures to find a safe haven to rest within. She is the Earth Mother and the mother of all living creatures, and she charges her followers with making the world a safer place and with carving out safe Havens beyond her own sacred grove within Josa Forest. Her presence is invoked in patches of the wild, even those that spring up deep within the cities of the isles.
When you have finished learning, you are given a garland of flowers of your own, and bidden to prepare drinks from the nectar from those who could most benefit from its calming properties. When someone drinks the liquid prepared from your own flowers, you will both be filled with the sense that everything will be just fine.
IV. NWARHAL — The Missing Tendrils of Nadril
Attraction: From the outside, this attraction looks similar to a small log cabin. Step through the door, and you'll immediately be handed a small light pistol and be sent through winding, dark corridors that seem to sprawl far greater area than the structure could possibly contain. There are no lights, but your eyes and other senses will adjust soon enough. You are required to venture through this place alone, set against all other participants. Land your shots successfully three times, and the exit will unfold before you.
Be careful not to take too many hits, though, because anything targeted by your enemy will disappear. An arm, a leg, your eye - any part of your body is subject to vanishing without warning. The process is painless, and you'll exit the attraction in one piece, but while you’re locked in combat it will be as if the rest of you is somehow floating, detached.
Education: Absence may seem like a strange value to many, but Nadril's cephalopod deity has reigned over the concept of 'nothingness' for centuries. He has given no magic to the icy city, instead burrowing in the deep wilderness, a mystery to all. There are legends that Nwarhal controls the weather, or that his eight great legs could stretch all the way around the world. Truly, his magic is largely untapped, a reservoir of potential. Through his hands-off approach, Nadril has grown strong. The loss - absence - of their god enabled them to thrive.
In that way, the Khalo scholars will champion the value of letting go. When you enter, you will be given a perfect copy of a valuable artifact from your home world. Maybe it's worth thousands of silver, maybe it has dear sentimental value - anything that can be held in one hand could be produced. You’re bidden to give it away, with the warning that the item will crumble into dust should you try to keep it for longer than a few hours. In the hands of another, however, it will last decades.
V. IDREI — The Seeking Snake of Khalo
Attraction: Golden light washes over the pavilion, its brilliant flickering illuminating everything before giving way to complete darkness. Like an erratic strobe light, but warmer, the ferris wheel is an ostentatious sight. Two black snakes adorn its frame, their jaws moving slowly open and shut as the attraction spins, suspended without an anchor to the ground. Old magic keeps the ride moving safely, and the scholars at the pavilion will encourage any pair to hop aboard. However, the spin won't necessarily be a romantic one. Once aboard, partners will see the ‘truth' in the other. Through a face that betrays honest emotion, or explanations that would not otherwise be so forthright, to a sense of just the right questions to ask, you will know and be known when you disembark.
Education: The scent of electricity pervades this pavilion, leaving hair standing on end and skin bristling. Inside, you will be greeted by a guide who will give you a quick and cryptic description of their god: Idrei. It is a creature that exists between two worlds - this one, and the “true” world. If one accepts Idrei's wishes, they will seek both knowledge within themselves, and the secrets of El Nysa. Those who do well in his name will be blessed with answers to all of their questions.
For now, however, the guide will bid you to sit in a chair and close your eyes - or, for the reluctant, be blindfolded. Once seated, you will be bound by magic, unable to rise until you correctly answer three questions. Anyone can ask anything, from trivia to facts about yourself. Answer incorrectly, and you'll receive an electric shock somewhere on your body. Once you've escaped this little ‘interactive learning experience' you'll be handed a charged wand of your own, and left to give your own inquiries, and consequences, to those still seated.
After two weeks, the emissaries from Khalo will take their leave, packing up in the early hours of the morning. With their magic to assist them, in an hour everything is as it was - albeit muddier. As the lights strewn through the trodden path of the festival are taken down, life slowly fades from the meadow. Thesa hangs low in the sky, a pale yellow specter of what it used to be. Year after year, Nysans welcomed the final day of their holiday festivities with a spectacle of lights that flowed like water. Darma's absence means this display is no more, and underneath the dark, empty sky - cloudless with only the faintest of stars - a sense of unease grows.
No REP is available for this log. REP will be primarily available through achieving NPC quests! However, you may report your threads here under the correct header. The deadline for this reporting is January 9th, 2018 at 11:59 EST, and the outcome will be revealed later.
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"So you've read my autobiography, then? Wasn't sure sales were going that well out here."
Ha, ha. At least John knows the decisions he makes are bad?
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"Well, like me... suspending my recovery to get into this place when I could've just walked in a day later."
His AA chip had felt heavy in his pocket, so heavy he's almost glad he gave it away even if all he wants to do is to begin to earn it back. Whatever that magic bush weed was, it's nothing like alcohol is for him, but after all that happened in Dranbu he can't be sure what he's done or didn't do anyway. This place has a way of blurring lines he never thought he'd cross again. Getting high to learn about magical beasts definitely qualified.
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"Yeah, well, nothing in this place is good for self-control. In Olympia they have weird drunk festival where everyone kisses each other with mouthfuls of alcohol."
So, you know, overall this place is ripe for falling off pretty much every possible wagon and sliding into a ditch.
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It makes him feel like he's constantly overcompensating, and it's honestly so tiring.
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"I guess it's always good to know you aren't the evil twin."
If someone else is the jerk version, then that must mean he's the good version -- right?
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"I guess. Our methodology is just different. It would be interesting if I ever got the opportunity to speak to him."
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"Maybe, assuming you get along. Last time I met myself I ended up kicking my own ass."
Which is not even getting into Rod, who somehow managed to be a more obnoxious version of Rodney -- even if he was more... personable, theoretically? It all just felt wrong.
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Involving weird alien bullshit. He scrunches up his face at the thought of it, watching Seren lean into the touch, then adds --
"Oh, but I did de-age to a teenager here once. That was weird. Didn't much like being a teenager the first time, didn't enjoy it any more the second really."
So, you know, just because he didn't meet himself here doesn't mean that this place isn't immune to weird things. De-aging included.
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"Thanks for the warning, I haven't had anything like that happen... yet. I just keep running into people who know 'me' that I've never met. And I'm no saint, but I can't think of a good reason I'd put guys on meathooks."
He is still so hung up on (ha!) this!! He's more into psychological torture, you see, and lighting people on fire. Well, he's sure any old Frank Castle would do the latter part, actually, even without meeting them.
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John's expression jumps through a few expressions -- confusion, a wince, curiosity -- before he tilts his head at that.
"A little grim," he says finally, "sounds like something out of an 80's slasher film."
The sort of thing that belongs in the same category as Ianto's weird story about cannibals with cleavers chasing people around and beating them to tenderise meat. It should be strictly horror movie territory.
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"I'm sure he had a good reason."
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Whatever a... good reason for that exact action would be he doesn't know, but. Well. Maybe there is one?
"Probably makes for a good threat?" he hazards -- because who is ever going to mess with you if you hang people on meat hooks?
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"That's true. I suppose there isn't anything wrong with people knowing you'll go to extreme measures if the situation calls for it."
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Seren yaps to try and get his attention and John glances down at her -- leans and holds out his good hand to ruffle her soft fur.
"Don't worry, nobody's putting you on a hook. Anyone tries, you bite them real hard."
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"That's good advice, I think, for anyone." It's something he's always lived by anyway.