April Event and Intro Log

[magicademymods]

April Event and Intro Log Plants Off The Path Green grass and radiant flower gardens bracket all the major walks on campus, and fragrant scents fill the air all around. Note the key words "major walks" there. Move off the common paths and onto 'shortcuts' or less frequented areas of the vast campus and things are quite different. Here, the plants grow just as experience with this chaotic and often dangerous school would lead you to expect. Broad-leafed stalks stretch upwards, petals unfolding to reveal long jets of fire instead of a sensible stamen. Bushes have large toothy mouths, and viciously swallow anyone who comes near (though they are still just bushes, and the victims end up on the their other side just a few scratches worse for wear). A tree grows quills instead of needles; another sprouts paper airplanes instead of leaves. An extremely aggressive pitcher-plant wanders the pathways, mugging students at knifepoint. It's a jungle out there. Bullies, Of Course Surely a Magicademy, with many students already adults and with such an emphasis on learning and control, wouldn't have those who used their magic for such petty ends as making others suffer? Uh-huh. A pack of bullies with more spell experience than wisdom has banded together to take delight in the suffering of others. They overtly pick on the small, the meek, and those with less magical skill; they torment the larger, the bold, and the powerful in secret. Worse, they are the clever sorts of bullies, who go out of their way not to get caught and not to do anything that can't be played off or explained away. Maybe you attracted their attention by looking weak enough to pick on. Or strong enough to need to be taken down a notch. Or weird enough that you were the Other and thus lesser. Or pretty/handsome enough that you needed to look less attractive so they would look more so. They are pretty good at justifying picking on anyone, really. Are they pestering you by magical tripping or property destruction? Playing keep-away with your class books? Better be careful how you respond; their fathers might hear about it. Wind At The Docks (aka The Prompt Where You Don't Get Mugged) The winds of spring bring something of a dark pastime to Anastara -- dockwatching. Aware that a sudden blast of air can rip across the island at a moment's notice, crowds gather at the docks with the air of those expecting spectacle. All too often, they are rewarded -- in the wake of a sudden wind, airships list violently, or bump into each other, or desperately pull sails and power up their flotation cores to avoid a worse collision. Curses fly through the air, and sometimes even spells. With luck, the audience might even see a pair of vessels engage in an all-out air duel, as two captains driven by pride or vengeance refuse to back down. Now, to their credit, the assembled people aren't heartless. If a ship truly looks to be in trouble, or if it's smashed to the ground or into a dock, the people of Anastara don't hesitate to help those on board to safety or ensure that they don't go down with their ship. But mostly it's watching the chaos. It IS quite a show... 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 Glyph designed to detect any influence of the magic on you. Painted on your arm, it will shine with a bright light when a Sundering effect attempts to influence you. They explain that they believe the Sundered are still subject to either the spell that brought them here or new ones, because they have detected remnants of Sundering magic in the wake of students who have mysteriously disappeared. They ask only that you report back when it lights up. Problem: when the Glyph erupts, either because of the Glyph itself or the spell it has detected... those who bear it find themselves no longer where they started. Perhaps they find themselves in a classroom late at night. Or the wrong dormitory. Or in the Great Hall in their nightshirt. Or for the utterly lowbrow amongst you, a restroom occupied by the wrong gender. Whatever the case: sorry. 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 some sort of regain this month!)

Comments

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Hey, kid! Do I look like I need help?" Jecht shot her a grin, as his fist dented the pitcher of the plant once again. "Oh, maybe see where it dropped its knife!"

[woo_oo]

"Okay!" Always happy to help, she scoured the ground for a minute before...

"Found it!"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Good work. You learned your lesson yet, ya little punk?" Jecht tightened his arm around the stem of the plant, making its pitcher turn an interesting color of purple. "You ain't nothing!"

[woo_oo]

Webby began to twirl the knife around in her fingers like it was a marching band baton. "What should we do with this?"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Well, we can't give it back to this guy, he ain't responsible. And I don't use 'em, so guess you got a prize."

JECHT

NO

[woo_oo]

"Oh, cool, free knife! You can never have too many of those!" She beamed, pleased beyond measure. "Thanks a bunch, Jecht!"

insert 'what have you got A KNIFE no!' vine here

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Hey, thank this guy. 'Cuz I'm pretty sure he's learned his lesson. RIGHT?"

The pitcher plant bobbed up and down wildly in a nod. Nothing in its position would dare do anything different!

[woo_oo]

"Thanks, homicidal mugger plant!" Hey, Jecht said to thank it, so she did.

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"You get outta here."

Jecht released the plant in the same motion as he booted it in what would pass for a butt were it humanoid. The plant scurried off into the brush, with him waving a fist after it. "And don't act up again or I won't be so NICE next time!"

[woo_oo]

Webby laughed a bit, enjoying the victory for the good guys.

"You're really strong, Jecht!"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"'Course I am! I'm a legendary guardian, y'know!"

If the boast sounded just the faintest bit hollow, if his grin didn't touch a corner of his eyes, that's just her imagination, right?

[woo_oo]

Surely! And now he's gotten her curious.

"Oh? A legendary guardian of what?"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"High Summoner Braska, of course. The last Summoner to vanquish Sin before the end. Me and him and Auron walked all of Spira to complete his pilgrimage. Fighting monsters, having adventures. He backed us up with magic and Aeons, but me'n Auron were the ones always in the thick of it."

[woo_oo]

Sounds exciting, save for the fact she doesn't know any of those names or titles.

"Wow... I only understood about two or three things." Pause. Where to begin?

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Heh, imagine how I felt when I had to live it! One day I'm training, the next I'm in a weird world, the third I'm in jail, the fourth I'm on an adventure! A lot like comin' here, actually." He glanced sidelong at the main school buildings off in the distance.

[woo_oo]

Hang on, hang on -

"You've been to different worlds before?" She asked, gesturing around them. "So this isn't your first time?"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Ehhhh, sort of." Jeht rubbed at the back of his head, twitching his neck left and right. "Might have well as been. Turns out where I came from... wasn't really real. But same sort of deal, you know? Not knowing anything or anyone, finding out everything is different..."

[woo_oo]

Um... hm. Maybe instead of asking to expand further, it would be best to stick with the moment.

"How did you handle it? ... Are you okay now?"

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"I met some friends!" Heh, Jecht sounds like a big kid again when he says that, a laugh in his voice. "'Course it didn't start that way. Braska wanted another guardian for his pilgrimage. Auron didn't like me at all. But we set out on his journey, and... well, by the end, we were all close."

[woo_oo]

Ah, friends, the universal cheerful topic. "Isn't that how it always is? Nothing brings people closer together than adventure, excitement, and near-death experiences."

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Or actual death experiences, yeah. Helped me get used to the fact that I wasn't going home." Jecht rubbed at the back of his head awkwardly.

[woo_oo]

"Well... what is home, to you?" Webby asked after a pause. Because that could mean different things to different people.

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

"Well, it used to be Zan --" Wait. Kid wouldn't know that name. "Used to be where my wife and kid were, you know? These days? Guess it's here."

[woo_oo]

"Oh."

Awkward. Quick, subject change! Divert from the sadness!

"WE SHOULD GO DO HAPPY THINGS!"

Nailed it.

[sublimelymagnificentblitz]

Aaah, he was used to it. The way he sees he, he got a second chance here to have a life. It just ain't the same life he led before.

"Oh yeah? What's a happy thing for you then?"