hugtopia_logs | ♥ December Event Log

♥ December Event Log

December (Ranir) Event Log
The city of Havenwell is recovering very well thanks to your efforts, offworlders. The hole in the wall is sealed up and, while maybe not looking like new, it certainly looks sturdy and safe. The city itself has removed much of the rubble from the battles you fought, and the people are back to their regularly scheduled lives. They're eternally grateful that you continue to put in the time to rebuild this final bastion of civilization and are pleased to see that you enjoyed their festivals so far. As the weather of Ranir turns colder and the nights longer, some may even see snow dust the cobblestone and paved streets in the morning. The time of Rawna has come and with it...

❥ PROMPT I: At Least It's Not a Sweater

a pair of hands holding each other with a red ribbon tied around their wrists

Normally when a new season belonging to a god rolls around, the temple priests gear up and start with temple festivities. Seeing how this is Rawna's month, however, nothing much of the sort seems to be happening. In fact, it's almost as if Rawna's priests don't even care that their god's season has started. Rawna is, after all, chiefly the god of Apathy, so is it all that surprising?

What might be surprising is the sight of Ainea's priests in pairs out around the city in their stead. Each pair carries with them a single bright silver sash and they alternatively stand in broad daylight or hide in the shadows of the buildings. Walk by on your own and you'll be left alone, but when the priests spot two people walking even remotely near each other, they spring into action.

The two robotic priests zip around you and another person with surprising speed, tying the sash off around you - either around your wrists, your waists, your legs, whatever it takes to tie you to another person. With a triumphant buzz of excitement, they declare "Happy Ranir! Kindness comes in many forms!" and depart to find a new pair of ~~victims~~ patrons. As they leave, one of the pair calls out an additional clue for you: "Be kind to unwind!"

Good luck, everyone, you're now stuck with this other person. You can either wait until the sash naturally falls off in a few hours, or you can take the direction of the priests and be kind to the other person to encourage the magical knot to come undone. Each compliment, word of encouragement, or other act of kindness directed at your new partner seems to loosen the sash a little each time, so get to winning the Niceness War.

Oh, and in case you were thinking of blasting, teleporting, or cutting your way out? No amount of magic or physical force seems capable of cutting or removing the sash. Hopefully you went to the bathroom before they got you.

❥ PROMPT II: A Delicious Delight

After a long hard day of dodging Ainea's priests or just slogging through the colder weather around the city, what could be better than imbibing a seasonally festive drink? Well, the scientists in charge of Experiment 73 certainly think so! They've added a limited edition drink selection to all of the replicators and have some delightfully festive booths spread about the city staffed by a few robots wearing Rawna's colors in their sashes and hats. There are five drinks in total to choose from and you should certainly try them! They're only here until the end of the month and then the scientists say they'll be gone! The best things in life are fleeting, aren't they? The best things in life are also surprises, so when you take a sip of these exquisitely delicious (honest! For once they're good) beverages, prepare yourself for a little trick with your treat.

Ginger and Honey Tea: A hot, thoroughly warming drink with the bite of ginger and the sweetness of honey. Drink this and you'll be shored up against the cold, but also feel compelled to tell or blurt out the truth. Whether you're asked a question or trying to tell a little white lie, you find you can't say anything but the truth. This effect lasts for up to an hour after drinking the tea.
Strawberry Shortcake Smoothie: A cold sweet treat of vanilla smoothie topped with sweet strawberry pieces and whipped cream. At the bottom, you'll find a layer of sweet sponge cake cut up into pieces. Drink this with its own special thick straw and enjoy the taste of cake; and the effect of a personal miniature snow cloud that appears over your head. The cloud dusts you and your immediate area within a foot of you with beautiful multicolored snow - and that snow leaves splotches of color behind that last for up to an hour after drinking the smoothie.
Hot Cinnamon Apple Cider: A deliciously steamy beverage that tastes of apple and cinnamon and comes with a cinnamon stick stirrer for effect. This beverage smells as delicious as it tastes and the aroma wafts around the area more strongly than the others. Drink this penultimate holiday drink and you'll find yourself heating up so much that you'll want to stay cold by giving your heat away via holding someone else. You'll want to be everyone's personal heater for up to an hour after drinking the cider.
Gingerbread Latte: A nice piping hot latte with the hint of gingerbread threaded through the coffee, topped with whipped cream and dusted with gingerbread spice. Served in a tall red cup that seems to transfer the heat uncannily well through its thin walls, sip this and you'll find yourself painlessly sprouting an animal's appendage at random. You can have one functioning or non-functioning, cosmetic animal appendage like a cat's ears, a dog's tail, a duck's beak or whatever else you can think of for up to an hour after drinking the latte. They can replace your original body part (e.g. your ears become cat ears) or grow superfluously (e.g. you have regular ears AND cat ears). You can move the appendages or talk with them as if they are your own, but they don't confer any special magical powers with them. So you can fly with those griffin wings, sure, but you're going to need to put the effort into it.
Hot Mulled Wine (alcoholic): This one isn't for children - and in fact, under 18 people might find it hard (but not impossible, be industrious, little ones!) to get their hands on this drink. Red wine is heated with spices and citrus fruit over low heat for several hours - or it would if it wasn't all synthetically created. The effect is the same though, a delicious adult beverage that's a nice way to spend an evening with someone special. And you'll want them to be someone special because drinking the hot wine makes you inclined to get a little steamy with people. Kisses, both chaste and passionate, seem to alleviate the urge which you'll be under for up to an hour after drinking the wine.

❥ PROMPT III: Winter (VR) Wonderland

a wooden lodge at night, blanketed in snow

There isn't quite enough snow on the ground to allow it in reality, but in the VR Cafes anything is possible. This month, the VR Cafes are decorated with snowflakes in odd patterns and designs - holograms, naturally - that spin and change shape and color in a timed routine. Plug into the games and you'll find a new selection among the usual offerings: Winter Wonderland.

There are two modes to Winter Wonderland and each are fun in their own ways.

Snow Fight! Head out into the powdery snow where fantastic snow forts await and battle it out with snowballs to claim the most territory or just see who can hit the other side the most. You can choose Team Battle, Solo 1vs1, or Battle Royale. All magic, skills, and cunning are at your disposal. While the snow might not be falling outside, it's definitely going to be raining down on you here, so bundle up and have some fun. You earned it!

Ski Lodge But maybe you don't want to go flinging snow down someone's shirt and would rather cuddle up on a couch in front of a big warm fire, huh? Sure, we understand that. Welcome to the Ski Lodge, a cozy getaway up in the mountains where you can relax with a hot chocolate (or cider, or glass of wine even) and curl up on the couches and experience a lazy afternoon in thick fluffy sweaters. It's even better with a friend, they say, so why not create this private little getaway for the two (or three or four, we're not judging) of you? For people wanting a romantic lean, you can always slip out the back (and out of your clothes if you prefer) into the private jacuzzi on the wooden deck, too.

For people who want to have some fun tearing it up on the mountain-side though, we suggest trying Ski-venture! A year-round game that lets you ski or snowboard your way down the mountain.

❥ PROMPT IV: A Mysterious Gift [REGAIN EVENT]

Toward the end of the month starting from the 20th and on, some people may find themselves drawn to Rawna's temple late at night, when most of the priests are offline or elsewhere. The only native creatures you can see here are the fledgling rainbow dragons which watch you from their various perches all around the sanctum. As you approach the temple's altar, you realize someone else has been drawn here as well. In the quiet, dim lighting, the barest of candles still burning and the watchful eyes of the dragons, you feel compelled to unburden yourself to the other person. Tell your tale of woe or sorrow, relieve yourself of a secret you've kept hidden for too long, and listen to your companion as well. They say a burden shared is a burden halved after all.

Once you've both shared something, a pair of dragonlings crawl up into the altar's clawed hands. They wind around each other until an iridescent light shines from their scales. The light is blinding and you must look away as it reaches its pinnacle and releases a burst of rainbow light. When you look back, the dragonlings are slithering away and in their places are two objects - one familiar to you and one to your partner - so long as both of you have shared. It seems your tithe has been rewarded with something from home.

OOC: These items from home must be approved by a mod. They cannot exceed the Medium Item regain limit. It cannot be a power or other ability. It cannot be something your character did not own or have knowledge of in their canon or their CRAU. Please post your regain request in the Regain Request thread before threading out the receipt of the item.

This event will run from December 6th to December 31st. Click on each prompt's title to see the text. You are welcome to use this log, or create entries of your own! If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread.

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[He can get around to it if he detaches himself from Somnus and finds a booth.]

It compels the drinker to speak the truth.

[It's not something inherently regrettable, but there are those who should watch what they say and Somnus is one of them. As for Magolor, only the creature himself can say.]

[Hoo boy. The relief he feels when he hears that, and that he didn't carelessly try it, is palpable.]

I see . . . maybe that one's a little present from Diacht himself. You seem like a pretty blunt guy, though! I doubt it was a problem for you.

[(Evidently, Magolor also carries secrets.) Being blunt doesn't mean sharing all of one's thoughts. Plenty of problems arose for him from it, but he isn't going to air them here. He's more interested in the mention of Diacht.]

What do you know about the gods and the seasons?

See? Blunt! You remind me of a certain someone who's as bluntly invested in information gathering as you are.

[He has to needle by pointing it out, but then he moves on just as easily. Changing the subject is welcome enough.]

Anyways, I wouldn't say I'm an expert on either, especially not the seasons. The festivities related to the different temples have been a surprise to me too. It makes sense they'd have them, but I never thought to pull up a holiday calendar or anything, you know?

[Though come to think of it, he pulls out his tablet to do just that. Presumably it has that function. While he fiddles with it, he goes on:]

The one thing I am sure of is that the gods are real—unless all of this is an even bigger ruse than anyone thinks.

[At least Magolor goes along with it—and makes an interesting point that hadn't occurred to Somnus until now. He comes from a world where the gods are deeply entrenched in it, and he's never had to question the existence of divinity before. Magolor's words just serves as a reminder that they really don't know anything here.]

What makes you certain?

I experienced a little divine intervention early on when I got here, you could say. The kind of thing that has to have been either an act of Diacht or some high-level magic by the natives! And it wouldn't have made any sense for the natives to do it. It would have been a huge waste of time and resources, and all for no benefit besides making it all just a liiiittle more convincing to one person. So either they exist, or the entire planet is in on doing everything they can to convince us they exist!

[By now he's got his calendar up and is scrolling through the months; after a few moments, he frowns at the screen.]

. . . I feel like a real idiot, but I never noticed before that even the months are named after the gods . . .

[The argument is relatively sound for how little Somnus knows the details. In the same vein, he knows too little to present a counterargument. It's not necessary. He waits for Magolor to peruse the communicator.

He's heard the names of the months he's been here in passing. That wasn't enough for him to grasp a pattern. If Magolor is looking at them all at once, then perhaps it's worth a second glance.]

There are thrice as many months as the gods. Are they all named for the four?

[He brings up the list and holds his tablet out:

Lasra
Nalom
Ainir
Lasai
Ealom
Dianir
Lasdia
Achtom
Ohnir
Lasohm
Malom
Ranir

Part of him is annoyed with himself that he never figured this out before, but he's never bothered to look at the whole list at once, and each individual name is obscure in where it comes from . . . ]

It looks like it. So, you were right! They must each be tied to a season too. Right now it's Ranir, so it must be Rawna's first month. It's the beginning of winter, so, that makes some sense too. Who doesn't feel apathetic in the wintertime? I'd expect spring to be Ainea's season, since you know what they say about romance blossoming in springtime~! And it looks like winter will end in Ainir, so that holds up.

[Somnus tucks his chin to read the list. Though he looks at the names in passing, he can see the pattern right away now that they're clustered together.]

Then Diacht represents Summer and Ohma, Fall.

[Under the assumption that the seasons are those with which he's familiar, anyway. Now the real question is whether or not any of this bears significance. If people are expected to feel apathy in the wintertime—]

Ohma presides over knowledge and wisdom. Were the previous months related to either?

Knowledge and wisdom . . . I guess we did help with the archives. Maybe that was related. That was definitely an outpouring of knowledge! But I have to say, we were a little distracted with the barrier shattering and spilling monsters out all over us, so it's possible any more obvious knowledge-holidays had to be postponed.

[Looking back on the past few months, they sure were a mess, weren't they? That's probably not related to the season or to Ohma, but he keeps it in mind.]

[Having arrived in the aftermath, Somnus still has some questions about what happened prior. Aside from the archives, was there really nothing in dedication to Ohma?]

I have heard the attack described as an invasion. Was it truly so organized or a mere happenstance?

Hmmmm.

[That's an interesting consideration. Magolor knows what he had assumed after personal experience with the creatures, but an assumption is just an assumption, after all.]

I don't think we know enough to say for sure! I've been wanting to look into the history of these invasions myself, if I can get the natives to let me into the archives. This one obviously wasn't the first. But how organized are they? The monsters that made their way in through the cracks seemed pretty simple, but that doesn't mean they weren't controlled by someone else who had a purpose.

What say the natives?

[Did they have no comments to offer about what happened? If so, the archives seem increasingly to be the place they should all look. Magolor is a quick thinker, and quite sharp beneath his boisterous exterior.]

Not very much. Would you believe it?

[His tone, though, leaves unspoken that maybe it's not that hard to believe after all. The natives don't actually tell them very much.]

I expected a statement too, but we didn't get anything. Just a lot of very sincere thanks! Personally, I'd have appreciated both.

[No, they don't. It's an attitude with which Somnus is not unfamiliar, and so he doesn't expect the natives to change anytime soon. They're a stagnant people. The same probably holds true for the Council, but it won't hurt to ask Magolor for an update.]

You met with the Council before. Have you convened with them since?

Mmmmmmnn, not yet, but I'm working on that right now. I'd planned to do it more frequently, but with everything that happened . . . you know how it is. "I'll talk to them after we finish saving the city this time! I'll talk to them once I get over being sick!" Now that things have finally quieted down and I'm not bedridden, I'll get on it.

[He is genuinely annoyed that everything got bumped back so many times, even though he's aware that some of that was his fault and some wasn't. It's easy to fall into complacency here, or if not that, to be distracted by some other major happening draining everyone's energy. Magolor wonders not infrequently if all of that is deliberate.]

[Then he should've talked to them while sick, gosh. No matter. Magolor is doing the community a service, and there's no use in crying over spilled milk. Still, it isn't the wisest idea to have just one person doing this when people are known to vanish.]

If you require assistance in the future, I will provide it.

I'll make sure everyone knows if I do. So keep an eye out! This whole thing should be nothing if not transparent, right? And once I've got a good handle on things, I'll open up a base of operations and hire help if anyone else wants in. How's that?

[Another thing he'd planned to do much earlier, and now he'll need to build up the funds again, but it is what it is. He's not about to wallow.]

Opening a base of operations is no simple task. Do you intend to do it alone?

[Or perhaps he'll enlist the natives' aid. Either way, with Magolor's clinging to him like this, Somnus doesn't see work getting done.]

[Cuddling totally counts as work on a planet where you get paid for it! That's his story and he's sticking to it. It's a legit concern, too:]

I've done it before! Don't underestimate me! . . . Buuuut, it's more likely I'll get the funds and the commercial space and then put out feelers for anyone else interested. I don't want to put it all on myself either.

[Okay, he takes that back. Magolor is getting fine work done.

But nor should he want to put it all on himself. Leadership is difficult to maintain in a world where souls come and go. Not only that, spreading the responsibility will alleviate the burden on a single pair of shoulders. This is a wise course of action.

Somnus straightens.]

How much longer until your condition abates?

I'm making a good recovery! You're eager, huh? I can respect that. It's probably even more urgent for newer arrivals. I think us oldbies might have gotten a little more used to things than we should have.

[The fact is, he's entirely fine now. He hasn't been in the depths of the illness for a while, though it did linger for as long as the barrier was being repaired. But hey, no reason to own up to that in as many words.]

[Oldbies. They haven't been here very long, but Magolor isn't wrong about their overall acclimation to the city and world. Now he just wonders how much longer it'll be before the drink's effect wears off and Magolor returns to his baseline.]

I have yet to meet a new arrival. When do the gods summon them?

[He is so shameless about this cuddling and fascinated by the conversation that it could wear off at any moment and he might not even notice. A terrible fate for poor Somnus . . .

For now, he hums at the question. The pattern of arrivals is noticeable enough, but also not something he ever dwelt upon.]

They tend to show up at the beginning of the month! So keep an eye out around the temples then if you're looking to play welcome wagon.

[It's the fate he deserves.

He saw no new arrivals at the beginning of this month. Will they be arriving in the next, then?]

I visit the temples regularly. Knowing when to expect the newcomers' arrival will be beneficial.

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♥ December Event Log

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