May Event and Intro Log

[magicademymods]

May Event and Intro Log DAWN OF THE FIRST DAY May I Have This Dance? Though Diatu Magicademy has its share of social events, few capture the attention of the student body quite like the Twilight Ball -- that magical once-a-year dance that crosses the change of day into night and is given over entirely to the dance itself. The focus is not on political visitors, rival schools, local government, or hitting up alumni for money; it is entirely about the pleasure that comes from accompanying a charming and attractive person onto the dance floor and cutting the proverbial rug. It is entirely possible the Twilight Ball is beloved because the general student body is aggressively amorous, but no one admits that out loud. With the dance on the horizon, the mission of the day becomes finding a partner -- or asking the prettiest or nicest or most tsundere to the ball before anyone else does. The Sundered are particularly popular by virtue of being new, so students may find themselves fending off invitations or even crowds of people interested in being seen on their arms. Even the younger Sundered have a few people in their age group who'd like to pretend they're just as adult as the older students. To avoid the mob, one strategy is to find someone else in dire straits and agree to be their date, thus giving both of you protection now and then. Another, stranger, vastly more unorthodox strategy is to actually ask someone out legitimately... if you've got the guts. (The third strategy is to go with Headmaster Birony, who has been occasionally heard to bemoan loudly and publicly that she has nobody, HINT HINT. But who could possibly be THAT desperate?) Love Is In The Water Love potions are absolutely, positively, one hundred percent forbidden, on the grounds they tread far too close to the supremely black Curriculum of Dictation. This ultimate and unforgiving ban is every bit as effective as Anastara's rules limiting the speed of carts in the street to a horse's walk. So, yes, there's love potion in the water. Someone spilled an entire bucket in the river. These things happen. Luckily, as diluted as it is, the potion doesn't reach the levels of obsessive compulsion that the worst of them can; a person drinking a unfortunate draught instead simply finds themselves attracted in a weird and sharp sort of way to the first person they lay their eyes on, for a period of about thirty minutes. Diatu Magicademy is an inclusive and progressive institution, and consequently these potions affect and can target all manner of beings, from ducks and wolf-shifters to robots and dragons. They are pretty convenient about failing to bring about really skeevy pairings, though, so don't worry about being Hot For Professor. Special Delivery (aka the Least Embarrassing Prompt, which is a sad state of affairs) A quick, easy, profitable way to make some money this time of year is by delivering messages, packages, parcels, and treats to students who've caught the eye of another. Whether anonymous or gloriously identified, small token of esteem or bristling bundles of roses and chocolates, the population of the Magicademy takes particular delight in letting others know their feelings. Not always positive feelings, either -- glitter-bomb rejections have only recently begun to diminish in popularity, being replaced by Pie-To-The-Face spells. An enterprising student who adds their own spin to this hallowed ceremony of delivery can make bank; singing and performance are popular ways to enhance a message among Valhudor students, and a recent trend finds quartets delivering acapella harmonies to the recipients of love notes. But simple note hauling can still be worth your while... so long as you don't find yourself delivering a creepy confession from a weirdo to one of your dear friends. What are the odds of that happening, though? Research On the Sundered With the arrival of the Sundered come those wizards engaged in research on their presence here, now set to investigate what brought them here and how to get them home. All newly-arrived Sundered students are asked to meet with representatives of the research team, to introduce themselves and relate what they will of their homes. In addition, the team requests samples of blood, hair, and skin -- carefully magically collected, and the researchers will sign in the presence of the Sundered a Glyphed contract that forbids them from using the samples for a purpose they know will be harmful. (They quite understand your reasons to be suspicious of this collection! And they will not compel anyone who refuses even given these conditions.) This month, however, the research team informs its applicants that there is no magic being performed. Instead, they ask you to participate in partnered interviews, in which two Sundered compare their worlds and ask each other questions while the researchers take notes. They explain that they wish to find commonalities and differences between worlds, in the hopes that this will help them identify a larger pattern in how the Sundered were brought here. How is this bad enough to merit earning a reward this month? As it happens, the researchers who sit with the pair have an Intimation Crystal, which shines red every time someone speaks to deceive in its presence. Lie or omit information or cover with half-truths and the interviewer will ask you to go back and try again -- and they encourage you to speak on everything you can. You might end up venturing into dark or unpleasant territory in these interviews... DAWN OF THE SECOND DAY Welp, This Happened A quiet weekend morning is abruptly quiet no longer. With a tumultuous shuddering and an eerie, whistling roar, the first tendril of a far mightier being surges out of a wall on campus, venturing into the cloud-shadowed outdoors for the first time in its existence in this plane. Then, like a cloak shrugged off, the outbuilding it emerged from rises up only to crash to the ground as the Sundered creature rises up to claim it glory. It is a nightmare, a horror. A terrible, indescribable thing as large as a small building —a shapeless agglutination of protoplasmic bubbles, faintly self-luminous, and with myriads of temporary eyes forming and un-forming as pustules of light. For some inexplicable reason, it is colored in bands of purple, black, and gold, and several parts of it sprout white feathers. That's the bad news. The bad news is that this existential threat to reality does not go unnoticed, nor unchallenged. Mere moment after the Sundered creature makes it presence known, a cold wind begins to blow. The temperature abruptly drops thirty degrees, leaving those around in a clammy and miserable chill that feels like they've passed their whole body through one of the ghosts of Makerion Keep. This estimation is not too far wrong, for the pale off-white dragon that emerges from the clouds above is translucent and ethereal, save for the shining eyes of coldest blue that fix on the beast like pinpoints of fire. What a ghost dragon is doing here is anyone's guess, but when it opens its jaw to unleash a withering cone of necrotic energy at the Sundered creature, it demonstrates plainly that it will not brook this interloper on its domain. In other words, Diatu Magicademy is now home to a kaiju fight. That's the bad news. The BAD news is that both these creatures are, by their very nature, incredibly resistant to magic. So even as the professors spill out and split duties of getting students to safety and fending them off, the two beasts barely notice the arcane energy flashing through the air as they begin vigorously brawling. Thank goodness this is a weekend, or else you'd all have some serious trouble getting to class on time. Wonders Await? Diatu Magicademy is open to you in all its glory. But maybe you should deal with that mess first? We're just saying.

Comments

[noasark]

A shame the last one I had until recently vanished for 7 years then, [he huffs, saying nothing else on it. He does eye Isa quizzically a moment- before snorting anyway.] Hmm. I did propose the idea that none of you knew more than something you were told, to Xion...I phrased things poorly, she thought I was calling Lea a liar instead.[Calling Isa a liar was fine, unsurprisingly.]

...children, hmn. ...We've more in common than I thought I guess.

[afterthemoon]

You were right.

The whole of the Organization was being manipulated. Xemnas convinced us all that the only way to get our hearts back was by furthering his goals and helping him complete Kingdom Hearts-- heart of all worlds, a source of great power.

[Isa crosses his arms close to his chest, closing in on himself, his tone of voice becomes carefully controlled.]

He took everything from us, our home, or families, our hearts. Changed our names. Told us weren't meant to exist, that we were literally nothing, nobody.

All we had left was each other...

[noasark]

...some would say that's a recipe for turning people against each other, [He murmurs, unsure of what else to say.] ...I can hardly speak for much else here though, can I?

...Xion claimed memories were what allowed others to 'act' as if they had emotions- I want to assume the emotions were real, but even without that, memories would have been the last thing between hope, and the sort of resignation she seemed to have...

[A poor situation for those who didn't have memories to begin with, then.] ...Well.

...You're here now- a number of you, anyway, hmn?

...I certainly don't intend to return to any 'homeworld' at this point... [He's half wondering if Isa, and Lea, would consider that themselves now. It helps that he doesn't know there's a proper 'good ending' to be had.]

[afterthemoon]

That's what Xemnas claimed. His actual plans required us to be empty shells, so if we doubted our emotions, then we'd never truly become whole.

So of course the emotions were real. Nevermind that Xion was never even a Nobody to begin with.

[Noa's next suggestion gives Isa pause.]

Lea has several friends he left behind in our world, so we don't intend to stay here, if that's what you're implying...

[noasark]

You haven't exactly made it sound very inviting, [He points out with a raised brow.] But if it's worth it for you, it's worth it then I suppose. I'm meant to be dead in mine, so I'm personally taking this as a welcome fresh start.

[afterthemoon]

It's far more inviting when we're not dealing with manipulative cults.

[There's so much more good in his world than bad.]

[noasark]

I imagine so, [He remarks dryly.] How much of a problem was the manipulative cult at the time you left?

[afterthemoon]

We were on the second iteration of it. And Xemnas's plans were dangerously close to being fulfilled.

I also didn't leave it, I was killed...

[noasark]

[Hmmm. HMMMM. Hmmm.] ...You're in the same boat I am, and you're going for 'home' still? [He asks with surprise.]

...I suppose we'll have to see if they find a way to revive people like that then- at the very least, 'this' is probably better than 'death'. [He'd hope so anyway.]

...Was there anything left behind that could stop those plans? [He finds himself asking, despite himself.]

[afterthemoon]

For Nobodies death is temporary. They eventually return to life with the heart they lost. It wasn't the first time I went through that, either.

[Sorry, man. Maybe there's a way to revive you too.]

Of course, there's no shortage of heroes in my world. "Guardians of Light", as it were. Lea's one of them.

I believe they'll defeat Xehanort, the man Xemnas was working for.

[noasark]

Really? [Well that got his attention.] ...I would think that comes with consequences...

[Geeze. Anyway, he shrugs.] Well, if you're sure enough you won't end up back under 'Xehanort's thumb again, then who am I to argue- not that I would've had that right anyway.

[............] ...Does he have a plan? [He did kind of have an entire chat with him about practical versus theory lessons, so he's not entirely sure if Lea's the type to...have a plan.]

[afterthemoon]

Short of "defeat Xehanort"? No, none of them really have much of aplan.

[...]

But they made it to the endgame. I don't think any of them are they type to fail once they make it that far.

[Isa has faith that they'll win, basically.]

[noasark]

Testament to the gravity of things, I see... [It's never a good sign when the man in the way has to take up That much focus. But, with a shrug he manages a smile.] That's a hopeful thought though...and I think I know the type. If they're anything like the other, then Endgame will come out with a positive end then.

[Protagonists, man.] ...Maybe while you're here you can even dream about the 'After' plan.

[afterthemoon]

I just want things to go back to the way they were before...

[He crosses his arms, closing in on himself.]

But I'm no fool, I know that's impossible.

[noasark]

Hn. At least you're no fool then, [Noa huffs.]

...You could aim beyond, however. [Make it Better than it was.]