March Event and Intro Log

[magicademymods]

March Event and Intro Log Golem On The Loose The rain never stops. Water and mud track all over campus. Diligent cleaning golems stomp about, mopping and scrubbing and polishing and then going back to do it all over again, and again, and again... One of them seems to have had it. The renegade golem bursts into Kedrigan Hall -- interrupting classes and disrupting labwork to furiously seize students and scrub every last scrap of mud and dirt off of them. All the halls have been locked off with "Under Cleaning" signs, and anyone who enters them meets with the golem's wrath, as it violently plays a pre-recorded message about not interfering with groundskeeping and deploys a giant claw-like tool to grab the interloper and put them back on unforbidden ground. The professors, who are after all completely immune to the golem's attention by its very design, seem to think this is a good learning opportunity for students. Is it? Horrible Spell Doom? "Are you sure you're ready for the test on Advanced Gaseous Discovery?" one upperclassman asks the other. "Of course I'm sure," the second says confidently. Whipping out a wand from a holster on her belt, she sweeps her wand through the air gracefully, pronouncing several Osmarian sigils as she draws them. Probably. "See, that's a blue cloud--" Said blue cloud, which puffs into being as the last syllable left her lips, abruptly doubls in size. Then it doubles in size again. And again. The upperclassmen, who have been in Diatu for several years and know exactly what this sort of thing means, don't hesitate. Not even stopping to share a glance between them, they run like crazy, leaving the growing cloud behind just as classes let out and students begin to enter the halls. But... surely it doesn't have any weird and wacky side effects, right? The Bala-inlota Parade (aka The Non-Horrible Prompt) To celebrate the start of the Bala-inlota season, Anastara spares no expense. The great parade and associated festival stretches the whole weekend, and the whole city puts on their colors and turns out for the fun. Enterprising vendors sell food, drinks, and souvenirs ranging from small and crude figurines to magical constructs that shine field displays onto flat surfaces so you can watch the action up-close! (Good luck affording that, students.) Practically any sort of entertainment you could want appears on the streets and canals of Anastara, and food and drink flow freely. 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, the team has developed a Sundering spell that they warn is crude and unpolished, because the Curriculum is so unpracticed. They hope it will connect to your home worlds and establish a magical link they can build off of to open further passages. No promises! And to those who do undergo this spellwork... it has a certain side effect of confusion, as brief images from your home world flicker across your vision for a few hours afterwards. Wonders Await Diatu Magicademy is open to you in all its glory. Have fun!

A Special Note

If you thread out one or more scenes based on the confusion from "Research on the Sundered", respond to the comment on this post with a link to that thread. The results of this will be revealed next month! (It is, we're afraid, not a regain, lest your participation be based solely on that hope!)

Comments

[outofyourshadow]

[Some part of her knows it's just the effect of the magic spell that was used on her. But that doesn't stop the small whimper that escapes from her throat as the familiar transforms. And as her fingers snag the fabric of his shirt, she can't help holding on, almost like her life depended on it.]

I...I-I don't... [Her breath hitches, her voice wavering.] I don't want to go back to the shadows...!

Bala-inlota Parade

[outofyourshadow]

[Looking from Sunset's hand to her face, she manages a smile to hide her hesitancy.]

I don't really dance.

[At least not in public.]

[outofyourshadow]

Yeah well, this thing has really been making me mad.

[She lobbed the mudball at it again, this time hitting the brush it had been cleaning with.]

But no, this is basically the plan.

[tachyonme]

[What's more alarming, having someone nearly run into him and warn him to run all of a sudden, or the thing thundering down the hall toward them--

Well, neither of them are alarming enough to run. Mizael stays right where he is and sizes up the oncoming threat. It'd be a lot easier to deal with it if he still had all his abilities, but it doesn't look that tough...]

Do you know if that thing can use magic?

[outofyourshadow]

She tilted the tray a bit to give him easier access to the fries. While the texture was a bit different than potato fries, they still tasted a lot like them and were overall just delicious.

"Mostly just stuffing my face and taking in the entertainment. Though with such a big crowd, it's helped me with something I've been looking into for a bit."

[outofyourshadow]

"Uh..." That question was...complicated. "Both? I'd always had a bit of magic, but I lost that when I came here, and got a different magic instead."

Which was pretty much true.

[outofyourshadow]

[Swallowing the lump in her throat, she tries to force herself to calm down, though her breath still skips once in a while. But she holds on, trying to think of nothing but the sound of Webby's voice, and the warmth of Webby's body against hers, like an anchor to what was real against the shadows of her mind.]

...what if she shows up here?

[The thought had haunted ever since someone had suggested it when they all first arrived, at the end of the day when classes were over and homework was done, and she had nothing to think about but the fear that she would just show up again.

That even though she was safe now, she didn't know how much longer things would stay that way.]

[outofyourshadow]

...Honestly, I never stuck around long enough to ask.

[The Golem's steps pound the ground as it looms closer, and for a moment Lena considers just ditching the guy and heading off.]

Exploration

[blindedbyruin]

Unfortunately, she has approached someone who is also still trying to learn where everything is...but who knows, maybe what he's figured out is something she's looking for. He's certainly willing to stop and try to help, anyway.

"I can try, but I may not be much help. I haven't been here very long."

golems!

[puzzlers]

I said stop! [ yugi is being chased by a golem, because he had tracked a little bit of water into the hall, which was kind of impossible not to do given the miserable weather they had been experiencing lately. ] Shield-! [ he turns on his heels, casting a shielding spell to prevent the golem from grabbing him, though it still forces him straight out the door and into a puddle when it collides with the magical barrier. ] oof. [ yugi gets to his feet, half expecting the golem to retreat into the school, but it doesn’t. ]

…oh no…

[ it starts going berserk, since there’s just so much to clean out here! ] Peregrin, I need your help! [ he rolls his familiar dice to reveal his first triple ??? – perfect timing! a dragon burst forth with a roar that resounds throughout the entire area. ] Peregrin! [ he looks to mizael, ] Hey, are you okay? We should get back. [ he stumbles back as his familiar grapples the golem to keep it from doing any more damage.]

[woo_oo]

[A little amused laugh.]

No worries, it's not! It's mostly pork.

[And who knew what else.]

It's just shaped like a type of dog!

[woo_oo]

[She raises her hand like a kid in school. Which, well, now technically she is.]

What's an elementalist?

[woo_oo]

Well, he wasn't the first grown-up she fought - he wasn't even the rudest. So there were no hard feelings when she went flying.

She landed hard on the golem's chest, and it grabbed her feet. So what was the first thing that came to mind when her dizziness and pain edged off?

"... Are the math puns going to be a constant thing? Just wanted to make sure, so I can have better quips ready."

[woo_oo]

Not entirely sure.

[She cups her chin in thought.]

I think they're supposed to be cleaning the hallways, but they're being a tiny bit... extra?

[grim_heaper]

"Math is beauty!"

That would be a yes.

[woo_oo]

[Webby tries to think - what would calm Lena down the best? Assure her that she's safe? Webby's not entirely sure herself - there's nothing here, as far as they know, that could prevent Magica's presence.

Webby can warn them all they like, prepare as best she can, but...

!]

Lena!

[Struck by what she thinks is a brilliant idea, she pulls back just enough so that they can look at each other.]

I'm going to make you another friendship bracelet... but! This time, it's going to be super powerful and magical! It'll protect you from Magica! I'll research and find every single spell that'll keep you safe!

[Who says such a thing is impossible? If there's a will, there's a way, and Webby wanted nothing more than to protect her best friend. With new conviction and resolution, her grip on Lena tightens.]

This time, I won't let her take you away from me.

[... that.

huh.

In her head, she meant to end the sentence with "take you away". Wonder were those last two words came from?

Eh. Probably heat of the moment, nothing to think about. It's a promise from one friend to another, right?]

wonders await

[woo_oo]

[In the library, Webby had been so pleased to find out there wasn't some crazy lady sending her on errand-quests in order to do research. How nice! But she was making up for lost time a bit too hard - she had so many books stacked that it blocked her line of sight.

So, have a bump into your legs/hip, boyo.]

Whoops!

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Well, back where I'm from, we have magic users like they have here. My mom is one of those, sort of a generalist wizard, I'd guess you call them? I used to have magic, but it wasn't like they have here, like I have now. I had pretty much complete control over one element--mine was earth. I have an older sister who can contol fire like my dad can, and my twin can control air, so we're what you call elementalists.

[Cliff pauses, then.] Except since I don't have my powers any more, that doesn't work here. But I hope I answered your question well enough.

[nomoremistergneissguy]

"Other than suddenly having blue bunnyfrog, I think so. I don't feel funny or anything...but I hiccuped him up." He offers up a weak smile at that, and shrugs.

"Could be worse, but maybe I didn't get enough of a dose to get anything really weird happening to me." For which Cliff is eternally grateful.

"Don't you take in any of that blue stuff, though, it can't be good."

[darkenedmoon]

Oh. That is all right, then. [As they say, ignorance truly is bliss. If Yotsuyu had a clue, she probably wouldn't want to eat it, still.]

What other things have caught your discerning eye? I have seen that they have something from my world here, but it has always been too sweet for me. Sweet balls of rice flour and bean paste, or jam, called dango.

[Really they could be a bit more than that, but she figured it was best to keep it basic.]

[darkenedmoon]

Well. I shall have to do my best, then. Have you more mud, or should we encourage it to chase us?

[Yotsuyu isn't entirely certain that the children went to get the teachers--most of the teachers hadn't been too upset about the golem to begin with, when it had first gone berserk. She looks it over skeptically, eyes narrowed.]

I was thinking of blinding it, but I do not want it to wreck the classroom.

[woo_oo]

"Noted!"

All right. If Sho was on the golem's side, she needed a way to distract him - and if math was his obsession...

"I bet you can't name all the numbers for Pi!"

[scattered_rose]

[He stared at the... whatever-happened, and turned at a voice.]

Uh. Yeah, I guess so, thanks.

[scattered_rose]

[He let out a startled noise at the bump, then scrambled to catch the book that'd jumped out of his hands. Turning to see what'd caused it, he blinked at the giant stack of books, leaned down- stack with legs, that is. Amusement quirked up the corners of his mouth as he looked around it, seeing Webby herself now.]

You uh, find what you were looking for?

[scattered_rose]

[He's going to reach out to her but not touch her, though it leaves him open for her to make a move toward him, when she wanted to.]

C'mon. Let's find somewhere quieter, it'll be okay.

[His voice is firm but comforting, like he's done this before.]