hugtopia_logs | ♥ January (Lasra) Event Log

♥ January (Lasra) Event Log

a winter scene showing a line of houses, each a different colour, and a church in the background

January (Lasra) Event Log
Are you feeling free of last year's burdens, offworlders? The natives certainly are after spending the final month of the year at Rawna's temples. Now it's time for a new beginning even as the cold deepens, leaving snow drifts piled along Havenwell's streets. Industrious robots are hard at work keeping the city clean and removing any ice from the stone roads, leaving only beautiful winter scenery behind. The city sparkles under the snow and the silvery white decor brings out of their temples the priests not only for Rawna, but all of the gods.

❥ PROMPT I: The Temple Celebrations

lights decoring trees in front of a church

As noted in the Intro Log, the residents of Havenwell have been invited to help with the decorations in order to incorporate your worlds' cultures with their own, and to assist in celebrating the new year's coming. Residents are encouraged to visit any temple at their convenience or pleasure and join in the design process. There are craft tables, ranging from basic (for the younger or less skilled, such as kites or papercraft) to intricate and advanced designs (like glass lanterns or embroidery). Those less creatively-inclined are welcome to use their various skills, magics, or just ladder-balancing talents to help with the decoration installations around town. Many hands make light the work, after all.

Each temple has music playing and all of them have their associated animals not inside the temple like normal, but spread all over the temple grounds and surrounding areas. They aren't lost for once, but seem to be beckoning people toward their respective homes which are bedecked with holograms of dark green leafy boughs, ribbons, and ornaments all in the temple's colors. Diacht has red and white striped ornaments, Ohma has blue and gold, and Ainea is bringing up the cute factor with pink and purple. But Rawna is looking especially resplendent with rainbow sheened silver ornaments hung in the air, mixed in with real ones that are suspended from wires so thin they look as if they're hanging in midair. The dragonlings fly through the air, trailing silver ribbons behind them that make the temple really seem to shine this month. At each temple, simply by showing up, you can receive a small gift from the priests regardless of whether or not you're an adherent. And they invite you to play the temple games or dance along to the festive music playing from speakers. Each temple has something different to offer, so grab a friend and make your first visit of the year a special one!

Ainea:

Rawna:

Ohma:

Diacht:

❥ PROMPT II: Your Yearly (Mis)Fortunes

a hand pulling a fortune in front of a set of temple drawers

At each temple along all the other celebrations and games, you can also find a separate booth that has a strange and unreadable Aellyn script on it. The robot sitting behind the booth has their face covered with a strip of fabric that obscures it completely, but it calls out to you when you walk by. It offers you an ancient-looking wooden container with a single small hole at the top. If you take it, it mimes shaking the container and tipping it over. Do as they say and a wooden stick pops out of the top with that same strange script on it. The robot takes a look at what you got and takes the container back, passing you a single strip of paper with reverence. "Keep your fortune close or learn to let it go," it says, and then looks to find another patron. Turn your paper over and discover what your fortune holds for you.

Big Luck:

Medium Luck:

Small Luck:

Bad Luck:

Terrible Luck:

OOC: If you wish to roll for a random fortune, leave an comment with your character's name in the Request Thread. The mods will randomize for you and give you your fortune. Your character can only claim 1 fortune, no matter how many times they attempt the fortune-teller's game. Feel free to choose your own fortune instead, if you would prefer a set result.

❥ PROMPT III: Memories of the Sun (VR)

This seasonal VR simulation is especially popular with the natives for the fact that it lets them see their world as it used to be. Load into the simulation "Memories of the Sun" and you'll be transported along with all others who are currently logged in to make a pilgrimage up Aellyn's most sacred mountain. Although its peak is rocky and somewhat barren, it has a serene beauty as it reaches up through the cloud layer and you climb upwards through the dark. The path is clearly lit by small lamps embedded into the ground, but you might find it easier to take the climb if you hang onto someone else. Once you reach the peak, whether you're alone or with someone else, you'll be treated to the sight of a gorgeous sunrise peeking over the thinning clouds. It's a sight to remember, and a sight that brings memories. As you watch you're overcome with a very real vision of your home, a place you remember, or people you know. This vision is typically of a better time in your life, something to bring you hope and peace as the new year dawns - but not always. Is this a vision of your past? Your future? Of your present? If you came here with someone else, they can also choose to share in your vision and you in theirs. Are you brave enough to face what the mountain has to show you?

❥ PROMPT IV: All the Ups and Downs

And while the celebrations continue, there seems to be something a little awry with Havenwell. Here and there throughout the month, gravity has gone utterly haywire. You can be walking from temple to temple or going about your everyday life when suddenly you feel yourself lifted off the ground or heavier than you have any right to be. Havenwell's natives aren't immune to this effect either, and you might see a robot go shooting up into the sky suddenly to hover a good five to ten feet in the air. Or they might take a step and suddenly fall flat on their faces, their gears whirring with the strain as they try to pick themselves up. Thankfully the other natives are quick to jump up and grab their companions if they're flying overhead or pull their friends out of the well if they're stuck to the ground. If you find yourself caught up in these gravity wells, you'll need someone's help to do the same. Be sure to pay it forward because you'll never know when it could be you in this awkward position.

This event will run from January 15 to January 31. Click on each prompt's title to see the text. If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread below.

This post is meant to act as a catch-all for convenience, but feel free to make your own posts if you prefer!

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[ Somnus bows his head for easier access. Zenitsu, who's considerably less animated after winning than losing, works fast enough that he doesn't have to maintain the position for long, and he pulls back once the brush leaves his face. He can't see what was drawn, but the circular stroke of the brush against his cheek was telling enough.

Zenitsu's self-discipline isn't nearly as poor as he claims it to be. For all of his complaints, he still accepted his loss and concentrated enough to score a win on the final round. He lacks drive, however, and doesn't seem to derive much joy from success. ]

What do you wish to achieve in this world?

[ Zenitsu stiffens at the question, his lips pursing shut as he thinks it over for a moment, eyes lowering to the ground in the mean time. ]

...Is it cliche to say that I actually want to get stronger? I whine and cry all the time. I can barely do much by myself, unlike my friends. I don't know how much stronger I can be, but... It'd be nice if I can get strong enough.

[ So that he doesn't keep disappointing people. At this point, he's not going to deny that he's never defeated a demon at all, but even with that he still feels weaker than his friends, especially in terms of having a strong will. ]

[ Somnus watches Zenitsu, blinking only once he's heard the whole answer. It seems that, even across worlds, some things remain constant. ]

For whom do you seek that strength?

[ Many a mortal dream of power. It's how that power is applied that determines the true strength of character. As one who's spent millennia judging mortals who lust for power, Somnus would hear Zenitsu's answer. ]

For who....

[ It was never a difficult question to answer for Zenitsu, but it was something he's never voiced it out loud. From the sounds he's picking up, he gets that the other has done something similar to this for a long, long time. It'd suck to be a disappointment, but he also remembers about this world's god, and the god he's decided to follow when he arrived here. He should be more honest with himself, even if it's just during the time he's in this place. ]

...So I can protect people that need help, and that people close to me will be proud of me.

[ He's definitely thinking about his teacher. He still hasn't accomplished anything to make him proud... ]

Edited (turns it into a multi-parter....) 2020-02-06 02:12 (UTC)

[ Thinking about it and saying it honestly is a completely different thing, and Zenitsu immediately starts getting a embarrassed even saying out loud. ]

W-well, I know I can't just sit around wishing for it, though! Even I know that! And who knows how much I can do anyways!

[ Tries to cover up some of his honest feelings by rambling about nonsense. ]

[ No, wishing alone isn't enough. That self-defeating way of thinking is also detrimental and quite obviously a self-conscious response to baring himself. Somnus waits, confirming that Zenitsu has no more to add before he issues a warning. ]

Do not lose sight of that which lies ahead for that desire to help.

[ The inclination to help people in need is the mark of a kind soul. For such a person, the danger of being consumed by that want is very real—to say nothing of the spiral that the thirst for validation can cause. ]

[ Zenitsu goes quiet as he takes those words in. It felt like Gramps was the one saying that, and those words stuck to him even more. But there's the other part of himself that thinks he'd never go that far. Yes, he's honed in on his one attack that he could learn, but it felt like because of how he's like, he'd never change for the better.

Either way, Zenitsu isn't sure how he should respond to that. There's that thought of whether he'll go that far. Would he ever get strong enough to actually make Gramps proud? ]

...Do you think I'd be able to achieve my goal?

That falls upon you.

[ Judging character and potential is doable within a handful of encounters, but how far a person actually goes is more difficult to measure. What's easier to gauge is conviction: Someone who doesn't risk anything won't go far. ]

You must resolve to achieve it first.

[ Right... And for him, it's the hard work of training daily to obtain that strength. Tanjiro's always been good at that. Zenitsu, not so much. And he doesn't try to hide losing his motivation about it. ]

Urgh... That means I'd have to go through that hellish training back at home... Probably...

Why not train here?

[ Even if the quality of training is diminished, one can still cultivate oneself in the city. Zenitsu has evidently yet to hit the proverbial wall. ]

You claim to be substandard at practice, yet you showed progress within three rounds. Your betterment is not beyond reach.

Well... I was brought here just before the people I fight alongside with started training. I've been doing some training with my friend, but I dunno what else we should do?

[ After all, he hasn't even gotten the Pillars' training menu before arriving here. ]

[ Lack of direction can be troubling. In such times, though, all that's left to do is proceed onward and make adjustments along the way. ]

You wield a katana. What training have you done, and of what else are you capable?

Well... Basic muscle building, and uhm... [ He pauses for a moment, realizing Breathing Styles might not be a thing in this world. ]

There's this thing called Breath Styles in my world. It trains you to breathe a certain way, and it connects to swordsmanship...?

[ Zenitsu's not sure if he's explaining it well. Definitely better than Tanjiro or Inosuke, but there's still the uncertainty where the barrier between worlds my cross. Just like with technology stuff when he first arrived! ]

The style I use focuses on legs, since uses speed? It's supposed to have six styles in total, but I was only able to learn one of it. I gotta be able to focus on all the nerves in my legs, but it's pretty hard...

[ So he can't learn the other five, unless this friend of his knows them. On the other hand, developing the technique in his legs to a point where it's less difficult seems doable—not that Somnus can claim this with confidence when it's the first time he's hearing about Breath Styles. He understands this much, though: how one breathes is important if one wants to reach peak performance. ]

Why not concentrate on refining that technique, then?

[ Ah, the method must be the same regardless of what kind of world people are from. Gramps even said that to him before, too. ]

Gramps was saying that too. I've gotten up to being able to use it in eight fold now. But yeah... I'll keep working on what I can do.

[ At the same time, it felt like it wasn't enough at the moment. Perhaps he was being a little impatient.

Usually Zenitsu had ended up trying to figure it out by himself, not exactly talking it out to someone else. Tanjiro was an exception, but that was only because the other would ask, not the other way around.

It was actually nice having someone to talk out like this. ]

Uhm... Thanks for listening...

[ Eightfold of anything deserves recognition. Either Zenitsu has great talent or he really is better at practice than he claims. Above all, his sentiment is in the right place. ]

For those you wish to protect, you must push onward.

[ Somnus moves to return the paddle to the priests in charge of the sport. With these closing words, he takes his leave: ]

Continue your training, and remember those who stand by you.

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♥ January (Lasra) Event Log

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