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

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"Why not?" That had her curious. "Me, most vigilantes where I'm from are like...kind of tortured individuals, dark pasts, trying to even up the odds. Balancing their losses by helping other folks, to feel better about themselves..."

Isabel fell silent for a few moments, before giving Dust a sheepish smile. "I don't really have any of that. Loving family, great home, never really hungry or cold or any of that stuff. But it's like...I've been given a lot. Shouldn't I help too? And just...tossing money around doesn't always do that, you know?"

[mithrarin]

"I was... created to do that. So it's just different circumstances, I guess. It's -- I chose it, don't get me wrong, but I never really thought about anything else. So..."

He wasn't sure that explained anything. Something seemed to be missing.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"You got created?" Isabel's eyes went wide at that. Not that she was afraid or revolted, more like--startled. It wasn't as if her grandfather hadn't created any number of creatures in his time, after all. Some of them were even as intelligent as Dust clearly was.

"I suppose the question was 'did you see any other career path', maybe." She couldn't help but smile and shrug at that. "Nobody pushed you into it, right? Or did you have the 'oh chosen one, this is your destiny' sort of thing? I'm not mocking you, mind. Just I'm kind of familiar with how it goes."

Thanks, Dad.

[mithrarin]

"Well, let me put it this way. Suppose you wake up one day knowing nothing, get handed a sword, discover you love to fight and get stronger, and go out into a world where monsters are attacking innocent people and an entire race of people is being driven towards extinction."

He'd had a choice. He'd technically had a choice all through the thing. But his very nature made that choice no choice at all, really.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

Isabel gave his words some thought, but ended up shrugging anyway.

"Not sure I'd need a sword, but...with or without one, I honestly can't see myself doing anything different than you did, in that situation. Heck, I already like to fight. Most unseemly for a girl, but."

She shrugged at that, too. Isabel was who she was, and wasn't inclined to make apologies for it.

[mithrarin]

"Well, I ended up with one right at the start... But you get the idea. Some choices aren't really choices at all."

He shrugged, not minding, really. He'd been created to want to make the choices he did, but that meant he WANTED to make the choices he did. No conflict there.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"Well, I guess there are choices, and then there are things like...a waving red flag to a bull, huh?" But she chuckled at that.

"I mean, I've had a couple things come through my scope in life that were like...'That, I want to do that.' I think that's what it's like here, huh?"

Or hey, she could be entirely wrong, wouldn't be the first time.

[mithrarin]

"Sort of, yeah. More like, 'I can't NOT do that.'" In a lot of ways, that's how he had felt every time he was faced with a choice. Help? Had to. That was who he was.

"Actually, I kind of miss that. There's nothing here that gives me that same sort of drive."

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

Isabel shrugged at that. "It's kind of early on, you might find something, you know?" But she kind of understood the concept, at least. Sure, Fantastics was fun, and there were things that drew on the knowledge she already had, but there was still just...

Well, there was an undercurrent of boredom that she couldn't seem to shake, and found annoying. But she didn't want to express it. Isabel was always the type to try to find things to do instead of just moping about it.

[mithrarin]

Dust wouldn't call it 'boredom' so much as 'listlessness'. Everything had been a lot easier with a driving purpose, a direction forward.

"I hope not. Monsters and armies and ghosts... I'd rather nothing like that actually show up here and need me to stop them."

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"Noted. And I agree, same deal, but...magic. It doesn't seem really well regulated, especially considering we're here and what was used to bring us here was forbidden, y'know?"

Isabel sighed, resigned. She knew better, having had her own magick prior to coming here, but. "Something's sure to happen. Not necessarily because someone means it to, but...mistakes are made, right?"

[mithrarin]

"Just because it's regulated doesn't mean people won't do what they want anyway. Maybe stopping that person, or group, is what I need to do." It made as much sense as anything else he could think of.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"That's also true," Isabel said with a sigh. "Yeah, we both do, if we want to get back home, right? Not that I want to get there right away, but it'd be nice to do so at some point."

She doubted her parents would be that worried about her, they'd taught her to handle herself, but still, she missed her family a bit already.

[mithrarin]

To which Dust shook his head slightly. "I'm here for a reason, and when that's done, I'll go the next place I'm needed. Whether or not that's Falana."

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"So are you sort of saying you don't even have a home?" Isabel frowned at that. "Or a family, either?"

Man, that was a crappy state of affairs, especially for Dust, who seemed like a cool enough guy to her--even if he wasn't a human guy. She made a face for a moment.

"Ever consider adopting your own family?" It wasn't like her own father hadn't done that sort of thing, when he'd lost his parents. Sure, he'd found them again, but that wasn't the topic of conversation, here.

[mithrarin]

"That's... essentially true, yes." If more complicated by nature. Jin, after all, had a sister -- one who apparently still saw something of the boy in Dust. "I'm not really suited for family. Once I deal with what I'm needed for here, I'll be needed somewhere else."

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"That's the biggest bunch of hogwash I've heard today, if not this week," she groused. "What do you even mean? Just 'cuz you're going from town to proverbial town like you were a guy with a big, green secret inside of you doesn't mean you're not 'suited' for a family. Just means you don't think you deserve one."

And Isabel scoffed at that. "Even knowing you have people who care about you, somewhere--even if they're not where you are, even if you can't be with them--that can give you strength. I ought to know, I'm living it right now!"

[mithrarin]

"They think I'm dead. I'd rather they move on than grieve." He had no way of knowing that Elder Gray-Eyes had told them about the Sen-Mithrarin's duty and destiny.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

Isabel pursed her lips at that. "That's the weird thing about love and loss...just because you're gone, doesn't mean that there's not a you-shaped hole in their hearts. They're gonna grieve anyway. That's the nature of the beast, when you care about someone."

She lifted her chin a little. "But you know, that's not a bad thing? It means you meant something. Something beyond just 'your purpose', even though I get that that's important to you."

[mithrarin]

"'Important' isn't quite the word. Necessary, maybe." Dust sighed slightly. "At the end of the day, I'm never coming back home. So whatever I have, it isn't the same as others. I think I'd rather not keep inflicting that me-shaped hole on people."

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"Except a lot of times, you don't get to decide that. Unless you're just going to go be a hermit off somewhere. Which...I suppose you could, but the resulting magical explosion when you go up 'cuz you stopped learning...that'd be pretty lame, I think."

Isabel shrugged. "I realize you probably don't like it, but...life is that way, kind of. You just have to learn to roll with the punches when you can. Choose your battles. You're a warrior, you have to at least know that much!"

[mithrarin]

"I took on every battle that came my way," Dust said with a wry smile. "I had to, and I wanted to. So that isn't the best analogy."

Of course, he could always just keep as low a profile as possible here and cause as little trouble as possible for others. What was so wrong with that as an option?

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"I guess not, but then rolling with the punches is the option you're picking, isn't it?" Which...hell, she fights every battle that comes her way, too, really. The realization makes Isabel's brow furrow just a bit. She just didn't fight every one with fists or swords, unless one wanted to count her tongue as a sword...

It just might count.

The thought wasn't a comfortable one, though.

[mithrarin]

"I prefer to roll away from them, if I can. But then again, all my experience has been... very literal." His entire life, basically, had been spent in combat. Without hyperbole. Almost from the moment he woke up till the moment he died.

[hyperdrivemonalisa]

"You probably need more experiences," Isabel said. "Stuff that's not fighting--how much of that have you had?" By which she meant experiences that didn't involve combat. He wasn't that great at interpersonal interaction--no offense to Dust, there--so she doubted that there was a lot. Still, he tried, so she gave him credit for that.

"Ugh, I'm probably sticking my foot in my mouth again." Shoe leather was becoming a taste she was accustomed to, and it didn't sit well with Isabel at all.