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

Research on the Sundered

[nomoremistergneissguy]

It might be that it didn't work the way they were hoping? [Cliff looks from the duckling girl to the gargoyle statue, nine feet tall, behorned, and scowling, before crouching down to look her over, see if she'd hurt herself.]

Somehow, I don't think this thing is your granny. You need a hand up? You're not hurt, are you?

[woo_oo]

[She shakes her head to try and fight off some dizziness and pain before sitting up.]

Nah, this is nothing. But maybe I should try that again in a less... statue-y covered area.

[nomoremistergneissguy]

You sure? What were you trying to do, anyway? It wasn't real clear from where I was standing.

[But he laughs, so it's probably a good-natured jibe. He backs up a step to not crowd her too much, folding his arms on his knees so she doesn't have to look up. Hard head or not, she still gave herself a pretty good whack on her noggin. Cliff lifts up two fingers.]

How many fingers am I holding up? I gotta ask, just making sure you didn't concuss yourself, you know?

[woo_oo]

Two.

[But then she pauses.]

But is 'two' still 'two' in your world? All of them are so different, we could have radically different numerical styles and words and symbols!

[... she's fine. this is normal.]

[nomoremistergneissguy]

[Luckily, he gets it. This is the sort of thing the Endless would ask. Ethellon's not a bad guy. He's just...intense. Cliff has to grin at that.]

Well, as I understand it, I held up two fingers, so I think you're okay. Ish. You're not hurt more than some ruffled feathers. You still feeling that spell, though? You might want to stay sitting 'til it passes. If you can, I guess. When's your next class?

[woo_oo]

Oh, it's not for another hour. I thought I'd try this out while giving myself plenty of time to recover, just in case.

[She's weird, but sometimes bright.]

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Good idea. Though I'd have carried you if that were necessary. [Cliff grins at that. He's tall and he doesn't always look too bright himself--the geomancy he's lost, he guesses, every other Earth Master he ever met looked a bit unfinished, too.]

Don't think I'm weird though. My sister Katya just always said I was too helpful sometimes, you know? I'm Cliff. I never met a duck girl before, that's kind of cool.

[woo_oo]

I didn't think you were weird.

[Considering the life she's had, this is doesn't even break the top 20 list of weirdest things she's been told.]

My name's Webby! If you ask me, no one can ever be too helpful. And I assume you're a human boy? They've got plenty of those here.

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Yeah, I am, and yeah, this world seems to default to human, I guess. But thanks for not thinking I'm weird, my sister tells me I am all the time.

But I guess that's because she's my sister, huh? [He grins at that and rolls his eyes.]

But duck girl is right? Or do you guys have another sort of name for yourselves? I don't want to be rude!

[woo_oo]

[She shrugs a shoulder - she doesn't have blood siblings, but she does have the triplets, and that's close enough?]

Well, my full name is Webbigail Vanderquack, but I prefer Webby! Also duck girl or duckling is fine, if you wanna get technical.

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Okay, cool. Sometimes I do get technical. My little sister says I should just go apprentice to the Endless already--he's this really super smart researcher on magic on my world--but I don't think he takes elementalists, so that's right out unless whatever I learn here sticks, you know?

And I'm Rycliff Vitner, but I go by Cliff, so I hear you there.

[woo_oo]

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

What's an elementalist?

[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.

[woo_oo]

[this.

is fascinating.

Look how big her eyes widen.]

That's so cool! A whole family of unique magic users! Maybe we can find some way to get your powers back!

[nomoremistergneissguy]

[Oh, wow. Of all the reactions--this wasn't what he expected, but Cliff couldn't help but laugh. And shake his head.]

No, no, on my world we're not unique, there's enough elemancers there to have a whole college for us to learn at! But I guess it's odd here. It might still be something to see. And while I won't lie to you, I would like to get my powers back--learning how the other side lives isn't a bad thing either. It makes me appreciate my mom more for all she does. And my brother and sister who took after her, too!

[Yeah, Cliff has a big family.]

[woo_oo]

I'll help! I want to help! I wanna see those powers in action!

[Sure, she has no idea HOW to make it happen, but where there's a will there's a way, right?]

We'll get you a normal life AND find your powers again!

[Granted, Webby's idea of normal is... shaky.]

[nomoremistergneissguy]

[He raises both hands now in an attempt to calm Webby, now, but he's laughing, too, just a bit.]

If we could do it on determination alone, I'd have them back already, I suspect! But my life's pretty okay as it is. I'm okay with being here.

Say, speaking of normal, how's your head?

[woo_oo]

[her head? ... oh, right, the smash. She'd been so caught up in his life she forgot her own.]

Wow, I got so distracted, I don't even feel the pain anymore! Thanks!

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Well, that's good...I think? So long as you're recovering.

[He chuckled again and tilted his head at her.] So what about you? Clearly you've got a 'Granny' to get home to, huh? Tell me about her.

[Partly because he was curious, and he wasn't sure what a 'Granny' was, since he didn't have any. At least, not to his knowledge.]

[woo_oo]

[oh boy.]

GRANNY IS THE BEST! She's a super secret spy but also a great housekeeper, and she used to fight bad guys with the world's greatest adventurer, Scrooge McDuck and she taught me everything I know!

[GRANNY IS AWESOME!!! Bouncing on her heels again because YAY GRANNY!!!]

[nomoremistergneissguy]

[Okay, Webby's enthusiasm is infectious. Cliff laughs, he can't help it.]

She sounds super amazing! No wonder you're so sharp. I kind of wish I had a Granny of my own!

Guess I'll just keep my uncle. He's actually one of my dad's friends for a long time. And he's a wolf who's kind of like you. He's really smart and he can talk. But he walks on all fours, and his fur is made of metal instead of--well, fur.

[As cool as he thinks it is to have an Uncle Bladewolf, he suspects it'd be super weird. For anyone else but Webby.]

[woo_oo]

[Correct again, because she gasps in wonder.]

Is he a werewolf? Or a... metalwolf, I guess?

[nomoremistergneissguy]

Really, he's just kind of--himself. He's the only one like him--we have normal wolves, too, but the Bladewolf is the Bladewolf, you know?

[He's not the Endless, to quantify Uncle Blade better than that. Maybe if he ever did decide to intern with the guy, but that felt kind of awkward.]

He can't turn into a human, so he's a metal wolf, yeah.

[woo_oo]

Okay, right now? Your world wins.

[Was there a competition???]

Second only to mine. Unless yours has a Scrooge McDuck in it. Then it'd be even.

[nomoremistergneissguy]

[There was a competition?? No one told him!]

No, no Scrooge McDucks that I know of, and with a name like that, I can't think they'd be quiet.

[He chuckles, then.] Your world's your home, of course it wins! Like it can't beat my world in my book. There's no place like home, right?