Let The Games Begin

[magicademymods]

February Event and Intro Log Orientation Week/Magic Mayhem The campus of Diatu Magicademy stretches out before you, confused and chaotic and surging with energy. Where are you headed? To your dorm or suite, to get settled? Maybe you need some food now? Wherever you head off to as your first stop, you have to deal with the snow. Helpful or proud students are passing out various magical remedies to get you where you need to be -- umbrellas with a nasty tendency to dump snow directly onto other people nearby, an iron tube that projects fire but appears to have no off switch, snowshoes that keep you slightly too high off the snow and thus provide no friction for stopping... Familiar Follies Familiars do not harass or harm each other as a rule -- but that doesn't mean they have no pecking order, and the week of Orientation finds them all jockeying for status and position as suits them. This can take the form of pranks, displays, competitions, or simple physical assertiveness towards each other. The goal is simply to be seen as superior by the student body. New wizards especially may find themselves surprised at this behavior of their familiars... 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 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.) Furthermore, they request to perform a few spells on you for testing purposes. It is, quite regrettably, possible that if you consent to this testing, you will come away with a temporary side effect -- a slight change of hair color, traveling two steps for every one you take, one hand moving about a second behind the arm it should be attached to, or being ridden by a penguin. No need to worry, these changes won't last more than a day! Wonders Await Diatu Magicademy is open to you in all its glory. Have fun!

Comments

[king_of_egypt]

[He looked to her incredulously.] How can you be so sure? [Maybe he had been wrong in assuming she was one of the sundered as well] Have- you been a student here long? [Then she proceeded to explain the information she had already gathered and he could sort of relate to it in a sense] So it's almost as if the familiars are holding a tournament of their own to sort out who is the strongest among them. [Like a duel monsters tourney, only less structured]

[Interior decorator. Please. It's as if this girl couldn't grasp the further implications of his power. Maybe she couldn't. Keep thinking that you floating magic rock]

[Once the cape was slung over Capricius, the crystal started trying to wiggle it's way free but Atem kept a tight hold on the material. The rest of the items were released from the familiar's hold. He waited until Capricius stopped resisting and then let him out] Now are you ready to talk? [Capricius made a pleasant chiming sound this time, much softer on the ears. Despite the tone it was still talking back, but it knew Atem couldn't understand so it would do the trick. Thinking they had reached an accord, he walked closer to Saya and her familiar so the familairs could get to know one another better]

[intellectualstrategist]

Me? Haha. No. Like you, I'm among the people that were accidentally brought here. [ she'll explain how her familiar can talk, for better or for worse, and told her all of what she's telling him. ] I guess you could compare it to a tournament. It's just a show of dominance. All animals usually do something similar. Humans too. [ see dick measuring contests. ]

[ further implication. pft. so he could lift a bunch of stuff using his magic. well woop de fucken do. while, yeah, she could see a practical use in his ability she really did think her familiar was better, having the ability to transform into just about anything, albeit made of bone. ]

So what's with your hair anyway? [ to atem, obviously, now that capricius was through throwing his fit. ] I imagine that takes a lot of time to do. [ not that she could even fathom what the hell he's got to do to get it like that. ] Like the colors. [ but anyway. ] I'm Saya Takagi and this is Bonesy. [ the panther bowed his head. ] Nice to meeteth thee.

[king_of_egypt]

That explains it. [He added once he was in the know about her familiar, and how informative it had been. It must be a tremendous advantage being able to communicate with one another] You have a point. Just because they are magical creatures it doesn't mean they are devoid of some basic instincts. [Still, it would be better if they didn't keep picking fights]

[To that Capricius would have scoffed again. So what is the point of transformation if it is not to conceal ones identity or blend into the scenery? The bones would always stick out and therefore it wasn't the best for oh say... espionage.]

My hair...? [Noticeably looking surprised by the sudden subject change] I don't really do anything special for it, it's just... always this way. [He's not even kidding. If they would have had cameras back in Ancient Egypt you could have seen him sporting the same hairdo as a baby] Uh, thank you. Your hair looks nice too. [Awkward small talk is awkward] ... and I am Atem, and this is Capricius, a pleasure. [Capricius gave a little spin at the mention of it's name but that was it.] I bet you're getting tired of hearing this but where are you originally from? I would guess Japan from the name but I suppose even that Japan could greatly vary from the one I visited. [Or she could have born elsewhere, or moved or what have you. Okay, maybe he shouldn't have guessed]

[intellectualstrategist]

[ it's a blessing and a curse that bonesy can talk. he can relay information without any problems, but sometimes he doesn't know when to shutup, and the way he speaks gets on her nerves without so much as trying. ye old english. feh. ] As soon as they get it out of their systems we can have a do over.

[ and that's not entirely true. he can be as small as a mouse or as big as a dragon. he could easily sneak into a place not meant for prying eyes and gather intel. his versatility is unmatched bones or not. better yet, he can tell saya, without trouble, what's he's learned, and the same certainly can't be said for 99% of the familiars here. ]

It kind of sticks out like a sore thumb. [ which is why she'd mentioned it at all. ] ... [ he didn't have to throw a compliment her way. ] Yes, Japan, and by the looks of things there are several iterations of the same place. However you want to explain it this spell had one hell of a reach, grabbing people from all sorts of different dimensions. [ she looks him over. ] And where are you from dressed like that? [ the costume shop. ] Egypt? [ it was a stab in the dark, but his clothing suggested somewhere warm and the gaudy jewels adorning him suggested royalty. ]

[king_of_egypt]

[Not knowing when to shut up actually would remind Atem of some of his friends. cough, so needless to say he likely would have found Bonesy tolerable. Old english and all.] That sounds reasonable. [Nodding to that] [If he's so great and versatile then don't call me if there's ever an occasion where you fall down a well, or someone drops a large boulder in front of your dorm room. Cough. When would either of those scenarios even happen, Capricius?] I suppose it is a bit.. unique but I've never had an issue with it. [Ie. He likes his hair the way it is] .... [Apparently he did, it just didn't seem to go over all that well] I was afraid of that. I suppose the possibility of there being multiple dimension was always there but this confirms it. [Not that Atem had many doubts on that score. He already knew there was another dimensions where duel monsters resided] Mm, Egypt. [That was easier than explaining he was more specifically from the afterlife] I-.. heh.. [Cue a little nervous laughter here] I'm actually a pharaoh there. [Maybe he should leave that out when he talks to the other students....]

[intellectualstrategist]

[ capricius is delusional. ]

I'd say so. I hadn't really ever considered it, but honestly this opens up a world of possibilities. [ though the magic used to perform this was forbidden saya was recalls seeing that it was going to be something they were going to integrate into their curriculum. ] A pharaoh? [ she quirks a brow. ] I guess that would explain all the ornate jewelry. Might want to consider taking some of it off, since I don't suggest going around looking so flashy. Who knows what kind of people are out there looking to take advantage of a person who doesn't really belong here. I can keep it on the DL if you like.

[king_of_egypt]

[Shh, he is. After this week he should improve though >>;] Indeed it does. [He's just not fully aware of what all those possibilities are yet or how to best utilize them. With time and knowledge that may change] I- guess it sounds kind of ridiculous. [Judging from her expression] I wouldn't expect to be wearing these things all time time, but I haven't really had a chance to do much with them. [He's been to a different era before, he can switch to wearing more bondage wear normal clothing] Though in truth most of us don't belong here. I don't think knowledge of who I am is really that much of a concern here. It's not as if I could be ransomed back to my kingdom..... [After a pause] .. or maybe it's best not to advertise it all the same. You might be right. [At least she was the first person he told, so outside of her, Yugi, and Kaiba the secret was safe.]

[intellectualstrategist]

And I intend to take advantage of them all. [ she's not judging him so much as trying to get a feel for him. but, yeah, it's kind of a lot to swallow. ] None of us belong here, and that's the problem, but heading back to the dorm and dressing down might be in your best interest. I'm not saying everybody's going to be out to be a douche, but there are always a few.

It might not be, but I don't think you should go out of your way to advertise it. I come from a prestigious family back home, but nobody needs to know that. It's not like where we've come from even matters now, since our connections have been absolutely severed. We all get to start at square one. Hoorah. [ sarcasm. ]

[king_of_egypt]

You're really adapting to this situation well. [Atem had to admire her for as much. He on the other hand.... was just baffled by the whole thing and trying to figure out how to proceed] I'll consider your suggestion. [Since, he wasn't planning on retreating to the dorm right away] [Again, she was taking this all in stride. Some people were highly resilient however this seemed above and beyond the norm] Oh-! I hope you don't think for a minute that I was angling towards gaining any special treatment or favors for eluding to my previous position. [A hint of color spread across his features when he realized what negative connotations that could have had] I'm just used.. to all this. [When you wear something every day you lose sight of it's significance] I would never- [What are words. Cough. His familiar rang out with a series of chimes that sounded suspiciously like laughter]

[intellectualstrategist]

Adapting is what I do. [ it didn't seem like there was an immediate solution to the problem, so instead of guffawing around like a slack jawed idiot she decided to accept the situation and turn it in her favor. that, of course, would take time, but she had plenty, apparently, since these clowns didn't know which end of the wand was up. ]

[ an above and beyond the norm was right. she hadn't always been like this, but changing was something she'd had to do if she didn't want to become the next course on the zombie menu. ] I didn't think that at all, relax, though who knows what anybody else is going to think. Some people just love blowing things out of proportion, so... [ she trailed off, noting the hint of color that had erupted on his cheeks. ] You don't have to take it all off. It's... you. But I'd rather not see you on the street corner after having your ass beat, because some piece of shit decided to take your stuff. We're the newbies here, so we need to be more careful until we can learn more about this place and its magic. [ she looked to his familiar. ] See, Capricius gets it... I think.

[king_of_egypt]

[Saya's response made him want to question what factors in her life had made her so adaptable but he decided better of it. There might be an answer behind that he either wasn't bargaining for or she didn't feel comfortable divulging. Atem was unfortunately more caught off guard by this and having to learn how to adjust. He'd had to get used to a few things before but he always had someone there to guide him, like Yugi. This time, just being him, well... he wasn't entirely sure how to proceed. He'd figure it out though, he wasn't completely hopeless]

Perception is everything, hm? [Familiar with the phrase. Thankfully she didn't draw attention to the coloration] Mm, I see what you mean. I suppose I haven't been cautious enough since I arrived. [So much for that retirement plan, huh Pharaoh?] ..... Unless he's amused at my expense. It's difficult to tell, I know....

[intellectualstrategist]

[ she wouldn't care if he asked her about what had driven her to have to adapt so readily and if he needed help, well, it's not like she couldn't lend a hand. it was nice getting to interact with people while the world wasn't ending, so she could probably spare a few minutes and he didn't seem entirely hopeless, so she at least knew she wouldn't be wasting her fucken time. ]

Mm. [ she hummed in response. ] Ehhhh, not really, especially with your familiar causing a stir, but at least you arrived with the rest of us, otherwise it might have been a problem. [ she looked to capricius afterwards. ] Though I suspect your little buddy would have your back, so maybe you don't have as much to worry about as initially thought. [ she shrugged. ] I'm afraid I don't speak floating gem, so I don't have an answer for you either.

[king_of_egypt]

[Since he had no way of knowing that, it might be a while before he voiced a question that delved into her back story. She did however seem to be willing to help, due to her intervention into the familiar nonsense.]

It still could be considering that there's no telling what other sorts of people this magic has drawn here. I should be more prudent regardless. [Then sparing a glance to the gem) Which I'll need your cooperation to achieve....

Mm, perhaps. [Now that the initial introductions were spoken, and chaos dealt with Atem wasn't sure what to do next] Uh- we were interrupting you, weren't we? I should let you get back to.... [whatever you were doing before]

[intellectualstrategist]

I wasn't in the middle of anything. I was just looking around when I happened about this disaster. Not sure what you were doing before your friend decided to have a fit, but you're more than welcome to join me. If we're going to be stuck here for a while I figure I might as well learn the lay of the land.

[king_of_egypt]

That's precisely what I was doing, and I certainly wouldn't mind the company.

[His familiar wasn't as keen on it, it still wasn't sure about Bonesy but it also didn't want to make another scene so soon]

The building itself seems quite expansive. There's a lot of ground to cover.

[intellectualstrategist]

Mm. I thought about combing over the school grounds first, since we'll presumably be spending most of our time here, but I did also want to look into the three rings. [ since she can only assume what can be found there. bonesy was being relatively quiet, having changed into a raven, so he could take perch on her shoulder. ] But, yes, there's plenty to see, so why don't we get started and see if we can't start over?